University System News:
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
A glance at Georgia public college and university enrollment
Officials announced that the University System of Georgia saw overall enrollment increase this fall compared to fall 2019 by 2.4%, reaching more than 341,000 students statewide and outstripping the trend among colleges nationwide
Officials announced that the University System of Georgia saw overall enrollment increase this fall compared to fall 2019 by 2.4%, reaching more than 341,000 students statewide and outstripping the trend among colleges nationwide. Here’s a look at enrollment this fall at each of the 26 institutions as well as the change from last fall:
See also:
U.S. News & World Report
A Glance at Georgia Public College and University Enrollment
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
More students in Georgia’s public university system despite pandemic
By Eric Stirgus
More students are taking classes at University System of Georgia schools this semester, bucking data showing an enrollment decline nationally as many students initially worried about being on campus during the coronavirus pandemic. Enrollment in the public system’s 26 colleges and universities increased by 2.4% to a record-high 341,485 students, according to a staff report Wednesday to the state’s Board of Regents. Nationally, college enrollment is down 4%, according to the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center. University System officials said the number of beginning first-year students increased by about 6.5%, to 54,176. First-year student enrollment has declined nationally by 16%, according to the center. University System officials attributed the overall enrollment increase to more high school graduates from Georgia, its decision not to raise tuition this school year and waiving SAT and ACT test requirements for admission to its schools.
See also:
Savannah Morning News
University System of Georgia sets enrollment record despite COVID
The Augusta Chronicle
University System of Georgia sets enrollment record despite COVID
Athens Banner-Herald
University System of Georgia sets enrollment record despite COVID
WALB
USG: University enrollment increases to record high
Fox 31
Valdosta State helps University System of Georgia hit record enrollment
by Kyle Proctor
The University System of Georgia has hit an all-time high of 341,485 enrolled students across 26 institutions in new numbers released on Wednesday. Compared to Fall 2019, this represented an 2.4% increase of 7,978 students. Of the 26 institutions, 16 saw positive enrollment growth with Valdosta State University leading the way with a 9.2% increase over the previous fall semester. That represented an increase of over 1,000 students. The next highest was Georgia Tech at 9%. The largest decrease came at South Georgia State College, which saw a 13.6% decrease in enrollment.
Middle Georgia CEO
MGA’s Fall 2020 Enrollment Marks Eight Consecutive Semesters of Growth
Staff Report
Continuing an upward trend, Middle Georgia State University (MGA) grew its enrollment this fall by more than 4 percent over last year. MGA’s fall 2020 enrollment reached 8,404 students, according to the University System of Georgia’s official report released Wednesday, Nov. 11. Besides a 4.2 percent overall enrollment gain, MGA saw an increase of 39 percent in students enrolled in master’s degree programs.
WGAU
COVID at UGA: testing, cases increase
USG enrollment up despite pandemic
By Tim Bryant
The University of Georgia reports an increase in coronavirus tests and a corresponding increase in coronavirus cases over the past week: there were 87 positive tests for COVID 19 in the report released Wednesday, up from 79 last week. Of the 87, 63 were UGA students and 24 were staff. There were no reported cases among University faculty members. …The University System of Georgia says, the coronavirus pandemic notwithstanding, its schools have set a record for enrollment during the ongoing fall semester: there are now more than 341,000 students enrolled in USG colleges and universities, an increase of almost two and a half percent from last year.
WGAU
UNG encourages COVID testing before Thanksgiving break
Last day of classes is Nov 24
By Edie Rogers
Students, faculty and staff who are not experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 are encouraged to take advantage of the free, voluntary Surveillance Testing Program at the University of North Georgia prior to fall break. The final day of classes for the fall 2020 semester is Nov. 24. Final exams after Thanksgiving will be online, but most campus resources will remain open and available.
The Red & Black
UGA maintains ventilation standards in academic buildings to reduce the spread of COVID-19
Shelby Israel | Contributor
Following the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, the University of Georgia has dedicated efforts in improving ventilation in academic buildings to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The UGA Facilities Management Division and Environmental Safety Division have made adjustments based on regulations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers.
