University System News:
www.myajc.com
Cobb native named the best student engineer in all of Georgia
http://www.myajc.com/news/local/cobb-native-named-the-best-student-engineer-all-georgia/cgZzGjwhshTyVAaeYHPynO/
By Ben Brasch – The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Chloe Enix started racing wooden cars in middle school and now she’s been named the state’s best engineering student by the Georgia Society of Professional Engineers. The Marietta native enrolled in Southern Polytechnic State University, now Kennesaw State University, and studies civil engineering. “I am so honored to have been chosen out of the many deserving students,” she said, according to a KSU news release. “The award means I’m making a difference. Rather than settling, this award pushes me to do more.”
www.ledger-enquirer.com
Columbus State accelerates partnership with Columbus Scholars
http://www.ledger-enquirer.com/news/local/education/article188048024.html
BY MARK RICE
Eight years ago, when a group of community leaders created the Columbus Scholars, a program that invests time, talent and treasure in underprivileged youth whose high potential is at risk of being overlooked, Tim Mescon, then the president of Columbus State University, guaranteed one of the seven selected fifth-graders a $10,000 scholarship if he or she completed the program’s requirements, qualified for CSU and wanted to attend. Lo and behold, two of those original Columbus Scholars became CSU freshmen this year, so Mescon’s successor, CSU president Chris Markwood, doubled down on the university’s commitment. “We had two candidates so deserving,” Markwood said in an interview with the Ledger-Enquirer, “so we did both.” …And if Markwood’s hope comes to fruition, they will celebrate even more CSU scholarships for Columbus Scholars in succeeding years. “What we want to talk about is how we can continue to grow this commitment in the future,” Markwood said.
www.bizjournals.com
Business leaders launch ‘goBeyondProfit’ to promote giving back
https://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/news/2017/12/01/business-leaders-launch-gobeyondprofit-to-promote.html
By Maria Saporta – Contributing Writer, Atlanta Business Chronicle
A new initiative by civic-minded business leaders is being launched Dec. 1 as a way to make corporate generosity more visible and encourage other companies to give back to communities. The goBeyondProfit initiative was founded by Jackson Healthcare, and a dozen or more business ambassadors have joined the effort to encourage business owners and company leaders to sigh the goBeyondProfit pledge. Already more than 50 Georgia companies have signed the pledge, and the goal is to have 300 on board by next spring, according to Rick Jackson, chairman and CEO of Jackson Healthcare, which is spearheading the effort and covering all the expenses of the initiative. An executive director, Megan McCaney, already is on board. …Already, goBeyondProfit has attracted an influential list of inaugural ambassadors: Juanita P. Baranco, executive vice president and chief operating officer of the Baranco Automotive Group; …Paul Bowers, chairman, president and CEO of Georgia Power Co.;
…
ARCS scholarships
The Atlanta Chapter of ARCS Foundation has honored 53 young scientists with awards totaling $385,000 at its 26th annual Achievement Awards for College Scientists luncheon on Nov. 16 at the Ritz-Carlton Atlanta. ARCS Foundation Atlanta provides awards to outstanding students in science, engineering and medical research at Emory University, Georgia Tech, Morehouse College and The University of Georgia. Since its founding in 1992, ARCS Atlanta has given more than $4.9 million in Georgia to support graduate and undergraduate research across a wide range of STEM fields.
www.gwinnettdailypost.com
Peach State Federal Credit Union to award more than $158,000 in grants and scholarships
http://www.gwinnettdailypost.com/local/peach-state-federal-credit-union-to-award-more-than-in/article_abd70245-f65b-55d2-aab7-c3acf479cb47.html
Staff Writer
Peach State Federal Credit Union is currently accepting applications for its 2018 scholarship program. The credit union will award more than $158,000 in scholarships and educational grants to seniors in high school and professionals seeking career advancement. The program was established to honor Peach State’s founders, past and present board members and employees, as well as the lifetime achievements of several notable school system and community leaders. This year there will be four new scholarships, including a student scholarship created to honor Dr. Frances Davis, Associate Superintendent of District Performance and Community Engagement at Gwinnett County Public Schools, for more than two decades of service on Peach State’s Board of Directors. It will be awarded to a graduating senior pursuing a degree in education who is currently enrolled in Gwinnett County Public Schools. …There will also be an additional $62,000 in educational grants and scholarships for students at Athens Technical College, Georgia Gwinnett College, Gwinnett County Public Schools, Gwinnett Technical College and the University of North Georgia.
