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Show CamvusHeWS Page 4 Monday, Sept. 17, 2007 YOUR SOURCE FOR AGGIE APPAREL VSU expands lobbying position By LIZ LAWYER assistant news editor A Washington, D.C., lobbyist has accepted a position at USU as a special assistant to the president for state and federal relations, a position that will be important in USU's lobbying efforts in both the state Legislature and in Congress. Michael J. Kennedy has worked in Washington for the past six years as a lobbyist with Lee & Smith, P.C., a firm that represents USU with Congress but now will take a more specific role at the university. "I'm excited to work with the president and his team," Kennedy said in a phone interview. "They're doing some great things." The position was recently expanded to include the federal lobbying responsibilities. Lee Burke, who has been the assistant to the president for government relations for 30 years, will be retiring in November. Kennedy is set to take up the reins Nov. 1. Kennedy and Albrecht spoke glowingly of Burke and the work he has done with USU. "Lee has done a great job representing the school on the state level for years," Kennedy said. "Everyone seems really comfortable with him. I'm looking forward to getting on the ground." Albrecht said the position was expanded to include federal relations because the university "needs a stronger presence in Washington." Though the school does work with a lobbying group, Albrecht said USU needs to extend its work past dependence on earmarking in Congress. USU Vice President for Research Brent Miller said USU's relations with the federal government are important to keep funding flowing to the university. Miller said combining the positions will allow Kennedy to increase his leverage on Capitol Hill in both Salt Lake and Washington. Of the $150 million in grants given to USU in the last year, 70 percent was from federal dollars. USU is in the top 100 public schools in the country in the amount of research money granted by the federal government. Miller said Kennedy is "especially well-qualified" for the position. Albrecht said of Kennedy, "He understands universities. He understands the federal appropriations process. He knows all • of the key agencies that provide ; important funding support to Utah State University, and he will quickly develop the necessary contacts on the state level that will allow us to continue building on our past success with the Utah Legislature and the governor s office." Kennedy is originally from Salt Lake City. He has a bachelor of arts in government from Harvard University and was most recently the director of legislative affairs at Lee & Smith, P.C. -elizabeth.lawyer@aggiemaiL usu.edu 42 SOUTH MAIN. LOGAN. UT Utah student loan defaults exceeds national average LOGAN, Utah (AP)- Utah's average rate of student loan default is exceeding the national average. On average, Utah's default rate for 2005 was 5 percent, above the national average of 4.6 percent. The state's community colleges have the highest default rates, led by Salt Lake Community College at 6.8 percent. Utah State University has the smallest default rate among public universities in the state at 1.7 percent in 2005, the most recent year for which statistics are available. This data measures the rate that defaults occurred during the first year that payment was required, rather than defaults P.. over the lifetime of a loan. Brigham Young University has the lowest default rate in the state at 0.7 percent. While lower than most schools, Utah States default rate is increasing. In 2004,1.4 percent of the school's loans were defaulted. In 2003, that number was 1.5 percent. Still, USU's director of financial aid said he was not concerned. Sharp said none of Utah's school should worry. Sharp believes that national default rates have gone down because many people consolidated their student loans. This allowed them to pay back more slowly. In Utah, differences in the way defaults are counted could have resulted in the bump. "We have to see how it (the default rate) tracks over time," Sharp said. That doesn't mean students shouldn't be careful with their money, Sharp said. He said students should borrow as little as possible and to stay in school to get a job that pays well. The worst approach, Sharp said, is to just decide not to pay, hoping that the charges will go away. "The problem with defaulting is that the government doesn't give up," he continued. "They can garnish your wages or take it out of your tax refund.... It's bad for your credit and you can't get away from it." Bill: Legislation creating programs, partnership [] continuedfrompage 1 degree through the distance education program. She now works at USU as director of the interactive broadcast program. In addition to education and business programs, four new engineering programs, two science programs, two natural resources programs and three programs in the College of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences will be created. USU officials are planning to seek more money to further expand partnerships with other institutions at the next legislative session, Menlove said. Among other programs, they plan to create more teacher education, natural resources and engineering PRECISION • BEAUTY • programs, as well as a Chinese language program. Altogether, there are 37 USU distance education sites in Utah, from Wendover in the west to Vernal in the east, and from Logan in the north to St. George in the south. -d.felix@aggiemaiiusu.edu FOREVER ALL ITEMS The Needham Brilliant is known for precision, beauty and lasting value. There is no other diamond like it. 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