The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
AJC On Campus: The latest on Georgia college reopening plans
By Eric Stirgus
Will they reopen their campuses this fall semester?
The leaders of Georgia’s colleges and universities are having internal discussions with campus administrators to determine what they should do as the coronavirus pandemic continues and if there is an uptick in new cases this fall. Several schools throughout the United States have said they want to have in-person classes in August. Meanwhile, some schools, are considering other options. The California State University system has said it plans to mainly hold online classes this fall. Boston University has said it may not reopen their campus until January 2021.The University System of Georgia has teams working on plans that could allow all 26 of its colleges and universities to have in-person classes this fall, with approval from state public health officials. Here’s a breakdown of the current plans and specific statements from some Georgia colleges: University of North Georgia: The school is planning abbreviated orientation dates at each of its campuses in August. Here’s the schedule: Cumming – 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. Monday, Aug. 3, and Tuesday, Aug. 4; Oconee – 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 6 and Friday, Aug. 7; Gainesville – 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 11, and Wednesday, Aug. 12; Blue Ridge – 9 a.m. Friday Aug. 14. Orientation will feature online and in-person elements.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
As Georgia colleges plan for in-person classes, Cal State System stays online for fall
By Maureen Downey
Is Georgia being overly optimistic or California overly cautious?
On the same day Georgia Chancellor Steve Wrigley said public campuses aim to resume in-person instruction in the fall if health conditions permit, the California State University System chancellor announced online classes will continue for the fall. Whether Cal State is being overly cautious or the University System of Georgia overly optimistic won’t become clear until the fall when we see whether a second wave of the coronavirus hits. Both chancellors detailed coronavirus plans today to the overseers of higher education in their states, Wrigley to the Board of Regents and Cal State Chancellor Timothy P. White to the Board of Trustees. Cal State is the nation’s largest public system, with nearly half a million students across 23 campuses. Georgia has 330,000 students across 26 campuses.
Albany Herald
National Science Foundation grant opens doors for Albany State students
By Rachel Lawrence
Albany State University has received a grant from the National Science Foundation in the amount of $199,963 for a catalyst project on the design, fabrication and testing of a cost-effective microwave absorber. “Undergraduate students will gain experience in using state-of-the-art 3D electromagnetic simulation software and in the operation of the Vector Network Analyzer,” ASU professor of physics and engineering Arun Saha said. “Material property engineering is the key in this research. Electrical property of any dielectric material (such as Teflon, plastic, etc.) that is naturally available, can be adjusted to any value by printing pre-designed metal patterns on it. “In the current project, this engineered material will be used in designing a microwave absorber, which will absorb a frequency of incident electromagnetic wave. This engineered material will find application to absorb harmful radiation (if any) from 5G antennas.”
WALB
GSW nursing student to head to COVID-19 frontlines after virtual graduation
By Bobby Poitevint
A Georgia Southwestern State University (GSW) senior is getting ready for first-hand experience working at a hospital during the COVID-19 crisis. Connor Vann is a nursing student at Georgia Southwestern State University. The 21-year-old will be participating in his virtual graduation Friday. “At least we get to have this. We finished, we’re done with all of our classes and we still wanna have that graduation day. So, I think that I would still consider Friday my graduation day and I’m still gonna celebrate,” said Vann. GSW leadership said nearly 300 Hurricanes will also graduate this spring. They said traditional ceremonies were scheduled for the same day but canceled due to COVID-19. Next week, Vann will enter the frontlines at a hospital and will be training with a nurse.
The Times-Georgian
UWG confers record number of degrees
By Stephanie Allen
The University of West Georgia conferred a record number of degrees in a virtual ceremony on Saturday. There were a total of 1,415 degrees conferred, the largest in the university’s history. Of the degrees awarded, 972 were undergraduate degrees, and 443 were graduate-level. A virtual commencement ceremony was held in which every individual who earned a degree was named. The livestreamed event, however, was not meant to serve as a replacement for the Spring 2020 Commencement ceremony. Once it is safe, university officials say the 2020 graduates will be invited to an in-person ceremony and more details will be provided at a later date.
