University System News
GOOD NEWS:
www.forest-blade.com
http://www.forest-blade.com/news/education/article_5c0dbf70-3510-11e3-a109-001a4bcf887a.html
Is EGSC Jump Start Your Education Really Working?
Jump Start Your Education is a program developed two years ago at East Georgia State College that any student is eligible to participate in. It is especially advantageous for students who either scored below the required minimum Compass placement score or were placed in all three areas of Learning Support. Jump Start Academy, as it has come to be known, helps students get ahead in earning college credits, helps students stay on track for graduation, satisfies Learning Support requirements and helps students learn how to be academically successful in college. Students also have the added convenience of living in the on-campus apartments, Bobcat Villas.
www.forest-blade.com
http://www.forest-blade.com/news/education/article_189f5a3c-3510-11e3-8f28-001a4bcf887a.html
EGSC’s Learning Commons – one year later
On August 23, 2012, East Georgia State College Foundation members, elected officials, community leaders, faculty, staff, students and community guests gathered in the rotunda of the Luck Flanders Gambrell Center to officially cut the ribbon on the newly constructed Learning Commons. The Learning Commons is located in the library of the College. With the new Learning Commons, EGSC is strengthening its learning environment by focusing on support services and assisting students in completing their college degree.
www.romenews-tribune.com
http://www.romenews-tribune.com/view/full_story/23859501/article-Medical-College-of-Georgia-launches-campus-on-East-Third-Avenue?instance=secondary_stories_left_column
Medical College of Georgia launches campus on East Third Avenue
by Nick Godfrey, staff writer
The newest clinical campus of the Medical College of Georgia in Rome is a joint effort that will benefit the area in the years to come, said Georgia Regents University President Ricardo Azziz during Tuesday¹s ribbon-cutting ceremony. “It brings in interest around the faculty and facility. It brings attention to the community,² he said. ³And it stimulates medical interest in the community, so students want to stay.”
www.gpb.org
http://www.gpb.org/blogs/georgia-works/2013/10/16/military-transition-program-now-at-georgia-tech#
Military Transition Program Now at Georgia Tech
By Chip Rogers
The unemployment rate for veterans is currently at 13.9%, while the Georgia unemployment rate is at 8.4%. Georgia Tech, a Military Friendly School, is trying to help turn those numbers around with its new initiative. Georgia Tech Professional Education has created the Veterans Education Training and Transition Program.
www.us.vocuspr.com
http://us.vocuspr.com/ViewNewsOnDemand.aspx?ArticleID=100190_24319_106647543&Preview=true
Emory’s School of Nursing and Georgia Perimeter College Awarded $900,000 to Train Minority Nurses
Outlet: Atlanta Daily World – Online
Emory’s Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing and Georgia Perimeter College (GPC) are teaming up to prepare nurses from underrepresented groups to attain bachelor’s degrees in nursing with the additional goal of preparing students for careers in health research. Emory and GPC are the first and only institutions in Georgia to be selected for the Bridges to the Baccalaureate Program by the National Institutes of Health. This new partnership will provide $900,000 over a 5-year period to develop programming to increase the pool of underrepresented students who are prepared for careers in research.
www.romenews-tribune.com
http://www.romenews-tribune.com/view/full_story/23853563/article–Round-the-world–in-9-stations–Georgia-Highlands-College-hosts–International-Day–for-local-elementary-kids?instance=news_special_coverage_right_column
¹Round the world in 9 stations: Georgia Highlands College hosts ŒInternational Day¹ for local elementary kids
by Nick Godfrey, staff writer
E.J. Roberson has been around the world. He went to Australia and made his own boomerang. He braved the cold Artic, and went to Japan to learn origami. But it was Africa that won his heart. ³The African station is my favorite,² he said, ³because you get to make a mask.² The 10-year-old Johnson Elementary School fifth-grader joined 450 other kids from around the county to participate in ³International Day,² hosted by Georgia Highlands College and organized by Floyd County Schools gifted teachers.
