University System News:
www.onlineathens.com
3 honored during Boy Scouts banquet at Classic Center
http://onlineathens.com/local-news/2015-02-24/3-honored-during-boy-scouts-banquet-classic-center
By APRIL BURKHART
Three local community leaders and former Boy Scouts were recognized for their service to the community during a banquet held Tuesday at The Classic Center. The banquet was hosted by the Northeast Georgia Council of the Boy Scouts of America and called the Athens American Values Dinner. Gary Blasingame, Terry Wingfield and Steve Wrigley were awarded the “Billy Hudson Distinguished Citizen Award” for their continued commitment to be trustworthy, friendly, brave and helpful toward others in both their professional and personal lives as laid out in the organization’s Scout Oath and Law. …Blasingame is a partner at Athens law firm Blasingame, Burch, Garrard & Ashley, P.C., and Wrigley, is the executive vice chancellor for administration for the University System of Georgia. …Chairman and CEO of Synovus and Vice-Chairman of the Georgia Board of Regents, Kessel Stelling, provided the event’s keynote address.
USG Institutions:
www.ledger-enquirere.com
Columbus State narrows presidential search to five candidates
http://www.ledger-enquirer.com/2015/02/25/3584087_columbus-state-narrows-presidential.html?rh=1
BY MARK RICE
The search for Columbus State University’s next president is down to five candidates, who will visit the campus next month. CSU associate professor of business administration John Finley, chairman of the 17-member search committee, announced Wednesday the candidates and the visitation schedule: …The committee chose 11 of the 60 applicants to interview last week in Atlanta. Ten were interviewed, Finley said, and five made the cut. …After the candidates visit campus, the committee will recommend 3-5, without ranking them, to the University System Board of Regents. The Special Regents’ Search Committee will recommend an unspecified number of finalists to chancellor Hank Huckaby, who will recommend his top choice to the full board.
www.chronicle.augusta.com
GRU search committee meets Thursday to begin search for Azziz’s replacement
http://chronicle.augusta.com/news/health/2015-02-24/gru-search-committee-meets-Thursday
By Tom Corwin
Staff Writer
The search committee to find a replacement for Georgia Regents University President Ricardo Azziz will meet at 1 p.m. Thursday at GRU, the Universiy System of Georgia Board of Regents announced Tuesday evening. The committee, led by Regent James Hull, of Augusta, will be at GRU’s College of Dental Medicine building. At this initial meeting, the committee will receive its formal charge that will outline its roles and responsibilities, according to a news advisory from the board. The committee “will guide the first stage of the search,” according to the news release. Parker Executive Search of Atlanta will provide consulting to the committee. The committee will submit three to five candidates to the board for final consideration.
www.bizjournals.com
UGA program in Washington, D.C., funded by $5M Delta Air Lines grant
http://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/morning_call/2015/02/uga-program-in-washington-d-c-funded-by-5m-delta.html
Carla Caldwell
Morning Edition Editor-
Atlanta Business Chronicle
The University of Georgia will hold a dedication ceremony Thursday for Delta Hall, a 20,000-square-foot residential building that serves students in the school’s UGA in Washington program. The facility is named Delta Hall in recognition of a $5 million grant from the Delta Air Lines Foundation. The grant establishes a lecture series and five internships. The building, which was constructed in 1931 as a church society and a club, was purchased in 2013 by the University of Georgia Foundation. The building was renovated for the program.
www.bignews.biz
USDA Announces $14 Million in Grants Supporting Economic Growth for Rural Communities
http://bignews.biz/?id=1364479
WASHINGTON, – The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) announced nearly $14 million in grants to support four programs to increase prosperity in rural America through research, education, and extension programs focused on promoting rural community development, economic growth, and sustainability. …Rural Communities and Regional Development: …
•University of Georgia, Athens, Ga., $474,998
www.walb.com
Darton State College could get funding to renovate student services center
http://www.walb.com/story/28203618/darton-state-college-could-get-funding-to-renovate-student-services-center
By Aaryn Valenzuela
Darton State College could get some funding to renovate to their student services center. Today, the House Appropriations Committee approved next year’s budget which includes 1.7 million dollars for planning, design, construction, and equipment for Student Services Center renovation project at Darton State College.
