College Essay Checklist

College Essay ChecklistIn order to be well prepared for your college essay you should create a college essay checklist. The great thing about using a checklist is that it will keep you focused on certain aspects of the essay that you need to focus on in order to make the best impression. Some of the items that are listed in the checklist will be things that are expected of the student, some will be personal observations, and others will be topical ones. Let's take a look at how you can create a checklist for your college essay.The first thing that you should do is to define what the most important thing that you need to accomplish. The assignment is the only way that you will be able to write the essay. Therefore, the first thing that you should consider is whether or not you will write the entire paper on your own, or if you need to contact someone else to help with it.Depending on the answers to this question, you may not need to start with a rough draft. It depends on the individu al, and the situation. You will find that when writing a rough draft, you will often end up having to delete some things that didn't work for you. Therefore, if you want to be successful, you should have a rough draft ready. In addition, you should be able to edit it yourself before you begin.Now that you know what your needs are, it is time to create a college essay checklist. You should write down what you need to be considered as well as the general features that you want to include in your essay. You may choose to write about your interest, your relationship with your family, or what you hope to accomplish by writing the essay. It is important to write down the theme of the essay so that you are in sync with the direction that you are going to take when completing the assignment.While you are working on a specific essay, it is important to begin by searching for the appropriate essay templates. You will find that there are many websites that will offer you many types of template s that you can use to help you get started. Some of these will include the checklists that are included in a lot of the professional writing.After you have created a college essay checklist, you should move on to writing the outline. This will be your guide that will help you create a better outline and help you write the outline in an organized fashion. You should use a style guide that you are familiar with in order to have a better idea of how to make the outline come out the way that you want it to. Finally, after you have written your outline, you should start writing the body of the essay.After you have finished writing the body of the essay, you should complete the college essay checklist. The checklist will help you keep track of what you have written so that you can have everything that you need for the final draft. While you can create a document before beginning, you will find that your chances of being prepared increases significantly when you are writing the checklist.Y ou should now have a better understanding of how you can prepare for your final draft. The college essay checklist will help you make sure that you have all of the information that you need to complete the assignment.

Passage to Modernity Dupre Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Entry to Modernity Dupre - Essay Example At the beginning times of advancement, craftsmen still saw themselves as making as one with nature; â€Å"mind and nature relate amicably to one another† (p. 49). Besides, nature’s discernment started to change. Galileo communicated the possibility of normal structure in scientific terms, â€Å"loosening the joining between physical substance and aesthetic ideal† (p.51). He found a precise investigation of nature, as opposed to relying upon direct perception. This thought of judicious information on the world become key to the change from medieval age to innovation. In the rise of advancement, science assumed a significant job towards the logical unrest. Speculative chemistry is often overlooked when we talk about the achievements of science that changed our view of the world. Chemists trusted in the congruity between the individual and the universe. â€Å"at the premise of the catalytic undertaking is the idea of a microcosmos splendidly tuned to the macrocosmos of nature†. The idea that we are ought to meddle with regular procedures so as to accomplish concordance changes the impression of nature. â€Å"rather than filling in as nature’s collaborator, the individual currently turns into its controller.† (p.54). There was an exhaustive dismissal to the possibility that the stars controlled man, that we were inactively submitting to issue. By and by, the enthusiasm for soothsaying was not totally dispensed with; however as it occurred with speculative chemistry, they turned out to be less engaging at the substance of new physical hypotheses that reasonably clarified the universe.

The Renaissance And The Reformation

The Renaissance And The Reformation Upon beginning investigation, the Renaissance and the Reformation have all the earmarks of being two altogether separate times of progress that happened in Western Europe with similarly divergent causes and purposes. The Renaissance, truly a period of resurrection, denoted the conclusive break from the Middle Ages and the rediscovery for the energy about expressions of the human experience, writing, and the further advancement of governmental issues and economy. Then again, the Reformation concentrated principally on the split of standards managing the congregation and the strategies with which reformers, for example, Martin Luther, John Calvin, and other people who lectured against simony, the selling of guilty pleasures, and basically managing the degenerate methods of the Church. While the two may not hold up under numerous ostensibly evident likenesses, the Reformation, truth be told, relied vigorously on the human advancements during the Renaissance. The absolute most significant archive connecting the Renaissance and the Reformation is the 95 Theses, composed by Martin Luther who posted it on the entryway of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany. This bit of composing which for the most part tends to the ill-advised maltreatment of administrative forces and the corrupt direct of selling guilty pleasures, which was at first activated by mercantilism and the rising significance of cash in a developing prudent society, was just ready to be coursed all through Germany with the assistance of the print machine. In spite of the fact that the print machine, concocted by Johannes Gutenberg, was not an immediate result of the Renaissance, it was the altering bit of innovation which permitted the dissemination of various printed duplicates of the Bible all through Western Europe, filled in as a urgent device in building up a very much educated, proficient populace during the Renaissance in Europe, and, obviously, printed more than 300,0 00 duplicates of Luthers 95 Theses, the impetus of the Protestant Reformation. With the guide of the print machine, the individuals of Western Europe turned out to be additionally taught by having a more noteworthy chance to come into contact with a Bible. Before perusing the Bible for themselves, individuals were just capable depend on the expressions of the papacy, the pastorate, and different individuals from the congregation, who were, unbeknownst to the regular man, in certainty degenerate. Through getting individual information from perusing the Bible (even the individuals who couldn't peruse Latin presently approach the Bible converted into vernacular, English, or German), individuals currently felt they had the control to figure their own choices and got a handle on the possibility that they won't be constrained by a degenerate church. With this perspective, secularization, the partition from strict impacts, and independence, the acknowledgment