University System News:
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
NEW DETAILS: Number of Georgia coronavirus cases rises to 121
By Chelsea Prince
State health officials are now reporting 121 confirmed coronavirus cases in Georgia. The latest data released Monday from the Georgia Department of Public Health is a 22% increase from Sunday’s confirmed cases, which totaled 99.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Georgia lawmakers grant Kemp vast new powers to combat coronavirus
By Greg Bluestein and Maya T. Prabhu
‘We must act, and we must act today.’
Georgia lawmakers voted Monday to grant Gov. Brian Kemp broad new authorities to respond to the coronavirus pandemic, ratifying his unprecedented declaration of a public health emergency. The vote made Kemp the most powerful governor in modern Georgia history, at least through mid-April, giving his administration the ability to suspend state laws, take “direct” control of civil staffers, restrict travel and limit public gatherings.
Gainesville Times
Governor declares emergency, recommends social distancing, works to increase coronavirus testing
Kelsey Podo
The Times
Gov. Brian Kemp declared a public health emergency for the state of Georgia Saturday morning, noting local transmission of the novel coronavirus. As of Saturday, there are 66 COVID-19 cases in Georgia, which is the state’s largest increase in over a 24-hour period. There are no confirmed cases in Hall. “In only a matter of days, communities within the metro Atlanta area and North Georgia have seen several cases, including hospitalizations, where the source of infection is unknown,” Kemp said in his address. “Many of these cases have no connection to travel, and the capacity of our health care system remains at the forefront of my mind as we prepare for more local transmission.”
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
BREAKING: 2 reportedly test positive at Augusta University Health System
By ArLuther Lee
An employee of the Augusta University Health System and a spouse have tested positive for the coronavirus, according to reports by FOX54 WFXG, citing a news release. The test results are awaiting confirmation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, WFXG reported. “The safety of our patients and employees is our top priority,” said AU Health CEO Katrina Keefer. “We’ve been preparing for months and are working quickly to identify anyone who may have come in contact with these individuals to determine their risk and limit further exposure.” Keefer said the risk to patients and visitors at University Hospital remains low, the report said.
The Augusta Chronicle
Augusta hospitals prepared for coronavirus outbreak but could need more nurses
By Tom Corwin
Augusta hospitals have prepared for years for a pandemic like the one the novel coronavirus could cause. They have innovative plans to expand their ability to isolate those patients in the hospital and treat the severely. The problem may be if caregivers get sick themselves As she stands in a negative pressure isolation room in the emergency department at University Hospital, Terresa Land already knows what it will be like when patients with a suspected COVID-19 infection show up at the door. She was on duty March 7 when a woman with all of the classic symptoms and a history of contact with a traveler from virus-plagued Italy came in and needed to be quickly isolated. The patient was brought straight to an isolation room, where airflow does not go back into the rest of the building, and the plan worked the way it should. Fortunately, that patient was negative. “It definitely gives you a good experience, with the possibility it is going to spread a lot faster,” said Land, the assistant nurse manager for University’s emergency department. Augusta hospitals train for pandemic outbreaks and already have contingency plans to create more critical care and isolation space. The problem could come in finding people to care for those patients, particularly if health care workers start getting sick, officials said.
The Augusta Chronicle
Hospitals: Coronavirus testing should follow protocol
By Tom Corwin
People are asking for test for the novel coronavirus but Augusta hospitals say they should follow a protocol first. While many people are demanding testing for the novel coronavirus, they need to get other tests first, Augusta hospitals say. Testing should only be done on patients with fever and lower respiratory illness who have traveled to an area where the virus is prevalent or had close contact with a traveler to those areas, according to guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Clinicians with such a patient should get authorization from state and local health departments before collecting samples, the CDC said. Many patients with those symptoms have been seeking the test, and those who can’t get it at their smaller rural hospitals are coming to Augusta, said Dr. Phillip Coule, AU Health System’s vice president and chief medical officer. …Of the more than 240 patients tested since Feb. 23, nine did not have an alternative diagnosis and got the test, AU spokeswoman Christen Engel said. Of those, seven were negative and three are awaiting results, she said.
