The cost of higher education is rising, making it necessary for many college students to obtain employment.

According to the College Board, since 1981, the cost of a college education has gone up five times faster than family incomes. Figures from Sebago Associates say 57 percent of college students have jobs.

Welcome back to another semester!

The Mosaic staff hope you all had time to relax and had as much fun as our editors did. For this special back to school edition, we wanted to bring you along to experience the sights we’ve seen since you heard from us last.

Six days of winter break found me in a car, traveling happily cross-country from New Jersey to San Diego, Calif. on a trip I won’t soon forget. I learned as much as I experienced on this trip, and I’d like to share with you the ways this trip changed me and the enlightment it helped me to attain, from start to finish.

“Break” for me was anything but what that word implies. My time was spent mostly in traveling. I went home to rural Bemidji, Minnesota, to be with family for the holidays and catch up with my friends who’ve known me “since way back when.” Then I came back to ring in the New Year in Newport. The highlight of this break was the week I spent on an amazing trip to London. After that it was preparations for my final semester here at Salve…it has ALL been a journey of personal growth and inspiration.

WASHINGTON – President Bush described a nation at peril Tuesday in a State of the Union speech that focused on the threat of terrorism, the challenges in Iraq and the need for more economic growth.

In a nationally televised address that previewed the themes of his re-election campaign, Bush defended his decision to invade Iraq and warned Americans that the nation remains vulnerable to terrorists.