University System News:
www.onlineathens.com
Zell Miller left a legacy of HOPE
http://www.onlineathens.com/news/20180826/zell-miller-left-legacy-of-hope
By Aaron Hale
Zell Miller must have learned some of his tough, independent spirit from his mother, Birdie. After all, she built the family house, which still stands today, with stones she carried from a nearby creek. As governor of Georgia, Miller exhibited a similar drive and tenacity when he fought to ensure the creation of the HOPE Scholarship, his lasting legacy that has benefited millions of students across the state and beyond. The HOPE Scholarship is funded by Georgia’s lottery, which was a highly contentious idea when it was proposed. Sept. 1 marks the 25th anniversary of the awarding of the first HOPE Scholarship. Since its inception in 1993, HOPE has become a model for scholarships in seven other states, including South Carolina, Tennessee and Florida, and was the inspiration for a federal education tax credit. “It’s something that families and parents can see and touch and understand,” Miller told The New York Times in 1996. “When families sit around the kitchen table … they’re talking about things like whether they can afford to send Junior to college.” Miller died in March 2018 at the age of 86, just a few months before the milestone anniversary of HOPE. Three former presidents spoke at his funeral: Jimmy Carter
www.thegeorgeanne.com
Nickel addresses plans for GS’ future in Fall 2018 convocation speech
http://www.thegeorgeanne.com/news/article_91a05942-c4cf-59db-b59e-c34ec78fd8b6.html
By Rachel Adams, The George-Anne staff
Interim President Shelley Nickel addressed upcoming changes for the future of Georgia Southern in her Fall 2018 convocation speech on Aug. 8. “In our inaugural year as a consolidated university, Georgia Southern enters a rapidly-changing landscape in higher education,” Nickel said. “Technology has dramatically changed the way we approach our curriculum and course offerings, and how students learn and interact.” Nickel talked about the growing concern of universities across the south, which is struggling with dropping enrollment numbers caused by universities in other states. “Already, colleges and universities from all over the country are beginning to create incentives to attract students from our region to their schools. At the same time, some counties in Georgia, particularly in rural areas like South Georgia, are already seeing declines in the number of 15 to 24-year-olds, our pipeline of students,” Nickel said. To deal with these dropping numbers, GS is investing in and implementing the Student Success Plan, which will improve programs on campus and help forward the success of present and future students.
www.wtoc.com
Georgia Southern University could extend with South Campus
http://www.wtoc.com/story/38957622/georgia-southern-university-could-extend-with-south-campus
By Dal Cannady, Reporter
Drive through the Georgia Southern University – South Campus and you might wonder where these intricate roads lead. University leaders say they go straight to the not-so-distant future. “We’ve got only a couple of spaces left on the main Statesboro campus if we want to develop new buildings,” GSU Association Vice President Katie Twining said. The South Campus entrance way off Lanier Drive already includes shrubbery and street lamps, walkways and traffic signs. The university has had designs for how they’ll lay out class buildings, residence halls and parking on the 208-acre tract. “It gives basic outlines of where various buildings could reside. You’ll see classroom structures, research structures, multi-use structures,” Twining said. The role for South Campus could come into focus soon when the university begins its new multi-year master plan next month. They’ll take growth trends across the university and try to determine what areas need new space. That could include building in South Campus.
www.onlineathens.com
UGA and Clarke County schools launch Georgia Possible
http://www.onlineathens.com/news/20180825/uga-and-clarke-county-schools-launch-georgia-possible
By Kellyn Amodeo / University of Georgia
The University of Georgia recently partnered with the Clarke County School District to launch Georgia Possible, a new three-year pilot program focused on leadership development and college readiness for Athens high school students. The goal of Georgia Possible is to develop a cohort of Clarke County high school students to better prepare them for success in the classroom while also increasing their awareness of the variety of post-secondary options available beyond high school graduation. The program was inspired by a series of meetings UGA President Jere Morehead held with Athens-Clarke County community members and is being spearheaded by a team of faculty from the school district, UGA’s J.W. Fanning Institute for Leadership Development and the Office of the President. “I am delighted that the University of Georgia and the Clarke County School District have joined together to create this innovative program,” said Morehead. “As a land-grant institution, we are continually looking for ways to build on our relationship with community partners and help to ensure a bright future for students in our state.”
