Maria Pea is an accomplished scholar. She holds two masters degrees one in rehabilitation counseling and the other in higher education and she is pursuing a doctoral degree in psychology.

But her credentials belie a lifelong struggle with ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder), a learning disability she has spent years confronting and helping others overcome.

Pea, associate director of the Disability Resources Center on campus, now works with students with disabilities, physical and neurological, who need academic accommodations to help them achieve grades that are indicative of their abilities, not their disabilities.

And she is one of a growing number of UNLV faculty members making strides to introduce or improve best teaching practices for diversity and inclusion in the classroom.

This is a new area of research in the country, said Barbee Oakes, UNLVs chief diversity officer. As one of the most diverse campuses in the country, this is one of the greatest gifts we can give the whole field of higher education getting faculty together to study and develop best practices to help our students overcome any barriers to their academic success.

Pea recently completed a scholarly review of available research on creating courses that are universally accessible to students with different learning styles.

What the research shows is that in higher education, we need to focus on helping students develop critical thinking skills, Pea said. And when it comes to students with different learning abilities, we have to offer more than one way to approach the subject or skill, and give students more than one way to demonstrate or apply the concept.

Results of her review will be among the 35 presentations in this years Best Teaching Practices Expo. The two-day event started yesterday. Today it will feature a series of workshops in the new Faculty Center on the second floor of Beam Hall.

This event really highlights great ideas across disciplines from really fantastic faculty, said Melissa Bowles-Terry, associate director of the Faculty Center. It is a great place for faculty to get new ideas for their own practice. There is a lot of information this year on diversity and inclusion, but there are also great presentations on confidence-building, interactive learning, and problem-solving.

Poster presentation submissions were reviewed by a committee to ensure that the teaching practice described is:

University Libraries each year publishes expo posters electronically to an institutional repository, Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL), which also serves as an incubator for peer-reviewed publications by faculty, staff, and students.

Alison Sloat, who teaches the first-year seminar for science, is presenting a practice called the Identity Prism, which she and an interdisciplinary group of faculty developed to help first-year students adapt to college life.

The practice was designed especially to help students from underrepresented groups or who are the first in their families to attend college, but it is helpful for all first-year students, Sloat said. The concept for the practice sprung from what the group learned during a two-day Educational Equity Institute put on in August by UNLVs Faculty Center in partnership with undergraduate education, online education, and the office of diversity initiatives.

A lot of the research shows that first-generation college students and minorities often feel alone or feel like theyre not a part of campus culture when they first get to college, Sloat said. The identity prism provides a classroom exercise where students can learn from each other in a way that builds community.

On the first day of class, Sloat asked the students to independently fill out the prism of information, such as their major, something about their life outside the class, their academic goals, strengths, something about their identity, and finally, a fear or anxiety they have about college. Then, they paired up with a partner and shared one aspect of their prism to see what they might have in common. She also shared her identity prism with the class.

In gauging the success of this practice, Sloat conducted the exercise in four sections, which included 88 students. She found that 66 percent of students reported they felt anxious about failing, not belonging, and being first in their family to attend college. In doing the exercise, the students had an opportunity to think, pair, share, and realize they are not alone either they found others who belonged to similar affinity groups or shared the same fears or academic goals.

While more research can be done on the efficacy of this practice, Sloat said it appears to have had a positive effect. At the end of the semester, she found 4 percent fewer students failed her first-year seminar compared with the year before. And, she received positive feedback from students.

Meanwhile, Karyn Holt is presenting on how the practice of using closed captions to help deaf students is beneficial to all students. Holt, who is retired from the U.S. Air Force, teaches evidence-based practice in the School of Nursing and is a nurse-midwife.

Holts presentation shows students in her online courses use the tool to their advantage, regardless of any disability.

What it showed me is that in creating classes that are universally designed for learning, all students will benefit, she said, noting that several of her students shared how the tool has helped them stay on track and overcome challenges related to access rather than their learning abilities.

One student said she uses the closed captions to keep up with lectures while she commutes in the quiet car on the Amtrak train, Holt said. Another said her husband had been annoyed by her listening to lectures while he watched TV, so using the closed captions gave her more time to do homework while he watched TV.

Other students for whom English is not their native language reported the closed captions helped them understand what was said by reinforcing the material because they could hear it and read it, she said.

In addition to her poster, Holt will be showcasing one other tool that could be the wave of the future. Rather than presenting in person, she will be presenting as a robot controlled remotely from her home office in Alaska.

Ill probably be the only robot there, she said.

See the rest here:
UNLV Faculty Focus on Best Teaching Practices for Diversity and Inclusion - UNLV NewsCenter

The North Carolina Associate of Educators (NCAE), a state affiliate of the national teachers union (NEA), is surveying its membership of school employees to determine how many days they are willing to miss work (strike) to pressure the legislature to increase teacher pay and increase Medicaid funding. The survey is being administered by the NCAEs 2020 Racial and Social Justice Caucus.

