University System News:
Albany Herald
United Way, Fort Valley State receive STOP Violence Act grants
From staff reports
Fort Valley State University was awarded $1,999,997 — among the largest single grants awarded — and the United Way of Southwest Georgia in Albany received $991,110 in FY 2021 STOP School Violence Act grants, part of the Department of Justice’s nearly $126 million in funding to advance school safety under the STOP School Violence Act. The grants, awarded by the Office of Justice Programs’ Bureau of Justice Assistance and the department’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services, will help institute safety measures in and around primary and secondary schools, support school violence prevention efforts, provide training to school personnel and students, and implement evidence-based threat assessments.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
AJC On Campus: Early admissions up; top USG leader headed to Louisiana
By Eric Stirgus
Commencements have concluded and most campuses are closed. Yet, there’s been some news since the fall semester ended, such as the departure of a top University System of Georgia official and early admissions numbers from some of the state’s top universities. Meanwhile, some faculty members are making spring semester COVID-19 classroom preparations as new cases rise among students at some of Georgia’s largest universities. Here are some more details in this edition of AJC On Campus:
Top Georgia schools accepting more students through early admissions …COVID-19 cases up at Emory, Georgia Tech …UGA professor plans to continue classroom mask requirement …Moody’s 2022 financial outlook …University System curriculum leader headed to the Bayou … Robot helps UWG celebrate commencement remotely …Students overlook gift in syllabus
Albany Herald
From staff reports
AT&T Georgia recently made a $25,000 contribution to the Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College Foundation Inc., to support multicultural programs at ABAC. “At AT&T, we understand the importance of closing the digital divide,” AT&T Georgia Director of External Affairs Gary Sanchez said. “We are proud to support Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College’s Multicultural Educational Program, helping equip traditionally underserved students with resources to reach their academic dreams. When our students succeed, we all succeed.” Olga Contreras-Martinez, director of ABAC’s Multicultural Education Programs, said four programs in her area touch the lives of students every day.
11Alive
Gastropub owner gifts Christmas meal to Georgia Tech students unable to go home for holidays
Bill Brown, owner of Brookhaven THERE Gastropub, said its an operation that brings joy to his heart.
The coronavirus pandemic has grounded plans for some Georgia Tech students, keeping them on campus for the holidays. That’s why one restaurant owner decided to spice up their Christmas with a delicious gift. Cooked from the heart, THERE Gastropub in Brookhaven offered dozens of meals to students who couldn’t go home for the holidays. On Saturday morning, owner Bill Brown and crews with THERE Gastropub set up an assembly line of grab-and-go meals, with most gone by 1 p.m.
The Brunswick News
CCGA’s athletic program to benefit from former professor’s estate
By Lauren McDonald
A former professor at College of Coastal Georgia recently announced that he has designated the college’s Athletics Department as a beneficiary of his estate. The gift, when realized, will make a long-lasting impact on the program and support the athletic and academic experiences of student-athletes, according to the college. George Dupuy is a former professor of management for the School of Business and Public Management. He worked at the college from 2009 to 2016. At CCGA, Dupuy has long been committed to students’ growth and dedicated to helping the college grow. He established a Charitable Remainder Unitrust (CRUT) using his own real estate to benefit the college. His gift will result in a major six-figure contribution.
Albany Herald
Georgia ag leadership Class of ’19-’21 graduates
By Jordan Powers CAES News
Twenty-five professionals representing agriculture, forestry and allied sectors graduated from the Advancing Georgia’s Leaders in Agriculture and Forestry Class of 2019-21 recently. The joint program between the University of Georgia’s College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences and Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources aims to educate, empower and connect today’s professionals in agriculture, forestry, natural resources and allied sectors to be dynamic industry leaders.
WTVM
Columbus State University basketball player dies in car crash
By Jessie Gibson
A Columbus State University men’s basketball player has died in a car crash. According to CSU Athletics, Anthony Moore – a Phenix City native – died in a car crash on Christmas Eve.
The Brunswick News
CCGA alum earns NASA research grant
By Lauren McDonald
An alumna of College of Coastal Georgia will soon embark on NASA-funded research focused on exploring how to detect extraterrestrial life through a DNA sequencing tool. Madeline Garner graduated from CCGA in 2020 and took a gap year before enrolling at Montana State University as a graduate student. She’s now in the molecular biosciences program, through which she’s able to rotate between lab programs like physics, math, engineering, biology and chemistry. …Garner has been interested in these kinds of interdisciplinary studies since she was an undergraduate student at CCGA studying biology, chemistry and environmental science, among others.
