Falsus in uno, Falsus in omnibus

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Falsus in uno, Falsus in omnibus

November 5, 2024
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To what degree does the endless and, frankly shameless, on-air fundraising by an organization with widely tolerated bias constitute de facto political fundraising for the Democratic Party? In Southeastern Michigan — in less than a 50 mile region — you can hear the same NPR “content” from six different universities: Ann Arbor, Ypsilanti, Toledo, Detroit, East Lansing, and Flint.

There has been some relatively recent legislative proposals to restore NPR to its original charter of cultural content (music, book reviews, agricultural information, etc.) but these proposals never moved beyond the relevant committee.



NPR CEO Katherine Maher was a no-show at the House Oversight Subcommittee Hearing

Related:

National Public Radio Inc | 2022 Tax Filing

National Public Radio | IRS 990 Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax

American Public Media Group | 2022 Tax Filing

“Hotseat heats up for NPR CEO Katherine Maher — and her life is the ultimate woke-elite bingo card”

National Public Radio follows guidelines and best practices when conducting fundraising campaigns, but they’re not so much strict “rules” as they are principles and standards upheld by NPR and its member stations. Here are some common practices and considerations:

  1. Transparency: NPR and its member stations are typically transparent about their funding needs and where the money goes. They often provide detailed breakdowns of their budgets and expenses.
  2. Ethical Solicitation: Fundraising efforts should be conducted ethically and in accordance with NPR’s values. This means avoiding misleading tactics and being honest about the need for funding.
  3. Listener Support: NPR often emphasizes the importance of listener support in funding their programming. They encourage individuals to contribute at various levels, often with incentives like member benefits.
  4. Corporate Sponsorship: NPR also receives funding from corporate sponsors, “but they are careful to maintain editorial independence.” Sponsored content is clearly labeled, and NPR maintains strict guidelines to ensure that sponsors do not influence editorial decisions.
  5. Member Stations: NPR member stations across the country conduct their own fundraising campaigns, often in conjunction with national NPR campaigns. These stations rely heavily on listener support and may have their own guidelines and practices.
  6. Regulatory Compliance: NPR and its member stations must comply with relevant laws and regulations governing fundraising, including those related to nonprofit organizations and broadcasting.
  7. Stewardship: NPR and its member stations typically prioritize stewardship of donor funds, ensuring that donations are used effectively and efficiently to support their mission and programming.

While there may not be hard and fast rules for NPR fundraising, adherence to these principles helps maintain trust with listeners and supporters.

Swarthmore College Pennsylvania

 

To become a National Public Radio (NPR) member station or broadcaster, certain criteria must be met. NPR is a mission-driven organization that partners with independently owned and operated public radio stations across the United States to deliver its programming. Here are the typical criteria for becoming an NPR member station:

  1. Nonprofit Status: NPR member stations must be nonprofit organizations, often affiliated with universities, community organizations, or governmental bodies.
  2. Broadcast License: Stations must hold a valid broadcast license issued by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in the United States. This license authorizes the station to broadcast on a specific frequency within a designated geographic area.
  3. Commitment to NPR’s Mission: Member stations are expected to share NPR’s mission of providing high-quality, non-commercial programming that serves the public interest. This includes delivering news, cultural content, and educational programming to their local communities.
  4. Financial Stability: Stations must demonstrate financial stability and viability to ensure they can fulfill their commitments to NPR and their local communities over the long term.
  5. Technical Requirements: Stations must meet certain technical requirements to ensure they can receive and broadcast NPR programming effectively. This includes having appropriate transmission equipment and meeting FCC regulations for broadcast quality and coverage.
  6. Membership Dues: Member stations are required to pay annual membership dues to NPR, which help support NPR’s operations and programming.
  7. Compliance with NPR Policies: Stations must adhere to NPR’s policies and guidelines regarding programming standards, ethics, and editorial independence.
  8. Community Engagement: NPR values stations that are actively engaged with their local communities, including through outreach, events, and partnerships with local organizations.
  9. Programming Commitment: Member stations are expected to broadcast a significant portion of NPR programming, including flagship shows like “Morning Edition” and “All Things Considered,” as well as other NPR-produced content.
  10. Commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion: NPR values diversity in its member stations and encourages stations to reflect the diversity of their communities in their programming and staffing.

