University System News:
WALB
Douglas studies new aviation school
By Dave Miller
The Douglas-Coffee County community is discussing a plan to bring aviation education to the community, region, and state. State and local leaders met Thursday at South Georgia State College, to discuss how partnerships with educational organizations in the community can assist with nurturing and growing pilots and mechanics in the aviation field by developing an aviation school on the airport grounds. …South Georgia State College President Ingrid Thompson-Sellers is committed to the partnership and announced the college will be offering Engineering and Technology studies in the Fall. Wiregrass Georgia Technical College and the Career Academy are all on board to assist with workforce development and continuing education opportunities.
WSBRadio
Morehead: COVID vaccines are now on UGA campus
Both Pfizer and Moderna vaccines
By Tim Bryant
University of Georgia president Jere Morehead says UGA has received its first doses of coronavirus vaccine, and he says more are expected on campus soon. The arrival of the vaccine comes one week before next Wednesday’s scheduled start of spring semester classes.
WJBF
Health experts say even if you think you have common cold symptoms, get a COVID-19 test
by: Renetta DuBose
Coronavirus cases continue to rise prompting more people to get tested. But with cold and flu season here, it can be hard to know when it’s really coronavirus. Runny nose, coughing and every other common cold symptom could have you thinking it’s COVID-19 and heading straight to one of the many CSRA coronavirus testing sites, which could take time. But should you go and where do you go? Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University Professor of Medicine Dr. Rodger MacArthur told us plainly, “You need to get tested.” Dr. MacArthur said researchers have not been able to distinguish between cold and coronavirus symptoms, so even if you think it’s just a common cold, get a COVID-19 test.
Forbes
The Psychological Trauma Of Covid-19
John Drake Contributor; Professor at UGA
The destruction that Covid-19 has created is immediately evident in the number of cumulative deaths. As I write this, over 353,000 Americans have died from Covid-19, and CDC’s national ensemble forecast suggests that by January 23, 2021, this number may increase to 424,000. Think about this — in a span of fewer than three weeks, Covid-19 may kill an additional 71,000 people. I have tried before to make the magnitude of the current Covid-19 surge more comprehensible, for instance visualizing Covid-19 deaths in the US using the tiniest mark on the digital page. I have also discussed the reasons behind the third wave. But I have not written about the psychological pain that many Americans are now experiencing. The number of Americans who are anxious, scared, depressed, or lonely has increased during the pandemic.
Tech Register
The Allen. E. Paulson College of Engineering and Computing at Georgia Southern University is hailing the success of its first-ever Industry Expo, which was held on Dec. 3. The event was envisioned to be held in person, but was hosted online this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Industry Expo showcases the research and design projects of senior students in computer science, information technology, construction management and five engineering disciplines. Twenty-eight teams submitted projects for the event, which attracted more than 250 attendees. Projects ranged from service robots and vehicle design to a drive-thru delivery arm and an automatic door handle sanitizer.
Other News:
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Map: Coronavirus deaths and cases in Georgia (updated Jan. 5)
An updated count of coronavirus deaths and cases reported across the state
CONFIRMED DEATHS: 9,966 | 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: 597,208 | Cases have been confirmed in every county.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Georgia reports first U.K. COVID-19 strain; state now 9th in new cases
By J. Scott Trubey, Ariel Hart
As hospitals struggled with a record surge in hospitalizations Tuesday, Georgia announced its first confirmed case of the new coronavirus strain that has overwhelmed the medical system in the United Kingdom. The Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) said the case was discovered in an 18-year-old man with no travel history. The teen, who was not identified, is isolating at his home, and state officials are working to identify, monitor and test the teen’s close contacts.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The variant virus: What we know
Georgia is the fifth state where someone has been found to be infected with the variant virus of COVID-19. Here are answers to common questions about it.
Q: Why is the new strain of COVID-19 a concern?
A: The primary reason is that the variant appears to spread much more quickly from person to person. As a result, it has rapidly changed from being a rare strain to becoming a common one in the United Kingdom, where it was first detected. Since November, the strain has accounted for about 60% of recent infections in London, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. So far, however, CDC says there is no evidence that the variant causes a more severe disease or increased risk of death.
