University System News
USGNEWS:
www.insidehighered.com
http://www.insidehighered.com/quicktakes/2013/08/01/controversy-white-student-union-georgia-state
Controversy on White Student Union at Georgia State
The White Student Union, a new organization, is drawing complaints at Georgia State University. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that the group is not officially recognized and may not involve very many people at all, but that when notices about it started to appear on campus, a number of people complained.
www.ledger-enquirer.com
http://www.ledger-enquirer.com/2013/08/01/2612984/columbus-state-universitys-new.html
Columbus State University’s new surveillance device helps fight crime
By LARRY GIERER
Police use unmanned aerial vehicle to nab suspected bicycle thief – An unmanned aerial vehicle providing surveillance from high in the sky helped Columbus State University police make an arrest in a bicycle theft case last week. Chief Rus Drew thinks the device will be helpful in crime prevention in the future.
www.ajc.com
http://www.ajc.com/ap/ap/georgia/18-uga-students-indicted-in-fake-id-production/nZBSq/
16 UGA students indicted in fake ID production
The Associated Press
ATHENS, Ga. — Sixteen University of Georgia students and four students from other schools who are accused of manufacturing and distributing fake IDs have been indicted by a Clarke County grand jury.
The ring was led by two roommates who provided door-to-door services, the Athens Banner-Herald (http://bit.ly/13z1yQU) reported Thursday.
Related article:
www.onlineathens.com
20 students indicted in UGA fake ID manufacturing ring
http://onlineathens.com/local-news/2013-08-01/20-students-indicted-uga-fake-id-manufacturing-ring
RESEARCH:
www.gpb.org
http://www.gpb.org/news/2013/08/01/georgia-southern-studies-concussion-risks#
Georgia Southern Studies Concussion Risks
By Associated Press
Georgia Southern University officials say the school is using a $385,000 grant to study the impact of concussions on football players. University President Brooks Keel told WALB Thursday that the school was the recipient of a grant from the National Institutes of Health and is using technology called the Helmet Impact Telemetry System — or HITS — to record every blow taken to the head during games and practice sessions.
www.walb.com
http://www.walb.com/story/22989376/new-technology-works-to-prevent-football-concussions
GA Southern technology works to prevent football concussions
By Christian McKinney
…The Georgia Southern University Eagles football team is using technology called the Helmet Impact Telemetry System, or HITS, which measures and records every hit to the head during practices and games. Georgia Southern is currently the only college football team in Georgia to use the technology. University President Brooks Keel says they received a $385,000 National Institutes of Health Grant in 2011 to study concussions, and are using the opportunity to reduce the risks players face on the field.
www.phys.org
http://phys.org/news/2013-08-climate-disease-links-clearer-highlights.html
As climate, disease links become clearer, study highlights need to forecast future shifts
Climate change is affecting the spread of infectious diseases worldwide, according to an international team of leading disease ecologists, with serious impacts to human health and biodiversity conservation. …The issue of climate change and disease has provoked intense debate over the past decade, particularly in the case of diseases that affect humans, according to the University of Georgia’s Sonia Altizer, who is the study’s lead author.
www.myajc.com
http://www.myajc.com/news/business/another-georgia-tech-scientist-hacks-an-apple-devi/nZBYR/
Another Georgia Tech scientist hacks an Apple device
BY CHRISTOPHER SEWARD – THE ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION
Another researcher at Georgia Tech has found a way to bypass Apple security measures and install malware on the iPhone-iPad maker’s devices, the university said this week. The scientist, Tielei Wang of Tech’s Information Security Center, was able to install an app with Trojan horse-style features that eluded Apple’s app review process, the school said.
www.usatoday.com
http://www.usatoday.com/story/cybertruth/2013/07/31/how-bad-guys-and-legit-services-exploit-mobile-devices/2602575/
How crooks and legit services exploit mobile devices
Byron Acohido, USA TODAY
LAS VEGAS — Your mobile device has never been more ripe to be hacked. That’s especially true if you’re using an iPhone, iPad or a Google Android smartphone or touch tablet, according to talks at the Black Hat Conference. Research from Georgia Tech and Alcatel-Lucent disclosed gaping security holes in the developer support services both Apple and Google rely on to foster the creation and sale of hot new apps.
