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6629 Knockadoon Drive 11, Rockford 49341
See more homes for sale in Rockford, MI
This property has been Sold!
09/30/2016 at $99,500
Welcome to the beautiful development of Knockadoon located off of Cannonsburg Road and Myers Lake Ave. This secluded development offers large, private, mature wooded executive sites but is close to all the amenities! These rolling, luxurious sites offer picturesque views and many options for everything your heart desires. Knockadoon is close to the Grand Rapids area for easy access to any part of town, but is in the desirable Rockford school district just north of Ada Twp and is also not far from the quaint downtown Rockford shopping district. Architectural control measures are in place to assure quality standards.
Property Information
- Status
- Sold
- Address
- 6629 Knockadoon Drive 11
- City
- Rockford
- Zip
- 49341
- Lot Size
- 34460.00
- Lot Description
- Buildable, Rolling Hills, Site Condo, Wooded
- Lot Dimensions:
- 206x202x257x71
- Zoning
- 402 res vacant
- County
- Kent
Mortgage Calculator
Listing Broker
Listing Courtesy of Lake & Land Realty Llc
Office Address 27 N. Main
Listing Agent Kimberly D Edwards
Listings last updated: . Some properties that appear for sale on this web site may subsequently have been sold and may no longer be available.
Our Michigan real estate agents can answer all of your questions about 6629 Knockadoon Drive 11, Rockford MI 49341. Real Estate One, Max Broock Realtors, and J&J Realtors are part of the Real Estate One Family of Companies and dominate the Rockford, Michigan real estate market. To sell or buy a home in Rockford, Michigan, contact our real estate agents as we know the Rockford, Michigan real estate market better than anyone with over 100 years of experience in Rockford, Michigan real estate for sale.
The data relating to real estate for sale on this web site appears in part from the IDX programs of our Multiple Listing Services. Real Estate listings held by brokerage firms other than Real Estate One includes the name and address of the listing broker where available.
IDX information is provided exclusively for consumers personal, non-commercial use and may not be used for any purpose other than to identify prospective properties consumers may be interested in purchasing.
All information deemed materially reliable but not guaranteed. Interested parties are encouraged to verify all information. Copyright© 2017 MichRIC LLC, All rights reserved.


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There are plenty of people who were given a Kindle as a Christmas gift. Does that describe you? If so, then you have probably purchased and downloaded a few books by your favorite authors. You might have selected some classics, as well. Now is the time to check out the many books for Kindle that you can download for free.
Kindle is an electronic book reader. It makes a nice gift for people who love to read. Family members of people who are big readers might hope that by giving that person a Kindle, there would be a few less books cluttering up their homes.
That doesn't always work out that way. What could happen, instead, is that a person who owns a Kindle might end up spending less money on books. There are many Kindle books that can be downloaded for free. Here are a few to get you started!
The Myth of the Garage is by Chip Heath and Dan Heath. This book contains the authors' best columns from Fast Company magazine, plus one piece that has never been published before.
Whats Next … For You? is by Patricia Gussin and Robert Gussin. This is a guide for reinventing yourself.
Rescue your finances (52 Brilliant Little Ideas) is a book by "Infinite Ideas". This book gives you "insider shortcuts and secrets" that you can use to make the most of your finances.
The Cheapskate's Guide to Grocery Savings is a free Kindle book by Daniel Mathews. The subtitle of this book is "How to Save a Bundle at Supermarkets". This is one of those books that gives you "a simple buying strategy" to follow.
Absolutely Organize Your Family is by Debbie Lillard. This book gives you ideas for keeping bedrooms organized, strategies for organizing toys. You can also learn how to create a homework area, and how to manage out-of-control schedules.
20 Retirement Decisions You Need to Make Right Now is by Ray LeVitre. He is a Certified Financial Planner. In the book, he gives advice about how to best manage your finances in order to plan for retirement.
Image by Chris Kelly on Flickr

subset: commoncrawl


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Burning Bootloader procedure
To properly write the bootloader on your Arduino Tian, you need to use a programmer, for example the Atmel-ICE, and the tool provided by ATMEL AtmelStudio.
Follow these steps:
- Plug in one side of the SWD connector to SAM port on Atmel ICE programmer and an other side to SWD header on Arduino Tian. - Connect both the devices to PC via USB cables, as shown in the below picture.
The board must be powered with one power supply that provides output at least 2A.
For connecting it to your computer you may need to use a Y-Cable (USB Micro-B to Standard Male A).
Do to coincide the connector red wire with the SWD Header white point on Arduino Tian .
- Open AtmelStudio tool, you can download it from here (here);
- Go to Tools -> Device Programming or press the keys CTRL + SHIFT + P.
- Select Atmel-ICE in Tool.
- Select ATSAMD21G18A in Device.
- Select SWD in Interface.
- Press Apply.
- Go to Memories
- Click Erase now and, if all has gone as it should, in the log console you will see OK.
- Go to Fuses.
- Ensure that the NVMCTRL_BOOTPROT is equal to 0x07, otherwise set this value by double clicking on the value.
- Press Program. In the log console, OK will be showed as output if everything has run smoothly.
- Go to Memories
- Select the file to write Sofia_Tian_xxxxxx.hex, this file is placed into ...\arduino-1.7.10\hardware\arduino\samd\bootloaders\sofia folder.
- Click Program , in the log console you will see OK.
- Now you have burned the bootloader.
Try to upload a simple sketch for example the blink using the Arduino IDE.


text: Stamps.com is a leading provider of internet-based postage services. Its online postage service enables both businesses and consumers to print U.S. Postal Service–approved postage. Integrating with Stamps.com, Unify automatically pulls orders from all your online stores, platforms, and marketplaces to instantly generate USPS labels, print customized packing slips, provide tracking information, and much more. Unify seamlessly integrates with your Stamps.com account so you can directly access UPS or Stamps.com services without logging into additional applications.