The efforts to promote a strike of North Carolina teachers and school employees is more evidence that the states public education system has become a key player in political gamesmanship- a sad reflection on how little value certain education professionals and political leaders put on education. Its more about promoting a political agenda based on money and influence and less about education.

Mark Jewell, NCAE president, seeking to justify the survey, stated, Educators are understandably frustrated by the decade of disrespect and marginalization they have received from lawmakers, and we will consider all that is necessary to make a positive impact for public schools and all of those who serve in them.

Mr. Jewells argument fails to acknowledge that in just the past five years, N.C. teachers have received a combined cumulative 23.6 per cent pay raise. This year alone the legislature attempted to provide a 3.9 per cent raise over a two-year period, but was stymied by Governor Coopers veto. The Governor wanted to expand Medicaid and add a five per cent raise for teachers without a serious consideration of the impact on the taxpayers.

The NCAE president further misses the mark because the survey promotes the idea of breaking a state law that prohibits strikes by teachers and public employees. And should teachers and school employees initiate a strike it will result in charges of a Class One misdemeanor and potential job loss.

Why then would an educational and political leader want to force the hand of the legislature knowing that pay raises are waiting should the Governor rescind his veto, and in the process jeopardize the job opportunities for the very people the organization is seeking to support? The answer is simple- its about political change in legislative leadership, not about students, teachers and the education system.

Mr. Jewell and the NCAE are doing the bidding of the Governor and Democrat leaders in trying to find martyrs who can be used for political messages. The effort has nothing to do with education - its purely politics, but unfortunately for the NCAE it will fail.

The facts dont support the arguments but additionally, the number of union members no long support the threat. According to a recent NC Civitas report, membership in the NCAE declined 6 per cent the previous two years to just 28,725 members. This is part of a growing nationwide trend of declining teacher union membership across the country.

There is another political calculus that needs to be considered and that is the growing frustration that parents and taxpayers are experiencing with the education environment. Across the state educational alternatives are being considered by parents and children, such as public charter schools, private schools and homeschooling. Parents and communities are quickly assessing the value of the public education system and are finding very viable and successful alternatives.

If Mr. Jewell and the NCAE prefer political action over education as the current survey indicates then public schools will suffer as parents pursue other options.

Excerpt from:
Proposed teacher strike will fail public education | Editorials - Carolinacoastonline

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Online Higher Education Market 2020 By End-user, Industry Growth, Type, Trends, Cost, Demand and Applications with Forecast 2026 - Expedition 99

After eight years of supporting Ardmore students who may not have found traditional avenues for school effective, the Second Chance Academy has been dissolved. Ardmore City Schools Superintendent Kim Holland said the program has been outgrown by the district.

Were reorganizing because weve got more kids than we can serve, Holland said after Mondays Board of Education meeting. Its evolving into a program we think will serve more kids. He said staff will continue working with Second Chance students through the end of the current school year, but other personnel was reassigned to other parts of the district as part of Mondays vote.

The academy was formed in the summer of 2012 at the First Christian Church in Ardmore. Due to unmet building requirements, the program then moved to Charles Evans Elementary. By 2018, Second Chance Academy had taken over portable buildings that once housed University Center of Southern Oklahoma classes. The academy would help about 75 students each year, but Holland hopes the new program can serve up to 250 students each year.

We think were going to be able to give kids more attention, more services with this new format, Holland said.

Unlike Take Two Academy, which assists high school students who may be missing credits needed to graduate, Second Chance Academy targeted students who have been removed from the classroom for disciplinary reasons, or students that cannot participate in traditional classrooms for medical reasons. Holland said the mission of the new program will still focus on these students along with over-aged eighth graders.

We need to go ahead and get them into a program like this so they can catch up and get back on their grade level before they get to high school, he said.

Second Chance currently provides two full-time teachers, two social workers, and one special education teacher. Staff evaluates students each week to ensure students are keeping up with the curriculum. Holland said the new program will use scheduled meetings between teachers and students, either to provide more personalized instruction or to distance students from people or situations that cause problems.

Aside from disciplinary reasons, Holland hopes students with medical conditions can also receive personalized instruction. Weve got kids that are, healthwise fragile and cant succeed in a regular school situation. They now have more freedom to work with individuals outside of the school setting, he said.

Holland admitted that the new program is still being developed and is currently without a proper name, but knows the ultimate goal is to keep students from falling through the cracks.

Right now its just a good idea, well see how it works out, he said.

In other business, the board:

approved fundraiser requests for the Jefferson PTO, AHS FCCLA;

approved rental agreement with Heritage Hall for March 17 Powwow;

approved agreements with Jam Down Sound and Music Mix for the AHS Prom;

approved an agreement with Take Two Alternative Education Services of Southern Oklahoma, Inc. for alternative education services for 2019-2020;

approved an agreement with AirMedCare Network B2C Annual Athletic Site Membership, with $920 in dues paid for by Lexy Thompson;

canceled school on May 15 for the Class 5A and 6A State Track Meet at Noble Stadium;

received gifts from students across the district for a board appreciation event.

Read the rest here:
Alternative avenues for education: Ardmore school board votes to end Second Chance Academy, replace it with online tools, individualized lessons -...

