University System News:
11Alive
Here is a list of Georgia colleges’ vaccine rollout plans
With Georgians 16 and older now eligible for the vaccine, colleges are hoping for a return to normal campus life, and many local universities are trying to make the vaccination process easier for students and staff. Here are schools’ plans as shared with 11Alive: The University of Georgia: The University Health Center will contact individuals when it’s their turn to be vaccinated. Vaccines are by appointment only. …Georgia State University: GSU provided a link for students, faculty, and staff to register and will administer vaccines at Veterans Memorial Hall in Dahlberg Hall on 66 Gilmer St. “while supplies last”. Kennesaw State University: Clinical staff from Wellstar Health System, nursing students, and volunteer faculty from KSU’s Wellstar School of Nursing will administer the vaccine. …Georgia Institute of Technology: Georgia Tech is asking students to register for a vaccine appointment using MyTest.Gatech.edu. They will continue opening appointments as more vaccine becomes available and will be sending out notifications when there are new appointments. …Georgia College: The college said it’s been encouraging eligible students to register to receive their vaccination for several weeks, even hosting a vaccination clinic last week on campus. …We will follow the guidance from the University System of Georgia, as well as the CDC and the Georgia Department of Public Health as we work to keep our students and campus community safe from the spread of COVID-19. 11Alive reached out to the University System of Georgia regarding vaccine plans, also asking whether the vaccine could be required for students for future semesters. In response, a spokesperson sent the following statement: “Since the beginning of the pandemic, the University System of Georgia has worked closely with the Georgia Department of Public Health and the governor’s office to keep our campuses healthy and safe. Our institutions have already received more than 20,000 vaccine doses, which are being actively administered to eligible students, faculty, and staff. Additionally, volunteers from multiple campuses have volunteered their time to assist with vaccination efforts both on and off-campus. We will work to administer additional vaccines for students, faculty, and staff as the state of Georgia and our institutions receive additional vaccine supply.”
WRBL
Vaccine eligibility expanded, students react
by: Sakura Gray
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp expanded COVID-19 vaccine eligibility to all adults over the age of 16, which means college students and some high school students are now able to receive their shots. Kemp made the announcement Tuesday afternoon, and News 3 spoke to students at Columbus State University and Columbus High School about their reactions to the news. CSU students say they have had to miss out on key parts of the college experience as well as adapt to hybrid learning. Many are ready for this first step of getting back to normal and are eager to get their shot.
WJBF
Medical Students Create Song and Video To Toast Frontline Workers
by: Dee Griffin
They look like a popular music group. But, these guys are medical students taught to treat bodies and save lives. When the pandemic started, they looked outside their books for a way to use medicine and music to provide hope and healing while spreading a message. “The inspiration really came from us wanting to say ‘thank you’ because we felt frustrated we saw a lot of people that we looked up to just neck deep in the thick of things and we just wanted to be able to extend our gratitude,” explains second year medical student Rushay Amarath. At the time, Rushay Amarath and Tyler Beauchamp were completing their first year at the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta. …As students, they couldn’t physically help people during the pandemic. But musically, they struck a chord. Their creation was more than a song and video. They took an extra step to bring faces of the frontlines to the forefront. …We started getting pictures coming in from all over the country.” A picture board that started with six photos is now overflowing with the faces of those who have fought the battle against Covid 19 from day one and haven’t backed down from this war.” “This really became a ‘thank you’ to everyone and anyone whose made a sacrifice over this past year,” says Beauchamp.
Griffin Daily News
Gordon State College plans to return to normal operations in fall
The 2021 summer and fall semesters are right around the corner and Gordon State College is in the process of working on plans for a return to “normal” operations. A year has passed since COVID-19 dramatically altered the engagement level of the administration, students, faculty and staff at Gordon State. Yet, the institution continued to move forward during this most difficult time.
WJBF
Augusta University seeing increase in applicants amid test – optional policy for admission
by: Deirnesa Jefferson
Augusta University is one of more than 1,400 colleges and universities that are moving — at least temporarily — to a test-optional policy. The change is in response to many SAT and ACT test dates being canceled due to the pandemic.