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by Jason Kelly on March 20, 2012 8:11:02 PM in Features, Fighter Features | No Comments »
Bob Badders confirmed for MMADieHards.com that Chris Camozzi and Nick Catone are set to meet at UFC on FX 4 on June 22 at Revel Casino in Atlantic City, N.J.
Camozzi (16-5) has gone 1-1 since his return to the UFC, most recently defeating Dustin Jacoby via guillotine-choke at UFC on Fox 2. The Ultimate Fight 11 participant was released from the UFC in January 2011, following a loss to Kyle Noke. Camozzi beat Joey Villaseñor in a bout outside the Octagon, but was welcomed back in October of last year and lost to Francis Carmont at UFC 137.
Catone's (9-2) last outing had him defeat Constantinos Philippou at UFC 128 in a catch-weight bout of 195 pounds, and he is currently riding a two-fight win streak. Catone was expected to face Aaron Simpson at UFC 136, but withdrew from the bout due to a torn achilles tendon. Since joining the UFC in 2009, Catone was compiled a winning record of 3-2.
Nick Catone's return to Octagon now
against unfamiliar foe
8:37 PM, Mar. 14, 2011 | Comments
- Sports
Nick Catone thought he knew who he would fight this weekend.
In fact, the former Brick Memorial and Rider University wrestling standout thought he knew his opponent really well. He was scheduled to face fellow New Jersey mixed martial artist Dan Miller when the Ultimate Fighting Championship returns to the Prudential Center in Newark on Saturday.
But a weekend shakeup to the card has left Catone with a new opponent, Costantinos Philippou, in an 195-pound, catch-weight bout at UFC 128. Preliminary fights, including Catone's, begin at 7 p.m. at "The Rock," with the main card going live on pay-per-view at 10 p.m.
It will be Catone's first time back in the Octagon in more than one year, after being sidelined by shoulder and back injuries.
But "The Jersey Devil" didn't simply rest up during his time away. He took the opportunity to open his own MMA school.
Nick Catone Mixed Martial Arts opened last September in the Laurel Shopping Center in his hometown of Brick and offers classes in everything from wrestling and jiu-jitsu to muay-Thai and cardio kickboxing.
"I was a little banged up and I used that time to get (the school) going," he said. "We're trying to get everything under one roof and it's been pretty successful so far."
The academy is a Ricardo Almeida/Renzo Gracie affiliate school. Almeida, a fellow Garden State fighter who runs his own school in Hamilton, will also be on the UFC 128 card, fighting Mike Pyle in a bout streamed at Facebook.com/ufc at 8 p.m.
For Catone (8-2), the school not only provides him with his own training facilities during his fight career, but also a career avenue for his post-fight life.
And considering he hasn't fought in his home state since his days with Ring of Combat in Atlantic City in 2008, the school is a welcome addition to his pre-fight routine.
"I'll be training at my school all week instead of sitting in a hotel room for five days," Catone said. "I used to have good following down at the Ring of Combat and I have close to 200 people coming (to UFC 128) from my school alone, so I'll have good fan support at this fight as well.
"It will be nice for my students and family to come and watch because it's tough for people to get out to Portland and some of the other places I've fought. Everyone can enjoy the night and hopefully I can put on a good performance, get my arm raised and enjoy it with them."
Steve Feitl: email@example.com
UFC fighter Nick Catone of Brick will sign autographs at FanFest '11
Catone, who runs a studio in Brick and wrestled at Brick Memorial High School, is a graduate of Rider University. He is training for his next fight at UFC 128 against fellow New Jersey native Dan Miller.
Catone made the transition to Mixed Martial Arts when he graduated college in 2005. He holds a Brown Belt in Brazailian Jiu-Jitsu, and comes into the bout against Dan Miller with an 8-2 record in his young UFC career.
BlueClaws FanFest, which runs from 11 am - 4 pm, is a FREE event that marks the beginning of individual game ticket sales for the 2011 BlueClaws season.
The event will include a full day of FREE fun at the ballpark. In addition to individual game tickets going on sale for the first time, each reserve seat will be $1 off the regular price and will sell for just $9 (adult) or $6 (jr/sr).
FanFest includes free food and drinks and behind-the-scenes tours of the ballpark. Also, there will be a sale in the ClawsCove, two-for-one tickets in Dr. Bernard's Kids Zone, and fans can take pictures with the team's championship trophies. FanFest is present by Viridian Energy and The Garden State Film Festival.
UFC® 128: SHOGUN vs. JONES is at the Prudential Center in Newark on March 19th.Click here for more information. Tickets for UFC 128 are on sale now at all Ticketmaster locations, Ticketmaster.com, or charge by phone at 800-745-3000.
The Lakewood BlueClaws open the 2011 season on Thursday, April 7th at FirstEnergy Park against the Kannapolis Intimidators. That night, they will raise the 2010 South Atlantic League Championship banner.
Ticket packages and group outings are now on sale by calling 732-901-7000 option 3.
- BlueClaws -
Congratulations To Professor Ricardo Almeida on his win at UFC 124 in Montreal, Canada over TJ Grant.
Nick Catone: Slowing Down to Overcome Injuries
For a person who has yet to find his own "off switch" and knows only one speed – full – Nick Catone was forced to make a decision this past summer that went against everything he stands for, even if it was the right choice.
The Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight was forced out of a fight with John Salter, scheduled for UFC 113 last May, due to a trio of herniated disks. No problem, thought Catone. He received some treatment and jumped back into training just a couple weeks later. With a 2-2 record in the Octagon, Catone wasn't going to let an injury derail him that easily.
Once cleared to get back into the cage, Catone made the decision to drop down to the welterweight division, and a fight was set up with Tomasz Drwal for UFC Fight Night 22 in September. But during training and his attempt to get down to 170, things started to unravel. Catone also had a nagging shoulder injury that he'd been battling for the better part of a year and a half, and the cortisone shots were becoming less and less effective. Then, stemming from what he believes was a combination of being light and weak, he re-injured his back.
That's when it became obvious to Catone that it was time to take the foot off the gas, and not just for a couple of weeks.
"It was really tough," Catone said after finishing up teaching a class at his brand new gym in central New Jersey. "Wrestling my whole life, I never really took any time off. Even since my first fight, I would always say I was going to take a week or two off and I never did. I would take three days off and start staring at the ceiling all day, so I would just go right back to training.
"It was hard to pull out of one fight, let alone two. My instincts had me back out there 12, 13 days later (after the back injury). People were like, 'What are you doing out there?' That's just the way my mindset is, but in reality it came back to haunt me. It was time to sit down and look at my career long-term."
In January 2010, Catone evened his UFC record at 2-2 with a split-decision win over Jesse Forbes at UFC Fight Night 20. The victory came after a two-fight losing streak in which he was submitted by Tim Credeur at UFC Fight Night 18 and then lost a controversial split decision to Mark Munoz at UFC 102. Getting his record back over .500 was first and foremost on his mind, but his injuries taught him that sometimes less is more. He had surgery on his shoulder in August and an epidural in his back a short time later. He may not have been enjoying his time off, but he started to see it was exactly what he needed for several reasons.
"I've worked so hard to get to where I am today that it's not worth it to go in there when you can't put on a good fight," Catone said. "That's how the UFC works. They want to see a good fight and I think they like me because I go out and put on good fights. Even if I went in there and won but had a boring fight that nobody wanted to see, that's not worth me getting in there hurt."
As much as it pained Catone to pull out of a second consecutive fight, more good has come out of his decision than even he thought, including being able to do something he originally thought wouldn't happen until several years down the road.
Nick Catone enjoys opening his new gym with some of his coaches and training partners. (Hector Castro/MMADieHards.com)
On Sept. 18, Catone officially opened Nick Catone's Mixed Martial Arts Academy in Brick, N.J. The facility has 2,200 square feet of mat space and offers classes in boxing, Muay Thai, wrestling, Brazilian jiu-jitsu and MMA, and allowed Catone to sink his teeth into something else while rehabbing from his injuries. It also meant he didn't have the pressure of taking fights solely for monetary purposes, which is never a good spot for a fighter to be in. His injuries now look like a blessing in disguise.
Not only did he open his own MMA gym, but he also decided to take his training in a different direction and re-connect with the Ricardo Almeida/Renzo Gracie Fight Team. He went from bouncing around to different gyms in search of capable training partners to being just a short drive away from Almeida's gym and an opportunity to train with the likes of Almeida, UFC and EliteXC veteran Chris Liguori, Bellator lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez and UFC lightweight champ Frankie Edgar.
"Some good things have definitely come out of (being injured), like getting my school up and running," Catone said. "It's definitely something I always wanted to do, but I didn't really plan on doing it this soon. It's tough to train full-time in this sport and make a decent living unless you're actually getting in there and fighting, so it's nice to have something to fall back on. At the same time, it's nice to have my own place to train."
Catone has been slowly training since his school opened, but was just recently cleared to return to full-contact training and informed UFC matchmaker Joe Silva of his intentions to get back into the Octagon – fully healthy. A fight hasn't been scheduled for him yet, but he's getting back in shape with training sessions at either his gym or Almeida's, the latter of which boasts an impressive array of stars these days.
"I think (Almeida) has one of the best rooms on the east coast," Catone said. "When you have six or seven guys in the UFC, Eddie Alvarez and guys like that out there, that's huge. It's hard to find one or two guys at that level, let alone five or six in the same room."
After a couple months on the shelf and some wondering about where his career was headed, things are certainly looking up for Catone. He's scrapped his plans for dropping to welterweight and will stay at 185 pounds for the foreseeable future. He has his own school, a great set of training partners and a new outlook. He's learned that he can't always just power through everything, and sometimes you have to take one step back to take a couple more forward. There's an understanding of what he wants his future in the sport to be. He's not rushing to get to his next fight anymore. He's thinking about his next five, 10, 15 fights. He's aiming for a career in the UFC, not just a stint and a couple of good stories to tell the grandkids.
"The next fight is important for me, but every fight is important in the UFC," explained Catone. "If you go out there and have a bad performance, they have thousands of other guys to choose from.
"It's an elite group and I want to stay a part of it for a long time, so I have to go out there and perform no matter who they put in front of me. I'm looking forward to getting back, and right now it just feels great to be training again with the guys."
Nick Catone to undergo surgery on re-injured shoulder and back, return date unknown
As MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) reported Monday, the fighter was forced to withdraw from a scheduled fight with Tomasz Drawl (17-3-1 MMA, 3-2 UFC) at UFC Fight Night 22 on Sept. 15 and was replaced by Dave Branch (6-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC).
Catone will on Thursday undergo surgery for a long-running shoulder injury which derailed his preparation for Drwal. Additionally, he will get an epidural shot next week for his back, which he first injured in April.
"I just need to get healthy, man," he said today. "I've been fighting through workouts and trying to take a day or two off here and there, and it's just been getting worse and worse. I'm pretty bummed out about it because this is two in a row now that I've missed."
Catone said his shoulder trouble began 18 months ago. After masking the pain with multiple cortisone shots, he realized he couldn't wait any longer to fix the problem.
"It's just at the point where it's affecting my training," he said. "I've got no strength in it."
Cortisone is a powerful anti-inflammatory drug used for a variety of injuries and is commonly used by athletes.
The New Jersey native said he will undergo physical therapy after the procedure but couldn't pinpoint a specific date in which he'll be ready to return.