Related articles:
www.huffingtonpost.com
Apple To Fix iPhone Security Flaw In The Next iOS Update
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/01/iphone-security-flaw_n_3688279.html
www.upi.com
Flaws found in Apple’s iOS can let malware slip through
http://www.upi.com/Science_News/Technology/2013/07/31/Flaws-found-in-Apples-iOS-can-let-malware-slip-through/UPI-85281375307659/
www.macon.com
http://www.macon.com/2013/08/01/2586489/officials-celebrate-revitalization.html
Officials celebrate revitalization efforts in College Hill Corridor
By PHILLIP RAMATI
Local officials announced Thursday the level of revenue generated by neighborhoods such as Beall’s Hill in the College Hill Corridor, which connects downtown Macon to Mercer University. …The study, funded by a Knight Neighborhood Challenge Grant and conducted by Middle Georgia State College’s Center for Economic Analysis, shows that property tax revenue generated in College Hill from 2002 to 2011 increased by 57 percent.
Editorials/Columns/Opinions
www.romenews-tribune.com
http://www.romenews-tribune.com/view/full_story/23267868/article-FRIDAY-BLOG–Bit-less-dust-on-archives?instance=secondary_stories_left_column
FRIDAY BLOG: Bit less dust on archives
by Rome News-Tribune
IT SHOULD BE PLEASING, though not entirely cheering, to hear that the all-but-made-extinct Georgia Archives are starting to be built back up under new stewardship by the University System, instead of a state government that saw them only as something to dump in a budget crunch.
www.ajc.com
http://www.ajc.com/weblogs/get-schooled/2013/aug/02/homeward-bound-more-young-adults-now-living-mom-an/
Get Schooled with Maureen Downey
Homeward bound: More young adults and college students now living with mom and dad
I read this report with particular interest as the parent of two twentysomethings. The report documents the rise in young adults returning home to mom and dad. Many of my friends are seeing their college graduates back under their roofs. They are not alone. Among young adults in the 18 to 24 age group, more than half now live at home, 56 percent.
www.politifact.com
http://www.politifact.com/georgia/statements/2013/aug/02/don-lemon/educational-levels-generally-make-difference-earni/
Educational levels generally make a difference in earnings
Don Lemon
CNN anchor Don Lemon offered a commentary on race that went viral. We fact-checked a claim he made about the benefits of education.
Fox political commentator Bill O’Reilly waded into the national conversation on race with a rant last week about what he sees as lingering problems in the black community. During a “Talking Points” segment, the conservative white commentator took aim at the breakdown of the African-American family, drugs and the entertainment industry’s promotion of “gangsta culture.” Then CNN anchor Don Lemon took O’Reilly’s commentary a step further. Lemon, in a response that has since gone viral, launched his own rant last weekend during an on-air “No Talking Points” segment.
www.insidehighered.com
http://www.insidehighered.com/views/2013/08/02/let-us-count-ways-books-and-moocs-are-alike-essay
Books Are MOOCs, Too
By Bernard Fryshman
Books are MOOCs, too. Shall we count the ways? Books are mobile, ubiquitous and comprehensive. A student devoting the requisite time and attention to a book will acquire as complete an understanding of the course material as from a MOOC.
www.gpb.org
http://www.gpb.org/blogs/georgia-works/2013/08/01/secrets-to-lower-college-costs-audio#
Secrets to Lower College Costs [AUDIO]
By Chip Rogers
Outside of purchasing a home, it is likely the biggest expense most people ever have. It’s the cost of college. Consider these facts:
www.rn-t.com
http://www.rn-t.com/view/full_story/23233313/article-EDITORIAL–Still-bottom-feeding?instance=news_special_coverage_right_column
EDITORIAL: Still bottom feeding
IT IS PROBABLY impossible to embarrass a state whose best-known schoolchild may be Honey Boo Boo. Thus it must simply be considered an insult to the general public’s intelligence for state leaders to give “can’t afford it” as the reason for refusing to participate in an annual national testing evaluation of education. Frankly, if this state can’t afford $27 million a year to find out how well or poorly the many billions in state/local dollars going to public education are doing, it should just join Detroit in declaring bankruptcy.
