University System News:
www.albanyherald.com
Vice Chancellor Marion Fedrick named interim president at Albany State University
Fedrick will assume post after ASU President Art Dunning steps down Jan. 31
http://www.albanyherald.com/news/local/vice-chancellor-marion-fedrick-named-interim-president-at-albany-state/article_70cad181-c933-5283-b7b6-887f33ff0651.html#utm_source=albanyherald.com&utm_campaign=%2Fnews%2Flocal%2Fvice-chancellor-marion-fedrick-named-interim-president-at-albany-state%2Farticle-70cad181-c933-5283-b7b6-887f33ff0651.html%3Fmode%3Demail%26-dc%3D1515776027&utm_medium=auto%20alert%20email&utm_content=headline
By Terry Lewis
ALBANY — University System of Georgia Vice Chancellor Marion Fedrick has been named interim president of Albany State University effective Feb. 1. She will replace outgoing ASU President Art Dunning, who is stepping down on Jan. 31. In late October, Dunning announced his retirement plans. The USG began pouring resources into Albany in an attempt to help a university still coping with the consolidation with the former Darton State College. Fedrick was assigned to ASU to conduct a management review. As USG Vice Chancellor for Human Resources, Fedrick said the review was to cover all aspects and departments at Albany State. “Marion has done an outstanding job leading the institution’s transition and a team of representatives from Albany State and the University System of Georgia,” Chancellor Stephen Wrigley said today. “Marion has been instrumental in the launch of special initiatives focused on the needs of students and the regional workforce, and I am excited about the progress being made. “On behalf of the University System, I want to thank Marion for her leadership and her commitment to ensuring Albany State University is positioned for long-term success.”
www.walb.com
New ASU interim president announced
http://www.walb.com/story/37253837/new-asu-interim-president-announced
By Dave Miller, Digital Executive Producer
ALBANY, GA (WALB) -The University System of Georgia announced Friday that Chancellor Steve Wrigley has named Marion Fedrick interim president of Albany State University, effective February 1. She replaces President Art Dunning, who previously announced his plans to retire effective Jan. 31, 2018. Fedrick has been serving as the interim executive vice president of Albany State University since October.
www.cbs46.com
Board of Regents addresses KSU and Olens departure
http://www.cbs46.com/story/37248128/board-of-regents-addresses-ksu-and-olens-departure
By Jonathan Carlson, Chief Investigative
University System Chancellor Dr. Steve Wrigley telling us today KSU president Sam Olens wasn’t forced out, rather, there was a mutual agreement it wasn’t the right fit. The Board of Regents meeting for the first time today since Olens’ resignation. And for the first time—answered on camera questions. Such as, why was Olens not fired immediately after it was clear he may have violated first amendment rights? “The Chancellor had a direct conversation with the President,” said Vice Chancellor Charles Sutlive in an interview. “Obviously there are some things that are personnel matters. Olens announced his plans to step down.” In other words; he made the decision easy. Late last year, a state review found Olens disregarded the university system’s directives on how to handle the first amendment battle involving kneeling cheerleaders. “That in itself was fairly unique,” says Sutlive. Meaning, the special review, speaks for itself and the anger the board had for what transpired.
www.times-georgian.com
UWG unveils plans for new student health center
http://www.times-georgian.com/news/local/uwg-unveils-plans-for-new-student-health-center/article_a27143fa-f754-11e7-96b0-9392ee53c5eb.html
The University of West Georgia unveiled plans Thursday for a new, state-of-the-art student health center that, when built through a partnership with Tanner Health System, will allow the university to better serve students with no increase in mandatory health fees. The University System of Georgia’s Board of Regents on Thursday approved construction of the 14,500-square-foot, $4 million facility, which will provide more than twice the usable space as UWG’s current health services building. The number of exam rooms will double from eight to 16 and the building will house a medical lab and pharmacy, as well as wellness and advocacy services.
www.bizjournals.com
Big chunk of new Georgia budget would go to teacher pensions
https://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/news/2018/01/11/big-chunk-of-new-georgia-budget-would-go-to.html
By Dave Williams – Staff Writer, Atlanta Business Chronicle
A huge commitment to keeping the Georgia’s Teachers’ Retirement System (TRS) solvent will make for a tight budget year in fiscal 2019. A $26.0 billion budget request Gov. Nathan Deal released Thursday, $1 billion more than the fiscal 2018 spending plan the General Assembly adopted last spring, includes a $361.7 million increase in state payments to the TRS. “As long as we require this rich of a program, we will always be required to shore it up,” Chris Riley, Deal’s chief of staff, told reporters during a briefing on the governor’s spending recommendations. “It’s one of the things the three bond [rating] agencies take into account.” With such a large commitment to the TRS, Deal is not asking the General Assembly for pay raises for teachers and state employees during the fiscal year starting July 1. Those workers received 3 percent across-the-board increases this year. …One agency that does stand to benefit from the proposed budget is the University System of Georgia. The 2019 bond package includes a robust $266.7 million for building projects at the state’s public colleges and universities.
