University System News:
www.bizjournals.com
Gov. Deal declares state of emergency ahead of Hurricane Irma
https://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/news/2017/09/06/gov-deal-declares-state-of-emergency-ahead-of.html
Dave Williams
Staff Writer, Atlanta Business Chronicle
Gov. Nathan Deal declared a state of emergency in Georgia’s six coastal counties Wednesday in anticipation of Hurricane Irma. The order prohibits price gouging and waives rules and regulations for motor vehicles moving supplies, equipment, personnel, goods or services associated with disaster relief. “This state of emergency also ensures aid for the six counties potentially impacted by this catastrophic storm,” Deal said. “We will continue monitoring Hurricane Irma’s path in the days ahead and coordinating with our federal, state and local partners. “I urge Georgians in the affected counties to remain vigilant and be prepared.” The six coastal counties in Georgia stretch from Chatham on the north to Bryan, Liberty, McIntosh, Glynn and Camden on the south.
www.savannahnow.com
Armstrong State University campuses to close at 5 p.m. Thursday for Hurricane Irma
http://savannahnow.com/hurricane-guide/news/2017-09-06/armstrong-state-university-campuses-close-5-pm-thursday-hurricane
Armstrong State University released the following statement on Wednesday regarding closures due to the path of Hurricane Irma. “Based on the National Hurricane Center’s latest projection for Hurricane Irma, Armstrong State University’s main campus in Savannah and the Armstrong Liberty Center in Hinesville will close on Thursday, September 7 at 5 p.m.
www.savannahnow.com
Georgia Southern University to close campus in preparation for Hurricane Irma
http://savannahnow.com/news/2017-09-07/georgia-southern-university-close-campus-preparation-hurricane-irma
Based on the National Hurricane Center’s latest projection for Hurricane Irma, Georgia Southern University’s Statesboro campus will close and classes will be canceled on Friday, Sept. 8 through Tuesday, Sept. 12. Georgia Southern sponsored events are canceled Friday, Sept. 8 through Tuesday, Sept. 12. Herty Advanced Materials Development Center and the Coastal Georgia Center are closed Friday, Sept. 8 through Wednesday, Sept. 13. At this time, it is unclear when classes and normal business operations will resume. Additional information will be issued by Eagle Alert and all updates will be posted regularly on GeorgiaSouthern.edu/alert.
www.thegeorgeanne.com
University closely monitors Irma’s path
http://www.thegeorgeanne.com/news/article_fa9b8ea8-090a-5f9f-b929-7c2cfecb8e77.html
By Matthew Enfinger The George-Anne Staff
Georgia Southern University’s emergency response team continues to monitor Hurricane Irma as the Category 5 storm continues to blast its way through the islands of St. Martin and Anguilla. No decision of evacuation or cancellation of classes has been made. “We are monitoring and preparing ourselves to make decisions as soon as necessary…We will make those decisions, as soon as possible,” said President Jaimie Herbert. GS has met with members of their emergency response team. Kelly Nilsson, GS emergency response coordinator, will continue monitoring the weather and send reports on a regular basis. The emergency response team is expected to meet twice a day for the remainder of this week to make a decision of how GS will approach the approaching storm.
www.wjcl.com
Bulloch Co. and Georgia Southern prepare for Irma
http://www.wjcl.com/article/bulloch-co-and-georgia-southern-prepare-for-irma/12188500
Dave Williams
STATESBORO, GA — Bulloch County is among those keeping a close eye on Irma’s track. At the top of that list, Georgia Southern University as they look to keep their faculty and students safe. It’s business as usual right now at Georgia Southern University, as students move freely around campus on their way to and from classes. But how long will this be the case. School president, Dr. Jaimie Hebert says they are in constant communication with various agencies and haven’t put a timetable on any kind of decision about cancellation of classes. “It’s just really monitoring very closely, staying in touch with CEMA,” said Dr. Hebert. “Staying in touch with state emergency personnel and meeting a couple of times a day with our emergency team, so that we can make the decisions in a timely fashion.” One thing is for sure, once a decision is made, they will not keep anyone in the dark..
www.wjcl.com
Georgia Southern/New Hampshire football game moved to Birmingham
Hurricane Irma forces game to move to Legion Field
http://www.wjcl.com/article/georgia-southernnew-hampshire-football-game-moved-to-birmingham/12189651
Frank Sulkowski
STATESBORO, Ga. — Due to the threat of Hurricane Irma, Georgia Southern University officials have moved Saturday’s football game against the University of New Hampshire to Birmingham, Alabama. The Eagles and Wildcats will now meet at 3 p.m. (Central) on Saturday, September 9 at Legion Field in Birmingham.
