University System News:
The Augusta Chronicle
How Georgia economic developers help create jobs, incentives to bring in major employers
Abraham Kenmore
The SK Battery America plant is, appropriately, located in the city of Commerce, Georgia. The $1.6 billion project – expected to employ 2,000 – was finalized in early January 2019, but without investment from the state and local government, it might not have been built in Georgia. …Georgia is regularly touted as being the No. 1 state for business in the country, although there is some disagreement on this. Beating out competitors for major industrial projects is only one part of economic growth in Georgia, but it is one that brings in potentially thousands of jobs at a time and can include significant investments from local governments. Some experts who spoke to USA TODAY Network-Georgia said state and local developers in Georgia are careful to make sure these projects are net economic gains for the state, although others raised concerns about how transparent and democratic these projects are. …According to Michael Toma, Fuller E. Callaway Professor of Economics at Georgia Southern University, a new project creating 1,000 jobs can have a huge impact, while 500 jobs is a significant project for medium-sized cities. How good the jobs are is a matter of debate, although state and local officials emphasize that they look for jobs that pay well.
Augusta CEO
Augusta University Adds $2.7 Billion, Over 21,000 Jobs to Georgia Economy
Staff Report
Augusta University and AU Health System provided a $2.7 billion boost to the state economy in fiscal year 2020, according to a new report from the University System of Georgia. The USG’s annual economic report showed an overall impact of $18.6 billion, with 155,000 jobs directly or indirectly generated by the system. Augusta University and AU Health are responsible for more than 21,000 of those jobs. “Despite the unprecedented challenges of this past year, Augusta University and AU Health continued to serve our students and patients in new and innovative ways,” said Augusta University President Brooks A. Keel, PhD. “The fall 2020 semester saw a 3.1% enrollment increase and we are excited to continuously welcome new faculty and staff to support that growth. “Additionally in 2020, AU Health was called upon by Gov. Brian Kemp to help expand statewide COVID-19 screening and testing. That required the hard work and sacrifice of many AU health care heroes, and we are so grateful for their dedication.” Augusta University saw a 5.6% improvement in total economic impact compared to FY2019, the biggest increase of the USG’s 26 institutions.
Albany Herald
UGA Pharmacy assistant professor receives Teaching Excellence Award
By Mickey Y. Montevideo
Sharmon P. Osae, a clinical assistant professor at the University of Georgia College of Pharmacy’s Southwest Georgia Clinical Campus in Albany, has received the College’s Teaching Excellence Award, Dean Kelly M. Smith announced. “Dr. Osae is enthusiastically embraced at all levels – from students, to residents, to colleagues, to medical directors, and even more,” Smith said. “We are proud of her accomplishments and the excellence she brings to the classroom. The college is a better learning ground for future pharmacists because of her dedication.”
WJBF
Promising research for genetic disorders by using gene editing
by: Marlena Wilson, “The Means Report” Executive Producer
Exciting research is underway at the Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University, especially when it comes to genetics. Promising results have already been discovered that could correct genetic problems and create disease models. It all starts with gene editing, in particular – prime editing. So what is prime editing? We take a closer look at the exciting research this week with Dr. Joseph Miano – a vascular biologist – and Dr. Lin Gan – a geneticist – both at MCG.
The Red & Black
UGA works to reduce food wastage in dining halls
Khushi Kapadia
Throughout the years, University of Georgia Dining Services has catered to thousands of students. However, during the pandemic, the amount of food wastage shifted due to students throwing away uneaten food in single-use containers. Food waste can have serious environmental repercussions. Wasting food also wastes land, water and labor resources that went into preparing and transporting the food. Disposable dishes, such as paper plates and plasticware, also fill up landfills and use precious resources. College campuses are part of the problem, too. According to NPR, colleges throw out around 22 million pounds of uneaten food every year. According to Greg Trevor, associate vice president for Marketing & Communications at UGA, in order to limit the amount of food wastage, UGA Dining Services utilizes a food inventory system, allowing them to track and predict the amount of food that will need to be made. Recently, several initiatives were started to both increase sustainable practices and reduce food waste.
Other News:
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Map: Coronavirus deaths and cases in Georgia (updated July 26)
An updated count of coronavirus deaths and cases reported across the state
CONFIRMED CASES: 922,346
CONFIRMED DEATHS: 18,675 | 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.
WSB-TV
7 Georgia counties in top 20 Delta variant “danger zones” in US
By WSBTV.com News Staff
Seven Georgia counties are among the top 20 counties in the “danger zone” for the Delta variant, according to a national health nonprofit. Surgo Ventures analyzed data from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention from July on the Delta variant, which now makes up 83% of COVID-19 cases in the U.S. The analysis found that Charlton County, Georgia, was the most hard-hit county in the country in terms of new COVID-19 cases. …Lanier, Telfair, Heard, Jeff Davis, Treutlen and Bacon counties also made the list.