The Augusta Chronicle
AU halts instruction with goal of moving online, social distancing
By Tom Corwin
Augusta University President Brooks Keel outlined what will happen for students, employees and faculty in light of the two-week hiatus on instruction. Even with in-person classes suspended for two weeks and many employees working remotely, the campus and patient care at AU Health System will continue, but with as much “social distancing” as possible, Augusta University President Brooks Keel said. “We are still open for business in every way, shape, form and fashion,” he said. In a livestream address Friday to students, faculty and staff, Keel said the two-week break from in-person instruction is meant to help faculty prepare to resume instruction online after the break if needed. He asked students, who were to leave campus by the end of the day Friday and not return until March 29, not to prepare to move out of dorms for the rest of the semester but to take home what they would need to continue their classes should they need to pick them up remotely after the break.
CBS46
School closures; free meal distributions around metro Atlanta
Catherine Catoura
As fear over the ever-spreading coronavirus, COVID-19, grows in Georgia, so too does the list of metro Atlanta school closures. Here is a list of metro Atlanta public school closures: …The following University System of Georgia institutions are closing:
The George-Anne
Letter from the Editor: No matter what happens, The George-Anne will still report the news
Blakeley Bartee
Dear Georgia Southern University community,
My name is Blakeley Bartee, and I am the editor-in-chief of The George-Anne. I would like to take this opportunity to update you all on what will happen to our operations in the coming weeks. GS and other universities within the University System of Georgia will suspend instruction until March 29 due to the spread of COVID-19. Our executive board at The George-Anne Media Group held a meeting Friday afternoon to discuss how we will continue operating during the campus closure. More than 7,000 people opened Thursday’s newsletter, sent shortly after the USG announced the closures. We know you’re still reading, and we know we have a responsibility to serve the community. The plan is this: after spring break, you can still expect digital coverage from our newspaper, magazine, video and creative divisions. We will continue sending our daily newsletter and providing updates to the community, but we will not have a print newspaper during the closure. If the USG chooses to move universities’ courses online, as other universities have, we will continue operating online. However, our current plan is that we would not distribute a print newspaper.
Statesboro Herald
Bulloch Academy to close through March 29; Statesboro First Baptist to stream services only Sunday
Georgia COVID-19 cases jump to 66 overnight
From staff, wire reports
Through no COVID-19 cases have been diagnosed in Bulloch County, Bulloch Academy announced Saturday the school would close for the next two weeks as a precautionary step. “We will be monitoring the situation closely and will update our families as the situation progresses,” said Morgan Conner, public relations director for Bulloch Academy, which will be closed through March 29. Meanwhile, Georgia’s governor warned Saturday that COVID-19 infections are increasing in the state as he signed an emergency declaration unlocking sweeping powers to fight the disease threat. …School, church closings
Georgia Southern University and East Georgia State College are on spring break and will suspend instruction and classes through March 29. The University System of Georgia has asked all state colleges and universities to study and refine their capability of teaching classes online during the next two weeks.
Savannah Business Journal
University System of Georgia, including Georgia Southern University, to close for two weeks
Staff Report
The University System of Georgia (USG) is consulting constantly with the Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) and the Governor’s Coronavirus Task Force. Georgia Governor Brian Kemp today announced state agencies, school systems and local communities have been given the flexibility to implement closures. Effective Monday, March 16, 2020, all 26 USG institutions will temporarily suspend instruction for two weeks to allow time for USG institutions to test their business continuity plans and online instruction modules and for state officials to continue to assess the current situation regarding coronavirus (COVID-19) in Georgia. Students who are currently on spring break are strongly encouraged not to return to campus. Students on campus are asked to depart campus by close of business Friday, March 13, 2020, and to remain away from campus until March 29, 2020. At this time, students are not being asked to move out of their dorms for the remainder of the semester. All institutions are being asked to work with students who are unable to leave campus.
WTOC
LIST: School systems closing due to COVID-19 concerns
…College and technical school closures:
Savannah College of Art and Design will hold all classes online for the Spring 2020 quarter due to concerns over the spread of COVID-19.
Savannah Technical College has made the decision to extend spring break until March 28, 2020, and to close all campuses and suspend activities for the next two weeks. Beginning March 30, Savannah Technical College anticipates moving all classes online.
The University System of Georgia has temporarily suspended classes for two weeks at all of their institutions. This includes Georgia Southern University, Savannah State University, East Georgia State College, and College of Coastal Georgia.
