University System News:
Tifton Gazette
Opportunities increasing in higher education, college President say
By Chris Whitfield
With more hardhats and more mortarboards, higher education in northwest Georgia is changing, and the area’s workforce is changing with it. And with more courses offered at both Dalton State College and Georgia Northwestern Technical College, and with construction dominating both campuses in Whitfield County, educational opportunities are increasing. That was the message that both DSC President Margaret Venable and GNTC President Pete McDonald shared Tuesday at the Good Morning Dalton: Higher Education event sponsored by the Greater Dalton Chamber of Commerce at the Dalton Convention Center. “One of the things we are really focused on is graduating more students,” Venable said of Dalton State. “So we have really hunkered down on that student success thing. We’re still recruiting more students, and we will hope to grow in terms of overall enrollment. But we’re really more focused on how we can make sure students graduate successfully.” For Venable, a “successful graduation” means there is a local job waiting on the student. She said by working with local industry and business leaders to focus on skill sets tailored to their needs, both DSC and GNTC are producing more graduates who choose to remain in the local area. “We don’t want people to get an education and then leave,” Venable said. “We are going to reinvent ourselves to become even more relevant to meet the needs of the future.”
Diverse Issues in Higher Education
CSU Northridge Taps Dr. Mary Beth Walker as Provost, VP for Academic Affairs
by Monica Levitan
Dr. Mary Beth Walker, interim president at Georgia Gwinnett College and associate provost for strategic initiatives and innovation at Georgia State University, has been appointed provost and vice president for academic affairs at California State University, Northridge (CSUN). Walker, a prominent economist, has over three decades of experience working in higher education, including serving as a dean and department chair. “Dr. Walker brings a wealth of experience implementing high-impact practices and helping to eliminate achievement gaps,” said CSUN president Dr. Dianne F. Harrison. “Dr. Walker has the understanding and skill set to help us advance our student success initiatives and to collaborate with faculty, academic staff and campus leadership to prepare students to face the challenges of today and tomorrow. She is a champion of inclusive excellence, research and innovation.” She will succeed Stella Theodoulou, who has been serving as interim provost and vice president for academic affairs. She will begin her new role on July 1, according to CSUN Today.
Tifton CEO
ABAC Student from Tifton Wins Second Place in Statewide Competition
Staff Report From Tifton CEO
Kaycee Aultman, a writing and communication major from Tifton at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College, finished in second place in the recent statewide Georgia Collegiate Honors Conference for her research paper titled “The Performance Rhetoric of Hillary Clinton at the 2016 DNC.” “This is the first time in at least eight years that an ABAC student has won a research award at the Georgia Collegiate Honors Conference,” Dr. Cyndy Hall, who has directed the ABAC Honors Program for the past eight years, said. “Since joining the ABAC Honors Program, Kaycee has taken every opportunity to embrace educational and professional engagement.”
Marietta Daily Journal
KSU’s Executive MBA again ranked among the world’s best
MDJ Staff
On March 20, Kennesaw State University’s Executive Master of Business Administration (EMBA) in the Michael J. Coles College of Business ranked No. 1 in the state for the third straight year and remained seventh in the world for the second year in a row based on CEO Magazine’s 2019 Global Executive MBA Rankings. “It is extremely rewarding to see our Executive MBA program once again ranked among the top programs in the world,” said Robin Cheramie, interim dean of the Coles College of Business. “This ranking is a testament to the quality and power of the Coles College EMBA, and to the dedication of our faculty and staff who have crafted an experience that provides students with a proven route to personal and professional success.” KSU’s EMBA was recognized by the magazine as a Global Tier One EMBA program for the fifth consecutive year. Programs are classified as Tier One or Tier Two based on factors including quality of faculty, international diversity, class size, accreditation, work experience, international exposure, professional development, gender parity and delivery methods.
Breitbart
Georgia Southern University Calls Police on Students Exercising Free Speech
By Alana Mastrangelo
Students at Georgia Southern University were confronted by school staff and campus police last week while recruiting members for the Turning Point USA student group on campus. Staff told the conservative students that they needed to “fill out paperwork” in order to exercise free speech at the public university, and then proceeded to call the police when the students did not leave the public grounds. An administrator at Georgia Southern University (GSU) told students that they needed to “fill out paperwork” in order to exercise free speech within the confines of the school’s designated “free speech zone,” a specific area on campus that school claims is approved for exercising free speech, as long as the space is reserved in advance. The students, who were recruiting members for their Turning Point USA (TPUSA) chapter, decided not to leave an outdoor area on campus after GSU staff had requested for them to do so, resulting in the police being called as a last-ditch effort to force the students to comply with the school’s perplexing demand.
Albany CEO
Georgia Southwestern’s Dr. Gaynor Cheokas on Working with the Business Community
Dr. Gaynor Cheokas with Georgia Southwestern State University talks about how the School of Business works with the business community to prepare students for the workforce.