Gwinnett Daily Post
Georgia Gwinnett College offering new film and TV degree program
By Dave Williams Bureau Chief
Capitol Beat News Service
Georgia Gwinnett College is launching a new “nexus” degree program in professional sound design for film and television. The University System of Georgia Board of Regents unanimously approved the new program Tuesday. Gwinnett is home to both Eagle Rock Studios in Norcross and the forthcoming Atlanta Media Campus and Studios, located on the former OFS plant site along the Jimmy Carter Boulevard Corridor.
Georgia Health News
A strange, difficult time to study medicine
By Andi Clements
Ally Freeman, who’s pursuing her doctorate in physical therapy at Georgia Southern University in Savannah, used to spend about nine hours a week getting hands-on experience in a classroom or a lab. That was before the COVID-19 pandemic, which has disrupted daily life around the globe as governments and private businesses try to contain the spread of the virus. Freeman and other students working on degrees in the medical field now find themselves in a predicament they could not have anticipated. With restrictions on human interaction, they can’t do some of the things they would normally be doing to gain proficiency.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
UPDATE: Suspect ID’d after UGA students attacked during kayaking trip
By Asia Simone Burns
A suspect has been identified in an attack on a group of University of Georgia students who were on a weekend kayaking excursion, officials confirmed Wednesday. Madison County investigators have not released the man’s name because they are in the process of interviewing him. The attack happened Saturday on the Broad River near Roy Woods Road, Madison sheriff’s office spokesman Capt. Jimmy Patton told AJC.com.
WGAU
UGA’s May, Summer session classes begin
By: Tim Bryant
The University of Georgia’s Maymester and summer session classes are underway. Classes begin this morning, with students taking classes on-line. UGA switched to distance learning in mid-March: students have not been on campus since leaving for spring break. That’s when the coronavirus pandemic began in Georgia. There are plans to have students on campus and in classrooms when fall semester begins in August.
Albany Herald
Georgia Southwestern State University has $94 million economic impact on region
Study commissioned by the University System of Georgia included economic data for all system schools
From staff reports
Georgia Southwestern State University’s economic impact on the region was $93.6 million in Fiscal Year 2018, up nearly $5 million from the previous year’s total. Data were published in the recent annual study conducted by the Selig Center for Economic Growth in the University of Georgia’s Terry College of Business. The study, commissioned by the University System of Georgia, included economic data for all the system’s schools and USG as a whole. Georgia Southwestern’s economic impact grew by 5 percent from FY 2017 to 2018, while USG’s economic impact also increased by 5 percent. The report stated that the increase at GSW and across USG is attributed to “spending by the institution and spending by the students” in each economic region.
WTOC
Middle Georgia State University Responds to COVID-19
Like most college students, students at Middle Georgia State University won’t be returning to campus for the rest of the spring or summer. The school’s Vice President for Enrollment Management says students can meet with admissions counselors, sign up for classes and go through the orientation process online. MGSU has an online campus, and an orientation already existed for those students. Now, those services are offered to all students. “Our admissions team put together a video so our students would have a face to go with the voiceover and the name, and we just tried to pull together all the information that the students would need and to know about Middle Georgia, coupled with a campus tour that’s virtual and they can go through, because we just feel like we want to talk to our own students. You know? It’s important to us to build relationships with them.”
News18
Virus-attacking Cell Molecule Diminishes with Age, May Explain Severe Covid-19 Cases: Study
group of tiny molecules that attack invading viruses are diminished with age and chronic illnesses, according to a study which says this decrease may explain why older individuals are vulnerable to COVID-19. Researchers, including those from the University of Florida in the US, said microRNAs play a major role in controlling the activity of genes in the body, and are also on the front line when viruses enter cells. The study, published in the journal Aging and Disease, noted that microRNAs latch onto and cut the RNA of invading viruses. However, with age and some chronic medical conditions, the attacking microRNA numbers dwindle, reducing our ability to respond to viruses, said Carlos M. Isales, study co-author from Augusta University in the US. The novel coronavirus is then better able to hijack the host cell machinery to replicate, the researchers said. In the study, the scientists looked at the RNA sequence of two coronaviruses — SARS, which surfaced in 2002, and SARS-CoV-2, which causes COVID-19 — and the sequence of the microRNAs that appeared to be attacking the virus.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Opinion: Crisis shows importance of mental health, caregiving
By Eve Byrd and Jennifer Olsen
During the coronavirus pandemic, the public has been inundated with mental health guidance for these stressful times. Each day, news stories share “Tips to Handle Stress During COVID-19” or “How to Tamp Down Anxiety During the Outbreak.” Coping tips started well before May, which is national Mental Health Awareness Month, and extend far beyond the media. Human resource departments share them with employees. Mental health experts distribute them in Instagram Livestreams. And therapists post stress-reducing strategies along with their new telehealth hours. There are tips for parents, tips for children. Virtual mindfulness and meditation sessions are taught by exhausted teachers. Friends and relatives text each other encouragement and business colleagues start their emails with “How are you holding up?” …Mental wellness has crept into the mainstream in ways that it never has before. The upside? The integration of the topic into our daily discourse helps destigmatize mental health issues, something that Rosalynn Carter, founder of the Carter Center’s Mental Health Program, and mental health experts have sought for decades.
