University System News:
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Georgia schools land on Military Times’ Best For Vets: Colleges list
By Kiersten Willis
The best colleges for veterans have been revealed by Military Times. The website devoted to news about at-home and deployed service members has a list of over 300 U.S. colleges. Each of them has been ranked for how well they serve veterans. Five Georgia colleges landed in the top 60. …Georgia State University ranked the highest on the list. The Atlanta college came in sixth overall. …At No. 17 was the University of North Georgia, which has multiple campuses in the state. …Georgia Southern University is No. 53. …The University of Georgia is No. 55. …Columbus State University followed at No. 56.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
New Clayton State president says he can relate to students’ issues
By Leon Stafford
T. Ramon Stuart said upbringing keeps him focused, grounded
Clayton State University’s new president T. Ramon Stuart knows firsthand how tough it is to stick with college when you’re struggling financially. Stuart, the first Black president of the 52-year-old institution, watched his mother “step out” of college because she couldn’t make ends meet in the rural West Virginia town in which he was raised. But she didn’t give up, he says, returning to school years later to finish what she started. “When she ‘stepped back in,’ she said, ‘I’m not leaving without something in my hand,’” Stuart said, explaining he doesn’t use the phrase drop out because he thinks that can discourage people from coming back. “And that was the catalyst and the fuel to get her associate’s degree.
13WMAZ
Georgia College freshman forms first on-campus group for disabled students
A’leah Monk is set to begin studies at Georgia College and State University but before stepping foot on campus, she’s already made a first
Author: Caleesha Moore
You can’t tell from looking at her, but A’leah Monk was born with EDS, or Ehlers Danlos Syndrome, a disability that affects the skin, joints, and blood vessels. “It makes it harder that people don’t understand as much. I can try and explain it to them, but they may not understand the things I can and cannot do since it’s so internal,” she said. One of the symptoms she lives with is chronic pain, making it hard for her to walk, but none of those things are stopping her from going off to Georgia College & State University this fall. She’s already using her disability to help other students before she gets there, forming the school’s first organization for disabled students. “The Disability Unity and Awareness Club — it’s about building unity between disabled students who may otherwise not have anywhere to go to and talk with other disabled students, building awareness for people who don’t know about different disabilities,” she explains.
EIN News
Associated General Contractors of Georgia Announces Randall K. Redding Scholarship Fund
Industry honors legend by giving back to two of Redding’s passions in his name
The Associated General Contractors of Georgia (AGC Georgia) is proud to partner with AGC of America’s Education and Research Foundation to establish the Randall K. Redding Scholarship Fund. This announcement was shared at AGC Georgia’s recent Annual Convention. On an annual basis, a deserving upperclassman from the state of Georgia who is pursuing a Building Sciences degree at Auburn University will receive the scholarship. If an Auburn student is not identified, a Georgia resident who is an upperclassman in a construction program at Georgia Southern University, Georgia Tech, or Kennesaw State University will be selected. The Fund will pay $2,500 per year and will be managed by AGC of America.
Athens CEO
New Exhibit at Georgia Capitol Museum Celebrates Agriculture
Jennifer Whittaker
Under the golden dome of the Georgia State Capitol, a new exhibit in the Georgia Capitol Museum shines a spotlight on agriculture in Georgia. The exhibit is designed to educate visitors on the importance of the state’s No. 1 industry. The Georgia Capitol Museum is a unit of the University of Georgia’s Richard B. Russell Library for Political Research and Studies, which rallied a team of UGA historians and archivists to create “From Your Farm to Your Table,” a permanent exhibit to highlight the influence of agribusiness on Georgia’s economy and culture.
Other News:
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Map: Coronavirus deaths and cases in Georgia (updated July 13)
An updated count of coronavirus deaths and cases reported across the state
CONFIRMED DEATHS: 18,592 | 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: 908,348
Higher Education News:
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Georgia’s Path2College 529 Plan celebrates 250k accounts
By Pamela Miller
Reaching milestones is a cause for celebration, and the state of Georgia’s college savings plan, Path2College, has achieved record growth in recent years, and last year was no exception. Over the last 12 months, the plan saw a 41.5 percent increase in contributions, as well as a nine percent increase in new accounts opened, according to a press release. …As of May 31, 2021, there is more than $4.4 billion saved in the Path2College 529 Plan and $1.3 billion has already been used to pay for education-related expenses.
Inside Higher Ed
Federal Aid Verification Will Be More Targeted for 2021-22 Award Year
By Alexis Gravely
The Department of Education is temporarily changing its federal student aid verification process to focus only on identity theft and fraud for the 2021-22 application cycle. The change is intended to help alleviate challenges students face in accessing financial aid and boost enrollment numbers for students of color and students from low-income backgrounds.
Inside Higher Ed
Nominee Faces Criticism at Confirmation Hearing
Catherine Lhamon fielded questions about her views on Title IX regulations and her past use of informal guidance, as she hopes to once again be confirmed as assistant secretary for civil rights at the Department of Education.
By Alexis Gravely
President Biden’s pick to lead the Office for Civil Rights at the Department of Education maintained her strong opinions of current Title IX regulations during her confirmation hearing Tuesday, even as Republican senators criticized her previous tenure at the department. Catherine Lhamon, who was nominated to serve as assistant secretary for civil rights in May, said she believes the regulations surrounding Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 enacted by the Trump administration permit “students to rape and sexually harass with impunity.” Lhamon tweeted a similar statement last May, prompting a question about it from Senator Bill Cassidy, a Republican from Louisiana. “I think that … the regulation has weakened the intent of Title IX that Congress wrote,” Lhamon said, adding that she was particularly concerned about the lack of responsibility for institutions to investigate reports that aren’t made to the Title IX coordinator or any other designated mandatory reporter.