University System News:
WGAU
UGA Health Center preps for campus reopening
University plans for August start to fall semester
By Haley Major
The demand for digital experiences skyrocketed in response to statewide, shelter-in-place orders this past spring. To continue engaging the University of Georgia community, the University Health Center expanded its BeWellUGA program to offer BeWellUGA at Home, a virtual hub of clinicians, instructors and coaches delivering online health and wellness content to a community following public health guidelines. …UHC will continue growing its virtual offerings this fall through a combination of in-person and online programs, including mindfulness sessions, blog posts, fitness classes and nutrition workshops, just to name a few. … As students, faculty and staff return to campus, the health of the Athens community is also a priority for the university. In addition to offering free, virtual programs and resources, UHC is encouraging everyone to do their part to keep UGA and Athens healthy through their UMatter campaign.
The George-Anne
More than 150 of Georgia Southern faculty want a re-evaluation of in-person classes
By Olivia Craft
Georgia Southern faculty and staff members have released a petition in regards to the return of in-person classes for the fall 2020 semester. The petition released on July 4 states that the faculty believes it is their “professional and ethical responsibility” to ensure the health and safety of their students. It expresses their concern that the reopening process does not prioritize scientific evidence and could cause significant health risks. They say that the university is not holding up its values because it is neglecting to make the college community a main factor in the decision to resume in-person classes for the fall. In the petition, they state, “we do not feel secure that the education we will be offering to students in 2020 will be free from significant and foreseeable disruption.”
Athens Banner-Herald
UGA faculty, others pushing back against university system’s fall reopening plans
By Lee Shearer
Faculty resistance continues to mount at the University of Georgia and other University System of Georgia colleges against what they see as top-down, one-size-fits-all and inadequate planning for campuses to reopen this fall. On Wednesday, the University of Georgia’s Franklin College of Arts and Sciences Faculty Senate will meet to discuss a resolution calling for changes in reopening plans, though no vote is scheduled during the Zoom meeting. The senate scheduled the special meeting in response to a petition signed by 228 faculty members in Franklin College, UGA’s largest academic unit. Last week, the university system announced one change in its plans for fall reopening after more than 800 Georgia Tech academic faculty signed on to a statement calling for masks and other more protective measures. More than 10,000 people had by that time also called for a better plan, including face coverings, in online petitions. Also last week, 58 Regents professors — the highest academic rank in the University System of Georgia — released a statement calling on the USG and Chancellor Steve Wrigley to allow individual college presidents to make decisions about their campuses’ reopening plans.
WRDW
Thinking of going out in a crowd? Think again, GA Tech data suggests
A new toolset from Georgia Tech shows your probability of being in contact with someone who has COVID-19. CRSA residents — the numbers don’t look good. In most CSRA counties — including Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken counties — your risk of being in contact with someone in a crowd of 50 people is at least 90 percent. GA Tech’s numbers allow you to adjust the number of people in a crowd to see the likelihood of being in a crowd with someone who has coronavirus.
Metro Atlanta CEO
Medical College of Georgia’s Dr. Doug Patten on Updating their Curriculum
Dr. Doug Patten, Campus Dean for Medical College of Georgia, talks about how they are adjusting curriculums with the times to match with changes in technology to better serve future doctors.
Growing America
UGA students honored by American Dairy Science Association
By: UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
University of Georgia animal and dairy science students won several honors at the national American Dairy Science Association-Student Affiliate Division (ADSA-SAD) meeting in June, and UGA senior Alyssa Rauton was elected president of ADSA-SAD for 2020-21.
WSAV
An email sent out to thousands of students from the Savannah State University’s Office of Undergraduate Admissions caused panic, confusion, and anger. An Atlanta mom told WSAV News 3 that her daughter was denied enrollment seven months after receiving her original acceptance letter. According to the Vice President of Marketing and Communications, 9,144 letters of admission status were emailed to a list of fall applicants on Saturday, July 11, informing them that they were not accepted to the university. Due to a “human-filtering error,” 4,019 students who had previously been accepted to SSU incorrectly received the email.
Other News:
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
As Georgia’s COVID cases grow, Kemp faces decision on new restrictions
By Greg Bluestein
Two weeks ago, Gov. Brian Kemp took a step that he hadn’t since late April: He signed an executive order that extended – but didn’t roll back – coronavirus restrictions he put in place earlier this year. It was a break from a string of decisions that steadily relaxed economic regulations – and a reflection of Georgia’s worsening battle against the pandemic following a record spike in cases. Now he faces a new decision. The state’s latest round of coronavirus rules is set to expire on Wednesday, and he must choose whether to keep them in place or impose new restrictions to help contain a growing outbreak.
The Augusta Chronicle
By Tom Corwin
Georgia shot back up with 3,600 new cases of COVID-19 on Monday and has added more than 9,300 new cases since a record-breaking day Friday, while Augusta added nearly 150 cases on Monday. University also had its highest number of COVID-19 patients in the hospital. Georgia added 3,643 new cases Monday to reach 120,569, with 25 new deaths for 3,026. Since Friday, the state has seen 9,358 new cases, an increase of 8.4%, and 61 new deaths, an increase of just over 2%, according to analysis by …After setting a record high for COVID-19 patients being treated in the hospital with 64 last week, University had 71 in the hospital on Monday, spokeswoman Rebecca Sylvester said. University also added 125 new cases since Friday and is returning Wednesday to many visitation restrictions it implemented in the spring. No visitors will be allowed for inpatients, outpatients, surgery patients or in the Emergency Department, Sylvester said. Labor and delivery patients will be allowed one support person and mothers with babies in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit will be allowed to visit between noon and 4 p.m., she said.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Map: Coronavirus deaths and cases in Georgia (updated July 13, 3 p.m.)