www.accesswdun.com
Two University of North Georgia students earn cyber scholarships, internships from the Department of Defense
By AccessWDUN Staff
The University of North Georgia has been awarded $96,138 from the Department of Defense through the Cybersecurity Scholarship Program to fund one-year, full-ride scholarships for two students. UNG’s cybersecurity program also will benefit from the Aug. 13 signing of the 2019 Defense Authorization Act, which authorizes the DoD to establish cyber institutes nationwide, starting with UNG. The scholarships, which can be renewed annually through completion of graduate school, include tuition, fees, books, a laptop, and living expenses. The students also were awarded paid summer internships and agreed to work for one year with the DoD in the cybersecurity field after graduation.
www.wsbradio.com
GEORGIA TECH PRESIDENT FIRES ANOTHER ADMINISTRATOR
By: Eric Stirgus The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The housecleaning at Georgia Tech over unethical practices continued Friday, with its president firing its communications director after a complaint that he attempted to hire an unqualified employee for a top position in the department. President G.P. “Bud” Peterson wrote in his termination letter to Michael Warden that “I no longer have confidence in your ability to effectively lead the office of Institute Communications.” Georgia Tech received five complaints against Warden, June 25 through July 17, according to a report received Friday by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution through the Georgia Open Records Act. The complaints included that Warden conducted an internal search for a vice president for creative strategy and brand management with a specific employee in mind, while conducting a national search for a similar position.
www.ajc.com
Torpy at Large: When old crimes kill a new man’s career dreams
Georgia Tech yanks job offer because applicant committed felonies as a teen
By Bill Torpy, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Benjamin Paul was thrilled by the opportunity Atlanta afforded. The single father was a career adviser at Miami Dade College and, in June, was offered a similar gig at Georgia Tech. It was a ticket to the big time in an ascendant city. The $50,000 job was not only career advancement, it was a poignant tale of redemption. Paul, a drug-selling ruffian in his teens, had steadily toiled to turn his life around and prove he would not become just another young black man who fell off the rails early on and was unable to recapture a sense of purpose. The job’s start date was Aug. 1, so Paul found an apartment in the gentrifying area around Howell Mill Road. It was near his job and, more importantly, would allow his third-grade daughter to attend a “winning school.” Well, it didn’t work out that way. Earlier this month, Georgia Tech’s HR office sent him a letter saying thanks, but no thanks. A background check had disqualified him. Never mind that Paul’s crimes — felonies that he had admitted to the university — were 12 years ago or earlier, occurring when he was 17 and 18. He is 30.
www.myajc.com
Get Schooled with Maureen Downey
‘We don’t need no education.’ No longer true for Georgia or U.S.
Jack Bernard, a retired business executive and a two-term county commissioner and former county Republican Party chairman in Jasper County, and Bill Lightle, a retired Fayette teacher and Democratic candidate for state Senate, tackle higher ed funding and need-based aid today in this guest column.
By Jack Bernard and Bill Lightle
“We don’t need no education;
We don’t need no thought control” – Pink Floyd
Things have changed a lot since that song was written by Roger Waters in 1979. If you don’t have a decent education, you will not find a job in today’s economy. Only 57 percent of all people 25 to 34 years old with less than a high school education are even employed; the percentage is even lower for women. The figure is 86 percent for college grads. Median weekly income for workers without a high school degree is only $520 versus $1,173 for those with a college degree and $1,836 for those with a professional degree. Due to technology, in all likelihood this trend will continue. Granted, a college education is not for everyone. Other types of educational opportunities (vocational and technical schools) must be provided. But, what about young people coming from families of modest means who desire a college education? Yes, there are full scholarships for the exceptional few. But, what about the rest? The cost of higher education for students has created crushing debt for many who attend college today in America.
www.bizjournals.com
STEM education tidbits: Tech kitchen visits Atlanta
Department of Education gearing up for forum
… The Georgia Department of Education is preparing for its annual STEAM/STEM Forum, this year in Athens, Ga., Oct. 22-23. The forum brings together educators, government officials, entrepreneurs and other innovators to discuss trends and initiatives in STEAM and STEM education. Last year, a record more than 1,300 participants from the state’s elementary, middle and high schools, as well as businesses and industry partners attended the forum, according to STEAM Georgia’s website. This year’s keynote speaker is Wayne K. Li, the James L. Oliver Professor at the Georgia Tech, a joint position between the Colleges of Design and Engineering.
