University System News:
WALB
USG reports record increase in degrees awarded
Over 70,000 degrees awarded for the 2020 fiscal year
By Kim McCullough
Despite challenges from the coronavirus pandemic, the University of Georgia (USG) awarded a record of 70,879 degrees for the 2020 fiscal year, according to the system. That’s the most in the system’s 89-year history. The 4.5 percent annual increase represents over 3,000 more degrees awarded to USG students than last year. The system said it is also the largest year-over-year increase since 2011 when USG joined Complete College America and refocused system efforts on raising education attainment in Georgia. “This success is thanks to the hard work of USG’s 26 public colleges and universities, which have taken critical steps to increase support and help students stay on track toward their degree,” USG Chancellor Steve Wrigley said. “I am especially grateful to our students, faculty and staff for all they do to ensure more Georgians enter the workforce with a college credential.”
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Georgia universities look to educate more adult learners
By Eric Stirgus
The University System of Georgia discussed a plan Tuesday to educate more adults online who are seeking a new job or improving their career prospects. The proposed eight-week courses would initially be for students pursuing bachelor’s degrees. The plan, if approved, is to serve students seeking other higher educational degrees as well. The Georgia Board of Regents may vote on the proposal in September, officials said. “We need to find ways for higher education to be more adaptable to their needs and their lives,” Tristan Denley, the system’s chief academic officer, said in a telephone interview. Although Denley said system officials began working on this plan before the coronavirus pandemic began impacting Georgia in March, the courses could be beneficial to many adults now seeking employment.
Fox5
Georgia students head back to college
Video Newscast – Georgia colleges and universities students are preparing to go back.
The Augusta Chronicle
Board of Regents seeking funding for eight Georgia university building projects
By Dave Williams, Capitol Beat News Service
The University System of Georgia is proposing an ambitious list of building projects for the next fiscal year, despite the state’s tight budget constraints. The system’s Board of Regents Tuesday approved a fiscal 2022 capital budget request of $266.9 million, including $137 million for eight major construction projects on campuses across Georgia. The General Assembly set aside $182.5 million for the university system in the state’s $1.13 billion bond package for fiscal 2021, which began last month. The list of major projects the regents are seeking for the next fiscal year includes:
Fun 101.1
GORDON STATE RECORD INCREASE DEGREES AWARDED
Despite unprecedented challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic, the University System of Georgia (USG) in fiscal year 2020 awarded a record 70,879 degrees – the most in the system’s 89-year history. Gordon State College’s graduation rate had a six percentage-point increase from the previous year, which was also the institution’s highest six-year graduation rate in the last five years.
Athens Banner-Herald
UGA faculty group considering voting no-confidence in University System chancellor, Regents
By Lee Shearer
A University of Georgia faculty group may be heading toward a vote of no confidence in University System of Georgia Chancellor Steve Wrigley and the state Board of Regents over reopening plans for the university. The Franklin College of Arts and Sciences Faculty Senate did not take a formal vote on the resolution in a Tuesday Zoom meeting, but a large majority of voting members Tuesday said they wanted to move toward a vote on a resolution in a meeting next week — though it might differ from the original resolution. In a show of digital hands, 18 voted to go forward, and two voted against it. But it wasn’t entirely clear how much support the vote of no confidence had, since nine senators didn’t vote either way. The proposed resolution does not mention UGA President Jere Morehead because decisions about responses to the coronavirus pandemic are coming from the University System offices in Atlanta, not from individual college presidents. But some in the meeting thought Morehead should be named as well as Wrigley and the Regents.
Savannah Morning News
Savannah State students move in amid COVID concerns and long lines at financial aid
By Asha Gilbert
COVID-19 concerns and a line with over 50 students and parents waiting for financial aid were front and center as students began moving back on campus Tuesday at Savannah State University. Parents Shon Payton and Chris Taylor waited two hours to go through financial aid as they were dropping off their two daughters, who are a junior and a sophomore at SSU. … A spokeswoman from SSU said, “During move-in, it is typical for students and parents to have lots questions regarding financial aid, admissions and making payments. Campus ambassadors were available to offer bottled water as they waited for assistance and have their questions answered. We remain grateful to the parents and family members who are here assisting their students with move in.”
The Brunswick News
‘Mask on, Mariners’: College to begin fall semester next week
By Lauren McDonald
College of Coastal Georgia students will return to campus Monday to begin fall semester. CCGA, like other institutions in the University System of Georgia, has put together a detailed reopening plan centered on providing in-person instruction for students, despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. Students began moving into the two residence halls on campus this week.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
COVID-19 clinical trials lack diversity, UGA study says
By Eric Stirgus
Although people of color have disproportionately been diagnosed with COVID-19, they are underrepresented in clinical trials, according to a study released Tuesday by a team of researchers from the universities of Georgia, Colorado and Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital in Albany. In a federally-funded trial that is testing the efficacy of the antiviral remdesivir, Black Americans accounted for 20% of the total patient population, the researchers found. In the Gilead-funded clinical trial of the drug, about one out of every 10 patients given remdesivir were Black. Latinx and Native Americans comprised 23% of the former trial and less than 1% of the latter, the research team found.
Marietta Daily Journal
KSU football put on the shelf for 2020
By John Bednarowski
Kennesaw State coach Brian Bohannon will have to wait at least until spring for his team to take the field. The Big South Conference, which the Owls play football in, cancelled fall sports on Wednesday. What was beginning to look like a certainty became official on Wednesday. The Big South Conference has called off fall sports, and because of it, Kennesaw State football will likely have to wait until next spring at the earliest. …For Kennesaw State, the program was voted as the favorite to win the conference for the third time in four years this season. The Owls were coming off an 11-3 season in which it advanced to the second round of the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs and linebacker Bryson Armstrong, a former Kell High School standout, was voted the preseason conference defensive player of the year for the third time.
