University System News:
41WMGT
Middle Georgia State University offers first ever Doctoral Degree
By Lizbeth Gutierrez
Middle Georgia State University is now preparing to offer its first Doctoral Degree program. Now a Title V institute, the university will now offer a Doctor of Science degree in Information Technology. MGA will house the program in its School of Computing. This will help prepare students to take on leadership roles and manage IT.
Dentistry Today
Dental College of Georgia Produces COVID-19 Testing Swabs for the US Army
When the Augusta University Dental College of Georgia (DCG) first started 3-D printing nasal swabs to use in COVID-19 testing, it was making enough for the Augusta University Medical Center and the Augusta area. Now, the same design is helping US Army personnel across the nation. Dr. Jeffrey James, director for the Advanced Education in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery program at DCG, said his department was prepared to manage the swabs’ production. The team effort required to develop and design the swabs was crucial moving forward, he added, especially after the state asked for 5,000 swabs.
MSN
Augusta University 2020 commencement to be held in-person, and with no guests
Tyria Goines
In light of current health and safety concerns, officials with Augusta University have decided to continue with virtual commencement ceremonies. The university previously announced it would host in-person commencement ceremonies this coming Friday, Dec. 11. However, now guests will not be allowed at the ceremonies. Live webcasts of the ceremonies can be found online.
Savannah Tribune
Savannah State University Honors Four Distinguished Alumni
Savannah State University (SSU) recently honored four outstanding alumni with two distinguished awards: The Richard R. Wright Excellence Award and The Cyrus G. Wiley Distinguished Alumni Award at the annual Founders Day ceremony. Named for the first president of SSU, The Richard R. Wright Award is the most notable honor, recognizing outstanding leaders who have distinguished themselves through their expertise in social, educational and civic arenas. Posthumously awarded to alumni James O. Thomas Sr., his daughter, Toniae Thomas, accepted the award on his behalf.
Athens CEO
New Leaders Tapped for UGA’s Institute of Government and Archway Partnership
Kelly Simmons
New directors will take the reins of UGA Public Service and Outreach programs in January, following the retirements of two longtime public service professionals. Rob Gordon, current director of the UGA Archway Partnership, will become director of the Carl Vinson Institute of Government, effective Jan. 1, 2021. Gordon will succeed Laura Meadows, who retires Dec. 31, 2020 after more than 30 years in state government, 11 of those at the UGA Institute of Government, almost 10 as director. Longtime economic development professional Matthew Colvin has been selected as the University of Georgia’s next economic development director in Atlanta, succeeding Sean McMillan, who also retires Dec. 31, 2020 having served as UGA’s first Atlanta-based economic development director since 2013.
Growing America
Paul Willis to Retire from ABAC in January 2021
Paul Willis, Executive Vice President for Finance and Administration and Chief of Staff at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College, will retire from ABAC on Jan. 29, 2021. …ABAC President David Bridges said Willis has been vital to the ABAC success story.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Pompeo praises Trump administration’s stance on China at Georgia Tech speech
By Greg Bluestein
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo delivered a speech in Atlanta on Wednesday praising the Trump administration’s stance on China — and encouraging the nation’s colleges to rethink their ties to a Chinese-backed program — ahead of runoff elections that will determine control of the U.S. Senate. Pompeo, a possible 2024 presidential contender, steered clear of mention of U.S. Sens. David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler, fellow Republicans who are facing Jan. 5 elections. And he didn’t invoke President Donald Trump’s legal battle to overturn Georgia’s election results during his hourlong remarks at Georgia Tech.
Other News:
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Map: Coronavirus deaths and cases in Georgia (updated Dec. 9)
An updated count of coronavirus deaths and cases reported across the state
DEATHS: 9,073 | 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: 456,113 | Cases have been confirmed in every county.
WSB-TV
Georgia’s doctors, nurses could get COVID-19 vaccine by next week – but will they take it?
By: Tony Thomas
While it may take months for the COVID-19 vaccine to be available to all of us, some doctors and nurses could get the shot next week. Channel 2′s Tony Thomas has learned that healthcare providers across the state are preparing to give out the vaccine while frontline workers have to decide to take the vaccine or not. Georgia Nurses Association president Richard Lamphier told Thomas that he has no qualms about taking that shot. … Surveys show 30%-40% percent of healthcare workers aren’t sure they’ll take the vaccine. One of the state’s larger regional providers, Augusta University Health, advised its workers Wednesday that the vaccine could be on campus next week.
