Capitol Beat
State Senate budget writers OK fiscal 2023 state budget
by Dave Williams
Gov. Brian Kemp’s $30.2 billion fiscal 2023 state budget is another step closer to passage. The Georgia Senate Appropriations Committee approved the spending plan Wednesday, sending it to the Senate floor for action as soon as Friday. The budget raises state spending for the fiscal year starting July 1 by 10.8% over the budget the General Assembly adopted last spring. It annualizes $5,000 raises most state employees received in the fiscal 2022 mid-year budget Kemp signed last week and gives teachers a $2,000 raise to go with the $3,000 increase they received three years ago. …The committee also supported a House proposal to eliminate the institutional fee on University System of Georgia students a cash-strapped Board of Regents approved during the pandemic.
WALB
ABAC President retires after 16 years
By Jim Wallace
After 16 years, Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College (ABAC) President Dr. David Bridges has decided to retire. WALB’s Jim Wallace spoke to Dr. Bridges on Monday. “Dr. Bridges, the University System has seen a lot of changes over the years. And I think ABAC has been one of the real success stories in the University System,” said Wallace. “Yes, there are very few things that have remained constant over that time. But I challenged my folks when we first started 16 years ago, let’s make the changes that we need to make to be successful in the future. But let’s don’t change the things that make ABAC, ABAC. So that’s been our principal as we made the changes that we made,” Dr. Bridges.
Tifton Gazette
ABAC hosts Bridges retirement event
ABAC President David Bridges is stepping down after 17 years.
A public retirement ceremony has been scheduled for Dr. David Bridges as he prepares to step down from being president of Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College. The “drop-in” event is scheduled 5-7 p.m., April 7, with a program slated at 6:15 p.m., in the atrium of the Georgia Museum of Agriculture, 1392 Whiddon Mill Road, college officials said in a statement. People can RSVP at link.abac.edu/bridges_retirement. ABAC Foundation is sponsoring the event. People who cannot go but would like to share best wishes may send a card to: President David Bridges, 2802 Moore Highway, ABAC 1, Tifton, Georgia 31793. …Bridges has served as ABAC president from 2006-22.
Middle Georgia CEO
Jeffrey Stepakoff of the Georgia Film Academy Discusses the Evolution of the Education Initiative
Jeffrey Stepakoff is the Executive Director of the Georgia Film Academy. He talks about how the Academy has evolved and how they are helping numerous Georgians have promising careers in the film industry.
Athens CEO
Tour Helps UGA Employees Better Understand the University’s Land-Grant Mission
Emilie Gille
In February, a group of UGA Public Service and Outreach staff members traveled to Hart, about 40 miles northeast of Athens, to see firsthand how the university carries out its mission to serve the state. The PSO in Action day trip, sponsored by the Office of the Vice President for Public Service and Outreach, was designed to help employees in the eight Public Service and Outreach units better understand the work their colleagues do across Georgia, in nearly every community. …As an Archway Partnership community, Hart County has ready access to university resources through a UGA faculty member living in the area. Called an Archway Professional, the faculty member connects Hart County to experts at UGA who can help the community address self-identified challenges.
Griffin Daily News
GSC hosts in-person Teaching Matters conference
By Karolina Philmon Gordon State Marketing Manager
Gordon State College hosted the 20th anniversary of its annual Teaching Matters conference on Thursday, March 10, and Friday, March 11, at the Gordon State College Instructional Complex building. Teaching Matters is an interdisciplinary teaching and learning Higher Ed conference hosted by GSC at the Barnesville campus. Individual presentations, panel sessions, workshops and posters focus on innovative and creative pedagogical methods, issues surrounding teaching and learning and educational theories.
Food Service Director
School district to give students a taste of college dining with weeklong event
Thomas County Schools will serve different recipes submitted by chefs at local colleges.
