University System News:
www.gwinnettdailypost.com
GGC’s nursing program had 100 percent pass rate on nursing licensure exam in spring 2017
http://www.gwinnettdailypost.com/local/ggc-s-nursing-program-had-percent-pass-rate-on-nursing/article_a1b80e0d-2a12-5b96-aa27-6b2890debeae.html
By Curt Yeomans
Georgia Gwinnett College’s 2-year-old nursing bachelor’s degree program has achieved a new accomplishment that officials are boasting about. The college announced all of the program’s spring 2017 bachelor degree graduates passed the National Council Licensure Examination on their first try. Passage of the examination is required of a nursing student to become a licensed registered nurse. The college said this year’s national first-time pass rate average on the exam is 88 percent.

www.accesswdun.com
UNG nursing program ranked among best 50 in the nation
http://accesswdun.com/article/2017/9/588160/ung-nursing-program-ranked-among-best-50-in-the-nation
By AccessWDUN Staff
For the second straight year, the University of North Georgia (UNG) has placed in the top 50 of best online Registered Nurse (RN) to Bachelor of Science in nursing (BSN) degree programs in the nation by the online journal College Choice. The rankings counted a number of factors, including program accreditation, national reputation, cost of tuition and early career salary levels of program graduates, according to information released this week by the university. A composite score was computed by balancing academic excellence with earnings based on a return on investment.

www.albanyherald.com
Albany State’s Antonio Leroy, CAAM changing lives
Center for the African American Male has positive impact on young black men
http://www.albanyherald.com/news/local/education/albany-state-s-antonio-leroy-caam-changing-lives/article_6b16c5a2-2b61-514e-9bb0-564fb22881c8.html#utm_source=albanyherald.com&utm_campaign=%2Fnewsletters%2Fheadlines%2F%3F-dc%3D1506859214&utm_medium=email&utm_content=headline
By Danyelle Gary
ALBANY – As a freshmen at Monroe Comprehensive High School, Theodore Harold admits that he preferred to stay to himself. Now a freshmen at Albany State University, Harold’s outlook has completely changed – thanks in large part to the Center for the African American Male. Harold, along with 34 other young men in the Albany area, joined the first cohort of students directly engaged with ASU’s CAAM from ninth to 12th grade. This first cohort brings to light the impact of the program on young black males from the beginning of their high school journey to graduation. After graduating high school in May 2017, 23 students from the cohort enrolled as college freshmen and six pursued military careers. Nine students committed to ASU and received CAAM scholarships ranging from $500 to $1,500. “CAAM opened my mind to a lot of things that I didn’t even know about to get me prepared for the real world after graduating high school,” Harold said. “CAAM prepared me for life.”

www.coastalcourier.com
GSU planning business incubator here
http://coastalcourier.com/section/12/article/88746/
By Tiffany King
It will be a beginning for Georgia Southern University in January as the merge of Armstrong State University into GSU reaches its final stages. Jaimie Herbert, president of Georgia Southern, and Jennifer Frum, interim president of Armstrong, addressed gathered business and local leaders about the consolidation at an Eggs and Issue Breakfast Wednesday. Frum, who became interim June 5, said she was especially proud of Armstrong’s presence in Hinesville.

www.tigersroar.com
Savannah State to host ribbon-cutting at new buildings
http://www.tigersroar.com/news/article_6729019c-a52f-11e7-8c17-97c02274793e.html
Ceres Hitchcock
The newly constructed science buildings at Savannah State University are getting ready to open to the public. The university will hold two ribbon-cutting ceremonies on Wednesday, Oct. 4. The first event will begin at 2 p.m. at the Science and Technology Center, located on campus on North Tompkins Road. The second event will continue at the Marine Science Building, located at 2717 Livingston Avenue, at 3:30 p.m. followed by refreshments. The institution expects University System of Georgia (USG) Chancellor Steve Wrigley, Georgia State Representative Mickey Stephens, and Georgia Senator Lester Jackson, to be in attendance. The university has been working on this blueprint for about two years, according to Loretta Heyward, vice president of marketing and communications.

