University System News:
WSB-TV
“Such a blessing for me:” Gwinnett County great-grandmother graduates from college
By: Berndt Petersen
Janet Lively says she didn’t know what to make of the big bold letters that popped up in the front yard of her Gwinnett County home. It said “Congrats Grad 2020.” …She has accomplished a life-long goal and graduated from college this month. “Going to college is a big deal. I didn’t know if I could do it. But I always wanted to,” Lively told Channel 2′s Berndt Petersen. …“I was raising a family. A modest income didn’t allow for college. Not to mention no time. I enjoyed being a mom,” she said. But in 2012 she enrolled at Georgia Gwinnett College majoring in history. She took a few classes at a time, semester after semester. This semester she was part of the graduating class of 2020 and the virtual commencement. All at the age of 75. “I think it’s a fantastic achievement,” said Dr. Richard Rawls, one of Lively’s professors. He says she’s as enthusiastic as they come and smart too. Lively graduated summa cum laude with a 3.9 GPA.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Rosalynn Carter Institute changes name as it focuses more on caregivers
By Shelia Poole
Jessica Mills was 19 and looking forward to four years at Georgia State University, then a career and family of her own. A couple of years into her studies, though, Mills returned to Augusta to help care for her 50-year-old mom, Petra, who was diagnosed with an early form of dementia. At first, she thought she could do both, but her advisers warned her that the disease was a progressive one and her mother’s condition would only deteriorate over time. They were right. …Her mother, now 61, needs constant attention. Mills doesn’t see or talk to friends as much as she used to. “Now it’s a lot more stressful.” Mills, who turns 30 next year, found that support with the recently renamed Americus-based Rosalynn Carter Institute for Caregiving, which was founded in 1987. … It was formerly a unit of Georgia Southwestern State University, but this year secured independent nonprofit status. RCI remains affiliated with GSW.
Times-Georgian
UWG nursing student wins $75K in Dr Pepper Tuition Giveaway
By Colton Campbell
With the help of Dr Pepper — and, interestingly enough, a University of West Georgia staff member named Pepper — UWG nursing student Chemari Reeves has been awarded $75,000 in scholarship money to finish her degree debt-free. The Palmetto, Georgia, resident — a junior who takes nursing courses at UWG Newnan — was the runner-up in the soft drink’s annual Tuition Giveaway in the Southeastern Conference (SEC) division.
Griffin Daily News
UGA-Griffin donates to local organizations
Each year, the University of Georgia Griffin Campus holds a food and toy drive where faculty, staff and students bring in donations to support local organizations. This year, the campus was able to donate 365 pounds of food to the Five Loaves and Two Fish Food Pantry and nearly 100 toys to the Griffin Fire-Rescue Toy Drive.
Marietta Daily Journal
Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College student to use writing, communication skills in law school
Students seeking a bachelor of science degree in Writing and Communication at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College are consistent award-winners in a variety of fields. Since the introduction of ABAC’s four-year degree in Writing and Communication in 2017, students in the program have won several national and regional awards for their writing, broadcasting, filmmaking, and research. Writing and Communication students from ABAC have been recognized by the Georgia College Press Association and the Southern Regional Press Institute. They have been selected to present their research at the Georgia Collegiate Honors Conference and at National Collegiate Honors conferences in Dallas and New Orleans. ABAC Writing and Communication students also were chosen to share their work at the National College Media Association Conference in Washington, D.C. Jaylee Bass, a Writing and Communication graduate from Adel, received the ABAC Alumni Association award that goes to the top bachelor’s degree graduate at ABAC’s recent fall commencement ceremony.
WGAU
The Georgia Museum last won the award in 2017
By Hillary Brown
The Georgia Museum of Art at the University of Georgia has received the 2020 Mary Ellen LoPresti Award for exhibition catalogues from the Southeast Chapter of the Art Libraries Society of North America. The LoPresti Award normally goes to one scholarly publication and one exhibition catalogue, but two books from the museum tied for the latter award: “Deborah Roberts: The Evolution of Mimi” (published with the Spelman College Museum of Fine Art) and “Material Georgia 1733 – 1900: Two Decades of Scholarship.”
Other News:
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Map: Coronavirus deaths and cases in Georgia (updated Dec. 27)
An updated count of coronavirus deaths and cases reported across the state
CONFIRMED DEATHS: 9,714 | Deaths have been confirmed in all counties but one (Taliaferro). This figure does not include additional cases that the DPH reports as suspected COVID-19-related deaths. County is determined by the patient’s residence, when known, not by where they were treated.
CONFIRMED CASES: 543,707 | Cases have been confirmed in every county.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
A look at major COVID-19 developments over the past week
By J. Scott Trubey, Helena Olivier and Eric Stirgus
A second COVID-19 vaccine started arriving in Georgia, raising hopes for a slowing down or even an ending of the pandemic on the horizon. But the Moderna vaccine couldn’t come soon enough to quell a surging number of new coronavirus infections or to prevent a crush of COVID-19 patients overwhelming several hospitals. With coronavirus infections spiking across the Sun Belt, the latest White House Coronavirus Task Force report warned that Georgia will soon see more fatalities as cases and hospitalizations climb.