University System News
USG NEWS:
www.accessnorthga.com
http://www.accessnorthga.com/detail.php?n=283188
UNG recognized for efforts to reduce textbook costs
By Staff
DAHLONEGA – With multiple successful digital textbook projects and as many as 10 more on the horizon, the University of North Georgia (UNG) has been recognized as one of the state’s leaders in providing open educational resources for students. UNG has won an award for Innovation and Early Success in Textbook Transformation from Affordable Learning Georgia, a University System of Georgia (USG) initiative aimed at making college more affordable by encouraging open-source, electronic textbooks.
www.wmbfnews.com
http://www.wmbfnews.com/story/27676640/armstrong-state-university-launches-two-new-nursing-programs
Armstrong State University launches two new nursing programs
By Tedi Rountree
SAVANNAH, GA (WTOC) – Armstrong State University is launching two new nursing programs in response to statewide nurse shortages. This fall, Armstrong introduced the Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing program. This summer, the College of Health Professions will begin offering the Family Nurse Practitioner Graduate Degree program.
www.onlineathens.com
http://onlineathens.com/uga/2014-12-20/state-rep-spencer-frye-earns-uga-degree-gets-legislative-perspective
State Rep. Spencer Frye earns UGA degree, gets legislative perspective
By APRIL BURKHART
State Rep. Spencer Frye, D-Athens, felt a range of emotions Friday as he watched more than 2,000 students graduate from the University of Georgia during fall commencement exercises. But mostly, he felt happy to be counted among them. Frye graduated with a bachelor’s degree in psychology following a nearly 25-year hiatus. …Frye said he is happy to lead by example when it comes to showing people the importance of receiving a complete education. He also said he hopes his experience will encourage others to return to school or attain job skills that will help them build a future.
www.myajc.com
http://www.myajc.com/news/news/a-tale-of-two-sexual-assault-victims/njWhr/#a127fb87.3566685.735589
A tale of two sexual assault victims
Report or not report? Both paths can be hard for victims.
By Janel Davis – The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Most victims of sexual assaults on college campuses choose not to report the crimes, or decline to prosecute. Even victims who do follow through with criminal charges find that the experience exacts a personal toll. The AJC interviewed two Georgia students, one who filed charges and one who did not, and presents their stories here. In keeping with AJC policy not to identify victims of sexual assault without their permission, the AJC is keeping confidential the name of the UGA student quoted below.
www.myajc.com
http://www.myajc.com/news/news/at-georgia-colleges-allegations-of-rape-but-no-pro/njWdJ/#004819f1.3792178.735589
At Georgia colleges, allegations of rape but no prosecutions
Victims reluctant to bring charges. Heavy drinking weakens many cases.
By Janel Davis and Shannon McCaffrey – The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The 19-year-old Ohio girl came to Georgia Tech in July 2011 to visit a high school friend. After drinking at a few parties, they returned to his fraternity. As the night wore on, she grew tired and another fraternity brother made what seemed like a chivalrous offer — she could sleep in his bed and he would sleep elsewhere. The next thing she knew, according to her narrative to police, he was on top of her and, she said, raped her. Distraught, she later told her friend what happened and he called campus police. When officers shared their investigation with the Fulton County District Attorney they were told there wasn’t enough evidence to prosecute. Instead, an assistant prosecutor suggested the young woman go to the Fulton County Courthouse and obtain her own arrest warrant, according to the police report. It’s rare enough that women report rape to police. Not surprisingly, she returned home with her parents instead of navigating the court system on her own. Campus police at nine of Georgia’s largest universities logged 152 allegations of rapes and sodomies since 2010, according to law enforcement documents obtained by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Not one resulted in criminal prosecution.
www.statesboroherald.com
http://www.statesboroherald.com/section/1/article/64929/
Course leads GSU student to report rape
ROTC sexual harassment program prompted alleged victim to go to police
BY Holli Deal Saxon
When a Georgia Southern University student was allegedly sexually assaulted in August, she didn’t report it because she felt it was her fault, she told police. However, a recent sexual harassment course through the university’s ROTC program prompted her to go to police.
