University System News:
The Albany Herald
Report: USG has $16.8 billion economic impact on state
Report shows state university system created 163,754 jobs last year
From Staff Reports
The University System of Georgia had a $16.8 billion economic impact on the state of Georgia in 2017, according to an annual report released Monday. The report also found that the USG created 163,754 jobs last year, and 2.2 of those jobs were created for every one USG job in an institution’s hometown. “As we strive to graduate more students, keep college affordable and increase the efficiency in delivering education, it’s important to keep in mind that higher education is an investment, and from these numbers it’s a smart one,” Chancellor Steve Wrigley said. “Communities across our state and the state as a whole are benefiting from the economic engine that is the USG and its 26 institutions.” The report found that the system’s economic impact demonstrates that continued emphasis on colleges and universities as a pillar of the state’s economy translates into jobs, higher incomes and greater production of goods and services. The report also indicated an overall increase in full- and part-time jobs either at USG institutions or because of them. Of the 163,754 jobs noted in the report, 50,541, or 31 percent, are on the campuses while 113,213, or 69 percent, are off campus.
Forbes
America’s Top 50 Women In Tech 2018
Helen A. S. Popkin, Forbes Staff
From Ada Lovelace to Anita Borg, the history of STEM is a history of women. Yet the historical narrative predominantly focuses on men. When the modern news cycle turns its attention to women, more often than not, it’s to note the paucity of females in the increasingly vital fields of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) … But this list isn’t about the MBAs – even the ones sitting in the C-Suites of Silicon Valley – it’s about the women who have mad STEM skills and are shaping the world of tech … Education is the biggest commonality among America’s top women in tech. MIT and Stanford University have the highest percentage of matriculation. Georgia Institute of Technology and the University of California, Berkeley tie for second place.
The Albany Herald
ABAC receives $8,595 from Governor’s Office of Highway Safety
College receives grant for participation in Georgia Young Adult Program
From Staff Reports
TIFTON — Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College received a grant from the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety of $8,595 for participation in the GOHS Georgia Young Adult Program. The Governor’s Office of Highway Safety partners with colleges and universities throughout the state to address young adult driver crashes, injuries and fatalities through the Georgia young adult program. The program uses strategies such as peer education, providing educational speakers at school, and encouraging schools to develop techniques to reduce crashes leading to young adult injuries and fatalities within their communities. “The Governor’s Office of Highway Safety is committed to changing the tragic trend of young adult driver deaths in Georgia,” GOHS Director Harris Blackwood said in a press release. “We’re here to make changes, and I believe the students at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College can help us achieve the goal of lowering driver, crash, injury and fatality rates statewide.
Southeast Green
The Ray C. Anderson Foundation has awarded a $650,000 grant to Emory University to advance the Georgia Climate Project, a state-wide consortium co-founded by Emory, the University of Georgia, and the Georgia Institute of Technology, and joined by Agnes Scott College, Georgia Southern University, Spelman College, and the University of North Georgia. This foundational grant will support efforts to build a network of experts who can improve understanding of climate impacts and solutions and better position Georgia to respond to a changing climate.
Clayton News-Daily
Ambassador Andrew Young slated to speak at Clayton State University’s fall commencement
From Staff Reports
MORROW — Civil Rights leader, United Nations ambassador, and former Atlanta mayor Andrew Young, has been selected to speak during Clayton State University’s fall 2018 commencement exercises on Dec. 8. Young will serve as the commencement speaker for the noon ceremony for graduates from the College of Business, College of Health, and College of Information and Mathematical Sciences. Young has had an illustrious career as a trailblazer in fighting for civil and human rights, representing constituents in the halls of Congress, advocating for democracy as a diplomat for the United States, and ushering in a new era for the city of Atlanta as mayor.
U.S. News & World Report
Survive the College Application Waiting Game with Tried-and-True Tips
This time period doesn’t have to be stressful.
By Caroline Duda, Contributor
For many high school seniors, the winter months mark the conclusion of a hectic season of applying to college and the beginning of an equally nerve-wracking waiting game. Will you be accepted to the college or university of your dreams? When, exactly, will you hear back from your schools? And what should you do in the meantime to distract yourself? In this Freshman Flashback, we spoke via email with four individuals at various stages in their higher education journey. Below, they shared their tried-and-true tips for surviving the college application waiting game. Focus on preparatory activities. Alexandra Denault, a first-year graduate student at Brenau University, acknowledged that waiting for an admissions decision was difficult. In order to cope with the “great deal of worry and anxiousness” she felt, Denault focused on preparing for college. “I read countless articles on ‘what to expect in college’ and ‘how to survive your first year at college,’” she says. She also sought out advice and insight from older friends who had already started their college journeys. Denault’s sister, Catherine Floyd, adopted a similar approach. A dual-enrollment freshman at Georgia Gwinnett College, Floyd toured the institution multiple times, “just to get familiar with the campus.” She likewise frequently met with her guidance counselor to discuss potential course options for her remaining time in high school.
