University System News:
WSB-TV
Saying thanks: Georgia Tech students surprise beloved custodian for keeping campus clean
A group of Georgia Tech students wanted to come up with a special way to thank the workers who help keep their campus and dorms clean during the COVID-19 pandemic, knowing that it’s a very challenging job during this very challenging time. Computer science major Nathaniel Greve got together with the other residents on his floor in Fitten Hall to brainstorm an idea to thank a Tech staff member for helping to make sure health and safety protocols were being maintained in their building. “It has meant so much to us as first-years to be able to come to campus,” Greve said. “In this new chapter where health and sanitation have been elevated to a new meaning, many have yet to realize who this has affected the most: our custodians.”
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
UGA to increase asymptomatic COVID-19 testing
By Eric Stirgus
University of Georgia officials said Tuesday they will increase voluntary COVID-19 testing for people who shows no clear symptoms of the disease. University leaders last week said they were concerned about the disease’s impact on the campus after their data showed a four-fold increase in positive test results from Aug. 24-28 in comparison to the prior five day period. UGA reported 821 positive cases from Aug. 24-28. Many cases were self-reported. The university’s asymptomatic testing capacity will increase from 360 per weekday to 450 per weekday, according to a news release. The testing will be done at Legion Field on the Athens campus. The tests are free.
Fox28 Media
Savannah State students’ STEM project wins national competition
Two Savannah State University students were named the winner of the 2020 Peace Through Trade Competition, the World Trade Centers Association (WTCA) announced Tuesday. The team’s entry, submitted by Savannah State students Sade Shofidiya and Karen Perez, is a student-led honeybee charity that works to promote sustainability through the education of the at-risk honeybee population. Their project, Foster Beelief, encompasses increasing STEM interests and environmental stewardship, building stronger industry and community partnerships and increasing citizen involvement in communities. Shofidiya and Perez competed against 33 teams from 24 countries around the globe. Their team will receive an all-expenses-paid trip to the next World Trade Centers Association General Assembly, which is scheduled to take place in Ghana. While in Ghana, the team will present their project to the entire WTCA membership.
WGXA
‘Stay put’: What does quarantining college students look like?
by ERIN WISE
Middle Georgia colleges and universities are back in session during the pandemic, but how are they quarantining those testing positive for the virus? Middle Georgia State University’s most up-to-date data shows 48 self-reported cases in their student population as of August 30. There have been 8 faculty test positive for the virus. The university’s self-report form is how they keep up with the number of cases on campus, as well as those who have been exposed and think they might be sick.
WFXL
ABAC sees record number of nursing students
by Kyle Proctor
After starting with five students after Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College took over the nursing program from Norman Bible College in 1966, the college has now hit their highest total for students ever this semester. College officials say that 326 students are enrolled in associate degree nursing classes, which is up from 2019’s 304. A total of 895 ABAC students are pursuing nursing degrees, many of those taking core curriculum classes to prepare them for the nursing program. Fifty-nine students in that total are enrolled in ABAC’s bachelor’s degree program in nursing.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
UGA’s dining halls serve up future fond memories
By Bill King
Where the big Dawgs eat
Student life at the University of Georgia has changed quite a bit since I started my freshman year in Athens 50 years ago this month, but one thing hasn’t changed: College students always are hungry. And for most college students, who start out living on campus in dormitories, meal plans for the dining halls are how they satisfy that hunger. By the time my kids attended UGA, students had a lot more (and better) dining options than in my day, when there were just two dining halls and a student center hangout. Nowadays, UGA students can visit five different dining halls (featuring multiple stations offering varied cuisines), plus more than two dozen retail dining locations, ranging from the fast-food outlets at the Tate Student Center to grab-and-go markets and snack bars located throughout campus. Of course, thanks to the pandemic, the rules have changed a bit this fall, with takeout or Grubhub pickup replacing the usual walk-in-and-eat routine. Limited dine-in is available at some of the halls, but a reservation is required.
Jackson Progress-Argus
Gordon State College professors complete online certification
By Katheryne A. Fields
Gordon State College made the commitment that every instructor teaching for Fall Semester 2020 would complete the college’s certification process to teach online. The process is a time-intensive experience, consisting of two courses that must be successfully completed: Highlander Trails — Learning to Teach Online, which was developed by Instructional Technologist Autumn Schafer, and Quality Matters, a national training program. Issues related to online course delivery are overseen by Assistant Vice President for Innovative Education and Strategic Initiatives Dr. Ric Calhoun, who recently reported that 100% of full-time and part-time instructors teaching this fall have successfully completed the training/certification process. Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs, Dr. C. Jeffery Knighton said, “The fact that 100% of our faculty are completely certified to teach online at Gordon is a huge deal. I’m so impressed, and thankful, that our faculty—full and part-time—made this commitment that will truly benefit our students.