of oneself as having virtue, prospered all through the Renaissance in Europe. While perusing the Bible essentially guided the individuals of Western Europe in Luthers general course of thought even preceding the start of the Protestant Reformation, another gathering of individuals known as the Humanists, who gave their opportunity to genuinely comprehend the Classics crafted by Socrates, Plato, and other antiquated Greek savants started annihilating the possibility of scholasticism, which was, basically, thinking everything as they are told. Individuals started to peruse, appreciate, and settle on choices for themselves without depending carefully on the congregation. Books, for example, Castigliones The Book of the Courtier, which instructed men to be the ideal honorable men, and ladies to be the ideal women of their word, and Erasmus In Praise of Folly, which caricaturizes and derides the Church of its incorrect ways (Palmer, 72), were distributed and perused. The conclusive outcome was a more noteworthy development of secularization and independence which p rompted a consistent partition of the individuals from the congregation. Notwithstanding an undeniably self-deciding populace, one occasion which turns into the impetus to touch off a feeling of doubt among the average citizens of Europe towards the congregation was The Great Schism. The emergency of appointing different papacies was not just a sign of the controlling of the force given to the popes so as to fulfill the Churches guilty pleasure, yet additionally caused the sincere to address which of the papacies really holds the keys of Peter, or essentially if any congregation whatsoever would lead them to salvation (Palmer, 53). This disappointment with the congregation spread through all positions of society, from the rulers to the ordinary citizens. From these vulnerability grew the lessons of John Wyclif and John Huss, who both bolstered the belief system of salvation by perusing the Bible, and not from the lessons of a sorted out chapel (Palmer, 54). This prompted the inevitable censure of the Pope, or for this situation, Popes, as a strict pioneer . With researchers and individuals all in all allowed the capacity to at last peruse and investigate the Bible for themselves, significant scholars, for example, Martin Luther, John Calvin, and Huldrych Zwingli, just to give some examples, developed, endeavoring to address the wrong methods of the degenerate church. Luther, who lectured not for making another religion however to just address the errors of the congregation, made an interpretation of the Bible into numerous open dialects and assembled numerous adherents who concurred wholeheartedly with his definitive rule of salvation by confidence alone, and that lone the Bible contains the genuine expressions of God. One last part of the Renaissance that influenced the strategy of individuals all through the Reformation was the turn of events and implementation of governmental issues. While the thoughts of Luther, Calvin, and different scholars made new houses of worship ascend in towns, they couldn't supplant the beforehand existing church preceding some administration intercession. The new church didn't have quick capacity to break down the old church and was committed to look out for governments choice before actualizing and making a move. Albeit badly designed for those energetically anticipating the further spread of the Protestant Church, the more powerful given to the legislature and the development of governmental issues created through the Renaissance gave a more noteworthy wellspring of request for the individuals during the Reformation. The Renaissance and the Reformation, albeit generally not at all like, extraordinarily supplemented each other in different viewpoints. From the most significant headway of teaching the people so as to ingrain in them the comprehension of independence and partition from scholasticism, to the underlying disappointment towards the congregation brought about by disarrays of The Great Schism, to crafted by Castiglione and Erasmus, the Renaissance formed the brains of those beforehand ignorant of the corruption of the Church into the psyches of those readied for a change through the Reformation.

Essay on Morality

Essay on Morality Being a part of a society every human is trying to follow some moral principles that define what is good and what is bad, what is right and what is wrong. All of these determine our actions made in various life circumstances and shows our moral values as well. This essay will aim to discuss the concept of morality and describe the main issues related to this philosophical question that may be never answered. What is morality? Lots of definitions can be applied to the concept of morality. In short, morality is regarded as an attempt to define who we are from the position of some right and wrong actions we do and thoughts that we think. Throughout thousands of years philosophers have been trying to solve the issue about defining the concept of morality. â€Å"Many man many mind† approach is what can be applied to the problem. Nevertheless, it is possible to try to think over the question and reveal the common sings of morality that can be meaningful for us in a modern society. What is meant by a moral person? Can it be properly interpreted? The concepts with multiform meanings such as morality can be illustrated in the real world on practice and thus possibly defined in some way. Lets assume, you are going back home at midnight and find a purse on the sidewalk with lots of money and some bank cards with a name on it. You can find the person and return the stuff, will you do it? Or will you choose to keep it for yourself and use somebody elses money for your own purposes? Your action in this specific situation defines your morality. Your decision can show whether you act right or wrong. Still, another question arise – is it right to give the purse back to its owner if you are in need yourself? Maybe this is a sign and life supports you when you need it? No one knows the right answer, because it does not actually exist. Each of us defines from our own point of view what is right and what is wrong, and it may has nothing to do with the concept of morality as it is defined by a modern world and other individuals. Are people in a modern society loosing their moral values? Modern society is more likely to lose moral values with the time flow. It happens because of materialism that affects peoples mind and prevails moral values. Technical progress contributes to this as well. People keep on earning money and buying products they need, so they tend to try to buy everything they want. This fact devalues moral characteristics in some way and make people do morally wrong things even subconsciously just because of the materialistic way of thinking. Additionally, public manners influence others actions. Looking at someone doing something in a public place may affect others. Lets take an example with a public smoking. First of all, it is actually forbidden and should be so. Secondly, it has nothing to do with a moral manner when a man is walking with a cigarette in his hands while there are many people around, including children. The bad influence of the Internet on moral values of people is not the exception too. Today it is available all over the world, people have an access to the Internet and spend a lot of time there reading social media, comments to the blogs, political reports, etc. One can easily find a lot of bad things posted there, which harms and abuses other people. Adults may not take care of it, but children should be protected from this in the first place as they see bad words, consider them to be normal and copy the manner of communication. In conclusion People in a modern society tend to loose their moral values, which is influenced by materialism, public thinking and manners, and the Internet as well.