Forbes
How Colleges Are Helping Retool The Labor Force In The Age Of AI
Two years ago, Ashok Goel, a professor of computer science at Georgia Institute of Technology, wanted to introduce his students to a technology he knew they would be working with in future careers—artificial intelligence (AI). Goel partnered with a large tech firm to employ an AI-enabled teaching assistant, dubbed Jill, in one of his online courses. Goel assigned Jill to grade assignments and answer students’ questions. She fooled almost all of the students into believing she was a flesh-and-blood TA. As AI applications such as Jill become more advanced, they can guide students not just through assignments but challenging situations in future jobs, says Richard DeMillo, director of Georgia Tech’s Center for 21st Century Universities. And while he admits that this is “untrodden territory” in academia, it’s also in line with other experiments in higher education geared toward preparing college grads for a rapidly changing labor force—one in which AI and other technologies are changing the nature of work itself
Higher Education News:
The Chronicle of Higher Education
In Unusual Letter, Democratic Senators Ask ‘U.S. News’ to Change Emphasis of College Rankings
By Chris Quintana
A handful of Democratic senators want an influential ranker of colleges to reconsider what’s important in higher education. Specifically, the six senators wrote in a letter to U.S. News & World Report, compiler of the most prominent college rankings in the country, that more weight should be given to institutions that open their doors to students from underrepresented backgrounds. “We urge U.S. News to use its influential platform to better align its rankings with the three longstanding goals behind federal financial aid: improving college access, supporting student success, and providing every talented student a pathway to economic stability and meaningful participation in our country’s economic, social, and civic life,” they wrote in the letter, released on Monday. The letter signers are Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, Cory A. Booker of New Jersey, Christopher A. Coons of Delaware, Kamala D. Harris of California, Chris S. Murphy of Connecticut, and Brian E. Schatz of Hawaii. Booker and Harris have been mentioned as possible contenders for the Democratic nomination in the 2020 presidential election.
Inside Higher Ed
Inspector General Faults Education Department
By Andrew Kreighbaum
In a semiannual report to Congress, the Education Department’s inspector general took issue with the agency’s proposal to eliminate the gainful-employment rule without other accountability standards in place. Inspector General Kathleen Tighe, who retired from the department as of Nov. 30, also warned House and Senate education committee leaders earlier this year against eliminating the rule in an overhaul of the Higher Education Act.
Inside Higher Ed
Proposed Rule Benefits Advanced Degree Holders Seeking H-1Bs
By Elizabeth Redden
It will likely be easier for advanced degree holders from U.S. universities to get H-1B skilled worker visas under a rule change proposed by the Trump administration. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services published a proposed rule today that the agency projects will result in a 16 percent increase in the number of H-1B visa recipients who have a master’s degree or higher from a U.S. institution. H-1Bs are a popular route for international students who want to stay in the U.S. to work after graduation, but because of statuary caps there are typically not enough available to meet demand. Using a lottery system, the U.S. awards 85,000 H-1Bs annually, 20,000 of which are reserved for holders of advanced degrees from U.S. universities. Currently, the 20,000 spots reserved for advanced American degree holders are selected first, and any applicants with advanced degrees who are not selected in that round are put into the general pool to compete for the next 65,000 available spots.
The Chronicle. Of Higher Education
From College Town to Chinatown
By Karin Fischer
Feel like some Chinese food? You have options in this college town. Not far from the Michigan State University campus, you can get red-braised pork belly or cold jellyfish salad or congee, a soothing rice porridge, topped with preserved duck egg … As foreign-student enrollments have soared in the United States, almost doubling over the past decade, their benefit has often been measured in the tuition dollars they bring, a financial godsend to many strapped colleges during the recession. The value of those students can’t be measured simply in dollars and cents, of course, but also in the diverse perspectives they offer.
National Public Radio
DeVos’ New Sexual Assault Guidelines Are Open For Public Comment
JEFFREY PIERRE, ANYA KAMENETZ
The public has just under 60 days to tell the Department of Education what it thinks about new guidelines recently proposed by Secretary Betsy DeVos. The new changes specifically address how college campuses should handle cases of sexual assault and harassment, replacing Obama-era policies on how to implement Title IX, which bars gender discrimination in schools receiving federal funds. Critics of the new guidelines say the changes will make it harder to convict offenders because the proposed changes raise the level of proof needed.