www.thebrunswicknews.com
College of Coastal Georgia postpones volleyball tri-match, golf tournament
http://thebrunswicknews.com/sports/local_sports/college-of-coastal-georgia-postpones-volleyball-tri-match-golf-tournament/article_13589a29-fe89-5bc4-829e-7a509a434b6e.html#utm_source=thebrunswicknews.com&utm_campaign=%2Fnewsletters%2Fheadlines%2F%3F-dc%3D1504778405&utm_medium=email&utm_content=headline
By BUDDY HUGHES
College of Coastal Georgia has postponed some of its scheduled athletic competitions set for this weekend in the wake of Hurricane Irma. The Coastal Georgia Fall Invitational men’s and women’s golf tournaments have been rescheduled for Oct. 30-31 at Sea Island Golf Club’s retreat course. …Both tournaments have been moved to Retreat. The Coastal Georgia volleyball team has also postponed a tri-match against Florida Memorial and Johnson & Wales that was supposed to take place Saturday in Miami.
www.athensceo.com
UGA to Lead National Network for Undergraduate Research Experiences
http://athensceo.com/news/2017/09/uga-lead-national-network-undergraduate-research-experiences/?utm_source=eGaMorning&utm_campaign=98d7a07014-eGaMorning-9_7_17&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_54a77f93dd-98d7a07014-86731974&mc_cid=98d7a07014&mc_eid=32a9bd3c56
Staff Report From Athens CEO
Despite a nationwide emphasis on increasing the number of students entering science, technology, engineering and math fields, many leave the disciplines within their first two years. Now a group of institutions led by the University of Georgia will spearhead a new phase of development of a national network to support integration of research experiences into undergraduate life science lab courses. The network, called “Course-based Undergraduate Research Experiences Network,” or CUREnet, was established to broaden the availability of research opportunities for students across the U.S. Supported by a new grant from the National Science Foundation, a large network of institutions, including other institutions in the University System of Georgia and a group of historically black colleges and universities across several states in the southeast and mid-Atlantic, will work with CUREnet to reinvent their life science lab courses to engage undergraduates in research at scale.
www.getschooled.blog.myajc.com
Get Schooled with Maureen Downey
Campus carry in Georgia: Effects of guns may be concealed but they are damaging
http://getschooled.blog.myajc.com/2017/09/06/campus-carry-in-georgia-effects-of-guns-may-be-concealed-but-they-are-damaging/
Many professors on Georgia’s public campuses opposed campus carry; few were as willing as Matthew Boedy to take a public stand and spend time researching the issue. An assistant professor at the University of North Georgia, Boedy investigated the impact of campus carry lite, a law enacted in Georgia last year legalizing stun guns and Tasers on campuses. He found no reported instances of defensive use. He also looked here and here on how campus carry was working elsewhere in the country. In one such state, Utah, Boedy asked campus police chiefs from the two largest universities for reports from 2004 to 2016 of a victim using a firearm to stop a crime in progress. Neither university had a single example. …Boedy gives us a sense of how the new law is affecting him and his students. By Matthew Boedy
Higher Education News:
www.chronicle.com
A DeVos Speech on Title IX Heightens Advocates’ Fears That a Rollback Is Imminent
http://www.chronicle.com/article/A-DeVos-Speech-on-Title-IX/241108?cid=at&utm_source=at&utm_medium=en&elqTrackId=e40824be7f994737bf41974ed1475a41&elq=98291a6876b542cbad90f3671fea8c07&elqaid=15470&elqat=1&elqCampaignId=6620
By Adam Harris and Andy Thomason
On Wednesday, the U.S. Education Department confirmed that the education secretary, Betsy DeVos, would appear at George Mason University on Thursday to make a “major policy address on Title IX enforcement.” That announcement, previously reported by BuzzFeed News, heightened advocates’ fears that Ms. DeVos was poised to roll back the department’s efforts on mitigating campus sexual assault, a hallmark of the Obama years. BuzzFeed had also reported that the department’s top civil-rights official, Candice Jackson, intended to revisit the department’s 2011 “Dear Colleague” letter — a directive that laid out exactly what the government expected colleges to do to protect students from sexual violence — through a process called notice and comment.