www.kansaspublicradio.org
Landon Lecture Takes on Higher Ed Issues
http://kansaspublicradio.org/node/58221
by Kaye McIntyre
As a new academic year begins, we look at rising tuition, diversity, and other issues facing colleges and universities today. It’s the 173rd Landon Lecture on Public Affairs, sponsored by Kansas State University, featuring Lt. General Bob Caslen, superintendent of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, Dr. David Hall, president of the University of the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Dr. Bud Peterson, president of Georgia Institute of Technology. (w/audio)
www.myajc.com
In Georgia, elsewhere, schools designed for more than just educating students
By Arlinda Smith Broady – The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Being good stewards of public funds requires vision for needs well into the future without ignoring what’s going on right now. This is challenging when it comes to new school buildings. Design needs have changed a lot since the era before the internet, when most city kids could walk to school in every grade. “A school can no longer just be a school,” said Richard L. Porter, director of the new Master of Real Estate Development program in the School of Building Construction at Georgia Institution of Technology. “In the future it will have several uses throughout the day and the week into the weekend.” This isn’t a brand new idea. About a decade ago, the American Architectural Foundation, in cooperation with Target Corp., hosted a forum called “School Design and Student Learning in the 21st Century” to look at changing educational practices and how design could enhance those. Here are some highlights from the report:
www.bizjournals.com
Viewpoint: Leading manufacturing teams takes training
https://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/news/2018/08/26/viewpoint-leading-manufacturing-teams-takes.html
By Katie Takacs
Working with new and emerging leaders in more than 800 manufacturing plants a year, our team continued to hear, “I have the technical skills, but need help on the soft skills to be an effective leader,” or, “I need to better communicate my organization’s goals to team members.” That had us wondering: How could the state’s second-largest industry — which employs more than 340,000 people — have difficulty training its managers on leadership skills? In speaking with those leaders, we realized many were promoted from within their plants. They were once workers on the shop floor and are now leading teams. They can tell you how to do the work, but don’t understand how to develop metrics, deal with conflict or effectively communicate with their teams. These findings led the GaMEP team at Georgia Tech to collaborate with manufacturing leaders from metro Atlanta and across the state.
www.onlineathens.com
UGA scientists reach breakthrough in brain injury research
http://www.onlineathens.com/news/20180825/uga-scientists-reach-breakthrough-in-brain-injury-research
By Charlene Betourney
Researchers in the University of Georgia’s Regenerative Bioscience Center have succeeded in reproducing the effects of traumatic brain injury and stimulating recovery in neuron cells grown in a petri dish. This makes them the first known scientific team in the country to do so using stem cell-derived neurons. The procedure, detailed in a new paper in Nature Scientific Reports, has significant implications for the study and treatment of such injuries. Unlike other cells in the body, most neurons in the central nervous system cannot repair or renew themselves. Using an agent called glutamate that is released in high amounts in the brain after traumatic injury, the research team recorded a concussion-like disruption of neural activity in a dish containing dozens of minute electrodes. Through these recordings, they then evaluated the activity and influenced recovery by electrical stimulation.
Higher Education News:
www.nytimes.com
A Surprisingly Simple Way to Help Level the Playing Field of College Admissions
White, Asian-American and affluent students commonly take the SAT more than once, but disadvantaged students are less likely to, and it’s holding them back.
By Sahil Chinoy
New research contains a message for high school students, especially low-income ones, who want to go to college: Take the SAT early and often. It’s already clear from earlier studies that lack of information is a big reason many less affluent students don’t make it to college. They get less help navigating the complex process of applying. A new study finds another specific instance of this: Underrepresented students are less likely to take college admission tests more than once.
www.washingtonpost.com
Students are dropping out of college before even starting. Here’s how educators are trying to stop the trend.
Every spring, thousands of high school seniors in the District make plans to go to college. Every summer, many of their ambitions get shelved as graduates miss registration deadlines, overlook the fine print in financial aid packages or shift course because of worries about jobs and money. The phenomenon known as “summer melt,” which sidetracks an estimated 10 percent or more of college plans nationwide, hits teenagers from low-income families harder than others.
www.hechingerreport.org
Is college enrollment among older adults increasing? Depends who you ask
The latest federal report clashes with other estimates
https://hechingerreport.org/is-college-enrollment-among-older-adults-increasing-depends-who-you-ask/
by DELECE SMITH-BARROW
More than 19 million undergraduate students are enrolled in colleges and universities for fall 2018, according to a report this week from the National Center for Education Statistics, and many of them are adults aged 25 and older. NCES says this older student population peaked in 2010 at 8.9 million and has declined since then. But higher education experts and other federal data tell a different story. The number of older adult learners is rising, some say, and higher education institutions should do more to support them.