USG NEWS:
www.albanyherald.com
http://www.albanyherald.com/news/2013/oct/16/freeman-leaving-albany-state/
Freeman leaving Albany State
By Terry Lewis
ALBANY — Albany State University President Everette Freeman has been hired as the new president of Community College of Denver (CCD) in Colorado. Colorado Community College System (CCCS) Director of Media and Legislative Communications Rhonda Bentz confirmed Freeman’s hiring early Wednesday morning.
www.redandblack.com
http://www.redandblack.com/uganews/salary-gallery-post-graduation-surveys-not-necessarily-indicative-of-future/article_57ddb050-372b-11e3-94bb-001a4bcf6878.html
Salary Gallery: Post Graduation Surveys not necessarily indicative of future pay
Stephen Mays
For senior undergraduates of the University of Georgia’s Class of 2014, commencement draws ever near. With only seven months until the high dive of graduation, many students have begun the search for a job for after walking through the Arch. The average starting salary for those graduating with a bachelor’s degree rose 2.4 percent from 2012 to 2013, according to the September 2013 Salary Survey conducted by the National Association of Colleges and Employers.
www.ajc.com
http://www.ajc.com/news/news/state-regional-govt-politics/george-hooks-leaves-georgias-board-of-regents/nbQHS/
George Hooks leaves Georgia’s Board of Regents
By Kristina Torres
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Former state Sen. George Hooks celebrated the start of this year by being appointed to the state Board of Regents. He’ll end it with a new job. Hooks announced his resignation from the board in a letter Tuesday to Gov. Nathan Deal, saying he had been offered a job to lobby for a “lifelong passion” of his involving historic preservation.
USG VALUE:
www.neighbornewspapers.com
http://neighbornewspapers.com/view/full_story/23864763/article-Father–college-professor-big-influence-on-Douglas-County-teacher-of-the-year?instance=all
Father, college professor big influence on Douglas County teacher of the year
by Tom Spigolon
Jason Backus’ father and a college professor left indelible marks on the future Douglas County teacher of the year, he recalled last week. …He now will represent Douglas County in the Georgia teacher of the year competition, with a winner named in the spring. Backus said he gained inspiration from University of West Georgia assistant professor Thomas Peterson, who told him a student’s behavior may become clearer if a teacher treats that child as a person rather than a test number. “Dr. Peterson was big on telling you, ‘You need to meet them personally,’” he said.
RESEARCH:
www.news.georgiasouthern.edu
http://news.georgiasouthern.edu/2013/10/16/rural-health-research-institute-awarded-grant-to-prevent-childhood-obesity/
Rural Health Research Institute Awarded Grant to Prevent Childhood Obesity
The executive director of Georgia Southern University’s Rural Health Research Institute (RHRI), Bryant Smalley, Ph.D., has been awarded an $85,000 federal grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) to collaboratively form a new network focused on childhood obesity prevention in rural South Georgia.
www.insidehpc.com
http://insidehpc.com/2013/10/15/podcast-flamel-program-georgia-tech-brings-big-data-material-science/
Podcast: FLAMEL Program at Georgia Tech Brings Big Data to Material Science
by Rich Brueckner
In this podcast, Richard Fujimoto and Surya Kalidindi from Georgia Tech describe the new FLAMEL doctoral student training program. FLAMEL is designed to develop innovations in computing, mathematics, material science, and manufacturing in order to accelerate the creation of new high performance materials for applications.
www.prevention.com
http://www.prevention.com/mind-body/emotional-health/exercise-your-mind-and-memory
Can You Train Your Brain?