2012 Plan Performance Rankings Q2

Each quarter Savingforcollege.com analyzes the investment performance figures for thousands of 529 portfolios and ranks the 529 savings plans from best to worst for one-year investment performance, three-year investment performance and five-year investment performance. The top-performing 529 plans In producing our rankings, we compared the reported investment performance of a subset of portfolios from each 529 savings plan. The lower the "percentile," the better the ranking. For more details on our methodology. Here are our 529 performance rankings as of June 30, 2012. We ranked plans that consumers can enroll in directly (see below), as well as those sold through brokers). One-year performance ranking Rank State Plan Percentile 1 New York New York's 529 College Savings Program -- Direct Plan 23.29 2 Pennsylvania Pennsylvania 529 Investment Plan 24.48 3 Florida Florida College Investment Plan 27.10 4 Michigan Michigan Education Savings Program 28.22 5 Vermont Vermont Higher Education Investment Plan 30.21 6 Illinois Bright Start College Savings Program -- Direct-sold Plan 30.45 7 Georgia Path2College 529 Plan 31.05 8 Minnesota Minnesota College Savings Plan 31.17 9 Iowa College Savings Iowa 31.43 10 Kentucky Kentucky Education Savings Plan Trust 32.90 See the full list of one-year direct-sold rankings. Three-year performance ranking Rank State Plan Percentile 1 Alaska T. Rowe Price College Savings Plan 23.87 2 Alaska University of Alaska College Savings Plan 24.88 3 Nevada USAA 529 College Savings Plan 25.11 4 New York New York's 529 College Savings Program -- Direct Plan 30.00 5 Michigan Michigan Education Savings Program 30.25 6 Maryland College Savings Plans of Maryland -- College Investment Plan 30.95 7 Virginia Virginia Education Savings Trust (VEST) 36.78 8 Wisconsin EdVest (Direct-sold) 37.57 9 Maine NextGen College Investing Plan -- Client Direct Series 38.22 10 Minnesota Minnesota College Savings Plan 38.60 See the full list of three-year direct-sold rankings. Five-year performance ranking Rank State Plan Percentile 1 Florida Florida College Investment Plan 18.06 2 Utah Utah Educational Savings Plan (UESP) Trust 25.88 3 Nevada USAA 529 College Savings Plan 29.97 4 Pennsylvania Pennsylvania 529 Investment Plan 30.30 5 New York New York's 529 College Savings Program -- Direct Plan 31.15 6 Michigan Michigan Education Savings Program 31.33 7 Kansas Schwab 529 College Savings Plan 33.02 8 Ohio Ohio CollegeAdvantage 529 Savings Plan 33.79 9 Georgia Path2College 529 Plan 34.80 10 Wisconsin EdVest (Direct-sold) 36.87 See the full list of five-year direct-sold rankings. For broker-sold plan rankings. How to rank 529 plan performance Ranking over 3,000 investment options is no easy task, considering the wide variety of options found in 529 savings plans, and it requires a special methodology. Step one: We select specific portfolios from each 529 plan that can be compared on an apples-to-apples basis to portfolios in other 529 plans, based on their allocation among stocks, bonds and short-term instruments (money market and guaranteed investments). We've set up seven different asset-allocation categories ranging from 100 percent equity to 100 percent short-term. Step two: Within each of the seven categories, we compare historical performance of the selected portfolios and assign each plan a percentile ranking between one (best) and 100 (worst). Separate rankings are developed for one-year, three-year and five-year performances. Step three: We take the average of each 529 plan's percentile rankings in the seven asset-allocation categories to produce a combined or "composite" percentile ranking. We then produce reports showing how the 529 plans rank against each other in their composite percentile rankings. Note: We currently produce these composite rankings for one-year, three-year and five-year performances. For a more in-depth explanation of our methodology, please read our white paper. See the one-year direct-sold, three-year direct-sold and five-year direct-sold rankings. More information Links to our full report on the composite rankings for this quarter are provided below for the direct-sold 529 plans. Only our Premium subscribers have access to composite rankings for advisor-sold 529 plans, to the underlying data supporting the rankings and to separate one-year, three-year and five-year rankings for each of the seven different asset-allocation categories. In addition, subscribers can easily look up the historical performance for every 529 portfolio in every available share class by using our Fee and Performance Lookup Tool. Each quarter Savingforcollege.com analyzes the investment performance figures for thousands of 529 portfolios and ranks the 529 savings plans from best to worst for one-year investment performance, three-year investment performance and five-year investment performance. The top-performing 529 plans In producing our rankings, we compared the reported investment performance of a subset of portfolios from each 529 savings plan. The lower the "percentile," the better the ranking. For more details on our methodology. Here are our 529 performance rankings as of June 30, 2012. We ranked plans that consumers can enroll in directly (see below), as well as those sold through brokers). One-year performance ranking Rank State Plan Percentile 1 New York New York's 529 College Savings Program -- Direct Plan 23.29 2 Pennsylvania Pennsylvania 529 Investment Plan 24.48 3 Florida Florida College Investment Plan 27.10 4 Michigan Michigan Education Savings Program 28.22 5 Vermont Vermont Higher Education Investment Plan 30.21 6 Illinois Bright Start College Savings Program -- Direct-sold Plan 30.45 7 Georgia Path2College 529 Plan 31.05 8 Minnesota Minnesota College Savings Plan 31.17 9 Iowa College Savings Iowa 31.43 10 Kentucky Kentucky Education Savings Plan Trust 32.90 See the full list of one-year direct-sold rankings. Three-year performance ranking Rank State Plan Percentile 1 Alaska T. Rowe Price College Savings Plan 23.87 2 Alaska University of Alaska College Savings Plan 24.88 3 Nevada USAA 