The Chronicle of Higher Education
Graduation in a Baseball Stadium? College Commencements Pair Pomp With Prevention
By Eric Kelderman
…USF is among a growing number of colleges announcing in-person graduations this spring, a sign that many are inching toward normalcy after the Covid-19 pandemic largely canceled traditional commencement ceremonies last year. …The decisions about graduation are happening as states like Florida and Texas begin to loosen restrictions on capacity at businesses and public gatherings. But the push to reopen the economy hasn’t meant that colleges in those states are ready to return to normal yet, even in states like Georgia, where there is no statewide mask mandate and gatherings are only limited by social-distancing rules. Georgia Southern University, which has offered mostly in-person courses for the academic year, held scaled-back graduation ceremonies in December and will do the same at the end of this semester. As at other colleges, each graduation at Georgia Southern is limited to fewer students and guests spread out in the university’s football stadium.
Marietta Daily Journal
Kennesaw State has strong showing in National Collegiate Sales Competition
The Kennesaw State University Sales Team finished third at the recent National Collegiate Sales Competition, which saw more than 160 sales students from 68 universities across the U.S. and Canada competing for the top spot. KSU’s Michael J. Coles College of Business hosted the 23rd annual NCSC. The all-digital event featured students putting their skills to the test in team-based and one-on-one sales call simulations. It also included a two-day career fair with 16 companies – many of them in the Fortune 500 – looking to hire their next sales superstars. The team of KSU professional sales majors Hannah Teague and Adam Stickler, president and vice president of the KSU Sales Club, respectively, placed third overall. Meanwhile, Stickler also won third in the individual category.
Douglas Now
PREMIUM PEANUT: FIRST PARTNER FOR SGSC’S MECHANICAL ENGINEERING PROGRAM
Premium Peanut is paving the way for students interested in pursuing a career in the field of engineering technology at South Georgia State College. The company has committed to make the first gift in support of SGSC’s plans to offer a new bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering technology (MET). SGSC President Dr. Ingrid Thompson-Sellers noted, “As a small community in a rural area, we know the value of strong partnerships that create mutual long-term benefits. As such, this is the kind of investment that will cultivate dividends for years to come.”
Patch
Students Learn Presentation Skills At Annual Research Conference
University of North Georgia (UNG) Honors student Holden Armstrong has presented at conferences before on topics.
University of North Georgia (UNG) honors student Holden Armstrong has presented at conferences before on topics ranging from international affairs to strategic and security studies. As brigade academic officer in UNG’s Corps of Cadets2, he is comfortable speaking in front of large groups. On March 26, Armstrong will present his research question and method for the first time to faculty, staff and students during UNG’s Annual Research Conference 3 (ARC). His question examines the Corps of Cadets’ involvement with the university’s Honors Program and Nationally Competitive Scholarships Office.
Savannah CEO
Georgia Southern Sustainability Programs Fighting Fast Fashion with Campus Thrift Store
Sustainability Programs at Georgia Southern University is teaming up with student organization Fashion Menagerie, a group of fashion merchandising and apparel design students, to fight fast fashion by hosting the first campus thrift store on the Statesboro Campus. Clothing donations are currently being accepted through March 26 at various locations around campus.
The Red & Black
UGA graduate students advocate for repeal of special institution fee
Emily Garcia | Enterprise Reporter
The Franklin College’s faculty senate passed a resolution on March 23 written by the Graduate Student Council’s advocacy committee to signal support for eliminating the Special Institution Fee for graduate students at the University of Georgia. The resolution also encourages UGA to work with the University System of Georgia to eliminate the fee for all graduate students. Bryant Barnes, a graduate student in the department of history at UGA and member of United Campus Workers of Georgia said the resolution will not directly cause a change, but it’s meant to draw attention to the issue and demonstrate broader support.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Georgia Tech professor faces multiple federal fraud charges
By Henri Hollis
A Georgia Tech professor has been accused of using his position to fraudulently sponsor visas for Chinese nationals to work in the United States, officials announced Wednesday. Gee-Kung Chang, 73, of Smyrna, has been charged with conspiracy to commit visa fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud and wire fraud, according to Northern District of Georgia Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt Erskine. Chang and another man, 53-year-old Jianjun Yu, were both indicted by a federal grand jury on March 18. According to Erskine’s announcement, Chang and Yu are accused of a scheme that involved sponsoring visas for Chinese nationals through Georgia Tech, only to have those visa recipients work at a telecommunications company in New Jersey.
Other News:
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Coronavirus in Georgia: COVID-19 Dashboard
Latest stats and the news on the coronavirus outbreak
Q: What is the latest on confirmed and probable coronavirus cases in Georgia?
845,560 TOTAL CONFIRMED* CASES
1,049,397 TOTAL INCLUDING PROBABLE** CASES
Q: What is the latest on coronavirus deaths in Georgia?
