#and they are having to reduce the number of student staff

[astriiformes]

Sometimes you just have to have a little cry in the middle of a bunch of 500 year-old books, and that's okay. I am telling myself it's okay.

[tesria]

Preserving prev's tags here, because yes:

Sometimes I see people from countries with public healthcare systems post videos that are like “This is the reality of socialized medicine. I had to wait in the ER with my sick baby for 4 hours.” “I had to wait 8 months to see a specialist. That’s egregious.” or “They didn’t have a bed for my loved one in mental health treatment.” and it’s like. Come to America babygirl. You can experience all of this and have your insurance deny it and pay thousands and thousands of dollars for it. Like I know healthcare systems in countries with public health can be bad but when I see someone imply they’re bad because the healthcare is universal, I want to jump through the screen and put my elbow on their throat. “The NHS is deeply flawed, therefore we should abolish it and go back to private healthcare. That will definitely make healthcare in this country better!” I am going to Kill You.

[probablyasocialecologist]

Earlier this week the trade union for doctors and medical students in the UK issued a warning about the number of doctors that have had to quit or reduce their hours due to long covid – the number was one in five. This story was covered in a limited way in a couple of places, which while not good enough was still a welcome jolt of covid reality in a landscape of denial. But tellingly, the media ignored something else the British Medical Association said. Something angry, something as equally demanding of attention, perhaps even more so than the headline statistic. Addressing the current spread of covid, particularly in healthcare settings, they said, “Infection control guidelines are fundamentally flawed: SARS-CoV-2 is airborne. It is outrageous that three-and-a-half years into this pandemic, staff and patients are still, knowingly and repeatedly, being exposed to a level-3 biohazard – a virus known to cause brain damage and significantly increased risk of life-threatening blood complications even in those recovered.” The union entrusted by 173,000 doctors and medical students in the UK to speak on their behalf is angrily castigating politicians and decision makers for refusing to face reality. The reality of covid as an airborne virus, and its reality as something much nastier than a cold or flu. They are demanding the reintroduction of infectious disease controls, and explicitly calling out covid as a brain damaging virus, and equivalent in its danger and infectiousness to yellow fever or West Nile virus. 

[covid-safer-hotties]

Also Preserved in our archive (Daily updates!)

What if the pandemic safety net cobbled together in 2020 had been a new beginning?

What if when Joe Biden came into office in 2021, the Covid-19 safety net he was handed had become a new floor?

What if that was his baseline—and the newly elected Democratic president, sold by his most ardent supporters as FDR 2.0, had used our Covid-19 response as the bare minimum of a new social contract with Americans?

What if the caring nature of the best aspects of the US Covid response became the map for international relations—leading not just to international cooperation on infectious disease, but on matters of war, climate and genocide?

What if, instead of dismantling the vaccine-delivery infrastructure—which, at its height, delivered some four million shots in a single day—the Biden administration built upon and made some version of it permanent, so that everyone could easily get annual Covid boosters, annual flu vaccines, or get specialty vaccinations during outbreaks of unusual viruses (such as for mpox during the 2022 summer outbreak among queer men) whenever they needed it?

What if the viral surveillance and communication mechanisms utilized for learning about SARS-CoV-2, treating it and telling the public about it were being used to address H5N1—a virus which has been moving from birds to farm mammals to humans with so little notice that dead cows were killed by the “avian flu” and left on the side of a road in California’s Central Valley, as “Thick swarms of black flies hummed and knocked against the windows of an idling car, while crows and vultures waited nearby—eyeballing the taut and bloated carcasses roasting in the October heat”?What if the leaders of the Democratic party had used Covid as a blueprint to make a national platform based on care?

What if all the ways Covid had made clear how farmers, industrial butchers, kitchen staff and other food workers are the most at risk people amongst us to viral infection led to meaningful, permanent protections, such that they were much less likely to contract not just SARS-CoV-2 but H1N1, H5N1, influenza, or any other existing or novel pathogens?

What if all the all the ways Covid exposed how unsafe industrial food production is (for the workers who make it and the people who eat it alike) had triggered safety reforms, instead of having these warnings ignored and leading towards record numbers of safety recalls for e-coli, Salmonella, and Listeria?

What if an airborne pandemic had led to indoor air being as filtered, treated and regulated as drinking water?

What if everyone with a child was still getting a $300 check from the US treasury, so that having a child was not a gambling-style risk, but a responsibility shared with all of society?

What if the paused-for-years student debts were forgiven, so that young people could actually begin their lives?

What if Biden built on Americans’ experience of just showing up somewhere to get the medical care they needed to create a universal healthcare system?

(What if Kamala Harris built upon Americans’ taste of not getting charged at the point of such service—and campaigned on Medicare for All?)

What if once the link between Covid and homelessness was established, the Democrats had pushed infectious disease as just one reason for an end to evictions and a robust, public-health-backed campaign to end homelessness and stop the United States from having more people living on the streets than any other country?

What if after the link between Covid and incarceration was established, the Democrats had pursued decarceration as a public health measure and—instead of throwing weed and cryptocurrency at us—had made reducing incarceration a centerpiece of the Harris campaign to earn the votes of Black men?

(What if after 100,000 Californians died of Covid and the links between Covid, homelessness and incarceration were clear, residents of the Golden State chose to allow rent control and to abolish legal slavery in prisons—instead of voting to ban rent control and to continue prison slavery?)

What if the leaders of the Democratic party had used Covid as a blueprint to make a national platform based on care?

Would we be in the lethal position we are now—with a genocide raging abroad, Covid deaths in the hundreds every week at home, a poisoned food supply, $17 trillion in household debt, oligarch goons ready to dismantle government regulations, and a sociopath heading back into the White House—if Covid had been the floor?

[reasonsforhope]

According to the World Resources Institute, the number of electric school buses operating or delivered in the United States more than doubled—from 598 in 2022 to 1,285 through June 2023—all driven to serve school children while providing cleaner air in 40 states.

Looking into the near future, the number of electric school buses that were already funded or on-order nearly tripled, and were spread across districts located in 49 states.

The emissions-free buses are found in 914 U.S. school districts and private fleet operators, according to the evidence-based nonprofit’s report published in September, 2023: State of Electric School Bus Adoption in the US.

California leads all states, with over 2,000 committed electric buses across the sprawling territory. This is more than five times as many EV buses as the next leading state, Maryland, with 391 commitments.

New Jersey has the second largest increase with 107 new buses, while West Virginia has the third largest increase with 42 new commitments. The updated data shows electric school bus commitments are now more evenly distributed across all regions of the country.

The Top 5 School Districts by Number of Electric School Buses are:

Montgomery County Public Schools (Maryland)

Los Angeles Unified School District

New York City Public Schools

Twin Rivers Unified School District (California)

Troy Community Consolidated School District (Illinois)

“We estimate approximately 69,000 students across the country are currently served by electric school buses that are delivered or in operation,” said the report authors, Lydia Freehafer, Leah Lazer, and Brian Zepka.

Zero pollution from tailpipes while buses are idling or driving means the students, staff, and community will be exposed to significantly less harmful air particulates that contribute to asthma and lung disease. The environment also benefits from reduced greenhouse gas emissions.

The federal government’s Clean School Bus Program, administered by the Environmental Protection Agency, is one of the biggest funders of these vehicles, having awarded 2,339 electric school buses—with more on the way.