The 3 best moves for your mind
By Nina Elias
According to every brain-training app out there, a smarter, fog-free mind can be yours with just a few swipes a day (plus $3.99, of course). But is brain training really good at anything, besides killing time on your lunch break? A new study in Psychological Science finds that while this kind of training won’t make you smarter, it does have certain advantages. Researchers from the Georgia Institute of Technology put participants to the test, studying them as they engaged in 20 days of brain-training exercises.
www.redandblack.com
http://www.redandblack.com/uganews/uga-professors-discuss-effectiveness-of–year-old-endangered-species/article_0c0ed62c-36ef-11e3-8868-001a4bcf6878.html
UGA professors discuss effectiveness of 40-year-old Endangered Species Act
Lauren McDonald
The Endangered Species Act turns 40 years old this year, yet the debate surrounding it continues. Three University of Georgia professors, each from different fields, formed a panel to join in on the debate Wednesday in the Russell Special Collection Library for Political Research and Studies.
www.chronicle.com
http://chronicle.com/blogs/wiredcampus/report-by-faculty-organization-questions-savings-from-moocs/47399?cid=wc&utm_source=wc&utm_medium=en
Report by Faculty Group Questions Savings From MOOCs
By Lawrence Biemiller
In the second of a series of papers challenging optimistic assumptions about massive open online courses, a coalition of faculty-advocacy organizations asserts that online instruction “isn’t saving money—and may actually be costing students and colleges more,” but that “snappy slogans, massive amounts of corporate money, and a great deal of wishful thinking have created a bandwagon mentality that is hard to resist.” The paper, “The ‘Promises’ of Online Higher Education: Reducing Costs,” was released by the Campaign for the Future of Higher Education, whose backers include a number of faculty unions. Drawing on news articles and public-opinion surveys, it says that while the business model supporting MOOCs is “still a work in progress,” the trend is to offer courses free but charge for “a degree or a certificate or anything from the MOOC that carries real value.”… MOOCs may also cost colleges money, the paper says, citing an agreement between Udacity and the Georgia Institute of Technology to offer an online master’s degree in computer science. “Udacity gets the intellectual content for a master’s program of 20 courses at an upfront cost of $400,000,” the paper says. “It borrows Georgia Tech’s reputation as its own, at a huge discount (no training of graduate students, no support for labs, no decades of accumulated know-how through which Georgia Tech earned its reputation).
Editorials/Columns/Opinions
www.blogs.edweek.org
http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/rick_hess_straight_up/2013/10/uncle_same_shouldnt_try_to_manage_school_staffing.html?cmp=ENL-EU-VIEWS2
Uncle Sam Shouldn’t Try to Manage School Staffing
By Rick Hess
Secretary of Education Arne Duncan has been charged by critics, spanning from Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) to anti-school reform icon Diane Ravitch, with trying to turn the U.S. Department of Education into a “national school board.” The charge has much merit. The Obama administration has used its Race to the Top program and unprecedented, far-reaching conditions for states seeking “waivers” from the No Child Left Behind Act’s most destructive requirements as excuses to micromanage what states are doing on teacher evaluation, school turnarounds, and much else. In a new, particularly troubling twist, the administration has announced that states will henceforth have to ensure that “effective” teachers are distributed in a manner Uncle Sam deems equitable.
www.redandblack.com
http://www.redandblack.com/views/high-tuition-helps-make-american-universities-competitive/article_34b12396-3677-11e3-8b4c-001a4bcf6878.html
High tuition helps make American universities competitive
Mackenzie Stephenson
College is expensive. To attend UGA in state, it is an estimate of $22,000 a year, while out-of-state students pays an estimate of $40,000 a year. In Canada most colleges cost on average $6,000 a year, or $13,000 for international students. To study as in international student at a Technological University in India, it costs about $9,000 a year. To study at the University of Cambridge in England, the cost is about $13,500 a year, and students are not required to pay upfront. They are able to wait to pay until they have a stable job to pay off their loans. Other colleges in Europe cost almost nothing to attend.
www.blogs.edwseek.org
http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/DigitalEducation/2013/10/mooc_ventures_into_k-12_territ.html?cmp=ENL-EU-NEWS2
MOOC Targets Needs of K-12 Teachers and Students
By Michelle Davis
While Massive Open Online Courses, commonly known as MOOCs, may be all the rage at the higher-education level, the trend has been slow to make its way into the K-12 arena.