529 College Savings Plan 25.11 4 New York New York's 529 College Savings Program -- Direct Plan 30.00 5 Michigan Michigan Education Savings Program 30.25 6 Maryland College Savings Plans of Maryland -- College Investment Plan 30.95 7 Virginia Virginia Education Savings Trust (VEST) 36.78 8 Wisconsin EdVest (Direct-sold) 37.57 9 Maine NextGen College Investing Plan -- Client Direct Series 38.22 10 Minnesota Minnesota College Savings Plan 38.60 See the full list of three-year direct-sold rankings. Five-year performance ranking Rank State Plan Percentile 1 Florida Florida College Investment Plan 18.06 2 Utah Utah Educational Savings Plan (UESP) Trust 25.88 3 Nevada USAA 529 College Savings Plan 29.97 4 Pennsylvania Pennsylvania 529 Investment Plan 30.30 5 New York New York's 529 College Savings Program -- Direct Plan 31.15 6 Michigan Michigan Education Savings Program 31.33 7 Kansas Schwab 529 College Savings Plan 33.02 8 Ohio Ohio CollegeAdvantage 529 Savings Plan 33.79 9 Georgia Path2College 529 Plan 34.80 10 Wisconsin EdVest (Direct-sold) 36.87 See the full list of five-year direct-sold rankings. For broker-sold plan rankings. How to rank 529 plan performance Ranking over 3,000 investment options is no easy task, considering the wide variety of options found in 529 savings plans, and it requires a special methodology. Step one: We select specific portfolios from each 529 plan that can be compared on an apples-to-apples basis to portfolios in other 529 plans, based on their allocation among stocks, bonds and short-term instruments (money market and guaranteed investments). We've set up seven different asset-allocation categories ranging from 100 percent equity to 100 percent short-term. Step two: Within each of the seven categories, we compare historical performance of the selected portfolios and assign each plan a percentile ranking between one (best) and 100 (worst). Separate rankings are developed for one-year, three-year and five-year performances. Step three: We take the average of each 529 plan's percentile rankings in the seven asset-allocation categories to produce a combined or "composite" percentile ranking. We then produce reports showing how the 529 plans rank against each other in their composite percentile rankings. Note: We currently produce these composite rankings for one-year, three-year and five-year performances. For a more in-depth explanation of our methodology, please read our white paper. See the one-year direct-sold, three-year direct-sold and five-year direct-sold rankings. More information Links to our full report on the composite rankings for this quarter are provided below for the direct-sold 529 plans. Only our Premium subscribers have access to composite rankings for advisor-sold 529 plans, to the underlying data supporting the rankings and to separate one-year, three-year and five-year rankings for each of the seven different asset-allocation categories. In addition, subscribers can easily look up the historical performance for every 529 portfolio in every available share class by using our Fee and Performance Lookup Tool. 2012 Plan Performance Rankings Q2 Each quarter Savingforcollege.com analyzes the investment performance figures for thousands of 529 portfolios and ranks the 529 savings plans from best to worst for one-year investment performance, three-year investment performance and five-year investment performance. The top-performing 529 plans In producing our rankings, we compared the reported investment performance of a subset of portfolios from each 529 savings plan. The lower the "percentile," the better the ranking. For more details on our methodology. Here are our 529 performance rankings as of June 30, 2012. We ranked plans that consumers can enroll in directly (see below), as well as those sold through brokers). One-year performance ranking Rank State Plan Percentile 1 New York New York's 529 College Savings Program -- Direct Plan 23.29 2 Pennsylvania Pennsylvania 529 Investment Plan 24.48 3 Florida Florida College Investment Plan 27.10 4 Michigan Michigan Education Savings Program 28.22 5 Vermont Vermont Higher Education Investment Plan 30.21 6 Illinois Bright Start College Savings Program -- Direct-sold Plan 30.45 7 Georgia Path2College 529 Plan 31.05 8 Minnesota Minnesota College Savings Plan 31.17 9 Iowa College Savings Iowa 31.43 10 Kentucky Kentucky Education Savings Plan Trust 32.90 See the full list of one-year direct-sold rankings. Three-year performance ranking Rank State Plan Percentile 1 Alaska T. Rowe Price College Savings Plan 23.87 2 Alaska University of Alaska College Savings Plan 24.88 3 Nevada USAA 529 College Savings Plan 25.11 4 New York New York's 529 College Savings Program -- Direct Plan 30.00 5 Michigan Michigan Education Savings Program 30.25 6 Maryland College Savings Plans of Maryland -- College Investment Plan 30.95 7 Virginia Virginia Education Savings Trust (VEST) 36.78 8 Wisconsin EdVest (Direct-sold) 37.57 9 Maine NextGen College Investing Plan -- Client Direct Series 38.22 10 Minnesota Minnesota College Savings Plan 38.60 See the full list of three-year direct-sold rankings. Five-year performance ranking Rank State Plan Percentile 1 Florida Florida College Investment Plan 18.06 2 Utah Utah Educational Savings Plan (UESP) Trust 25.88 3 Nevada USAA 529 College Savings Plan 29.97 4 Pennsylvania Pennsylvania 529 Investment Plan 30.30 5 New York New York's 529 College Savings Program -- Direct Plan 31.15 6 Michigan Michigan Education Savings Program 31.33 7 Kansas Schwab 529 College Savings Plan 33.02 8 Ohio Ohio CollegeAdvantage 529 Savings Plan 33.79 9 Georgia Path2College 529 Plan 34.80 10 Wisconsin EdVest (Direct-sold) 36.87 See the full list of five-year direct-sold rankings. For broker-sold plan rankings. How to rank 529 plan performance Ranking over 3,000 investment options is no easy task, considering the wide variety of options found in 529 savings plans, and it requires a special methodology. Step one: We select specific portfolios from each 529 plan that can be compared on an apples-to-apples basis to portfolios in other 529 plans, based on their