Gainesville Times
Cots being set up in gym as NGHS seeks more space for surging number of COVID patients
Megan Reed
Northeast Georgia Health System is preparing an overflow treatment space as it hit another new record of COVID-19-positive patients on Wednesday, Dec. 9. The system was treating 217 COVID-19 patients on Wednesday, its highest number since the pandemic began and the fourth day over 200 in a week’s time. At the health system’s Braselton and Barrow hospitals, no beds were open Wednesday. Northeast Georgia Medical Center Gainesville had 24 available beds, with only one bed in the intensive care unit available and another 100 occupied. …The system is preparing an overflow treatment space in a gym at Laurelwood, a mental health facility on the NGMC Gainesville campus, Hastings said. About 25 to 30 cots will be moved into Laurelwood, and that space will hopefully open next week, Hastings said.
Higher Education News:
Inside Higher Ed
While most institutions are staying the course with what they did in the fall, some that played this semester safe are planning to expand in-person options for students in the spring.
By Lilah Burke
The United States is currently in its worst period for coronavirus infections to date. On Tuesday, the nation broke a new record for deaths due to the virus, at an average of 2,249 per day in a seven-day period. According to The New York Times, over 321,000 infections have been traced to colleges. Still, many colleges are planning to open their gates in January, welcoming students into residence halls and classrooms. Of the institutions that played it safe this semester and held classes fully online and did not reopen residence halls, many are now planning to expand their academic and living offerings next semester to give students something closer to the college experience they expect. For example, in the Atlanta area, a trio of historically Black colleges and universities has announced reopenings after a quiet fall of virtual learning. Clark Atlanta University will be bringing freshmen, transfers and seniors onto campus.
The Washington Post
Lessons from the pandemic fall: Infections are rare in classrooms, not off campus
By Nick Anderson and Susan Svrluga
Colleges and universities that taught students in person this fall found no evidence that the novel coronavirus spread in any significant way in classrooms, laboratories and lecture halls, according to numerous school leaders, easing what had been one of their greatest fears during a deadly pandemic. A far larger public health problem for higher education, these leaders and other experts say, arose in the off-campus student housing and social scene. Trouble emerged wherever students mingled without protective distance and masks, and faced less peer pressure to curb unsafe behavior.
Inside Higher Ed
Student loan servicers say a funding cut by the Education Department forced them to reduce staff. Now they’re about to get flooded by calls from borrowers.
By Kery Murakami
When student loan bills come due again, as early as Feb. 1, millions of confused borrowers with questions or needing help could find themselves stuck on hold trying to get through to overwhelmed loan servicers. That’s the warning from the companies that will be responsible for working with about 30 million student loan borrowers when a moratorium that’s excused them from making payments since last March runs out at the end of January.
The Chronicle of Higher Education
The Real Covid-19 Enrollment Crisis: Fewer Low-Income Students Went Straight to College
By Eric Hoover
The figure is startling. This year, 21.7 percent fewer high-school graduates went straight to college compared with 2019, according to a new report from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center. As year-to-year changes go, that’s huge. These are really staggering numbers. To see something of this magnitude is frightening. Don’t stare only at that top-line number, though. Look at the comparisons between students from different socioeconomic backgrounds. You’ll see further evidence that the pandemic has hit low-income students, especially those from urban high schools, the hardest.
Inside Higher Ed
Report: Fewer High School Students Went Straight to College
By Madeline St. Amour
The COVID-19 pandemic doesn’t seem to have affected high school graduation rates. But it appears to have impacted how many of those graduates went straight to college. New data from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center show that nearly 22 percent fewer students from the Class of 2020 went to college immediately after high school this fall compared to the Class of 2019, according to a news release from the center. The overall immediate college enrollment rate fell from 35.3 percent to 27.7 percent, a drop that is 10 times greater than the decline between 2018 and 2019. The data are preliminary and estimate immediate enrollment rates from more than 2,300 high schools reporting as of Sept. 18.
The Chronicle of Higher Education
‘A Tremendous Amount of Fear’: Will Major Cuts Threaten Research Universities’ Work?
By Lindsay Ellis
Flagship research universities across the country are bracing for a grim 2021, moving toward program closures and tenure-line reductions in the face of major budget shortfalls. Such steps, if realized, could mark a significant shift at institutions where it is not uncommon for tenured research scholars to teach undergraduate classes. The moves would narrow the wide scope of programs at these research universities, institutions distinguished by their breadth of instruction and scholarship. Several of the proposed cuts, including in Hawaii, Vermont, and Colorado, are in arts and sciences programs.