www.chronicle.com
http://chronicle.com/blogs/bottomline/large-share-of-higher-ed-business-officers-plan-to-retire-soon/?cid=at&utm_source=at&utm_medium=en
Large Share of Higher-Ed Business Officers Plan to Retire Soon
By Eric Kelderman
About 40 percent of chief business officers at colleges and universities plan to make retirement their next career move, and more than a third expect to retire within four years, according to the results of a survey released on Thursday by the National Association of College and University Business Officers. The turnover is due largely to age.
www.chronicle.com
http://chronicle.com/article/A-Fix-for-Teacher-Education-/140565/?cid=at&utm_source=at&utm_medium=en
A Fix for Teacher Education: the 3-Year Degree
By Leah Wasburn-Moses
“An Industry of Mediocrity”—The Chronicle of Higher Education
“Teacher Training’s Low Grade”—The Wall Street Journal
“Are Teacher Prep Programs Worth the Money?” ¬—Marketplace
Headlines were unanimous after the June release of the National Council on Teacher Quality’s national study of teacher-preparation programs. The study’s conclusions were precisely what the public had expected, bolstered by decades of critiques all adding up to the same conclusion: Teacher education is broken. Fortunately, there is a solution that can produce better teachers and do it faster and at less cost.
www.npr.org
http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2013/08/01/207902595/what-outbreak-students-tune-out-tweeted-health-warnings
What Outbreak? Students Tune Out Tweeted Health Warnings
by DEBORAH FRANKLIN
You can lead college students to soap and water, but you can’t make them wash their hands. In fact, you can’t even make them read their e-mail. That was one takeaway from an outbreak of pneumonia at Georgia Tech last fall that sickened at least 83 students – “the largest [outbreak] reported at a university in 35 years,” according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Located in Atlanta – the CDC’s backyard – Georgia Tech went to great lengths throughout November 2012 to shout word of the public health risk to students via social media, e-mail blasts and paper posters. …But by early December, when the CDC surveyed 105 students who hadn’t been sick to see how well the message had gotten through, most (54 percent) said they were unaware of the outbreak.
Education News
www.onlineathens.com
http://onlineathens.com/local-news/2013-08-01/gov-deal-warns-student-testing-costs-will-rise
Gov. Deal warns student testing costs will rise
By CHRISTINA A. CASSIDY ASSOCIATED PRESS
ALPHARETTA, Ga. — Student testing costs will rise despite the state’s decision not to use a standardized exam being developed for use nationally under the Common Core academic standards, Gov. Nathan Deal said Thursday. Deal said Georgia can anticipate spending more money on testing and noted the challenge will be to design one that not only measures student progress but shows that progress as comparable to students around the country.
www.myajc.com
http://www.myajc.com/news/news/state-regional-govt-politics/dispute-between-deal-and-barge-flares-over-federal/nZBST/
Dispute between Deal and Barge flares over federal funding woes
BY GREG BLUESTEIN – THE ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION
A dispute between Gov. Nathan Deal and Superintendent John Barge resurfaced Thursday, as the state tries to save almost $10 million in federal education grant funds suddenly at risk of being withheld. It highlighted anew the rift between the two powerful Republicans and the implications it has on a range of education programs. The governor suggested the problem with the Race to the Top grants could have been avoided if Barge accepted his pick to run the federal program. Deal said it’s squarely up to Barge to address Washington’s concerns.
www.bizjouranls.com
http://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/print-edition/2013/08/02/georgia-schools-launching-career-paths.html
Georgia schools launching career paths
Dave Williams
Staff Writer-Atlanta Business Chronicle
The new school year in Georgia is bringing a new educational approach aimed at improving the state’s dismal high school graduation rate.
