University System News:
www.timesfreepress.com
Georgia chancellor focused on increasing colleges’ graduation rates
http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/local/story/2015/aug/31/georgichancellor-focused-increasing-colleges/322616/
by Evan Hoopfer
DALTON, Ga. — Hank Huckaby isn’t focused on increasing the number of students who attend Georgia universities and colleges. Instead, the chancellor of the University System of Georgia is focused on graduating students already enrolled or who have been to college before. “It’s estimated that there’s 1.2 million people in Georgia who had some level of college,” Huckaby said. “And we want them to come back to school and finish their degree maybe and get training in a different career. And that would be important to us and the state in being able to provide the workforce needed.” Huckaby, chancellor since 2011, spoke with the Times Free Press last week on issues affecting Georgia students, ranging from free textbooks to sexual assault prevention.
www.daltondailycitizen.com
‘There is excitement’ for DSC to grow
http://www.daltondailycitizen.com/news/there-is-excitement-for-dsc-to-grow/article_46d97adc-4ec1-11e5-965f-470929ecd443.html
By Martin Martinez
The community is poised to see Dalton State College expand, says Hank Huckaby, chancellor of the University System of Georgia. “I know that the next capital campaign is in the very early stages and that’s critical and essential,” said Huckaby. “That itself shows that there is a growing community interest here to expand the institution.” Huckaby visited the college on Friday and met with various members of the community and college leaders throughout the day. “I’m impressed with the history of Dalton State in terms of community support,” said Huckaby. Huckaby spoke with local legislators and college foundation members during his visit. He said conversations he had during the day led him to believe the community is ready for the next step when it comes to DSC’s expansion.
www.daltondailycitizen.com
Dalton State is key to community success
http://www.daltondailycitizen.com/opinion/dalton-state-is-key-to-community-success/article_40b166ae-4f81-11e5-81de-13b9942dbf1d.html
It’s rare that one finds unanimity among business leaders or elected officials. But here in Dalton there’s unanimity, or something close to it, among both groups on at least one issue: Dalton State College (DSC) is vital to the region’s future. That’s why the community stepped up with $21 million for DSC’s first capital campaign a few years ago. It’s why Dalton City Council and Dalton Parks and Recreation Commission have improved upon existing athletic facilities at Lakeshore Park and built new ones there to host intercollegiate competition, and it’s why local foundations and local businesses have contributed millions to the university over the past four decades.
And local officials have made it clear they are ready to continue that support. But being smart business people, they aren’t willing to just throw money at the school. They want to see a plan. The community wants to see a plan.
www.ajc.com
State health care plan could face big shortfall in coming years
http://www.ajc.com/news/news/state-regional-govt-politics/state-health-care-plan-could-face-big-shortfall-in/nnSK4/
James Salzer, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Two weeks after being told their premiums would decline, more than 600,000 teachers, state employees, retirees and their dependents found out Thursday their health care plan faces a major shortfall that could have major consequences. The State Health Benefit Plan is running a substantial surplus now, but Department of Community Health officials projected that it will amass a $42 million shortfall in 2016-2017 and a nearly $301 million deficit the next year. That could mean higher premiums for some members or changes in the health benefits for those on the plan. …Reese said his agency will look at recommendations made by a recent AON Hewitt audit that showed Georgia teachers, state employees and retirees were paying more for their health care than workers covered by similar government-subsidized programs in Georgia and nearby states.
www.newpittsburghcourieronline.com
Black male enrollment declines in med schools
http://newpittsburghcourieronline.com/2015/08/29/black-male-enrollment-declines-in-med-schools/
By Freddie Allen, NNPA Senior Washington Correspondent
WASHINGTON (NNPA) –The number of Black males applying to medical school is lower than it was three decades ago, raising concerns about the United States’ future ability to have health care providers be as diverse as the patients they serve, according to a new report by the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC). “No other minority group has experienced such declines,” wrote Marc Nivet, the chief diversity officer for AAMC, in a foreword for the report. …The AAMC report titled, “Altering the Course: Black Males in Medicine,” paints a stark image of the current science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) pipeline and specifically how ineffective it has been with motivating young Black males to pursue medical careers. …Even though programs like the University System of Georgia (USG) African American Male Initiative and the Student African American Brotherhood (SAAB) don’t specifically focus on steering young Black men into STEM careers, the report noted that both groups have shown promise with increasing college graduation rates for young, Black males, by cultivating culturally-sensitive, positive learning environments.