But MOOCs are gradually showing up on the K-12 landscape.
Education News
www.chronicle.com
http://chronicle.com/article/To-the-Relief-of-Academe-Deal/142381/
To the Relief of Academe, Deal Is Reached to End Federal Shutdown
By Kelly Field
Washington
After weeks of bickering and brinkmanship, Congress has passed legislation to reopen the federal government and raise the nation’s borrowing limit, ending an impasse that disrupted research and education, and averting a debt crisis that could have devastated colleges and the economy at large.
www.insidehighered.com
http://www.insidehighered.com/quicktakes/2013/10/16/more-institutions-report-drops-enrollment-military-service-memberss
More Institutions Report Drops in Enrollment of Military Service Members
Students at the American Public University System have dropped 13,100 course registrations this month largely because the partial government shutdown has halted tuition assistance to active-duty service members, the university’s parent company disclosed to investors on Tuesday. The company, American Public Education, Inc., said that registration for October classes has declined by 20 percent compared to the same month last year. American Public is one of the largest recipients of federal money that subsidizes tuition for active-duty service members.
www.diverseeducation.com
http://diverseeducation.com/article/56781/?utm_campaign=Diverse%20Newsletter%203&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&elq=7f2153942daa459abffcbec8d63e602e&elqCampaignId=62#
Report: Student Loan Woes Mirror Mortgage Problems
by Jon Marcus, Hechinger Report
Complaints from students about the way financing companies are handling student loans are eerily similar to the problems that frustrated mortgage-holders in the wake of the financial crisis, and cost some of them their homes, according to a government report. In its second annual review of student-loan practices, the federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, or CFPB, says loan servicers make it hard for borrowers to pay off their loans early and, unless recipients provide explicit instructions, divide up early or partial payments in ways that are the most expensive to consumers.
www.diverseeducation.com
http://diverseeducation.com/article/56763/?utm_campaign=Diverse%20Newsletter%203&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&elq=7f2153942daa459abffcbec8d63e602e&elqCampaignId=62#
Just the Stats: Higher Minority Participation in Community College Support Programs
by Olivia M. Blackmon
Community Colleges continue to evolve, and as they do they experience new struggles with accountability measures, the increase in student diversity and financial constraints. Despite these intensifying demands, community colleges continue to seek ways to bolster student retention and graduation rates.
www.chronicle.com
http://chronicle.com/article/Helping-Faculty-Members-Use/142377/
Helping Professors Use Technology Is Top Concern in Computing Survey
By Hannah Winston
As professors step out from behind lecterns to stand beside laptops or in front of cameras—or both—the top concern for campus information-technology departments across the country is how they can help faculty members move smoothly into the digital age of learning. That’s one finding of the Campus Computing Project’s annual survey of senior technology administrators, released on Thursday.
Related article:
www.insidehighered.com
http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2013/10/17/survey-shows-it-service-dominates-top-priorities-among-university-it-officials#ixzz2hyvsVOCf
Tech as a Service
www.chronicle.com
http://chronicle.com/article/Colleges-in-the-Americas-Need/142379/
Colleges in Americas Should Cultivate Female Leaders, Conferencegoers Say
By Marion Lloyd
Monterrey, Mexico
Women now constitute a majority of college students in many countries, but they still face a glass ceiling when it comes to leadership and research positions in higher education. Those were the conclusions of a daylong conference of Space for Women Leaders in Higher Education in the Americas, held here on Tuesday.
www.usnews.com
http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2013/10/16/faculty-organization-claims-savings-of-online-education-are-missing
Faculty Organization Claims Savings of Online Education Are Missing
For-profit and public colleges often charge more for online degrees than campus-based degrees, the report says
By ALLIE BIDWELL
The idea that online-only programs in higher education will save both students and colleges money may be just a far off “pipe dream,” according to a new report from the Campaign for the Future of Higher Education. The national faculty organization released the report, the second in a series of three examining the influence of private money in online education, on Wednesday and examined instances in which online education programs actually increase costs for students.