WRBL
CSU announces new Master of Arts degree for Communication
by: Sam Sachs
Columbus State University announced a new degree track for graduate students has been approved by the University System of Georgia’s Board of Regents. A 30-hour Master of Arts in Communication was approved during the November BOR meeting and is now seeking final approval from Columbus State’s accrediting body, The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges. The new master’s program will have two concentrations, Strategic Communication Management and Creative Services Management. University officials say that the courses offered will enhance graduates’ marketability in multiple industries, including public relations, corporate communication, and creative media production.
The Dahlonega Nugget
UNG breaks ground on new business building
By Jake Cantrell
There are 14 tiny holes in the undeveloped lot across the street from Papa Johns, thanks to 14 golden shovels, wielded by elected officials, business leaders and university representatives. However, the folks behind those golden shovels believe in two years, what sits atop those holes will be the talk of the town, and perhaps the entire state. Representatives of UNG’s Mike Cottrell College of Business broke ground on the future home of the Cottrell Center for Business, Technology and Innovation, a $45 million building designed to set UNG’s business program and its students apart from the competition.
41WMGT
MGA, Community honors 151st Machine Gun Battalion for Veterans Day
By Jatrissa Wooten
Middle Georgia State University and Macon-Bibb County honor those who fought for our country. Dozens gathered to honor the men and women who fought for a better future. Macon-Bibb Mayor Robert Reichert and MGA President Dr. Christopher Blake laid a wreath at the Coleman Hill Memorial. They say the wreath shows respect for the veterans who served with the 151st Machine Gun Battalion, 42nd Rainbow Division during World War I.
The Augusta Chronicle
Augusta University ROTC cadets swear oath during Veterans Day event
By Tom Corwin
Cadet Floyd Geesler’s father is a staff sergeant with the Army deployed to somewhere in the Middle East, though he does not say exactly where. It was his father’s encouragement that got Geesler to take a look at Augusta University’s Army Reserve Officers’ Training Corps. “I tried it and I really liked it,” said the sophomore originally from Rochester, N.Y. He was one of six cadets who took the Cadet Contracting Oath on Wednesday during AU’s annual Veterans Day ceremony. The oath is a formalized version of the paperwork the cadets signed earlier pledging themselves to service. “It’s basically an oath saying I will join the Army,” Cadet Chase Inglett said. The oath was one of the highlights of AU’s program, moved inside because of the weather. The day is a day to remember veterans and their service, said Dr. Patrice Buckner Jackson, AU’s associate vice president for enrollment and student affairs. But she said for veterans, such as those in her family, “daily appreciation is the most appropriate way to appreciate what you have given and sacrificed.”
WTOC
Retired colonel led the next generation at Georgia Southern
By Dal Cannady
Thousands of Georgia Southern University students know George Frederick simply as Colonel Fred, the former longtime professor of Military Science. Ironically, Frederick’s military career started with a two year term and transition to college. “Transferred from Central Texas College to what’s now Texas State, vowing to never go back in the military,” Ret. Col. Frederick said. But an ROTC instructor urged the young husband and father to give it another shot. “Next thing I knew, I signed a contract. Next thing I knew, I got commissioned,’ Ret. Col. Frederick said. …“A senior leader reached out to me and said I know you still want to serve your country. I know you want to take care of your family. I want you to consider Army ROTC. I was like, ROTC?” His time in Georgia prompted him to select Georgia Southern. He helped lead the Eagle Battalion to become one of the premiere programs in the nation.
Other News:
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Georgia short of intensive care nurses as winter threatens surge of coronavirus cases
By Johnny Edwards and Ariel Hart
Nurses fear contracting Covid, or making mistakes because of high workloads
As Georgia braces for a cold-weather coronavirus surge that could collide with the flu and send patients flooding into hospitals, facilities across the state are worried they don’t have enough nurses to treat their sickest patients. Employment ads show hospitals from Albany to Savannah, Augusta to Rome, trying to hire nurses to meet the wave. Augusta University Health is seeking 250 nurses, partly to staff its new COVID-19 beds and an ICU it converted into a COVID-19 ICU. Elbert Memorial Hospital in northeast Georgia is now approaching the state government for nurses. One temporary health care staffing website that connects traveling nurses with staffing agencies shows demand for intensive care unit nurses more than tripled in Georgia during the first week of November, compared to the last week of October.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Map: Coronavirus deaths and cases in Georgia (updated Nov. 11)
An updated count of coronavirus deaths and cases reported across the state
DEATHS: 8,333 | Deaths have been confirmed in all counties but one (Taliaferro). County is determined by the patient’s residence, when known, not by where they were treated.
