USG NEWS:
www.mdjonline.com
KSU/SPSU merger gets accreditation approval
by Philip Clements
MARIETTA — An accreditation agency Tuesday gave its approval for the merger of Kennesaw State University and Southern Polytechnic State University. The Southern Association of College and Schools Commission on Colleges, the regional accrediting agency for institutions of higher-learning in Southern states, announced the approval at its annual meeting in Nashville, Tennessee, according to a news release. The approval is the final step needed for the Board of Regents to review and authorize the consolidated institution to officially operate as Kennesaw State University. The board will review the final recommendation for consolidation at its Jan. 6 meeting.

Related articles:
www.accessnorthga.com
http://www.accessnorthga.com/detail.php?n=282790
Accrediting agency approves merger of Kennesaw State and So. Polytech

www.abreakingnews.com
http://www.abreakingnews.com/georgia/accrediting-agency-approves-merger-of-kennesaw-state-and-so-polytech-h294288.html
Accrediting agency approves merger of Kennesaw State and So. Polytech
University System of Georgia officials say the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools has given final approval to the plan to merge Kennesaw State University and Southern Polytechnic State University.

www.ksl.com
http://www.ksl.com/?sid=32693360&nid=
Accrediting agency approves Ga. school merger

www.macon.com
http://www.macon.com/2014/12/10/3471864_accrediting-agency-approves-ga.html?rh=1
Accrediting agency approves Ga. school merger

www.redandblack.com
http://www.redandblack.com/uganews/uga-administration-to-phase-out-franklin-residential-college/article_e64cfb9e-7e5a-11e4-be7d-abb11f8d5169.html
UGA administration to phase out Franklin Residential College
Nicolle Sartain
​The Franklin Residential College, a learning community that nearly 160 University of Georgia students participate in, might not exist next year — something many are up in arms about.
“The administration wants a phasing out of the FRC, and they’re wanting to implement a thing called ‘the Research House,’” said Melina Lewis, president of the FRC. “They’re not too sure where they’re going with it. It’s just in its beginning stages.”

www.redandblack.com
http://www.redandblack.com/uganews/challenge-of-paying-back-debt-varies-widely-by-major-and/article_d772d430-7f28-11e4-b6f8-d313af7767a3.html
Challenge of paying back debt varies widely by major and degree
Mollie Simon
Though University of Georgia students continue to take out loans to pay for school, a new computing method suggests students may have even more debt obligations to pay in the long run. The Hamilton Project, an economic policy initiative at the Brookings Institution, recently released a calculator that shows the percent of monthly income individuals will need to dedicate in order to repay their student loans, depending on their undergraduate major. While the difficulty of paying back debt may not be the primary question for students, potential earnings factor into the decision process in selecting a degree program.

www.waff.com
http://www.waff.com/story/27589154/gsu-counselors-ahead-of-national-sexual-violence-campaign
GSU counselors ahead of national sexual violence campaign
By Dal Cannady
STATESBORO, GA (WTOC) – The issue of sexual violence on university campuses concerns many people, from parents to university presidents to the President of the United States.
A recent initiative titled “It’s On Us” aims to raise awareness and education on campuses nationwide. Estimates are one in every four females age 18-22 are victims of sexual assault.
At Georgia Southern University, the topic is already a high priority. Dr. Jodi Caldwell of the university’s counseling center told WTOC the university has been taking steps to combat sexual violence for the past 15 years.

www.statesboroherald.com
http://www.statesboroherald.com/section/1/article/64758/
Georgia Southern University student robbed
From staff reports
Georgia Southern University officials warned students to be cautious after a victim was robbed early Tuesday morning. Around 12:45 a.m. Tuesday, “a student was robbed walking from the Henderson Library at Forest Drive and the Olympic Blvd. crosswalk,” according to an “Eagle Alert” message sent to university students, staff and faculty members.

