USG NEWS:
www.henryherald.com
http://www.henryherald.com/news/2014/aug/26/gordon-state-to-offer-bachelor8217s-degree-in/
Gordon State to offer bachelor’s degree in management, administration
From staff reports
BARNESVILLE — Gordon State College recently announced a new four-year degree program in management and administration. The college will begin offering classes that will lead to a bachelor of science in management and administration degree in the fall 2015. The program was approved Aug. 20 by the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia. It will be administered through Gordon State’s Department of Business and Public Service.

www.albanyherald.com
http://www.albanyherald.com/news/2014/aug/27/albany-civil-rights-institute-executive-director/
Albany Civil Rights Institute Executive Director Frank Wilson proposes a partnership with regional educational institutions
The proposal would teach students about the Albany and Southwest Georgia Movement while helping the museum build traffic
By Terry Lewis
ALBANY — As part of his job, Albany Civil Rights Institute Executive Director Frank Wilson feels compelled to teach today’s youth about the rich history of the Albany and Southwest Georgia Civil Rights movement of the 60s. Wilson and the ACRI took a step toward that ambition Wednesday by inviting representatives of several regional educational institutions for a good old-fashioned sales pitch. “I am always amazed that many of our students have no idea of the civil rights history in this area,” Wilson said. “What we are attempting to do today is to create partnerships with area schools in an effort to teach this history.” Representatives from Albany State University, South Georgia State College, Valdosta State University, Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College, Andrew College, Darton State College, Albany Technical College, Monroe High School, and the Albany-Dougherty Convention and Visitors Bureau were on hand for Wilson’s presentation.

www.redandblack.com
http://www.redandblack.com/uganews/administration/making-more-than-obama-university-presidents-salaries-on-the-rise/article_f6e7e31a-2d8d-11e4-98e9-001a4bcf6878.html
Making more than Obama: University presidents’ salaries on the rise
Lauren Pratt
U.S. President Barack Obama may be the leader of the free world, but when it comes to salary, university presidents have been taking the lead. Michael Adams, former University of Georgia president, made $1,295,954 according to a 2013 report in The Huffington Post — a significantly higher number than the Obama family’s reported total income of $503,183 for 2013. Although Adams was the fourth highest-paid public college president for the 2013 fiscal year, he is not the only Southeastern Conference university president commanded a large salary.

www.chronicle.augusta.com
http://chronicle.augusta.com/latest-news/2014-08-28/ga-professors-ban-post-sneeze-bless-you-draws-notice
Georgia professor’s ban on post-sneeze ‘bless you’ draws notice
By Terry Dickson
Morris News Service
BRUNSWICK, Ga. — A College of Coastal Georgia professor had warned students he would lower the grades of students who say “Bless you’’ after someone sneezes during class, a spokesman for the college confirmed Wednesday. But the ban on “Bless you” was intended to stop class disruptions and is not a curb on freedom of speech or religion or any reflection of the professor’s religious or political philosophy, the spokesman said.

Related articles:
www.dailynewsen.com
http://www.dailynewsen.com/us/now-lawyers-involved-in-bless-you-sneeze-fight-h2578644.html
Now lawyers involved in ‘Bless you’ sneeze fight

www.nydailynews.com
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/georgia-professor-bans-students-bless-class-article-1.1918987
Georgia professor bans students from saying ‘bless you’ during lecture
Every blessing is offensive to Dr. Leon Gardner, a College of Coastal Georgia professor who has reportedly banned students from saying ‘bless you’ when a classmate sneezes.

www.washingtontimes.com
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/aug/27/ga-professor-bans-students-saying-bless-you-report/
Ga. professor bans students from saying ‘bless

www.sunnewsnetwork.ca
http://www.sunnewsnetwork.ca/sunnews/world/archives/2014/08/20140827-122710.html
CHEMISTRY PROF THREATENS TO LOWER STUDENTS’ GRADES BY 15% IF THEY SAY ‘BLESS YOU’ IN CLASS

www.jacksonville.com
http://jacksonville.com/breaking-news/2014-08-27/story/college-coastal-georgia-professors-ban-post-sneeze-bless-you-draws
College of Coastal Georgia professor’s ban on post-sneeze “Bless you” draws attention of Rush, Drudge Report
College says the prohibition on benedictions for sneezers has been removed
By Terry Dickson
BRUNSWICK | A College of Coastal Georgia professor had warned students he would lower the grades of students who say “Bless you’’ after someone sneezes during class, a spokesman for the college confirmed Wednesday. But the ban on “Bless you” was intended to stop class disruptions and is not a curb on freedom of speech or religion or any reflection of the professor’s religious or political philosophy, the spokesman said. “The professor’s intent was to explain disruptive behavior was not allowed in the classroom,” according to a statement the college issued late Wednesday, which also labeled the prohibition on “Bless you” as an example of such behavior. “No student has been disciplined or removed from class based on that example,” which has since been removed, the college said.