Meanwhile, he is scheduled to get the epidural shot – similar to a cortisone injection – to address pain from three herniated discs in his back. That injury forced him to withdraw from a scheduled bout with John Salter at UFC 113.
Prior to the Drawl booking, Catone expressed interest in dropping to the welterweight class, but the UFC had other ideas for his immediate future.
After training through the serious injuries, Catone said the the procedures are a clear sign that he needs to start training smarter and not harder. He won't get back in the octagon until he feels healthy again.
"The fans like to see you get back in there, but I'm not even close to 100 percent," Catone said. "Getting in there (at) 75 percent is not going to do me any good. I think it's to the point where I've got to start getting smarter with my career.
"I don't really take a lot of time off. When I first initially hurt my back with the three herniated discs, I was back in training two weeks later - just pad work and stuff, nothing crazy, but I just don't think I gave it enough time."
For the latest on UFC Fight Night 22, stay tuned to the UFC Rumors section of MMAjunkie.com.
Nick Catone's MIXED MARTIAL ARTS ACADEMY
Freestyle Wrestling
LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ-Doug Umbehauer '09, a graduate assistant at Rider University, placed second at the ASICS
University Nationals hosted by USA Wrestling in Akron, OH April 10 & 11. By virtue of finishing second he secured a
spot in both the University World Team Trials, held in Colorado Springs, CO May 28-29 and the Sr. World Team Trials,
held in Council Bluffs, Iowa June 11-12. "I am excited about the opportunity to wrestle in the world team trials against
the best athletes our country has to offer," Umbehauer said. "To be given the opportunity to compete to represent the
United States in World competition is an experience I will not forget."
At the ASICS University Nationals, Umbehauer (Shamong, NJ/Lenape High) won four of five bouts, all in the
championship bracket, losing only in the finals. "I enjoyed competing again last week and it was very encouraging to
do well after being out of competition and out of freestylewrestling for so long," Umbehauer said. "I now have an idea of
what I need to do to improve and further my wrestling career. "Umbehauer's next competition will be April 23-25 in Cleveland, Ohio at the US Open, where
the best freestyle wrestlers in the nation will be competing. "This is very big for Doug as he attempts to win a spot on the University World Team, which
would be the first ever for our program," said Rider Associate Head Coach John Hangey. "He has been great at every level of wrestling throughout his
entire life and I expect nothing less from him at the next level which is highest level there is in wrestling."
Umbehauer earned All-America honors by placing third in the nation in his 184 pound
weight class at the2009 NCAA Wrestling Championships in St. Louis, Mo.
Umbehauer is the third Bronc to finish a Rider-best third in the nation. At Nationals he defeated the second seed from Iowa in the quarterfinals to earn
All-American honors. Umbehauer was a four-time NCAA qualifier and two-time Colonial Athletic Association Champion and finished his career with
a record of 103-35. In 2006-07 Umbehauer placed second at Midlands and in 2008-09 he placed third. He was a Freshman All-American in 2005-06.
Brick-based middleweight Nick Catone (8-2) was forced to pull out of his UFC 113 May 8th bout inMontreal,Canada, against John Salter (4-1), an Alabama wrestler coming off a loss against GeraldHarris. Catone suffered a back injury during one of his weight training workouts . Rather than causefurther damage to three herniated discs and one bulging disc in his lower back, Catone followeddoctors' suggestions to pull out of the fight. A full recovery is expected and Nick plans on being backin the octagon by the end of the summer. Catone had been improving his boxing game greatly bytraining with legendary Jersey Shore pugilist FrankSavannah, who also hails from Brick. Savannah wasNational Golden Gloves Middleweight champ beforeamassing and 15-1 pro record.
Shore area wrestlers reach UFC cage success
By Adam Hochron
In a wrestling hotbed like the Shore Conference, it only makes sense that some of the top athletes to come to the sport would pursue their competitive endeavors at the highest levels possible.
For two Shore Conference alums, Kurt Pellegrino of Point Boro and Nick Catone of Brick Memorial, their journeys have taken them from the high school mats to the octagons of the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
Just this past weekend, Pellegrino made the short trip to The Prudential Center in Newark for UFC 111 where he beat Fabricio Camoes and was awarded the "Submission of the Night," award for bringing his bout to a speedy end in the second period.
For the former two-time state runnerup, during his time with the Boro, being able to fight so close to home was an opportunity he greatly enjoyed and made that much better by being able to give the fans in attendance an impressive win.
"When I was fighting in Newark I was just pumped to be fighting in Newark in front of all my hometown fans," he said.
The bout against Camoes was the first in several months for Pellegrino who was forced to withdraw from a match against another former Shore wrestler, Frankie Edgar with a back injury. Heading into Saturday's action, the former Panther said that while his back was not in perfect condition, his conditioning made it a non-factor in the end result.
"I definitely feel much better," he said after having some extra time to recover. "It would only get better if I stopped and I'm not going to stop anytime soon."
The day of the fight, Pellegrino said he was "so fired up and so pumped up," after all the preparation that by the time he was going to the arena known as "The Rock," he was ready to get into the cage. "By the time I got there I was so on fire I didn't care if I was fighting the heavyweights," said the 155-pound grappler.
It was not until the fight was over that Pellegrino said he realized just how much the crowd was behind him, which made the victory that much sweeter. "When I won, when that fight was over, I realized I was in the state of New Jersey and that was one of the best feelings I've ever had in my life," he said.
The night was also significant for Pellegrino for another reason. Outside of his own career, the former Panther owns and teaches at a Mixed Martial Arts Academy in Belmar that bears his name. For the first time in the young school's history, one of Pellegrino's students, Greg Soto, took to the octagon in his UFC debut.
Soto, a former Ocean Township wrestler, took a loss in his first match on the highest level to Matthew Riddle, but his coach and teacher said just being there was enough for the young fighter.
"I was very excited for Greg and happy for Greg," Pellegrino said.
Though he regretted not being able to be in Soto's corner as he was preparing for his own match, Pellegrino said it was a good learning experience for the young fighter. "In the UFC, Greg Soto is now one of the best fighters in the world because he fights for the UFC," he said.
With a little more seasoning and experience, and a little more bulking up, Pellegrino said Soto should be able to erase any memory of his first loss with more wins to come down the road.
As for when he expects to be back in the cage himself, Pellegrino said his next match will likely not come again until August which is both good and bad as he works to climb the ladder in the organization. While he will enjoy the time off, Pellegrino said he knows he will be back training even harder for his still to be determined opponent. "I'm an engine of work and that's what I have to do," he said. "When I have it [his next fight] I will be a completely different fighter. I keep changing and getting better."
As a forerunner to the Shore Conference wrestlers who have followed in his footsteps to the UFC, including Catone, Pellegrino said he enjoys seeing the levels of success they have enjoyed. "Everyone has to keep growing in this sport," he said. "Me, Jim Miller, and Frankie Edgar are probably in the top 10 wrestlers in UFC and we all wrestled on the same mat at least once."
Pellegrino, who has been in Catone's corner for several fights said he enjoys training with the former Mustang wrestler, but knows he has limits against him as well. "I don't even wrestle with Nick because he SMASHES me," he said of the bigger wrestler.
Now that the fight is behind him, Pellegrino said he can go back to focusing helping his students whether they are training to go into the octagon or just doing martial arts. "We have all these things for all these people and I just want people to achieve their goals and see the light at the end of the tunnel."
While Pellegrino is powering down from his fight, Catone is busy gearing up for his next bout at UFC 113 in Montreal against John Slater.
Mixing his own training with teaching his classes takes up a bulk of his time, but Catone said when he first graduated college five years ago he had no idea this was how his life would have turned out.
Now that he sees what he has accomplished, Catone said he would not want it any other way. He credits former Brick Memorial Coach and current Rider University assistant coach Jay Nase and another Rider assistant John Hangey with giving him the guidance to go from the Brick School to the NCAA National Tournament to the UFC. "What I'm doing today has a lot to do with those guys," he said.
With no real major leagues for wrestlers to go into after college, Catone said the UFC was an opportunity to stay competitive and use the skills he developed over the past few years. With wrestling as his base, Catone said he feels comfortable with that, but also has improved at Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, rising to the rank of a brown belt with his sights set on becoming a black belt sometime in the next two years.
Having finished just one round shy of finishing his college wrestling career as an All American, Catone said originally his plans after Rider included coaching at his two alma maters and was enjoying that. "I thought that was going to be it competing-wise," he said. "I never thought I'd get into something as serious as I am now."
Since it was not in his original plans, Catone said he does not know exactly how long his career in the cage will last. "I'll do it for as long as I can," he said. "I'm riding the wave right now and I'll see how far it takes me."
And when it comes to having Pellegrino in his corner, Catone said the wealth of knowledge the former Panther brings with him is his biggest asset. "I need him there more for the knowledge and mental support," Catone said.
That support, Catone said comes in handy especially with all that comes with being a UFC competitor. Whether it is interviews or just the whole experience of the big time Pay Per View events, the former Rider Bronc wrestler said there is just a lot to take in. "The more I get in there, the more I'm comfortable with it," he said.
Former Brick Township "National Golden Gloves Middleweight Champion"
Frank Savannah has been added to the training staff of Team Catone. Frank was 15-1-1 as a Professional Boxer and brings a lot of experience to Nick's training. Nick is excited to have Frank is his training camp as he gets ready for his next big fight, UFC 113 on May 8th in Montreal, Canada.
Nick Catone vs. John Salter on tap for UFC 113 prelims in Montreal
by Dann Stupp on Mar 17, 2010 at 2:15 pm ET
May's UFC 113 event will get a late addition with a middleweight fight pitting Nick Catone (8-2 MMA, 2-2 UFC) vs. John Salter (4-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC).
Sources close to the event told MMAjunkie.com bout agreements have been distributed and signed by at least one fighter.
UFC 113 takes place on May 8 at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The main card, which includes a main event and rematch between UFC light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida and challenger Mauricio"Shogun" Rua, airs live on pay-per-view.
Nick Catone of UFC. That's right you can win one of 10 pairs of tickets to this once an a lifetime event to see the Devils take on the New York Rangers, March 25 at Prudential Center with both Frank Edgar & Nick Catone of the UFC. UFC 111 is at Prudential Center Saturday, March 27 and also on Pay-Per-View. http://www.prucenter.com/default.asp?prucenter=131&objId=32
Rider School NewsPaper Article - February 2010
Rider graduate Nick Catone made another splash in the world of professional mixed martial arts recently. Catone, who made his UFC debut back in February of 2009, started off with an impressive win in his first fight the biggest MMA organization in the world. However, Catone was slowed down a bit and dropped his next two fights, falling to a 1-2 record in the UFC. His second loss came with a bit of controversy as Nick lost by a split decision to former four time all american college wrestler Mark Munoz. "I thought I did enough to win the fight but it didn't go my way and I was pretty bummed." Nick said. A split decision loss occurs when only two of the three judges agree that one fighter won the fight, in theory making this the closest way to lose an MMA bout.
The heartbreak didn't last long for Nick however, as the UFC contacted him just two days later offering him a new four-fight deal. "I was definitely excited to get a new deal," Catone said. "I had one fight left on my original contract, and they must have seen something they liked in my performance." After signing him to a new deal, the UFC later announced that Catone's next fight would be against former professional kickboxer Steve Steinbeiss.
