University System News:
www.walb.com
ASU President Art Dunning to retire
http://www.walb.com/story/36552593/asu-president-art-dunning-to-retire
By Christopher Wood, Digital Content Producer
ALBANY, GA (WALB) – Albany State University President Arthur (Art) Dunning has announced he plans to retire next year at the end of January. … Members of the school and the community are now reacting to the announcement of President Dunning leaving ASU. “He understood what business leaders wanted, he understood what the commission needed, he understands downtown, he understood downtown marketing. And I hope they can take up what he started,” said Albany City Commissioner B.J. Fletcher. Albany State also announced that Marion Fredrick will lead the search for the next president of the university.

www.douglasnow.com
SGSC SCHOOL OF NURSING BOASTS 98 PERCENT PASS RATE FOR 2017 NCLEX EXAM
http://douglasnow.com/index.php/education/item/4709-sgsc-school-of-nursing-boasts-98-percent-pass-rate-for-2017-nclex-exam
The South Georgia State College (SGSC) School of Nursing is proud to announce that its most recent graduating class scored a 98 percent pass rate on the NCLEX-RN exam administered by the National Council of State Boards of Nursing. This standardized exam is given to registered nurse graduates in order to determine whether or not they are qualified to practice entry-level nursing. Graduates are required to pass the exam before they are considered eligible for a nursing license.

www.bizjournals.com
Georgia State planning to offer courses at State Farm’s Dunwoody hub
https://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/news/2017/10/09/georgia-state-planning-to-offer-coursesat-state.html?ana=e_mc_prem&s=newsletter&ed=2017-10-10&u=xw%2BDRjRaikB6EdaliSJBWQ0ae2f198&t=1507645595&j=78964111
By Dave Williams  –  Staff Writer, Atlanta Business Chronicle
Georgia State University and State Farm Auto Insurance Co. are planning an innovative workforce development program that would convert a portion of State Farm’s Dunwoody’s hub into a college campus. The University System of Georgia Board of Regents is expected to vote Wednesday on a proposal to establish a new instructional site operated by Georgia State’s Perimeter College Division to be named the State Farm Park Center. The university would offer associate of arts and associate of science degrees at the site to allow State Farm employees to earn those two-year degrees and then transition to bachelor’s level programs.

www.mdjonline.com
KSU cheerleaders absent during anthem Saturday after kneeling week before
http://www.mdjonline.com/news/ksu-cheerleaders-absent-during-anthem-saturday-after-kneeling-week-before/article_853980f0-ad61-11e7-8580-bf0b4f96c39f.html#utm_source=mdjonline.com&utm_campaign=%2Fnewsletters%2Fheadlines%2F%3F-dc%3D1507627823&utm_medium=email&utm_content=headline
Shaddi Abusaid
A week after five Kennesaw State University cheerleaders kneeled in protest during the national anthem before a KSU home football game, the squad was noticeably absent when the anthem was played prior to Saturday’s 48-3 rout of Texas Southern. The decision to keep cheerleaders off the field until after the national anthem Saturday evening was not prompted by students taking a knee ahead of the Sept. 30 game against North Greenville, said Mike DeGeorge, the university’s assistant athletics director for communications and broadcasting. The university’s football players are not introduced at home games until after the anthem is played. KSU spokesperson Tiffany Capuano said the decision to have the cheerleaders off the field during the anthem was made as part of a suite of changes to the way the university handles games. “The decision was made to change the pregame scripting by Athletics. It is part of a number of changes that have been made by a new Athletics administration as we continue to refine and enhance the gameday atmosphere for our fans,” Capuano said.

www.ajc.com
Kennesaw State cheerleaders will continue to protest
http://www.ajc.com/news/local-education/kennesaw-state-cheerleaders-will-continue-protest/9lKb25UzWmjPpAM36YEDzO/
Eric Stirgus  The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Five Kennesaw State University cheerleaders said Tuesday they will continue to kneel to raise awareness about police brutality and other social issues. The cheerleaders knelt during the national anthem before the football team’s Sept. 30 game. KSU announced a new policy a few days later that prevents the cheerleaders from doing so. KSU administrators have said the policy doesn’t have anything to do with the cheerleaders’ actions and have told the students the policy was being considered beforehand. The cheerleaders said they knelt in the tunnel before last Saturday’s game and will continue that practice at upcoming contests, despite complaints by some that their actions are wrong. “Our passion is definitely stronger than our fear,” said Shlondra Young, a junior.