Fauquier Excellence in Education Foundation can now accept online donations to support after-prom events for Fauquier, Kettle Run and Liberty high schools and the graduation celebration at Southeastern Alternative School.

In a news release, the foundation said it is proud to support the free teen-appropriate [that] parties provide entertainment, food, drinks and prizes for students to enjoy post-prom and to support Southeastern Alternative School with its year-end graduation celebration.

Each school relies solely on donations to cover event costs, the news release said.

In an effort to make donating more convenient, the foundation is now accepting online donations.

New this year, the Foundation can accept online donations offering convenience for anyone wishing to donate with a credit card, the news release said.

Donors will be asked to select a school to support during the online checkout process. If no school is chosen, then donations will be shared equally among the four schools.

Donations can be made online atwww.fauquiereie.org.

Fauquier High Schools prom is Saturday, April 18, and Liberty and Kettle Run will both hold their proms on Saturday, April 25.

For more information contact: at Fauquier High School, Nancy Griffin-Bonnaire atngeebee@hotmail.com;at Kettle Run High School,Leslie Cox atLeslie.p.cox@comcast.net; at Liberty High School, Michelle Clark atlibertyhsap@gmail.com, and at Southeastern Alternative School, Shelly Neibauer atsneibauer@fcps1.org.

Fauquier Excellence in Education is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to creating, enriching and expanding educational opportunities for

Fauquier County Public Schools, teachers and students, according to the news release. Donations are tax-deductible.

More:
Fauquier Excellence In Education Foundation now accepting online donations to support after-prom and graduation events - Fauquier Times

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To work as a nurse in Montana, you must become a registered nurse (RN). To do so, you need to finish a minimum amount of schooling, gain on-the-job experience, and pass the NCLEX-RN.

But if you want to increase your chances of finding a high-paying job, the best thing to do is earn a bachelor's of science in nursing (BSN). A BSN leads to licensure as an RN, though nurses with a BSN earn nearly $30,000 more than RNs without a BSN.

Choosing the right program to become an RN and earn a BSN can impact your career, too. Better nursing schools often have connections with renowned hospitals, and these connections could help you land a job coming out of school.

Fortunately, Montana has plenty of nursing programs with great student outcomes.

Because nursing careers take different forms, the top 10 Montana nursing schools are ranked in no particular order.

City College of Montana State University Billings

Total In-State Tuition: $11,745 | Total Out-of-State Tuition: $18,020 | NCLEX Pass Rate: 91.89%

Traditional: Yes

Online: No

Accelerated: No

Bridge: No

The City College at Montana State University Billings offers programs that lead to high-employment fields, nursing included. However, anyone interested in a nursing degree won't have a BSN as an option -- instead, City College offers an associate of science in nursing (ASN). This two-year program is incredibly affordable, especially for in-state students. Also, with a high NCLEX pass rate for recent grads, this program is an excellent way to become an RN at a low cost. Graduates can always enter an RN-BSN bridge program after completing the ASN.

Montana State University

Annual In-State Tuition: $7,565 | Annual Out-of-State Tuition: $18,475 | NCLEX Pass Rate: 91.56%

Traditional: Yes

Online: No

Accelerated: Yes

Bridge: Yes

Based in Bozeman, Montana State University is home to nearly 17,000 students, only 7,800 of which are from MSU is also one of the most important public schools in Montana and offers the only generic BSN in the state. Aside from the traditional BSN, MSU has an accelerated BSN, master of science in nursing (MSN) and doctor of nursing practice (DNP). NCLEX pass rates for MSU grads are impressive, and any Montana residents interested in nursing can earn an excellent BSN at a low tuition cost.

Montana Technological University

Annual In-State Tuition: $7,440 | Annual Out-of-State Tuition: $22,500 | NCLEX Pass Rate: 100%

Traditional: Yes

Online: Yes

Accelerated: No

Bridge: Yes

Originally the Montana State School of Mines, Montana Tech has since absorbed multiple colleges and schools. Today, Montana Tech has a nursing program with two options for students: a traditional, four-year degree and an RN-BSN. The traditional BSN has incredible outcomes, and the past two years have seen every student pass the NCLEX on their first try. Current RNs can enroll in the RN-BSN and online program that can be finished in as little as a year. However, RN-BSN students must have an ASN.

University of Providence

Annual Tuition: $29,190 | NCLEX Pass Rate: N/A

Traditional: Yes

Online: Yes

Accelerated: No

Bridge: Yes

Based in Great Falls, University of Providence is a private, Catholic school. As a private school, all students are required to pay the same tuition rate, although many University of Providence students get some form of financial aid. University of Providence doesn't disclose the Division of Nursing NCLEX pass rates, but the program is well-respected. Students can enroll in the traditional BSN or an online RN-BSN. Current RNs enrolling in the RN-BSN completion program instead pay $483 per credit, making it an affordable program for nurses that just needs a few more credits.