An updated count of coronavirus deaths and cases reported across the state
DEATHS: 3,026 | Deaths have been confirmed in 141 counties. County is determined by the patient’s residence, when known, not by where they were treated. CONFIRMED CASES: 120,569 | Cases have been confirmed in every county.
Valdosta Daily Times
By Jill Nolin Georgia Recorder
Macon Mayor Robert Reichert saw the rising number of people hospitalized for COVID-19 and went as far as he thought he could go with his mayoral pen: He issued an executive order “urging and pleading” residents to wear a face mask. The order from the mayor of one of Georgia’s largest cities was issued Thursday even as the list of cities mandating facial coverings continued to grow. By the end of last week, more than a half dozen Georgia cities – including Savannah, Atlanta, Augusta and Athens – had ordered their residents to mask up in public spaces as COVID-19 numbers surge. More are expected to follow.
Higher Education News:
Inside Higher Ed
House Panel Advances Dems’ Education Spending Plan
By Kery Murakami
Democrats on a key House committee on Monday approved an education spending bill that would reject hundreds of millions in cuts for colleges and universities, as well as more than a billion in cuts to college student aid, that have been sought by President Trump. The spending measure approved by the House appropriations committee, along partisan lines, would also increase spending on career and technical education by $25 million, $738 million less than the major boost Trump and Education Secretary Betsy DeVos want. The Democrat-controlled House must still work out a deal with the Republican Senate and the Trump administration as part of a budget deal later this year. The spending package is separate from discussions around the next coronavirus relief package, expected to begin in earnest when the Senate returns from its July 4 break next week, and does little to deal with huge financial losses higher education institutions are taking from the pandemic. The House proposal would provide a modest $716 million increase to the Education Department’s budget, to $73.5 billion.
The Chronicle of Higher Education
Colleges Face a No-Win Dilemma: To Cut or Not to Cut Tuition?
By Lee Gardner
Amid all the uncertainty of the Covid-19 pandemic for higher education, two things are becoming clear. Most students yearn to come back to campus in the fall, in spite of the risks. And if, instead, students wind up receiving online instruction come September, they don’t want to pay full tuition. These two factors are driving the decision-making of millions of students and their families. In response, many institutions are frantically making elaborate and expensive plans to open up classrooms and dorms, in part because they feel like they have to. Surveys show that an overwhelming majority of students don’t want to pay full cost for another semester of Zoom meetings, and that some incoming freshmen who have been admitted to colleges that choose to extend online learning into the fall might defect to colleges that decide to open their campuses. Substantially fewer students equals plunging tuition revenue, which equals financial disaster at a time when many colleges are already at the fiscal brink.
Diverse Issues in Higher Education
Survey: Many Higher Ed Leaders Concerned About Student Compliance With Social Distancing Protocol
Many colleges and universities are concerned about whether students, especially undergraduates, will follow social distancing protocols when institutions reopen in the fall amid the COVID-19 pandemic, said a new EAB survey of 70 institutional leaders. “Enforcing social distancing in classrooms, libraries, and other public spaces won’t be easy, but schools know they will have little to no control over whether students adhere to safety guidelines when they go off campus or in private spaces in residence halls,” said Dr. Liz Rothenberg, a managing director at EAB, in a statement. Administrators’ top three concerns all focused on student compliance.
GPB News
Schools, Businesses, Cities Push Back On Rule Blocking Some International Students
By Matthew S. Schwartz
One week ago, the Trump administration announced it would ban international students from attending U.S. colleges in the fall if they only take online classes. Now hundreds of colleges and universities, dozens of cities, and some of the country’s biggest tech companies are pushing back. In several court filings Friday and Monday, the groups stand with the international students. They argue providing remote education is crucial given how contagious COVID-19 is — and they say they crafted policies for the fall by depending on earlier assurances from the federal government that international students would be able to attend class remotely “for the duration of the emergency” while still retaining their F-1 or M-1 visa status.
The Chronicle of Higher Education
Live Coronavirus Updates: Here’s the Latest
The fall is weeks away, and Covid-19 is surging. The Chronicle is tracking developments across higher ed here. Read on for daily live updates and information.
3:42 p.m., Eastern, 7/13/2020
Quote of the Day
“Ultimately, no one is playing football in the fall. It’s just a matter of how it unfolds. As soon one of the ‘autonomy five’ or Power Five conferences makes a decision, that’s going to end it.”
— An anonymous, high-ranking college official, in a Yahoo Sports opinion piece
2:55 p.m. Eastern, 7/13/2020
Campus Health Centers as ‘Wild West of Medical Care’
As many colleges plan for in-person learning and residential life this fall, officials will be relying on campus health centers to help carry out key safety measures, like scaling up Covid-19 testing, distributing personal-protective equipment, and isolating students who test positive. But a new Washington Post investigation questions whether those centers are equipped to play such a role, describing the universe of student health facilities as “akin to the Wild West of medical care.”