RESEARCH:
www.accessnorthga.com
http://www.accessnorthga.com/detail.php?n=283225
Area school systems among state Innovation Fund grant recipients
By Staff
ATLANTA – Gov. Nathan Deal recently announced 18 award winners for the Innovation Fund, a competitive grant program that provides more than $4.5 million to local education authorities, schools, institutions of higher education and nonprofit organizations to further advance student achievement in Georgia. …The programs are aligned in the following priority areas: applied learning with a focus on science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education, development and replication of blended learning school models, development and replication of innovative resource management models, and teacher and leader induction and development. The award winners will use the money to aid in planning, implementing or scaling innovative education programs across the state. …The grant award winners and their respective programs are: …Georgia State University, Educating and Empowering Urban Teachers and Students in Quality STEM Classroom Infusion …Georgia Institute of Technology Center for Education Integrating Science, Mathematics and Computing (CEISMC), Project ENG(2)AGES: Engaging the Next Generation of Girls at Georgia Tech via Engineering and Science; Georgia Southern University, Real STEM
www.project.us
http://www.projectq.us/houston/6_atlanta_hiv_funds_get_big_elton_john_bucks?gid=16392
6 Atlanta HIV funds get big Elton John bucks
By Mike Fleming
AIDS foundations based in Atlanta received tens of thousands of dollars each to bolster local HIV treatment and prevention programs as part of millions dished out Tuesday by the Elton John AIDS Foundation. The annual grants include three projects that specifically target LGBT people who are either at-risk or already infected with HIV. …Atlanta organizations that also get big bucks from the singer’s fund and serve other at-risk communities are the Center for Health of Incarcerated Persons at Emory University ($50,000), the Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta’s AIDS Partnership Fund ($75,000), and Georgia State University Foundation ($50,000).
www.pharmacychoice.com
http://www.pharmacychoice.com/News/article.cfm?Article_ID=1304639
Smaller, portable ultrasound device is part of education at MCG [The Augusta Chronicle, Ga.]
On their way to finding the acromion process, second-year Medical College of Georgia students Elizabeth Cappello and Eryn Calder got a little lost. Working the portable ultrasound probe across Calder’s left shoulder, looking for the bony top part of the shoulder blade, Cappello watched the screen and tried to make sense of the shifting gray and white shapes. They were aided by Dr. Yulia Melenevsky, an assistant professor of radiology, who deftly guided the probe to the right neighborhood. “Do you see those two bright lines coming together? That’s the AC (acromioclavicular) joint,” she said. “And that’s the clavicle.” And there was the bony piece they were looking for. “Ohh,” the students said in unison Monday. They will be getting a lot more practice with portable ultrasound over the coming years as MCG at Georgia Regents University joins about a dozen other schools in adding ultrasound instruction across all four years of medical school.
www.mirrornewsgy.com
http://www.mirrornewsgy.com/mirrornewsgy/index.php/component/k2/item/1928-how-technology-can-prevent-food-waste-in-developing-countries
How technology can prevent food waste in developing countries
Written by Weekend Mirror
Lack of access to cold chain technology and reliable energy sources are the major reasons for crops perishing after harvest, research by Nottingham University shows (pdf). The cost of delivering energy to remote, rural regions means that, even when storage facilities are built, they may nevertheless stand empty. Poor transport infrastructure causes further losses, and a lack of education on post-harvest practices often results in poor quality control and food being damaged during handling. “Without the technology, expertise and understanding necessary to keep their harvest fresh, smallholder farmers are often locked into a cycle of poverty, unable to access global markets,” says Dr Lisa Kitinoja, founder of the Postharvest Education Foundation. …In 2013, the Powering Agriculture competition showcased a range of new tools from small-scale technology developers. Among them was India’s Promethean Power Systems, which uses solar energy to cool milk and is aimed at dairy processors collecting from rural farmers. Another winner, developed by the University of Georgia, was a cooling system in Uganda powered by biogas extracted from cow manure.
www.coosavalleynews.com
http://www.coosavalleynews.com/np109753.htm
Dalton School 12th in Ga to Be Honored w/ STEM
CVN News
The Georgia Department of Education has awarded Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) certification to Brookwood Elementary School in Dalton Public Schools. Brookwood Elementary is the 12th school in the state to be awarded the designation. State School Superintendent Dr. John Barge awarded the certification in a ceremony at the school on Friday. …The school`s focus on environmental sustainability serves students well as they partner with Dalton State College to trap and release turtles in a local pond. Release occurs after the turtles have been weighed and marked, and that data is recorded during an on-going research study conducted by 4th graders. First graders work collaboratively with the Tennessee Aquarium and the University of Georgia on a Monarch butterfly research study to track migration and count parasites on butterfly scales under the microscope.