-via Good News Network, December 30, 2023

[crookedkryptonitebeliever]

Best and Worst of both Worlds (part 1)

Tw: yandere oc guy, but i dont think this chapter shown that yet, but readers a fuckin stalker loser this time, university horrors

Okay guys so this story im literally pitting Yves and Montgomery together, gonna be a little slow burn but we r gonna get 2 da conflict like eventually

Also da settting in university cuase its da most relevant 2 me 💯

Enjouy

PART 2

He's so beautiful and ethereal. The man has been plaguing your mind for the entire week, you're being distracted from your assignments just because of this unbelievably gorgeous man with silky, long hair and dressed to the tens.

You grinded your teeth and scratched your skin, you know where he frequents. The university's library. And you obviously want to get closer to him after he caught you from falling. You slipped on a sheet of paper that you dropped and this mysterious stranger was there to catch you by the waist before your body could make any devastating impact. Unfortunately, your stacks of textbooks and other miscellaneous documents were scattered to the ground.

"Are you alright?" He asked, his voice was smooth and pleasant with a unique, suave accent to it.

You were reduced to a nervous, stuttery mess. He gently brought you back up to your feet, he helped you gather your things and even arranged it by size and weight, so that it would be less likely for it to topple over. The man took a further step to smoothen the frizzles of your hair, fix your collar and sleeves. He even zipped your backpack up, you were unaware that it was open in the first place, adding to your embarrassment. You couldn't really push him away because your arms are occupied with your belongings.

It was hard to look into those stunning emerald eyes without flustering yourself even further, so you looked away while you stammered a "thanks" to him.

"Be careful." He said as he tilted your head by the chin to make direct eye contact. You know that you're as red as a tomato, but he didn't comment on it. The man lets you go before walking away, he fixed the handles of his luxury bag on his shoulder. Luscious curls bouncing with every step.

You felt like you wanted to explode right there and then, it took you a while to regain composure, other university personnel wondering why you're just standing in the middle of the path like that. Aren't you tired of holding all that stuff? It looked heavy.

You were snapped back into your senses when someone who you assumed had a bad day, told you to get out of the way. You scurried along the traffic, having the incident fresh in your mind.

You wonder who that man is, a student? A professor? A staff member?

You came to know that he's in the library for a few hours every weekday afternoons. He doesn't have a particular spot, the mystique spontaneously appears in random but fairly secluded reading spots in the library.

You felt like a stalker, but that's what you are. Too shy and afraid to talk to him, yet content with watching from afar. His ears are covered by his hair, so you don't know if he had any earbuds in. Fuelling your hesitance to make any contact first.

He could be reading a thick novel, handwriting something down on his notebook, or he could be typing away on his sleek, black laptop. In either instances, you have no idea what he's doing, it's either in a foreign language, full of numbers or completely made up of technical jargon.

You don't know why you're doing this instead of studying for your midterms. You're never like this to any of your crushes, not this obsessive over a real person, so why now? What compelled you to become this... creep? It's like you can't stop. You're scared of rejection but you can't get rid of the butterflies in your stomach.

You had no one to talk to about it because university is a very lonely place. At least, for personality types like you. You didn't want to bother your other friends, they have their own problems to worry about.

It reaches a point that you tried following him out of the library, wondering where he will go next. Before you could step past the automatic sliding doors, you looked at the book in your hand.

'Wait a minute, this is fucked up.' You thought to yourself. This isn't like you, exams are in spitting distance and you're subjecting this poor person to this harassment just because of a singular interaction.

You made a 180⁰ turn and marched back to your all-time favourite seat. Which happened to be occupied by the stranger earlier, maybe that made you a little peeved because you "claimed" it first at the start of the year. But he took it for the day.

To your surprise, there lies his notebook on the ground. He must have accidentally left it. You picked it up and looked around to make sure the coast was clear, then you flipped through it.

You were blasted with numericals, diagrams, words you weren't sure if it was written in English or otherwise and even floorplans of a building of some sort. You couldn't understand anything.

"Excuse me."

You whipped your head to the whisper. It was him! Your blood ran cold as he caught you snooping through his item. You opened your mouth, but no sound came out.

You struggled to form a coherent sentence as you pointed at it, you're done for, you're going to be confirmed a creep. But he only watched you with the utmost patience.

There came a point where you gave up, placed the closed book on the table and pushed it towards him.

Luckily though, you didn't have to say another word.

"You found my notebook. How careless of me to have dropped it." He pulled a chair opposite of you and sat down. You watch him place his handbag on another chair.

He elegantly picked the journal up and slid it into his bag. You were sweating at this point, the dread is about to make you vomit on him and that's not great. You wished that he would go away now, but seeing that he's locked onto his seat, it's highly unlikely.

You prayed hard for it though, he finished his business for the day. There shouldn't be any reason for him to linger.

"Thank you for keeping it safe. I hope you found whatever it is you were seeking from me." He continued, crossing his legs and resting his hands on the table.

What.

You asked what he meant by that.

A teasing smile made its way to his rouge lips.

"You were watching me." You grew pale and you scrambled to explain yourself, but he raised his index finger to signal you to let him continue.

"Your tact could be improved upon; I could see you trying to hide behind the shelves, I could hear you mumbling to yourself, and you shouldn't think so lowly of yourself." He propped his head up on one elbow.

Your cheeks felt hot. That is true, you were berating yourself for being too wimpy to go ahead and talk to him. You just didn't think you were that loud.

"I would have enjoyed having a chat with you. I wouldn't have thought that you were-- and in your own words, a 'creepy, loser-freak'."

Oh. He heard that too. You wish that you could disappear this instant.

"I'm flattered that you thought highly of me. However, I was disappointed that you thought that I was intimidating." He pouted playfully. "I won't bite." He twirls a lock of his hair around his fingers.

Your nerves are frazzled as he leans in. You didn't know what to say or what to do. He seemingly picks up on that and continues leading the conversation.

"Let's start with names. Tell me yours and I'll tell you mine." You felt his shoe brush against your leg.

You almost forgot your own name as you watch the bead of sweat drip down your nose in horror. He must think you're a stinky slob.

But all he does is stare straight into your soul while drumming his fingers against the table.

You told him your name, with a severe stutter. Each passing second felt like a serrated knife slicing through your flesh.

He repeated it, syllables rolling through his tongue wonderfully. He pronounced it correctly on the first try despite your cripplingly anxious enunciation.

"Yves." He replied. Finally, you have his name. You're totally not going to use that to dig for more information on him.

"You have a beautiful name." He complimented.

You nervously returned the compliment and let out an awkward laugh. Trying your best to ignore the growing sweat stain between your pits.

"How charming of you, (name)." He stood up and pushed his chair back under the table. Yves collected his bag and turned his attention back to you.

"I'd love to talk longer, but I must go now. I believe you have an exam to prepare for. Best begin your revision now, I hope our brief conversation has helped to quell your worries."

...and you mumbled that part about yourself too. It's pretty safe to assume he heard all your thoughts.

Yves extended a manicured hand to you. Taking this as a clear request for a handshake, you accepted it.

Only for him to bring it up to his lips, tenderly and fleetingly kissing your knuckles. This entire time, his piercing gaze never left your eyes.

You wanted to claw yourself out of your flesh and die out of embarrassment.

"Study well."

He lets your hand down and presses it momentarily with his larger ones.

You watched him saunter away with his back turned against you.

You brought the back of your palm to your sight.

There is a faint, reddish tint on it. It must have been from his lipstick.

You're not sure if you ever want to wash your hand after this.