www.thebrunswicknews.com
CCGA president makes tough calls, learns lessons during hurricane evacuation
http://thebrunswicknews.com/news/local_news/ccga-president-makes-tough-calls-learns-lessons-during-hurricane-evacuation/article_77f7a4dc-e0eb-593a-9582-12e3b693efc3.html#utm_source=thebrunswicknews.com&utm_campaign=%2Fnewsletters%2Fheadlines%2F%3F-dc%3D1506938460&utm_medium=email&utm_content=headline
By LAUREN MCDONALD
Responding to a hurricane requires a community effort, as College of Coastal Georgia president Meg Amstutz saw firsthand during Hurricane Irma. Amstutz had to make some tough choices before and during the week-long county evacuation for the hurricane, which hit the Golden Isles on Sept. 11. And through that experience, she said she learned many lessons that will influence how such a situation is handled in the future.

www.ajc.com
Georgia needs program that helps college students facing financial pressure, group says
http://www.ajc.com/news/local-education/georgia-needs-program-that-helps-college-students-facing-financial-pressure-group-says/ETgmoffcQDNM7M9uv4NhQO/
Eric Stirgus
Georgia should create a needs-based grant program to assist low-income college students with financial challenges, an organization said in a report released Thursday. The Georgia Budget & Policy Institute said Georgia is one of only two states that does not offer state aid programs weighted to financial need. …The institute found the average net price of attending a campus in the University System of Georgia was higher in recent years for students whose families have annual salaries less than $30,000. The cost rose by 32 percent for that income bracket between the 2009-10 school year and the 2014-15 school year, the institute reported.

www.thegeorgeanne.com
Study Abroad fair showcases opportunities for students
http://www.thegeorgeanne.com/news/article_eaaa9556-6434-514c-8de2-b4fccb4e300e.html
George Andersen The George-Anne staff
Georgia Southern University will host its annual study abroad fair, a chance for students to learn about opportunities to study abroad through GS and other University System of Georgia programs. The fair will be held in the Russell Union Ballroom on Monday, Oct. 2 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Program directors from GS and other University System of Georgia schools, as well as the financial aid department, will be available at the fair to talk with students about planning and financing a study abroad trip, according to the entry in the GS public events calendar. Past students who studied abroad in a variety of countries will be at the fair to give insight on what is to be expected.

www.onlineathens.com
UGA to join Great Promise Partnership for at-risk high school students
http://onlineathens.com/local-news/business/2017-09-29/uga-join-great-promise-partnership-risk-high-school-students
By Lee Shearer
The University of Georgia is joining the state Great Promise Partnership, a public-private partnership that offers at-risk high school students a chance to get work experience while they’re still in school. Students are paired with mentors in the program, which aims to teach not only specific job skills but so-called soft-skills, such as punctuality, time management and teamwork on the job. The young participants can earn both pay and academic credit. “It’s kind of like a dangling carrot,” said Johnelle Simpson, who coordinates work-based learning programs, including the Great Promise Partnership, through the Clarke County School District. Students must be 16 and identified by high school counsels as at-risk of not graduating for a variety of reason. UGA’s decision came after UGA president Jere Morehead invited a number of community leaders to the campus this spring in a meeting focused on economic development and education, according to UGA’s announcement.

www.13wmaz.com
After 40 years, Central Ga. man finally lands dream job as air show pilot
http://www.13wmaz.com/news/local/after-40-years-central-ga-man-finally-lands-dream-job-as-air-show-pilot/479833902
Nicole Butler, WMAZ
Middle Georgia State University’s 3rd annual Heart of Georgia Airshow took off in Eastman on Saturday. Eight airshow acts took to the skies to show how their tricks are reaching new heights. …Middle Georgia State University has about 448 students in their school of aviation and it’s continuing to grow. Many students said it was inspiring to watch all 8 acts take to the skies and think one day they’ll be up there too.