Overall, becoming an NPR member station involves a combination of legal, financial, technical, and cultural considerations, all aimed at supporting NPR’s mission of providing high-quality public radio programming to audiences across the United States.

A significant portion of NPR member stations are associated with universities or colleges. These stations are often operated by the educational institution’s media departments or affiliated broadcasting organizations. They serve as valuable training grounds for students studying journalism, communications, broadcasting, and related fields.

While the exact number of NPR member stations associated with universities or colleges may vary over time, it’s safe to say that a substantial portion of the network falls into this category. Many universities and colleges across the United States operate their own radio stations, and a portion of these stations choose to affiliate with NPR to access its programming and resources.

Errors of omission, lost opportunities, are generally more critical than errors of commission. Organizations fail or decline more frequently because of what they did not do than because of what they did. - Russell L. Ackoff

Related:

Radio Transmission Power & Frequency Allocation

Pew Research Center: Public Broadcasting Fact Sheet

Urban Dictionary: Affluent White Female Liberal

NPR names Katherine Maher President and CEO

Tucker Carlson: Radicalized NPR on verge of destroying itself

Congresswoman Tenney Moves to Defund NPR

Outrageous bias in the media: NPR “National Public Radio “

 National Center for Charitable Statistics

H.R. 3410 Prohibit Federal funding of National Public Radio

“A half truth is a whole lie” — Yiddish proverb

Can Voters Detect Malicious Manipulation of Ballot Marking Devices?

November 5, 2024
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Can Voters Detect Malicious Manipulation of Ballot Marking Devices?

Matthew Bernhard, et. al

University of Michigan

 

Abstract:  Ballot marking devices (BMDs) allow voters to select candidates on a computer kiosk, which prints a paper ballot that the voter can review before inserting it into a scanner to be tabulated. Unlike paperless voting machines, BMDs provide voters an opportunity to verify an auditable physical record of their choices, and a growing number of U.S. jurisdictions are adopting them for all voters. However, the security of BMDs depends on how reliably voters notice and correct any adversarially induced errors on their printed ballots. In order to measure voters’ error detection abilities, we conducted a large study (N = 241) in a realistic polling place setting using real voting machines that we modified to introduce an error into each printout. Without intervention, only 40% of participants reviewed their printed ballots at all, and only 6.6% told a poll worker something was wrong. We also find that carefully designed interventions can improve verification performance. Verbally instructing voters to review the printouts and providing a written slate of candidates for whom to vote both significantly increased review and reporting rates-although the improvements may not be large enough to provide strong security in close elections, especially when BMDs are used by all voters. Based on these findings, we make several evidence-based recommendations to help better defend BMD-based elections.

 

IEEE provides this article for public use without charge.

Gallery: School Bond Referenda (August & November Ballots)

November 5, 2024
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In terms of total spend, the US elementary and secondary school industry is about twice the size of the higher education industry according to IBISWorld. About $100 billion is in play every year for both (which we cover during our Ædificare colloquia); with higher education spending only half of what elementary and secondary school systems spend on facilities.

Note that some districts are including construction for faculty housing.

Our focus remains on applying global standard to create educational settlements that are safer, simpler, lower-cost and longer-lasting — not on the hurly-burly of local school bond elections.  We recommend consulting the coverage in American School & University for more detailed and more timely information.

Solidity

November 5, 2024
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Solidity is a high-level, statically-typed programming language used for developing smart contracts on the Ethereum blockchain. Smart contracts are self-executing contracts with the terms of the agreement between buyer and seller written directly into lines of code. Solidity was specifically designed for the Ethereum platform, and it is the most widely used language for creating Ethereum-based smart contracts.

The code below shows how delegated voting can be done so that vote counting is automatic and completely transparent at the same time.