Elated with his new deal, Catone wasn't taking any chances with his next fight and decided to change his training routine. "I've added a whole new strength and conditioning program into my training," Catone said. "I feel a big difference from it so I feel that the extra hard work is paying off." Catone also started training Kurt Pellegrino, another UFC fighter from New Jersey.
Pellegrino is a seasoned veteran, with 9 UFC bouts under his belt. Catone began training at Pellegrino's school in Belmar, NJ for his fight with Steinbeiss. Catone and Pellegrino shared some history before they began training together. "We wrestled around the same years in high school. Kurt graduated in '98 from Point Pleasant Boro H.S. and I graduated '99 from the next town over at Brick Memorial H.S." Catone said. "So we've known eachother and been friends for a long time before our fighting days."
In the weeks leading up to his fight, Nick received some bad news from the UFC. Steinbeiss had to withdraw from the fight due to an injury. Catone was used to hearing this kind of news, as his first opponent withdrew from their fight several times before the UFC found a replacement. This time was different however, as the UFC almost instantly name Jesse Forbes to be Catone's new opponent. "The opponent change is always annoying," Catone said. "But in this sport unfortunately injuries can happen at any time and you have to be prepared for anything. I'm just glad they were able to find a replacement for me." Forbes was making his return to the UFC after nearly a four year stint with other various organizations.
Catone would make one last change before entering the octagon to take on Forbes. During the pre fight introductions Nick debuted his newly adopted nickname, Nick "The Jersey Devil" Catone. The fight opened up with an action packed first round that left Catone bleeding from the nose. This injury can often slow fighters down considerably as it make breathing very difficult. Catone pressed on however and put on a very impressive second round. Catone was unable to take Forbes down in the fight but he showed very impressive improvement in his striking and conditioning and used that push Forbes around and take the fight to a decision.
This time the judges felt the Nick did enough to win the fight and handed him his own split decision victory in what MMAJunkie.com call "a hugely entertaining fight."Catone now holds a 2-2 record in the UFC, and is looking forward to the announcement of his next opponent.
January 11, 2010 - Catone Earns Hard - Fought Win at UFN 20
"The Jersey Devil", Nick Catone returned to his winning ways with a hard-fought, split decision victory over TUF alum, Jesse Forbes. With the victory Nick improves his record to 8-2. Fighting on the Ultimate Fight Night 20 card on January 11, in Fairfax, VA., Nick had to overcome several obstacles in-route to winning the fight. Jesse Forbes, a tough south-paw, was a late replacement for scheduled opponent, Steven Steinbess and Nick suffered a broken nose early in the fight. However, Nick was not to be stopped as he earned his second victory inside the UFC Octagon®.
|Posted News.. January, 13, 2010
Nick Catone will be featured as one of the top-five up & coming middleweight fighters in the next issue of UFC (the magazine). Please check it out… the magazine is scheduled to be available early next week at your local news stand or favorite MMA shop.
Posted UFC News.. March 27, 2009 - NICK CATONE - Worth The WaitBy Thomas Gerbasi
Nick Catone won't reveal whether he wore cloves of garlic around his neck while avoiding black cats and refusing to walk under ladders in the lead-up to his February bout with Derek Downey. So let's just say that when the bell rang that night in Tampa, he was happy that someone was standing across from him in the Octagon.
"When we both set foot in the cage, I said 'all right, it's gonna happen,'" laughs the New Jersey native, who had more than a rocky road to get to his first UFC fight, a road that saw Catone have two fights with Amir Sadollah get scrapped due to his opponent's injuries, one even getting cancelled on fight week last November.
So when Catone walked into the Octagon and actually saw an opponent ready to fight him, the past few months of frustration came pouring out in the form of a ferocious attack that led to a second round submission victory. At long last, he had his first UFC victory.
"I felt pretty comfortable for my first fight in there," said Catone, who improved to 7-0 with the win. "It was good to get the first one out of the way to show that it's not all hype and to show the fans and the UFC that I belong here. I was glad to get in there, get the win the way I did, and I'm pretty happy with the way the whole night went."
It would be hard to find any negatives in Catone's performance against the 10-3 Downey, as he controlled the bout from the opening right hand that raised a nasty welt on the side of his opponent's head until the finish in the second round, dominating the bout wherever it went while showing solid takedown defense, good knees, and his own patented ground attack.
"I was actually surprised that he came after me and tried to take me down," said Catone, a former wrestler for Rider University and a purple belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. "But I took it one step at a time, wherever it went, and I'm comfortable on the ground or standing, so I went with the flow and was able to dominate all the positions throughout the fight and come away with the submission in the second round. Hopefully I can win like that every time, but that's a pretty hard task."
On Wednesday, Catone makes a quick turnaround, stepping in on a few weeks notice to take on Ultimate Fighter alum Tim Credeur. After the starts and stops surrounding the aborted Sadollah bouts, is jumping back into the Octagon less than two months after his last fight an effort to make up for lost time?
"I'm always willing to jump in there," said the 27-year old. "I'm always training, and if the opportunity approaches, I'm gonna jump on it. The more I get in there, the quicker I can get up the ladder and show everybody what I can do. If I'm fighting every five or six months, I'm not getting any younger, so I might as well jump on it while I can get it."
And given that Catone rarely strays from the gym, came out relatively unscathed from the Downey fight, and has been working with the Rider University wrestling team as they prepared for the National Championship tournament, when the call came to travel to Nashville for next week's UFC Fight Night card, Catone was in.
"It's weird, but I kinda had a feeling I was gonna be fighting soon," he said. "So I really didn't stop training after the fight. I might have taken a day or two off, but I pretty much stayed on it. I'm ready to go all the time, so it's not like I was sitting around for two or three weeks not training and then had to jump in there."
"I've been working on a lot of standup since I was getting ready to fight Amir, and I started working on the Muay Thai and a lot of different stuff that I didn't really get into until I knew I was fighting him," said Catone. "I'm pretty comfortable on my feet, but I saw his (Credeur's) two fights against Jesse Taylor and (CB) Dollaway, two wrestlers, and they kinda controlled the fight, so I figure that maybe he's gonna try and keep it standing since his hands have gotten a lot better. But I don't worry too much about what he's gonna do, I want to stick with my gameplan, and just go from there – wherever it goes, it goes. I'm looking to get in there for the second time, hopefully come away with a second win and keep the ball rolling." Not bad considering that he has been in the pro game less than two years.
"It's definitely been a ride," said Catone. "It will be two years this May since I've been fighting professionally. I kinda started out rolling in Bill Scott's garage, and now it's all the way up to the UFC. I always had a goal to get there and it happened quick and I'm happy about it. Now I just want to keep on improving, keep the wins coming, take it one step at a time, and kinda ride that wave as long as I can. I'm gonna keep working hard, staying focused, and staying on that straight line."
|Catone's Next Fight is Scheduled
Nick Catone to Fight in UFC in Nashville on April 1st 2009 against Tim Creduer.
February 15, 2009 - Rider University News - Catone Wins in UFC Debut
By Michael Mack - Rider
Watch out Jason Thompson! There's a new Bronc hitting the professional sports scene. Former Rider wrestler Nick Catone entered the world of professional athletics Saturday. But it's not the NBA Catone debuted in. Catone instead stepped into the octagon and kicked off his career in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Catone, a Rider graduate with the class of 2004, had 100 career wins as a wrestler here at Rider. He was also a two time conference champ, a two time national qualifier, and was ranked as high as seventh in the nation in his 184 lb. weight class. Catone says he feels that wrestling at Rider has helped prepare him for his career in the UFC. "It's definitely great to have that Division 1 wrestling experience in my pocket. You gotta have one really good base. You can't just come off the streets and hope to train and be in the UFC. You gotta have a background in something." says Catone.
In his first fight, Nick went up against another man making his UFC debut in Derek Downey, an older and slightly bigger opponent. Despite this, Nick was able to use his wrestling skills very early in the fight by avoiding an early takedown.. Downey was later able to get Catone on his back, but Catone quickly reversed and got himself in good position to throw some punches. Nick landed a few good shots before the end of the 1st round, leaving Downey with a baseball sized welt on his head. The second round was even more dominant for Catone. He quickly put downey on his back and began to work his submissions. At a minute and 15 seconds into the 2nd round, Catone made Downey submit to a keylock, which is an arm lock that essentially wrenches the shoulder. With this submission Nick was able to chalk up his first win in the UFC.
The win will certainly move Catone up the ranks of the UFC's 185 lb middleweight class. There is no certain fight lined up for Catone now, although it is speculated that his next opponent may be Amir Sadollah, the winner of the UFC's popular reality show, "The Ultimate Fighter". Sadollah and Catone were scheduled to meet twice in the past, but Sadollah backed out both times due to injury. Nick was definitely upset when he had heard that Amir backed out, but if he is given another opportunity we can expect to see a very fired up Nick Catone. There is no timetable for Nick's next fight just yet, but it is likely for him to return in April or May.
February 4, 2009 - UFC® News - Third Time's The Charm for Nick Catone
Las Vegas. November 2008. Nick Catone had arrived. Five and a half hours after his plane ride from New Jersey began, he was about to embark on the most important journey of his young mixed martial arts career, a pay-per-view bout against The Ultimate Fighter season seven winner Amir Sadollah.
Then the roof caved in, when he was told that a leg infection was going to keep Sadollah from competing on the UFC 91 card. Catone, in fine east coast form, took the news in stride, went through his UFC paperwork and photo shoot, and took in the fights, content that he would get his opportunity soon enough.
That 'soon enough' was going to come on February 7th, with Catone again scheduled to face Sadollah. But this time, a separated shoulder and broken clavicle left Sadollah on the sidelines and Catone without a fight. Seemingly cursed, Catone went back to the gym and trained, and eventually Derek Downey was brought in for Saturday's fight. Finally – knock wood for luck – Catone will make his UFC debut.
"It was pretty frustrating and I just tried to stay focused," said Catone of the last two and a half months. "I'm doing this full-time, I'm putting everything I've got into this and it's definitely a letdown when you hear that the guy's out again. But I'm glad they got somebody and I'm just happy to finally step in there. I don't really know too much about him (Downey), but I've been training hard and I just want to show people that I belong at this level. I want to put a good show on for everybody and show them what I'm all about."
What Catone brings to the table is similar to what the rest of his Garden State brethren provide to UFC fans – no nonsense fights with the type blue collar work ethic that has allowed Kurt Pellegrino, Frankie Edgar, Dan and Jim Miller, and Mike Massenzio to make immediate impacts in the Octagon. What do they have in common other than location? That all-important wrestling base and a competitive nature that is second to none.
"I just think the whole tri-state area is so competitive, especially with a lot of the wrestlers from the Jersey shore and this whole area getting into it," said Catone, a three-time Division I qualifier with 100 D1 wins for Rider University. "The wrestling community has grown so much, and just the New Jersey State finals alone, out of the 28 finalists, 17 were from the shore area. A lot of guys are getting into MMA, and it's just a competitive area. Frankie wrestled, the Miller brothers wrestled, Massenzio wrestled and so did Kurt."