11Alive
Data from the Georgia Department of Public Health shows cases are up.
Author: Brittany Kleinpeter
Despite efforts by health officials, hospitalizations in Georgia are climbing once again because of the coronavirus. The state is now seeing numbers comparable to what it saw in early March. The number of new cases reported on a daily basis is up by more than 500% compared to this time last month. The increase has some county and hospital officials uneasy.
WJBF
Georgia Governor: no statewide mask mandate
by: Chloe Salsameda
As COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations rise across Georgia, Gov. Brian Kemp say he will not implement a statewide mask mandate. “I don’t see any reason [why] we would need to go back and have further restrictions at this point,” he says. Kemp acknowledges the current state of COVID-19 in his state, saying Georgia is “one of 34 or 35 states that have had a 50 percent increase in cases.” …With no plans for a statewide mask requirement, Kemp encourages all Georgians to get vaccinated. Only 40 percent of the state has been fully vaccinated, according to the state’s Department of Public Health.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Savannah becomes first major Georgia city to reimpose mask mandate
By Greg Bluestein
Mayor: ‘We’re on a very dangerous trend’
The city of Savannah is once again requiring the use of masks to halt the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, more than a year after it became the first city in Georgia to impose a requirement for face coverings. Savannah Mayor Van Johnson said Monday that he reinstated a mask mandate he let lapse in May to combat the spread of the highly contagious delta variant after seeing new cases in surrounding Chatham County spike and efforts to vaccinate more residents stall. Johnson said that he didn’t want to “take a backward step in our return to normalcy” but was alarmed by data that showed the rate of new COVID-19 cases tripled in Chatham County over a two-week span.
WRDW
Cities reinstating mask mandates as COVID-19 cases rise; will Augusta be next?
By Will Volk
Experts say the Delta variant is driving new infections. Cities like Savannah are concerned and leaders are bringing back mask mandates to try to slow the spread. And that begs the question: Could that happen in Augusta? We asked Augusta’s mayor and an infectious disease expert about that possibility. We also reached out to Gov. Brian Kemp’s office to see if local governments even have the authority to do this. A spokesperson says the governor has no current executive order addressing mask mandates. Dr. Rodger MacArthur with the Medical College of Georgia says low vaccination rates are fueling the surge. In the last week cases in Georgia have nearly doubled. …We reached out to Augusta Mayor Hardie Davis Jr. In a statement, he says in part: “As COVID cases increase, I continue to monitor the data and communicate with our local and state health experts to determine if the need to return to masks exists.”
Higher Education News:
Inside Higher Ed
‘A Renewed U.S. Commitment to International Education’
Departments of Education and State pledge a “renewed” commitment to international education. Advocates hope this could be first step toward a federal international education strategy.
By Elizabeth Redden
The U.S. Departments of Education and State issued a joint statement of principles Monday articulating “a renewed U.S. commitment to international education.” The agencies committed to “participate in a coordinated national approach to international education, including study in the United States by international students, researchers and scholars; study abroad for Americans; international research collaboration; and the internationalization of U.S. campuses and classrooms.” The statement also included a commitment to “implement policies, procedures and protocols so as to facilitate international education and authorized practical experiences while promoting program integrity and protecting national security.” The term “authorized practical experiences” refers to the curricular practical training (CPT) and optional practical training (OPT) programs, both of which allow international students to gain work experience in the U.S.
Inside Higher Ed
A Recommendation to ‘Reset,’ Not ‘Fix,’ Broken Transfer System
Going “beyond transfer,” national panel argues that achieving equity in higher education requires recognizing and crediting “all relevant learning” from wider variety of sources.
By Doug Lederman
There’s no shortage of evidence that what one might call the “transfer system” — the web of processes and policies that allow students to move from one college to another and bring their academic credits along with them — is badly broken in the United States. Barely one in seven community college students who set out to earn a four-year degree earn one within six years, and the typical student who tries to change colleges loses 43 percent of her credits. Many factors contribute to these and other problems, including a lack of coordination and communication between and among institutions, and a commonly held view at many institutions that learning undertaken elsewhere is inferior. But most can be summed up by saying that, as is true of many aspects of higher education, transfer is more a spiderweb than a coherent system.
Inside Higher Ed
Education Department Seeks Information From Public on Loan Program
By Alexis Gravely
The Department of Education issued a request for information last week on the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program to better understand how it can be fixed. Members of the public are asked to submit written comments by Sept. 24 on the parts of PSLF that are most difficult to navigate, the barriers preventing public service workers from pursuing PSLF and the experiences of borrowers with loans outside the Direct Loan program in participating in PSLF.