University System News:
The Red & Black
UGA approves COVID-19 testing plan, screening app for fall semester
Megan Mittelhammer | Editor in Chief
The University of Georgia will conduct 300 coronavirus tests per day on asymptomatic student, faculty and staff volunteers this fall as a part of a surveillance testing plan recommended by the Medical Oversight Task Force, according to a Wednesday ArchNews email. The task force recommended a plan that requires 24,000 tests be conducted by Thanksgiving break. UGA will hire five staff members to carry out the program at an outdoor location. Testing will begin on Aug. 10, the first day of UGA’s Phase Three reopening plan. Testing is free for all volunteers, which will include students living in dorms, off-campus housing and Greek life housing. Faculty and staff volunteers will be chosen from those who self-identify as being at a higher risk for COVID-19. The university still advises those with COVID-19 symptoms to schedule an appointment with the health center. The University Health Center will conduct the sample, and the Veterinary Medicine Diagnostic Lab will perform the nasal swab test, according to the email. The lab was recently certified to conduct human coronavirus testing. Test results will be available within 48-72 hours and will be sent to the Georgia Department of Public Health. UGA has invested $1.2 million for the testing plan.
WGAU
UNG says Blue Ridge campus will be ready for fall classes
Work began almost a year ago
By Tim Bryant
The University of North Georgia says work on its new campus in Blue Ridge should be finished in time for the August 17 start of fall semester classes. Construction on the 12,000-square-foot building began in August of last year.
From the UNG website…
“This campus in Blue Ridge is a dream come true,” UNG President Bonita Jacobs said. “Having a larger location means that we can serve more students and expand course offerings, which will further enhance educational opportunities and the economic development of this region.” Construction on the more than 12,000-square-foot building began in August 2019; ground was broken on the project in October 2018.
WGAU
UNG schedules on-line forum to update plans for fall semester
By Tim Bryant
The University of North Georgia schedules a digital town hall to talk about changes to that will be implemented for next month’s scheduled start of fall semester classes. The on-line session is set for next Monday at noon.
From the UNG website…
After this summer’s announcement that the University of North Georgia (UNG) will resume face-to-face instruction in August, students and their families want to know how courses, classrooms and campus life will differ. UNG administrators plan to address courses, the revised academic calendar, preparations to return to campus, and more in a virtual town hall session from noon to 1 p.m. July 27. Geared toward students, their parents and families, the online town hall may be accessed at go.ung.edu/pdfs-town-hall.
Griffin Daily News
Gordon State College implements new initiatives to promote diversity, equity and inclusion
Gordon State College has created a Presidential Commission on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in keeping with the ongoing national discussion about racial discrimination.
Winters Media
Coweta Master Gardeners Announce 2020 College Scholarship Winners
by Marci Moore
For Master Gardener Extension Volunteers (MGEVs), few things are as rewarding as giving back to the community. MGEVs put in long hours to raise funds for multiple projects throughout the year including …the MGEV scholarship program. …This year four $1,000 scholarships were awarded to deserving Coweta County high school graduates. …The Coweta County Master Gardener Volunteers proudly announce our 2020 scholarship recipients: Josie Batchelor graduated from East Coweta High School and will attend Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College …Oran Hurst graduated from East Coweta High School and will attend the University of Georgia …Catherine (Kitty) Yeager is a graduate of Newnan High School. She will be attending Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College …
AllOnGeorgia
“Play it again, Sam:” Retiree goes back to school for piano degree at UWG
Many people spend decades dreaming of the things they will do upon retirement. Traveling. Volunteering. Picking up a new hobby. Going back to college and earning a degree doesn’t usually enter their minds.
Many people spend decades dreaming of the things they will do upon retirement. Traveling. Volunteering. Picking up a new hobby. Going back to college and earning a degree doesn’t usually enter their minds. But that’s exactly what recent University of West Georgia graduate Sam Smith did thanks to Georgia’s free tuition program for students 62 years or older.
Columbus CEO
CSU Students, Professors Create Virtual World for First-Year Students
Staff Report
Incoming Columbus State University students will have the opportunity to experience the CSU campus through Minecraft. The virtual campus was created by a team of CSU computer science students and faculty. Activities in the virtual world will be offered as part of P.R.O.W.L., an annual extended orientation that provides incoming students a preview into cougar nation. Typically held as a four-day, three-night in-person event, P.R.O.W.L. allows new students to make lifelong friends through leadership development opportunities and interactive games. The camp usually includes activities such as bonfires and mud courses, but social distancing guidelines and the evolving nature of COVID-19 created obstacles in the planning of the event for this year. Fortunately, at CSU, challenges spark creativity. CSU President Chris Markwood asked Dr. Mariko Izumi, CSU’s Director of Center for Experiential Learning and Career Design (former Office of Quality Enhancement Plan), to build a team to create a virtual environment for the event.