CONFIRMED CASES: 377,694 | Cases have been confirmed in every county.
Higher Education News:
The Chronicle of Higher Education
Undergraduate-Enrollment Picture Worsens as Pandemic Drags On
By Audrey Williams June
The latest enrollment data from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center show what is, by now, a familiar pattern in the wake of the pandemic: Undergraduate attendance is trending down. The data, released on Thursday, reveal that undergraduate enrollment has slipped by 4.4 percent, compared with the same time last year. In the center’s last snapshot of enrollment, reported last month, undergraduate attendance was down 4 percent. Graduate enrollment continues to be a bright spot. It’s up 2.9 percent over last fall, a rise from the 2.7-percent increase reported in October. Although undergraduate enrollment is much better than what some observers expected in the pandemic’s early days, “the big picture remains the same,” said Doug Shapiro, executive director of the research center.
Diverse Issues in Higher Education
Guide Recommends Ways to Incorporate Mental Health Practices into the First-Year Experience
by Sarah Wood
This spring, Active Minds and the National Resource Center for The First-Year Experience and Students in Transition partnered to launch a survey that analyzed the inclusion of mental health practices and programs within the first-year experience (FYE) at postsecondary institutions. Of the 48 respondents, more than half revealed that mental health content had been integrated into FYE initiatives only slightly or not at all. Yet, seven million students across the country meet the criteria for a clinically significant mental health problem, according to the study. … After analyzing the results of the survey, a guide was created to highlight successful first-year mental health initiatives for first-year students at institutions across the nation. The guide, “Supporting the Whole Student: Promising Practices for College and University Staff to Integrate Mental Health Promotion in the First College Year,” focused on programs at Denison University, University of Richmond (UR), University of South Florida (USF), California State University at Long Beach (CSULB) and Skidmore College.
Inside Higher Ed
Biden Draws on Colleges to Aid in Transition
By Kery Murakami
President-elect Joe Biden’s transition team is drawing significantly the nation’s colleges and universities to prepare to take the reins of government on Jan. 20. Of the nearly 600 mostly volunteers announced by Biden’s transition team to serve on agency review teams to help coordinate the transition from the Trump administration, nearly 80 are professors. Biden is also drawing from think tanks, unions, state governments and major lobbying firms for people to serve on the teams, who will start by meeting with former officials of federal agencies and policy experts. Once the General Services Administration recognizes Biden’s victory, they will work with current department officials to coordinate the transfer in power to the new administration.
The Chronicle of Higher Education
The Pandemic May Have Changed International Recruiting Forever
New tactics started as emergency measures, but could be a lasting way to keep enrollments up
By Karin Fischer
In a typical fall, Cornell University’s admissions-staff members would disperse around the globe on international-recruitment trips. “China, multiple times a year. South Asia, twice a year for sure. India, the same. Africa, for at least three weeks. The U.K., Europe, Canada,” said Shawn L. Felton, the university’s director of undergraduate admissions, reeling off a lengthy list of destinations. This year, of course, is anything but typical. With borders closed, international flights limited, and a virulent disease continuing to spread, recruiters at Cornell and colleges across the country are grounded. Still, colleges have an incoming class to fill, one that is ever more dependent on international students. Though foreign students account for only about 6 percent of American higher-ed enrollments, they often pay higher out-of-state rates and cover the full cost of their tuition. NAFSA: Association of International Educators estimates they contribute $41 billion to the American economy. At the graduate level and in the sciences, international students are a critical piece of the talent pipeline. But the pandemic prevented international students from going to American campuses this fall.
Inside Higher Ed
The Biden Presidency and International Education
It’s been a hard four years for supporters of international education. Experts expect a reset in international education policies under Biden, but caution that damage to the once-welcoming image of the United States can’t be easily erased.
By Elizabeth Redden
For Joanne Liu, a Dartmouth College student from Hong Kong, the election of Joe Biden means she and her fellow international students can feel safer. “I’m not very familiar with what Biden is planning for international students because I don’t think he’s spoken a great deal about this matter, but ultimately it boils down to what they represent,” Liu said. …In the short term, Biden is expected to issue executive orders on the first day of his presidency repealing the Trump travel ban that restricts travel from a number of mostly Muslim-majority countries and reinstating the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which provides work authorization and protection against deportation to undocumented immigrant students who were brought to the U.S. as children.