Albany Herald
Albany State postpones key spring activities
From staff reports
Over the last several weeks, Albany State University, the University System of Georgia and the Department of Public Health have been monitoring and evaluating the activities associated with the coronavirus (COVID-19). While the university has worked hard to prepare for the spring events, the health and safety of our campus, alumni, community and prospective students takes priority. For this reason, Albany State has postponed all planned activities for the time frame of March 13-April 3.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Smart, UGA athletics hunkered down during spring shutdown
By Chip Towers
ATHENS — Georgia baseball coach Scott Stricklin is with family on a beach in Florida. Basketball coach Tom Crean has returned to his home in Bradenton, Fla. Women’s basketball coach Joni Taylor is home with family in Athens. So is football coach Kirby Smart. Technically, there remains a chance that UGA athletics — and college athletics in general — will resume at some point this spring. But the likelihood of that happening is dissipating by the day. The Big Ten and the Pac-12 canceled all athletic events for the remainder of the semester over the weekend. It would seem just a matter of time before the SEC does the same.
WTOC
Economics professor looks at impact COVID-19 could have
As festivals and sporting events are called off and people are cancelling travel plans for the foreseeable future, some are worried about the economic impact coronavirus could have both locally and across the nation. COVID-19 is hitting industries like travel, hospitality, and restaurants hard. At Georgia Southern University’s Armstrong Campus, Dr. Richard McGrath, an economics professor, says broader economic implications are still hard to predict, but expect the stock market to continue to show movement. “The financial markets do tend to overreact to things very quickly, and so we’ll see a lot of volatility for a while until the information with the coronavirus settles out, and we have a better idea of how long it’s going to stick around or how long until we can get it under control,” McGrath said. He says the coronavirus is causing a real slowdown in economic activity, which has the potential to trigger a significant recession.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Georgia Tech professor explains how social distancing slows spread of COVID-19
By Maureen Downey
It can benefit your own health and that of entire population in coronavirus pandemic
Pinar Keskinocak is a Georgia Tech professor with extensive expertise and publications on pandemic flu, and more generally, health systems. She is the William W. George Chair and Professor, ISyE; ADVANCE Professor, College of Engineering; and Director of the Center for Health and Humanitarian Systems. In this guest column, Keskinocak explains the necessity of social distancing in the coronavirus pandemic, which continues to gain a foothold in Georgia where cases rose from 99 on Sunday to 121 today. By Pinar Keskinocak Socializing can help you live a longer, happier, healthier life. But in a viral outbreak, research shows that “social distancing” can benefit your own health and that of entire populations.
The Washington Post
Amid coronavirus outbreak, a thin line between prudence and panic
By Marc Fisher
In fictional imaginings of a lethal pandemic, a visceral panic often sweeps through frightened crowds and leads to decidedly uncivilized behavior. In “World War Z,” the 2006 novel that became a top-grossing movie, a virus that spreads from China turns half the world’s population into zombies. People do not react well. Mayhem — a “Great Panic” of looting, crime and mass migration — ensues. Similar chaos erupts in the long-running TV series “The Walking Dead,” “Panic in the Streets” (1950) and “Contagion,” the 2011 film that is suddenly a streaming hit. In real life, however, the coronavirus pandemic now spreading across the planet has triggered little in the way of visible public panic. …The prospect of a widespread loss of confidence in the government’s ability to handle the epidemic is magnified by the recent breakdown in trust in the news media, said Amy Ballagh, a vice president at Georgia Southern University whose research focused on how news coverage of epidemics alters public behavior. “Every time there’s a death, it’s in the news — a countdown of deaths that is causing terror,” she said. “And it’s worse with this epidemic because you have people in leadership saying things that make people distrust authority — things about the ‘deep state’ and ‘fake news’ and statements that undermine science. When people decide they really can’t trust anyone, that’s when they take things into their own hands. That’s when you see panic buying.”
Albany Herald
UGA has plans to upgrade ‘Science Hill’
From staff reports
The University of Georgia’s rapidly expanding research enterprise has created a challenge — providing enough space for UGA’s scientists to conduct their innovative work. Fortunately, the university’s leaders anticipated this challenge and created a multiyear capital plan to build, renovate and modernize hundreds of thousands of square feet devoted to research and innovation in and around the section of campus known as Science Hill. The capital plan emphasizes the development of research opportunities in the STEM field: science, technology, engineering and mathematics. “To remain one of the nation’s top research universities, the University of Georgia must maximize its available facilities devoted to scientific inquiry,” President Jere W. Morehead said in a news release. “Our comprehensive plan combines new and renovated research facilities to achieve our goals in the most efficient and cost-effective manner.”