www.insidehighered.com
DeVos Pushes New Approach on Title IX Enforcement
Education secretary will argue approach of Obama administration to handling campus-based sexual assault has failed, and says she will launch a public comment period before issuing federal regulations to replace guidance praised by many survivors’ advocates.
https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2017/09/07/devos-says-federal-title-ix-guidelines-have-%E2%80%98failed%E2%80%99-will-seek-public-input-new?utm_source=Inside%20Higher%20Ed&utm_medium=email&utm_content=breakingnews&utm_campaign=0143460511-Breaking%20News%20Update%2020170907&utm_term=0_1fcbc04421-0143460511-197515277&mc_cid=0143460511&mc_eid=8f1f949a06
By Andrew Kreighbaum
ARLINGTON, Va. — Education Secretary Betsy DeVos today will declare that an era of “rule by letter” is over and announce plans to launch a public comment period to inform new federal regulations of campus sexual assault policies. In remarks at George Mason University’s Antonin Scalia Law School, DeVos will say that the Obama administration helped elevate public discussion of the issue of sexual assault. But the secretary will also say the current federal approach has done a disservice to survivors of sexual assault, accused students and college administrators. She will not announce changes to current federal guidelines dealing with campus sexual assault, according to prepared remarks reviewed by Inside Higher Ed and a conversation with a senior department official. And she will not announce a change in the burden of proof required of colleges considering allegations of sexual assault.
www.insidehighered.com
Senate Bill Boosts Maximum Pell Grant
https://www.insidehighered.com/quicktakes/2017/09/07/senate-bill-boosts-maximum-pell-grant?utm_source=Inside+Higher+Ed&utm_campaign=b64cd21f52-DNU20170907&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_1fcbc04421-b64cd21f52-197515277&mc_cid=b64cd21f52&mc_eid=8f1f949a06
By Andrew Kreighbaum
The Senate appropriations committee will consider Thursday a spending package that boosts the maximum value of the Pell Grant by 1.7 percent, using funds from the program’s reserves. The spending package — part of a bill funding the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and related agencies — also holds steady current funding for the Federal Work-Study program and the Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants. Lawmakers also used the spending package to ensure Education Secretary Betsy DeVos doesn’t reconsider a plan to award handling of federal student loans to a single servicer — a proposal that the department abandoned after getting pushback from state-based servicers as well as Democratic and Republican elected officials. The $68.3 billion in discretionary funding for the Department of Education is $29 million above fiscal year 2017 levels.
www.insidehighered.com
ACT Scores Are Up
But gaps remain, based on levels of preparedness and by race and ethnicity.
https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2017/09/07/act-scores-are-gaps-remain-preparation-and-raceethnicity?utm_source=Inside+Higher+Ed&utm_campaign=b64cd21f52-DNU20170907&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_1fcbc04421-b64cd21f52-197515277&mc_cid=b64cd21f52&mc_eid=8f1f949a06
By Scott Jaschik
ACT scores are up this year, but the scores of black and Latino students and those who did not complete recommended college preparatory courses remain far behind those of other students. Data released today cover those who graduated from high school this year, many of whom are now enrolling in college. The College Board releases data on SAT score a little later than the ACT does, and so those statistics are not yet available. This year the average composite score on the ACT was 21.0, up from 20.8 a year ago. (The maximum score on each part of the exam, and on the composite, is 36.)
www.insidehighered.com
Democratic Attorneys General Sue to Keep DACA
https://www.insidehighered.com/quicktakes/2017/09/07/democratic-attorneys-general-sue-keep-daca?utm_source=Inside+Higher+Ed&utm_campaign=b64cd21f52-DNU20170907&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_1fcbc04421-b64cd21f52-197515277&mc_cid=b64cd21f52&mc_eid=8f1f949a06
By Elizabeth Redden
Attorneys general from 15 states and the District of Columbia — all Democrats — filed a lawsuit Wednesday seeking to stop the Trump administration’s plans to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. On Tuesday the administration announced plans to end DACA, through which about 800,000 undocumented immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children have obtained the right to work legally and protection against deportation. The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York, alleges that the revocation of DACA is motivated specifically by anti-Mexican bias and that it violates due process rights. The attorneys general allege that the revocation of DACA will damage their states’ economies by reducing the tax base and disrupting companies that employ DACA recipients, and that it will harm state institutions, including public colleges and universities that enroll students with DACA status.