Carroll College

Annual Tuition: $36,182 | NCLEX Pass Rate: 100%

Traditional: Yes

Online: No

Accelerated: No

Bridge: No

Consistently ranked as one of the top schools in the region, Carroll College is another Catholic school. Based in Helena, Carroll College is a bit more expensive than other schools on this list. However, students receive an average financial aid package of over $28,000, and the nursing program is well worth the cost. The 2018 class aced the NCLEX on their first try, and Carroll has a direct-entry option for students still in high school. An accelerated BSN is also available for students who already have a bachelor's degree, though this program hasn't yet received accreditation.

Helena College

Annual In-State Tuition: $3,440 | Annual Out-of-State Tuition: $9,400 | NCLEX Pass Rate: 93.94%

Traditional: Yes

Online: No

Accelerated: No

Bridge: Yes

With a small student to faculty ratio of 12:1 and an average class size of just 11 students, Helena College offers a focused education. The attention to students could be part of the reason every nursing program graduate who took the NCLEX passed on the first try (according to the school's 2019 data). While Helena College doesn't have a four-year program, students can enroll in the ASN, a two-year program that leads to NCLEX readiness and nursing licensure. Afterward, students can always choose one of the RN-BSN programs offered elsewhere in Montana.

Missoula College

Annual In-State Tuition: $7,948 | Annual Out-of-State Tuition: $14,434 | NCLEX Pass Rate: 85.19%

Traditional: Yes

Online: No

Accelerated: No

Bridge: Yes

Missoula College is a two-year college that only offers associate degrees, so nursing students won't be able to complete their BSN. However, the RN program only takes four semesters to complete and leads to RN licensure. Only 18 students are admitted to the RN program each semester, so admissions can be competitive. However, any students that get accepted can get an affordable two-year degree and follow up with an RN-BSN at another school.

Great Falls College

Annual In-State Tuition: $3,417 | Annual Out-of-State Tuition: $10,309 | NCLEX Pass Rate: 77.27%

Traditional: Yes

Online: No

Accelerated: No

Bridge: No

Founded in 1969 as a vocational school, Great Falls College is now one of the main two-year schools in Montana. Like every other two-year college in Montana, Great Falls College doesn't have a traditional BSN program. Instead, students complete an ASN and are prepared to sit for the NCLEX and become RNs. Completing an ASN satisfies prerequisites for an RN-BSN program, so this can be a fast route to becoming a nurse and earning a BSN later.

Montana State University Northern

Annual In-State Tuition: $5,955 | Annual Out-of-State Tuition: $18,664 | NCLEX Pass Rate: N/A

Traditional: Yes

Online: Yes

Accelerated: No

Bridge: Yes

With campuses in Havre and Great Falls (and an online campus), Montana State University Northern has perhaps the least traditional route to a BSN of any school in Montana. Earning a BSN consists of two steps: first nursing students need to complete the ASN. After, they can enroll in MSU Northern's RN-BSN, available both in-person and online. MSU Northern's recent NCLEX pass rates were officially 0% -- only one student took the exam -- but prior years had pass rates as has as 89.83%.

Salish Kootenai College

Annual In-State Tuition: $5,076 | Annual Out-of-State Tuition: $10,260 | NCLEX Pass Rate: 86.67%

Traditional: Yes

Online: No

Accelerated: No

Bridge: No

Salish Kootenai College is an incredibly small school with just 801 students currently enrolled. Despite the size, Salish Kootenai's Nursing Program graduates more Native American RNs than any other school. Currently, SKC only offers an ASN, though they're retiring the program to introduce a traditional four-year BSN. The new BSN program will begin accepting students in Spring 2020. It's also worth noting that Native American students and Native American descendants receive even lower tuition than in-state students.

Keep in mind that colleges and universities reserve the right to change tuition rates at any time. The yearly tuition rates listed here will vary for each student depending on various factors including,

Check with the specific school for current tuition rates.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS),

While the national mean wage for nurses is $75,510, Montana has a relatively low cost of living, so the lower wage extends further than in other states. Montana also has a higher mean wage than neighbors Idaho, Wyoming, North Dakota, and South Dakota.

According to the BLS, Montana has a location quotient of RNs of 1.07. Any number larger than 1 means that more nurses are employed per 1,000 workers than the national average. This data essentially means that Montana is a relatively high employer of nurses per capita.

With a national nursing shortage already affecting hospitals and healthcare facilities around the country, it's an encouraging sign that Montana employs more nurses than most other states.

After reviewing potential colleges and nursing programs, you'll probably be interested in a few options. Before jumping in and sending applications, here are some steps you'll want to follow to increase your chances of getting accepted into your program(s) of choice:

Contact each schools admissions offices. The admissions office runs admissions, and they can tell the difference between a good and subpar application. If you have any questions about what you need to do to get accepted to the school, contact the admissions office.

Check to see if you meet the nursing school requirements. Just because you've been accepted to a college doesn't mean you've been accepted into the nursing program. Get connected with someone working for the nursing program to find out any requirements.

Submit your application(s). Once you've learned more about each school's admissions process and gotten in touch with the nursing school, the final step is to gather your materials and submit your application(s).