www.newswise.com
Kennesaw State Researchers Use Artificial Intelligence to Study Collision-Prone Roadways
http://www.newswise.com/articles/view/687825/?sc=rsla
Could a traffic agency identify a potentially dangerous road intersection without first witnessing a collision? Three Kennesaw State University researchers and the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) are attempting to answer that question as they near completion on a two-year proof-of-concept study to develop an image-based system for monitoring and assessing the safety of intersections. The project, which began in January 2015 and is supported by $180,000 grant from GDOT, is led by Jidong Yang, assistant professor of civil engineering and director of Kennesaw State’s Georgia Pavement and Traffic Research Center; Ying Wang, associate professor of mechatronics engineering; and Chih-Cheng Hung, professor of computer science. Together, they’re developing a software package that uses cameras currently installed at major intersections to extract traffic data in real-time. The data is then logged in a cloud-based database, which can then be used to help GDOT detect, analyze and correct any potential issues that could lead to vehicle accidents.
www.usnews.com
Op-Ed: STEM Education Needs More Shop Floors
Would-be manufacturing workers find real-world training and mentoring boost their career choices.
https://www.usnews.com/news/maker-cities/articles/2018-01-11/op-ed-stem-education-needs-more-shop-floors
By Johnny Magdaleno and Lee Wellington
When John Walsh started his first year at Northern Michigan University, he had his heart set on graduating with the perfect set of skills to become a mechanical engineer. But as he investigated the many fields associated with that career choice, Walsh, now 23, was struck by the demand for workers in another industry… When federal offices look to the types of examples they’d like to scale with this support, they watch partnerships like the Georgia Tech Manufacturing Institute. Housed within the Georgia Institute of Technology, GTMI churns out Masters and Ph.D. students in advanced manufacturing fields, while also acting as a research center. They partner with regional institutions such as the Georgia Manufacturing Extension Partnership, the Technology Association of Georgia Manufacturing Society and the Technical College System of Georgia. But a state grant from Georgia Economic Development recently upped their training capacity, and now they’re courting major industry partners who see GTMI as ground zero for future advanced manufacturing talent.
www.wsbradio.com
‘PEDESTRIAN SCRAMBLE’ AIMS FOR SAFETY BETWEEN VEHICLES AND PEDESTRIANS
http://www.wsbradio.com/news/local/pedestrian-scramble-aims-for-safety-between-vehicles-and-pedestrians/nCRzrDAwO5eeeoeoXwkvdI/
By: Edgar Treiguts WSB Radio
It’s called a pedestrian scramble, and the newest is in Midtown on the Georgia Tech campus. “You can cross in any direction at 5th and Spring, to include diagonally, says Tech police officer William Rackley. He’s describing one of the newest ways traffic engineers hope will significantly cut-down on accidents between vehicles, and pedestrians/cyclists. ”For 15 seconds, pedestrians cross diagonally at every corner at the intersection. And then after that time frame has elapsed, we’ll let the traffic light cycle,” says Rackley. The intersection design is intended to allow vehicles to make turns without delays from pedestrians; in turn, those on foot would not be in danger of getting hit by a vehicle trying to turn.
Higher Education News:
www.chronicle.com
University Presidents Call on Congress to Find ‘Narrowly Tailored Solution’ for Dreamers
https://www.chronicle.com/article/University-Presidents-Call-on/242215?cid=at&utm_source=at&utm_medium=en&elqTrackId=23f1989e09cd4a9c939606005086110d&elq=d2efb3c16ad34015b7ff42cdac128d10&elqaid=17422&elqat=1&elqCampaignId=7620
By Andy Thomason
A group representing the top executives of more than 200 colleges wrote to Congressional leaders on Thursday asking for a “narrowly tailored solution” to the possible lapsing of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. The action comes as the program, which shields some undocumented immigrants who were brought to the United States illegally as children, may be scrapped by the Trump administration. President Trump on September 5 ordered that DACA be rescinded in six months — March 5, if Congress takes no action to enshrine the program in law. “Changes to immigration laws that more properly belong in a comprehensive immigration reform measure deserve more thoughtful deliberation, consideration and negotiation than are feasible in the rapidly closing window of time available to address this problem,” reads the letter, in part.
www.thehill.com
We can help more college students graduate — at lower cost
BY JOHN BRIDGELAND AND JAMES KVAAL
For generations, top colleges and universities in the U.S. have been defined by their selectivity and cost. Colleges climb the U.S. News rankings by turning away more students and spending more money — even as our nation needs more graduates at lower cost. Some colleges and universities have found ways to help students learn more and graduate more quickly. Often these ideas have little or no additional ongoing costs or that — by retaining tuition-paying students — generate offsetting revenue. The challenge is to put such lessons to work across the nation.
www.hechingerreport.org
Most Americans say U.S. STEM education is middling, new poll finds
Efforts to get more women and minorities into high-wage STEM jobs have yet to yield big results
Most Americans say U.S. STEM education is middling, new poll finds
by CAROLINE PRESTON
One of the biggest education priorities of recent years has been readying more young people for the job-friendly fields of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). In 2006, President Bush announced the “American Competitiveness Initiative” to strengthen science-and-tech education in the name of advancing innovation. Three years later, President Obama unveiled a program to train 100,000 new STEM teachers and attract more girls and minorities to the fields. Getting kids into STEM has been embraced by interests as varied as Microsoft, the Girl Scouts and David Koch. But many Americans still harbor concerns about the quality of STEM education in the U.S. and see it as “middling” compared with that of other advanced nations, according to a new poll released today by the Pew Research Center. Of the nearly 5,000 people surveyed last summer, most said they thought K-12 public schools do a good job teaching basic reading, writing and math (61 percent) and preparing students for college (59 percent). But only one quarter of Americans (25 percent) said they thought K-12 STEM education was the best in the world or above average compared with other advanced countries. Just 13 percent of those with a postgraduate degree in STEM rated K-12 STEM education as above average.