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Newsletter April/May 2012

by admin on May 4, 2012

News, Information and Career Advice

APRIL/MAY 2012

Best of Emmaus Award

Blackstone Career Institute: 2012 “Best of Emmaus” Award-Winner

Blackstone Career Institute strives to be an exceptional online education source every year, regardless of accolades. And once again this year, we are being recognized for our efforts.

The US Commerce Association (USCA) has named Blackstone Career Institute a 2012 Best of Emmaus school. This marks Blackstone’s fourth consecutive year as a recipient, putting us in an elite subdivision of multiple awardees numbering less than 1% of all the honorees.
Needless to say, we are proud of the accomplishment and grateful to the USCA for their positive assessment. The most valued feedback BCI receives, however, is from our students, who have consistently reported positive reviews from their Blackstone experiences. Our true hope is to utilize the “Best of Emmaus” recognition to communicate to our prospective students that Blackstone Career Institute is committed to providing quality education. The heart of the USCA’s judging criteria is the quality of customer service and satisfaction. In contrast to the hundreds of lesser online learning programs, BCI has gone above and beyond the average certification training by attending to our students’ needs first.

Blackstone Career Institute’s affordable, effective programs are designed for real world application, so that you can achieve the career you’ve always wanted. Contact us today to find a course that is right for you.

To read the full press release: Click Here.

Everyday Green Activities!

Worrying about the environment or pollution may seem like a secondary issue to a person in a less-than-ideal financial situation, but a few small lifestyle changes could help you sustain the planet and your cash flow.

Here is a brief overview of the average day in the life of a green everyman:

Morning: Make the morning shower shorter just by a couple minutes, and you could be investing in a seriously reduced water bill. If you have trouble keeping track of time, put a clock somewhere nearby where you can gauge yourself more effectively.
After breakfast and coffee, make sure to unplug your toaster and coffee-maker. Energy (and therefore money) is expended unnecessarily every time you leave an unused appliance plugged in.

 

Afternoon: Relearn that wonderful rule they taught you in kindergarten: sharing. Carpooling, lending and borrowing books or tools, and utilizing group discounts are all fun ways to reduce your overall carbon footprint.
For lunch, consider making it a vegetarian meal. Regardless of your ethical views, meat is expensive and contributes to the health problems that pollute our body. If you don’t keep yourself healthy, how can you help the rest of the world? Another solution for physical wellbeing is biking to work, or walking during your meal breaks.

 

Evening: When you stop at the grocery store on your way home, be sure to buy efficiently, and smartly. Hunt for the deals, buy locally, and never purchase products packaged in unrecyclable materials.
And finally, before you go to bed, replace the bulb at your nightstand with a CEL (Compact Fluorescent Lightbulb), and dream of all the ways you can spend your green savings.

Gas Prices Fuel Growth in Distance Education

While nation-wide enrollments in distance education programs have been on the rise for many years, educational institutions are reporting even more dramatic increases in recent months. This spike is most likely fueled by the rise in gas prices. Newspapers throughout the country, including The New York Times, have reported statistics from a variety of distance education schools supporting this upward trend. 

 

According to the Energy Information Administration, the average price of gas in the U.S. will exceed $4.00 in May−June 2012. For students who commute back and forth to a campus several times a week, this increase has had a serious impact on their budgets. But by enrolling in a distance education program, students can save both time and money. Financial issues related to commuting to consider when comparing site-based vs. distance learning education include:

  • Wear and tear on your car that can lead to huge repair bills
  • Parking or public transportation fees if you don’t use your car
  • Child care fees that you may have to pay while you attend classes
  • Extra expenses you might incur for dining out when you are on campus
  • Commuting time leading to less time to spend working and earning a salary
  • Commuting time resulting in less time to study

Finally, you should also consider the value of your personal time when choosing between distance education and site-based programs. For example, if you could trade a half-hour commute for a half- hour with your family or a half-hour doing something you enjoy, would you?

The State University of New York has developed a “distance learning calculator” that you can use to determine how much money you can save by choosing distance education. Try it online and see how quickly the costs associated with driving to classes can really add up!

Learn something new from this e-Newsletter or want to share a positive experience about Blackstone? Visit Blackstone’s Facebook page to comment and interact with your fellow students, prospective students, and others in our online community.

In This Issue

refer

Current Student
Or Graduate?

Help a friend and reward yourself! Click here to refer a friend(s) to Blackstone and receive a $100.00 Visa gift card after they enroll in one of our Career Training Programs! There is no limit to how many gift cards you may receive!

More News from Blackstone

For more news from Blackstone as well as an archive of recent news items,
visit our web site.

Join Our Community

Join Blackstone’s new Facebook group and connect with fellow students, alumni and prospective students! If you are not already a Facebook member, join now.

Did You Know?

Wed

World Environment Day, which will be celebrated on June 5, 2012, aims to be “the biggest and most widely celebrated global day for positive environmental action,” according to the United Nations Environment Programme.

World Environment Day (WED) has been celebrated around the globe since 1972. It is a call for action to citizens around the world to work towards a cleaner, greener environment now and for future generations.
The theme for WED in 2012 is Green Economy: Does it Include You? A Green Economy is defined by the UN Environment Programme as “one which is low carbon, resource efficient and socially inclusive.” As a socially inclusive ideal, the Green Economy includes all of us and our efforts.

If you are interested in arranging an activity to celebrate our environment during the week of WED, you can
register your activity online with the UN Environment Programme for a chance to win a prize!
Remember, when we each play a role in positive environmental action, everyone wins!

Blackstone Graduate Honored in Writing Competition

Charles Sigerseth, a graduate of the Blackstone Legal Assistant/Paralegal program, was recently named one of two winners in a tax policy/legal writing contest conducted by Kelly Phillips Erb, a contributing writer for Forbes.com. Phillips Erb authors a blog called taxgirl.com at http://blogs.forbes.com/kellyphillipserb, which was named one of the top 100 legal blogs by the ABA Journal.
The competition called for interested law and paralegal students to submit a 500−1500 word guest post about a hot tax policy issue. You can read Mr. Sigerseth’s winning entry on the statute of limitations issue here.

The faculty and staff at Blackstone would like to extend our congratulations on a job well done!

For Your Information

Want to learn more about Blackstone programs? Use the links below to explore BCI’s career programs and continuing education opportunities:

Frequently Asked Questions

Visit our FAQs page to learn more about enrolling in any of our programs. If you have additional questions, contact our friendly staff at info@blackstone.edu.

Keep In Touch

To update student contact information, e-mail us or call our office at 1-800-826-9228.

ENROLL NOW

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