Photograph by Carol M. Highsmith. Library of Congress,

pragma solidity ^0.7.0;

/// @title Voting with delegation.
contract Ballot {
    // This declares a new complex type which will
    // be used for variables later.
    // It will represent a single voter.
    struct Voter {
        uint weight; // weight is accumulated by delegation
        bool voted;  // if true, that person already voted
        address delegate; // person delegated to
        uint vote;   // index of the voted proposal
    }

    // This is a type for a single proposal.
    struct Proposal {
        bytes32 name;   // short name (up to 32 bytes)
        uint voteCount; // number of accumulated votes
    }

    address public chairperson;

    // This declares a state variable that
    // stores a `Voter` struct for each possible address.
    mapping(address => Voter) public voters;

    // A dynamically-sized array of `Proposal` structs.
    Proposal[] public proposals;

    /// Create a new ballot to choose one of `proposalNames`.
    constructor(bytes32[] memory proposalNames) {
        chairperson = msg.sender;
        voters[chairperson].weight = 1;

        // For each of the provided proposal names,
        // create a new proposal object and add it
        // to the end of the array.
        for (uint i = 0; i < proposalNames.length; i++) {
            // `Proposal({...})` creates a temporary
            // Proposal object and `proposals.push(...)`
            // appends it to the end of `proposals`.
            proposals.push(Proposal({
                name: proposalNames[i],
                voteCount: 0
            }));
        }
    }

    // Give `voter` the right to vote on this ballot.
    // May only be called by `chairperson`.
    function giveRightToVote(address voter) public {
        // If the first argument of `require` evaluates
        // to `false`, execution terminates and all
        // changes to the state and to Ether balances
        // are reverted.
        // This used to consume all gas in old EVM versions, but
        // not anymore.
        // It is often a good idea to use `require` to check if
        // functions are called correctly.
        // As a second argument, you can also provide an
        // explanation about what went wrong.
        require(
            msg.sender == chairperson,
            "Only chairperson can give right to vote."
        );
        require(
            !voters[voter].voted,
            "The voter already voted."
        );
        require(voters[voter].weight == 0);
        voters[voter].weight = 1;
    }

    /// Delegate your vote to the voter `to`.
    function delegate(address to) public {
        // assigns reference
        Voter storage sender = voters[msg.sender];
        require(!sender.voted, "You already voted.");

        require(to != msg.sender, "Self-delegation is disallowed.");

        // Forward the delegation as long as
        // `to` also delegated.
        // In general, such loops are very dangerous,
        // because if they run too long, they might
        // need more gas than is available in a block.
        // In this case, the delegation will not be executed,
        // but in other situations, such loops might
        // cause a contract to get "stuck" completely.
        while (voters[to].delegate != address(0)) {
            to = voters[to].delegate;

            // We found a loop in the delegation, not allowed.
            require(to != msg.sender, "Found loop in delegation.");
        }

        // Since `sender` is a reference, this
        // modifies `voters[msg.sender].voted`
        sender.voted = true;
        sender.delegate = to;
        Voter storage delegate_ = voters[to];
        if (delegate_.voted) {
            // If the delegate already voted,
            // directly add to the number of votes
            proposals[delegate_.vote].voteCount += sender.weight;
        } else {
            // If the delegate did not vote yet,
            // add to her weight.
            delegate_.weight += sender.weight;
        }
    }

    /// Give your vote (including votes delegated to you)
    /// to proposal `proposals[proposal].name`.
    function vote(uint proposal) public {
        Voter storage sender = voters[msg.sender];
        require(sender.weight != 0, "Has no right to vote");
        require(!sender.voted, "Already voted.");
        sender.voted = true;
        sender.vote = proposal;

        // If `proposal` is out of the range of the array,
        // this will throw automatically and revert all
        // changes.
        proposals[proposal].voteCount += sender.weight;
    }

    /// @dev Computes the winning proposal taking all
    /// previous votes into account.
    function winningProposal() public view
            returns (uint winningProposal_)
    {
        uint winningVoteCount = 0;
        for (uint p = 0; p < proposals.length; p++) {
            if (proposals[p].voteCount > winningVoteCount) {
                winningVoteCount = proposals[p].voteCount;
                winningProposal_ = p;
            }
        }
    }