www.wtoc.com
Adults can finish college degree through CSU program
http://www.wtoc.com/story/28203170/adults-can-finish-college-degree-for-free-at-csu
By Irisha Jones
COLUMBUS, GA (WTVM) – Columbus State University has an program designed to make it easier for adults who are thinking about going back to college. CSU already has an adult re-entry program but because of a grant, they’re able to offer classes for free. This free program called Square One is designed to help adults transition back into the college life. Because of an adult learner grant, students can earn credit towards a degree for free. The re-entry program is for adults 23 years or older, if you have been out of high school for five years or more and if you have less than 30 college credits.
www.medicalnewstoday.com
GRU launches special Initiative to reduce the burden of preventable cancers in Georgia
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/289870.php
The Georgia Regents University Cancer Center has launched an initiative seeking to reduce the burden of cancer among minority and underserved populations in Georgia. Within the cancer-Community Awareness Access Research and Education initiative, modules will be created to concentrate on one or more cancers that are either preventable or may be detected early enough to improve outcomes. Each module will use trained community health workers to deliver evidence-based, culturally appropriate cancer education.
www.onlineathens.com
UGA eases free speech rules, but maybe not enough to end lawsuit
http://onlineathens.com/uga/2015-02-18/uga-eases-free-speech-rules-maybe-not-enough-end-lawsuit
By LEE SHEARER
Protestors and speakers on the University of Georgia campus will no longer be restricted to so-called ³Free Expression Areas² under a new policy. Groups can also hand out literature in public places on campus, not just specific zones. The change comes as the university moves to settle a federal lawsuit over the issue brought last year by the UGA chapter of a student group called Young Americans for Liberty and two of its UGA student members, Audrey Brasuell and Cecilia Kuehnel.
www.onlineathens.com
Did irresponsible social media posts feed meningitis scare?
http://onlineathens.com/breaking-news/2015-02-18/social-media-irresponsible-reporting-fed-meningitis-scare-uga-president
By LEE SHEARER
The president of the University of Georgia on Wednesday blamed misinformed commenters on social media and irresponsible reporting for spreading false rumors that a UGA student died this week from bacterial meningitis. UGA President Jere Morehead said the comments and reports spread unwarranted fear across the campus. ³The rumor mill that has blown up around her passing is unfortunate and is feeding speculation that simply is not true,² he said.
www.wctv.tv
Tallahassee Community College Graduates Now Eligible For In-State Tuition At VSU
http://www.wctv.tv/home/headlines/–292293391.html
Winnie Wright
Valdosta, GA – As of Monday, students at Tallahasee Community College who meet academic requirements will now receive the opportunity to further their education at Valdosta State University with in-state tuition.On Monday, TCC’s President Dr. Jim Murdaugh met with VSU’s President William McKinney to sign the agreement. The cost of in-state tuition at VSU is roughly 3,500 dollars a semester. In 2012, institutions in both the Technical College System of Georgia and the University System of Georgia submitted plans to achieve the goal of adding more than 250,000 post secondary graduates to Georgia¹s workforce by 2020.
www.mhealthnews.com
Georgia Partnership for TeleHealth expands telemedicine to first college campus in Georgia
http://www.mhealthnews.com/press-release/georgia-partnership-telehealth-expands-telemedicine-first-college-campus-georgia
mHealth News Staff
Georgia Partnership for TeleHealth (GPT), a charitable nonprofit promoting the establishment of telemedicine programs in communities throughout Georgia, announces its newest partner, Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College (ABAC), a State College of the University System of Georgia located in Tifton. ABAC will be the first college campus in Georgia to house a telemedicine clinic in addition to their existing campus health clinics and further strengthens GPT’s telemedicine network within the state. Tift Regional Hospital is also very invested in the program as the ABAC’s primary partner. Tift Regional and ABAC recognized the importance of telemedicine for ABAC’s students as well as ABAC’s School of Nursing & Health Sciences nursing program curriculum.