WJCL
Construction set to begin on two new hotels in Savannah
Omega Construction Begins Two New Hotels in Partnership with HOS Management in Savannah
Omega Construction’s GA Division is set to begin work next week on two new hotels for Savannah – the Hilton Garden Inn and Townplace Suites, both of which will be located on Exit 94 off I-95. Locally owned by HOS Management and Development, these two hospitality properties are the latest in the exciting collaboration between HOS Management and Omega Construction, joining the nearby Avid Hotel project already in progress as well as the expansion of Downtown Savannah’s Cotton Sail Hotel that Omega is set to begin interior demolition later this month. “The vision HOS has for the continued growth and expansion at the 204/95 connector is incredible.” said Todd Mayo, Omega Construction’s Georgia Division Manager. “It is going to transform this area of Savannah and we are thrilled to be part of the team to help bring it to reality.” HOS Management’s vision for the Exit 94 sector of town also includes future development plans for a Conference Center and gymnasium. Savannah’s projected growth, as well as that of Georgia Southern University’s Armstrong Campus, were among the reasons
HOS Management decided to invest resources in this often-overlooked part of Savannah.
Wexford People
Survey carried out at Adoration Convent
Simon Bourke
The presence of heavy machinery at the Adoration Convent on Bride Street was, for some, a signal that works had begun to transform the building into student accommodation for the Georgia Southern University (GSU) learning centre on Spawell Road. However, Wexford County Council has said that as of yet there has been no transfer of ownership with regards to the Convent and that the works were simply part of a survey to determine the overall condition of the building.
Savannah Morning News
Column: Focus on future of GSU-Armstrong
A troubling op-ed column was published March 8 lamenting the consolidation between Georgia Southern University and Armstrong State University. It is truly a shame that a frustrated few are garnering so much attention as they refuse to look at the opportunities ahead and instead keep spreading misinformation and opinion as the foundation for their arguments. If this discussion persists, there should be a better understanding of some important issues. First, Georgia Southern is going to great lengths to improve its enrollment situation on all its campuses. The university’s advertising budget was tripled. A new enrollment services center is about to open on the Armstrong campus. New technology is in place to funnel prospective students’ names into a sophisticated communications platform. A comprehensive strategic enrollment plan is being implemented. The number of advisers has increased on all campuses. Services to students are increasing, such as adding Starbucks and Chick-fil-A on the Armstrong campus and increasing the number of mental health counselors for all students.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Georgia Archives hosts “Cotton and Textile Culture in Georgia” Symposium
By Kenneth H. Thomas Jr.
The Georgia Archives is scheduled to host a free public symposium next month. The symposium, “From Field to Mill Town: Cotton and Textile Culture in Georgia,” is set for April 4 from 9 a.m.- 2:30 p.m. Talks will be given on: “Building a Community: Callaway Mills in LaGrange” by Haley Merciers of Hills and Dales, the Callaway Estate, Alex Hughes (Troup County Archives) and Carleton B. Wood, executive director of Hills and Dales. …“The West Georgia Textile Heritage Trail” including three lectures. “Establishing the West Georgia Textile Heritage Trail” by Keri Adams and Dr. Ann McCleary (both with the Center for Public History at the University of West Georgia (UWG); “Interpreting the Textile Industry” by Jarrett Craft (the Textile Trail Curator at UWG) and Dr. Will Stoutamire (Center for Public History, UWG); and “Mapping the Textile Industry” by Tinaye Gibbons, Annie Shirley and Dr. Andy Walter, all with the Center for Public History at UWG.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The Yankee artist and the Southern town
By Felicia Feaster
Public art portrait series stirs conversation about race in Newnan
Can a middle-aged white woman from Rhode Island help a Southern town contend with its racist past? It’s a question the artist Mary Beth Meehan, 52, asked herself while working on the public art project “Seeing Newnan” for the town of 38,000 located 40 miles southwest of Atlanta. Currently on view through June, the project features 17 enormous photo banners that hang from various buildings in Newnan’s historic downtown, including the Presbyterian Church, a toy store, the Wadsworth Auditorium and a fitness center. The images are portraits that present a cross-section of people who live in Newnan — domestic workers, manual laborers, millworkers, high school students, pastors, children in their cotillion finery, board directors, Ivy Leaguers — in a kind of alternative advertisement of place. In addition, Meehan posted interviews with her subjects on her blog at www.marybethmeehan.com. Black, white, well-to-do and on-the-margins — all are put on an equal footing. Meehan’s billboard-sized photos suggest a kind of Norman Rockwell street art, treating ordinary people as monumental in keeping with an American democratic ideal. Her project is part of Newnan ArtRez, an artist-in-residency program that provides a retreat for artists who, in turn, enrich the community with their work. It is sponsored by the University of West Georgia and funded by charitable trusts.