    // Calls winningProposal() function to get the index
    // of the winner contained in the proposals array and then
    // returns the name of the winner
    function winnerName() public view
            returns (bytes32 winnerName_)
    {
        winnerName_ = proposals[winningProposal()].name;
    }
}

Tax-Free Bonds

November 4, 2024
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Perspective:

In the November 2022 elections, a significant number of school bond referenda were presented to voters across the United States. For example, in Wisconsin alone, there were 57 successful capital referenda amounting to nearly $2.1 billion in authorized debt​ (Wisconsin Policy Forum)

In Texas, Central Texas schools had a total of $4.24 billion in bonds on the ballot, covering various propositions for school facilities, technology improvements, and athletic facilities​ (Fox 7 Austin)

In California and Arkansas, bond measures totaling $74 million — including school choice — were aimed at addressing school facility improvements​ (The74Million)

Voters in 16 North Carolina counties approved bond issues totaling $4.27 billion, with $3.08 billion dedicated to K-12 public school construction and improvements​ (EducationNC)

 

“The cure for high prices, is high prices” — They say.

Today we explore fiscal runaway in the US education “industry” with particular interest in the financing instruments for building the real assets that are the beating heart of culture in neighborhoods, cities, counties and states.  We steer clear of social and political issues.

August & November 2024 Local & National Election Referenda

The marketing of these projects — and how the loans are paid off — provides insight into the costs and benefits of this $100+ billion industry; the largest non-residential building construction market in the United States.

Educational Settlement Finance

We cannot do much to stop the hyperbolically rising cost of administrative functionaries but we can force the incumbents we describe in our ABOUT to work a little harder to reduce un-used (or un-useable) space and reduce maintenance cost.  Sometimes simple questions result in obvious answers that result in significant savings.

More recently hybrid teaching and learning space, owing the the circumstances of the pandemic, opens new possibilities for placing downward pressure on cost.

 

Election Day: Tuesday, February 14, 2023

2023 School Bond Prospectus

Gallery: School Bond Referenda (August & November Ballots)

Regulation or Money-Laundering?

After Architect-Engineers and Building Construction Contractors (many of whom finance election advocacy enterprises) the following organizations are involved in placing a bond on the open market:

  1. School Districts: Individual school districts issue bonds to fund construction or renovation of school facilities, purchase equipment, or cover other educational expenses. Each school district is responsible for managing its own bond issuances.
  2. Colleges and Universities: Higher education institutions, such as universities and colleges, issue bonds to finance campus expansions, construction of new academic buildings, dormitories, research facilities, and other capital projects.
  3. State-Level Agencies: Many states have agencies responsible for overseeing and coordinating bond issuances for schools and universities. These agencies may facilitate bond sales, help ensure compliance with state regulations, and provide financial assistance to educational institutions.
  4. Municipal Finance Authorities: Municipal finance authorities at the state or local level often play a role in facilitating bond transactions for educational entities. They may act as intermediaries in the bond issuance process.
  5. Investment Banks and Underwriters: Investment banks and underwriters assist educational institutions in structuring and selling their bonds to investors. They help determine bond terms, market the bonds, and manage the offering.
  6. Bond Counsel: Bond counsel, typically law firms, provide legal advice to educational institutions on bond issuances. They help ensure that the bond issuance complies with all legal requirements and regulations.
  7. Rating Agencies: Rating agencies, such as Moody’s, Standard & Poor’s, and Fitch Ratings, assess the creditworthiness of the bonds and assign credit ratings. These ratings influence the interest rates at which the bonds can be issued.
  8. Investors: Various institutional and individual investors, including mutual funds, pension funds, and individual bond buyers, purchase school and university bonds as part of their investment portfolios.
  9. Financial Advisors: Financial advisory firms provide guidance to educational institutions on bond issuances, helping them make informed financial decisions related to borrowing and debt management.
  10. Regulatory Authorities: Federal and state regulatory authorities, such as the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and state-specific agencies, oversee and regulate the issuance of bonds to ensure compliance with securities laws and financial regulations.

