Savannah CEO
Regents Honor University System of Georgia Scholars During Academic Recognition Day
The Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia (USG) today honored students from each of the system’s 26 public colleges and universities during its annual Academic Recognition Day. Each student best represents the system’s highest scholastic ideals, as selected by their individual institutions. These students have a high GPA, strive for excellence and have the ability to share knowledge in various areas of expertise. Academic Recognition Day began 34 years ago as a celebration of Georgia students’ academic achievement. The honorees receive a resolution from the Georgia House of Representatives, along with a letter of commendation from USG Acting Chancellor Teresa MacCartney. The 2022 honorees are as follows:
Marietta Daily Journal
Kennesaw State establishes doctoral degree program in computer science
The Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia approved Tuesday a new doctoral degree in Kennesaw State’s College of Computing and Software Engineering. The new Ph.D. in Computer Science is an innovative program that blends the highest level of theoretical foundations with the practice of computer science. The program will focus on computer theory, computing problems and solutions, and the design of computer systems and user interfaces. The program will build on established practices that enable students to work on real-world research problems and gain valuable work experience.
The Chattanoogan
Dalton State Names Newest Endowed Faculty Chair For James & Sis Brown
Dalton State College’s newest endowed faculty chair will honor two entrepreneurs and philanthropic leaders in Dalton. “The naming of an endowed faculty chair is one of the highest honors a college can bestow,” said Dr. Margaret Venable, president of Dalton State. “We approached the University System of Georgia’s Board of Regents last fall to seek approval for the James and Sis Brown Chair, and they shared our belief the Browns were deserving of this kind of recognition. We are so grateful for the Browns’ decades of commitment to Dalton State and to education throughout our community.” …Both Browns served multiple terms as trustees and in leadership positions on the Dalton State Foundation board.
Marietta Daily Journal
Virtuoso violinist passes along artistic and practical skills to Kennesaw State students
In 1981, a little girl in the Canadian city of Calgary was at home watching “Sesame Street” when she heard a sound that enchanted her. It was the great violinist Itzhak Perlman playing on screen. “I remember watching my parents’ big old TV, and I heard the most beautiful sound. I mean, I heard this sound, and I became obsessed,” said Helen Kim, now a professor of music at Kennesaw State University. …When she understood that her daughter wanted to learn violin, Kim’s mother started her in lessons. She quickly revealed herself to be a prodigy, and by age 6, Kim performed with the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra. At 14, she studied under Perlman’s teacher, Dorothy DeLay, at the famed Juilliard School in New York. From there, Kim embarked on a professional career, earning international acclaim as a performer while also developing a reputation as an outstanding teacher. Kim began working as an adjunct instructor at KSU in 2005 while a member of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. The next year, a tenure track position for an assistant professor opened, and she earned the job. Since then, Kim has watched the music department at KSU grow from the small space it occupied in 2005 into the Bobbie Bailey School of Music with the state-of-the-art Bailey Performance Center and space in the Wilson Annex.
Independent
Padraig Byrne
WEXFORD County Council is in the process of concluding a deal to acquire the old Adoration Convent from the Diocese of Ferns, for the purpose of providing accommodation for students of Georgia Southern University. The local authority is taking on the role of facilitator in the deal, which will see them purchase the convent and carry out all the necessary renovation works, before recouping the money by leasing the property back to the US University over a 10 to 15 year period. The project is likely to cost up to €4 million to complete.
WJCL
Sneak Peek of the new Armstrong Hall of Champions
Celebrating 50 years of Pirate athletics in Savannah
Frank Sulkowski
Anchor/Reporter
It’s going to be a special Friday on Savannah’s Southside. Georgia Southern University set to celebrate the athletic successes of Armstrong State University with the brand new Hall of Champions on Georgia Southern’s Armstrong Campus. 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.