Marietta Daily Journal
KSU Dance alumni named to Top 25 to Watch list
Over its 16 years of existence, Kennesaw State University’s Department of Dance has seen its national reputation grow. That trend accelerated as Dance Magazine named two KSU Dance alumni to its annual Top 25 to Watch list. The magazine identifies dancers, choreographers and companies “on the verge of breaking through” and who are viewed as the future of the dance industry, according to the publication. The honor for recent KSU graduates Simone Stevens and Darvensky Louis is remarkable, said KSU Department of Dance chair Marsha Barsky.
Gwinnett Daily Post
Gwinnett Entrepreneur Center ready to open doors in January
From staff reports
The new year will bring a new effort to help entrepreneurs who are starting up small businesses in Gwinnett County. County officials recently cut the ribbon for the Gwinnett Entrepreneur Center near the Lawrenceville Square, the last step in a long preparation to open the center in January. The center is a county-sponsored effort, in partnership with Georgia Gwinnett College, to offers assistance to entrepreneurs and help small business startups get off the ground. …An alumnus of Georgia Gwinnett College is part of the inaugural class of members at the center. The facility’s location north of the Lawrenceville Square also puts it just off the new “college corridor” that opened in Lawrenceville earlier this year to connect downtown Lawrenceville with GGC’s campus. “This is going to be one of the most viable assets we have in Gwinnett County,” GGC President Jann L. Joseph said. “This connection to this area will only enhance GGC. We want to expand our relationships with the county, the city of Lawrenceville and with our entrepreneurs. This center allows us to have endless possibilities to help entrepreneurs achieve their goals.”
BIZ News Post
Inhaled CBD shrinks glioblastoma’s size in an animal model
BNP News Team
Inhaled CBD shrinks the size of the highly aggressive, lethal brain tumor glioblastoma in an animal model by reducing the essential support of its microenvironment, researchers report. “We saw a significant reduction in the size of the tumor and its microenvironment was different,” Dr. Babak Baban, immunologist and associate dean for research at the Dental College of Georgia at Augusta University says, after only seven days of treatment. Researchers at DCG and the Medical College of Georgia say that the inhaler approach not only helped ensure the compound found in cannabis reached the brain, but that the method of delivery could, much like asthma inhalers, eventually be easily used by patients. It was the first study to use CBD in an animal model of glioblastoma, they report in the journal Cannabis and Cannabinoid Research.
The Epoch Times
Judge Says College Can’t Merely Pay $1 in Damages for Violating Student’s Right to Share Faith
By Mark Tapscott
Georgia Gwinnett College can’t simply pay $1 each in damages for violating two students’ constitutional rights to express their religious faith on campus without prior permission from administrators, according to a federal judge. U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia Judge Eleanor Ross rejected the college’s request that it be allowed to pay the $2 to former students Joseph Bradford and Chike Uzuegbunam. Approval of the payment would have ended the case after more than five years of litigation that included a U.S. Supreme Court ruling in the students’ favor. Ross also ruled that the students can seek an arbitrated settlement of their damages claim if they choose to do so, thus clearing the way for the college being forced to make a more substantial payment in compensation for violating constitutional rights.
Statesboro Herald
GS study: Area economy continues rebound
Georgia Southern University’s latest Economic Monitor, which reflects Q3 2021, reports that the Savannah metro area economy continued to rebound strongly for the fourth consecutive quarter.
Other News:
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Map: Coronavirus deaths and cases in Georgia (updated Dec. 27)
An updated count of coronavirus deaths and cases reported across the state
CONFIRMED CASES: 1,362,530
CONFIRMED DEATHS: 26,277 | 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.
MSN
COVID-19 patients only need to isolate for five days as long as symptoms are gone, CDC says
Nicole Wetsman
People who test positive for COVID-19 only need to isolate for five days as long as their symptoms have stopped, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Monday. The change to isolation guidelines from 10 days to five is based on data showing people with COVID-19 are most likely to be contagious to others during the few days before and after they start showing symptoms, the agency said in a statement.
The Augusta Chronicle
Augusta hospitals say Omicron likely here but causing few problems so far
Tom Corwin
The Omicron surge blazing across the rest of the United States has not yet torched Georgia or Augusta, although it is likely here, Augusta doctors said. Even with that possibility, most vaccinated people can still keep holiday plans by using some precautions and common sense, they said. The Omicron variant took a dramatic jump in one week, going from 12.6% of all viruses sequenced nationally to 73.2%, replacing Delta as the dominant strain, according to tracking data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.