These organizations collectively contribute to the process of issuing, selling, and managing school and university bonds in the United States, allowing educational institutions to raise the necessary funds for their capital projects and operations. The specific entities involved may vary depending on the size and location of the educational institution and the nature of the bond issuance.

Bond issuances affect local property values.

Lights Out

 

Ædificare

November 4, 2024
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United States: Schools of Architecture

The Financial Impact of Architectural Design: Balancing Aesthetics and Budget in Modern Construction

Birmingham Public Schools Bond Construction Photos

LIVE

Homeschooling

2021 International Existing Building Code 

New from American School & University:

Lehman College: Nursing Education, Research and Practice Center 

Vincennes University breaks ground on $33.9 million health sciences center

$40 million arena renovation planned at Furman University

Colgate University is building apartments geared for faculty and staff

“Architect at his drawing board” 1893 Teknisk Ukeblad Norway

As reported by the US Department of Commerce Census Bureau the value of construction put in place by April 2023 by the US education industry proceeded at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $110.168 billion.  This number does not include renovation for projects under 50,000 square feet and new construction in university-affiliated health care delivery enterprises.   Reports are released two months after calendar month.  The complete report is available at the link below:

MONTHLY CONSTRUCTION SPENDING, August 2024 (Released two months after calendar month)

This spend makes the US education facilities industry (which includes colleges, universities, technical/vocational and K-12 schools, most university-affiliated medical research and healthcare delivery enterprises, etc.) the largest non-residential building construction market in the United States after commercial property; and fairly close.  For perspective consider total public + private construction ranked according to the tabulation most recently released:

$127.073 billion| Education Facilities

$145.446 billion | Power

$66.742 billion | Healthcare

Keep in mind that inflation figures into the elevated dollar figures.  Overall — including construction, energy, custodial services, furnishings, security. etc., — the non-instructional spend plus the construction spend of the US education facilities is running at a rate of about $300 – $500 billion per year.

Construction cameras at US schools, colleges and universities

We typically pick through the new data set; looking for clues relevant to real asset spend decisions.  Finally, we encourage the education facilities industry to contribute to the accuracy of these monthly reports by responding the US Census Bureau’s data gathering contractors.

Reconstruction of Ancient Agora

 

As surely as people are born, grow wealthy and die with extra cash,

there will be a home for that cash to sustain their memory and to steer

the cultural heritage of the next generation in beautiful settings.

More

National Center for Educational Statistics

AIA: Billings Index shows but remains strong May 2022

National Center for Education Statistics

Sightlines: Capital Investment College Facilities

OxBlue: Time-Lapse Construction Cameras for Education

Architectural Billing Index

IBISWorld Education Sector

US Census Bureau Form F-33 Survey of School System Finances

American School & University

 

Carnegie Classifications

Educational Settlement Finance

November 4, 2024
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Giovanni Paolo Panini, An architectural capriccio with figures among Roman ruins

The post-pandemic #WiseCampus transformation requires significant capital to meet the sustainability goals of its leadership.  Campuses are cities-within-cities and are, to a fair degree, financed in a similar fashion.  Tax-free bonds are an effective instrument for school districts, colleges and universities — and the host community in which they are nested — for raising capital for infrastructure projects while also providing investors with, say $10,000 to $100,000, to allocate toward a tax-free dividend income stream that produces a return in the range of 2 to 8 percent annually.

An aging population may be receptive to investment opportunities that protect their retirement savings from taxation.

Once a month, we walk through the prospectuses of one or two bond offerings of school districts, colleges and universities and examine offering specifics regarding infrastructure construction, operations and maintenance.  We pay particular attention to details regarding “continuing operations”. Somehow the education industry has to pay for its green agenda.  See our CALENDAR for the next Finance colloquium; open to everyone.

The interactive map provided by Electronic Municipal Market Access identifies state-by-state listings of tax-free bonds that contribute to the construction and operation of education facilities; some of which involved university-affiliated medical research and healthcare delivery enterprises.