Related article:
www.wjcl.com
http://wjcl.com/2014/12/09/police-investigate-campus-robbery-at-georgia-southern/
Police investigate campus robbery at Georgia Southern

www.onlineathens.com
http://onlineathens.com/breaking-news/2014-12-09/rise-sexual-assaults-could-signal-change-culture
Rise in sexual assaults could signal a change in culture
By LEE SHEARER
Sexual assault reports at the University of Georgia have skyrocketed this year, up from an average of 11 a year in the previous five years to about 75 this year. The reason for the spiking numbers isn’t necessarily an indication that sexual assaults are on the rise; it’s likely, though, that more incidents are being reported than in the past, instead of being kept quiet, according to police and others who work with sex crimes.

www.myajc.com
http://www.myajc.com/news/news/second-sexual-battery-reported-on-georgia-tech-cam/njPX8/
Man suspected in two sexual battery cases at Georgia Tech
By Jon Gargis – The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Georgia Tech police said the man suspected of committing sexual battery against a female student on campus early Monday evening is believed to be the perpetrator of another incident that occurred minutes earlier. A new surveillance photo of the suspect and his truck was released by the university Tuesday night. …The suspect in both incidents has been described white man between 40 and 45 years old, about 5 feet, 9 inches tall, wearing a tan or gray button-down shirt or jacket, a white T-shirt and camouflage pants. “Georgia Tech police do believe that it’s the same suspect,” Nagel said.

Related articles:
www.wsbtv.com
http://www.wsbtv.com/news/news/local/man-sought-georgia-tech-sexual-assault/njN5Z/
Police: 2 sexual assaults on Tech campus could be connected

www.midtown.11alive.com
http://midtown.11alive.com/news/news/1830182-police-looking-suspect-2-sexual-battery-incidents
Police looking for suspect in 2 sexual battery incidents

www.dailyreportonline.com
http://www.dailyreportonline.com/home/id=1202678508886?kw=Drones%2C%20Student%20Athletes%20Among%20Topics%20of%20Ga.%20Legislators%27%20Early%20Bills&et=editorial&bu=Daily%20Report&cn=20141210&src=EMC-Email&pt=Morning%20News&slreturn=20141110095020
Drones, Student Athletes Among Topics of Ga. Legislators’ Early Bills
Kathleen Baydala Joyner, Daily Report
With fewer than five weeks until the start of the Georgia General Assembly’s 2015 session, bills are starting to roll in. Already, lawmakers from both chambers have filed 26 pieces of legislation ahead of the session’s Jan. 12 start date. One of those prefiled bills—House Bill 5—would regulate use of unmanned aircraft, creating civil and criminal penalties for people who use them to snoop. “I don’t want to prevent anybody from using a drone,” said bill sponsor Rep. Harry Geisinger (R-Roswell), a consultant. “It’s a privacy issue.” …House Bill 3 spun directly from an incident this fall involving stand-out University of Georgia running back Todd Gurley, who was suspended for four games following the revelation that he signed autographs for money. “We passed a somewhat similar law about 10 years ago to dissuade alumni who jeopardized college athletes and programs,” said Fleming, who earned his law degree from UGA and is the city attorney for Harlem. “After that you didn’t hear about the hijinks you used to hear about. That’s the hope here—that if we have a law on the books, people are bright enough not to run afoul of it so we don’t have a repeat like Todd Gurley.”

USG VALUE:
www.albanyherald.com
http://www.albanyherald.com/news/2014/dec/09/uga-economists-to-educate-farmers-about/
University of Georgia economists to educate farmers about provisions in new farm bill
Farm Bill meetings set in Tifton, Bainbridge and Dawson
By Clint Thompson
TIFTON, Ga. — A series of educational meetings to teach farmers and landowners about the 2014 Farm Bill have been set for this month. Don Shurley and Nathan Smith, University of Georgia agricultural economists based on the UGA Tifton Campus, along with representatives from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency and the USDA Risk Management Agency, will conduct the meetings throughout Georgia, beginning on Friday in Fort Valley.