www.chronicle.com
http://chronicle.com/blogs/ticker/jp/georgia-professor-to-penalize-students-who-say-bless-you?cid=at&utm_source=at&utm_medium=en
Georgia Professor’s Rule on ‘Bless You’ Is Removed From Syllabus After Uproar
by Andy Thomason
[Updated (8/28/2014, 5:50 a.m.) with news of the rule’s removal.] The College of Coastal Georgia said on Wednesday that a chemistry professor had removed a rule from his syllabus that had warned students that they faced grade reductions for disrupting class by saying “bless you” when someone sneezes. News of the rule went viral after drawing the ire of national conservative news media. The college said the professor, Leon C. Gardner, had made the rule to stop class disruptions and not to advance any religious or political viewpoint.

www.insidehighered.com
https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2014/08/28/professor-removes-ban-bless-you-syllabus
‘Bless You’ Isn’t Banned
By Scott Jaschik
Leon Gardner’s syllabus for Introductory Physics I at the College of Coastal Georgia may have been the best-read syllabus in higher education Wednesday. That’s because the conservative blogosphere (Drudge Report among others) and lots of television stations featured his syllabus for one of the behaviors it banned, with a threat of grade deductions: “Saying ‘bless you.’ We are taught that it is polite to say ‘bless you’ when someone sneezes. However, if you say this while I am talking, it is NOT polite, it is very rude!” The other banned behaviors are more standard — cell phone use, being late for class, and so on.

RESEARCH:
www.savannahnow.com
http://savannahnow.com/news/2014-08-27/ogeechee-research-begins#.U_8-lijgYeU
Ogeechee research begins
By Mary Landers
A three-year, $1-million research project underway at Georgia Southern University could provide an early warning system about the health of the Ogeechee River, university officials said Tuesday at a public meeting on campus.

www.times-herald.com
http://www.times-herald.com/closeup/20140828-FOOD-Pecan-Innovation
Innovating Pecan Products Get Help From UGA Researchers
by MARTHA A. WOODHAM, SPECIAL TO THE TIMES-HERALD
A graduate student with a personal interest in pecan innovation is on a team of University of Georgia food science researchers that’s cooking up new and tasty ways to use pecans – America’s nut – in collaboration with the Georgia Pecan Commission’s Center for Pecan Innovation. The recently established Center for Pecan Innovation authorized UGA researchers led by Dr. William L. Kerr, professor and coordinator for the UGA Food Processing Research & Development Laboratory, to create two products with consumer-appeal using heart-healthy pecans, an important American crop.

STATE NEEDS/ISSUES:
www.macon.com
http://www.macon.com/2014/08/27/3270824_medical-cannabis-study-committee.html?sp=/99/100/&rh=1
Medical cannabis committee focuses proposal
BY MAGGIE LEE
ATLANTA — Legislators have the appetite to pass a medical marijuana bill next year that would add Georgia to the list of 23 other states that allow in-state growing. “I think intractable seizure disorders and for terminal illness-type situations, I think you’re going to find overwhelming support” for medical cannabis access, said state Rep. Allen Peake, R-Macon. But he said he doesn’t think there’s support right now for the use of marijuana to treat chronic pain.

Education News
www.insidehighered.com
https://www.insidehighered.com/quicktakes/2014/08/26/paymytuition-challenge
The #PayMyTuition Challenge
Students inspired by (or tired of) the “ice bucket challenge” for ALS research have taken to Twitter with the #PayMyTuition challenge, in which they are challenging various celebrities to help finance their higher education.

www.insidehighered.com
https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2014/08/26/bill-haslams-free-community-college-plan-and-how-tennessee-grabbing-spotlight-higher
Aggressive Pragmatism
By Paul Fain
NASHVILLE — Bill Haslam wasn’t sold on the idea of two years of tuition-free community college when he first heard it. That was back in 2008, when the Republican, now governor of Tennessee, was Knoxville’s mayor. Mike Ragsdale, who was then mayor of the surrounding Knox County, made the pitch to Haslam. Ragsdale was among a group of local leaders who were trying to create a private scholarship to cover the tuition costs for high school graduates who wanted to attend community and technical college.

www.ajc.com
http://www.ajc.com/news/news/stacey-abrams-joins-national-group-boosting-public/nhBKt/
Stacey Abrams joins national group boosting public education
By News Staff
House Minority Leader Stacey Abrams is getting a boost to her national profile. The Atlanta Democrat is the latest politician to join Democrats for Public Education, a nonprofit set on boosting K-12 systems. Other co-chairs include Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland and Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm. The Atlanta Democrat, who is seen as a statewide candidate, said she was proud to join a coalition “dedicated to ensuring the next generation has access to a first-rate education.”

www.diverseeducation.com
http://diverseeducation.com/article/66612/?utm_campaign=Diverse%20Newsletter%203&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&elq=f7c13518b3cd47c1b29b2e468966f363&elqCampaignId=358
Appeals Court: Course Syllabi Not Public Records
by Associated Press
COLUMBIA, Mo. — A federal appeals court has ruled that course syllabi are exempt from Missouri’s open records law because they are the intellectual property of faculty members. The Columbia Daily Tribune reports the ruling by the Missouri Court of Appeals Western District on Tuesday was in response to a motion filed in October 2012 by the Washington-based National Council on Teacher Quality.