www.sustainablebrands,com
Georgia Tech Commits to Ambitious Sustainable Community Engagement Initiative
http://www.sustainablebrands.com/news_and_views/collaboration/bart_king/georgia_tech_commits_ambitious_sustainable_community_engageme
by Bart King
Within a few years, every undergrad at the Georgia Institute of Technology could understand what it means to create sustainable communities. That¹s the goal of a new institute-wide initiative called Serve€Learn€Sustain. Earlier this year Georgia Tech adopted the Serve€Learn€Sustain Quality Enhancement Plan focused on ³creating sustainable communities² and emphasizing community engagement and service learning as its central pedagogical approach Š I spoke with them and Professor Matthew Realff, QEP Liaison for the College of Engineering, to find out how the Serve€Learn€Sustain Plan will transform education at Georgia Tech and how industry will be involved.
www.wtoc.com
Albany State raises awareness of campus gang activity
http://www.wtoc.com/story/28142783/albany-state-raises-awareness-of-campus-gang-activity
By Jim Wallace
ALBANY, GA (WALB) – Albany State University Police gave faculty and staff information on how to spot gang activity on campus on Wednesday. For the second year in a row, officers hosted a seminar, teaching instructors how to identify gang members and activities that could lead to violence or crimes. Police say gang members are becoming more open on many college campuses, and it’s important for the university community to know what to look out for.
www.georgiatrend.com
POLITICAL NOTES: FEBRUARY 2015
http://www.georgiatrend.com/February-2015/Political-Notes-February-2015/
Susan Percy
ŠAnd Another Consolidation: The Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia (USG) has voted to consolidate two more schools: Georgia State University (GSU) and Georgia Perimeter College. GSU President Mark Becker will head the school, which will retain the Georgia State University name. This is the sixth consolidation since Chancellor Hank Huckaby took office in 2011. He called Georgia State ³a recognized national leader in improving student retention and graduation rates,² and said ³combining these attributes with Georgia Perimeter College¹s leadership in providing access to students across the metro area presents a major opportunity to improve student success.² ŠAt its meeting last month, the Board of Regents also finalized the consolidation of Kennesaw State University and Southern Polytechnic State University under the leadership of longtime Kennesaw State President Dr. Dan Papp.
www.blog.epa.gov
Building Partnerships Between Colleges and Underserved Communities
http://blog.epa.gov/ej/2015/02/building-partnerships-between-colleges-and-underserved-communities/
By Michael Burns
ŠMany small, underserved communities, like Hayneville, are in need of resources to improve their environment and quality of life. However, they often lack the technical expertise in engineering, transportation, and infrastructure planning to pursue initiatives in a progressive and sustainable manner. Eighteen months later, I was talking to folks from EPA Region 4 about this idea of connecting underserved communities with the talents of college students and faculty. They asked if I would be willing to collaborate with EPA. I agreed, and began to reach out to colleges and universities. ŠOur biggest advance came when Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College, a small college in Tifton, Georgia, agreed to provide economic development plans for two small cities in Georgia with no financial support from the federal government. The College understood the value of giving its students such a rich experiential learning opportunity in which they could take what they learned in the classroom, apply it to real world problems, and come up with real-world solutions. ŠThe briefing the school gave the communities about concepts and plans for economic development was fantastic! It has offered to help these communities develop grant proposals to move forward, and get the resources they need for improvements.
