The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
AJC On Campus: Costly USG fee may end; Navient reaches loan settlement
By Eric Stirgus
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp made several major moves last week that will impact college students statewide in the coming months. We outline some of these actions, such as a nagging fee he says is going away, along with some other important news for some student loan borrowers who may see refunds soon in this edition of AJC On Campus.
More money for Georgia colleges
Gov. Brian Kemp came forth with some post-holiday gifts for Georgia’s public colleges and universities. …Acting University System of Georgia Chancellor Teresa MacCartney, a former state budget director, said during Thursday’s Board of Regents meeting “it is the strongest budget I’ve seen in higher education. It will have a significant, significant impact on our students and our parents moving forward.” State lawmakers are scheduled to review the proposed budgets for Georgia’s higher education systems Wednesday afternoon. …Special fee likely to go away
Kemp also said the additional money in the budget means a costly, mandatory fee on University System students is going away.
Capitol Beat
Kemp unveils record state budget request
by Dave Williams
Gov. Brian Kemp is asking the General Assembly to approve a record $30.2 billion state budget heavy with new spending on schools, health care and public safety. The fiscal 2023 budget, which takes effect in July, takes advantage of a huge revenue surplus driven by higher-than-expected state tax collections. …Besides the teacher pay raise, the governor also is calling for a $5,000 increase for law enforcement personnel and other state employees. …The bond package also puts $37.1 million toward Phase I of the Science Hill modernization project on the campus of the University of Georgia in Athens, $28.5 million to build a Technical and Industrial Education building at Southern Regional Technical College in Moultrie and $28 million for the Gateway Building at Georgia Gwinnett College.
Middle Georgia CEO
Governor’s Funding Award Boosts MGA’s Dublin Campus Healthcare Program Expansion
Thanks to $900,000 in new funding the Georgia governor’s office has awarded, Middle Georgia State University (MGA) is substantially bolstering an expansion of the Dublin Campus as a healthcare degree program hub, a project that has been underway since late 2020. Gov. Brian Kemp announced the award on Jan. 10, 2022. MGA will use the funds to complete a chemistry lab and virtual health care technology modeled after that developed by Augusta University, home of the state’s public medical school, during the COVID pandemic. The funding essentially allows MGA to complete the full scope of the original Dublin Campus expansion plan, which includes adding a bachelor’s degree in nursing to the existing associate’s degree, as well as introducing to that location other healthcare programs specific to the needs of rural communities.
Albany Herald
Georgia Southwestern to receive GEER II health care funds
From staff reports
Georgia Southwestern State University will receive $866,723 from the Governors Emergency Education Relief Fund (GEER II), which will be used to cover the cost of all new state-of-the-art patient simulators and a complete biology lab renovation. …Kemp expressed that educators play a critical role in providing the work force needed to combat the health and economic effects of the pandemic. He designated $3.1 million to the education-to-work force pipeline for health care to “support the need for more nurses and additional training with a special emphasis on expanding educational opportunities to more areas of the state and providing hands-on learning experiences.” Georgia Southwestern is one of only three University System of Georgia institutions to receive funding in this area, including Fort Valley State and Middle Georgia State.
See also:
WFXL
Georgia Southwestern receives grant to support critical need for nurses
Valdosta Today
VSU professor recognized for excellence in teaching
A Valdosta State University professor recently earned the 2021 SECAC Award for Excellence in Teaching for work in visual arts.
Dr. Glenda Swan’s exemplary work in visual arts recently earned her the 2021 SECAC Award for Excellence in Teaching. SECAC, formerly the Southeastern College Art Conference, is a nonprofit organization that promotes the study and practice of the visual arts in higher education on a national basis. Its Award for Excellence in Teaching annually recognizes an outstanding teacher who demonstrates exceptional command of his or her discipline through the ability to teach effectively, impart knowledge, and inspire students. Swan began teaching two decades ago and joined the Valdosta State University Department of Art & Design faculty in Fall 2013. She currently holds the rank of associate professor.
Marietta Daily Journal
Kennesaw State students share with Board of Regents how campus services have helped them succeed
Undergraduate students from Kennesaw State University on Jan. 13 shared with the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia the opportunities and support two university programs have provided to assist in overcoming obstacles relating to substance abuse, food insecurity and homelessness. The presentation was part of the Board of Regents Campus Spotlight, an initiative established in 2017 to highlight the faculty, students and academic programs of the 26 institutions in the University System of Georgia. KSU’s students — senior psychology major Ziggy Kolker, freshman media and entertainment major Artis Jordan Obote and junior psychology and art major Frankie Berryman — shared how the Campus Awareness, Resource & Empowerment Services and Center for Young Adult Addiction Recovery programs have contributed to their success.