www.insidehighered.com
http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2013/10/17/european-educators-consider-how-their-moocs-could-compete-those-us#ixzz2hyw5Xfse
Common Market for MOOCs
By Chris Parr for Times Higher Education
The European Credit Transfer System (ECTS) provides a legal basis for the creation of an online marketplace for academic credit that could be exploited by massive open online course providers, conference speakers have argued.
www.chronicle.com
http://chronicle.com/blogs/wiredcampus/ohio-state-u-lets-mooc-students-grade-peer-graders/47457?cid=wc&utm_source=wc&utm_medium=en
Ohio State U. Lets MOOC Students Grade Peer-Graders
By Steve Kolowich
Anaheim, Calif. — One way to improve peer grading in MOOCs could be to let students grade their peers who graded them. That’s what a team of writing instructors at Ohio State University decided last spring when they were designing a massive open online course on rhetorical composition, known as WExMOOC.
www.ccnewsnow.com
http://www.ccnewsnow.com/community-college-accreditation-commission-under-scrutiny-again/?utm_campaign=1017ccnewsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&elq=276b64fc44c840d99b97b76168e91889&elqCampaignId=105
Community college accreditation commission under scrutiny again
Source: latimes.com
SAN FRANCISCO — The nonprofit group that accredits California’s community colleges has come under fire again — this time for asking officials at the colleges it oversees to write letters of “support“ as it undergoes its own review by the U.S. Department of Education. The Accrediting Commission for Junior and Community Colleges, or ACCJC, charged with oversight of California’s 112 community colleges as well as those in Hawaii and the Pacific, moved earlier this year to revoke the accreditation of City College of San Francisco, which with about 80,000 students is the largest in the state.
www.blogs.edweek.org
http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/time_and_learning/2013/10/two_after-school_science_programs_received.html?cmp=ENL-EU-NEWS2
After-School Programs With STEM Focus Win Recognition
By Laura Heinauer Mellett
Two after-school programs that focus on the STEM fields—science, technology, engineering, and mathematics—have just gained recognition, and checks for $10,000 apiece, as the first-ever winners of the After-School STEM Impact Awards.
www.edweek.org
http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2013/10/17/09gates.h33.html?tkn=UXLFP0tYyixHkm2nRzqTWuJ0r6FJIaz%2Ba%2FQb&cmp=ENL-EU-NEWS1
Q&A: Melinda Gates Talks Teacher Quality
Education Week Assistant Editor Stephen Sawchuk sat down last week in New York City with Melinda Gates, the co-chair and a trustee of the foundation that bears her and her husband’s names, to discuss its investments in teacher quality and other matters related to its work in the K-12 sphere. Ms. Gates was in New York to visit New Visions Charter High School for the Humanities II, in the Bronx, and to talk with local teachers about professional development and implementation of the Common Core State Standards.
www.diverseeducation.com
http://diverseeducation.com/article/56777/?utm_campaign=Diverse%20Newsletter%203&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&elq=7f2153942daa459abffcbec8d63e602e&elqCampaignId=62#
Experts Fear Potential Negative Impact of Revamped GED on Underrepresented
by Lekan Oguntoyinbo
The General Educational Development exam (GED) is poised to undergo a major makeover early next year. Twice since 1985, the body that oversees the test has tweaked the exam. But observers say this will be the biggest change since the exam was introduced shortly after the end of World War II.
www.diverseeducation.com
http://diverseeducation.com/article/56797/?utm_campaign=Diverse%20Newsletter%203&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&elq=7f2153942daa459abffcbec8d63e602e&elqCampaignId=62#
AAC Commissioner Against Paying Players
by Teresa M. Walker, Associated Press
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The commissioner of the American Athletic Conference says his league is willing to consider providing player stipends to offset the rising cost of attending college, but Mike Aresco is against paying athletes.