www.money.cnn.com
Amazon isn’t happy with FAA’s proposed drone rules
http://money.cnn.com/2015/02/16/technology/faa-drone-rules-amazon/index.html
The government’s new drone proposal would open the skies to a whole list of new uses — but not Amazon deliveries. Amazon’s plans for a drone-based half-hour delivery service known as Prime Air would remain grounded under the rules the Federal Aviation Administration proposed Sunday Š Current FAA rules bar commercial drone flights, although about two dozen exemptions have been approved. CNN is among those pursuing news uses for drones though a partnership with the Georgia Institute of Technology.
www.bizjournals.com
Pindrop Security raises $35M, plans to add 100 jobs
http://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/blog/atlantech/2015/02/atlanta-startup-pindrop-security-raises-30m-plans.html
Urvaksh Karkaria
Staff Writer- Atlanta Business Chronicle
Pindrop Security recently raised more than $30 million in venture capital as it gears up for global expansion, Atlanta Business Chronicle has learned. The Atlanta startup, backed by Citi Ventures and Andreessen Horowitz, has developed phone fraud-busting technology to address a multi-billion dollar problem Š Pindrop technology was developed at the Georgia Tech Information Security Center. The company was founded by CEO Vijay Balasubramaniyan and is backed by serial cybersecurity entrepreneur and investor Paul Judge.
www.newswise.com
Georgia State University Receives $2.7 Million Federal Grant to Improve Blood Transfusion Outcomes
http://newswise.com/articles/georgia-state-university-receives-2-7-million-federal-grant-to-improve-blood-transfusion-outcomes?ret=/articles/list&category=science&page=1&search%5Bstatus%5D=3&search%5Bsort%5D=date+desc&search%5Bsection%5D=20&search%5Bhas_multimedia%5D=
Newswise ‹ The Georgia Health Policy Center (GHPC) at Georgia State University has received a five-year, $2,669,903 award from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that will allow the GHPC and partnering organizations to look at transfusion-related complications in patients with hemoglobin disorders (sickle cell disease and thalassemia) and improve their outcomes.
www.chronicle.augusta.com
MCG students, faculty at Capitol
http://chronicle.augusta.com/news/government/2015-02-17/mcg-student-faculty-capitol
By Walter C. Jones
Morris News Service
ATLANTA — Administrators, faculty and more than 30 students from the Medical College of Georgia¹s campuses around the state spent the day Tuesday rubbing elbows with legislators. The students had to compete to be selected to attend, including submitting an essay. MCG is part of Georgia Regents University, based in Augusta, with campuses in Athens, Rome, Savannah and Albany. ŠAlthough a snow storm prevented the trip last year, and this year¹s weather was also threatening, the annual event is worthwhile, according to Dr. Peter Buckley, MCG¹s dean. It¹s a way to remind state officials that one of every five physicians in the state is an MCG graduate. It¹s also educational for the students.
www.savannahnow.com
GSU celebrates Day at the Capitol
http://savannahnow.com/your-good-news/2015-02-18/gsu-celebrates-day-capitol
By Savannah Morning News
Georgia Southern University hosted its second annual ³Day at the Capitol² event on Feb. 3 in Atlanta. Representatives from the University¹s academic, research and athletics divisions, and from student organizations were on hand to speak to state lawmakers and showcase the many programs, initiatives and achievements happening at the University. ŠThe University also provided updates on its Military Science programs, its groundbreaking concussion research, FabLab construction, STEM activities and the new Manufacturing Engineering program in the College of Engineering and Information Technology.
