LEWISBURG, Pa. — The following are story ideas that may interest you from Bucknell University for the start of the spring semester, which began Tuesday.
BUYING INTO THAT BUDGET RESOLUTION: Creating and sticking to a budget is almost as common as a New Year’s resolution as dieting and exercising. And budgets, like diets, are hard to start and harder to stick to, but it’s not impossible. Curtis Nicholls, a professor in the College of Management, offers strategies for overcoming the biggest budget hurdles and finally keeping that resolution. Nicholls recommends to start by tracking your expenses. “Spend a month or longer actively monitoring where your money is going,” Nicholls said. “It might help to track expenses by categories like groceries, utility bills, entertainment, etc. This very small first step is psychologically really powerful — and it can empower you to embark on a bigger budget journey.” Nicholls will be one of four management professors to offer Bucknell students budgeting tips and more during a “Beyond the Bubble: Personal Finances in the Real World” session sponsored by The Boyer Family Fund and the College of Management on Saturday, Jan. 27, from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. at Academic West. CONTACT: Nicholls, 570-577-1802, curtis.nicholls@bucknell.edu
THE SCIENCE OF ATTRACTION: Valentine’s Day is next month and while there’s no love potion to find your perfect mate, psychology professor T. Joel Wade, author of “The Mate Market” Psychology Today blog, says research shows humans evaluate potential mates based on a number of factors. Women evaluate men based on their dominance, status, masculinity and good health. Because women are looking for a mate who can protect and provide for potential offspring, the physical traits generally found to be sexually attractive in men are those classic high-testosterone indicators of broad chests and shoulders, strong chins and muscular upper bodies. Men, for their part, are looking for a fertile, healthy woman who would make a capable mother. Waist-to-hip ratio happens to be one of the strongest indicators of fertility and health in women. Now, because men are mainly seeking a fertile, healthy woman and because these are attributes men can assess through a woman’s appearance (mainly her waist-to-hip ratio), men’s evaluations of women as potential mates focus more heavily on a woman’s appearance. A woman’s evaluation of a potential mate, on the other hand, does take appearance into account but also includes his status in society, his dominance over other men and his access to resources. CONTACT: Wade, 570-577-1693, 570-577-2418, t.joel.wade@bucknell.edu
ON THE PRIVATE 529 PLAN: Bucknell was among six colleges and universities to join the Private College 529 Plan the past several months. Private College 529 is the only 529 plan that enables families to potentially save thousands of dollars on the cost of private college by prepaying tomorrow’s tuition at today’s prices. Private College 529 offers families a range of options to gain a private college degree and save on the cost. Participating institutions guarantee the prepaid tuition. Families pay no fees and their accounts are not subject to market volatility associated with 529 savings plans. CONTACTS: Andrea Leithner Stauffer, director of financial aid; 570-577-1331, aleithne@bucknell.edu; Laurenn Wolpoff, Private College 529 Plan, 917-518-9011
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CONTACT: Mike Ferlazzo, 570-577-3212, 570-238-6266 (c), mike.ferlazzo@bucknell.ed