But after college ends, it's usually off to a 'real' job or a coaching spot. Catone did both, taking an assistant coaching slot at Rider while working with his father in a family-owned sheet metal business. In 2005 though, Catone got an introduction to a new world that would change his life.
"After college and wrestling, I got into coaching, and Bill Scott, my jiu-jitsu instructor, is a black belt under Ricardo Almeida," he said. "One night he told me to throw this gi on – I kinda looked at him funny, but I tried it out, fell in love with jiu-jitsu and a year later I was fighting."
In May of 2007, the Brick resident made his pro debut with a win over Dan Karnbauer that lasted just 83 seconds. His next fight, a month later, was a three round win over John Howard – the same John Howard who made quite a big impression last Saturday night with his UFC 94 victory over Chris Wilson. For Catone, it was a crash course in dealing with big crowds as he competed on the undercard of the Kimbo Slice vs Ray Mercer bout at Atlantic City's Boardwalk Hall. So couple that with his Division I wrestling career, and Catone isn't likely to be flustered by the crowds at Tampa's Sun Dome this weekend.
"I've been wrestling my whole life," he said. "I wrestled Division I, wrestled out at Nebraska in the Nationals and those arenas hold 15,000 people, and I always had that competitive urge and always liked being the center of attention. My second fight was that Cage Fury fight at the Boardwalk Hall with Kimbo and that was 8-10,000 people and I took that fight on two weeks' notice. I fought a guy John Howard, who at the time was 5-0, and I just don't let that stuff get to me. I just try to stay focused on the small things and keep my mind on my gameplan, and hopefully everything works out from there."
It has so far. After the win over Howard, four more opponents fell, all in the first round via submission or TKO. But don't expect Catone to walk into the Octagon as if he's unbeatable; he's confident, but still aware that he's got a lot to learn in the fight game.
"I'm definitely a student of the game, and everyday I'm looking to do something different and better myself, whether it's Muay Thai or going to train with different jiu-jitsu guys, or doing kettle bell training," said the soft-spoken 27-year old. "I didn't expect to be on the ride I am this quick. I just got in there, tried to compete at a level I thought I could compete at, and luckily I finished a lot of my fights early and I think I proved the point that I think I'm ready to take the step to the next level. I've been working hard, I'm always trying to improve every day, and now that I'm training full-time, I think that's gonna make a difference. The first six fights I was running a construction company with my dad doing sheet metal and training at night, and now that I've got this opportunity, I've been training full-time, so I think that's gonna help me out a lot. All my friends and family and the rest of the wrestling community know the type of kid I am. I'm a blue collar kid, grew up just like everybody else around here, and I worked for everything I had. Everyone knows that when I do something, I do it one hundred percent, and everybody respects what I do."
Now all he needs is for someone to show up on fight night.
"I just want to get in there, prove I belong, pull out this victory, and surprise people," said Catone. "People around the area know what I'm capable of, but outside of here, people don't know about me and I've only been fighting for a short amount of time, so I think this is definitely gonna be a challenge for me, but it's something I'm up for and that I'm looking forward to."
Nick Catone's to Fight Derek Downey on Feb. 7th, 2009
It's confirmed. Amir Saddolah has backed out again due to another medical/injury issue. Nick Catone will now fight Derek Downey. BJJ Shore Academy's Nick Catone's fight debut in the UFC will finally take place on February 7th, 2009 at the Sun Dome in Tampa, Florida.
The Past and Future 01.10.09: Nick Catone by 411mania.com
Posted by Robert Steele on 01.10.2009
The Past and Future profiles the career paths of the known and the unknown in MMA. This week a profile, with exclusive interview, of soon to debut UFC fighter Nick Catone. Read Article
December 23, 2008 - Nick Catone's Debut UFC Fight Night - Feb. 7th, 2009
The new time and place for BJJ Shore Academy's Nick Catone's fight debut in the UFC against Amir Sadollah has been confirmed. This long awaited bout will finally take place on February 7th, 2009 at the Sun Dome in Tampa, Florida. Nick vs.Amir is one of the main card bouts and we are excited that everyone will get to watch his fight on Spike TV.
His home fan base is proudly ready to tune in and see him fight. Since the original fight bout was cancelled back in November due to Amir Sadollah's leg infection, Nick has continued to train super hard over the last month and with 6 weeks left he's ready to make his UFC debut and take on Amir Feb. 7th.
Tickets on sale: www.ufc.tv
Former Rider Wrestler now an Ultimate Fighter
Since graduating from Rider University in 2004, Nick Catone has been working toward becoming a member of the police department. While doing so he has been helping his father run the family business in East Orange, NJ, a sheet metal shop.
"Nick has worked extremely hard to place himself in this position and we wish him continued success as he pursues his dreams and goals," said Rider head wrestling coach Gary Taylor.
"This is a tremendous opportunity for Nick," said Taylor. "Nick had a great career for us as a student-athlete and we are very proud of his most recent successes in the MMA circuit. Nick has endured many tough times throughout his life and athletic career but has persevered through them all."
Catone battled through a knee injury at Rider that ended his 2002 season prematurely and caused him to sit out the 2003 season. As a senior he endured thumb injuries that required surgery.
"I had six professional fights with a smaller organization, Arena Combat down in Atlantic City," Catone said, "and someone liked what they saw. My manager sent out tapes and made some calls and was able to get me in."
Catone recently signed a four-fight deal with UFC. "My first is the November 15 fight in Vegas," Catone said. "Randy Couture is the heavyweight champion and he's fighting Brock Lesnar in the main event that night."
Lesnar is another former NCAA wrestler. "He was the NCAA Champ while competing for the University of Minnesota," Catone said.
Catone's first UFC opponent, Amir Sadollah, is no stranger to UFC fans. The Ultimate Fighter was a reality television show on Spike TV where cameras rolled 24/7 in a house where ultimate fighters lived together and competed for a championship. "Amir Sadollah won the title and became the star of that show," Catone said. "He's famous from that show. You could say I'm fighting the American Idol winner of the MMA world."
Catone doesn't mind facing a famous champion in his first UFC bout. "It's a great opportunity to make a name for myself," Catone said, "defeating someone who has already established a name for themselves."
Following graduation, Catone was helping coach the Brick Memorial wrestling team and another wrestling club down the Shore. "There was a jujutsu class right after our wrestling class," Catone remembers. "At first I didn't know if I wanted to do that, but I tried it and the next thing I knew I was training for my first fight a year later in Atlantic City."
There are five weight classes in the UFC, with Catone competing in the middle weight (185 pounds). "I wrestled at 184 pounds at Rider," Catone remembers. "Professionally there hasn't been anywhere to go for wrestlers, so lately you see a lot of former wrestlers getting into the mixed martial arts."
UFC competitors enter the mixed martial arts world with backgrounds in boxing, wrestling and the martial arts. "I think the wrestlers have an advantage due to the basics of our sport," Catone said.
From the sheet metal business to showing his true mettle, Nick Catone is ready to show the world he is where he wants to be. You just have to pay to view it.
Photo Credit: Peter G. Borg (Rider University)
July 2nd 2008 - Nick Catone Retains ROC Middleweight Championship!
Nick won the fight via TKO (strikes) 4:25min. in round 1 improving his undefeated MMA record to 6-0 and retains the USKBA Middleweight Championship!
May 10, 2008
Ring of Combat Results
USKBA Middleweight Championship
Nick Catone vs. Mitch Whitesel
Round 1: The favorite was tested early as Whitesel landed a left head kick early that Catone was able to brush off and clinch. Whitesel, confident enough to do some taunting in the ring, was quickly on the receiving end of Catone's relentless strikes. Whitesel defended well and was able to escape any real damage. However, Catone was just too much and overwhelmed Whitesel with strikes midway through the first round. A knee caught Whitesel and that was the beginning of the end.
Nick Catone def. Mitch Whitesel by TKO - 2:27 rd. 1
Former Wrestlers Turning to Mixed Martial Arts
Brick Memorial's Catone now 2-0
By Bob Badders - Staff Writer
"This," he said, "is totally different then wrestling. "It's a different kind of rush that I've never felt before."
That feeling came after Catone's submission victory over Dan Karnbaur in his first professional mixed martial arts fight on May 20 in Atlantic City. Instantly he was hooked and has since improved to 2-0 with a unanimous decision over John Howard in the Cage Fury Fighting Championships 5 pay-per-view on June 23. Catone is just the latest in a line of wrestlers turned fighters that have swarmed the MMA world and come away with great success. Former Point Boro wrestler Kurt Pellegrino spent years with organizations like Cage Fury Fighting, the sport's "minor leagues" and is now fighting with the Ultimate Fighting Championship, the highest and most easily recongnized arena for MMA.
So why the lure to a sport that requires intense training, the learning of several fighting disciplines and the ever-present prospect of injury? Well for one, this is perhaps the only avenue for a wrestler to stay in the game, so to speak. Wrestlers are not afforded the same luxuries that athletes who play football, baseball and basketball have. If you are good enough, there is a well-defined system in place that can lead to the professional level. Wrestlers can go to college and have the daunting task of trying to make the United States Olympic Team, which has worse odds than making it to the pros in other leagues. Unless one likes spandex pants, high boots and nicknames like "Doink the Clown," the wrestler's journey is over by his early 20s. The alternative is a league that is more soap opera than sport, more flying clothesline than double-leg takedown.
Wrestlers quickly gravitated to MMA, a sport that while, according to Catone, is no comparison as far as the feeling in the ring, still has plenty of similarities to wrestling. Obviously the training for an MMA fight is rigorous, but if you know a wrestler that is a friend or a family member then you know what kind of dedication he has. All the wins and losses are accompanied by an intense mental and physical strain, which although taxing to the body, prepares it in ways few activities can. Will and fortitude might be the qualities that have made wrestlers so successfull in MMA.
Catone is a great example of this. There is plenty of talent packed into his six-foot, 190-pound frame. During his days at Brick Memorial, Catone helped lead the Mustangs to back-to-back NJSIAA Group III titles in 1998 and 1999, and also the Shore Conference Tournament title in 1999. Individually, Catone was fourth in the state at 160 pounds in 1999 and also captured the Region VI and District 23 crowns that season. After high school, he had a brief stint at Rutgers University before moving on to Rider University, where he blossomed into one of the top wrestlers in the counrty.
Determination and stick-to-itivness, however, are what made Catone a great wrestler and now a burgeoning mixed martial artist.
In college, Catone had to overcome a pair of near-debilitating injuries. After a sophomore season in which he led the Broncs in wins, he missed most of his junior campaign after suffering a knee injury that required surgery. It went from bad to worse when he got a staph infection in that knee. It was a scary situation, since he could have lost his leg, but disaster was averted in time for his senior season. During the 2004 season, Catone captured the Colonial Athletic Association conference championship at 184 pounds and advanced to the NCAA tournament. He did all of this with torn ligaments in his thumb that made routine moves difficult and painful. Then during his run through the NCAA bracket he suffered nearly the same injury to his other thumb, which made grappling nearly impossible. Thus his run at All-American status was cut short.
That is all behind Catone now because he lives for the moment. When it was time to wrestle that was the only thing on his mind. Now it's time for something else, and it has his full and undivided attention. His next MMA fight will again be with Cage Fury Fighting and will take place on September 14 at Caesar's Palace in Atlantic City. The rush of adrenaline he gets when he steps inside the cage won't be comparable, but the fervor with which he attacks his latest task, well, that should be the same as it's always been.