USG Institutions:
www.northwestgeorgianews.com
GHC unveils an eventful September leading up to Inauguration Installation Ceremony
http://www.northwestgeorgianews.com/rome/news/education/ghc-unveils-an-eventful-september-leading-up-to-inauguration-installation/article_94249b0e-4d8c-11e5-83bd-b3f36e404b4c.html
August – In honor of the Inauguration Installation Ceremony for Georgia Highlands College’s fourth president Donald J. Green, Ed.D., on September 18 at 10 a.m. on the Rome campus, GHC is planning a series of events leading up to the ceremony. …All of these events will culminate with the Inauguration Installation Ceremony on September 18 at 10AM on the Rome campus and the Highlands Inauguration Gala that will take place that night in President Green’s honor at 6:30PM on the Cartersville campus. Chancellor of the University System of Georgia Hank Huckaby will officially install President Green as the fourth president of Georgia Highlands College during the investiture portion of the inauguration ceremony. President Green will have been at the college for a full year, having started on September 8, 2014. Retired Regent Willis Potts will be presiding over the ceremony, and Regent Neil Pruitt will bring greetings from the Board of Regents.
www.diverseeducation.com
3 HBCU Nursing Programs Ranked in Top 15 in Eastern Region
http://diverseeducation.com/article/77555/?utm_campaign=Diverse%20Newsletter%203&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&elq=6b07d338acbd45d28bb4642bda41e00e&elqCampaignId=415&elqaid=88&elqat=1&elqTrackId=12c174618de2471f94b04400d5d909fd
by Diverse Staff
Three historically Black colleges and universities have had their nursing programs ranked among the top 15 in the Eastern region of the United States. Fayetteville State University’s program was ranked second, Winston-Salem State University’s program was ranked eighth and North Carolina Central University’s was ranked 13th by the Nurse Journal. Fayetteville State was narrowly edged out of the top spot in the region by Georgia Regents University.
www.college.usatoday.com
The top 10 engineering colleges in the U.S.
http://college.usatoday.com/2015/08/28/top-engineering-colleges/
By Carly Stockwell
Engineering is one of the highest paid degrees you can get — and it’s a popular choice for students who are interested in building and developing products, as well as for those who have a knack for math and science. The list below breaks down the top 10 places to get an engineering degree in the U.S. The list comes from College Factual and is a ranking of colleges based on their overall quality. Salary data is provided by Payscale. This is not a ranking for a specific engineering major, but an overview of how the school does overall for all the engineering degrees it offers. See this description of the methodology for more information … 2. GEORGIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY-MAIN CAMPUS — ATLANTA
www.finance.yahoo.com
People who work in tech say these are the 25 best colleges in America
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/people-tech-25-best-colleges-161737785.html
By Melissa Stanger
We recently released our seventh annual list of the 50 best colleges in America. To create this list, we asked more than 1,000 of our readers to weigh in on which schools best prepare students for success after graduation. We filtered the responses to only include people who said that they work in tech … Over 67% of survey respondents in the tech industry agreed that MIT is the best school. Stanford followed in second place with 54.7% of the vote, and Caltech came in third (48.9%). Over 69% of people who work in tech think majoring in engineering or computer science will bring college students the most success after graduation … Here are the 25 best schools according to people who work in tech: 13 (TIE). Georgia Institute of Technology 13 (TIE). Northwestern
www.edtechmagazine.com
3 Major Tech Firms Join Georgia Tech’s New IoT Research Center
The future of the Internet of Things is being charted at a new center of study.
http://www.edtechmagazine.com/higher/article/2015/08/3-major-tech-firms-join-georgia-tech-s-new-iot-research-center
by D. Frank Smith
A brain trust focused on the Internet of Things (IoT) is developing at Georgia Tech, and three international tech companies are getting in on the ground floor. If analysts are to be believed, connectivity will be the future of technology. New research from the International Data Corporation (IDC) projects that IoT spending will leap from the $655.8 billion seen in 2014 to $1.7 trillion by 2020, the same year that Gartner Inc. predicts 26 billion devices will be connected to the Internet. Georgia Tech is gathering some of the brightest minds to study the effects of the IoT and determine how to prepare for the coming onslaught of connected devices. The newly established Center for the Development and Application of Internet of Things Technologies is the star of that strategy. This month, AT&T, Samsung Electronics and AirWatch joined the center as its inaugural group of founding members.
www.radiosurvivor.com
College Radio Watch: Alum Calls for Return of KTRU’s Old FM License to Rice, WRAS Update + More News
http://www.radiosurvivor.com/2015/08/28/college-radio-watch-alum-calls-for-return-of-ktrus-old-fm-license-to-rice-wras-update-more-news/
by Jennifer Waits
WRAS-FM: A Year After Student Programming is Removed from Daytime FM (it’s still on at night!)