www.insidehighered.com
https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2014/08/28/online-learning-push-continues-california-approach-faculty-groups-appreciate
Less Prescriptive in California
By Paul Fain
California’s two most powerful state politicians have taken a gentler approach in their push for public institutions to get creative with inexpensive and efficient degree offerings. Gov. Jerry Brown and State Sen. Darrell Steinberg, the Senate’s president, this year included a $50 million fund for “innovation” in the state’s budget. The legislation created an award program that seeks to fund ideas that bubble up from California’s public universities and community colleges.

www.insidehighered.com
https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2014/08/28/presidents-increasing-budgets-concerned-about-job-training
Job Skills Expectations Unmet
By Ry Rivard
College presidents want to help graduates find jobs but believe their institutions are struggling to do so, according to a recent survey by Gallup and Inside Higher Ed.
Nearly nine in 10 presidents said an emphasis on “critical thinking” skills and personal development is very important throughout college in order for graduates to get jobs. But only about 40 percent of the presidents think their own institution is very effective at proving students with those skills and that kind of development.

www.washingtonnpost.com
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2014/08/26/the-college-majors-most-and-least-likely-to-lead-to-underemployment/?hpid=z5
The college majors most and least likely to lead to underemployment
By Christopher Ingraham
Employees with degrees in fields like English, general studies, and graphic design are among the most likely to report feeling “underemployed” at their current jobs. This is according to a recent survey of 68,000 workers by salary information firm PayScale. Liberal arts majors (I’m one of them!) are used to being the punchline in jokes about un- and underemployment. But more unexpectedly, majorities of graduates with more “practical” degrees in fields like business administration also said their jobs didn’t put their education, training or experience to work as much as they should.

www.diverseeducation.com
http://diverseeducation.com/article/66609/?utm_campaign=Diverse%20Newsletter%203&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&elq=f7c13518b3cd47c1b29b2e468966f363&elqCampaignId=358
Nonprofit Helps Steer High School Students Past Obstacles to College Success
by Catherine Morris
By the time he reached high school, Isaac Silwal was already more intrepid than most, just by virtue of the many life changes he already had experienced. Born in Nepal, he lived in India for several years before immigrating to the US. At his high school in Tukwila, Washington, Silwal was introduced to Summer Search, a national nonprofit that partners with high schools in seven urban areas on the east and west coasts. Summer Search takes promising high school students under its wing and sets them on the path to college and future success through intensive academic mentoring and other developmental programs.

www.insidehighered.com
https://www.insidehighered.com/quicktakes/2014/08/28/california-community-colleges-set-completion-rate-goal
California Community Colleges Set Completion Rate Goal
The California community college system on Wednesday announced a goal to produce 227,247 more certificates, degrees and transfer students in its next 10 incoming freshman classes. That would mean increasing six-year completion rates for degree and transfer-seeking students to 62.8 percent from the current rate of 48.1 percent.

www.insidehighered.com
https://www.insidehighered.com/quicktakes/2014/08/28/donations-medical-schools-and-teaching-hospitals
Donations Up to Medical Schools and Teaching Hospitals
Fund-raising is up at the nation’s medical schools and teaching hospitals, according to a new survey by the Association of American Medical Colleges. The association found the average school or hospital saw its fund-raising haul increase by 16.2 percent in the 2013 fiscal year over 2012.

www.chronicle.com
http://chronicle.com/article/NIH-Tells-Genomic-Researchers-/148509/?cid=at&utm_source=at&utm_medium=en
NIH Tells Genomic Researchers: ‘You Must Share Data’
By Paul Basken
Scientists who use government money to conduct genomic research will now be required to quickly share the data they gather under a policy announced on Wednesday by the National Institutes of Health.

www.insidehighered.com
https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2014/08/28/federal-scrutiny-campus-sexual-assaults-spills-states
Campus Sex Assaults Draw State Scrutiny
By Michael Stratford
Few issues affecting higher education have captured as much national attention this year as sexual assaults on college campuses. When Congress reconvenes after its August recess, a bipartisan group of lawmakers will continue their push to pass legislation aimed at curbing campus sexual assaults. The Obama administration has taken on the issue, making public recommendations for how colleges should respond to the problem and more aggressively pursuing institutions that mishandle sexual assault cases.

www.diverseeducation.com
http://diverseeducation.com/article/66606/?utm_campaign=Diverse%20Newsletter%203&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&elq=f7c13518b3cd47c1b29b2e468966f363&elqCampaignId=358
Louisiana Gov. Jindal Sues Feds Over Common Core
by Melinda Deslatte, Associated Press
BATON ROUGE, La. — Gov. Bobby Jindal filed a lawsuit Wednesday against the Obama administration, accusing it of illegally manipulating federal grant money and regulations to force states to adopt the Common Core education standards.