allocation among stocks, bonds and short-term instruments (money market and guaranteed investments). We've set up seven different asset-allocation categories ranging from 100 percent equity to 100 percent short-term. Step two: Within each of the seven categories, we compare historical performance of the selected portfolios and assign each plan a percentile ranking between one (best) and 100 (worst). Separate rankings are developed for one-year, three-year and five-year performances. Step three: We take the average of each 529 plan's percentile rankings in the seven asset-allocation categories to produce a combined or "composite" percentile ranking. We then produce reports showing how the 529 plans rank against each other in their composite percentile rankings. Note: We currently produce these composite rankings for one-year, three-year and five-year performances. For a more in-depth explanation of our methodology, please read our white paper. See the one-year direct-sold, three-year direct-sold and five-year direct-sold rankings. More information Links to our full report on the composite rankings for this quarter are provided below for the direct-sold 529 plans. Only our Premium subscribers have access to composite rankings for advisor-sold 529 plans, to the underlying data supporting the rankings and to separate one-year, three-year and five-year rankings for each of the seven different asset-allocation categories. In addition, subscribers can easily look up the historical performance for every 529 portfolio in every available share class by using our Fee and Performance Lookup Tool. Each quarter Savingforcollege.com analyzes the investment performance figures for thousands of 529 portfolios and ranks the 529 savings plans from best to worst for one-year investment performance, three-year investment performance and five-year investment performance. The top-performing 529 plans In producing our rankings, we compared the reported investment performance of a subset of portfolios from each 529 savings plan. The lower the "percentile," the better the ranking. For more details on our methodology. Here are our 529 performance rankings as of June 30, 2012. We ranked plans that consumers can enroll in directly (see below), as well as those sold through brokers). One-year performance ranking Rank State Plan Percentile 1 New York New York's 529 College Savings Program -- Direct Plan 23.29 2 Pennsylvania Pennsylvania 529 Investment Plan 24.48 3 Florida Florida College Investment Plan 27.10 4 Michigan Michigan Education Savings Program 28.22 5 Vermont Vermont Higher Education Investment Plan 30.21 6 Illinois Bright Start College Savings Program -- Direct-sold Plan 30.45 7 Georgia Path2College 529 Plan 31.05 8 Minnesota Minnesota College Savings Plan 31.17 9 Iowa College Savings Iowa 31.43 10 Kentucky Kentucky Education Savings Plan Trust 32.90 See the full list of one-year direct-sold rankings. Three-year performance ranking Rank State Plan Percentile 1 Alaska T. Rowe Price College Savings Plan 23.87 2 Alaska University of Alaska College Savings Plan 24.88 3 Nevada USAA 529 College Savings Plan 25.11 4 New York New York's 529 College Savings Program -- Direct Plan 30.00 5 Michigan Michigan Education Savings Program 30.25 6 Maryland College Savings Plans of Maryland -- College Investment Plan 30.95 7 Virginia Virginia Education Savings Trust (VEST) 36.78 8 Wisconsin EdVest (Direct-sold) 37.57 9 Maine NextGen College Investing Plan -- Client Direct Series 38.22 10 Minnesota Minnesota College Savings Plan 38.60 See the full list of three-year direct-sold rankings. Five-year performance ranking Rank State Plan Percentile 1 Florida Florida College Investment Plan 18.06 2 Utah Utah Educational Savings Plan (UESP) Trust 25.88 3 Nevada USAA 529 College Savings Plan 29.97 4 Pennsylvania Pennsylvania 529 Investment Plan 30.30 5 New York New York's 529 College Savings Program -- Direct Plan 31.15 6 Michigan Michigan Education Savings Program 31.33 7 Kansas Schwab 529 College Savings Plan 33.02 8 Ohio Ohio CollegeAdvantage 529 Savings Plan 33.79 9 Georgia Path2College 529 Plan 34.80 10 Wisconsin EdVest (Direct-sold) 36.87 See the full list of five-year direct-sold rankings. For broker-sold plan rankings. How to rank 529 plan performance Ranking over 3,000 investment options is no easy task, considering the wide variety of options found in 529 savings plans, and it requires a special methodology. Step one: We select specific portfolios from each 529 plan that can be compared on an apples-to-apples basis to portfolios in other 529 plans, based on their allocation among stocks, bonds and short-term instruments (money market and guaranteed investments). We've set up seven different asset-allocation categories ranging from 100 percent equity to 100 percent short-term. Step two: Within each of the seven categories, we compare historical performance of the selected portfolios and assign each plan a percentile ranking between one (best) and 100 (worst). Separate rankings are developed for one-year, three-year and five-year performances. Step three: We take the average of each 529 plan's percentile rankings in the seven asset-allocation categories to produce a combined or "composite" percentile ranking. We then produce reports showing how the 529 plans rank against each other in their composite percentile rankings. Note: We currently produce these composite rankings for one-year, three-year and five-year performances. For a more in-depth explanation of our methodology, please read our white paper. See the one-year direct-sold, three-year direct-sold and five-year direct-sold rankings. More information Links to our full report on the composite rankings for this quarter are provided below for the direct-sold 529 plans. Only our Premium subscribers have access to composite rankings for advisor-sold 529 plans, to the underlying data supporting the rankings and to separate one-year, three-year and five-year rankings for each of the seven different asset-allocation categories. In addition, subscribers can easily look up the historical performance for every 529 portfolio in