[beardedmrbean]

Prosecutors say Joanna Smith-Griffin inflated the revenues of her startup, AllHere Education.

Smith-Griffin is accused of lying about contracts with schools to get $10 million in investment.

AllHere, which spun out of Harvard's Innovation Lab, was supposed to help reduce absenteeism.

Federal prosecutors have charged the founder of an education-technology startup spun out of Harvard who was recognized on a 2021 Forbes 30 Under 30 list with fraud.

Prosecutors in New York say Joanna Smith-Griffin lied for years about her startup AllHere Education's revenues and contracts with school districts. The company received $10 million under false pretenses, the indictment says.

AllHere, which came out of Harvard Innovation Labs, created an AI chatbot that was supposed to help reduce student absenteeism. It furloughed its staff earlier this year and had a major contract with the Los Angeles Unified School District, the education-news website The 74 reported. The company is currently in bankruptcy proceedings.

Smith-Griffin was featured on the Forbes 30 Under 30 list for education in 2021. She's the latest in a line of young entrepreneurs spotlighted by the publication — including Sam Bankman-Fried, Charlie Javice, and Martin Shkreli — to face criminal charges.

More recently, the magazine Inc. spotlighted her on its 2024 list of female founders "for leveraging AI to help families communicate and get involved in their children's educational journey."

"The law does not turn a blind eye to those who allegedly distort financial realities for personal gain," US Attorney Damian Williams said in a statement.

Prosecutors say Smith-Griffin deceived investors for years. In spring 2021, while raising money, she said AllHere had made $3.7 million in revenue the year before and had about $2.5 million on hand. Charging documents say her company had made only $11,000 the year before and had about $494,000 on hand. The company's claims that the New York City Department of Education and the Atlanta Public Schools were among its customers were also false, the government says.

AllHere's investors included funds managed by Rethink Capital Partners and Spero Ventures, according to a document filed in bankruptcy court.

Smith-Griffin was arrested on the morning of November 19 in North Carolina, prosecutors say.

Harvard said Smith-Griffin received a bachelor's degree from Harvard Extension School in 2016. According to an online biography, she was previously a teacher and worked for a charter school. Representatives for Forbes and Inc. didn't immediately respond to a comment request on Tuesday. A message left at a number listed for Smith-Griffin wasn't returned.

[sourcreammachine]

LOONY PARTY MANICFESTO 2024 SUMMARY

[not a pejorative, party founder Screaming Lord Sutch was himself bipolar]

tdlr: “we are fighting this election on the basis of CHANGE… LOOSE CHANGE as this is all we’ll have left under a labour/conservative government”

💷ECONOMY

reduce taxes to 5%

get rid of value-added tax as it adds no value

ban the tipping of flies

convert number 10 and number 11 into a hairdressers called Government Cuts

abolish stamp duty because stamps are too expensive

fit airbags to the stock exchange, ready for the next crash

halve dole queues by making jobseekers stand two-by-two

improve quitters’ self-esteem by encouraging them not to start in the first place

🏥PUBLIC SERVICES

employ 80.00 teachers, police officers and nhs staff

reduce pregnancy from nine to seven months

reduce hospital waiting lists by using a smaller font

reduce class sizes by shrinking desks and making students sit closer together

glue unruly pupils together because if you can’t beat them, join them

give pensioners an ice lolly allowance when temperatures exceed 70°

🏠HOUSING

build five million new homes

aid “levelling up” by providing free spirit levels

🚄TRANSPORT

fill five million potholes

introduce an ROT to make sure all roads are carworthy

fit vehicles with a bungy rope to save fuel on the return journey

save money on paint by painting double-yellow lines where you CAN park rather than where you can’t

create the world’s biggest carwash by punching holes in the channel tunnel

👮FORCE

send all MPs who misbehave to rwanda

reduce net migration by making sure all nets are secured firmly to the ground

make terrorists wear little bells so we know where they are

replace border guards with GP receptionists to stop anyone getting in

introduce a court of human lefts

reduce prison overcrowding by releasing innocent prisoners

oppose capital punishment as it is not fair to londoners

🌱CLIMATE

wind farms to be constructed across the country where all will be encouraged to break wind

get more green cars on the road, with politicians having fluorescent green so everyone can see them coming

paint the grey squirrels red

greyhound racing will be banned to stop the country going to the dogs

puddles deeper than 7cm will be marked with a plastic duck

🗳️DEMOCRACY

MPs will have to sit in stocks during surgeries while constituents throw custard pies at them. companies to be encouraged to design new stocks, to be sold at the stock exchange

introduce a “cooling-off period” to allow voters to change their mind

replace the foreign secretary with a UK one

[tomorrowusa]

If this seems like a relatively subdued Pride Month, that's because the LGBTQ+ community is under more threat than usual this year.

For those in the LGBTQIA+ community, Pride month is a chance to be out, loud and proud.  But in the United States, there's been an uneasy quiet hanging over this June.  Big brands who once didn't think twice about cashing in on the pink dollar have scaled back support. The American offshoot of Target reduced the number of its stores carrying Pride-themed products this year after getting backlash in 2023. Nike, who became the subject of boycott calls last year over its marketing partnership with a transgender influencer, has also pulled back after offering Pride collections since 1999. [ ... ] The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) says it's currently monitoring 523 anti-LGBTQIA+ bills across the country. Over 300 of these bills were introduced in the first three weeks of 2024 alone, and 149 are still advancing or have been passed into law.

Just want to interject that the introduction of a bill in a state legislature does not mean it will pass. 2 homophobic bills were introduced in socialist/hippie Vermont, 6 in Illinois which was the first state to abolish sodomy laws, and 9 in liberal New Jersey. Don't count on them passing. But the 39 in deep red Missouri adds to its reputation as currently having the most homophobic state government in the US.

The majority of these bills relate to educational measures, through school sports bans, school facilities bans that prevent transgender students from using communal rest rooms, or curriculum censorship around in-school discussions of the queer community.  Increasing anti-LGBTQIA+ rhetoric has also seen bills introduced that would forcibly out teachers and staff.  [ ... ]

Trailing slightly behind is healthcare restrictions, where more than two-thirds of the bills (69 per cent) are aimed at limiting the accessibility of gender-affirming healthcare for transgender youth.  This is despite the American Medical Association resolving to "protect access to evidence-based care for transgender and gender-diverse youth" in June last year. 2023 also marked the first time the ACLU saw drag bans introduced across US states.

It's not just Republicans in state legislatures to blame for increased homophobia. There also billionaire extremists with social media empires.

Notably, Dr Ellis points to billionaire Elon Musk's October 2022 takeover of X — formerly Twitter — which saw the mention of grooming slurs against the LGBTQIA+ community jump by 119 per cent, according to the Center for Countering Digital Hate.  The social media sphere also saw anti-LGBTQIA+ sentiment being taken up by foreign actors ahead of US election campaigns to sow division, according to Meta's head of Cybersecurity Policy, Nathaniel Gleicher.

Perhaps the most bizarre group in American politics is the Log Cabin Republicans.

Log Cabin Republicans president bizarrely defends Donald Trump's anti-LGBTQ+ record

Seriously, people in the LGBTQ+ community who support Republicans, Trump, and MAGA are in deep need of therapy. Imagine a hypothetical group like "Gazans for Netanyahu" to get some idea of how self-hating the Log Cabin Republicans are. Republicans are largely under the control of extremist Christian fundamentalists who would pass the most repressive homophobic laws they could get away with.