In your application, be prepared to submit:

No two schools are alike, and you may find yourself struggling to pick between two (or more) schools. Fortunately, as long as each school is accredited, there is no "wrong" choice. Focus on picking the best school for your personal wants and needs.

Here are things to consider when comparing schools:

Accreditation is a way for colleges to verify their academic quality. The best accreditation a school can earn is regional accreditation, and the regionally accrediting body for Montana is the Western Association of Schools and Colleges. On top of regional accreditation, the best programs (including nursing programs) have programmatic accreditation.

The two nursing accreditation organizations to look for are

If you earn a degree from an unaccredited school, you may have trouble securing federal financial aid and finding work as a nurse after graduation.

Montana is part of the Enhanced Nursing Licensure Compact (eNLC), a group of states that have standardized licensure. This means that becoming licensed is relatively straightforward, so long as you studied at an accredited school.

Along with becoming NCLEX-RN eligible, you'll need to:

With plenty of mountains and wide-open spaces, there are few places in the U.S. like Montana. While the wages earned by nurses in Montana aren't the highest, the low cost of living and high employment rates make Montana a great place to enjoy a nursing career. There are plenty of quality nursing programs in Montana, and if you're from the state you can take advantage of in-state tuition. As part of the eNLC, licensed nurses in Montana can easily move to most other states.

Methodology

This is a panel-reviewed selection based on a number of factors including,

Nurse Panel

Our selection panel includes 4 Registered Nurses with over 55 years of combined nursing experience and 7 nursing degrees.

Read the original:
Education Top 10 Best Nursing Schools in Montana - Nurse.org

In this final segment of this years Barrons Roundtable, our remaining five panelists share and defend 32 promising investments for 2020.

The investment pros spend more than half of their daylong meeting each January proposing stocks, bonds, and funds that they believe will race ahead of the crowd or fall on their faces, and this year was no different. Our other five participants picks appeared last week.

Weighing in below is Mario Gabelli of Gamco Investors.

Mario, lets hear about your 2020 picks. How many picks do you have?

Gabelli: Nine. First, Im back to baseball: Liberty Braves Group (ticker: BATRA). The stock is at $29.70, with 60 million shares and a $1.8 billion market value. The Atlanta Braves finished with a 97-65 record last season, so theyve done well on the field. Secondly, Major League Baseball is examining the minor-league ownership rules, which should increase the value of their A, AA, and AAA teams. The third point is betting, which is going to keep the eyeballs focused on the gamemeaning more advertising and money for the league.

In addition to that, theyve got SunTrust Park [renamed Truist Park], which is doing extremely well. John Malone controls the voting stock, except for the 18% our clients own. He will exit at some point. The one tiny challenge is that they dont have the rights to the television network because they licensed that off.

What could the stock be worth?

Gabelli: I wont sell for less than $42.

Whats your second-favorite sport?

Gabelli: Basketball: Madison Square Garden (MSG). It recently closed at $300 per share, with under 24 million shares and $1 billion in net cash. Theres some financial engineering going on. Instead of spinning off the sports teams, the New York Knicks, the Rangers, and some other assets are staying in a RemainCo, and theyre spinning off all their entertainment businesses via a SpinCo, hopefully this quarter.

Forbes values the Knicks at over $4 billion. And you just had Joe Tsai from Alibaba buy a piece of the Netsand he paid a fairly significant amount of money.

What about the spun-off entertainment businesses?

Gabelli: Live entertainment and live tours are very popular. Madison Square Garden is a leading live-entertainment venue operator. But Im not going to recommend the SpinCo because theyre building the Sphere [performance center] in Las Vegas, which is going to be more expensive than I expected. And theyre duplicating it in London. So I need to see the economics of that more clearly. But you want to buy the RemainCo, which is the sports teams.

On to No. 3, Mario.

Mario Gabelli: Im going to pivot to a defense company: Aerojet Rocketdyne Holdings (AJRD). They make liquid-fuel, solid-fuel, air-breathing, and electric-propulsion enginesthe things that make rockets and missiles go up. The Russians, the Chinese, and the U.S. are all developing hypersonic missiles, which will make our existing missile-defense systems look like the Maginot Line. The Pentagon will have a budget this year of $738 billion, up from $716 billion. And the U.S. just created the Space Force.

What are Aerojets numbers?

Gabelli: There are 90 million diluted shares at $48, roughly $500 million of net cash, and some undervalued real estate assets. Revenues are $1.9 billion, with earnings of about $1.75 per share. Theyre down, but thats because certain products were phased out. We think their results can inch up next year. Lockheed Martin (LMT) is their best customer, and thats where hypersonics fit in. But space-launch systems are part of Aerojets expertise, and the key driver there is companies like Blue Origin and SpaceX.

Lets get back to Earth for your next pick.

[Foxs] quarter that ended in December might not be vibrant, but then results should just roar ahead. With all these politicians running for office and gathering money and spending it, this is going to be a tsunami year for TV broadcasters.