By Benita Gingerella
Thomas County Schools in Thomasville, Ga., is hosting a “Taste of College” event next month, allowing students at the district to sample dishes served in the dining halls at five different colleges in the state. During the last week in April, school nutrition professionals at Thomas County will prepare recipes submitted by chefs at Georgia State University, Georgia Southern University, Georgia Tech, Abraham Baldwin Agriculture College and the University of Georgia. The featured recipes are ones that are popular with students on campus, such as chicken tikka masala, pork loin with red onion confit and jambalaya.
See also:
Patch
G. Southern Chef To Participate In “Taste Of College” Series
Marietta Daily Journal
ACT, SAT requirements waived at KSU and most GA colleges
By Zach Edmondson
High school seniors and recent high school graduates applying to most public universities in Georgia this year, including Kennesaw State, will not have to submit ACT or SAT scores. The University System of Georgia said this week that despite its previously announced plans to reinstate test score requirements in the spring of 2022, test scores will be temporarily waived this fall at 23 of 26 public universities. Last August, the system waived test score requirements for spring, summer and fall 2021 admission to its 26 campuses. That waiver was supposed to last only one year, but has been extended because there is still an unusually high number of incomplete applications, something the system attributed to the coronavirus and social-distancing protocols that made administration of college-entrance tests difficult.
See also:
Americus Times-Recorder
GSW waives application fee and SAT/ACT scores for incoming undergraduates
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Opinion: Will waiving SAT, ACT scores fill seats at Georgia colleges?
The Tifton Gazette
The man who originated the idea for the ABAC Athletics Hall of Fame will join the ranks of former players, coaches, and supporters on April 1 when Michael D. Chason is inducted into the Class of 2022 of the Athletics Hall of Fame at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College. ABAC Athletics Director Alan Kramer said the 2022 class also includes the 2002 women’s state championship basketball team, tennis player German Dalmagro, softball player Lee Davis Watson, soccer standout Nikita Morris, tennis player, coach, and contributor Margaret Treadway, contributor and volunteer assistant softball coach James “Vic” Vickers, contributor and volunteer assistant softball coach Jimmy Spurlin and three-sport letterman Clayt Hurst. …“It was during the 100th birthday year of ABAC in 2008, and I was looking for a way to honor the long list of athletes, coaches, and supporters of ABAC athletics,” Chason said. “We recognized that first group at an ABAC basketball game.
WGAU Radio
UGA’s Shepherd wins SEC faculty award
Marshall Shepherd is noted climatologist
By UGA Today
J. Marshall Shepherd, the Georgia Athletic Association Distinguished Professor of Geography and Atmospheric Sciences in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences, has been named winner of the 2022 SEC Faculty Achievement Award for the University of Georgia, the SEC announced on Wednesday. A leading international weather-climate expert, Shepherd is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering and American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the only person in UGA history to be elected to all three. His research focuses primarily on hydrometeorological extremes, urban climate, and the intersections of atmospheric sciences with society. His TED talks have been viewed nearly 3 million times; he has nearly 100 peer-reviewed publications; and he has nearly $30 million in grants and awards. Shepherd hosts The Weather Channel’s award-winning “Weather Geeks” podcast, and he routinely appears on CBS’ “Face The Nation,” PBS’ “NOVA,” NBC’s “Today,” CNN and Fox News, among others.
Athens CEO
Medical Partnership to Launch Clarke Middle Health Center
The Augusta University/University of Georgia Medical Partnership has invested in the Athens community through the Mobile/Athens Free Clinic since its founding in 2017. Now, the Medical Partnership is looking to expand its reach through a new school-based health center at Clarke Middle School. “The mobile clinic has helped increase access to health care for many CCSD students,” said Amy Roark, Clarke County School District’s director of nursing. “We are excited to launch this existing partnership to a new level of providing consistent, daily access to health and wellness services.” School-based health centers are an innovative way to allow health care access to students, family and staff. Patients at the centers can receive a variety of health care services, from primary care to behavioral wellness, while remaining on school property.