Earlier this week during an interview, I was asked about the latest on WRAS-FM at Georgia State University in Atlanta, Georgia. Radio Survivor readers will recall that a little over a year ago, a deal was made with Georgia Public Broadcasting (GPB). As part of that deal, the public radio group was given access to the WRAS FM signal during daytime hours, which ousted student programming to the station’s online stream. Despite vocal protests, it seems that not much has changed. The most recent news that we reported on was back in March, 2015, when students filed an appeal against the University System of Georgia Board of Regents, arguing that the school misused student activity fees in order to upgrade the WRAS signal, which is now being used largely by an outside public radio group.
www.radiotvtalk.blog.ajc.com
GPB’s partnership with GSU and WRAS one year later
http://radiotvtalk.blog.ajc.com/2015/08/27/gpbs-partnership-with-gsu-and-wras-one-year-later/
By RODNEY HO
The blindside, the outrage, the protests. What happened a little over a year ago between Georgia Public Broadcasting and Georgia State University had plenty of drama. GPB’s surprise takeover of 100 hours of Georgia State’s beloved WRAS-FM weekly airspace last year pitted a public broadcasting entity seeking an entree into the Atlanta radio market against helpless students who simply love music and radio. In exchange, GPB granted GSU access to a state-wide TV channel to produce original content and expanded intern opportunities. A year has passed. How are things going? Naturally, that assessment depends on who you are and who you ask.
www.savannahnow.com
Scientists study how rising seas will reshape Georgia coast
http://savannahnow.com/news/2015-08-30/scientists-study-how-rising-seas-will-reshape-georgia-coast
By RUSS BYNUM | Associated Press
Scientists are fine-tuning what they know about rivers and marshes flushed with saltwater by ocean tides so they can better predict how rising sea levels will reshape the Georgia coast over the next century. Studies show that rising seas are slowly flooding low-lying areas of dry land along the coast. As its waters creep inland, the Atlantic Ocean is pushing saltwater further upstream into river systems and making coastal marshes even wetter. Clark Alexander, a researcher at the University of Georgia’s Skidaway Institute of Oceanography in Savannah, and his colleagues are working on a project they hope will more accurately forecast what changes to expect from this encroaching seawater by the year 2100. What lands will vanish underwater? How much will saltwater seeping further up rivers convert or even destroy freshwater marshes? And how much of Georgia’s nearly 600 square miles of ecologically valuable salt marsh can survive the threat of being drowned by seawater?
www.savannahnow.com
GBI probes shooting death of 22-year-old Savannah State University student
http://savannahnow.com/news/2015-08-27/savannah-state-university-student-dies-thursday-night-shooting-on-campus
By Dash Coleman
As Savannah State University President Cheryl Dozier took the podium in front of Hill Hall late Friday morning, a Georgia Bureau of Investigation forensics truck was parked in front of the school’s police department. “The Savannah State University family is grieving today,” she told reporters and faculty members in the wake of the Thursday night slaying of 22-year-old student Christopher Starks on campus. “Each of our students’ lives are precious and valued. It is a sad day any time a life is taken by senseless violence, and this is a particularly sad day for the Savannah State University family.” Starks, a junior from Stone Mountain, died at Memorial University Medical Center after being shot at 9:15 p.m. during a fight in the university’s Student Union, said Cathy Sapp, the special agent in charge of the GBI’s local office. Sapp said the shooting “appears to be an isolated incident.” Whoever killed Starks is still on the loose. …Dozier said the university is assessing safety measures, and that the security of students is its top priority. She encouraged students to share their concerns with the Student Government Association and said that the administration will take its cues from their input.