text:
On a night when Tom Brady, Randy Moss and Wes Welker were little more than footnotes, the Patriots still dominated the Dolphins 41-14 in Miami Gardens. If that doesn't make the rest of the league sit up and take notice, it should.

In recent seasons the Patriots (3-1) have gone as their offense goes. Coach Bill Belichick has been retooling the defense on the fly, and the growing pains have been obvious at times. But on Monday night, New England climbed into a first-place tie with the Jets in the AFC East -- thanks to dominant special teams and an opportunistic defense. Here's what we learned:

1. The Patriots can beat you with more than their offense. Brady threw for just 153 yards and Moss did not have a catch for the first time since 2006, yet New England prevailed because it scored touchdowns off a blocked field goal, a kickoff return and interception return. It also scored a touchdown two plays after a blocked punt. The performance was breathtaking not only in its completeness, but swiftness. Brandon Tate returned the second-half kickoff 103 yards for a score, then after a defensive stop, safety Patrick Chung blocked a punt to set up a touchdown two plays later. The14 points in 2:02 erased a 7-6 halftime deficit and New England never looked back.

2. The Dolphins are in trouble. In eight days, they went from undefeated and leading the rugged AFC East to third place and harboring serious issues about their quarterback and special teams. As if the two losses weren't bad enough for Miami (2-2), the defeats came at home against divisional foes. Those are double and triple whammies. Some thought quarterback Chad Henne might have turned the corner two Sundays ago with a strong showing against the Jets; but not anymore. Henne was awful against the Pats. The stats will show his 302 passing yards and two scores, but his three picks were lethal.

3. The victory should provide the Patriots with a needed confidence boost heading into the bye. Their psyche could have been shaken with a second division loss in three weeks (the Jets scored 21 straight to beat the Pats 28-14 on Sept. 19), but now they have time to prepare for what could be the defining stretch of their season. After returning from the bye, New England will host Baltimore, play at San Diego, host Minnesota, then, after a trip to Cleveland, face Pittsburgh on the road and Indianapolis at home.

4. The Dolphins spent nearly $50 million and two second-round draft picks on wide receiver Brandon Marshall, and they need to find a way to get him involved in games earlier. He was targeted only once in the first half and had no catches (his five receptions for 50 yards came in the second half). The previous week against the Jets, Marshall was targeted only once in the first quarter and five times in the first half. He finished with 10 catches for 166 yards and one score -- with all but four receptions and 43 yards coming after halftime -- so it begs the question of why Miami can't find a way to get him involved earlier.

5. Miami might want to rethink its decision to get rid of linebacker Rob Ninkovich. He appeared in only five games with the team in 2007 and '08 and managed just two tackles. But on Monday, he destroyed his former team with two interceptions, one sack and four tackles.


text:
President Bush brushed aside questions today about the accuracy of a piece of evidence he used to justify war with Iraq, saying he was ''absolutely confident'' he made the right decision to remove Saddam Hussein from power by force.
Speaking at a news conference here with President Thabo Mbeki of South Africa, Mr. Bush did not directly answer a question about whether he regretted including in his State of the Union address this year a statement that Iraq had tried to acquire uranium in Niger for use in a nuclear weapons program.
The White House admitted Monday that the intelligence behind the statement was incomplete and perhaps inaccurate, drawing criticism from Democrats on Capitol Hill, who said it raised doubts about the administration's case for the war.
But Mr. Bush, in his first comments on the matter, made clear that the evidence did not alter his basic position that Mr. Hussein posed a threat to the United States and the stability of the Middle East.
''There is no doubt in my mind that Saddam Hussein was a threat to world peace,'' Mr. Bush said. ''And there's no doubt in my mind that the United States, along with allies and friends, did the right thing in removing him from power. And there's no doubt in my mind, when it's all said and done, the facts will show the world the truth.''Continue reading the main story
The administration's failure so far to find any substantial caches of chemical or biological weapons and the weakening of its case that Mr. Hussein was trying to rebuild his nuclear program have fed deep skepticism among many opponents of the war that Iraq was as much of a threat as Mr. Bush made it out to be.
Those doubts were further reinforced today in Washington by a recently retired State Department official, who said the Iraqi threat was vastly overstated, Reuters reported.
''I believe the Bush administration did not provide an accurate picture to the American people of the military threat posed by Iraq,'' said Greg Thielmann, who left his post as director of the strategic, proliferation and military affairs office in the State Department's bureau of intelligence and research last September.
Some Democrats have seized on the faulty intelligence as justification for a full-scale investigation, seeking to put Mr. Bush on the defensive over his handling of the war at a time when his re-election campaign is stressing his role as commander in chief of the war against terrorism.
Ari Fleischer, the White House spokesman, said the administration was being ''forthright'' in acknowledging that information it received after the State of the Union address led it to pull back the assertion that Iraq had been trying to purchase uranium in Niger.
''This information should not have risen to the level of a presidential speech,'' Mr. Fleischer said. ''There was reporting, although it wasn't very specific, about Iraq's seeking to obtain uranium from Africa.''
But he also suggested that the White House continued to put some store in the intelligence that was the basis of Mr. Bush's statement.
The White House has faced questions about the uranium purchase for months. Those intensified after an article by Joseph C. Wilson 4th, a former ambassador who was sent last year to Niger, in West Africa, to investigate reports of the attempted purchase, was published on the Op-Ed page of The New York Times on Sunday. Mr. Wilson, who said he was dispatched after Vice President Dick Cheney's office took an interest in the matter, reported back that the intelligence was likely fraudulent.
But Mr. Fleischer said Mr. Wilson's report did not address the main problem with the intelligence, which was that documents purporting to authenticate Iraq's efforts were almost certainly forged.
''He spent eight days in Niger and concluded that Niger denied the allegation,'' Mr. Fleischer said. ''Well, typically nations don't admit to going around nuclear nonproliferation.''
He said there had been ''other reporting'' beyond the apparently forged documents about Mr. Hussein's efforts to acquire a lightly processed form of uranium known as yellow cake, but he did not specify what it was.
Mr. Bush said the United States had underestimated how close Mr. Hussein was to building a nuclear weapon in 1991, before the first Persian Gulf war, and said there had long been evidence that Iraq was trying again. He dismissed the criticism of his justification for war as ''attempts to try to rewrite history.''Continue reading the main story