Back to the legislatures. It's a big mistake to neglect state government. Find out who represents you in your legislature. If they are Republicans, contact your state or county Democratic Party to learn how you can help defeat them.

Find Your Legislators Look your legislators up by address or use your current location.

[shepherds-of-haven]

How exactly did Red end up as the archmage of the Circle? Were there no other staff who were older/more experienced than him?

Good question! I can't remember in how much detail this was expounded upon in the game, but essentially, all Circles have always had trouble finding and retaining long-term faculty, instructors, and staff. In the old days before the Castigation, teaching positions at places like Solhadur were essentially like collegiate professorships at universities: you'd teach your classes, conduct office hours and head up research and projects, but you still had a home, life, and typically family outside of the school that you would return to once your day or week was over.

After the Castigation, of course, instructors don't really have this luxury: it's not as if you can risk being regularly seen making trips up to "the old abandoned castle" on the outskirts of town and then coming home to your house and family in Capra every night, exactly as if you... worked at the old abandoned castle that used to be a Mage academy, so instructors have to teach and live on the grounds under the same restrictions that the students have. Your whole life has to be about the Circle, by necessity, for everyone's safety. Except that students will eventually graduate after a few years and have the opportunity to leave and go their own ways in the world (if they want to); and teachers don't really get that luxury.

So if you try to source teachers from the outside, you already face a great deal of obstacles: you have to 1) find teachers who are experienced, advanced, and skilled enough at magic to teach it (hard enough when learning magic is outlawed by the Autarchy, so you're already dealing with a drastically-reduced pool of candidates), 2) someone who has the aptitude and demeanor suitable for teacher (further reducing the pool), 3) someone who has the willingness and capacity to devote their lives to the Circle and forego having a family, life, residence, or pursuits outside of it* (reducing the pool even further), and 4) to do all of this scouting, vetting, and recruiting in a way that doesn't result you both in getting caught by the Inquisitors or other authorities.

*There are exceptions to this, of course: nothing precludes the instructor from bringing their family to live with them at the Circle, but this also introduces new complications: what will your partner do for a living? What if your kids grow older and don't want that kind of life, or long to have friends outside of the Circle? Etc.

And then even if you manage to do all of this and hire an instructor, nothing guarantees that they'll want to teach forever. So your retention rate is pretty regular, with some teachers exiting after 5-10 years (and some even less), whether due to retirement or illness or seeking a new career or settling down and starting a family/lifestyle that isn't compatible with the Circle or having to go back home to take care of someone, or any number of reasons; but your hiring rate is drastically reduced.

(What about hiring internally, you ask, rather than finding instructors from outside the Circle? Well, consider your average high school or small college population. Of all the students you graduated with, how many of them would want to stick around after graduation to continue teaching? Let's say that number is higher than average because of the altered circumstances of the Autarchy: there aren't a lot of professions that allow young Mages to keep using their powers in a way they've now become accustomed to, so let's say interest in staying on as a staff member is far higher than the average student population. But of that number, who are also actually suited to be good teachers?)

Anyway, in the early days of Archmage Tevanti's tenure, he was actually pretty successful at scooping up a great number of faculty members who were interested in helping maintain the Circle: he was the son of the last Archmage of Solhadur and had that clout going for him, and he was very old when he died (around 200), so when he started his recruiting, it was actually in the early years directly after the Castigation. So there were still a number of pre-Castigation educated Mages willing and able to teach, and under his leadership, he garnered more over the years. But once he got older, active recruitment stagnated, partially because he already had his set faculty members and wasn't actively seeking new, fresh, younger blood; and also because the difficulty and danger of traveling on the roads seeking Mage instructors increased with the return of the Endarkened as well as heightened activity and zealotry from the Inquisitors, especially once Enik took charge. By the time Archmage Tevanti died, recruitment efforts had basically halted entirely, and it was left to "his" generation of teachers to keep things going. But over the years, many had already retired or died at the normal rate of decay, so where he may have started with, say, 40, in his twilight years there were 10. It was just bad luck that, because they were all of similar age to him, many of them also became ill, retired, or passed away around the same time as him, just before, or just after; so by the time it came to choosing a successor, the "senior" generation of faculty members were pretty much all gone or on the way out, and the middle generation were exiting for their own reasons (too dangerous, tired of teaching and quitting after a normal rate (say five years), wanting a career change or new pursuits, settling down and starting families, disheartened by his loss, etc.). So, to his thinking, you'd want someone younger, stronger, and sharper, someone who has a lot of years to give and isn't prone to noping out because of the demands of middle age or looming retirement, someone who could tackle this enormous task of being Archmage with the necessary fresh perspective and vigor of youth... which is why he chose someone like Red, and not the fifty-year-old Charms instructor who had indicated he would be retiring soon to spend more time with his granddaughter within a few years. It was just really, really bad luck that Red's stepping into the role coincided with anyone more senior than him (who could at least serve as an advisor or consultant or mentor) being eliminated/whittled down due to unfortunate circumstances and extremely bad timing: I think he mentions some professors were there to help him in the first years, but one was hit by a curse, one fell ill, and etc. It was probably on Archmage Tevanti to have recruited younger, fresher teachers sooner so Red would have a pre-established faculty before he took over, but again, a lot of circumstances prevented him from being as active in his recruitment as he should have (not even mentioning his long illness), and he really couldn't have predicted how things would go.

This is a long explanation, but hopefully that paints a better picture of how Red was essentially launched into a very stressful position without the guidance and direction Archmage Tevanti was expecting he would have, and why many of the teachers currently at the Circle are around the same age as him! However, after joining the Shepherds, there's obviously a lot more contact with Mages, so the faculty is more diverse in age and experience again and he can take a step back from his Archmage duties without feeling like it's all on him, as there's an actual support system for it all now! Hope that all makes sense!

[the-garbanzo-annex-jr]

by

TAMMI ROSSMAN-BENJAMIN

While civil rights law continues to play an important role in how DEI programs operate, they have since evolved and expanded, especially in the last decade. With the establishment and rapid growth of the Black Lives Matter movement and the popularization of critical race theory, there has been an explosion of interest among colleges and universities in establishing or expanding DEI programs not just to reduce social inequality, but to fight the systemic injustice that leads to it. Although the same identity groups remain the focus of DEI efforts, those efforts now view them through the lens not of social inequality but of systemic oppression.

How do Jewish students fit into this picture? Until 2004 they were not afforded Title VI protections from discrimination, because they were regarded solely as members of a religious group — not a protected category under Title VI. As a result, campus affirmative-action or equal-opportunity programs had no reason to include Jewish students in their efforts. But even after 2004, when Jewish students were deemed eligible for Title VI protection as members of a national origin group, neither they nor antisemitism was integrated into most DEI initiatives, despite an increasingly hostile campus environment.

The blindness of DEI programs to Jewish students and antisemitism is likely the result of two factors.

First, although Jews were once a historically marginalized and underrepresented group in American higher education, that is certainly no longer the case. Consequently, despite having endured thousands of years of oppression, including one of history’s largest genocides, and even now suffering more hate crimes in America than any historically marginalized and underrepresented group except African Americans, Jews are not viewed as oppressed at all within a DEI framework. On the contrary, they are generally seen as white, privileged oppressors who do not merit the attention of DEI programs.