www.dailyreportonline.com
Valdosta Professor’s Suit Test Limits of State Whistleblower Law
http://www.dailyreportonline.com/id=1202718957572/Valdosta-Professors-Suit-Test-Limits-of-State-Whistleblower-Law?kw=%20Valdosta%20Professor%27s%20Suit%20Test%20Limits%20of%20State%20Whistleblower%20Law%20&et=editorial&bu=Daily%20Report&cn=20150226&src=EMC-Email&pt=Morning%20News&slreturn=20150126115920
Alyson Palmer, Daily Report
A whistleblower lawsuit brought by a professor at Valdosta State University may test the limits of a 2012 state law letting individuals initiate claims over fraudulent use of state monies. At issue in the lawsuit filed in Fulton County Superior Court is the extent to which state employees can file claims under the act against state officials and entities—and what procedural hurdles such lawsuits might face. A Fulton judge dismissed professor Alfred Fuciarelli’s lawsuit because the professor hadn’t complied with a requirement that he obtain the written approval of the state attorney general before suing. Fuciarelli’s lawyer, Brandon Hornsby of Atlanta, says it makes no sense to subject public employees’ claims to that requirement, because it would put the AG in the untenable position of having to both approve and defend against the same lawsuit.
Higher Education:
www.myajc.com
Legislators table bill on campus rape investigations
http://www.myajc.com/news/news/local-education/legislators-table-bill-on-campus-rape-investigatio/nkH6h/#48970134.3566685.735655
By Janel Davis – The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
A bill that would have placed the authority for investigating reports of sexual assault on Georgia’s colleges campuses with non-campus local law enforcement was tabled indefinitely Wednesday after university officials balked at the proposal. Senate Bill 37, sponsored by Sen. Ron Ramsey, would have required campus police to report all allegations of rape to the city or county law enforcement agency, which would conduct the investigation.
www.diverseeducation.com
New York Launches Campaign to Combat Campus Sexual Assaults
http://diverseeducation.com/article/70144/?utm_campaign=Diverse%20Newsletter%203&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&elq=8781b6a6fe684d1894a213e55f03c8bf&elqCampaignId=415&elqaid=88&elqat=1&elqTrackId=de9888757d6b46908bfa0ca4d1c29093
by Associated Press
ALBANY, N.Y. — New York has begun a statewide campaign to raise awareness about campus sexual assault and to support Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s call to expand a new sexual consent policy to private colleges.
Cuomo announced the “Enough is Enough” campaign Wednesday. The initiative includes a website, video and a new 24-hour hotline operated by the state police — 844-845-7269 — for reporting sexual violence on college campuses. The state’s public university system recently adopted a new sexual consent policy that requires a clear, affirmative agreement between partners. Alongside the new consent policy is a victim’s bill of rights and better training for law enforcement, campus faculty and students.
www.getschooled.blog.ajc.com
Get Schooled with Maureen Downey
http://getschooled.blog.ajc.com/2015/02/25/community-college-not-failing-diploma-mills-but-pathways-to-success/
Community college: Not ‘failing diploma mills,’ but pathways to success
While there’s an active community of commenters here on the Get Schooled blog, a wider audience often sees the essays on the blog via social media. University of Georgia professor Peter Smagorinsky, a frequent contributor to this blog, shared some of that wider response to a recent piece he wrote on community colleges and President Obama’s proposal to make community college more accessible to students by eliminating tuition. Many Get Schooled commenters attended four-year universities and sent their own children to Georgia State, Tech or UGA. But thousands of Georgia students begin at community colleges. With more than 25,000 students, Georgia Perimeter College is the third-largest institution in the University System of Georgia. By Peter Smagorinsky I recently wrote an essay for the Get Schooled blog questioning the assumptions behind Professor Peter Morici’s contention that President Obama’s plan to fund community college education should not go forward.
www.diverseeducation.com
RISE to Focus on Strategies to Boost Achievement for Males of Color
http://diverseeducation.com/article/70139/?utm_campaign=Diverse%20Newsletter%203&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&elq=8781b6a6fe684d1894a213e55f03c8bf&elqCampaignId=415&elqaid=88&elqat=1&elqTrackId=834b551dd86b40e68e65a335683843bc
by Jamal Eric Watson
In the wake of President Obama’s “My Brother’s Keeper” initiative, a new effort has sprung up to devote research and resources to better serving boys and young men of color. RISE (Research, Integration, Strategy and Evaluation) for Boys and Men of Color will focus on better understanding the long-term strategies that will likely lead to better outcomes for boys and men of color. The initiative will focus on four key areas: education, health, criminal justice, and economic opportunity and workforce development.