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When planning an upgrade to your property before selling, there's often that dilemma about what to do and how far to go for the best return on your money. From the results I've seen, making the right changes to refresh your property and make it "pop" in the eyes of your buyers, is the difference between a quick, top dollar sale and a slow and unprofitable one.
Most "experts" would say that kitchens and bathrooms are the areas you should pour your money in to. I disagree: my view is that when you sell, the priority areas in order of importance are generally:
- Exterior front
- Kitchen
- Interior living spaces
- Exterior living spaces (depending on location)
- Bathrooms and the rest of the house
This is not to say bathrooms (and bedrooms, laundry etc) don't get a look in. They would definitely get some love, but the extent of work done would be less than other experts might typically advise.
I have proven the success of this theory over and over. Think about when you first saw the home you live in now. The first parts of the property you see are the exterior, then the living and kitchen spaces. I believe that these are the areas that provide the first impression and biggest impact.
Following are some ideas on what you might do to create a home that draws the attention of buyers and ultimately sells for well over what you had anticipated.
Think about who your target buyers are. Try to define who these people are and what they want in a house. It could be a secure backyard for young children to play. It might be lots of storage or space for bikes and outside toys for families with teenagers. Does your house tick most of your target markets' boxes? How many more boxes can you help them tick with some simple changes?
Cosmetic improvements are important, but the practicality of how people live is more important to buyers – believe it or not (this, coming from a very passionate interior/exterior designer).
There are the obvious things you can do like applying a lick of paint – whether that means changing the colours entirely or simply refreshing an already acceptable colour.
What I love to do is to create a significant change in the appearance of a house with only minor actual modifications. There are dozens of examples of what you can do. You often don't even need to paint an entire house exterior: I've transformed houses by changing only the trim colours (windows, window sills, guttering, fascias) and a bit of clever landscaping. Homes don't always need a total overhaul to look great, it's just knowing the right "tweaks" that will make the world of difference.
Landscaping is another excellent way to improve your property (and often cheap or free if you know what you're doing). This could be paring back the yard to make it more streamlined and low maintenance, or it could be to add some new plants and even turf to give the house a more finished and established look from the street.
My suggestion is to carefully assess what parts of your property would benefit most from an upgrade – before you start on anything. Ask real estate agents or research what the qualities are of the properties that sell quickest and for the most money in your suburb.
This article was originally published by Domain on 20 July 2016. It represents the views of the author only and does not necessarily reflect the views of AMP.
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Really hot vid! Love the facial!
Nice Ass, Big Dick...Cheers to that!
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When is our '80s high school podcast going online? "Gee Mr. Spicoli, I don't know!"
Rumor has it that Sean "Jeff Spicoli" Penn irritated the hell out of Ray "Mr. Hand" Walston on the set of 1982's Fast Times at Ridgemont High. Walston, an old-school actor whose Hollywood career began 6 years before Penn was even born, wasn't happy with "Spicoli" (as Penn insisted people always call him on set) and his unexpected improvised behavior on camera.
But out of aggravation comes genius. Spicoli and Mr. Hand make up what is probably the greatest on-screen duo in high school movie history. (Who else would you give it to: Nick Nolte and Ralph Macchio for Teachers?) And it's in the spirit of aggravation-meets-genius that we present this week's Stuck in the '80s podcast: High schools of the '80s. (Am I overselling it?)
Sean Daly, Cathy Wos and myself weave a web of anger and betrayal that ultimately blossoms into old-school podcast fun. Marvel with wonder as Sean somehow manages to spend 10 minutes talking about Witness, a movie that has nothing to do with high school. And cringe in horror as Cathy digs her razor-sharp talons into my spine all because of a mistimed joke at her expense.
It's just like high school all over again, only without milk boxes.
Click here to download the show. Or click here to get all our shows for free on iTunes. If you use a different audio player, here's our RSS feed.


text: Diversity is both important and essential to the community and environment with Iowa City Pride. Diversity is central to our mission at Iowa City Pride as leaders in the Iowa City GLBTQIA+ community. Iowa City Pride embraces our responsibility to create a welcoming environment for all members of the community, including persons of all races, underrepresented persons; persons with disabilities; men, women, straight, lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender persons. We are a place where everyone is welcome and we strive to be inclusive in all of our events. All of our meetings are open to the public and anyone may attend and volunteer.


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When do you have too much gun
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October 9, 2012, 10:54 AM
Senior Member
Join Date: July 9, 2010
Location: Irmo, SC
Posts: 263
Too Much Gun
It's an individual thing, based upon age, health, and other conditions. Since I'm now a gray haired, 62 Year old, Grandfather looking type, I'd suspect that the Thugs out in the world perceive me as an easier target than back in "The Day". So when I'm out and about I tend to carry two weapons and even put a third in the glove box. Depending where I'm going to, of course.
As I've gotten older, my taste in weapons for Self Defense and Concealed Carry has changed. During the Fall and Winter in the South, I tend to go up in calibers.
These are my Modern Day Carry weapons. A S&W 4043 in 40 Caliber, a Ruger Super Redhawk in .44 Mag with a 2 ½ in barrel. A Kimber 1911 45 ACP, Custom Shop Super Carry Pro. A Ruger SP-101, in .357 Mag. A Walther (S/W) PPK S-1, .380 ACP and a Ruger LCP .380 ACP.
Some I suspect have been relegated to a Safe Queen Status since lately, depending on where I'm going I tend to favor the lighter calibers for more convenience of carry than anything else. So I tend to jack it up a caliber or two, just in case.
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The chairman of the Jewish Agency for Israel, Natan Sharansky, will be in New York this week to meet with the strategic planning committee he set up to discuss transforming the organization.
Since Sharansky, the famous former Soviet dissident, took over the agency last summer, he has been openly talking about his desire to have the organization that was historically charged with settling the State of Israel and its immigration focus more on Jewish identity building.
He will meet with 25 or so top lay and professionals of the agency at the UJA Federation of New York Wednesday to discuss in detail the plan that he has been crafting with the committee. The committee will then take Sharansky's vision, discuss it and prepare to formally present it at the organization's board of governors' meetings in June.


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Spoilers: WWE SmackDown results for April 11, 2014
Spoilers: WWE SmackDown results for April 11, 2014
If you can't wait to know the results of WWE SmackDown for April 11, 2014, here are the spoilers:
- John Cena will come in the start of the show and he will brag that he is benchmark for WWE and if someone wants to make his name in WWE, he has to go through Cena first.
- Cesaro defeats Big Show via disqualification. Jack Swagger interrupts the match and attacks Cesaro.
- Ryback and Curtis Axel defeats Los Matadores.
- Rob Van Dam defeats Damien Sandow
- Barrett defeats Kofi Kingston
- Fandango defeats Santino in a nothing match.
- Hulk Hogan comes down to the ring and talks about Daniel Bryan and how WrestleMania XXX became YesleMania. Both of them do the Yes! chant together.
- The Usos and Daniel Bryan fight Kane, Batista and Randy Orton. Orton and Batista beat down the Usos and Kane prepares to attack Bryan, but The Shield comes to save Bryan. Bryan hits Kane with the running knee. Both Bryan and The Shield celebrate in the ring.