Second, even if Jewish students manage to secure a seat at the DEI table, a thornier problem awaits. Although a growing number of DEI officials are willing to respond to and educate the campus community about acts of classical antisemitism, such as swastikas painted on a Jewish fraternity house or neo-Nazi fliers distributed on campus, many of those same officials are unwilling to acknowledge and address anti-Zionist-motivated harassment. Yet this is by far the predominant form of antisemitism facing Jewish students today.

The disparate treatment of these two types of antisemitism is very much related to the ideological leanings of most DEI programs. Because instances of classical antisemitism are often perpetrated by individuals associated with white-supremacist groups, who are also perpetrators of racist attacks on many historically marginalized groups, calling out and educating about this type of antisemitism actually kills two birds with one stone.

On the other hand, many instances of anti-Zionist harassment on campus are perpetrated by members of identity groups served by DEI programs. In addition, many DEI staff themselves harbor virulently anti-Israel sentiments, as demonstrated in a 2021 report examining the social-media postings of DEI staff at major universities. Drawing heavily on ideologies undergirding most DEI programs, these postings portrayed Israel as a racist, settler-colonial state, linked the plight of Palestinians to the struggles of oppressed minorities in America, and implied that it was the duty of antiracist activists to support the liberation of Palestine “from the river to the sea,” a rallying cry for the elimination of the Jewish state.

Against this backdrop, it’s not hard to see why so many DEI programs are loath to acknowledge the antisemitic nature of anti-Zionist behavior that so often leads to the harassment of Jewish students. But that hasn’t stopped Jewish advocates from trying.

[mythologeekwriter]

God this is horrifying

[Note: I am not copying the whole of these articles, please do read them, I'm just sharing the bits that I think illustrate why you should in fact read them.]

Five-point plan to cut UK immigration raises fears of more NHS staff shortages | Immigration and asylum | The Guardian

Cleverly told MPs on Monday that “migration is far too high and needs to come down … enough is enough”. He added: “Today I can announce that we will go even further than those provisions already in place, with a five-point plan to further curb immigration abuses that will deliver the biggest ever reduction in net migration. “In total, this package, plus our reduction in student dependants, will mean about 300,000 fewer people will come in future years than have come to the UK last year.” Along with raising the salary threshold and scrapping the “shortage occupation list”, Cleverly announced that social care workers would no longer be allowed to bring their dependants when they came to work in the UK. He also said people living in the UK – including British citizens – would now be allowed to sponsor family members to move to the UK only if the person living in the UK earned £38,700, up from £18,600 currently. Finally, the government is asking the Migration Advisory Committee to review the rules for those who have completed undergraduate degrees in the UK. A spokesperson for Downing Street called the package “the biggest clampdown on legal migration ever”. They added: “We believe this is a package which will enable us to significantly reduce numbers whilst achieving economic growth.” It forms one part of a two-part plan to reduce the numbers of people coming into Britain legally and illegally. This week Cleverly is likely to fly to Kigali to sign a new asylum treaty with Rwanda, with ministers ready to bring forward new legislation in an effort to finally kickstart the government’s Rwanda plan.

Families face being split up by UK plan to cut legal migration, lawyers say | Migration | The Guardian

Data suggests this could make it impossible for between 60 and 70% of workers to bring their family into the UK. The crackdown has caused concern among some senior Tory MPs. Alicia Kearns, the chair of the foreign affairs select committee, said on Tuesday she was worried the package as a whole risked dividing families. She told LBC: “It risks being very unconservative”. Madeleine Sumption, the director of the Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford, said: “This is definitely completely different to what any other high income country does.” Under the new rules, someone will be able to bring a family member into the country if they earn £38,700 year. If the partner is already in the UK, both people’s incomes will be taken into account. If someone does not qualify under those rules, they will still be allowed to bring in family members if they have sufficient savings. Under current rules that figure is £62,500, but the government is consulting over whether to increase it.

Lawyers and applicants say, however, that it has led to distress and confusion, with many families already in the process of applying for visas now unsure of what the changes will mean for them. Kelly Robinson, an American PhD student living in Norwich with her partner, Owen Sennitt, had applied for her spousal visa last week, confident Sennitt’s job as a local journalist would be enough to qualify for it. Now she believes she may have to return to the US after eight years living in Britain. “It is a real shock,” she said. “The entire life we have built is being taken away from us overnight.” Nick Gore, a partner at Carter Thomas solicitors, said: “This is devastating for many people that just about meet the existing financial requirements. There is a huge spectrum of people who are affected – some are on minimum wage jobs, others have started their own businesses. This will split families up.”

Thanks to James Cleverly, I may never live in the same country as my kids again | Claire Armitstead | The Guardian

When I mentioned their predicament to a lawyer friend he was dismissive, saying that middle-class families always found a way round these problems. Other friends suggested we remortgage our house to raise the £62,500 capital that was the alternative route to a spousal visa. But it would have to have been in their bank account for a minimum of six months before they even reapplied; this was time their soaring stress levels meant they didn’t have. And anyway, they wanted to pay their own way. The Home Office said any change to the capital threshold would be announced in due course. At the old salary rate, they probably would eventually have worked something out, but at the new one there is no chance. Their relationship will always be based on them both working, and while their combined income would very probably exceed £38,700 a year, neither is going to make that much on their own. My eldest and his partner are now happily settled, so wouldn’t want to move back anyway. The sort of social care work she does is more highly valued in Spain. Meanwhile, my Australian daughter-in-law is in the crazy bind facing citizens of so many of the UK’s former colonies: expected to bend the knee to the monarch of a British state that doesn’t want them. Australia asks the foreign partners of its citizens only to prove their relationship is genuine.

[unilifeabroadcareersolution]

Benefits of Studying in Greece

Unilife abroad career solutions

Good Weather Conditions

If you love the sun, Greece is perfect for you! The number one pro among the Pros and Cons of Studying in Greece is undoubtedly the weather. After Valletta, Athens is the warmest Capital in Europe. July is usually the sunniest month and December the cloudiest. That said, this country is blessed with sunny days and good weather conditions almost all year around.

Top Business School in Greece

The American College of Greece is one of the top graduate business schools in Europe, located in the historic capital of Athens. Alba faculty comprises of staff from all over the world who have experience in prestigious schools in the area of business and management and beyond, such as Harvard Business School, Stern School of Business, Wharton, London Business School etc.

Low tuition fees and low living expenses

If you are an EU/EEA student, you most likely will not be charged with any tuition fees for a Bachelor’s degree. However, an increasing number of Masters is requiring students to pay. If you are an international student, then you will have to pay tuition fees that range less than €10,000 per year, which includes textbooks. Depending on the university, books might be given to students at no extra cost. For example, The Aristotle University of Thessaloniki offers hot meals twice a day and the free use of the gym to all its students.

To live in Greece, students spend on average between €450 and €700 per month, inclusive of accommodation, bills, phone plan, public transport pass, etc. If we compare this to other European destinations, like Spain and Germany, then the average monthly living costs might easily rise to a minimum of €800, depending on the city.

Enjoy the local cuisine

If you are going to study there, you will get to enjoy the delicacies that the country has to offer. Tsatsiki, feta, olives, gyros are just some of the many Greek specialties which should not be missed. The Mediterranean diet is considered to be one of the healthiest. Fish, nuts, fruits, vegetables, just to mention some, help lower inflammation in your body, reduce the risk of diabetes, and more.

Health care

EU citizens have free access to most healthcare services provided by public hospitals in Greece with the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC).