www.albanyherald.com
President Jimmy Carter lauds his Southwest Georgia roots
Decades since leaving the White House, 39th president has not forgotten where he came from
http://www.albanyherald.com/news/local/president-jimmy-carter-lauds-his-southwest-georgia-roots/article_a291907f-0a6d-5622-a481-049ca3cf55aa.html#utm_source=albanyherald.com&utm_campaign=%2Fnewsletters%2Fheadlines%2F%3F-dc%3D1506859214&utm_medium=email&utm_content=headline
By Jennifer Parks
AMERICUS — Someone with experience that includes time as Georgia’s governor, a four-year term as the nation’s commander-in-chief and recognition as a Nobel laureate has to start somewhere. In the case of many, it begins with an education.Former President Jimmy Carter gives much credit for his achievements to the institution that is now known as Georgia Southwestern State University. Seventy-five years after his time at the college, even as he celebrated his 93rd birthday, Carter said that he maintains strong pride in his heritage. “I am very proud of Georgia Southwestern and the progress it has made,” he said in a ceremony held there last month in his honor. “This is where I got my start, and I have always loved this place.”

www.chronicle.com
Inside the Free-Speech Case That Caught Jeff Sessions’ Eye
http://www.chronicle.com/article/Inside-the-Free-Speech-Case/241333?cid=at&utm_source=at&utm_medium=en&elqTrackId=b3cc59b83c254ab38326e35ad8b689b1&elq=a3296c60b81449d58f822e78fc82f0f5&elqaid=15856&elqat=1&elqCampaignId=6819
By Eric Kelderman
In his speech at Georgetown University this week, Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced that the Trump administration would begin intervening in public colleges’ handling of disputes over free speech. And first on the administration’s agenda is a lawsuit against Georgia Gwinnett College, a public regional institution that enrolls about 12,000 undergraduates in Lawrenceville, Ga., about 30 miles from Atlanta. The Justice Department has filed a brief supporting the complaint of a student who is suing the college over his claim that its policies and practices prevented him from religious proselytizing on campus. The Alliance Defending Freedom, a conservative advocacy group, is representing the student in court. While other campus conflicts have captured nationwide attention in recent weeks, the Georgia Gwinnett case focuses on basic principles of both free speech and religious expression. With its filing, the Justice Department is staking out the argument that campuses cannot fulfill their core mission if they try to protect students from controversial ideas, even those that may offend some on campus. In a statement announcing the filing, Mr. Sessions said a “national recommitment to free speech on campus and to ensuring First Amendment rights is long overdue. Which is why, starting today, the Department of Justice will do its part in this struggle.”

Higher Education News:
www.insidehighered.com
A ‘New Normal’ in STEM Teaching?
AAU wanted to improve science education beyond an instructor-by-instructor basis. Five years on, a major initiative piloted on eight campuses seems to be working.
https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2017/10/02/aau-reports-efforts-improve-science-teaching-research-universities
By Colleen Flaherty
Science instructors increasingly are moving beyond the lecture to more innovative — and effective — teaching methods. But professors with a taste for change often enact it alone, as their colleagues continue to lecture. The Association of American Universities wants to change that. In 2011, it launched its Undergraduate STEM Initiative to encourage systemic reforms to science education to improve teaching and learning, especially in first- and second-year courses. Early feedback was promising, and AAU is this week releasing a formal five-year status report detailing progress at eight project sites: Brown University; Michigan State University; the University of Arizona; the University of California, Davis; the University of Colorado at Boulder; the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; the University of Pennsylvania and Washington University in St. Louis.

www.insidehighered.com
Survey: Study Abroad as Tool to Land Jobs
https://www.insidehighered.com/quicktakes/2017/10/02/survey-study-abroad-tool-land-jobs?utm_source=Inside+Higher+Ed&utm_campaign=05465aee86-DNU20171002&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_1fcbc04421-05465aee86-197515277&mc_cid=05465aee86&mc_eid=8f1f949a06
By Elizabeth Redden
More than half (53.3 percent) of alumni of study abroad programs say they believe their study abroad experience contributed to them receiving a job offer, according to a survey on the relationship between study abroad and career outcomes published today by the Institute of International Education. The majority of those surveyed (78 percent) said they had discussed studying abroad in a job interview. The survey asked alumni to what degree they felt their study abroad experience contributed to the development of 15 skills valued by many employers. A large majority of students (more than 70 percent) reported that studying abroad helped them, to a significant degree, to develop intercultural skills, flexibility/adaptability, self-awareness, curiosity and confidence. Closer to half — ranging from about 45 to 57 percent — of students reported that study abroad helped them develop, to a significant degree, tolerance for ambiguity, problem-solving skills, language skills, course major knowledge, interpersonal skills and communication skills.