University System News:
TN TownNews
Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College economic impact increases to $584,544,166
From staff reports
The annual economic impact of Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College on south Georgia increased to $584,544,166 during the 2019 fiscal year, according to a recently released report by the University System of Georgia. Renata Elad, dean of the Stafford School of Business at ABAC, analyzes the USG report each year to determine the impact of the institution on the region. She said ABAC’s impact is up $85,140,494 over the 2018 fiscal year. “ABAC continues to be economically and academically important to south Georgia,” Elad said. “As a part of the USG, ABAC is an integral part of the region. With ABAC housing at over 91 percent occupancy during the time of the report, that translates to significant potential business traffic for Tifton and surrounding areas.” A record ABAC enrollment figure of 4,292 students during the 2018 fall term contributed to the rise in economic impact with a student direct spending figure of $50,556,118. The employment number related to student spending climbed to 1,416, including 954 jobs outside of ABAC and 462 jobs inside the college.
The Savannah Tribune
Board Of Regents Names Committees For Savannah State’s Presidential Search
The Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia has named the two committees to conduct a national search for the next president of Savannah State University. “Savannah State plays an important role as the oldest public HBCU in Georgia,” said USG Chancellor Steve Wrigley. “It has a rich 130-year history in higher education, and the person selected as its next president must continue that legacy while meeting the needs of students in the 21st century.” The search and screening of candidates is the responsibility of the 15-member, campus-based Presidential Search and Screen Committee and will guide the first stage of the search. Members are as follows:
Live5 News
Gen Z voters head to the polls for the first time
By Cyreia Sandlin
While many people line up today to exercise their constitutional right in shaping our democracy, some voters will be doing so today for the very first time. According to the Pew Research group, 1 in 10 voters this election cycle are part of Gen Z, which means those born after 1996. Many of those voters can be found on college campuses nationwide, including Georgia Southern’s Armstrong Campus. Junya Montgomery says as soon as he became of age, he couldn’t wait to vote.
ESPN
How one Georgia Tech assistant helped get Election Day off for all Div. I athletes
Adam Rittenbert
ESPN Senior Writer
ERIC REVENO is almost ready to begin the interview. He first needs to text members of the National Association of Basketball Coaches about a call with Vote By Design, a nonpartisan group that conducts voting education sessions for college students and other young voters. Later in the afternoon, the Georgia Tech men’s basketball associate head coach will meet with a committee working to get the school’s athletes registered for Tuesday’s presidential election. That morning, Reveno also spoke with Holy Cross assistant Joe Kennedy about a post-election review of how the NABC approached voter registration and education, and next steps. … In early June, Reveno started the #AllVoteNoPlay campaign, urging the NCAA to designate Nov. 3, Election Day, as a day off from all athletic activities. He first tweeted about the idea June 2, and launched a petition shared on social media by Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr and others. By June 4, nine Georgia Tech teams that were scheduled to be in-season on Election Day said they would not hold mandatory activities. Other college teams, programs and conferences soon joined in. On June 12, NCAA president Mark Emmert and the association’s board of governors recommended Election Day be an off day for all athletic teams.
WTVM
CSU political science professor talks presidential election as votes are counted
By Olivia Gunn
Votes are still be counted as the country waits to see who will be the next president. Dr. Jacob Holt, political science professor at Columbus State University, puts the process in perspective. He explains the votes as the election is coming down to a few key states. Holt also discusses the lawsuit President Trump filed in Pennsylvania and Michigan and any potential legal challenges to counting to votes.
WTOC
Professor speaks about how absentee ballots are impacting Chatham Co. District Attorney race
By Blair Caldwell | November 4, 2020 at 6:07 PM EST – Updated November 4 at 6:59 PM
We know there are still thousands of ballots to be counted here in Chatham County, which can dramatically impact the results of the presidential race as well as other state and local races. Take for example the Chatham County District Attorney’s race – Shalena Cook Jones currently sits at the top with about 51 percent of the vote while the current incumbent Meg Heap has 49 percent. WTOC spoke with Joshua Kennedy, an Associate Professor of Political Science and International Studies at Georgia Southern and he says it’s not surprising how many absentee ballots we’ve seen because of the pandemic.He says while we have seen absentee ballots sway results before, this year they play a huge role not just locally, but beyond.
Drugs.com
Cognitive Disorders More Common in People Admitted for COVID-19
Alzheimer disease and dementia are risk factors for hospital admission due to COVID-19, according to a study published online Oct. 24 in Brain, Behavior, and Immunity. Jingqi Zhou, Ph.D., from the University of Georgia in Athens, and colleagues examined the association of COVID-19 with 974 medical conditions and 30 blood biomarkers using data from 1,091 participants in the U.K. Biobank who tested positive for COVID-19. The researchers found that the most significant risk factors for COVID-19 include Alzheimer disease (odds ratio, 2.29), dementia (odds ratio, 2.16), and the overall category of delirium, dementia, and amnestic and other cognitive disorders (odds ratio, 1.90). There were associations seen between genetic variants in severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection-related genes and COVID-19 (odds ratio, 1.33) and other phenotypes, including immune deficiency and prostate cancer.