www.onlineathens.com
UGA, U.S. Army Cyber Command look to partner
http://onlineathens.com/local-news/2017-12-04/uga-us-army-cyber-command-look-partner
By Lee Shearer
The University of Georgia and the U.S. Army’s Cybersecurity Command could soon be exchanging students and workers, according to a civilian Army official. Ronald Pontius, deputy to the commanding general of the U.S. Army Cyber Command, said the command would take up University of Georgia Vice President for Research David Lee’s offer during a UGA conference on informatics, or big data. “I say to all prospective partners, UGA is open for business,” Lee told a crowd of about 100 academics, private industry representatives and students in last week’s “Advancing Informatics in Government and Industry” at the Georgia Center for Continuing Education. “We’re open for business and looking to build a partnership with the University of Georgia,” said Pontius, suggesting internships, research projects and young Cyber Command workers studying at UGA, among other possible collaborations.
Higher Education News:
www.chronicle.com
Passage of Senate Tax-Reform Bill Leaves Colleges Scrambling
https://www.chronicle.com/article/Passage-of-Senate-Tax-Reform/241962
By Adam Harris, Eric Kelderman, and Andy Thomason
college leaders are bracing for major changes in the nation’s tax code that could weaken their financial footing by undermining charitable giving and placing new tax burdens on institutions with valuable endowments. College leaders spoke out in near uniformity against the Republican lawmakers’ plans, which received a major boost over the weekend. “At a time when our economy is demanding more education for more of our citizens, we cannot erect new barriers for the millions of Americans who need affordable higher education,” wrote Margaret Spellings, president of the University of North Carolina system and a former education secretary, under President George W. Bush. If the main goal of the tax bills is to spur economic activity, said Marjorie Hass, president of Rhodes College, in Tennessee, then Congress would better accomplish that goal by investing in colleges and universities. “It’s very disappointing that higher education is not being seen as an important aspect of growing the economy,” she said. The U.S. Senate passed its version of the tax changes early Saturday morning. Its bill, which would lower the corporate tax rate from 35 percent to 20 percent, could add a trillion dollars to the federal deficit over the next decade, according to an analysis by Congress’s Joint Committee on Taxation. Only one Republican, Sen. Bob Corker of Tennessee, voted against the bill, along with all 48 of the chamber’s Democrats.
www.washingtonpost.com
GOP higher ed plan would end student loan forgiveness in repayment program, overhaul federal financial aid
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/grade-point/wp/2017/12/01/gop-higher-ed-plan-would-end-student-loan-forgiveness-in-repayment-program-overhaul-federal-financial-aid/?utm_term=.553c0e3b6cf5
By Danielle Douglas-Gabriel
House Republicans on Friday proposed a sweeping overhaul of a federal law that governs almost every aspect of higher education, a plan that would eliminate some popular student aid programs and impose restrictions on others. The legislation seeks to reshape higher education by limiting the federal role in a way that Republicans say will make colleges and universities more responsive to the needs of employers, while reducing taxpayers’ stake in the financing of education. The bill is the first significant step in the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act of 1965, and some provisions are already being met with resistance. House Republicans want to whittle the suite of eight student loan repayment plans down to two: one standard 10-year plan and one income-based plan. As it stands, people can opt to have their monthly loan payment capped to a percentage of their earnings, with the remaining balance of the debt forgiven after 20 to 25 years. The House plan would eliminate that loan forgiveness, but cap the interest payments on the loan after 10 years.