Wide Open Eats
Georgia Peaches May Be Gone Forever in Less Than 80 Years
Lydia Greene
From peach pie to peach wine, Georgia is the place to go for these sweet, summery fruits. The Peach State is beloved for its bountiful peach season that happens every summer, when fresh Georgia peaches are harvested in abundance to be enjoyed on their own, made into cobblers, and so much more. However, scientists predict that we won’t be able to enjoy the delicious peaches in Georgia for much longer if climate change continues at its current rate. … “…In regards to how long the peaches have left, Pam Knox, an agricultural climatologist at the University of Georgia says, “We’re talking probably the second half of this century. Certainly by 2100 it could be a possibility.”
Global Atlanta
UGA Experts Explore Underlying Causes and Ongoing Effects of Ukraine War
Trevor Williams
A webinar at the University of Georgia March 17 showcased its academics’ expertise across a wide range of disciplines while shedding light on under-explored spillover of the war in Ukraine. Headlined by the Dean Rusk International Law Center at the UGA law school, the cross-disciplinary forum included seven-minute speaking slots for professors in seemingly unrelated subjects whose presentations formed a mosaic of a conflict already exacting a gruesome human toll. During the “Understanding Ukraine” forum, assistant history professor Joseph Kellner gave a look at Russia’s professed justifications and Ukrainian national identity, while international affairs professor Jeffrey Berejikian explored how the global community can maintain pressure on Vladimir Putin while avoiding escalation and the threat of nuclear war.
Savannah CEO
Georgia Southern Enlisted to Help Fight COVID-19 in Georgia’s Confinement Facilities
Georgia Southern University has established the Institute for Health Logistics & Analytics to manage a new $7.2 million contract and partner with the Georgia Department of Public Health to better fight COVID-19 in the state’s jails, prisons and other confinement facilities. The project has two initial purposes: to improve detection and mitigation of COVID-19 to reduce the risk of transmission among confinement facility staff and residents, and to reimburse Georgia confinement facilities for costs they have incurred from approved COVID-19 mitigation activities they have already implemented.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
As COVID-19 testing dwindles, scientists look at sewage for answers
By Zachary Hansen
Everyone poops — including people with COVID-19. Since the onset of the pandemic, scientists have analyzed wastewater to measure the amount of coronavirus-laced genetic material shed from infected residents. They’re able to use that data to identify potential outbreaks, often days before residents begin to feel sick and get tested. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced last month a nationwide effort to gather and test more wastewater samples. Georgia health officials told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution they’re ramping up sewage sampling across the state and recruiting water treatment plants to participate. …Emory, Georgia Tech and the University of Georgia have conducted and are continuing some of their own COVID-19 tracking studies using wastewater. Erin Lipp, a professor of environmental health science at UGA, has maintained a database tracking trends from Athens-Clarke County’s wastewater since June 2020. Her data consistently provides an early warning of rising infections days before lab test results begin to rise. …She said it’s important to invest in sewage data analysis, because the number of people seeking lab tests and reporting their positive results has begun to drop. Home tests are not tracked, so only the results from tests offered in medical offices or mass testing sites are recorded. Several mass testing sites around Georgia have closed following the drop in omicron cases.
The George-Anne
Professors weigh in on the controversy surrounding the man at the helm of our university system
Raquel Upson, Correspondent
Sonny Perdue was announced the Chancellor of the University System of Georgia at the start of March, giving professors across the state something to talk about. …Perdue’s new position has been a controversial, as the American Association for University Professors condemned the “secret search” in February having concerns that politics may play a role in his decision-making. “I would like to see a little more transparency in some of the decisions that USG makes, meaning more consultation, if at all possible, with faculty on the ground,” said Joshua Kennedy, an assistant professor of the Department of Political Science & International Studies. Kennedy stated that he ultimately just wants to see Georgia Southern succeed, even though the political leadership at the Board of Regents is hard to visualize as of right now. Gregory Brock, a professor of the Department of Economics, does have a few concerns regarding Perdue. Brock admitted that he doesn’t believe Perdue was a good governor and that he wouldn’t like to see him in the Chancellor position for long. …Charles Champ, a professor of the Department of Mathematical Sciences said he liked Perdue as governor and was fond of his conservative viewpoints. He understands why some may have concerns, being that this is Perdue’s first position in higher education, but ultimately thinks he’ll do well because of how he’s done in previous professions.