Albany Herald
Area students earn undergrad degrees at Georgia Southwestern
From staff reports
The following area residents were among nearly 500 students who earned an undergraduate or graduate degree from Georgia Southwestern State University during the fall 2021 Commencement Ceremony held at the university’s Convocation Hall of the Student Success Center.
The Red & Black
UGA hosts welcome event for new spring admit students
Megan Fitzgerald
To welcome the Spring 2022 new admit students, the University of Georgia’s Division of Student Affairs hosted a “Spring into UGA” event on Thursday. The new spring students were invited to the event at Memorial Hall. Student attendees received a variety of UGA merch, food and took photos with Hairy Dawg. Anna Keys, a student ambassador for UGA’s Department of Student Transitions said they have been emphasizing new spring admins to make them feel welcome to UGA.
Albany Herald
Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College begins academic collaboration with University of Tennessee
From staff reports
Agricultural Education and Agricultural Communication bachelor’s degree graduates of Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College can get a head start on their master’s degree through a new agreement between ABAC and the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. “This agreement makes it possible for ABAC Agricultural Education and Communication majors to receive six hours of graduate credit through the completion of selected courses while attending ABAC and a proficiency exam upon initial admission to UT,” Andrew Thoron, associate professor and department head for Agricultural Education and Communication at ABAC, said. Thoron said the Stallion-Volunteer Accelerated Agreement between the two institutions represents a collaboration between UT’s Department of Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communications and ABAC’s Department of Agricultural Education and Communication, college officials said in a statement.
WRDW
Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University’s simulation center makes global impact
By Maria Sellers
The Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University has been using simulation centers to train their medical students for a few years now, but in recent months they’ve been expanding their reach to doctors living in other parts of the world. In addition to training America’s future doctors at AU’s simulation center, they have also used it to train current doctors in Ghana, Pakistan, and Nigeria. They do it virtually through monitors found in the lab. Dr. Vikas Kumar, an Associate Professor of Anesthesia and Critical Care Medicine, said the idea to do this virtually was brought on by COVID-19. The class teaches students of all types both at AU ranging from first year medical students up to fellows, and doctors abroad about crisis and ventilator management for cases like sepsis, and respiratory failure.
13WMAZ
Nitrogen fertilizer shortage leads some Central Georgia farmers to get creative
Some countries aren’t planning as many exports to the U.S. this year.
Author: Suzanne Lawler (WMAZ)
What’s happening across the globe is causing frustrations for farmers in Central Georgia. The University of Georgia put out a report saying Russia and China won’t be exporting as much nitrogen this year, keeping it for farmers in their own countries.
Discover Magazine
We Still Don’t Know What’s Killing the Birds
Is it a disease? A toxin? A parasite? Ecologists and wildlife health experts are working to solve the mystery of why so many songbirds in the Eastern and Midwestern U.S. are sick and dying.
By Brianna Barbu
When Brian Evans, a bird ecologist at the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center in Washington D.C., started hearing stories about young birds with crusted-over eyes behaving strangely, he says didn’t think much of it. He sees eye infections pretty often in backyard birds, and “frankly fledglings acting weird isn’t that strange either. They’re fledglings. …Then, over the course of a single day in mid-May, two different neighbors and one of his colleagues showed him the sick birds they’d found — all with crusty eyes and neurological symptoms like seizures, loss of balance and lethargy. He reached out to City Wildlife, a local wildlife rehabilitation center in Washington, D.C, and was shocked to hear that the number of sick birds they’d seen had increased by more than 30 percent in a month. …
What We Know, and What We Don’t
Though over a dozen species have reportedly been affected by this mystery ailment, four — common grackles, blue jays, American robins, and European starlings — make up the majority of cases. The condition overwhelmingly affects young birds. Possibly because their immune systems are weaker, says Nicole Nemeth, a veterinary pathologist at Southeastern Cooperative Wildlife Disease Study at the University of Georgia, Athens.
WFXG
Local colleges hold joint MLK day remembrance celebration
By Jared Eggleston
Local leaders gathered at Augusta University’s Maxwell Theatre Friday to honor the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. From the city of Augusta Mayor Hardie Davis delivered remarks, with other city leaders in the audience like Commissioner Bobby Williams. “It’s great for the community that they’ve taken it upon themselves to lead us in this endeavor,” Commissioner Williams said. The keynote speaker was Dr. Roscoe Williams, the first African American to hold a professional position at Augusta University, which was known as Augusta College at the time. He recounted the time he himself spent with king.