Business Insider
The Clayton State University Library is highlighting its history of educating medical professionals with the launch of a virtual exhibit. Entitled, “The College of Health: A History of Creating Patient Focused Professionals,” this exhibit explores the university’s College of Health, including its achievements in healthcare, student development and community outreach efforts over the past 50 years. Exhibition highlights include news articles, images, artifacts and documents showing the College of Health’s commitment to supporting student academic success through curriculum and sustained scholarship funding. The exhibit also displays a 50-year history of students’ patient care focused clinical experiences within the nursing and dental Hygiene programs.
Science Mag
‘Ethically troubling.’ University reopening plans put professors, students on edge
By Jyoti Madhusoodanan
Come August, hundreds of universities across the United States are poised to reopen their campuses with a mix of online and in-person courses. Only a handful are aiming for an entirely online semester. But as the machinery of higher education cranks back into action, faculty, staff, and students are voicing concerns that, with COVID-19 cases surging in many parts of the country, employees are being forced to put their health—and the health of others—at unnecessary risk. At many universities, employees will not be permitted to teach or work from home unless—due to age or preexisting health conditions—they’re at risk of a severe outcome from COVID-19. The need to care for children and fear of infection aren’t valid reasons to work remotely, according to some universities. “Employees who care for or live with [high-risk] individuals … should plan to return to campus as scheduled,” the Georgia Institute of Technology’s (Georgia Tech’s) reopening guidelines stated as of 20 July.
Inside Higher Ed
How can something rare become a lasting symbol for a state? In today’s Academic Minute, part of Kennesaw State University Week, William Thomas Okie determines one symbol that has survived this test despite not being plentiful. Okie is an associate professor of history at Kennesaw State. A transcript of this podcast can be found here.
Athens Banner-Herald
Six Athens locals honored in UGA’s ’40 Under 40′ class of 2020
By Caitlyn Stroh-Page
The University of Georgia Alumni Association recently announced its 40 Under 40 Class of 2020, which recognizes the “personal, professional and philanthropic achievements of successful UGA graduates under the age of 40,“according to the university. Below are the Class of 2020 honorees who are also current Athens locals.
Growing America
GA Researcher Improving Sustainability, Profitability for Poultry Processors
Over time, the U.S. poultry industry has bred strains of birds that grow rapidly to meet consumer demand for chicken products — especially breast meat — but that rapid growth has led to a higher incidence of muscle tissue defects that could lead to revenue loss. Now a team of University of Georgia and U.S. Department of Agriculture poultry scientists have received a Critical Agricultural Research and Extension (CARE) grant from the USDA to help develop ways to use the meat that increase sustainability and profitability. Led by Harshavardhan Thippareddi, the John Bekkers Professor of Poultry Science in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (CAES), the team has received a $300,000 grant from the USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture to support their work.
Athens CEO
UGA Ranks High in Innovation Productivity
Aaron Hale
When it comes to converting original research into economic impact, the University of Georgia is one of the nation’s most productive large institutions. UGA ranked No. 10 for productivity in generating innovation impact among large research universities, according to The Innovation Impact of U.S. Universities report from the George W. Bush Institute and Opus Faveo Innovation Development. “The COVID-19 crisis has dramatically underscored the importance of great research institutions to America’s well-being and economic future,” the report states, pointing out that universities are playing a key role in defeating the virus. University research and innovation will also need to play an important role as the U.S. tries to rebound economically, the authors argue. As one of the leading universities for bringing new products to market and with over 175 companies built on the university’s research, UGA is focused on making this kind of impact.
WTOC
Restoration underway for historic Richmond Hill cemetery with buried slaves
By Briana Collier | July 22, 2020 at 6:13 PM EDT – Updated July 22 at 6:48 PM
An old cemetery in Richmond Hill, where slaves are buried, is on its way to being restored thanks to a group of community members. The Strathy Hall cemetery buried in Richmond Hill’s archives, dates to 1756 where at least 100 slaves are buried. “I think it was back in 1992, Georgia Southern University came through and did a clearing and did a study where they located all the graves and then pretty much shortly after that it just became bush again and overgrown,” cemetery owner Richard Appleton said. …Appleton, who is now the cemetery owner, says he recently started clearing the cemetery of trees, shrubs and other things that disrupt where much of history now lies.