Statesboro Herald
Man charged in 2019 traffic death of Georgia Southern officer
Holli Deal Saxon
After almost a year, a man involved in a September 2019 crash that took the life of a Georgia Southern University police officer was charged with misdemeanor vehicular homicide. Bulloch County Jail reports show Blake Anthony Strickland, of Chastain Circle in Richmond Hill, was booked Monday on charges of second-degree vehicular homicide and improper U-turn.
WSAV
Savannah State math professor receives presidential STEM mentorship award
by: Ashley Williams
A Savannah State University professor is among 12 other recipients of a prestigious honor. Mathematics department chair Dr. Mulatu Lemma has received the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics and Engineering Mentoring. The Ethiopian native, who tells WSAV.com NOW that the recognition is a great honor for Savannah State, has taught and mentored students at the university for 25 years. Lemma was recognized virtually for the award on July 3 and is currently awaiting his certificate, which will be signed by President Donald Trump. The award highlights those who have made significant contributions to mentoring and supporting the future of the science, technology, mathematics and engineering workforce.
Chemical & Engineering News
ACS announces editor-in-chief for open access journal JACS Au
The Society plans to add 9 additional open access journals to its suite
by Arminda Downey-Mavromatis
Christopher W. Jones will take the helm of the American Chemical Society’s newest fully open access journal, JACS Au, as its inaugural editor-in-chief. JACS Au (pronounced “JACS Gold”) will complement the ACS’s flagship Journal of the American Chemical Society by publishing high-impact research in chemistry and related fields through a pay-to-publish, free-to-read model. …Jones is a professor at the Georgia Institute of Technology, where he researches catalysis, separations materials, and carbon capture.
Other News:
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Ditch face masks with valves or vents, CDC says
By Nancy Clanton
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says these masks may endanger others
If your social media feeds are like ours, every other ad is for face masks. As the coronavirus pandemic continues, the need to wear a mask increases. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta contends masks help prevent people who have COVID-19 from spreading the virus to others. The CDC, World Health Organization and other experts have encouraged the proper use of face coverings since the beginning of the pandemic. A recent study by Duke University researchers tested a variety of masks to determine their effectiveness to block droplets that carry the coronavirus. They found that gaiter masks, or neck fleeces, were the least effective. But there is another kind of mask the CDC wants you to ditch: those with vents or valves.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
New study looks at the most (and least) effective face masks
By Courtney Kueppers
As states continue to reopen schools. restaurants and more, a group of researchers looked at which masks are most effective in helping to stop the spread of the coronavirus. The study, conducted by researchers at Duke University, found that not all masks are created equal. In order to determine which face covers best contain transmission of droplets, the team used a model that included a laser beam and a cellphone. …The researchers found, perhaps not surprisingly, that fitted N95 masks are the most effective. However, since the N95 masks are mostly reserved for health care and front-line workers, the researchers also note that three-layer surgical masks and cotton masks that can be made at home or purchased online are also effective in containing the spread of droplets.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Map: Coronavirus deaths and cases in Georgia (updated Aug. 11, 3 p.m.)
An updated count of coronavirus deaths and cases reported across the state
DEATHS: 4,351 | Deaths have been confirmed in 154 counties. County is determined by the patient’s residence, when known, not by where they were treated.
CONFIRMED CASES: 222,588 | Cases have been confirmed in every county.
Higher Education News:
Inside Higher Ed
August Wave of Campus Reopening Reversals
Hundreds of colleges announced early this summer they would be reopening for in-person instruction this fall. As start dates near, many backtrack, citing a worsening health crisis.
By Emma Whitford
Hundreds of colleges have reversed or altered their reopening plans in the past several weeks after taking stock of COVID-19 testing availability, student and faculty safety concerns, state regulations and the worsening public health crisis. Through May, June and July, many colleges announced in-person reopening plans that included social distancing protocols, mask-wearing requirements, low-density living arrangements and regular testing for students and employees. …Many colleges planning to bring students back to campus for the fall semester have reversed course entirely and opted for online-only instruction.
Inside Higher Ed
Pulling the Plug on Fall Sports
Big Ten and Pac-12 Conferences call off 2020 season due to coronavirus concerns. Other Power 5 leagues seem disinclined to follow, leaving potential split in big-time football.
By Greta Anderson
Chaos, division and confusion about the fate of fall sports at the country’s top college football programs this week culminated in two influential Division I conferences postponing fall athletics for the remainder of the year Tuesday, both citing uncertainty about the short- and long-term health complications that the coronavirus could have on college athletes. The Big Ten and Pac-12, which include powerhouse and profitable Division I football teams such as Ohio State and Pennsylvania State Universities and the Universities of Oregon and California, Berkeley, announced on Aug. 11 that fall sports competition will be on pause until at least 2021. The Pac-12 went one step further, barring all teams from competing until next year, which also means no basketball games, Larry Scott, the conference’s commissioner, said during a live streamed news conference. Three remaining “Power Five” conferences, the Atlantic Coast, Big 12 and Southeastern Conferences, as of Tuesday still plan to move forward with modified football schedules.
The Chronicle of Higher Education
Student-Loan Borrowers Now Have More Breathing Room. It Won’t Last Forever.
By Danielle McLean
On Saturday President Trump extended the pause on student-loan repayment for another three months, to the end of 2020. While the move is a relief to borrowers struggling amid the pandemic, it only delays the inevitable: Sooner or later repayment will start again, and experts say it could get very messy. Millions of borrowers could experience a fate similar to people who were granted emergency forbearance — a temporary payment pause for those living in areas where natural disasters are declared — and then struggled to begin repayment following the 2017 California wildfires and Hurricanes Maria, Irma, and Harvey.