WSAV
Georgia Southern announces 2022 MLK Jr. commemorative events’ speakers
by: Steven Poeling
Georgia Southern University announced the names of the speakers for the school’s upcoming 2022 Martin Luther King (MLK) Jr. Celebration Dinners. Georgia Southern plans to host the events on January 25 in Statesboro and January 26 on the Armstrong Campus in Savannah. The school announced Rev. Francys Johnson, J.D., (‘01) and Amir-Jamal Touré, J.D., will serve as speakers.
CBS46
MLK DAY: Here is a list of events happening across metro Atlanta
Iyani Hughes
The annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Day (“MLK Day”) is around the corner and many organizations and businesses around the metro-Atlanta area are doing what they can to celebrate and serve.
…Book Talk
“Reclaiming the Great World House: The Global Vision of Martin Luther King Jr.” will be discussed at 6 p.m. Jan. 30. Join the volume editors, Dr. Vicki Crawford, director, Morehouse College Martin Luther King Jr. Collection and professor of Africana studies, and Dr. Lewis V. Baldwin, professor emeritus of religious studies, Vanderbilt University as they discuss themes from their book with chapter authors: Dr. Crystal de Gregory, research, MTSU Center for Historic Preservation; Dr. Hak Joon Lee, Lewis B. Smedes Professor of Christian Ethics, Fuller Theological Seminary, Dr. Larry Rivers, professor of history, State University of West Georgia
Athens Banner-Herald
Vince Dooley explains what embrace with Kirby Smart meant after UGA’s national title
Ryne Dennis
In the middle of the post-championship game madness Monday night, Georgia football coach Kirby Smart and Bulldog legend Vince Dooley embraced with tears in their eyes. It had been 41 years since Dooley was carried to midfield in the New Orleans Superdome when the 1980 Bulldogs captured the university’s last national title. The wait felt like an eternity. Dooley, whom Sanford Stadium’s field is named for, needed just one word to describe what the moment with Smart meant to him in Lucas Oil Stadium: “Pride.” …Now, about that emotional embrace that surely had Bulldog fans young and old grabbing a tissue, the former coach said he felt a flurry of memories come back to him. “It was very special to be able to be on the field and embrace Kirby. It reminded me as a young coach the feeling of such a significant win,” Dooley said. “I was really happy for Kirby, the team, and the staff. But I am also so happy for the long suffering Bulldog fans and man did they celebrate!!”
Athens Banner-Herald
Local soldier flies the UGA flag in Kuwait after Georgia’s national championship win
Wayne Ford
When the University of Georgia Bulldogs won the national championship on Jan. 10, a flag with the big “G” emblem was flown in celebration in the faraway country of Kuwait. U.S. Army Pfc. Trevor Mattox, a 2015 graduate of North Oconee High School, was deployed to Kuwait in December, and he took the flag with him in hopes the Dawgs would claim the title. Mattox, the son of Doug and Sherry Mattox of Watkinsville, kept up with the game’s action online and through texting his father. …Almost 20 years after his father watched UGA play in a bowl game in Kuwait, his son was able to hoist the G flag after a national championship victory.
Other News:
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Map: Coronavirus deaths and cases in Georgia (updated Jan. 14)
An updated count of coronavirus deaths and cases reported across the state
CONFIRMED CASES: 1,637,633
CONFIRMED DEATHS: 26,747 | 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
Colleges Receive Grants to Improve Students’ Job Outcomes
By Sara Weissman
A group of 15 colleges and universities was selected to receive $10 million in grants as part of an initiative by the Strada Education Network and the Taskforce on Higher Education and Opportunity, a group of campus leaders focused on pandemic recovery. Each institution will receive $250,000 to embark on a project to expand career services and support, incorporate career preparation into curricula, and improve job outcomes among students, according to an announcement last week.
Inside Higher Ed
California May Try Basic Income for College Students
By Scott Jaschik
California may soon experiment with giving $500 a month to low-income students in the California State University system, the Los Angeles Times reported. State Senator Dave Cortese is considering legislation that would create a pilot program at select California State University campuses issuing monthly stipends for one year to students whose family income is in the bottom 20 percent of earners in the state. Up to 14,000 students could be eligible. A three-campus plan would cost the state about $57 million, and a five-campus plan would cost about $84 million, according to Cortese.