Other News:
Statesboro Herald
Kemp optimistic on Georgia virus fight as concerns linger
Associated Press
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp eased a few restrictions Tuesday on businesses and child care operations, but said he was keeping most current rules until at least the end of May. The Republican governor reiterated that he believes Georgia is containing the COVID-19 respiratory illness, despite areas of concern. Kemp said he’s most encouraged by low demand for critical care hospital beds since he started loosening restrictions last month.
Diverse Issues in Higher Education
What Dr. Fauci Says About Students Returning to Campuses in the Fall
The prospect of a COVID-19 vaccine by colleges’ fall reopening time is “a bridge too far,’ said Dr. Anthony Fauci, the country’s preeminent infectious diseases expert, at a Senate hearing on Tuesday, reported The Boston Globe. At the hearing, Tennessee Senator Lamar Alexander asked Dr. Fauci, a key member of the president’s coronavirus task force, to look three months ahead and talk about what he foresees in terms of a treatment or a vaccine for COVID-19. “What would you say to the chancellor of the University of Tennessee Knoxville or the principal of the public school about how to persuade parents and students how to return to school in August?” asked Senate Republican Alexander, who on Sunday indicated he isn’t in favor of colleges and universities reopening as normal in the fall. Dr. Fauci’s reply: “I would be very realistic with the chancellor and tell her that in this case, that the idea of having treatments available, or a vaccine, to facilitate the reentry of students into the fall term would be something of a bit of a bridge too far.”
Higher Education News:
WSB-TV
More Georgia families are investing in college saving plans
The stock market has taken major hits over the last two months, but even with so much financial uncertainty due to COVID-19, some Georgians are deciding that now is the time to invest in their children’s long-term success. Georgia created the Path to College 529 Plan in 2002. Today there are 170,000 account holders and more than $3 billion set aside. Mitch Seabaugh of the Georgia Student Finance Commission said that a dollar saved is one less dollar families will have to use on student loans, adding that “studies have shown that a child that has a 529 savings plan is seven times more likely to go to school.”
Inside Higher Ed
Report: Living Expenses, Not Tuition, Are the Problem
New report finds that financial aid mostly has kept up with rising tuition prices. But living expenses are another story.
By Madeline St. Amour
Sticker prices at most, if not all, colleges and universities in the country have increased since the mid-1990s, and some have increased dramatically. But financial aid assistance for low- and middle-income students generally has kept pace with these rising costs, according to a new report from the American Enterprise Institute. The report, “Evidence Against the Free-College Agenda: An Analysis of Prices, Financial Aid and Affordability at Public Universities,” argues that free tuition programs at four-year institutions wouldn’t be helpful to the neediest students. Instead, policy makers should be looking at living expenses. “The push for free college, a lot of it seems to be premised on the view that public universities’ prices have spiraled out of control,” said Jason Delisle, the author of the report and a resident fellow at AEI.
Inside Higher Ed
Common App Adds Question on COVID-19
By Scott Jaschik
The Common Application has added a question on students’ COVID-19 experiences. The question reads, “Community disruptions such as COVID-19 and natural disasters can have deep and long-lasting impacts. If you need it, this space is yours to describe those impacts. Colleges care about the effects on your health and well-being, safety, family circumstances, future plans, and education, including access to reliable technology and quiet study spaces. Do you wish to share anything on this topic? Y/N Please use this space to describe how these events have impacted you.”
The Chronicle of Higher Education
Students’ Internships Are Disappearing. Can Virtual Models Replace Them?
By Goldie Blumenstyk
Internships are going virtual, but apparently not enough of them.