Gabelli: The next one is Fox (FOX), at $36 per share [Fox and Barrons parent company, News Corp, have common ownership]. They sold their entertainment assets to Walt Disney (DIS) since we talked about them last year. I went to their first investor conference in May, where they said theyre not going to do anything major. But theyve already done four acquisitions and a half-billion dollars in share buybacks. For example, they bought a majority stake in Credible Labs, which is a financial-technology company. They bought a position in TSG in Canada because of FOX Bet [an online gambling operation]. Theyre also putting money into WWE ; thats wrestling. Live sports and news are part of their DNA.

The quarter that just ended in December might not be vibrant, but then results should just roar ahead. With all these politicians running for office and gathering money and spending it, this is going to be a tsunami year for TV broadcasters. Buy the voting stock [Class B shares]. Youre getting it at a discount to the nonvoting stock, plus you get the vote. They can earn $3.50 per share for the year ending in June 2021.

What about another recent media mergers-and-acquisitions story, ViacomCBS (VIACA)?

Gabelli: That one has been very painful for the past four years. They finally merged on Dec. 4. Again, youve got to buy the voting stock. National AmusementsShari Redstoneowns 42 million of the 52 million shares, which sell at a $3 to $4 premium to the nonvoting shares. The whole company has a $24 billion equity value. Thats a tiny morsel for Apple [AAPL] or Amazon.com (AMZN) in the hunt for content. Their studio, Paramount, has 3,600 movie titles, and they have 140,000 TV episodes in their content library. They have NFL football. They have [CEO] Bob Bakish. Meanwhile, theyre becoming an arms dealer to all of the Peacocks, Hulus, Disney+s, and Netflixes of the world. My dream wish on this one is that Sony Pictures merges with Paramount. Lets create a content juggernaut.

In calendar 2020, we see $6.5 billion of Ebitda. Also, they are selling CBS Manhattan headquartersBlack Rock. Over the next five years, theyre going to generate about $30 billion of Ebitda. Capital expenditure is de minimislike $200 million a year. The result is significant cash flow, so they can spend $14 billion on new content and bolster their Pluto TV and other streaming properties.

Read the picksand pansfrom these panelists

Scott Black: They generate free cash flow, but theres no growth, Mario. Its all financial engineering. I dont see it. The companys impaired; it has been for a long time.

Gabelli: The stock has clearly reflected that.

Black: I agree its undervalued. But its a value trap.

Well leave that up to the market. What are your last picks, Mario?

Gabelli: My theme for the 2020s is saving planet Earth. An idea linked to that is Connecticut-based Avangrid (AGR), which trades at $50. They have a regulated utility business, and their $10 billion rate base is growing. So, well have a tailwind to earnings and a rising dividend. The second part is the renewables business; theyre a major factor in solar and wind. Iberdrola (IBE.Spain), the Spanish utility], owns over 250 million of the 310 million shares outstanding.

My seventh pick, NextEra Energy Partners (NEP), at $52, also represents a significant opportunity in renewables.

Two to go.

Gabelli: The next one makes a product that even my wife likes. Its called Aperol. Aperol spritzes are the big thing now, made by Davide Campari-Milano (CPR.Italy). Theyre selling at about eight euros. Aperol is about 20% of their revenues, Campari is 18%. They also have Wild Turkey, which is what got me interested in the company years ago. And they have extraordinarily competent management.

Finally, Swedish Match (SWMA.Sweden), at around 500 kronor. Its best known for making snus [smokeless, moist powdered tobacco] and (ZYN) nicotine pouches. Its simple. Theyre selling ZYN in more and more locations in the U.S., and growing fast. The only short-term challenge is that the Swedish krona has come down sharply, relative to the dollar, which means their significant revenues in the U.S. benefit. If the krona gets a little stronger, they lose some of that.

Thanks, Mario.

Write to Leslie P. Norton at leslie.norton@barrons.com

See more here:
Mario Gabelli Says Its Time to Invest in Stocks That Will Save the World. These Two Stocks Fit the Bill. - Barron's

What percentage of your income goes into Uncle Sams pocket?

Your answer will vary depending on how much you earn. Data shows that low and middle-income families pay a much greater share of their income towards state and local taxes than wealthy families.

Todays visualization uses data from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) to map the effective tax ratesor taxes paid as a share of family incomeacross income groups at the state and local level.

The data reflects the effect of tax changes enacted through September 10, 2018, using 2015 income levels (the latest year for available, detailed income data). Both single and married tax filers are included, while elderly taxpayers, dependent filers, and those with negative incomes are excluded.

Taxes Included The report includes the state and local taxes for all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Taxes are broken into 3 broad groups:

Federal taxes are not considered.

Editors note: Its worth noting that federal personal income tax has progressive rates, with the lowest earning bracket at 10% and the highest earning bracket at 37% in 2019. At a national level, property taxes are not charged and there is a very low reliance on excise taxesboth of which tend to be regressive as outlined below.

Income Included The report includes both taxable and tax-exempt income such as workers compensation benefits. It also includes estimates for the amount of unreported income.