Students coming from some non-EU countries might benefit from free medical care due to reciprocal agreements with Greece. If this is not the case, you will need to arrange private health insurance before your departure to Greece. However, most hospitals that accept foreign insurance are those in Athens or Thessaloniki.

Unilife Abroad Career Solutions

Contact us :8428440444 , 8428999090 , 8608777070

Mail ID :anagha@unilifeabroad.com , diya@unilifeabroad.com

[covid-safer-hotties]

Also preserved on our archive

By Hayley Gleeson

There wasn't a dramatic "lightning bolt" moment when Colin Kinner realised he needed to roll up his sleeves and start tackling what he'd come to see as a pernicious problem: the largely unchecked spread of SARS-CoV-2 in Australian schools.

What spurred him to act, in the end, was the growing pile of evidence that COVID was a serious health threat, and his concern that school communities seemed to be shrugging their shoulders at it.

He was tired of hearing about schools allowing teachers to come to work while COVID positive. Of sick children being permitted to stay in class and infecting others. Of schools asking parents not to tell them if their child had COVID, but routinely sending home letters about head lice or chickenpox. Of teachers and kids catching the virus and not recovering.

"As a parent, I want my son to be safe at school, so that was a key part of my motivation to do this," says Mr Kinner, the Brisbane creator of COVID Safety for Schools, a free online course that aims to correct misinformation and teach school staff and parents how to reduce the risk of the virus spreading. "But also, having spoken to lots of other parents and teachers, it's clear that most schools are lacking an understanding of some of the absolute basics of COVID. And in the fifth year of the pandemic, I find that very troubling."

Every week in Australia too many students and teachers are catching COVID at school, Mr Kinner says, resulting in disrupted learning, teacher shortages, increased transmission in the broader community and disabling chronic illnesses like long COVID. It's hardly surprising: a packed classroom can be the perfect place for an airborne virus to thrive, with one US study finding more than 70 per cent of COVID transmission in homes began with an infected school-age child.

Schools aren't necessarily at fault: in most states they've been starved of good public health guidance, Mr Kinner says — they've been told "they can treat it like any other respiratory illness, so that's exactly what they're doing".

Step one: correct misinformation A science and technology communicator and startup mentor, Mr Kinner's solution was to assemble a team — some of Australia's leading experts in public health, medicine and engineering — who could explain in simple video tutorials the health risks of COVID, the science of how it spreads, and strategies schools can use to keep staff and students well. The ultimate goal of COVID Safety for Schools, he says, is to change minds and behaviour and, since it launched in February, 600 participants have signed up, about half parents and half teachers.

But perhaps its greatest challenge is engaging people in the first place, particularly those who believe COVID is harmless or no longer worth taking precautions against.

For the past couple of years Australians have been encouraged to keep calm and carry on as if the virus is in the rear view mirror, even as it continues sickening and killing people, albeit in smaller numbers than years gone by. News reports often downplay its severity, if they cover it at all, while political leaders, public health officials and doctors have claimed it is no cause for concern, especially in children, and that catching it is not just inevitable, but necessary.

But mounting evidence shows the opposite. Even in vaccinated people and those who suffer "mild" infections, COVID can trigger a range of health problems including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, neurological conditions and immune dysfunction. Then there's long COVID, a debilitating multi-organ illness that has upended the lives of hundreds of millions of children and adults worldwide, many of whom do not fully recover.

"COVID is like an accelerator for all the other diseases that we hate — it's actually an aging accelerant as well," Professor Jeremy Nicholson explains in one of the course videos. "And we don't want that for our kids or anybody else."

Simple steps can stop COVID spreading Once apprised of the health risks, course participants are taught about evidence-based tools schools can use to reduce viral transmission. These are not outlandish or burdensome interventions, but common sense steps like encouraging teachers and students to stay home if they're sick; improving indoor air quality with ventilation and filtration — with air conditioning systems, air purifiers and good old-fashioned open windows; and promoting mask wearing particularly in high-risk settings like crowded indoor gatherings or bus trips.

Of course, some education departments already require schools to take similar measures. In Victoria, for instance, all public schools must "maximise" external ventilation, ensure air purifiers are used, encourage good personal hygiene and make face masks available for those who want to wear them. But that doesn't mean schools actually follow the guidelines or use the tools at their disposal (in 2021 the government delivered tens of thousands of air purifiers to schools across the state, but many are no longer used and some have since been listed for sale on Facebook Marketplace).

The federal president of the Australian Education Union, Correna Haythorpe, says any initiative that educates people about COVID and what schools can do to prevent infections is "welcome". Teachers who have to take sick leave because they've caught COVID or developed long COVID are an additional burden on schools, many of which are struggling with the "chronic" national teacher shortage, she says. Then there's the disruption to learning: "A contagious disease can very quickly … take out significant numbers of students. And fundamentally, we want kids to be engaged, we want them to be well, we want them to be learning."

Improving the situation, though, requires stronger leadership from education departments, Ms Haythorpe says. "Current government approaches to limiting COVID infection, repeat infection and long COVID demonstrates a lack of concern for the health and wellbeing of students, teachers and broader school communities," the AEU wrote in its submission to Australia's parliamentary inquiry into long COVID. Mitigation measures in many public schools are not adequate, it said, "and a lack of capital investment … since 2017 means that conditions are often cramped with inadequate air flow".

'Long COVID basically ended my career' For Amanda Sharpe, these problems are personal. Before she developed long COVID after catching the virus from her children in 2022, Ms Sharpe taught advanced maths at a high school in Bundaberg, Queensland. She used to spend full days on her feet, relishing the buzz of helping her students solve complex equations, preparing them for careers in fields like medicine and aerospace engineering.

Now, just sitting upright for a short spell or reading a simple news story can quickly worsen her symptoms and wipe her out for days. "Long COVID basically ended my career and I doubt that I'll ever be able to return," she says. "Unless there is an actual cure, I think that will be it for me."

It's bewildering that schools aren't taking stronger action to protect their staff and students from COVID, says Ms Sharpe, who tells her story in the COVID Safety for Schools course. A major issue is that many people still think of COVID as a respiratory illness, she says — they don't realise it can also attack the vascular system, damaging blood vessels and increasing the risk of clotting abnormalities, stroke and heart disease.

She also wishes more people knew that the virus can cause brain changes and cognitive impairment: one study, for instance, found people who recovered from "mild" COVID infections had lost the equivalent of three IQ points.

"With the maths I teach, you really can't afford to have your IQ drop," Ms Sharpe says. "I just don't understand why schools aren't implementing simple measures like improving indoor air quality — especially private schools, where academic results link directly with enrolments and success."

In response to previous disease outbreaks like Spanish flu and tuberculosis, schools moved lessons outdoors — sometimes in freezing winter temperatures — to stop children from getting sick, she says. "But we don't want to have classroom windows open in Queensland? It just seems insane to me."

What about WHS laws? It may also be unlawful. Australians may have been led to believe that public health orders in force until 2022 were the key reason employers, including schools, had to take steps to protect staff from COVID, says Michael Tooma, a partner at the law firm Hamilton Locke. But schools have always had to comply with workplace health and safety laws — "there has always been a duty of care", he says. "COVID presents a risk to health and safety and, like any other risk, it needs to be managed with proactive policies and procedures that try to eliminate the risk or reduce it as far as reasonably practicable."

At the very least, Mr Tooma says, schools should be excluding people with COVID from the workplace, improving ventilation in classrooms and auditoriums and maintaining sensible cleaning and hygiene regimes.