The Red & Black
Career fair sparks job interest among UGA students
Erin Diehl
On Feb. 2, the Classic Center hosted recent alumni and employers from 12-5 p.m. Job seekers had the opportunity to build relations with recruiters for internships and full-time positions. Over 150 companies were in attendance, the group included a host of alumni looking to hire, who are adorned with a ribbon attached to their name tags. Also in attendance were companies such as AT&T, Aldi and large accounting firms. Whitney Prescott, who serves as the Associate Director of External Engagement and Communications at the University of Georgia Career Center, said a student’s major is becoming less of a focus for employers while prioritizing their skill set. Aside from strong communication, she recommends attendees have good leadership, critical thinking abilities, professionalism and teamwork.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Debate grows over Sonny Perdue as possible Georgia system chancellor
By Eric Stirgus
For many, the idea of former two-term Gov. Sonny Perdue becoming the chancellor of the University System of Georgia comes down to one question. Should someone without higher educational administrative experience lead a system of 26 colleges and universities? The state’s 19-member Board of Regents are hearing arguments on both sides as they prepare to interview Perdue for the job, possibly on Friday, several people with knowledge of the search process told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Regents guidelines require them not to discuss personnel matters, and members have been tight-lipped about the search process. No information about the search has been posted on the board’s chancellor search page since April.
Georgia Recorder
HBCU leaders decry waves of bomb threats as federal investigators probe origin
By: Ariana Figueroa
Hours before the Southern Poverty Law Center held a virtual panel Tuesday about recent bomb threats made to dozens of historically Black colleges, yet another bomb threat was reported — this one to Spelman College, a historically Black institution in Georgia. “This was a racist attack that aims to not only disrupt the start of Black History Month, but the perpetrators, we believe, wanted to send a message that even learning while Black is not safe from hate,” said Lecia Brooks, the chief of staff and culture for the SPLC. …Leaders from five historically Black colleges and universities and an official with the U.S. Department of Education discussed how coordination between the institutions and the federal government could help protect students, faculty and the communities around those campuses. Nearly 20 HBCUs received bomb threats in the past weeks, with more than a dozen on Feb. 1, the first day of Black History Month. …Republicans at the state and congressional level, including in Georgia, have introduced or passed legislation to ban the teachings of critical race theory, an academic subject in higher education that has been around since the 1970s that looks at how race and law intersect. It’s not a subject taught in public schools. … Those institutions that received bomb threats include: …Albany State University, Fort Valley State University and Spelman College in Georgia
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Opinion: Georgia anti-education bills favor myth over reality
Get Schooled with Maureen Downey
Academics: Proposals would codify lying to students about ‘difficult history’
In a guest column, two University of North Georgia professors cite the misinformation behind proposed new laws to limit what schools can teach about American history and how they can teach it. T. Jameson Brewer is an assistant professor of social foundations of education at the University of North Georgia. Brandon Haas is an associate professor of social foundations and leadership education at the University of North Georgia.
By T. Jameson Brewer and Brandon Haas
…The House and Senate bills here in Georgia do not mention critical race theory by name. But they are part of this growing ideological trend to manufacture and capitalize on outrage as it relates to what students are taught or not taught in schools — the front line, as it were, of the nation’s culture war.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
OPINION: When ‘Critical Race Theory’ is really critical race history
By Patricia Murphy
The question of which topics can and cannot be taught in Georgia classrooms was the subject of a state Senate hearing Monday afternoon. …Many of the same senators who found little common ground in the morning went on to the Senate Education Committee for a hearing on SB 377, the bill from state Sen. Bo Hatchett that prevents teaching “certain divisive concepts” at all levels of Georgia schools. The bill lists nine examples of the concepts that should not be taught, promoted, encouraged, or espoused, including the fact that one race is superior to another. Also verboten in the bill is teaching that a person is inherently racist based on their skin color, or that the United States and Georgia are racist. Most especially, students should not be taught that “an individual should feel discomfort, guilt, anguish, or any other form of psychological distress” because of their skin color.
