University System News:
www.gwinnettdailypost.com
GGC receives award for innovation in international education
http://www.gwinnettdailypost.com/local/ggc-receives-award-for-innovation-in-international-education/article_a5e386e1-3410-5bea-96f1-3ff8139c93c2.html
By Keith Farner
Georgia Gwinnett College officials can make room for more hardware on campus after the school was given an award for innovation in international education. School officials said GGC was one of eight colleges chosen by the Institute of International Education to be honored through its annual Andrew Heiskell Awards for Innovation in International Education. GGC announced the honor on Friday after the IIE presented the awards at a March 14 ceremony in Miami, Fla. The honor was given as part of the Best Practices in Internationalization Conference for campus professionals, held at Florida International University, a 2016 IIE Heiskell Award winner. “These are highly competitive, worldwide awards, and this is the first international recognition for GGC,” President Stas Preczewski said in a press release. “Everyone associated with the college should be proud of this remarkable achievement.”
www.accesswdun.com
Report: UNG’s Cottrell MBA among top five public programs in Georgia
http://accesswdun.com/article/2017/4/517941/ungs-cottrell-mba-named-in-top-five-public-programs-in-georgia
By AccessWDUN staff
The University of North Georgia’s Cottrell MBA program, offered on the Dahlonega and Gainesville campuses, has been ranked as the fifth-best public, part-time MBA program in Georgia by U.S. News and World Report. According to Dr. Jeremy Bennett, director of MBA programs at UNG, the Cottrell MBA, offered through the Mike Cottrell College of Business, also has the lowest cost among the top five public, part-time Georgia programs. “UNG offers relevant and engaging graduate, AACSB-accredited business education to professional students from a multitude of industries including business, healthcare, manufacturing and IT; the university’s Cottrell MBA program has been one of the best-kept secrets north of Atlanta for many years,” Bennett said. “The program continues to flourish due to the faculty, students and staff who continue to push us farther, and we do all of this as one of the lowest cost MBAs in the state.” According to U.S. News, part-time business programs play a vital role for working professionals who are unable to attend business school full time.
www.americantowns.com
VSU’s Travis Edwards and Nathalie Jaimes Win Second Place at State Debate Championship
http://www.americantowns.com/ga/valdosta/news/vsu039s-travis-edwards-and-nathalie-jaimes-win-second-place-at-state-debate-championship-28317683
From: Valdosta State University
The Valdosta State University Forensics (Speech and Debate) Team’s Travis Edwards and Nathalie Jaimes won second place at the Georgia Parliamentary Debate Association State Championship.
www.myajc.com
Feds: ‘Security researcher’ behind KSU data breach broke no federal law
http://www.myajc.com/news/state–regional-govt–politics/feds-security-researcher-behind-ksu-data-breach-broke-federal-law/0xk0VE5HNiW8uBtHd1WHEM/
By Kristina Torres – The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Federal investigators say a “security researcher” was behind a data breach at Kennesaw State University’s Center for Election Systems, and his probing of the system broke no federal law. University officials announced the finding Friday after being briefed by investigators from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, ending a monthlong probe over a potential hacking case that had raised alarms over the security of the state’s election system. In a statement, university officials acknowledged what they called “unauthorized access” to a server used by the center, which helps the state prepare elections information and has access to millions of Georgia voter records. No student data were involved in the case. They said the incident has prompted a review of the university’s digital security efforts. “We are working with experts within the University System of Georgia and a nationally renowned outside firm to validate that KSU’s systems are secured and meet best-practice standards,” KSU President Sam Olens said in the statement. “We greatly appreciate the speed and dedication of the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in helping us resolve this issue.”
www.chronicle.augusta.com
AU doctor’s work may provide clues to an early problem in cancer immunotherapy
http://chronicle.augusta.com/news/2017-04-01/au-doctor-s-work-may-provide-clues-early-problem-cancer-immunotherapy
By Tom Corwin Staff Writer
Cancer immunologist Gang Zhou likes to joke movie director George Lucas may have been telling the story of the difficulty of eradicating cancer in his Star Wars films: Evil appears, the good guys fight back and seem to win, only for evil to return stronger than ever in the next movie. Zhou of the Georgia Cancer Center at Augusta University has discovered a similar problem with some common chemotherapy – the therapy itself may be inadvertently producing cells that blunt the immune system’s response to the tumor and could even be helping it spread. He has a $1.7 million grant from the National Cancer Institute to study the problem in mice and is working with a cancer clinician to look for similar cells in human patients undergoing chemotherapy. His work may provide clues to an early problem in cancer immunotherapy, when researchers took out the killer T cells from patients and trained them to attack the tumor, only to see them fail once they were returned to the patient. Zhour ran into the same problem himself when trying to train immune cells to target tumors and then discovered why in cells called myeloid-derived suppressor cells. “We started this project only after we accidentally found that,” Zhou said. “After chemotherapy, we saw an increase of those MDSCs in our animal tumor model.” Other reports of finding those cells after chemotherapy increased his interest.
www.live5news.com
GSW committee searches for new president
http://www.live5news.com/story/35045222/gsw-committee-searches-for-new-president
By Emileigh Forrester, Anchor
A committee is still searching for someone who will play a huge role in the Americus community. Georgia Southwestern State University is looking for a new president. The presidential search committee’s chair, Dr. Samuel Peavy, said the committee is looking for someone who would help grow the University and support faculty, staff, and students. Public meetings were held over the past few weeks, giving people living in the area a chance to tell the committee what they want in a president. “Their feeling was if the University grows, we continue to add students, that will mean better opportunities for local businesses,” said Dr. Peavy. “I agree with that.” The committee hopes to have three to five candidates chosen by this summer.