Across the U.S., there is a wide disparity in how taxes affect different income groups. Heres how it all breaks down, ranked in order of tax system inequality:

Total State and Local Taxes As a Share of Income By State and Income Group

Washington has the most unequal tax burdens. Proportional to their income, Washington taxpayers in the bottom 20% pay almost 6x more than those in the top 1%.

At the other end of the scale, California has the most progressive tax system. As a share of their income, the states poorest families pay only 0.84x what the wealthiest families pay.

Overall, however, the vast majority of tax systems are regressive.

On average, the lowest 20% of income earners pay 1.54x more of their income in taxes compared to the top 1%.

Two main factors drive a tax systems (lack of) equality: how the state designs each tax, and the states reliance on different tax sources.

To better explain how this works, lets take a closer look at each type of tax.

These taxes apply only to spent income, and exempt saved income. Since families with a higher household income are able to save a much larger percentage of their income, and the poorest families can barely save at all, the tax is regressive by nature.

The particular types of items that are taxed affect fairness as well. Quite a few states include food in their sales tax base, and low-income families spend the majority of their income on groceries and other necessities.

Not only that, excise taxes are levied on a small subset of goods that typically have a practical per-person maximum. For example, one person can only use so much fuel. As a wealthy familys income increases, they generally do not continue to increase their spending on these goods.

States rely on these taxes more than any other tax source, which only exacerbates the problem.

For the average household, the home makes up the majority of their total wealthmeaning most of their wealth is taxed. However, the wealth composition of richer families skews much more heavily towards stock portfolios, business equity, and other assets, which are exempt from property taxes.

While these types of assets are subject to taxes like capital gains and dividends, the distinction is that these taxes are levied only on earned gains. In contrast, property taxes are owed simply as a result of owning the asset.

What about those who dont own homes? Landlords generally pass on the cost of property tax to renters in the form of higher rent. Since rent comprises a much higher share of expenses for poorer families, this makes property tax even more inequitable.

State income taxes are typically progressive. This means effective tax rates go up as income goes up. Heres how the U.S. averages break down:

However, certain policy choices can turn this on its head. Some states have a flat rate for all income levels, a lack of deductions and credits for low-income taxpayers, or tax loopholes that can be beneficial for wealthier income groups.

Nine states charge no income tax at all, garnering reputations as low tax statesbut this is true only for high-income families. In order to make up for the lost revenue, states rely more heavily on tax sources that disproportionately affect the lowest earners.

Evidently, states with personal income taxes have more equitable effective tax burdens.

Regressive state tax systems negatively impact the after-tax income of low and middle-income families. This means they have less to spend on daily expenses, or to save for the future.

Not only that, because wealthier families arent contributing a proportional share of tax dollars, state revenues grow more slowly.

For states looking to create a more equitable tax system, states with progressive systems offer some guidance:

By implementing such policies, governments may see more tax equalityand more tax dollars for programs and services.

Hat tip to reddit user prikhodkop, whose visualization introduced us to this data.

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How to Unlock the Return Potential in Factor Investing - Visual Capitalist

Kara Michelle Diamond and Andrew Nicholas Stahl were married Jan. 25 at the Brown Hotel in Louisville, Ky. Jeremy Crouthamel, a friend of the couple who became a Universal Life minister for the event, officiated.

The couple met at Columbia, from which they both received law degrees.

The bride, 34, is an investment funds associate in the New York office of Kirkland & Ellis, the Chicago law firm. She graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, from which she also received a masters degree in accounting.

She is a daughter of Sue Ann Diamond and Robert J. Diamond of Ponce Inlet, Fla. The brides father retired as a partner in Luckett & Farley, an architectural firm in Louisville. Her mother was a stay-at-home parent.

The groom, 31, is a litigation associate in the New York office of Sullivan & Cromwell. From August 2017 to August 2018, he served as a law clerk to Judge Jane R. Roth of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, with chambers in Philadelphia. He graduated from Georgetown.

He is the son of Marie D. Stahl and Gregory J. Stahl of Minoa, N.Y. The grooms mother is a pediatric nurse practitioner at a private pediatric practice in Cicero, N.Y. His father is a director of development for the College of Arts and Sciences at Georgetown University.

The couple met at a happy hour event that was part of an orientation at Columbia Law School in August 2012.

We talked for a couple of minutes, but I couldnt stay very long because I had tickets to a baseball game that night, Mr. Stahl said. But I had mentioned to a friend that I was definitely interested in Kara, and that there seemed to be a mutual attraction there.

Though they were in different sections of the law school and did not take any classes together, they occasionally heard about each other from mutual friends.

When Ms. Diamond happened to tell one of their more liberal friends that she liked Mr. Stahl and thought he was cute, the friend, who noted that Mr. Stahl dressed in a preppy and kind of conservative fashion, said hes in my section, and I think hes a Republican.

In March 2013, Ms. Diamond and Mr. Stahl reconnected at Columbias annual Public Interest Law Foundation gala. I saw him there and was really hoping he would come over, Ms. Diamond said. Even though we hadnt talked much since orientation, I thought he was so funny and smart and really nice, and I still liked him.