Marietta Daily Journal
Georgia Tech officer who killed student won’t face charges
A Georgia Tech police officer who fatally shot a student struggling with depression won’t face criminal charges, a district attorney announced Friday. Officer Tyler Beck shot and killed fourth-year student Scout Schultz in Sept. 2017 after Schultz refused to drop his weapon. Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard said Beck won’t face criminal charges in Schultz’s death, news outlets reported. Howard said two use-of-force experts concluded the shooting was justified.
Higher Education News:
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
College Board cancels May SAT, and plans for possible at-home AP testing
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
UPDATE: Two Emory University students test positive for COVID-19
By Eric Stirgus
Two Emory University undergraduate students have tested positive for COVID-19, school officials announced Monday. The students, who were staying in Emory Point, are in satisfactory condition and are self-isolating in their off-campus apartment where they are being monitored by Emory’s health staff, the university said in a statement. “The two students, who were away for spring break, have not been on campus for more than a week and did not report feeling ill until they returned home from break,” the statement said. Emory also announced Monday that two other undergraduate students tested Saturday for the virus came back with negative results. So, too, did a third student tested who lives off-campus.
The Chronicle of Higher Education
2020: The Year That Shredded the Admissions Calendar
By Eric Hoover
Take it down, rip it up, and forget it. The college-admissions calendar, on which an entire industry depends, is kaput. Last week, as the threat of Covid-19 shuttered dorms and silenced quads, the lights in many enrollment offices stayed on late. Huddled around tables, scrawling on whiteboards, harried officials confronted a difficult question: How do you reel in a freshman class during an unprecedented national crisis? After all, the pandemic that’s disrupting the world is upending the enrollment timeline, too. For decades, the profession has clung to well-defined seasonal rituals, governed by deadlines that ordered the phases of the admissions process. At many prominent colleges, the calendar has long revolved around May 1, the national deposit deadline for applicants. But that won’t work this year, some enrollment officials say.
Diverse Issues in Higher Education
HBCUs Face An Additional Set of Coronavirus Concerns
by Sara Weissman
Campuses across the country are temporarily closing in response to the coronavirus, encouraging students to go home and offering online classes to prevent the virus from spreading. Historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) – and other minority serving institutions (MSIs) – are no exception. But these schools face an extra set of concerns as they try to keep underrepresented students safe on tighter budgets than predominantly White institutions. HBCUs have tackled coronavirus with a range of responses. Some campuses have yet to shut down in-person classes. Hampton University, for example, plans to continue courses until further notice but has asked all members of the university community who traveled internationally in the past two weeks to self-quarantine for 14 days, with the promise of academic accommodations. But many HBCUs are making the switch to online learning – at least for a while.
Other News:
Albany Herald
Chief Justice Harold Melton declares statewide judicial emergency
From Staff Reports
ATLANTA – Chief Justice Harold D. Melton today declared a Statewide Judicial Emergency effective immediately due to the spread of the coronavirus throughout Georgia “and the potential infection of those who work in or are required to appear in our courts.” The order states that courts “should remain open to address essential functions, and in particular courts should give priority to matters defined as those necessary to protect health, safety, and liberty of individuals.” The order lists the matters courts should prioritize, which including domestic abuse restraining orders, juvenile court delinquency detention hearings and emergency removal matters, mental health commitment hearings, and cases “where an immediate liberty or safety concern is present requiring the attention of the court as soon as the court is available.” “Following Gov. Kemp’s declaration today of a Public Health State of Emergency, I am directing the judicial branch of government to suspend all but essential court functions,” Melton said. “These critical matters will remain a priority in our courts.”