www.suwanneedemocrat.com
ABAC holds Free Speech and Democracy Conference
http://www.suwanneedemocrat.com/news/ga_fl_news/abac-holds-free-speech-and-democracy-conference/article_49bc69fc-2be4-5dff-82f6-3c5fb91a167d.html
By Joshua Clements
TIFTON — In a world where people are quick to take offense and tune out of a conversation, one local professor believes something should be done and that it can start at the college level. Dr. Jay Baldwin, assistant professor of communication at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College, wrote a grant to host a Free Speech and Democracy Conference at the college. The event was held in partnership with the Institute for Humane Studies (IHS) while the John Templeton Foundation provided funding for the event. Prompted by a rise of intolerance on college campuses across the country, Baldwin felt students at ABAC and other institutions could use a dose of “classical liberalism.” He explained this as “ideas that we should all accept as the ground rules for civil discourse, regardless of political affiliation.” Courtney Derr, senior director of student programs with IHS, opened the conference by stating, “Don’t be afraid to ask challenging questions, but be civil.”
www.wmbfnews.com
ASU campus lockdown lifted after Sunday night incident
http://www.wmbfnews.com/story/35052339/asu-campus-lockdown-lifted-after-sunday-night-incident
By Emileigh Forrester, Anchor
ALBANY, GA (WALB) – A lockdown issued Sunday night on Albany State University’s East campus has been lifted. Chief John Fields said Sunday night that the lockdown lasted around 30 minutes. According to Chief Fields, several suspects were involved in breaking and entering into cars near campus, and for the safety of those on campus, a lockdown was issued. Chief Fields said two of those suspects are now in Albany Police custody, while APD is still searching for a third. However, that suspect is not believed to be on ASU’s campus.
www.politics.blog.ajc.com
Why Georgia’s governor seems likely to sign ‘campus carry’ bill
http://politics.blog.ajc.com/2017/04/02/why-georgias-governor-seems-likely-to-sign-campus-carry-bill/
Greg Bluestein
Nearly a year after Gov. Nathan Deal issued a forceful veto of legislation that would legalize guns on Georgia’s campuses, lawmakers sent a gun rights expansion into public colleges back to his desk. This time, though, he appears more likely to sign it. The campus gun bill tops the list of consequential measures waiting for Deal’s approval that map out Georgia’s budgetary blueprint, expand the state’s medical marijuana program and dole out tax breaks to special industries. …Of the legislation awaiting his signature, the campus gun measure is destined to attract the most attention. Conservatives have tried for five years to allow people with permits to carry concealed firearms on most parts of public colleges, and last year they passed a bill that would do just that. They depicted it as a public safety measure. In doing so, though, lawmakers defied Deal’s request for changes that would make exceptions to the expansion, and he issued a scathing veto of the measure. His message invoked an opinion by the late Justice Antonin Scalia that described colleges as “sanctuaries of learning where firearms have not been allowed.” This year, the governor said he was willing to reopen the debate. In a late compromise between House and Senate leaders, lawmakers approved a measure that acceded to Deal’s demands to bar guns from on-campus child care facilities, faculty and administrative office space, and disciplinary meetings. …Deal has said he is “receptive” to the bill as long as it made those changes, but he declined to comment on the measure Friday.
www.valdostadailytimes.com
Campus carry in Deal’s hands
http://www.valdostadailytimes.com/news/local_news/campus-carry-in-deal-s-hands/article_74b9b039-589f-58a5-bfbb-9e63ce45944d.html
By Jill Nolin
ATLANTA – A last-minute legislative compromise would allow handguns on the state’s public college and university campuses. The deal, approved early Friday morning, includes changes requested by Gov. Nathan Deal last year. The Republican governor vetoed a campus carry measure last year, and he has until May to decide whether to sign this one. “That’s up to him,” said House Speaker David Ralston, R-Blue Ridge, after the session concluded just before 1 a.m. Friday. Ralston noted supporters of campus carry made several concessions.
www.georgiatrend.com
Savannah|Chatham County: A Rising Tide
http://www.georgiatrend.com/April-2017/SavannahChatham-County-A-Rising-Tide/
By Randy Southerland
Savannah-Chatham County has long been one of those appealing cities you move to primarily for quality of life. In recent years, residents and newcomers alike have seen an improving economy also make it an increasingly profitable place to both live and do business. “Our real strength is the diversity of our economy,” says William Hubbard, president and CEO of the Savannah Area Chamber of Commerce. “We don’t count on any one part, so things have been rebounding for quite some time. We’re at record job growth here now.” In fact, the Savannah area economy will continue its upward trajectory into 2017 and beyond, according to the Georgia Economic Outlook forecast from the University of Georgia’s Terry College of Business and Armstrong State University’s Center for Regional Analysis. …In other local higher-ed news, the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia voted to begin the yearlong process of combining Armstrong State Unversity in Savannah with Georgia Southern University in Statesboro. The consolidation is expected to save money that can be spent on academic offerings and increase college graduation rates in southeast Georgia.
Higher Education News:
www.saportareport.com
Column: David Martin retiring from Georgia Council on Economic Education
Column: David Martin retiring from Georgia Council on Economic Education
By Maria Saporta
David Martin, executive director of the Georgia Council on Economic Education since 1982, will be retire on June 30. Mike Raymer, the associate director and chief program officer, has been tapped to succeed Martin starting July 1 – running the organization that has helped train tens of thousands of Georgia teachers by strengthening their ability to teach students economics since its founding in 1972. The Georgia Council helps teachers at both public and independent schools across the state, and Martinhas been coordinating the efforts of 12 college and university-based Centers of Economic Education.
Raymer is a former economics teacher in Fayette County (who won the 2005 Georgia Economics Teacher of the year).