University System News:
Fox5
New post-tenure review policy approved by Georgia Board of Regents met with resistance
By Janice Yu
There is frustration and disappointment over a new post-tenure review policy approved by the Georgia Board of Regents. The governing body for 26 universities and colleges in the state voted unanimously on Wednesday to make the changes. …One of the changes in the policy is the way in which a tenured professor is evaluated. Under the previous policy, a tenured professor could be fired only for a specific cause after a peer-review process. With the new policy, tenured professors could face “remedial” action, which can include being fired or losing tenure, if they have two unsatisfactory reviews in a row and fail to improve.
See also:
The Chronicle of Higher Education
Over AAUP and Faculty Objections, Georgia Regents Approve Changes in Post-Tenure Review
Inside Higher Ed
Georgia Regents Approve Controversial Tenure Policy Changes
The New York Times
Georgia’s University System Takes On Tenure
The Board of Regents has given its universities the power to fire tenured professors without faculty input. Now some fear that academic freedom is threatened, too.
Higher Ed Dive
AP News
Georgia college professors to face new reviews, regents say
Axios Atlanta
Tenure changes coming to Georgia universities
Statesboro Herald
Georgia college professors to face new reviews, regents say
Athens Banner-Herald
Regents pass tenure changes for University System of Georgia despite faculty objections
Marietta Daily Journal
Board of Regents adopts new tenure policy for state university system
WTOC
Exhibit at Georgia Southern raises awareness about mental health
By Dal Cannady
The “Send Silence Packing” exhibit is designed to show students they aren’t alone and there are resources to offer help. Hundreds and hundreds of bags covered Sweetheart Circle on the Statesboro campus of Georgia Southern University. The bags represent the college students across the country lost to suicide each year. Students say an overwhelmed friend or classmate’s passing comment can sometimes be a cry for help. …Nationally, 13 percent of students acknowledge thoughts of suicide. Two percent acknowledge they’ve attempted to take their own life. The university counseling center teamed with an organization called Active Minds to bring the exhibit here.
WRDW
Georgia Cyber Center opening new lab for AU students
By Celeste Springer
There’s a new tenant at the Georgia Cyber Center. We got a first look inside the new space for the Savannah River National Laboratory. Soon, students from Augusta University will get to use the lab to get hands-on experience in the cyber world. Next week is Cyber Security Careers Awareness Week, and it’s pretty timely given the growth in the Georgia Cyber Center recently. The new lab will host computer science students from AU. And we’re told the program is a streamline which will hopefully keep them in the area post-grad. Michael Schaffer, Georgia Cyber Center executive vice president of strategic partnerships and economic development, says the area under construction is about to become the center’s next collaborative space.
WTOC
New plan for vocational education in Bulloch County
By Dal Cannady
A new plan for vocational education in Bulloch County aims to help school students get an earlier look at possible careers and the training to prepare for them. The school district announced the details Wednesday morning. This new workforce development project is designed to not only show students the career options available, but also the opportunities open for them to train for them. Leaders from Bulloch County Schools outlined a new plan to get job training and experience to students. That’s welcome news to high schooler Aaliyah Lonon. …The plan builds on the traditional vocational education plan. But it also teams with Ogeechee Tech and Georgia Southern as well as seeks out more local companies as possible employers.
Northside Neighbor
Georgia State researchers receive grant for sexual assault and binge drinking research
Elizabeth Nouryeh-Clay
Researchers at Georgia State’s School of Public Health have been awarded a $3.3 million grant from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism to study a behavioral intervention targeting binge drinking and sexual assault among college students that is tailored by gender and sexual orientation. Federal guidelines recommend that colleges implement universal sexual assault prevention programs that incorporate bystander intervention strategies. …The web-based program, known as Positive Change (+Change), was developed by the research team and is the only intervention that concurrently targets both binge drinking and sexual assault. The study will be the first large-scale trial of an integrated binge drinking prevention and sexual assault prevention program targeting victimization, perpetration and bystander intervention.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Suspect arrested in hit-and-run that killed UGA student
By Chelsea Prince
The suspect in a weekend hit-and-run that killed a 20-year-old University of Georgia student is now behind bars, authorities said Thursday. Donterris Gresham, 29, of Athens, surrendered Wednesday and was being held in the Clarke County jail on charges related to the death of Ariana Zarse, who was hit by a vehicle early Saturday morning while walking with a friend north of UGA’s campus. Authorities had previously released a photo of Gresham and asked for the public’s help to locate him.
Savannah CEO
Georgia Southern University Builds Tribute to Armstrong Athletics
Georgia Southern University is building a new home to celebrate the athletic successes of Armstrong State University with a hall of champions now under construction on Georgia Southern’s Armstrong Campus in Savannah. The facility will serve as the permanent host for the Armstrong Athletic Hall of Fame, championship trophies and banners honoring the legacy of Pirate athletics.
Columbus CEO
CSU Alum Recognized in ‘Georgia Trend’ List of ‘40 Under 40’
Columbus State University alumna Raveeta Addison Moore was recently named to “Georgia Trend” magazine’s “40 Under 40” list. Now in its 25th year, the list honors the best and brightest young leaders in the state. The individuals recognized this year were nominated by readers for being outstanding in their volunteer work and community involvement. Moore earned her bachelor’s degree in sociology from CSU in 2017 and began her career with Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Chattahoochee Valley. Today, Moore is a project manager at Columbus-based TSYS, a Global Payments company, where she is responsible for projects for credit card clients.