www.diverseeducation.com
MOOCs: An Education in Diversity
http://diverseeducation.com/article/70128/?utm_campaign=Diverse%20Newsletter%203&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&elq=8781b6a6fe684d1894a213e55f03c8bf&elqCampaignId=415&elqaid=88&elqat=1&elqTrackId=c55c014ee15e45e881692b396018f910
by Miriam Schulman
…While the debate about the completion rate and efficacy of MOOCs rages on, one thing is not under dispute. These courses bring together an amazingly diverse group of students, who might otherwise never have interacted with so many people from other cultures. An article in the Chronicle of Higher Education reported that, in the first year of the MOOC platform EdX, two-thirds of the students came from countries outside North America.
www.ajc.com
State school board considers new math curriculum
http://www.ajc.com/news/news/local-education/state-school-board-considers-new-math-curriculum/nkDRd/
Ty Tagami
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The Georgia Board of Education will decide Thursday whether to approve high school math curriculum changes that would allow schools to deviate from the current ³integrated² method of teaching algebra and geometry.
www.myajc.com
Bill formalizing academic credit for military members passes Senate
http://www.myajc.com/news/news/local-education/bill-formalizing-academic-credit-for-military-memb/nkC43/?icmp=ajc_internallink_invitationbox_apr2013_ajcstubtomyajcpremium#bcc68071.3458083.735647
By Janel Davis – The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The state Senate unanimously approved legislation Tuesday formalizing policies allowing service members to receive college credit for their prior military experience when attending Georgia¹s technical colleges. The technical college system already grants this type of credit, but Senate Bill 18 makes the policy official, said bill sponsor Sen. Ed Harbison, who called the bill a ³big welcome home² for service members. ŠGeorgia is home to about 776,00 veterans and 100,000 active-duty military personnel, including guardsmen and reservists, and ranks fifth in the nation for states with the most active-duty service members, according to information from the state department of veterans services and the military affairs division of the University System of Georgia.
www.diverseeducation.com
Report: U.S. Millennials Not Measuring Up vs. International Peers
http://diverseeducation.com/article/69880/?utm_campaign=Diverse%20Newsletter%203&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&elq=3caf8ced1d784d03a92e79af226af98a&elqCampaignId=415
by Jamaal Abdul-Alim
Calling the situation a ³clear cause for concern,² ETS on Tuesday released a new report that shows the skills of America¹s so-called ³millennials² are ³comparatively weak² in relation to their international peers. And it¹s not just because of disparate skill levels among different segments of the U.S. population ‹ as bad as that would be if that were the only reason. Rather, the report notes that even the top-scoring and ³most-educated² U.S. millennials are trailing behind similarly situated millennials in most other participating Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, or OECD, nations when it comes to skills in the realms of literacy, numeracy and problem-solving in ³technology-rich environments.²
www.vox.com
Discrimination against women is a real problem in college admissions
http://www.vox.com/2015/2/17/8050259/discrimination-against-women-is-a-real-problem-in-college-admissions
Updated by Libby Nelson
Two generations ago, women were in the minority in higher education. Now they’re dominating it. In 1960, women earned 35 percent of all bachelor’s degrees. They crossed the 50 percent mark in the late 1970s and just kept going. Women now make up 59 percent of all college students. In 2011, they earned 62 percent of all associate degrees, 57 percent of all bachelor’s degrees, and 60 percent of all master’s degrees. They now even earn the majority of doctorates ‹ the last bastion of male domination in higher education. Women are so dominant, in fact, that some colleges ‹ particularly private colleges ‹ overtly or covertly give men a boost in the admissions process. If you’re hoping to be admitted to a prestigious private college that doesn’t specialize in engineering, it helps to be male.