Starting this month, students in the ninth grade will choose among 18 “career clusters” they wish to pursue throughout high school. Each cluster contains a series of more specific “pathways” designed to prepare students for post-secondary options including four-year college, two-year technical college or a certificate program qualifying them for a job out of high school in the skilled trades.
www.onlineathens.com
http://ap.onlineathens.com/pstories/state/ga/20130802/1164722470.shtml
2 Ga. technical colleges to merge by July 2014
The Associated Press
ATLANTA — The State Board of the Technical College System of Georgia has approved plans to merge Altamaha Technical College and the Okefenokee Technical College. In a release Thursday, Technical College System of Georgia spokesman Mike Light said the consolidation is expected to happen by July 1, 2014.
Related articles:
www.cbsatlanta.com
2 Ga. technical colleges to merge by July 2014
http://www.cbsatlanta.com/story/23025937/2-ga-technical-colleges-to-merge-by-july-2014
www.wsbradio.com
2 Ga. technical colleges to merge by July 2014
http://www.wsbradio.com/ap/ap/georgia/2-ga-technical-colleges-to-merge-by-july-2014/nZBsF/
www.jacksonville.com
Okefenokee and Altamaha technical colleges to merge
Consolidation of two institutions under a single president to be complete by July 1, 2014
http://jacksonville.com/news/georgia/2013-08-01/story/okefenokee-and-altamaha-technical-colleges-merge
www.insidehighered.com
http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2013/08/01/incoming-student-characteristics-determine-graduation-rates-studies-find
Inputs Trump Outputs
By Paul Fain
The easiest way for colleges to improve their graduation rates is to serve fewer disadvantaged students, according to two new studies released this week. The new research found that the characteristics of incoming students largely predict their likelihood of completing college.
www.chronicle.com
http://chronicle.com/article/Negotiators-Are-Named-for/140827/
Negotiators Are Named for Gainful-Employment Rule-Making Panel
By Kelly Field
Washington
The U.S. Education Department has named negotiators to a panel that will rewrite its controversial “gainful employment” rule, and for-profit colleges are feeling outnumbered. The list of 15 negotiators and 14 alternates comprises a diverse group of students, legal-aid lawyers and consumer advocates, state officials, business leaders, accreditors, college lobbyists and administrators, and an Education Department official.
www.ccnewsnow.com
http://www.ccnewsnow.com/ohios-public-colleges-must-offer-in-state-tuition-to-undocumented-immigrants-with-temporary-legal-status-regents-say/
Ohio’s public colleges must offer in-state tuition to undocumented immigrants with temporary legal status, regents say
Source: Cleveland.com
Ohio’s public colleges must charge in-state tuition to young residents who are undocumented immigrants with temporary legal status, Ohio Board of Regents Chancellor John Carey has ruled. Most of the state’s public two- and four-year schools have treated such students as out-of-state or international students, charging more than double the tuition paid by Ohio residents.
www.diverseeducation.com
http://diverseeducation.com/article/54995/?utm_campaign=Diverse%20Newsletter%203&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&elq=6b52b1b52579499f82fbecabc01f0c87&elqCampaignId=33
EDGE Program Helps Women Complete Graduate Math Programs
by Anna Schroen
Women have made major advancements in post-secondary education the past few years, yet there are disciplines where they are still severely underrepresented. …To address these discouraging issues, Sylvia Bozeman of Spelman College and Rhonda Hughes of Bryn Mawr College teamed up in 1998 to launch the Enhancing Diversity in Graduate Education program, which aims to help women flourish in and complete their graduate math programs.
www.insidehighered.com
http://www.insidehighered.com/quicktakes/2013/08/01/umuc-will-give-credit-6-moocs
UMUC Will Give Credit for 6 MOOCs
The University of Maryland University College — an institution known for distance education — has announced that it will award academic credit to those who complete six massive open online courses and who pass tests offered for those courses, CBS News DC reported.
www.chronicle.com
http://chronicle.com/blogs/wiredcampus/california-puts-mooc-bill-on-ice/45215?cid=wc&utm_source=wc&utm_medium=en
California Puts MOOC Bill on Ice
By Steve Kolowich
Legislation in California originally aimed at getting state colleges to award credit for massive open online courses and other offerings from nonuniversity providers has been shelved for at least a year.