It’s hard to get a good read on how many college students have had their spring and summer internships disappear on them amid the Covid-19 pandemic. I’ve seen estimates all over the map, and even when companies say they haven’t outright canceled their internships, they are often scaling back on the number of students they’re taking. What fascinates me are the responses to those lost opportunities. Employers themselves and new facilitators are stepping up to create alternative virtual internships, in some cases working closely with colleges to ensure academic credit. That much is not a surprise to me. Since I began exploring the advantages of virtual micro-internships pre-pandemic, I’ve seen a proliferation of companies that coordinate with colleges to develop work-based projects designed to be integrated into, or complement, coursework. Several of these companies, like Riipen, CapSource, and Parker Dewey, are well positioned to shift to serving students, and that’s what they’re doing now.
The Chronicle of Higher Education
‘I Don’t Trust My University.’ Readers Share Their Fears of Returning to Campus in the Fall.
By Fernanda Zamudio-Suaréz
Most colleges have started to announce their fall plans now that the spring semester, sprung into chaos by the novel coronavirus, is winding down. After months of uncertainty, while students, faculty, and staff were kept away from campus to slow the virus’s spread, some institutions are planning a return to in-person instruction. The Chronicle is tracking colleges’ reopening plans, and about 73 percent of institutions in our sample say they plan a face-to-face fall semester. Several leaders have made rather confident statements. Their employees and students seem less sure about a homecoming anytime soon. We asked readers to tell us how they felt about returning to campus. More than 300 of you responded. Our survey was anonymous and not scientific. Still, the responses paint a picture of educators’ fears and the decisions people are weighing.
Inside Higher Ed
Cal State System Planning for Virtual Fall
By Madeline St. Amour
The California State University system is using a “virtual planning approach” for the fall semester. Timothy White, the system’s chancellor, announced the decision at a virtual Board of Trustees meeting. Mikhail Zinshteyn, a reporter at CalMatters, first reported the news. The livestream on CSU’s website confirmed it. White cited experts’ predictions that COVID-19 is likely to spike again at the end of the summer and again in flu season as the reason to take precautionary measures and to plan for virtual instruction to protect people’s safety. However, he did leave open the possibility of resuming face-to-face instruction. As an example, he said the system needs to plan for virtual instruction even if fall classes resume as normal; if the virus resurges, they can quickly be transitioned to virtual courses. But, most likely, courses will either use hybrid models or be solely virtual, White said. On-campus housing also will be limited.
Inside Higher Ed
The Department of Education’s new regulation says colleges aren’t responsible for sexual assault or harassment that takes place in study abroad programs or in private, off-campus settings.
By Greta Anderson
…The legal responsibility for colleges and universities to protect students from such sexual assaults while studying abroad may now be diminished under new regulations issued by the Department of Education last week. The new rules clearly state institutions are not obligated to investigate reports of sexual misconduct in their study abroad programs or provide support to those who report misconduct outside the U.S. Universities and colleges had been encouraged to investigate sexual assaults and support victims abroad under Title IX, the law prohibiting sex discrimination at federally funded institutions. Advocates for sexual assault survivors consider the rule change “absurd” and say it “undermines the purpose” of Title IX. They worry the new rule reduces the geographic scope of the law, by limiting colleges’ responsibility to incidents that occur only within domestic, campus-affiliated activities, and letting the institutions off the hook whether or not sexual misconduct takes place within programs run or sponsored by the colleges.
Inside Higher Ed
House Dems Want Billions for States, Colleges
House Democrats unveil a $3 trillion proposal, including tens of billions for colleges. But Senate Republicans say, “It’s not going anywhere.”
By Kery Murakami
Though it was immediately trashed by the Senate’s Republican majority as dead on arrival, House Democrats on Tuesday proposed a mammoth fourth stimulus package that would provide the possibility of more money for colleges and universities, specify that undocumented students are eligible for emergency grants, and expand relief for student loan borrowers beyond what was contained in the CARES Act. Lobbyists representing colleges and universities were studying the massive, 1,800-page HEROES Act last evening. But as part of the $3 trillion package, House Democrats proposed giving states the $500 billion in aid governors have asked for to deal with the financial fallout of the pandemic. Colleges and universities had supported the aid in the hopes of softening state funding cuts to higher education as they try to fill billions of dollars in budget shortfall.