www.savannahnow.com
SSU celebrates new science buildings
http://savannahnow.com/your-good-news/2017-10-10/ssu-celebrates-new-science-buildings
Savannah State University held ribbon-cutting ceremonies Oct. 4 for two new science buildings. The proceedings began at 2 p.m. at the new sciences and technology building located on campus on North Tompkins Road. Guests heard selections from SSU’s marching band as well as remarks from Savannah State administration and professors, representatives from the architecture and construction firms, members of the Georgia legislature, University System of Georgia Regent Don Waters, and USG Chancellor Steve Wrigley, Ph.D. After the ribbon cutting, guests were given a tour of the new facility. The event continued at the new marine sciences building, 2717 Livingston Ave., at 3:30 p.m. …Today, SSU has both undergraduate and graduate degrees in marine sciences. The afternoon ended with tours of the facility and dock.

www.thebrunswicknews.com
CCGA to expand STEM education through Georgia Power donation
http://thebrunswicknews.com/news/local_news/ccga-to-expand-stem-education-through-georgia-power-donation/article_ecda0369-c1c6-56d1-90e5-9d9735a98b7b.html#utm_source=thebrunswicknews.com&utm_campaign=%2Fnewsletters%2Fheadlines%2F%3F-dc%3D1507629616&utm_medium=email&utm_content=headline
By LAUREN MCDONALD
Georgia Power donated $25,000 to College of Coastal Georgia on Friday in support of programs focused on science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education. The new multi-faceted, broad-based Georgia Power STEM Impact program at the college will fund equipment, programming and facilities for STEM instruction. “An investment in the college is an investment in the future of our community,” said Paulo Albuquerque, Brunswick-area manager for Georgia Power, in a press release. “Georgia Power welcomes the opportunity to partner with the College of Coastal Georgia to prepare the generation of professionals in the STEM fields.”

www.gwinnettdailypost.com
STEAM community activites planned for Friday in Duluth
http://www.gwinnettdailypost.com/local/steam-community-activites-planned-for-friday-in-duluth/article_1e3e1356-6287-5a0a-8939-ecf5757f98f8.html
From Staff Reports
A kid-friendly evening of education and entertainment is set for Friday as STEAM returns to downtown Duluth. Student projects from the seven schools in the Duluth cluster will showcase concepts in science, technology, engineering, art and math …STEAM provides the opportunity for Duluth students to present their Project-Based Learning work, which aligns to the schools’ first nine weeks’ curriculum. Projects are science- and math-driven, with arts and the humanities woven into each unit, and students strive to find real-world solutions to real-world challenges. …Also, Georgia Gwinnett College will host a Cryptography Treasure Hunt around Town Green; the “Mathnasium” will challenge mathematicians and remind everyone the use of math in everyday life; and Georgia State University’s Neuroscience Institute will have brain model kits available for inspection.

www.wtvm.com
CSU, MCSD forge comprehensive partnership
http://www.wtvm.com/story/36521911/csu-mcsd-forge-comprehensive-partnership
By WTVM Web Team
COLUMBUS, GA (WTVM) – Columbus State University and the Muscogee County School District are forging a partnership designed to improve the caliber of teaching and learning in the area and to better prepare local students for the workforce. A result of this partnership is a ground-breaking conference scheduled next week for educators and administrators from all levels of local education. Chief among the goals is to promote active learning techniques that incorporate soft skills desired by today’s employers. Such skills include real-world problem-solving, working well in teams, communicating effectively, and meeting professional workplace expectations. The two-day event called E3 (Engage, Equip, Energize) will involve almost 200 teachers, professors, deans, principals, and other education leaders.

www.growinggeorgia.com
National Science Foundation Funds UGA Study of Coastal Economies
http://growinggeorgia.com/news/2017/10/national-science-foundation-funds-uga-study-coastal-economies/?utm_source=eGaMorning&utm_campaign=6dd9c8a4af-eGaMorning-10_8_17&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_54a77f93dd-6dd9c8a4af-86731974&mc_cid=6dd9c8a4af&mc_eid=32a9bd3c56
Sharon Dowdy, University of Georgia
University of Georgia natural resource economist Craig Landry will use his portion of a $1.5 million grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to study how the economy and the environment are affected when humans and coastal regions commingle. “With the storm engine pumping the past few weeks, it’s as if Mother Nature is asking for us to get moving with this research,” said Landry, a professor in the UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (CAES). “My goal is to answer fundamental questions about the future of coastal habitation.” The four-year project is a team effort by researchers from UGA, the University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW), Duke University, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, The Ohio State University, East Carolina University and the University of Colorado.