every available share class by using our Fee and Performance Lookup Tool. 2012 Plan Performance Rankings Q2 Each quarter Savingforcollege.com analyzes the investment performance figures for thousands of 529 portfolios and ranks the 529 savings plans from best to worst for one-year investment performance, three-year investment performance and five-year investment performance. The top-performing 529 plans In producing our rankings, we compared the reported investment performance of a subset of portfolios from each 529 savings plan. The lower the "percentile," the better the ranking. For more details on our methodology. Here are our 529 performance rankings as of June 30, 2012. We ranked plans that consumers can enroll in directly (see below), as well as those sold through brokers). One-year performance ranking Rank State Plan Percentile 1 New York New York's 529 College Savings Program -- Direct Plan 23.29 2 Pennsylvania Pennsylvania 529 Investment Plan 24.48 3 Florida Florida College Investment Plan 27.10 4 Michigan Michigan Education Savings Program 28.22 5 Vermont Vermont Higher Education Investment Plan 30.21 6 Illinois Bright Start College Savings Program -- Direct-sold Plan 30.45 7 Georgia Path2College 529 Plan 31.05 8 Minnesota Minnesota College Savings Plan 31.17 9 Iowa College Savings Iowa 31.43 10 Kentucky Kentucky Education Savings Plan Trust 32.90 See the full list of one-year direct-sold rankings. Three-year performance ranking Rank State Plan Percentile 1 Alaska T. Rowe Price College Savings Plan 23.87 2 Alaska University of Alaska College Savings Plan 24.88 3 Nevada USAA 529 College Savings Plan 25.11 4 New York New York's 529 College Savings Program -- Direct Plan 30.00 5 Michigan Michigan Education Savings Program 30.25 6 Maryland College Savings Plans of Maryland -- College Investment Plan 30.95 7 Virginia Virginia Education Savings Trust (VEST) 36.78 8 Wisconsin EdVest (Direct-sold) 37.57 9 Maine NextGen College Investing Plan -- Client Direct Series 38.22 10 Minnesota Minnesota College Savings Plan 38.60 See the full list of three-year direct-sold rankings. Five-year performance ranking Rank State Plan Percentile 1 Florida Florida College Investment Plan 18.06 2 Utah Utah Educational Savings Plan (UESP) Trust 25.88 3 Nevada USAA 529 College Savings Plan 29.97 4 Pennsylvania Pennsylvania 529 Investment Plan 30.30 5 New York New York's 529 College Savings Program -- Direct Plan 31.15 6 Michigan Michigan Education Savings Program 31.33 7 Kansas Schwab 529 College Savings Plan 33.02 8 Ohio Ohio CollegeAdvantage 529 Savings Plan 33.79 9 Georgia Path2College 529 Plan 34.80 10 Wisconsin EdVest (Direct-sold) 36.87 See the full list of five-year direct-sold rankings. For broker-sold plan rankings. How to rank 529 plan performance Ranking over 3,000 investment options is no easy task, considering the wide variety of options found in 529 savings plans, and it requires a special methodology. Step one: We select specific portfolios from each 529 plan that can be compared on an apples-to-apples basis to portfolios in other 529 plans, based on their allocation among stocks, bonds and short-term instruments (money market and guaranteed investments). We've set up seven different asset-allocation categories ranging from 100 percent equity to 100 percent short-term. Step two: Within each of the seven categories, we compare historical performance of the selected portfolios and assign each plan a percentile ranking between one (best) and 100 (worst). Separate rankings are developed for one-year, three-year and five-year performances. Step three: We take the average of each 529 plan's percentile rankings in the seven asset-allocation categories to produce a combined or "composite" percentile ranking. We then produce reports showing how the 529 plans rank against each other in their composite percentile rankings. Note: We currently produce these composite rankings for one-year, three-year and five-year performances. For a more in-depth explanation of our methodology, please read our white paper. See the one-year direct-sold, three-year direct-sold and five-year direct-sold rankings. More information Links to our full report on the composite rankings for this quarter are provided below for the direct-sold 529 plans. Only our Premium subscribers have access to composite rankings for advisor-sold 529 plans, to the underlying data supporting the rankings and to separate one-year, three-year and five-year rankings for each of the seven different asset-allocation categories. In addition, subscribers can easily look up the historical performance for every 529 portfolio in every available share class by using our Fee and Performance Lookup Tool. Each quarter Savingforcollege.com analyzes the investment performance figures for thousands of 529 portfolios and ranks the 529 savings plans from best to worst for one-year investment performance, three-year investment performance and five-year investment performance. The top-performing 529 plans In producing our rankings, we compared the reported investment performance of a subset of portfolios from each 529 savings plan. The lower the "percentile," the better the ranking. For more details on our methodology. Here are our 529 performance rankings as of June 30, 2012. We ranked plans that consumers can enroll in directly (see below), as well as those sold through brokers). One-year performance ranking Rank State Plan Percentile 1 New York New York's 529 College Savings Program -- Direct Plan 23.29 2 Pennsylvania Pennsylvania 529 Investment Plan 24.48 3 Florida Florida College Investment Plan 27.10 4 Michigan Michigan Education Savings Program 28.22 5 Vermont Vermont Higher Education Investment Plan 30.21 6 Illinois Bright Start College Savings Program -- Direct-sold Plan 30.45 7 Georgia Path2College 529 Plan 31.05 8 Minnesota Minnesota College Savings Plan 31.17 9 Iowa College Savings Iowa 31.43 10 Kentucky Kentucky Education Savings Plan Trust 32.90 See the full list of one-year direct-sold rankings. Three-year performance ranking Rank State Plan Percentile 1 Alaska T. Rowe Price College Savings Plan 23.87 