I found Linda Underground's blog this morning. As a 25-year-old non-traditional student, she balked at an assignment to study a culture she didn't like. Throwing herself into the assignment anyway, she discovered "there are wonderful things to be gained from really examining how someone different travels this earth."

Underground chose Japan, and immersing herself in the Japanese culture, she found the assignment life altering.

"I gained a sense of continuity, ancestry, and personal spiritual growth," she wrote.

I've heard it told that Winston Churchill once said, "See that man over there. I don't like him very much. I need to get to know him better."

Underground gets an A+ in my book. Personal transformation is one of the greatest gifts we receive through education.

Almost every graduate student I've encountered has asked the big question: Is graduate school worth it?

For graduate students looking for jobs in language and literature, the near future looks a tad bleak, according to a story by Tamar Lewin for The New York Times, "At Colleges, Humanities Job Outlook Gets Bleaker."

Lewin cites statistics from the Modern Language Association that show that "faculty positions will decline 37 percent, the biggest drop since the group began tracking its job listings 35 years ago."

It also finds that most colleges and universities are hiring adjunct professors instead of offering tenure-track positions.

For those who have specialized in 20th-century American literature, finding a job is especially tough.

"A single listing gets flooded with 300 to 400 applicants, and grads are up against formidable odds," said Alysia Garrison, a Ph.D. candidate in English at the University of California, Davis, who is also president of the Graduate Student Caucus at the language association.

Is this the situation in which you find yourself? Do you have a plan? Are you hopeful, or just plain worried? I'd love to hear from you.

Does your school have a writing center? Any other kind of place where students can get tutoring? Fort Hays State University in Hays, Kansas does, and traffic in the center is booming right before finals. Smart students. Danielle Stroud wrote about the busy-ness for The University Leader, the school's online paper.

The Writing Center is located in Forsyth Library and offers students free, individual help "on all stages of writing."

"Our busiest time of the season varies with time and due dates," said professor Pamela Shaffer, director of the writing center.

Mike Gilmore is a non-traditional student at Hays. He has a degree in Communications and is back in school for another in English. He helps out at the writing center.

This is a cool idea. Whether you're a student needing help or one who is able and willing to help, see if your school has a writing or tutoring center. If it doesn't, it would sure look great on your resume if you helped create one.

People drop out of high school for various reasons, some admirable, some not. Alabama is finding that, whatever the reason, dropouts who don't earn a GED cost the state a boatload of money. Bayne Hughes wrote about the issue for DecaturDaily.com.

A 2008 study by the Southern Education Foundation called high school dropouts "Alabama's No. 1 education and economic problem."

The Alliance for Excellent Education put the cost of missed lifetime earnings at $6.5 billion, Hughes wrote. He quotes the U.S. Census Bureau as showing that in 2007, high school graduates made a median income of $40,000. In comparison, dropouts earned only $24,000.

The estimated cost of lifetime health care for each class was calculated at almost $245 million. Crime-related expenses for the state are $125 million annually. According to Hughes's article, inmates cite lack of education as the number one reason they're in prison.

So what does this mean for Continuing Education? It increases the value of a GED. If you're a high school dropout, or you know one, find out how to earn a GED.