www.thegeorgeanne.com
Crusading Against Concussion
How a research team at Georgia Southern is helping to shape the narrative around the enigmatic brain injury
http://www.thegeorgeanne.com/sports/article_03f9587e-60e0-5c71-bce4-a670c140688e.html
By Thomas Jilk The George-Anne staff
Speaking at a football coaches’ seminar, Nicholas Murray looked out into the audience to see sparse attendance. He knew more coaches were at the event. He knew some had decided to skip his presentation. They would rather mingle in the hallway than face an issue threatening public opinion about the safety of the South’s most coveted sport. Murray is no stranger to the concussion stigma. The Georgia Southern University kinesiology professor and director of concussion research has been confronting the effects of concussions head-on since his arrival from the University of Texas-El Paso in 2014. “A lot of people don’t want to hear it,” Murray said. “They want to ignore it, and I know people still, to this day, even at the higher levels of sport who just say ‘well, concussions are a myth.’ I’ve had coaches recently tell me that. They go ‘everything you do doesn’t really matter because it’s not real.’” But Murray understands that just because the growing field of research surrounding concussions is still in its infancy, that doesn’t mean the research isn’t real.
The team
Murray’s mind is not the only one at GS set to the task of broadening the body of knowledge concerning the effects of concussions. He is joined by other GS professors: Tamerah Hunt, Ph.D, from the athletic training program and Barry Munkasy, Ph.D, of the kinesiology department.

www.tiftongazette.com
Fulbright scholar focuses on population healthcare
http://www.tiftongazette.com/news/fulbright-scholar-focuses-on-population-healthcare/article_192ef9d6-ad1f-11e7-b70c-7b011b14d7f8.html
TIFTON – As a Fulbright Scholar, Dr. Adrian Israel Martinez-Franco is making his mark in the areas of population healthcare and rural health. In fact, he is teaching the first-ever population health class at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College this semester. Originally from Mexico City, Mexico, Martinez-Franco is no stranger to the United States. He has studied in San Antonio and Houston, Texas, and Chicago, Ill. He has also traveled to Canada, Italy, and Spain. Martinez-Franco is not new to the ABAC campus, either. In 2015, he was selected as a guest speaker during the annual Hispanic Heritage Celebration. When he was selected as a Fulbright Scholar, he chose ABAC as his place to teach and do research. The Fulbright Scholar program assists U.S. higher education institutions in expanding programs of academic exchange. By supporting non-U.S. scholars through grants for teaching at institutions that might not have a strong international component, both the U.S. institution and the Fulbright Scholar benefit. Martinez-Franco has developed a population health class as part of the community health track within the ABAC rural studies program, and it is a subject that ignites his passion for sharing his ideas in the classroom setting.

www.ajc.com
UGA freshman charged with murder, accused of crashing into Taco Bell
http://www.ajc.com/news/crime–law/uga-freshman-charged-with-murder-accused-crashing-into-taco-bell/3vrAxoxR3i9U40mMTYhfJN/
Raisa Habersham  The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
A University of Georgia student faces a murder charge after police say he crashed into a Taco Bell and killed a woman. Oliver Baylen Cope, 18, of Statesboro, also faces four counts of aggravated assault and criminal damage to property in the Sept. 28 crash, Swainsboro police Chief Randy J. Ellison said in a news release. Ellison said Cope’s Dodge Challenger crashed into the fast-food chain’s dining area, stopping short of the front counter. A child was pinned under the car, and bystanders worked with police to lift the vehicle off her, Ellison said. Five people were taken by ambulance and two others by car to Emanuel County Medical Center, Ellison said. Macy Lynn Mullis, 23, of Adrian, was pronounced dead shortly after her arrival. …Two other victims were flown to an Augusta hospital due to the severity of their injuries.

Higher Education News:
www.foxnews.com
Texas Tech shooter was too young to have gun under campus carry law, police say
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2017/10/10/texas-tech-shooter-was-too-young-to-have-gun-under-campus-carry-law-police-say.html
By Andrew O’Reilly, Fox News
A Texas law letting students carry firearms on college campuses did not contribute to the fatal shooting Monday of a Texas Tech police officer. Hollis Daniels, a 19-year-old Texas Tech student, has been charged in the killing of the police officer. Campus police brought Daniels to the campus police station after finding evidence of drugs and drug paraphernalia in his dorm room. At the station, the freshman pulled out a gun and allegedly shot an officer in the head before fleeing on foot. Daniels was later apprehended by campus police near the Lubbock Municipal Coliseum and has been charged with capital murder of a peace officer. Under Texas’ recently implemented campus carry law, Daniels was too young to even possess a handgun in the state – let alone on a college campus. Signed by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott in 2015 and going into effect in August 2016, the campus carry law mirrors state policy that stipulates that applicants for a concealed carry permit must be at least 21 years old and have no felony convictions, among other conditions. A spokesperson for Texas Tech told Fox News that information regarding how Daniels obtained the handgun or if he was searched before being taken into custody is not available. It is also unclear if Daniels had the gun on him when he was taken to the police station or if he took the weapon from an officer.