The Conversation
Universities: The often overlooked player in determining healthy democracies
In Georgia, 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. (Zach J. Beavers), CC BY-SA
We’ve been hearing recently about the possibility that the United States — assumed to be a prime example of democracy — is in real peril of collapse. Coming into 2022, we find ourselves in the midst of a worldwide democratic recession. …
Democracy in danger
If we look at the United States as an example, the warning signs are clearly present and add to a growing body of evidence that the country’s democracy is in danger. In a new twist on the McCarthyist Cold War era — when there was little tolerance for dissent, suspected communist ties and many academics were forced to sign loyalty oaths, interrogated and even terminated — the Brookings Institute reports that at least 29 states have or plan on passing legislation banning entire areas of study, like critical race theory.
Some legislatures, like Oklahoma are pushing even further to eliminate discussions of gender, implicit bias and intersectionality. To add to that, Georgia has recently eliminated tenure, none of which bodes well for the once shining example of democracy. You may be wondering how eliminating tenure relates to democracy. It’s an earned permanent appointment and is required to help ensure that the principles and protections that fall under academic freedom are not an empty promise. Without tenure an academic could be silenced by threat of termination. But yes, academics can still be fired for just cause.
Other News:
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Map: Coronavirus deaths and cases in Georgia (updated Feb. 8)
An updated count of coronavirus deaths and cases reported across the state
CONFIRMED CASES: 1,880,211
CONFIRMED DEATHS: 28,191 | 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:
Atlanta Business Chronicle
Report: US college completion rates rise to 62.2% in 2021
By Hilary Burns – Editor, The National Observer Higher Education,
New research shows that six-year college completion rates increased in 2021 to 62.2%. The National Student Clearinghouse Research Center found that the national six-year completion rate for students who started college in 2015 increased 1.2 percentage points over the class that started in 2014. This is the third consecutive year in which national completion rates were higher than 60%. “Students who started college six years ago have been completing degrees and certificates at higher rates than in recent years,” said Doug Shapiro, the Clearinghouse Research Center’s executive director. “This broad measure of performance for higher education as a nationwide system, including transfers among two- and four-year schools of all kinds, shows long-term improvements for students and colleges alike, gains that took hold mostly in the pre-pandemic period.”
Diverse Issues in Higher Education
College Scorecard Updates Include College Costs, Grad Rates, Post-College Earnings
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Rebecca Kelliher
This week, the U.S. Department of Education (ED) released updates to the College Scorecard to make this interactive web tool more helpful for students and families considering colleges. The revisions will allow individuals to easily compare colleges across costs, graduation rates, and post-college earnings. College Scorecard changes also include an annual refresh of the cumulative loan debt of student borrowers at the institution-level as well as by field of study within each institution. The tool additionally features federal student loan repayment rates at the institution.
Inside Higher Ed
States Warm to FAFSA Requirements
At least six states are considering legislation that would require high school seniors to fill out the federal financial aid form or sign a waiver opting out. Lawmakers say the policies would boost college enrollments and affordability.
By Emma Whitford
Several years after Louisiana became the first state to require public high school students to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid before they graduate, a dozen other states have implemented or are considering similar measures. Legislators in Florida, Hawaii, Indiana, Nebraska, New York and South Carolina are this session looking at potential policies that would require public high school students to complete the federal aid application or deliberately opt out of the mandate. Advocates of such policies believe they help show students that college can be affordable and that the barriers to access higher education might not be as formidable as they thought. Lawmakers see FAFSA mandates as “actionable, low-hanging fruit,” said Sunny Deye, program director for postsecondary education at the National Conference of State Legislatures.
Diverse Issues in Higher Education
United Negro College Fund, Thurgood Marshall College Fund Respond to Bomb Threats Targeting HBCUs
Rebecca Kelliher
The United Negro College Fund (UNCF) and Thurgood Marshall College Fund (TMCF) issued a joint statement in response to the recent bomb threats targeting historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs). …Lomax and Williams said that they are “pleased” that the federal government in their ongoing investigation has characterized these bomb threats as “threats of terror with the utmost seriousness” and as acts of domestic terrorism per a recent briefing by the Federal Bureau of Investigations and Department of Homeland Security.