2 Alaska University of Alaska College Savings Plan 24.88 3 Nevada USAA 529 College Savings Plan 25.11 4 New York New York's 529 College Savings Program -- Direct Plan 30.00 5 Michigan Michigan Education Savings Program 30.25 6 Maryland College Savings Plans of Maryland -- College Investment Plan 30.95 7 Virginia Virginia Education Savings Trust (VEST) 36.78 8 Wisconsin EdVest (Direct-sold) 37.57 9 Maine NextGen College Investing Plan -- Client Direct Series 38.22 10 Minnesota Minnesota College Savings Plan 38.60 See the full list of three-year direct-sold rankings. Five-year performance ranking Rank State Plan Percentile 1 Florida Florida College Investment Plan 18.06 2 Utah Utah Educational Savings Plan (UESP) Trust 25.88 3 Nevada USAA 529 College Savings Plan 29.97 4 Pennsylvania Pennsylvania 529 Investment Plan 30.30 5 New York New York's 529 College Savings Program -- Direct Plan 31.15 6 Michigan Michigan Education Savings Program 31.33 7 Kansas Schwab 529 College Savings Plan 33.02 8 Ohio Ohio CollegeAdvantage 529 Savings Plan 33.79 9 Georgia Path2College 529 Plan 34.80 10 Wisconsin EdVest (Direct-sold) 36.87 See the full list of five-year direct-sold rankings. For broker-sold plan rankings. How to rank 529 plan performance Ranking over 3,000 investment options is no easy task, considering the wide variety of options found in 529 savings plans, and it requires a special methodology. Step one: We select specific portfolios from each 529 plan that can be compared on an apples-to-apples basis to portfolios in other 529 plans, based on their allocation among stocks, bonds and short-term instruments (money market and guaranteed investments). We've set up seven different asset-allocation categories ranging from 100 percent equity to 100 percent short-term. Step two: Within each of the seven categories, we compare historical performance of the selected portfolios and assign each plan a percentile ranking between one (best) and 100 (worst). Separate rankings are developed for one-year, three-year and five-year performances. Step three: We take the average of each 529 plan's percentile rankings in the seven asset-allocation categories to produce a combined or "composite" percentile ranking. We then produce reports showing how the 529 plans rank against each other in their composite percentile rankings. Note: We currently produce these composite rankings for one-year, three-year and five-year performances. For a more in-depth explanation of our methodology, please read our white paper. See the one-year direct-sold, three-year direct-sold and five-year direct-sold rankings. More information Links to our full report on the composite rankings for this quarter are provided below for the direct-sold 529 plans. Only our Premium subscribers have access to composite rankings for advisor-sold 529 plans, to the underlying data supporting the rankings and to separate one-year, three-year and five-year rankings for each of the seven different asset-allocation categories. In addition, subscribers can easily look up the historical performance for every 529 portfolio in every available share class by using our Fee and Performance Lookup Tool.

Memorial Day The Women Behind Its Origins and History

While Veterans Day in November is to honor all those who served their nation in war, Memorial Day is primarily to honor those who died in military service. This all-American holiday has its roots in unexpected places. Commander in Chief John A. Logan of the Grand Army of the Republic issued the 1868 proclamation declaring the first Decoration Day, which was celebrated with a large memorial observance at Arlington National Cemetery, with about five thousand attending.  Those attending placed small flags on the graves of veterans. General Ulysses S. Grant and his wife presided at the ceremony. Logan credited his wife, Mary Logan, with the suggestion for the commemoration. The role of his wife may explain why Grants wife co-presided over the ceremony. But the idea had other roots, as well, going back at least to 1864. A First Memorial Day In 1865, a group of 10,000 freed slaves in South Carolina  along with a few white supporters—teachers and missionaries—marched in honor of Union soldiers, some of whom had been Confederate prisoners, reburied by the freed black Charlestonians. The prisoners  had been buried in a mass grave when they died at the prison. While this ceremony can be called the first Memorial Day, it wasnt repeated, and was soon nearly forgotten. More Direct Root of Todays Celebration The acknowledged and more direct  root of Decoration Day  was the practice of women of decorating the graves of their loved ones who had died in the Civil War. Memorial Day was celebrated on May 30 after 1868.  Then in 1971 the celebration was moved to the last Monday in May, to make a long weekend, though a few states kept to the May 30 date. Decorating Graves In addition to the Charleston march and a long practice of both Union and Confederate supporters decorating the graves of their own, a particular event seems to have been a key inspiration.  On April 25, 1866, in Columbus, Mississippi, a womens group, the Ladies Memorial Association, decorated the graves of both Union and Confederate soldiers. In a nation trying to find a way to move on after a war that split the country, states, communities and even families, this gesture was welcomed as a way to lay the past to rest while honoring those who had fought on either side. The first formal observance seems to have been on May 5, 1866, in Waterloo, New York. President Lyndon Johnson recognized Waterloo as the Birthplace of Memorial Day. On May 30, 1870, General Logan gave an address in honor of the new commemorative holiday. In it he said: This Memorial Day, on which we decorate their graves with the tokens of love and affection, is no idle ceremony with us, to pass away an hour; but it brings back to our minds in all their vividness the fearful conflicts of that terrible war in which they fell as victims.... Let us, then, all unite in the solemn feelings of the hour, and tender with our flowers the warmest sympathies of our souls! Let us revive our patriotism and love of country by this act, and strengthen our loyalty by the example of the noble dead around us.... By the late 19th century, with the rise of the Lost Cause ideology in the South, the South was celebrating Confederate Memorial Day.  