A few minutes later, Mr. Stahl was heading in her direction. We ended up talking for several hours and then went to an after-party together and talked some more, and by the next day, we were dating, he said.

They continued dating through law school graduation, and were established as a couple by the time they each began jobs at New York law firms in fall 2015.

In August 2016, Mr. Stahl temporarily moved to Philadelphia for the first of his two judicial clerkships (the first with Anita B. Brody, a District Court Judge for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania). Ms. Diamond remained in New York, and they began a two-year, long-distance relationship between New York and Philadelphia that included spending numerous Friday evenings and early Monday mornings on the Acela.

It wasnt easy, thats for sure, and sometimes very frustrating, Ms. Diamond said. But the joy of just knowing we were going to see each other on all of those weekends really helped get us through.

Here is the original post:
Invested in Each Other, and the Acela - The New York Times

On the surface, the growth story for exchange traded funds continues: The U.S. ETF business ended 2019 with $4.4 trillion in assets under management, a 30% increase from 2018, according to etf.com. The number of ETFs also increased 8%, to 2,302.

Thanks to the continuing growth of two hot trends environmental, social and governance, or ESG, and active management the growth will continue into 2020 and beyond, but not without challenges.

Here are five of the hottest topics at this year's Inside ETF conference:

1) ESG: It finally matters. 2019 was the first year investors stopped talking about environmental, social and governance investing and finally put some money into it. It's still small: ESG funds account for only $20.9 billion in ETF assets under management, or about 0.4% of the roughly $4.5 trillion the entire industry controls.

That will increase dramatically in 2020. Blackrock's Larry Fink wrote a passionate letter saying it was time to take climate change (and ESG) seriously, and it seems to have finally pushed the conversation over the top.

One problem: ESG is inherently un-scalable. "My ESG is not your ESG is not my neighbor's ESG," said Ben Johnson of Morningstar.

Even the Securities and Exchange Commission seems to agree: The agency has asked ESG providers for more information on how they define exactly what ESG is. One solution to the confusion may be direct indexing, which would allow individual investors to customize portfolios to meet whatever criteria they want.

2) More active management:Several mutual fund companies have applied for the right to convert existing actively managed funds into an ETF wrapper. Like their mutual fund counterparts, they will not disclose their holdings on a daily basis (hence "non-transparent"). The objections are obvious: if you are a crummy underperforming active mutual fund manager, you are not going to suddenly become successful if you switch to an ETF wrapper. You're still crummy.

Regardless, active managers still have followers, and if the better ones can switch to a lower cost, more tax efficient ETF wrapper, that will pull more money into the ETF space.

Expect American Century, T. Rowe Price and Legg Mason to be some of the first launches in 2020.

3) Thematic ETFs: What's the next pot craze? Everyone loves thematic investing, until they don't. Cannabis, cybersecurity, immunotherapy, blockchain, 5G, artificial intelligence, and even space exploration have been hot themes in the past. And then faded.

This tells us that the timing of these launches is critically important. Too early, and you could languish for a long time. Too late, and you miss meaningful asset growth over the early life of the fund.

Just don't count out the old favorites. "The cannabis industry isn't going away," Tom Lydon from ETFTrends.com said. "The cannabis ETFs and cannabis stocks are half-off what they were a year ago. As more states legalize marijuana and the Fed allows proper banking we'll see more assets flow to these ETFs."

And in the "hope never dies" category: Will 2020 finally be the year for SEC approval of a bitcoin ETF? My guess: don't bet on it.

4) Fee wars continue, but impact lessens:2019 saw a "race to zero" as the largest ETF providers cut fees to the bone. That will continue in 2020.

"It's no longer just about management fees falling to zero; it's now about EVERYTHING falling to zero," Matt Hougan from Bitwise Investments told me, noting that not only have trading commissions gone to zero, but advisor custody and platform fees have fallen. And you can get investment advice cheaper as well: Vanguard's Personal Advisor Services grew to over $100 billion, offers advice for pennies on the dollar, Hougan noted.

5) Consolidate or close? The race to zero fees is producing a few big winners and a lot of others left behind. There are 141 ETF providers, but the top five firms (Blackrock, Vanguard, State Street, Invesco, and Schwab) control 91% of the assets. Wisdom Tree (WETF), one of the few public pure-ETF plays, is 85% off its historic high in 2015 and is now near a 10-year low.

Consolidation has been expected for years, but buying up low-asset ETFs does not necessarily lead to scale efficiency: "There are fewer appealing dance partners by the day," Ben Johnson, Director of Global ETF Research at Morningstar said.

Regardless, someone is likely to take a shot at the consolidation game.

John Davi, founder and CIO of Astoria Portfolio Advisors, has an intriguing idea. "Private equity funds could enter and buy out 10 to 20 ETF issuers with the idea of monetizing the ETF ecosystem," he said.

He reasoned that there is already a ton of money flowing into private equity funds buying dental practices, plumbing businesses, and taxi medallions. Why not ETFs?

Read more:
Boom in exchange traded funds continues with socially responsible investing and active management - CNBC