Schools that fail to meet their WHS legal obligations may be reported to and investigated by state regulators, which can issue improvement notices and in some cases bring prosecutions for serious breaches of the relevant legislation.

Still, Mr Tooma says he's not aware of any schools being prosecuted for COVID-related breaches and in general, regulators tend to focus on industries that have higher risks of serious physical harm and death, as well as "campaign" issues like mental health. "Regulator activity tends to follow public interest and so as public interest in COVID and COVID safety has waned, so has regulatory activity around it, in my experience."

Mr Kinner suspects it's probably going to take successful litigation for schools to start taking COVID more seriously. He points to a UK case in which 120 teachers with long COVID are suing the Department of Education for allegedly failing to protect them at the height of the pandemic. Those involved say they were not given good enough guidance for managing the risks the virus posed, with data showing teachers suffered high rates of infection and long COVID.

"I think it's only a matter of time before we see similar legal action in Australia," Mr Kinner says. "It could be from teachers, it could be from families who caught COVID because it came into their household via the school. I think it's inevitable."

In the meantime, he will keep trying to get COVID Safety for Schools in front of as many teachers, parents and principals as he can — even if it takes a while, even if they don't want to hear its message.

"I've been very surprised at how school leaders don't act when they're presented with this information, even people who go through the course and understand — or should understand — that this is a virus we should be taking very seriously," Mr Kinner says. "Because facts remain facts. Even if you don't like them, even if they make you feel uncomfortable, they're still facts."

[rainingkittens]

#literally. cadavers in the anatomy lab are a med student's first patient#i'm a member of an anatomy org and at our annual meeting a few years ago there was a panel on how to fight fatphobia in the anatomy lab#the panelists were great and there was great discussion but there is so much to actually be done#we teach students to treat the donors with the utmost respect because they gave their most precious gift to be a part of their education#but how are med students supposed to respect fat patients if the curriculum is riddled with fatphobic content or lacking any examples...#with fat people at all?#i will say that liquified fat can be unpleasant to deal with. but nothing is more unpleasant to deal with in the lab than a perforated colon#and we dont stop students from removing the intestines because feces is gross do we?#it may take a bit more time to find the right fascial layer if you have thicker subcutaneous fat. but the issue with time isnt the fat donor#its that medical schools across the board have been reducing and continue to reduce the number of hours devoted to anatomy education in...#...the medical curriculum#dissection tables can't hold the donors? get tables with higher load allowances. heavier donors risk injuring staff or students to flip...#...the body? invest in engineering controls to prevent workplace injury#anyways go read ragen chastain's newsletter (@bandpants)

Hey did you know that you can’t escape fatphobia even after death? The article talks about how these donated bodies are used for first year anatomy students to study the body, and how the 'perfect' body for that should be 170-180 pounds.

[safetymarktraining-blog]

9 Amazing Benefits of Completing the Site Supervisor Course

Introduction

Site supervisor course also known as Site Supervisor Safety Training Scheme (SSSTS) course is intended for people who are now employed or intend to work as site supervisors in the construction sector. Candidates who successfully complete this course will have the fundamental understanding of legal, health, safety, welfare and environmental standards needed to manage construction sites. Site supervisor course is a crucial credential that equips supervisors with the abilities needed to lead teams, maintain site security, and satisfy industry standards. The training covers a number of important subjects, such as risk assessments, manual handling, fire safety and health and safety laws.

This course is a widely valued credential for anyone hoping to work as a site supervisor because it is accredited by the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB). The site supervisor course makes sure you are equipped to manage construction sites safely and effectively regardless of whether you are new to the position or looking to progress in your career.

The Site Supervisor Safety Training Scheme or SSSTS is a prerequisite for anyone hoping to progress in the construction sector. This course equips students with the information and abilities needed to efficiently oversee site operations and safety whether they are aspiring site supervisors or already hold a supervisory position. We at SafetyMark Training provide a thorough 2-day classroom based Site supervisor course that will guarantee you acquire the knowledge and skills required to be successful in this crucial position. This blog will discuss about the main benefits of completing the site supervisor course. So let us dive in.

Here are 9 main benefits of taking our site supervisor course-

1. CITB Accreditation

The Construction Industry Training Board, or CITB has accredited SafetyMark Training’s site supervisor course. Since CITB is the UK’s official construction training organization, our courses are guaranteed to satisfy the most exacting industry standards. The SSSTS qualification which is CITB-accredited, is required for supervisors on the majority of construction sites in the UK and is highly valued by companies. This accreditation ensures that you will receive current, pertinent training that complies with all applicable site supervision laws.

Furthermore the CITB accreditation allows you to work with prestigious construction businesses because it guarantees that the training you get is industry compliant.

2. Improved Team Management and Leadership Capabilities

Gaining fundamental leadership and team management abilities is one of the major benefits of finishing the SSSTS (Site Supervisor Safety Training Scheme) course. Leading a group of construction workers and making sure they operate safely and effectively will be your duties as a site supervisor. The SSSTS course offers beneficial instruction on how to handle team dynamics, discuss safety protocols, hold productive toolbox talks and proactively handle problems. These abilities are essential for creating a motivated and effective staff in addition to guaranteeing safety on the job site. You’ll be better able to lead teams, create a productive workplace and enhance site performance by developing these leadership abilities.

3. Thorough Understanding of Environmental, Safety, Welfare and Health Regulations

The site supervisor course offers comprehensive understanding of the most important facets of construction site management such as-

• Health and Safety Law- Recognize important laws including the Health and Safety at Work Act as well as site-specific concerns that affect managers.

• Hazardous compounds (COSHH)- To reduce hazards to employees and the environment, learn how to handle hazardous compounds properly.

• Emergency Procedures and First Aid- Acquire the fundamental first aid knowledge and emergency protocols that are necessary in the event of an on-site accident or injury.

• Environmental Awareness- Gain knowledge of waste reduction and environmental management techniques to lessen the carbon footprint of building projects.

• Fire Safety- Acquire knowledge of fire safety measures and how to control the risk of fire on building sites.

4. Classroom Instruction for Practical Experience

The site supervisor course is classroom based which makes it more dynamic and interesting than some other online or distance learning courses. You will gain from in-person training from seasoned instructors with prior construction industry expertise over the course of two days. This gives you the opportunity to ask questions, get your worries answered and gain knowledge from real world instances.

Because of the practical nature of the classroom setting you will acquire important knowledge about site specific issues like overseeing teams, maintaining health and safety and comprehending intricate legislation. You will also have the chance to network with other professionals in the construction industry and learn from other sectors of the field.

5. Better Accident Prevention and Risk Management

The development of improved risk management and accident prevention skills is another important benefit of completing the site supervisor course. One of your main duties as a site supervisor is to spot any risks and put safety precautions in place to avoid mishaps. The site supervisor course offers comprehensive instruction in risk assessment, hazardous material management and the laws governing risky tasks like operating heavy equipment or working at heights. After finishing this course you will be better equipped to evaluate risks, take preventative measures to get rid of or manage hazards and eventually lower the chance of accidents on the job site, making it safer for everyone.

6. Increased Self Belief in Making Choices

You will feel more confident when making important judgments on the job site after finishing the SSSTS course. From handling safety procedures to handling crises, the training equips you to handle a variety of situations. You’ll acquire a strong grasp of risk assessment, safety regulation and personnel management. With this information you’ll be able to act swiftly and decisively, preserving a secure and productive workplace on your property.