Tifton CEO
Hatcher to be Featured in ABAC Art Exhibition on March 26th
Staff Report From Tifton CEO
Professor of Art Donna May Hatcher will be featured in an art exhibition from 4-6:30 p.m. on March 26 in the Bowen Hall 121 Gallery at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College. Titled “Another Woman’s Treasure: A Retrospective,” the event is open to the public at no charge. Dr. Susan Kirby Roe, Head of the ABAC Department of Fine Arts, said refreshments will be provided. A native of Lester, Hatcher graduated from Westwood Schools before receiving a bachelor’s degree in fine arts from the University of Georgia. She also earned a master’s degree in painting from Cornell University. Hatcher’s installations of sculptures, paintings, drawings, glass, and mixed media works have been shown in Europe, New York, and extensively in Georgia. Her works are in private collections throughout the United States.
Savannah CEO
SCA Director Barry Lollis Appointed to GDOE Charter Advisory Committee
Staff Report From Savannah CEO
Savannah Classical Academy (SCA) Director Barry Lollis has been appointed by Lieutenant Governor of Georgia, Geoff Duncan to serve on the Georgia Department of Education Charter Advisory Committee. Lollis will be the only charter school leader currently sitting on this state appointed educational committee. The Charter Advisory Committee (CAC) is a state-level body with nine members. Three members are each appointed by the Lt. Governor, Speaker of the House and the Chair of the State Board of Education. …A graduate of Georgia Southern University and Piedmont College with a Masters in Education, Lollis is an innovative educator who has worked in the Savannah Chatham County Public School System (SCCPSS) since 2004. A former high school Principal at Windsor Forest, Lollis came to SCA in 2017 and has overseen significant improvements in the academic achievements of the school.
Athens CEO
Robert Dickey Named 2019 Georgia Farmer of the Year
Sharon Dowdy
Crawford County peach farmer Robert Dickey has been named the 2019 Georgia Farmer of the Year. A fourth-generation farmer, Dickey manages approximately 1,000 acres of peaches and 3,000 acres of timberland with the help of his 90-year-old father, Bob Dickey, his wife, Cynde Dickey, and their son and daughter-in-law, Lee and Stacy Dickey. After high school, Dickey’s father encouraged him to pursue a business degree, so Dickey enrolled at the University of Georgia, graduating in 1976 with his bachelor’s degree. However, banking jobs were scarce, so Dickey returned to the farm with a new perspective. …“When Crawford County lost its only grocery store in December 2016, Dickey Farms stepped up and provided fresh produce in season to meet the county’s needs,” said Sarah Greer, the UGA Cooperative Extension Agricultural and Natural Resources agent in Crawford County. Greer nominated Dickey and his farm for the Farmer of the Year award. …In addition to his work on the farm, Dickey is serving his fourth term in the Georgia House of Representatives for District 140, which covers Crawford County and parts of Bibb, Houston, Monroe and Peach counties. He represents his fellow farmers on the House Agriculture and Consumer Affairs Committee.
Winona Post
WSU prof. studying early galaxies
by NATHANIEL NELSON
The universe is vast, filled with never-ending unknowns, and while the world’s eyes are focused on what’s nearby, Winona State University (WSU) physics professor Carl Ferkinhoff will be devoting his time to uncovering the history of distant galaxies –– tracing the roots our the universe back billions of years. Ferkinhoff recently received a National Science Foundation CAREER grant for $820,000 to further his research into early universe galaxies, a project titled “Astronomical Research, Instrumentation and Education with Undergraduates via ZINGRS.” The Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) program at the National Science Foundation provides some of the most prestigious awards to early-career faculty, and the highly competitive grant will help Ferkinhoff develop the technology and perform the observations needed for his research, as well as create an educational-outreach program for Winona-area students. …Ferkinhoff’s research involves using state-of-the-art technology to study early galaxies, between seven-billion and 12-billion light years away, to learn how they are different than the galaxies that exist today. Using a piece of equipment called ZEUS-2, which he developed during his post-graduate studies at Cornell University, Ferkinhoff, along with collaborators at Cornell University, Georgia Southern University and the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy in Germany, will be able to examine light spectrums of galaxies on the distant edge of the known universe, and calculate what elements are present.
Higher Education News:
Inside Higher Ed
Trump to Sign Broad Executive Order
Order delivers on the president’s promise to punish colleges that don’t show they guarantee free speech on campus, and includes language on outcomes data and risk sharing. But it’s unclear the force it will carry.
By Andrew Kreighbaum
White House officials said Thursday that President Trump will sign an executive order this afternoon on campus free speech and college transparency. The order will direct 12 grant-making federal agencies to coordinate with the Office of Management and Budget to certify that colleges receiving federal research funds comply with existing federal law and regulations that touch on free academic inquiry, a senior administration official said in a call with reporters Thursday morning. The order does not apply to federal student aid programs. The document also will direct the Education Department to publish program-level data in the College Scorecard on measures of student outcomes, including earnings, student debt, default rates and loan repayment rates, the official told reporters. It also directs the department to submit policy recommendations to the White House on risk-sharing proposals for colleges that participate in the federal student loan program.
See also:
Politico