This separation largely died out in the 20th century, especially with the change in name of the Northern form of the holiday from Decoration Day to Memorial Day, and then the creation of a special Monday holiday for Memorial Day in 1968. Some veterans groups were opposed to the date change to a Monday, arguing that it undermined the real meaning of Memorial Day. Other cities which claim to have been the origin of Decoration Day include Carbondale, Illinois (home of General Logan during the war), Richmond, Virginia, and Macon, Georgia. Official Birthplace Declared Despite the other claims, Waterloo, New York, got the title of birthplace of Memorial Day for a May 5, 1966, ceremony for local veterans.  Congress and President Lyndon B. Johnson issued the declaration. Poppies for Memorial Day The poem In Flanders Fields commemorated fallen war dead. And it includes a reference to poppies.   But it was not until 1915 that a woman, Moina Michael, wrote her own poem about cherishing the Poppy red, and began encouraging people to wear red poppies for Memorial Day, wearing one herself. Moina Michael is featured on a 3 cent postage stamp in the United States, issued in 1948.

The American Of The United States Essay - 1438 Words

When the American colonies declared themselves independent from on their mother country, Britain, on July 4, 1776, they sought to devise a plan to govern themselves without the constraints that had been imposed on them leading to their detachment. Prominent leaders in the thirteen colonies worked together to strike the perfect balance between the rights of the federal government and the rights of the states. On June 12, 1776, a committee was formed to put together a document that would bring together the states in the form of a confederation. Within the committee, John Dickinson was chosen to head the committee. Dickinson had begun his political career in 1760 when he served as the speaker of the Three Lower Counties in Delaware. Starting in 1965, Dickinson used his journalism skills to assist in the rebellion against Great Britain. His most famous work took place from 1767 to 1768, which was a series of newspaper articles, Letters from a Farmer in Pennsylvania published in the Penn sylvania Chronicle. His articles protested taxation policies enforced by the British government, but insisted that he preferred a peaceful solution over going to war with military world power. In 1771, Dickinson wrote a petition on behalf of the Pennsylvania legislature, which was unanimously approved, to King George III, suggesting a compromise in the interest that both parties could avoid a drawn out war. Unfortunately, Dickinson’s civil form of protesting caused the public to lose interest inShow MoreRelatedThe American Of The United States778 Words   |  4 PagesInduction From before it begins the Untied States has been a nation of immigrants. In 1607 the Virginia company of London sent a 34 Man crew to the new world efforts to find new land. These first ever settlers were the first immigrants to enter the Untied States. Immigrates would continue to flow into the US till the late 1800’s when the first immigration policies were created. The first immigrants to come to the US were seeking economic opportunities. However, because the price of passage wasRead MoreThe American Of The United States1371 Words   |  6 PagesThe United States is one of the largest countries that are made up of individuals from diverse origins and cultures. In addition, most foreigners from the other parts of the world migrated to the U.S, or become American citizens under different circumstances, especially during the 18th, 19th and the 20th centuries. 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In 1607 the Virginia company of London sent a 34 Man crew to the new world efforts to find new land. These first ever settlers were the first immigrants to enter the Untied States. Immigrates would continue to flow into the US till the late 1800’s when the first immigration policies were created. The first immigrants to come to the US were seeking economic opportunities. However, because the price of passage wasRead MoreThe American Of The United States1022 Words   |  5 PagesWorld War Two ended finally in the summer of nineteen forty-five. Life in the United States began to return to normal. Soldiers began to come home and find peacetime jobs. Industry stopped producing war equipment and began to produce goods that made peacetime life pleasant. The American economy was stronger than ever. Some major changes began to take place in the American population. Many Americans were not satisfied with their old ways of life. They wanted something better. And many people wereRead MoreThe American Of The United States1192 Words   |  5 Pagesassociations designed to promote the interests of particular groups—debtors, farmers, artisans, seaman (74)† were emerging throughout the states. In order to get their points across, they frequently resorted to vigilante methods. As soon as the war stopped, trade with the British seemed to start where it left off. British ships clogged American harbors and traders offered Americans low, easy credit. All classes lived in moderate luxury even if they could not afford it. Those still committed to the ideal ofRead MoreThe American Of The United States891 Words   |  4 Pagesjust like Americans seeking a better way to provide for their families. In Cuba, the average rate a day is approximately 466 pesos, and equals about $22 a day in the U.S. (http://www.havanatimes.org/?p=97506) If an American made $22 dollars a day they would certainly consider it to be the complete opposite of rightfulness. Costs are through the roof and owning anything would be out of the question. Although, Cubans are a small percentage of the U.S population they still migrate to the states by the