7. Increased Earning Potential and Better Career Opportunities

You establish yourself as a strong contender for a variety of site supervising positions in the construction sector by doing the site supervisor course. As a certified site supervisor you will possess the abilities required to manage teams, supervise construction projects, guarantee site safety and uphold adherence to safety and regulatory requirements.

You will have the chance to take on higher paying positions in the construction industry and improve your career chances by finishing the SSSTS course. Formally trained supervisors are in great demand particularly as safety and compliance become more important to construction organizations.

8. Clear Pricing with No Unexpected Fees

At SafetyMark Training, we take great satisfaction in providing affordable pricing that is transparent and with no hidden fees. You will receive excellent value for your investment in your professional growth. There won’t be any hidden costs.

9. Trainers with Industry Experience

The chance to learn from trainers with experience in the industry is one of the main benefits of the site supervisor course offered by SafetyMark Training. Because of their vast practical expertise in the construction industry, our trainers are able to offer real world scenarios and insights that are pertinent to your position as a site supervisor. This guarantees that the training is not only theoretical but also firmly grounded in the real world implementation of safety protocols and supervisory duties providing you with the assurance and expertise to manage any circumstance that may arise on the job site.

Who is eligible for the site supervisor course?

The site supervisor course is intended for people who are foremen or site workers now and want to advance to a supervisory position. It’s also perfect for people who want to complete the legal training needed to become a certified site supervisor or who intend to assume additional responsibility in their existing position. This course offers a strong basis for anybody wishing to progress in the construction business, regardless of experience level or desire to improve current abilities.

Reserve Your SSSTS Course Now!

Are you prepared to advance your career by earning your site supervisor certification? 

To begin your path to a safer, more prosperous career in the construction sector reserve your spot now. You will be well on your way to becoming a premier site supervisor with our industry-recognized training, encouraging atmosphere and well defined course structure.

In addition to improving your knowledge of site supervision and safety laws, completing the site supervisor course with SafetyMark Training will boost your earning potential, career possibilities and opportunities for advancement in the booming construction sector. Take the first step toward a fulfilling career in construction site management by investing in your future now.

Case studies

Case Study 1- James, an aspiring East London site supervisor

Context:

For a number of years, James had been employed as a construction worker. He was eager to progress in his work and eventually assume a leadership position. But he was aware that he would need to have official certifications in order to advance into a supervisory role. James looked at a number of training providers before deciding on SafetyMark Training for his site supervisor course because of its stellar reputation and CITB certification.

Experience in Training:

James participated in the two-day classroom-based site supervisor training. He thought the course material was interesting and educational. He was better able to comprehend intricate safety requirements and excellent building site management thanks to the experiential learning method and the knowledgeable instructors. The course covered a wide range of subjects such as hazardous materials, fire safety and first aid.

Result:

James obtained his SSSTS certificate . He soon got promoted to site supervisor at one of East London’s top construction companies. With the necessary skills to oversee site safety and compliance, James is more assured in his new position. Higher paying positions were available to him as a result of his qualification and he now intends to advance his career by signing up for the SMSTS (Site Management Safety Training Scheme).

Case Study 2: Proficient Forewoman Sarah Is Looking for a Promotion

Context:

After more than five years of employment as a forewoman, Sarah felt that her career was at a standstill. Despite not having the necessary credentials, she was prepared for a promotion to site supervisor. Sarah participated in SafetyMark Training’s site supervisor course after realizing she required more training to advance and fulfill the regulatory criteria for supervisory positions in the construction sector.

Experience in Training:

She valued how the instructors explained safety management strategies with examples from real-world situations which made the training more applicable to her daily job. The course material, which focused on supervisors’ legal obligations and practical safety abilities was thorough but simple to understand.

Result:

Within a week of finishing the course and passing the test, Sarah was awarded her SSSTS certificate. She was allowed to apply for supervisory jobs with her new credentials, and she soon got a job with a large construction company as a site supervisor. Sarah gained the qualifications and self-assurance she needed to advance her career thanks to the site supervisor course.

Case Study 3

Mark, an Upstart in the Construction Sector

Context-

Mark had just started working as an apprentice in the construction sector and was keen to advance. He aspired to someday work as a site supervisor, but in order to fulfill industry standards, he needed to have an official certificate. Following the recommendation of a coworker who had finished the site supervisor course and commended its efficacy, he decided to enroll in it at SafetyMark Training.

Experience in Training:

The SSSTS training, which covered everything a site supervisor would need to know, from working at heights and site organization to health and safety requirements was thorough and educational according to Mark. The SafetyMark trainers were friendly and informed, responding to all of Mark’s inquiries and assisting him in understanding important ideas. He found it simpler to engage with others and learn through group conversations in the classroom setting.

Result-

After obtaining the qualification, he started looking for positions as a site supervisor. Mark is currently a trained site supervisor overseeing small teams after being promptly employed by a construction company. He attributes his confidence in entering the sector to the credibility and knowledge he gained from the SSSTS training.

Case Study 4: Emma’s Transition from Health and Safety Officer to Supervisor

Context:

Emma had a few years of experience as a health and safety officer but she wanted to advance her career by becoming a supervisor on building sites. Since the SSSTS certification is a must for construction supervisors Emma recognized that earning it would be a significant step toward her objective.

Experience in Training-

Emma went to SafetyMark’s to take the site supervisor course. Although she was already aware with safety procedures she thought the course material was a fantastic way to brush up on them and learn more about the site-specific difficulties supervisors deal with on a daily basis. The course gave her useful skills for managing construction sites in accordance with the most recent standards and helped her understand how to effectively explain safety protocols to her staff.

Result:

Within a few days of finishing the site supervisor course, Emma obtained her certificate. Emma’s firm promoted her to site supervisor with her new qualification. In addition to improving her understanding of site supervision, the site supervisor course equipped her with the abilities to more effectively oversee site health and safety protocols. Emma now manages a sizable staff and makes sure that safety regulations are followed on the job site at all times.

Commonly Asked Questions

 1. Is the Site Supervisor Course accredited?

Yes it is.  The Site Supervisor Course is accredited with CITB (Construction Industry Training Board) and follows guidelines set by Health and Safety Executive (HSE). The nationally recognized certification will be received at the course’s end.

2. Is there a need for prior experience to join the Site Supervisor Course?

While previous experience in construction is helpful, it is not a prerequisite to join the Site Supervisor Course. The course is tailored for all the above: those merely starting in this industry to the most experienced professional looking to standardize one’s practice.

3. Is the site supervisor course appropriate for beginners?

Yes, those who are relatively new to the supervisory role in construction can benefit from the site supervisor course. It is intended to give people the fundamental information and abilities they need to oversee site safety and guarantee legal compliance. The course will give you the credentials you need to advance into a site supervisor role if you are currently employed as a construction worker or foreman.

4.Will I get a certificate of Site supervisor?

Yes you will. You will get a a five-year valid SSSTS certificate upon passing the exam and successfully finishing the course. 

5. How is the site supervisor course taught?

A classroom format is used to conduct the site supervisor course. This makes it possible for learning to be more dynamic, offering chances for inquiries, group discussions and hands on activities. A meaningful and successful learning experience will be guaranteed since you will have direct access to certified instructors with practical building industry experience.

6. Does enrollment in the site supervisor course require any prerequisites?

No. Attending the site supervisor course does not require any formal prerequisites. To better grasp the course material it is advised that candidates have some prior construction industry experience, such as working as an operative or foreman. The training will nonetheless give you important site supervision insights even if you are new to the field.