www.ajc.com
Savannah State shooting revives focus on campus carry
http://www.ajc.com/news/news/campus-carry/nnStC/
Jeremy Redmon, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
he fatal shooting of a student at Savannah State University Thursday has trained fresh attention on whether guns should be allowed on college campuses in Georgia. Attempts to permit firearms at Georgia’s universities have failed in recent years under opposition from several groups, including the powerful state Board of Regents, which governs the University System of Georgia, and the Technical College System.
www.ajc.com
Georgia Tech students tied up and robbed in apartment near campus
http://www.ajc.com/news/news/crime-law/georgia-tech-students-tied-up-and-robbed-in-apartm/nnTmz/
Mike Morris, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Two Georgia Tech students were tied up and robbed early Monday by two men who entered their northwest Atlanta apartment through a door left open because of a malfunctioning air conditioner. The incident happened just before 3 a.m. at the Centennial Apartments on Lovejoy Street, a couple of blocks south of the Tech campus. “The students stated that they had the door to their apartment open due to their air conditioning not working,” Atlanta police spokeswoman Kim Jones said in an email. Jones said two men entered the apartment, one armed with a handgun.
www.wbtv.com
Albany State confident in security measures, helps students take precautions
http://www.wbtv.com/story/29912133/albany-state-confident-in-security-measures-helps-students-take-precautions
By Theo Dorsey
ALBANY, GA (WALB) – With many emergency alert stations on campus, the Albany State University Police Department believes it has the right precautions in place for students to be comfortable. Officials note that with or without a carriers license, it is illegal to carry a firearm on campus. However for those who don’t follow the rules, police chief John Fields says students that know what to do when they see anything suspicious is the key to their own safety. …He also said students and faculty are well aware of the emergency number that will alerts ASU Police.
Higher Education News:
www.insidehighered.com
Loan Servicing Recommendations Released
https://www.insidehighered.com/quicktakes/2015/08/31/loan-servicing-recommendations-released?utm_source=Inside+Higher+Ed&utm_campaign=359983168a-DNU20150831&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_1fcbc04421-359983168a-197515277
The U.S. Department of Education should largely keep its current model for student loan servicing, but officials should set higher and more consistent standards for the companies they hire to do that work, according to recommendations issued Friday by an interagency task force. The recommendations will inform the Education Department’s new contract with loan servicers that it expects to sign at some point next year.
www.wvox.com
Next time someone says students should work their way through college, show them this map
http://www.vox.com/2015/8/28/9220705/college-working-map
by Libby Nelson
Part of the reason college is so expensive now is that tuition has risen much faster than inflation. But the other reason is that wages have stagnated. The result is that working your way through college, possible in the 1970s and ’80s, is now a thing of the past. At the flagship public universities in most states, students working 20 hours a week at minimum wage would have to work for more than a year in order to afford a year’s worth of tuition, as this map from the Chronicle of Higher Education’s Sandhya Kambhampati and Meredith Myers shows:
www.chronicle.com
An Epidemic of Anguish
Overwhelmed by demand for mental-health care, colleges face conflicts in choosing how to respond
http://chronicle.com/article/An-Epidemic-of-Anguish/232721/
By Robin Wilson
Cassie Smith-Christmas and Margaret Go have something terrible in common: Both have family members who killed themselves while attending prestigious universities. In both cases, the students went to the campus counseling center before taking their own lives. But that’s where the similarity ends. …Ian and Brian’s stories demonstrate two different campus responses to troubled students. College officials won’t comment on specific cases, citing privacy laws. But R. Kelly Crace, associate vice president for health and wellness at William & Mary, says the college typically asks students to withdraw if the campus environment is deemed “too toxic” for them. Before they can return, the students must prove that they’ve received the help they needed, he says.
www.chronicle.com
Colleges Are Hard Put to Help Students in Crisis
http://chronicle.com/article/Colleges-Are-Hard-Put-to-Help/232719/?cid=cr&utm_source=cr&utm_medium=en
By Kathleen Baker
I once wrote a suicide note. I was in college, at the peak of what turned out to be a lifelong battle with depression. It was the 1980s, a time when mental-health resources were available on many campuses, but also when colleges were only beginning to understand the immensity and complexity of the need. I was fortunate: A counselor, the hall director, and the resident assistant were all there to get me the help I desperately needed. Now, nearly 30 years later, I am an administrator, on the other end of the problem — and it seems to have increased tenfold.