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March University Council Meeting Coverage
In accordance with the University Council Bylaws, the March 28 Council meeting included "extended reports by the President, the Provost and other administrators covering budgets and plans for the next academic year." The remarks below were adapted from the presentations given.
There was also a presentation on Faculty/Staff Benefits which was one of this year's focus topics.
It will be summarized in the next issue.
March University Council Meeting Coverage
Reports on Budget and Plans for the Next Academic Year
Bonnie Gibson, Vice President, Budget & Management Analysis
Thank you very much. I'm so pleased to be here for my annual presentation. I'm going to be talking about the fiscal 2012 budget; I'd love to be telling you about the fiscal 2013 budget, but it's not finished yet. So we'll do an overview of '12 and we'll talk about the things that are finished, primarily undergraduate total charges, and I'm also going to spend a little bit of time talking about undergraduate financial aid and PhD financial aid.
University Operating Budget
So let me just start with some of our key facts: the biggest one is that this is a $6.26 billion budget, but that includes both the University and Penn Medicine. If we look at the University alone, it's just slightly over $2.9 billion, which was about a 3.6% increase over our fiscal 2011 budget, and a little bit more, almost 5% over our fiscal 2011 actual. Sponsored Research Programs is a particularly interesting part of our budget this year, and I'll talk about it a little later. The budget includes $367 million of capital expenditures, including the completion of Penn Park, Golkin Hall, and a number of other buildings that are being finished. We're also doing the full design costs for several new projects.
If we look at our revenue (RCM refers to Responsibility Center Management, which is the way we manage ourselves internally) this is our $2.927 billion of revenue. An easy way to look at our revenue is to look at it in thirds. Basically, a third of our revenue is related to tuition and fees, a third of our revenue is related to research, and a third of our revenue is related to everything else. Everything else has a lot of categories, and the one I would like to point out is 9%, our investment income. That is a relatively low percentage for an institution like Penn, compared to some of our peer institutions, where that number is closer to 35, 40 and 45%. We looked at our expenditures for fiscal 2012, they're up 3.6% compared to what we budgeted for fiscal 2011, and I think that the important point here is that 52% of our expenditures are related to compensation—to salaries and to benefits.
In 2011, our gross in both compensation and current expense was overwhelmingly driven by research. This year we're actually seeing declines in research. Compensation is going down 1.1% in the research components of our budget, compared to an increase in the non-research, and on current expense, we're seeing a decline of 9.2% in research. That would be alarming except for the fact that what's really happening here is that we're seeing a decrease in the Stimulus Funding that we received through research over fiscal 2009, '10 and '11, primarily in '10 and '11. We received in those years awards from the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act of 2009, commonly called the Stimulus Funds; we got over $220 million of awards of over 460 different studies. But those were very short-term awards, they were designed to be stimulative in nature, to help retain employment, to make investments in infrastructure. Consequently, they're already beginning to phase out. So while we spent that money in '10 and '11, we're now seeing the end and no new awards. This is a natural outcome of getting those stimulus awards, and one that we anticipated. What's less natural is the fact that because of budget problems, the federal government is, in fact, not making the same level of investments, particularly in NIH funding that we had seen in the past. So we are liable to see, as we move forward over the next five years, flat research growth, but the FY12 research decline is directly related to the Stimulus Funding.
If we look at our budget by Responsibility Center types, this is where we're spending the money. Who's spending this $2.9 billion? Over $2 billion of it is being spent by the schools. The schools represent 70% of our total expenditures. If we look at that school segment and break it down, the Perelman School of Medicine represents 37% of all school expenditures, Arts & Sciences is 19% of all school expenditures, and Wharton is 16% of all school expenditures. That means that those three schools represent 72% of school expenditures, with the other nine schools making up the remaining 28%.
Total Undergraduate Charges 2012
Our 2012 total charges for undergraduates is $53,976, which is a 3.9% increase over fiscal 2011; these are the schools with which we compare ourselves routinely, and pretty typically we are right in the middle of that peer group. NYU is at the highest total and Princeton is at the lowest in our peer group; Penn is right about at the middle (see below).
Our financial aid budget in 2012 overall, including undergraduate, graduate and professional aid and graduate stipends, was $381 million, a 6.1% increase. Now I'd like to talk a little bit about next year, and specifically total undergraduate charges for 2012-2013. Currently we're at $53,976. If you look at our statement of activities from our audited financial statements and look at the areas that are directly related to the cost of providing a Penn education, tuition actually covers only 71% of that cost. The balance is supported by philanthropy, by gifts, and by endowment. 57% of our students receive financial aid from either internal or external sources.
The average freshman grant for an aided freshman is $38,412 and all of our students have no loan packages. We do not package loans as part of a student's aid package, so if we determine a student's need is $40,000, that need will be met with grant and by work-study, with no loan. A student may opt to take a loan, and many of our students will opt to take a loan, but we do not include a loan as part of the package to meet need.
If we look at our peer group over a very extended period of time, Penn has been very close to the average in our peer group for this entire period. We actually are below the average for all private institution increases, and these are rates of increase, and we are substantially below the average for public institutions. For academic 2012-2013, the trustees have approved total charges of $56,106, that's a $2,130 increase, and it's a 3.9% change. This is total charges, it is tuition, fees, room & board. The room is based on the average standard room rate, typically a quad double, and the dining board is based on the Freshman Meal Plan. Obviously, once students are out of freshman year, they have a variety of room & board charges, depending on whether they stay in housing, whether they take a single, whether they take a triple, whether they take a full meal plan, a partial meal plan, so the charges can be different for our sophomores, for our juniors and seniors.
The projected increase in revenue is $20 million, based on this increase in tuition and fees. However, we're also planning an increase in the undergraduate financial aid budget, by $13 million. So while we see a 3.9% increase in the revenue generated by total charges, we're increasing the aid budget by 7.7%. The fiscal 2013 rate of increase is the fourth consecutive year that we have been under 4%. Since 1969 we've been under 4% in our rate of increase five times, and four of them have been the last four consecutive years. As a matter of fact, 3.9% is the same rate of increase that we have had for three years, and it is the second lowest rate of increase over this time period.
Financial Aid
If we look again over time since 2002, what's been happening to the average aided freshman package? Well, the obvious thing is it's going up, and the second obvious thing is we've eliminated loans. We eliminated loans completely in 2010. 53% of all of our aided undergraduates and 57% of all of our aided freshman undergraduates received grants of at least $35,000 a year. In 2012, the average aided freshman is actually paying a net cost that is less than it was in 2004. In 2004, the average net cost—and I am defining net cost by taking total charges, tuition and fees, room & board, and subtracting from that the average freshman grant— in fiscal 2004, it was $15,900, and in fiscal 2012 it's $15,500. And that's not inflation adjusted, so in fact it's even less.
If we look at our growth in aid expenditures from 2002 to 2013 budgeted, you can see that it has been extraordinary; it's actually averaged over 10% a year from $65 million in 2002 to a budget of $181 million in 2013. This is an analysis that ties the number of students who actually qualify for aid to the national unemployment rate. The correlation was close enough that we actually did a regression analysis on it, and we used that regression analysis to help us plan for the future. So what I'd like to draw your attention to is the dramatic increase from fiscal 2008 to fiscal 2012. During that period we have added 849 aided students, which is a 23% increase. The numbers are so closely related it's extraordinary, between what happens to unemployment and what happens to our number of aided students.
Using the professional forecasters report from the fourth quarter, we are anticipating that the unemployment rate nationally will decline slowly, and we are anticipating as a result that our number of aided students will actually decline as well. That does not mean that the dollars per aided student will decline, but we expect that the number of students with need will actually decline. And what we have budgeted on is using the regression analysis and using the unemployment rate and the predicted level of aided students, we've then added to that the standard deviation. So we've tried to take a conservative view.
Graduate and Professional Tuition and Aid
Now I'd like to talk a little bit about graduate and professional tuition and aid. We had, in 2011, over 3,000 PhD students across nine schools and 53 graduate groups. Almost all of them are fully-funded for a period between 3 and 5 years. Full funding includes remission of tuition and fees, a stipend, and health insurance in each of the funded years, and the five-year standard funding package, using SAS Humanities as our base, for students entering in the Fall of 2011, was worth $280,000 in constant fiscal 2012 dollars. PhD tuition will increase by 3.9%, the Masters degrees that are part of the graduate groups will also increase at 3.9%. Professional tuition is set by the individual schools and it can be set according to market. This year the increases that have been reported to us so far range from 0% to 7.6%. If we look at PhD funding by school, what you would expect to see is what you actually see: the School of Arts & Sciences has the most students and the highest level of total funding expenditures. So we've got $140 million of expenditures with $61.6 million of that in the School of Arts & Sciences and the Biomedical graduate group being the second highest, with $35 million.
Andy Binns, Vice Provost for Education
Thank you very much, I'm happy to be here. Every ten years, every institution of higher education undergoes a reaccreditation by a regional accrediting body. Our regional accrediting body is the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, and it is to them that we look for the standards by which we are evaluated. They ask the University to provide evidence that we meet and comply with each of the 14 standards that they elucidate.
The process is that the University does a self-study in which we address these standards. The University picks a topic and addresses that topic, and within the self-study it might address only a few of the 14 standards. We then provide documentation that we meet the other standards not addressed in the self-study. That was the strategy that we took in 2004, in which we focused on PhD programs and education, and that turned out to be a very valuable process for the University. A lot of issues were analyzed and talked about, and there were some extensive, important outcomes from that self-study.
For the 2014 review, we started months ago to get ready, and we have decided that our self-study will focus on undergraduate education. Right now, we're in the midst of planning for the self-study, and this process involves consultation with various University committees and governance bodies. Just yesterday, our liaison from the Middle States Commission on Higher Education was on campus to talk to us about what we're doing. We have a self-study design, within which we have many different working groups.
We're in the midst of putting these working groups together, and we have chairs now for each of the groups related to the Penn Compact. Professor Kathleen McCauley from Nursing is going to chair Access & Equity. Professor Robert Ghrist, a PIK Professor in Math & Engineering, will chair Integrating Knowledge. Professor Matt Hartley from GSE is chairing Local Engagement, and Professor Mauro Guillen from Wharton is doing Global Engagement. In the assessment world, on undergraduate research, Professor Vijay Kumar from Engineering chairs that group. Professor Dennis DeTurck from Math—and the College Dean—is doing Finance and Administration, and Professor Georgette Phillips from Wharton is doing Curricular and Learning Outcomes. We're in the midst of putting together the total working groups, which will include faculty, staff and students.
From now until March 2013, working groups are going to study our questions and write a report. In 2013-14, there's a plan for the Middle States evaluation team visits. Once we submit the self-study, they then assemble a team that will come for a site visit and talk to us about it. The final visit of the Middle States team, and their evaluation and report, will be in the Spring of 2014. I'd say that Middle States expects two major things of us. The first is that the educational goals and programs need to reflect the institutional mission and vision. And second is that Middle States focuses very heavily on assessment; we're making sure that we cover assessment not only because they're asking us to but also because we think there are areas in which it is very much going to help us. They want us to demonstrate that we do what we say we're doing. We'll do this through a lot of analysis, and they're also asking us to think about ways in which we can improve those things which we say are our critical goals. This requires broad engagement with the Penn community; you've heard a little about how that's going on. Most importantly, we have to demonstrate institutional goals and how we're achieving those goals.
I thought I'd spend a tad more time talking about the 14 standards. They address everything from finances and program offerings to faculty to academic integrity. The most critical standard for this review is assessment of student learning. As you know, that issue is getting attention nationally in conversations about accreditation and accountability and the future of higher education, and we feel this self-study provides us with an opportunity to show how the University engages in this. At a great University like Penn, we're assessing ourselves and our students all the time, and we need to show how that process occurs. I'm pleased to say that we start from a position of relative strength in this endeavor: the faculty of the College of Arts & Sciences has been engaged in evaluating its curriculum, and educational offerings for over ten years, starting with the Pilot Curriculum and continuing through its recent work, with each major completing a review of its student learning goals and how student learning is evaluated. Thanks to their school-specific accreditation processes, the School of Engineering & Applied Sciences and the School of Nursing are doing this as part of their normal accreditation, so they'll be able to feed directly into this discussion. And finally, Wharton engages in a number of assessment activities and will be focused on its curriculum and learning for this study.
How can you get involved and stay updated? We are setting up a self-study webpage, and the address is www.upenn.edu/provost/reaccreditation_2014 You can email us at firstname.lastname@example.com with suggestions, questions and ideas for the self-study, and I encourage students to contact the self-study email address or the UA and SCUE for information about the student working group that we have set up for the self-study.


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Don't miss a story. Like us on Facebook. Like Dallas News' Facebook Page
Garland school board members will receive student assessment results and district and campus accountability results at their monthly board meeting.
Trustees will meet 6 p.m. Tuesday at the administrative offices of the school district, 501 S. Jupiter Road.
The district also plans to take campus staff's recommendation to change the name of its Cooperative Behavior Center to the Pathfinder Achievement Center. The intent of the campus 30 years ago has changed drastically, and the task there today is to work with students facing intense emotional problems.


text: I joined ldssingles.com hoping to meet LDS men in my city. Unfortunately, there weren't many locals on the website. So I started looking farther, hoping for at least some interesting conversation. I thought I'd give the website 6 months. In the fifth month, I met a wonderful man, almost 500 miles away, who had the exact qualities I was looking for. We enjoyed getting to know each other on the phone. Then we traveled once or twice a month to see each other. We both prayed a lot to know if this relationship was right, and received repeated revelation that it was. We were blessed in that he could move to my city 7 months after we met. I am often astounded that I met someone with whom I am so completely compatible, who shares so many of my interests, who may be the sweetest man in the whole world, and is as crazy in love as I am.


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