Other News:
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
U.S. records 100K new confirmed COVID cases in single day
By Tim Darnell
The United States recorded more than 100,000 new coronavirus infections for the first time in a single day Wednesday. According to data tracked by The Washington Post, 17 states on Wednesday reported record numbers of patients hospitalized with COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus. Those states included Kansas, Tennessee, Virginia, Oklahoma, Montana, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota, Ohio, Nebraska, Minnesota, Indiana and West Virginia. On Tuesday, Georgia passed 8,000 confirmed coronavirus deaths since the pandemic began.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
White House task force warns of continued COVID-19 spread in Georgia
By J. Scott Trubey
In its latest report, President Donald Trump’s coronavirus task force warned Georgia officials of continued spread of the coronavirus — particularly from private social gatherings — and said a decrease in testing makes it “difficult to interpret” the status of Georgia’s epidemic. “Unrelenting and significant community spread is initiated by social gatherings among friends and family,” the most recent White House Coronavirus Task Force report said. “People must remember that seemingly uninfected family members and friends may be infected but asymptomatic. Exposure to asymptomatic cases can easily lead to spread as people unmask in private gatherings.” The task force recommended the state create “specific messaging” to the public about spread from private gatherings, and “recruit hospital personnel to raise the alert through the media, including social media, by noting … the percent of most recent hospital admissions who were infected at gatherings with family and friends.” It’s unclear if the state Department of Public Health (DPH) has such data.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Map: Coronavirus deaths and cases in Georgia (updated Nov. 4)
An updated count of coronavirus deaths and cases reported across the state
DEATHS: 8,072 | 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: 366,452 | Cases have been confirmed in every county.
Higher Education News:
Inside Higher Ed
Student Textbook Spending Continues to Decline
By Emma Whitford
Average student spending on textbooks and course materials continued to decline in the fall of 2020, while the number of units purchased or rented increased, according to data the research firm Student Monitor released today. On average, students spent $186 each on textbooks and course materials this fall, down from $199 in fall 2019. “During the fall semester of 2020, distance learning drove widespread adoption of less expensive eTextbooks in both sales and rentals — including through subscription models — leading to a 7 percent decline in spending as compared to the same period last year,” Eric Weil, managing partner at Student Monitor, said in a statement. “At the same time, the volume of sales increased by 3 percent, which means that students are buying more course materials than last year, but they’re purchasing less expensive digital alternatives.”
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
College loans cast long shadow on students and their parents
Get Schooled with Maureen Downey
Retired local college professor Rick Diguette writes about an increasingly common family challenge in Georgia — paying off college debt.
In a guest column, Diguette talks about his decision to look for a full-time job to help his son pay off his college loans. His son attended college during the Great Recession. A study on the class of 2010 found only 56% had found a job nine months after they graduated. And those jobs were often temporary posts that didn’t require a college degree and provided no benefits. Research has also shown people who graduate during a recession suffer large initial earnings losses, amounting to about 9% of annual earnings in the initial stage. While high unemployment rates have a minimal impact on workers with two or more years of work experience, the consequences are more significant for those only entering the job market.
Students in Georgia graduate with slightly above $28,000 in average student loan debt, according to a new report by the Institute for College Access & Success. About 56% of Georgia students left college with debt. With that background, here is Diguette’s essay.
The Chronicle of Higher Education
‘Everybody Is Biting Their Nails’: College Leaders Weigh Response as Nation Holds Its Breath
By Lindsay Ellis
It’s been a tough year for college campuses. Consider this week’s unresolved U.S. presidential election to be the sour cherry on top. College presidents on Wednesday greeted the historic moment of confusion and anticipation by gauging students’ needs and wrestling with their own roles. What was their responsibility to their community? This year presidents have juggled the health risks of operating in a pandemic, financial losses, and responding to calls for racial equity. Now it is unclear how long it will be before there is a president-elect. By Wednesday evening, Joseph R. Biden Jr., the former vice president and Democratic nominee, appeared close to securing the 270 electoral votes necessary to claim the office. But President Trump, who still has a narrow path to victory, has baselessly alleged voter fraud and vowed to challenge results that are unfavorable to his candidacy. An ugly and unprecedented few weeks or months are not impossible. College presidents say they expect to be called upon for calm and stability — and some may speak out as civic leaders.
Inside Higher Ed
N.Y. and Ed Dept. Dismiss Title IX Rule Lawsuit
By Greta Anderson
The State of New York and the U.S. Department of Education agreed Tuesday to dismiss the state’s lawsuit against the department and Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos. The lawsuit, filed in June by state officials and the Board of Education for the New York City school district, challenged the Trump administration’s new rules for how colleges and universities respond to campus sexual assault and harassment. The lawsuit is the second to be dismissed of four lawsuits that were brought against the department due to the new rules, which were issued in May under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, the law prohibiting sex discrimination at federally funded institutions. Last month, a judge for the district court in the District of Columbia dismissed a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union on behalf of advocacy organizations for survivors of sexual assault. The State of New York’s lawsuit, however, was voluntarily dismissed, according to court documents filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York