www.ccnewsnow.com
http://www.ccnewsnow.com/study-shows-online-classes-have-lower-success-rates/
Study shows online classes have lower success rates
Source: TheRanger.com
Students enrolled in online classes are more likely to drop out more often than those who take face-to-face classes, according to a study titled, “Online and Hybrid Course Enrollment and Performance in Washington State Community and Technical Colleges.” The study, conducted by the Community College Research Center at Columbia University, found that “educationally prepared” students were more likely to enroll in an online class as well as withdraw from an online class, too.
www.insidehighered.com
http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2013/08/02/new-assessments-testing-firms-have-job-market-potential
Beyond Grades
By Paul Fain
Testing firms are offering new ways to measure what students learn in college. Their next generation of assessments is billed as an add-on – rather than a replacement – to the college degree. But the tests also give graduates something besides a transcript to send to a potential employer.
www.insidehighered.com
http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2013/08/02/officials-skeptical-unpaid-intern-lawsuits-will-affect-higher-education
Unpaid Internships Not Dead Yet
By Allie Grasgreen
Since a federal judge ruled last month that the unpaid interns who sued Fox Searchlight Pictures were in fact entitled to wages, there have been a slew of assertions that this is the beginning of the end for unpaid internships, and warnings that colleges had best distance themselves from such opportunities or risk unwanted litigation.
www.insidehighered.com
http://www.insidehighered.com/quicktakes/2013/08/02/students-may-benefit-ruling-swipe-fees
Students May Benefit From Ruling on ‘Swipe’ Fees
College students may notice prices of items in their campus stores and coffee shops decrease — or at least not get any higher — thanks to a U.S. district judge’s ruling that said the Federal Reserve’s 21-cent cap on debit-card transactions is too high.
www.insidehighered.com
http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2013/08/02/community-college-offers-tuition-amnesty-program
Debt Relief
By Lauren Ingeno
As it struggles to reduce a sizeable deficit, one community college on the outskirts of Detroit, Michigan is waiting to see if a program intended to help former students settle their debt and re-enroll in classes will pay off.
www.insidehighered.com
http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2013/08/02/new-study-shows-difficulty-encouraging-professors-retire
They Aren’t Retiring
By Scott Jaschik
Since the economic downturn, many experts on the academic work force have worried that professors will delay retirement (given that their investment accounts took hits), and that an already-tight job market will get even tighter.
www.diverseeducation.com
http://diverseeducation.com/article/54983/?utm_campaign=Diverse%20Newsletter%203&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&elq=6b52b1b52579499f82fbecabc01f0c87&elqCampaignId=33
For-Profits Come Under Criticism for Treatment of Military Veterans
by Charles Dervarics
The issue of for-profit colleges and the quality of their educations returned to Capitol Hill this summer as veterans’ advocates protested some colleges’ predatory practices and sought congressional action to help active-duty and retired military.
www.insidehighered.com
http://www.insidehighered.com/quicktakes/2013/08/01/new-tool-sexual-assault-prevention-education-released
New Tool for Sexual Assault Prevention Education Is Released
A new federal law requires colleges to step up their efforts to prevent sexual assaults, including through the controversial practice of mandatory training for students.
www.chronicle.com
http://chronicle.com/article/Texas-Community-College-Fires/140825/?cid=at
Texas Community College Fires Tenured Faculty Activist
By Peter Schmidt
The College of the Mainland, a two-year public college in Texas, has fired a tenured professor who had clashed with its leadership and some of his peers in challenging administrative directives on behalf of other faculty members.
www.tampabay.com
http://www.tampabay.com/news/education/k12/florida-education-commissioner-tony-bennett-expected-to-resign-today/2134254
Tony Bennett resigns as Florida education commissioner
By Steve Bousquet, Kathleen McGrory and Jeffrey S. Solochek, Times/Herald Tallahassee Bureau
TALLAHASSEE — Tony Bennett resigned Thursday as Florida education commissioner following two days of raging controversy over school grading in his home state of Indiana. …His resignation is a major setback for Gov. Rick Scott and state education leaders, who are working to overhaul Florida’s system of school accountability and assessment in compliance with the national Common Core standards.