Other News:
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Map: Coronavirus deaths and cases in Georgia (updated July 22, 3 p.m.)
An updated count of coronavirus deaths and cases reported across the state
DEATHS: 3,335 | Deaths have been confirmed in 146 counties. County is determined by the patient’s residence, when known, not by where they were treated.
CONFIRMED CASES: 152,302 | Cases have been confirmed in every county.
Savannah Morning News
Additional coronavirus testing begins as part of New York, Savannah partnership
The City of Savannah, as part of their partnership with the State of New York and Gov. Andrew Cuomo, opened additional COVID-19 testing sites on Wednesday. The additional testing sites were part of the announcement made on Monday by Gov. Cuomo and Savannah Mayor Van Johnson when the governor flew to Savannah to “repay the kindness” of the Hostess City for providing aid to New York with its initial COVID-19 spike.
Government Technology
What Can Be Done to Control Exploding Coronavirus in the South
States across the South are experiencing surges of the novel coronavirus as reopening efforts continue. Texas, Arizona, Florida and Georgia have all seen a spike in their case counts, and North Carolina reached 100,000 COVID-19 cases earlier this week.
By Caroline Petrow-Cohen
Infectious disease experts say if North Carolina officials make the right decisions in coming weeks, they may be able to avoid the fate that harder hit states are facing now. But without careful planning, they say, the state may be only a few weeks away from becoming a severe COVID-19 hot spot. States across the South are experiencing surges of the novel coronavirus as reopening efforts continue. Texas, Arizona, Florida and Georgia have all seen a spike in their case counts, and North Carolina reached 100,000 COVID-19 cases earlier this week. So far, North Carolina is faring better than those four states in key metrics like hospitalizations, number of cases per 100,000 residents and the percent of tests that come back positive. But as North Carolina’s cases continue to climb, public health experts and local officials fear things will only get worse. In many states in the South, that fear has already come true.
Higher Education News:
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Georgia may push statewide start date of Sept. 8 for schools
GET SCHOOLED BLOG
By Maureen Downey – The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Greg Bluestein – The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
State Board of Education will discuss Thursday whether to advise all districts to delay opening
At its meeting Thursday, the state Board of Education may consider a resolution pushing back the start of school statewide until Sept. 8. The resolution under consideration would seek to have schools delay opening until Sept. 8, according to sources. The Georgia School Boards Association was not consulted about a possible resolution, said Executive Director Valarie Wilson. “We started hearing rumors earlier today, and the rumors started to take more leg this afternoon. Later, we received confirmation the state board would be discussing it tomorrow.”
Inside Higher Ed
Report on Public Colleges and Upward Mobility
By Emma Whitford
Public, four-year institutions are imperative to upward social mobility for the middle class, according to a new Brookings Institution report released Wednesday. Such institutions account for 42 percent of total enrollment, 58 percent of student spending and 50 percent of upward mobility for the middle class, the report states. By comparison, public two-year institutions account for a similar enrollment, a smaller share of spending and one-third of upward mobility. “Our report shows that moderately selective public colleges play a critical role in promoting upward mobility for students from the middle class and that two-year colleges offer good value for society,” the report said. “State and federal policymakers should work to ensure both types of public colleges have the capacity to effectively serve all students who want to attend.”
Inside Higher Ed
New International Students Told to Stay Home
Two universities tell new international students not to come to U.S. to take classes remotely, as higher ed groups lobby for greater clarity — and flexibility — on federal policy for new students from abroad.
By Elizabeth Redden
Harvard University and the University of Southern California have advised new international students not to come to campus this fall, saying they will not be allowed to enter the U.S. to participate in remote instruction. …Further, an FAQ reissued by ICE on July 15 says new international students who are not already in the U.S. should stay in their home country. The American Council on Education and more than 40 other higher education groups sent a letter to Chad Wolf, the acting homeland security secretary, seeking further clarification on the rules for new international students and requesting that all new international students who take a full-time course load, whether they are taking their courses in an online, hybrid or in-person format, be permitted to enter the U.S. But with the fall semester fast approaching, time for the agency to clarify the rules for new international students is running out.