RESEARCH:
www.savannahnow.com
http://savannahnow.com/your-good-news/2014-12-09/professors-receive-large-grant-aid-research
Professors receive large grant to aid research
By SAVANNAH MORNING NEW
Three Georgia Southern professors have recently been awarded a more than $233,000 grant from the Georgia Department of Natural Resources and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to aid their research project titled “Identification of the sources of pathogens in wetland sediments and their influence on beach water quality.” Funded for one year, research is now underway. A collaborative study including Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health professors Asli Aslan and Marina Eremeeva, and College of Science and Mathematics professor John Van Stan, the researchers will use state-of-the-art molecular laboratory techniques and geographic mapping tools to create a database for more informed resource management decisions to help develop healthier beaches in Georgia.

www.news-daily.com
http://www.news-daily.com/news/2014/dec/09/clayton-schools-awarded-20000-verizon-innovate/?features
Clayton schools awarded $20,000 Verizon Innovate Learning Grant
Grant to fund robotics, STEM program
From staff reports
JONESBORO — Students at six middle schools across Clayton County soon will be competing in the First Lego League with support from Verizon. The district has been awarded a $20,000 Verizon Innovate Learning Grant. Officials said the schools represented in the application are included in a list of 80 public schools across the country to receive a grant this year as part of Verizon’s investment to support public education. The grant will provide teachers with the resources they need to use technology more innovatively and effectively to engage students in science, technology, engineering and math. …It will involve students in the Clayton State University math department introductory course as well as professors from Clayton State, the Georgia Institute of Technology and Morehouse College. “We created this program to support the integration of innovative STEM initiatives in schools across the country, and we are pleased to recognize the 80 schools that have been chosen to receive the award,” said Justina Nixon-Saintil, education program director for the Verizon Foundation.

www.gizmag.com
http://www.gizmag.com/uav-bathymetric-lidar/35113/pictures
UAVs could map the bottom of the sea, using new lidar tech
When an organization sets out to map the sea floor, it will typically use a device known as a bathymetric lidar (Light Detection and Ranging) unit. These are large and can weigh almost 600 lb (272 kg), so they’re mounted on crewed aircraft that fly over the area to be mapped. Led by Dr. Grady Tuell, a team at Georgia Tech has now developed a cost-effective new system that they claim could lead to much smaller, more efficient bathymetric lidars, capable of being carried by a UAV.

www.abc.net.au
http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2014/12/10/4145224.htm
Smelly coral fish dodge the predators
Anna Salleh
ABC
This clever fish avoids predators not only by looking like the coral it depends on for food and shelter, but by smelling like it too, say researchers. The findings are the first evidence of diet helping animals to be chemically camouflaged, says Australian biologist Dr Rohan Brooker, a postdoctoral researcher at Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta. Brooker and colleagues report their study on a colourful coral-feeding fish today in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B.

Editorals/Columns/Opinions:
www.getschooled.blog.ajc.com
http://getschooled.blog.ajc.com/2014/12/09/final-step-accreditation-agency-approves-kennesaw-southern-poly-merger/
Get Schooled with Maureen Downey
Final step: Accreditation agency approves Kennesaw-Southern Poly merger
I continue to get emails from graduates of Southern Polytechnic State University still saddened to see their school absorbed by Kennesaw State University. With the approval of the accreditation agency, the KSU/Southern Poly will now be finalized. The merger marches forward as indicated by today’s news from the Regents that the consolidation plan for Kennesaw and Southern Poly won final approval from accreditors. Here is the statement:

www.parenting.blogs.nytimes.com

Colleges, Recruiting Even the Imaginary Students
By LORI ROZSA
The cascade of college marketing mail started when my daughter was a junior in high school. What began as a trickle — a few teaser postcards, a couple of glossy catalogs — turned into a flood the summer before her senior year. Friends who had shepherded their children through the college application process had warned me about the reams of mail sent out by colleges, almost all of it unsolicited, so I wasn’t surprised. What did surprise me was when Brother Bill started getting college mail. “Time is running out, William!” warned the postcard from Florida Southern College. “Everyone would love to see you on campus,” Flagler College wrote. “Learn why you should add us to your list,” said the letter from the United States Air Force Academy. “If you’re considering top schools like Duke, U.C.L.A. and Northwestern, then you need to consider one of America’s most selective universities — the United States Air Force Academy.” The problem was, William wasn’t considering any of those schools, because he doesn’t exist. Somewhere in the vast and opaque marketing relationship that exists between colleges, high schools and the college-testing agencies, an entirely new student was born. A computer program had apparently misread a form, because William’s first and last names were close in spelling to my daughter’s name, off by just a few letters. The program did get the home address right. As more mail came in for Brother Bill, the cynical gamesmanship of the college admissions process really sank in. Students (and sometimes, even more so, their parents) who become starry-eyed when colleges come calling via the mailbox need a gentle but clear reality check: It’s all about the numbers, not about them.