Columbus CEO
CSU Students, Professor Featured at Columbus Museum
Staff Report
Columbus State University students Shyrisse Ramos and Jordan Spires, along with CSU chemistry professor Dr. Kerri Taylor, are now featured in an exhibit at The Columbus Museum. The CSU and museum teams co-organized the museum’s “Mystery Science 3000” exhibit. The exhibit exposes the hidden stories and medical treatments found in two doctor’s kits used by Chattahoochee Valley physicians in the early 20th century.
Other News:
WABE
Top Nurses Upset At Sudden Exit Of Popular Georgia Board Chief
Andy Miller, Georgia Health News
The departure of the state Board of Nursing’s executive director has stunned nurse leaders in Georgia, who told GHN that he did “a great job’’ in that position. Jim Cleghorn served in the role for 10 years. He was also president of the National Council of State Boards of Nursing. Deputy Secretary of State Jordan Fuchs told the AJC on Friday that Cleghorn was no longer working for the state but wouldn’t say whether he was fired or had resigned. Fuchs said the departure was connected to ethical issues related to Cleghorn’s position as president of the national council. Cleghorn “has done a great job,’’ Richard Lamphier, an Atlanta nurse who’s president of the Georgia Nurses Association, told GHN on Saturday. “We were really surprised’’ by the move, he added. “Especially during a pandemic, when licensure approval is being done pretty quickly.’’
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Map: Coronavirus deaths and cases in Georgia (updated Sept. 8, 3 p.m.)
An updated count of coronavirus deaths and cases reported across the state
DEATHS: 6,070 | Deaths have been confirmed all counties but one (Taliaferro). County is determined by the patient’s residence, when known, not by where they were treated.
CONFIRMED CASES: 285,350 | Cases have been confirmed in every county.
Higher Education News:
The New York Times
College Quarantine Breakdowns Leave Some at Risk
Colleges are trying to isolate students who have the coronavirus or have been exposed to it, but they are running into a host of problems.
By Natasha Singer
Across the United States, colleges that have reopened for in-person instruction are struggling to contain the rapid-fire spread of coronavirus among tens of thousands of students by imposing tough social-distancing rules and piloting an array of new technologies, like virus tracking apps. But perhaps their most complex problem has been what to do with students who test positive for the virus or come into contact with someone who has. To this end, many campuses are subjecting students to one of the oldest infection control measures known to civilization: quarantine. Many public and private colleges have set aside special dormitories, or are renting off-campus apartments or hotel rooms to provide isolation beds for infected students and separate quarantine units for the possibly sick. The general strategy has been supported by public health officials like Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, the nation’s top infectious-disease expert, who say it is better to separate students until they are no longer contagious rather than send them home where they might infect their family and friends.
Inside of Higher Ed
College Leadership in an Era of Unpredictability
The ability to successfully manage change is more important than ever for the higher education leaders who must navigate the upheavals affecting their campuses and communities. A new Inside Higher Ed special report published today, “College Leadership in an Era of Unpredictability,” explores what makes this moment different from those in the past, what makes it similar and how leaders must adapt if they are to find success for the institutions they lead, the people they employ and the students they serve. The report is designed to act as a primer for both the generation of existing leaders who hope to meet today’s challenges and the new generation of rising leaders.
Inside Higher Ed
Who Leads Colleges After COVID-19?
A singular focus on the current crisis won’t do, higher education leaders say. Those in power at colleges and universities must find time to prepare their institutions for an unsettled future that looks very different from the old status quo.
By Rick Seltzer
The presidents, chancellors, board members and other administrators who lead colleges and universities have been scrambling for months amid the coronavirus pandemic. They scrambled to send students home and move classes online in the spring. Many scrambled for plans to resume in-person undergraduate instruction come fall. Now a significant number are once again scrambling to contain outbreaks, send students home or move classes online as COVID-19 counts on campus spike just days or weeks after the start of classes. It’s too early to grade leaders on the results of all that scrambling. It won’t be possible to say for sure if anyone pulled off a successful in-person fall until the semester is over and case counts are tallied. What can be definitively said is that leaders have been overwhelmingly focused on the short term. That short-term focus can say something about leadership styles, successes and failures. It also comes at a moment of changing conditions that means it’s time to rethink higher education’s long-term prospects.