Other News:
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Coronavirus deaths and cases in Georgia (updated March 23)
An updated count of coronavirus deaths and cases reported across the state
CONFIRMED CASES: 1,923,701
CONFIRMED DEATHS: 30,812 | 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:
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Georgia’s top school accreditation agency to change after Cobb review
By Cassidy Alexander
Weeks after reversing a critical review of the Cobb County School District, the head of the state’s largest accrediting agency says it’s changing the way it evaluates schools. But it may not be enough to appease Republican lawmakers. In the wake of the review of the state’s second-largest school district last fall, they’ve advanced legislation in the Senate that changes accreditation criteria for Georgia’s K-12 schools. The bill now awaits a vote in the House. …Georgia would be the first state to reject the regional accreditation system in favor of a state system if the bill becomes law, Elgart said. …With Tippins’ proposed system focusing on student achievement, low-performing schools would be at a higher risk of losing accreditation, Elgart said. That, in turn, could make students ineligible for the state’s HOPE scholarship, which requires they graduate from accredited high schools to get tuition help.
Inside Higher Ed
The California State University system will completely eliminate use of the tests at all 23 of its campuses.
By Scott Jaschik
The California State University Board of Trustees voted unanimously Wednesday to no longer use standardized SAT and ACT tests in undergraduate admissions. That means that even if an applicant submits scores for admission to one of the system’s 23 campuses, Cal State admissions counselors won’t look at them. The system’s campuses enroll a total of 477,000 students.
The Chronicle of Higher Education
What’s in a Name? An Enrollment Increase, When a College Becomes a University
By Abbi Ross
In a 15-year period starting in 2001, more than 120 four-year colleges made a small but significant switch: They dropped “college” from their name and added “university.” And in many cases, that change has paid off, according to a paper published online Tuesday by the journal Economics of Education Review. Riley K. Acton, an assistant professor of economics at Miami University of Ohio, set out to understand the significance that changing the name of an institution can have, and found that many colleges saw a near-immediate bump in enrollment when they transitioned to “university.” According to Acton’s paper, the number of first-time students increases by an average of 5.2 percent in the first five years following the name change, and by 7.2 percent six or more years after. The total number of undergraduate full-time-equivalent students also increases, by 3.1 percent and 5.4 percent, respectively, in the same time frames. …The shift from “college” to “university” typically signals an increased focus on graduate education, while people generally think of colleges as concentrating on undergraduate studies. …Colleges also tend to be smaller institutions, enrolling an average of 2,520 students, compared with 10,145 at universities, according to the paper. The decision to add “university” to an institution’s name often comes as it commits to invest in more in programs, especially those offering graduate degrees, Acton said. It also offers a chance for the institution to highlight its academic excellence and standing.
The Chronicle of Higher Education
Higher Ed Added More Than 9,000 Master’s-Degree Programs in Less Than a Decade
By Audrey Williams June
Some 24.1 million people age 25 and older had master’s degrees in 2021. That’s a 51-percent increase from 2011, when 16 million people held the credential. The increase makes sense when you consider that, for several years, roughly 40 percent of college freshmen in the American Freshman: National Norms survey said they planned to earn a master’s degree. Even though the value of a master’s-level education — especially in certain fields — has faced heightened scrutiny, demand for the degree hasn’t abated, so much so that it’s long been referred to as the new bachelor’s degree. Since 2011-12, colleges and universities have added more than 9,000 master’s-degree programs, data from the U.S. Department of Education show.