Education News
www.insidehighered.com
https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2014/12/10/congressional-deal-spending-would-modestly-boost-student-aid-and-research-restore
Budget Deal Unveiled
By Michael Stratford
WASHINGTON — Congressional leaders agreed Tuesday on a spending bill that would avoid a government shutdown and provide modest increases to student aid programs and scientific research. The compromise deal, which would fund most of the federal government until next October, would also restore a pathway to student aid for students who do not have a high school diploma or its equivalent, like a GED.

www.diverseeducation.com
http://diverseeducation.com/article/68327/?utm_campaign=Diverse%20Newsletter%203&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&elq=0f1d8c80a99845ca9b26e562fa7c0887&elqCampaignId=415
Pell Grant Eligibility Clarification Opens Doors of Opportunity for Juvenile Offenders
by Jamaal Abdul-Alim
Higher education leaders should look for ways to help young people in juvenile jails start to work on their college education now that the Obama administration has clarified that the longstanding ban on Pell Grants to prisoners does not apply to them. That was the message that David Domenici, a former principal at a school located in the D.C. juvenile jail who now advocates for better education in juvenile jails, sought to deliver on the heels of new set of guidances jointly issued earlier this week by the U.S. Department of Education and the U.S. Department of Justice.

www.onlineathens.com
http://onlineathens.com/general-assembly/2014-12-09/gov-deal-touts-new-prison-education-initiatives
Gov. Deal touts new prison education initiatives
By KELSEY COCHRAN
One credit shy of receiving a high school diploma, an inmate at Arrendale State Prison for women will soon be the first Georgia Department of Corrections inmate to graduate while incarcerated as part of a collaboration between the GDC and the Mountain Education Center Charter School. The graduation was made possible by new laws that allowed for more classroom education and job training for inmates. Gov. Nathan Deal updated state lawmakers on the program’s progress at a Tuesday luncheon to close out the Carl Vinson Institute of Government’s 29th Biennial Institute for Georgia Legislators at the University of Georgia.

www.stateimpact.npr.org

Why First Generation Students Find It Tougher To Earn A College Degree

Why First Generation Students Find It Tougher To Earn A College Degree
BY JOHN O’CONNOR
Students who are the first in their family to attend college often have a more difficult time finishing their degree. Research shows those students know less about how to get into and pay for college. And first generation college students are less likely to take tough high school courses needed to be prepared for college.

www.insidehighered.com
https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2014/12/10/study-finds-gender-perception-affects-evaluations
Students Praise Male Professors
By Kaitlin Mulhere
College students’ assessments of their instructors’ teaching ability is linked to whether they think those instructors are male or female, according to new research from North Carolina State University. In the study, students in an online course gave better evaluations to the instructors they thought were male, even though the two instructors – one male and one female – had switched their identities. The research is based on a small pilot study of one class. Student evaluations can carry a lot of weight in decisions about promotions, tenure and pay raises. But the findings demonstrate that gender bias can have a big impact on student ratings of teachers, according to the study.

www.diverseeducation.com
http://diverseeducation.com/article/68333/?utm_campaign=Diverse%20Newsletter%203&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&elq=0f1d8c80a99845ca9b26e562fa7c0887&elqCampaignId=415
Dean Clearing Native Americans’ Path to Increased STEM Participation
by Catherine Morris
What do mythological stories from Native American tradition, ancient fossils and STEM mentoring have in common? They can all help propel Native American students to STEM careers, according to Dr. Kent Smith, dean of the recently created Office for the Advancement of American Indians in Medicine and Science at Oklahoma State University’s Center for Health Sciences (OHU-CHS) in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The office, which was formally created in March, is building a series of STEM development programs for the 39 federally recognized tribes of Oklahoma. Smith is the architect behind it, proposing the concept and now helping to get it off the ground by building on programs he has already created and furthering outreach to tribal communities across the state.