Editorials/Columns/Opinions:
www.saportareport.com
http://saportareport.com/blog/2014/12/college-dorms-to-be-run-by-private-companies-voters-approved/
SaportaReport
College dorms to be run by private companies: Voters gave approval
By David Pendered
Georgia’s embrace of public private partnerships now extends to college dormitories. The Board of Regents has approved a deal to put nearly 10,000 students into beds that by 2016 will be managed by one private company. Georgia already has partnered with privately owned entities to manage matters including prisons, distance learning, and roadway construction. The board approved in November a 65-year deal valued at $517 million with Corvias Group, based in East Greenwich, R.I. Terms are to be finalized next year. The University System of Georgia will retain oversight of the housing program.
www.saportareport.com
http://saportareport.com/blog/2014/12/underground-how-an-outsider-hopes-to-succeed-where-others-have-failed/
SaportaReport
Underground: How an outsider hopes to succeed where others have failed
The question people keep asking T. Scott Smith is why would he tackle the redevelopment of Underground Atlanta. Smith, a retail developer from Mount Pleasant, S.C., outside of Charleston, has entered into an agreement with the City of Atlanta to buy a 12-acre site encompassing Underground Atlanta for $25.75 million. It is a redevelopment challenge that has been shunned by Atlanta’s most experienced developers. Even Smith has been surprised by the number of people in Atlanta who have questioned him on why he would be willing to take on such a risky project. After all, Underground Atlanta is now in its third incarnation, and it isn’t prospering. …Meanwhile, Smith was planning to meet with Georgia State University President Mark Becker, and Mayor Kasim Reed said he would be visiting with MARTA General Manager Keith Parker to discuss how they could be supportive of the Underground development.
www.chronicle.augusta.com
http://chronicle.augusta.com/opinion/editorials/2014-12-20/attitude-adjustment
Attitude adjustment
Incubator poised to capitalize on Augusta’s growing tech muscle
By Augusta Chronicle Editorial Staff
Eric Parker is quick to point out that Silicon Valley is not so much a geographical location as it is a state of mind. The co-founder of The Clubhou.se, an Augusta tech incubator, says the Valley’s culture of innovation and collaboration – its “attitude” – is what makes it a world-renown idea factory for cutting-edge technologies. And while few places in the world can rival the south San Francisco Bay Area’s critical mass of talented employees, famous tech companies, first-class universities and deep-pocketed venture capitalists, there’s nothing stopping a growing mid-sized city such as Augusta from blazing new trails in technology. …Indeed, Augusta already is home to a diverse – albeit low-key – tech community, bolstered by public institutions, such as Georgia Regents University, and tech-focused government installations such as Savannah River Site – which has a sizable nuclear and environmental-technology research component – and Fort Gordon, ground zero for the Army’s information technology and cyber-security operations.
www.summitdaily.com
http://www.summitdaily.com/opinion/columns/14321845-113/ebola-virus-africa-outbreak
Petri Dish: Research community stepping up efforts to learn about Ebola virus
David L. ‘Woody’ Woodland
Special to the Daily
Today, the Ebola outbreak in West Africa has resulted in more than 13,000 cases and approximately 5,000 deaths. While the disease epicenter has been Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia, there have been other travel-related cases in Nigeria, Mali, Senegal, Spain and the United States. The challenge of dealing with an Ebola outbreak in poor countries with minimal health services has proven to be especially great. Success is hampered by the fact that there are no approved vaccines or treatments for Ebola. The urgency of the situation in Africa has driven the research community to significantly increase its efforts to understand this deadly disease and to accelerate the development of anti-Ebola drugs and vaccines. …The special Viral Immunology issue on Ebola is guest-edited by Drs. Jeffery Hogan (Department of Infectious Diseases, University of Georgia) and Bill Dowling (Biodefense Research Resources Section, National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases) and reveals some fascinating insights into the virus and its interaction with the human body.
Education:
www.diverseeducagtion.com
http://diverseeducation.com/article/68504/?utm_campaign=Diverse%20Newsletter%203&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&elq=71a6b5e2c1234cf9bf5c9f82b3c2e509&elqCampaignId=415
University of Connecticut Says Emergency Cuts Won’t Affect Tuition
by Pat Eaton-Robb, Associated Press
STORRS, Conn. ― Tuition and classes at the University of Connecticut won’t be affected by Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s order that the school cut $3.6 million from its operating budget to help offset the state deficit, school President Susan Herbst said. The cuts, $2.3 million from the school’s main operating grant and $1.3 million from the grant for the UConn Health Center in Farmington, are among $54.6 million in rescissions the governor ordered last month to address a projected $99.5 million shortfall in the budget. Officials said the school plans to look at savings in areas such as equipment purchases, but it does not expect it to affect the school’s academic enterprise.