16,257 TOTAL CONFIRMED* DEATHS
18,660 TOTAL INCLUDING PROBABLE** DEATHS
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Georgia gears up to offer COVID-19 vaccine to anyone 16 and up
By Eric Stirgus , Helena Oliviero and Ariel Hart
The success of the state’s campaign may hinge on getting young adults to take the shots
Sherri Scott feels a deep sense of relief that her two sons, 17 and 19, are now eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine. She didn’t expect this day would come until closer to the end of the year. “I feel like the sun is peeking through the clouds,” said Scott of Atlanta. Starting Thursday, Georgia is opening its vaccination doors wide, allowing anyone 16 years old or above to receive a vaccination. Only Alaska, Arizona, Mississippi, Utah and West Virginia have done that so far, though some 30 other states have set dates for when all adults can get the vaccines. Several experts say the moves are coming at a critical time, noting that states are racing to get as many people vaccinated as possible before the spread of new, more dangerous variants of the virus gets to them first.
Higher Education News:
The Chronicle of Higher Education
A Campaign to Get Needles in Arms
Campus leaders want students vaccinated against a deadly disease. But they must weigh many factors.
By Vimal Patel
The Facebook friend request confused Patti Wukovits. “Do I know you?” she asked. “No,” Alicia Stillman replied, “but I think we have something in common.” They did. Their children — one a Kalamazoo College sophomore, the other headed to college — had died from a horrific disease that is of special concern on college campuses, where young adults are packed together in close quarters. It elicits dread among campus health officials. And the two women’s daughters had contracted it just as a vaccine was being developed. The vaccine had not yet hit the U.S. market — but even once the shots were available, most college students weren’t getting them. Not Covid-19. Meningitis B. A growing but still very small number of colleges require incoming students to get the meningitis B vaccines. But many factors, including weak federal guidance, cost, and concerns about the length of immunity, have left most students unprotected from meningitis B, one of the five major types of meningococcal bacteria and the one most prevalent on college campuses. Some campus leaders also worry that a mandate might pose a barrier to entry for students and parents reluctant about vaccines. …With Covid-19, vaccine hesitancy is the ominous unknown that hangs over the battle to reach herd immunity. Experts expect the FDA in the months ahead to approve the vaccines for regular use, clearing the path for colleges to require them. Advocates of requirements note that colleges, overseeing tens of millions of students and employees, can play a key role in the U.S. vaccination effort.
Inside Higher Ed
Low-Income High Schools Shut Out
Unprecedented declines in college enrollment among new high school graduates appeared last fall. Drops were especially steep for graduates of low-income high schools.
By Emma Whitford
College-going rates among high school graduates declined across the board this fall, but far fewer graduates of low-income and high-poverty high schools, and of high schools with many Black and Hispanic students, enrolled in college during the pandemic, new data show. Immediate college enrollment fell by an unprecedented 6.8 percent this fall, compared with a 1.5 percent year-over-year decline in fall 2019, according to a new special analysis of the High School Benchmarks report from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center. While a 6.8 percent decline is far better than an earlier estimate of 21.7 percent, it is still 4.5 times larger than the 2019, pre-pandemic rate. The National Student Clearinghouse Research Center puts together annual reports on high school graduates’ postsecondary enrollment, persistence and completion outcomes. It has also released several analyses of college enrollment amid the pandemic. The latest analysis updates preliminary results posed in December. It also corrects a process error that resulted in an overestimate of the rate of decline in college enrollment counts throughout the December report.
EdSurge
More Employers Are Awarding Credentials. Is A Parallel Higher Education System Emerging?
By Sean Gallagher (Columnist) and Holly Zanville
As the acceptance of new types of credentials grows, a number of employers have become learning providers in their own right, in a way that could shake up the broader higher education landscape. A growing number of companies have moved beyond training their own employees or providing tuition assistance programs to send staff members to higher education. Many of these employers are also developing their own curricula and rapidly expanding their publicly-facing credential offerings. It’s not hard to find prominent examples:
• Google recently announced an expansion of the company’s popular Google Career Certificates portfolio. This includes 100,000 scholarships and will grow the initiative’s employer hiring network to 130 partners. …Colleges and universities in particular stand to benefit from more research, dialogue and action related to employer-issued credentials. The stacking and weaving of employer-issued credentials to create new pathways into college degree and certificate programs is becoming an increasing trend.