CLICK ON IMAGE FOR INTERACTIVE MAP

 

If you need help cutting through this list please feel free to click in any day at 11 AM Eastern time.  Use the login credentials at the upper right of our hope page.  We collaborate with subject matter experts at Municipal Analytics and UBS.

Issue: [Various]

Category: Administration & Management, Finance, #SmartCampus

Colleagues: Mike Anthony, John Kaczor, Liberty Ziegahn

*We see the pandemic as a driver for a step-reduction in cost in all dimensions of education communities.  We coined the term with a hashtag about two years ago.

*College and university infrastructure projects are classified with public school districts under the rubric “municipal bonds” at the moment.  CLICK HERE for more information.

 

More:

Duke Law Review:  Don’t ‘Screw Joe the Plummer’: The Sausage-Making of Financial Reform

An Expanded Study of School Bond Elections in Michigan

FASB | Revenue Recognition for Grants

November 4, 2024
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“The Attributes of the Arts and the Rewards Which Are Accorded Them” | Jean Baptiste Siméon Chardin (1766)

We follow a suite of standards developed by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) — among them, documents that discover and recommend best financial management practice for not-for-profit organizations common in almost all of the US education industry.  At the moment we do not advocate assertively in the FASB suite but we do follow the action as it pertains to the education industry and the activity of the many education industry trade associations whose advocacy activity we do follow.   

Current Standardization Projects

Stakeholders in the US education industry are encouraged to communicate directly with the FASB on any issue:  Accounting Standards Updates Issued 

The FASB suite is a standing item on our colloquia covering education industry accounting practice generally and grant and construction project accounting specifically.

Issue: [17-350]

Category: Finance

Related:

Consortia v. Ad Hoc, v. de Facto standard development platform comparisons 

http://www.fasb.org/academics

Upcoming Meetings

 

Evensong “Notre Prière”

November 3, 2024
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Ping Voices

Carnegie Mellon University School of Music


Standards Pennsylvania

 

Standard Daylight Saving Time

November 3, 2024
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Daylight Saving Time Rules

In the United States, the difference between Standard Time and Daylight Saving Time (DST) is primarily related to the adjustment of the clocks to make better use of daylight during certain periods of the year. Here’s a breakdown:

Standard Time

  • Definition: Standard Time refers to the time zones as defined without any adjustments for daylight saving.
  • Time Zones: The U.S. is divided into several time zones including Eastern Standard Time (EST), Central Standard Time (CST), Mountain Standard Time (MST), and Pacific Standard Time (PST).
  • Usage Period: Typically observed from the first Sunday in November to the second Sunday in March.

    Indiana University | Monroe County

Daylight Saving Time (DST)

  • Definition: Daylight Saving Time involves setting the clock forward by one hour from Standard Time to extend evening daylight.
  • Adjustment: During DST, time zones are referred to as Eastern Daylight Time (EDT), Central Daylight Time (CDT), Mountain Daylight Time (MDT), and Pacific Daylight Time (PDT).
  • Usage Period: Generally observed from the second Sunday in March to the first Sunday in November.
  • Purpose: The main goal is to make better use of daylight during the longer days of spring, summer, and early fall, thereby conserving energy and allowing for more daylight in the evening hours.
https://youtu.be/bgcZjADSRTk?si=mwbvNFphUOSbKkHG

University of Wisconsin Eau Claire

Key Differences

  • Clock Adjustment: Clocks are set forward by one hour in the spring for DST and set back by one hour in the fall when reverting to Standard Time.
  • Impact on Time: During DST, the time is one hour ahead of Standard Time. For example, when it is 2 PM EST (Standard Time), it would be 3 PM EDT (Daylight Saving Time).
  • Daylight Utilization: DST provides an extra hour of daylight in the evening, which can be beneficial for activities after work or school and can help reduce electricity usage.

Example

  • Eastern Standard Time (EST): If it is 12:00 PM (noon) EST in New York during the winter, it is 12:00 PM.
  • Eastern Daylight Time (EDT): If it is 12:00 PM (noon) in New York during the summer, the actual solar time is 11:00 AM, but the clock shows 12:00 PM due to the one-hour forward adjustment for DST.

Campus Clocks

 

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