www.chronicle.com
http://chronicle.com/article/When-the-Media-Get-Science/150763/
When the Media Get Science Research Wrong, University PR May Be the Culprit
By Paul Basken
In the midst of a renewed national debate over fracking, a study last month from Colorado State University at Fort Collins and the University of Colorado at Boulder gave the public welcome assurances that the oil-extraction technology is safe. The study, according to a summary prepared by the University of Colorado and repeated widely in the news, found the major group of chemicals used in fracking to be as safe as common consumer items like toothpaste and ice cream. That should “give comfort” to anyone alarmed by the reported dangers of the controversial method, also known as hydraulic fracturing, the Colorado Oil & Gas Association said in a statement. The problem, according to a lead author of the study: That’s not what the study actually found.

www.chronicle.com
http://chronicle.com/article/What-Do-House-Republicans-Want/150431/?cid=at&utm_source=at&utm_medium=en
What Do House Republicans Want From the NSF?
By Paul Basken
Washington
Republicans leading the House science committee have spent much of the past two years ratcheting up the pressure on the National Science Foundation. They’ve sought information on several dozen grants awarded by the NSF. They’ve made increasingly strident attacks on some of its choices. And for several weeks now, committee representatives have been trekking out to NSF offices in Arlington, Va., to inspect grant paperwork.

www.insidehighered.com
https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2014/12/10/senate-hearing-explores-law-enforcements-role-campus-sexual-assault
What About the Police?
By Jake New
WASHINGTON — Colleges’ mishandling of sexual assault may continue to occupy the national spotlight, but the criminal justice system has done a worse job supporting and addressing the needs of victims, Sen. Claire McCaskill, a Missouri Democrat, said during a U.S. Senate hearing here Tuesday. The hearing, held by the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Terrorism, focused on finding ways to inspire campus sexual assault survivors to have more confidence in law enforcement so that they don’t, as McCaskill said, “take the default position that they’d be better off just pursuing the Title IX option.”

www.diverseeducation.com
http://diverseeducation.com/article/68330/?utm_campaign=Diverse%20Newsletter%203&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&elq=0f1d8c80a99845ca9b26e562fa7c0887&elqCampaignId=415
Hearing Addresses Campus Sexual Assault Reporting
by Kimberly Hefling, Associated Press
WASHINGTON ― It’s estimated that only a fraction of campus sexual assault victims go to police. Senators want to know why. A Senate Judiciary subcommittee hearing on Tuesday focused on the role of law enforcement in campus sexual assault cases. “I am concerned that law enforcement is being marginalized when it comes to the crime of campus sexual assault,” said Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., the subcommittee chairman. “I’m concerned that the specter of flawed law enforcement overshadows the harm of marginalized law enforcement.” …Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., is co-sponsoring a bill with Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., that would force colleges to have a memorandum of understanding with their local law enforcement over handling such cases.

www.diverseeducation.com
http://diverseeducation.com/article/68336/?utm_campaign=Diverse%20Newsletter%203&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&elq=0f1d8c80a99845ca9b26e562fa7c0887&elqCampaignId=415
MIT Pulls Online Lectures Over Harassment Claim
by Associated Press
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. ― The Massachusetts Institute of Technology has removed a retired physics professor’s lectures from an online learning platform because the school concluded he had sexually harassed a woman, university officials said. MIT said in a statement Monday that it began investigating after a woman filed a complaint in October saying that Walter Lewin had sexually harassed her online. MIT said the woman provided information about Lewin’s interactions with her and his interactions with other female online learners.

www.chronicle.com
http://chronicle.com/blogs/wiredcampus/sexual-harassment-in-the-age-of-moocs/55229
Sexual Harassment in the Age of MOOCs
by Steve Kolowich
Following an internal investigation into allegations of sexual harassment, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology on Tuesday severed ties with Walter Lewin, a retired physics professor known for his lively lectures and live demonstrations. The story of the professor who makes sexual advances on his students is as old as academe itself, but this one was unusual because of its ultramodern setting: the free online courses known as MOOCs. But even old problems are made new by the dynamics of MOOCs, where professors often preside over thousands of far-flung learners whom they will never meet in person.

Related article:
www.insidehighered.com
https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2014/12/09/mit-removes-online-courses-professor-found-have-engaged-online-sexual-harassment
MOOC Harassment