Georgia Health News
Health experts urge stronger COVID measures; new strain appears in state
Andy Miller
With Georgia topping 5,000 current hospitalizations for COVID-19, public health experts are calling for more state restrictions to curb the virus surge. Yet another ominous factor popped up Tuesday: Georgia Public Health officials reported the state’s first case of the more contagious COVID-19 variant discovered in Britain last month and subsequently detected in several nations and U.S. states.
Irish Examiner
EMA delays decision on Moderna’s Covid-19 vaccine
The expected decision has been delayed until Wednesday this week.
CIARÁN SUNDERLAND
Today’s expected decision on the use of the Moderna Covid-19 vaccine by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) has been delayed. The European Union’s (EU) medicines regulator announced the decision on Twitter. In a Tweet, the EMA said: “EMA’s committee for human medicines (CHMP) discussion on Covid-19 vaccine Moderna has not concluded today. “It will continue on Wednesday January 6, 2021. No further communication will be issued today by EMA.”
Higher Education News:
Inside Higher Ed
What SolarWinds Hack Means for Campuses
Colleges and universities aren’t confirming that they were hit by the massive SolarWinds cyberattack, but IT experts say the hack calls for bolstering cybersecurity for the future.
By Lindsay McKenzie
The full scope of the massive SolarWinds hack is still unclear, but the attack is already being described by cybersecurity experts as a “cyber Pearl Harbor.” For months hackers have been poking around computer networks at U.S. government departments, Fortune 500 companies and possibly higher education institutions and research organizations — undetected. What information may have been stolen and exactly whom it was stolen from is unclear. Information technology experts told Inside Higher Ed that investigations into the attack at the federal level could take many months to complete. But even before the impact of the attack on higher education institutions is known, college IT leaders can take steps to guard against future intrusions.
Diverse Issues in Higher Education
Study: College Football Players Underestimate Risk of Concussion and Injury
by Lois Elfman
U.S. college football players don’t accurately estimate their risk of concussion or injury, according to a recently released report. In the report, “Accuracy of U.S. College Football Players’ Estimates of Their Risk of Concussion or Injury,” authors Drs. Christine M. Baugh, Emily Kroshus, William P. Meehan III, Thomas G. McGuire and Laura A. Hatfield explore how college football players gauge their risk of serious injury. At a time of heightened concern regarding the short-term and long-term consequences of participating in contact sports, the authors wanted to assess how athletes understand their own risk for sports-related injuries.
Inside Higher Ed
Golden Parachutes Amid Layoffs
Recently fired head football coaches are being paid millions on their way out even as faculty and staff are laid off or take pay cuts due to the financial fallout of the pandemic.
By Greta Anderson
As the 2020 fall sports season comes to a close for most Division I programs and colleges cut ties with underperforming head coaches, university employees who’ve been laid off or furloughed are calling out institutional leaders for paying out millions of dollars to the departing coaches. The employees, including faculty and staff members, say the payouts are a stark and insulting contrast to budget cuts made last year that largely fell on employees whose earnings were far below the stratosphere of the salaries of the coaches.
Inside Higher Ed
Paying a Price for Being Wealthy
Little-noticed provision in new COVID-19 relief bill would slash aid for colleges and universities with large endowments in half.
By Kery Murakami
After President Trump and Education Secretary Betsy DeVos criticized giving private colleges and universities with large endowments help in the CARES Act, wealthier institutions like Harvard, Yale and Stanford Universities had their share of the money in the latest coronavirus relief package cut in half. Under a little-noticed provision in the bill passed two weeks ago, private higher education institutions that were required by a 2017 law to pay a 1.4 percent excise tax on net investment income not only had their aid slashed, they were barred from using the money they will get to defray their financial losses from the pandemic. The relief bill allows them only to use the aid on emergency grants to students or to pay for personal protective equipment and other health and safety costs associated with the coronavirus. Higher education received about $23 billion in the legislation.