University System News:
www.politics.blog.ajc.com
Black students may be targets of ‘unauthorized’ voter registration efforts at Kennesaw State
http://politics.blog.ajc.com/2016/09/07/kennesaw-state-warns-of-unauthorized-voter-drives/
Greg Bluestein
A sudden increase of clipboard-wielding operatives roaming Kennesaw State University’s campus could be intended to tamp down African-American balloting in November. Michael Sanseviro, Kennesaw State’s dean of students, sent a memo to students Tuesday morning, warning that “unauthorized individuals are walking around with clipboards claiming they are registering students to vote” in recent weeks. “Some of these unauthorized individuals,” the dean added, “are targeting particular student populations.” A student tipster tells us that the talk on campus is that shenanigans are afoot: The clipboard corps is targeting black students, pretending to register them so they can’t actually vote in November. A campus spokeswoman said she could only confirm that the would-be registrars were not permitted to be on campus, but the dean’s memo suggests this is a familiar problem. “We have had students in the past not be able to vote on election day because they completed a form with an unauthorized person and were never properly registered,” Sanseviro wrote. “We are committed to ensuring all eligible KSU students have the proper access and opportunity to participate in the democratic process.”
www.getschooled.blog.myajc.com
Get Schooled with Maureen Downey
Eight myths about getting into Georgia Tech: What applicants need to know
In writing about education policy for the AJC since 1997, one question from readers has become far more common: Why is it so dang hard to get into the University of Georgia and Georgia Tech? Blame two factors: The HOPE Scholarship and the increasing cost of college. As Tech and UGA became more competitive as a result of elite students remaining in Georgia because of HOPE, the colleges themselves and their national standings improved. In talking to parents, I find mythologies have developed around who gets into Tech and UGA and why. So, I sent both campuses some of the common assumptions to see how many were on the mark. And Georgia Tech responded first.
www.onlineathens.com
UGA gets new logo as fundraising campaign nears
http://onlineathens.com/mobile/2016-09-06/uga-gets-new-logo-fundraising-campaign-nears
By LEE SHEARER
The University of Georgia unveiled a new logo for its academic side after a months-long selection, design and vetting process. The new logo incorporates UGA’s iconic Arch with a shield, an element in many college and university logos across the country, and the numbers 1785 — the year UGA was chartered. It’s rendered in the school’s red and black colors above the words “The University of Georgia,” or simply, “Georgia.” The new logo comes as football season begins and as UGA officials prepare to announce the “public” phase of a major fundraising campaign.
www.wtoc.com
Savannah State cheerleader claims fan harassment during Georgia Southern football game
By Dal Cannady, Reporter
By Dawn Baker, Anchor
STATESBORO, GA (WTOC) – Georgia Southern University leaders are trying to figure out what happened during Saturday’s football game between GSU students and Savannah State cheerleaders. A Savannah State cheerleader claims Southern fans, believed to be sitting in the student seats, hurled racial slurs toward the field and that’s not all. The student posted to Facebook what she said was her worst experience. She described bottles being thrown, being called unholy names and fans using racial slurs and actions. Tuesday, Georgia Southern issued a statement that they and Savannah State were made aware of the behavior and an investigation is underway.
Higher Education News:
www.insidehighered.com
The End for ITT Tech
Following a series of federal sanctions, ITT Tech on Tuesday shut down its 130 campuses, forcing a scramble for many of the for-profit’s 43,000 students.
https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2016/09/07/itt-tech-shuts-down-all-campuses
By Ashley A. Smith
Students across ITT Technical Institutes’ 130 campuses awoke Tuesday morning to emails saying they wouldn’t be attending class anymore. After months of sanctions and years of investigations and lawsuits, ITT Educational Services — the institution’s parent company — announced it was closing all of its campuses. “Today, we know by our experience that a U.S. institution or business can be forced to shut down without proof of allegations,” said Kevin Modany, chief executive officer for ITT Educational Services, in a call with reporters. “The regulatory assault on our schools and institutions is unprecedented …. We have had no right to pursue our right to due process, and this should be concerning to all Americans.” However, the U.S. Department of Education defended its actions that led to the closure of ITT, which had been a career college operator for 50 years.
www.chronicle.com
‘Am I good enough?’ and other fears that paralyze college applicants
By Valerie Strauss
Applying to college is scary. Young people carry into the process all kinds of fears that can paralyze them, making it difficult to make good decisions and following through. In this post, Brennan Barnard looks at why it is so difficult applying to college and suggests how young people can get beyond their fears.
www.chronicle.com
What Clicks From 70,000 Courses Reveal About Student Learning
http://www.chronicle.com/article/What-Clicks-From-70000/237704
By Jeffrey R. Young
Students who frequently check their grades throughout the semester tend to get better marks than do those who look less often. That’s one of the findings from a new study by Blackboard, a company that sells course-management software to hundreds of colleges. It’s probably one of the deepest data dives ever done on student clicks on college web systems, analyzing aggregate data from 70,000 courses at 927 colleges and universities in North America during the spring 2016 semester.
www.insidehighered.com
New Federal Report on Remedial Education
The U.S. Department of Education’s National Center for Education Statistics released a new data analysis this week on U.S. college students who took remedial courses and on who completed them. The report followed first-time students for the six years from 2003-9. Among community college students, 68 percent took remedial courses, and almost half took two or more. The data showed that 40 percent of incoming students at public, four-year institutions took remedial courses, with 21 percent taking at least two.