Coastal Courier
Two locals make GSU’s ‘40 under 40’ list
Special to the Courier
Brooke Ann Childers and Karla L. Sapp, Ed.D., both of Liberty County, have been named to the Georgia Southern University Alumni Association’s “40 Under 40” Class of 2021. The honor recognizes alumni who have made significant strides in business, leadership, community, educational or philanthropic endeavors. Childers, from Liberty County, graduated from Georgia Southern in 2005 with a bachelor’s in political science. Today, she is the district director for U.S. Representative Buddy Carter. Sapp graduated with a bachelor’s in criminal justice from Georgia Southern in 2004. Today, she is the drug abuse program coordinator for the Federal Bureau of Prisons and a clinical psychologist for the Department of Justice. …The “40 Under 40” honorees were chosen by a selection committee that reviewed each individual’s professional expertise, achievements, dedication to charitable and community initiatives and their commitment to Georgia Southern.
Savannah Morning News
Faculty at universities across Georgia demand mask mandates on campus in protests
Jozsef Papp, Augusta Chronicle
Dustin Avent-Holt is frustrated, and he is not alone. Dozens of faculty and staff across the state have gathered on their campuses to demand action by the University System of Georgia’s Board of Regents on their COVID-19 policy. Avent-Holt, an associated professor of sociology at Augusta University, said they are simply asking a mask mandate be instituted and enforced at all 26 USG schools, just like it was last year, or at least allow each university to make its own decisions on masks mandates. He doesn’t understand how one year they had a mask mandate and now they don’t. …Currently, universities are simply encouraging students, faculty and staff to wear a mask while on campus. In a statement, Augusta University said it is “strongly encouraging” people to wear a mask and get vaccinated.
Savannah Morning News
Land ownership challenge one dock at a time for Gullah Geechee communities
Maxine L. Bryant
Greed, modernization and society’s love affair with coastal living have threatened the lives and livelihood of the Gullah Geechee people for many years. In 2004, the National Trust for Historic Preservation placed the Gullah Geechee Coast on its list of most threatened places. In 2006, Congress created the Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor Commission in effort to increase awareness about the plight of the Gullah Geechee community and preserve its legacy. Despite these efforts to mitigate the impact of “progress,” an ongoing threat to Gullah Geechee communities continues to be the loss of family land. …Fortunately, there are many organizations, including Georgia Southern University, that are committed to changing the narrative of loss, land and forced migration for Gullah Geechee communities. To this end, the Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Center will open this fall on the Armstrong Campus. Together we can change the narrative – one person/one action at a time.
Other News:
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Map: Coronavirus deaths and cases in Georgia (updated Oct. 13)
An updated count of coronavirus deaths and cases reported across the state
CONFIRMED CASES: 1,247,631
CONFIRMED DEATHS: 23,575 | 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.
Higher Education News:
Inside Higher Ed
Faculty Governance: What the Data Say
American Association of University Professors survey finds over all, faculty representation is up over time, but faculty participation in presidential searches is down, as is full participation of part-time faculty members.
By Colleen Flaherty
The American Association of University Professors today released the third set of findings from its major survey of faculty governance leaders on shared governance. The new data indicate increased faculty participation in some aspects of governance over time, but also a decline in some areas. First, the good news, as far as the AAUP is concerned: since the group’s last major survey on shared governance, in 2001, the share of institutions that have a faculty senate or council increased some 15 percentage points, to about 90 percent. The share of institutions limiting participation in governance to tenured or tenure-track faculty members only declined by some 10 percentage points, to about 7 percent of institutions. And two-thirds of institutions now have a formal mechanism for direct faculty communication with the governing board, such as through a faculty senate or a joint committee.
Diverse Issues in Higher Education
Institutions Adjust Faculty Diversity Strategies Amid COVID-19 Pandemic
Lois Elfman
Although budget cuts in the wake of COVID-19 have led to hiring freezes at some institutions, faculty diversity initiatives continue. In the pandemic world of academia, many institutions are struggling to keep enrollment up and costs down, but there is still a distinct awareness that moves must be made to bring faculty diversity closer to student diversity. Data released in fall 2020 by the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) show that, while underrepresented minorities comprise 32.6% of the U.S. population, they make up only 12.9% of full-time faculty. Efforts to recruit and retain faculty from underrepresented populations are ongoing, but COVID-19 has impeded some of the efforts. The pandemic has impacted research and delayed the completion of some doctorates, says Dr. Irene Mulvey, president of AAUP and professor of mathematics at Fairfield University. Many academic conferences have been cancelled, scaled back or held virtually, which impacts graduate students who traditionally present their research and use conferences to network, discover job opportunities and connect with potential career mentors.
Inside Higher Ed
The View From Student Health Services
Student health professionals report high need for services now that students are back on campus and seeking physical and mental health care, even as COVID-19-related demands remain strong.
By Elizabeth Redden
More than a year and a half into the COVID-19 pandemic, with many college campuses back at normal capacity, student health centers are feeling the pressure. There is increased demand for routine health services now that students are back on campus, and they’re also seeking more mental health care. The health centers are having difficulty hiring in a competitive health-care labor market, and staff members are overworked and fatigued. There is plenty of stress to go around.