Albany Herald
Albany State student selected as White House HBCU Scholar
By Carlton Fletcher
The White House Initiative on Advancing Educational Equity, Excellence and Economic Opportunity through Historically Black Colleges and Universities recently named its 2022 HBCU Scholars. Albany State University sophomore Health and Human Performance major Pariyah E. Evans is among the 85 students selected for the 2022 HBCU Scholar Recognition program. …The purpose of the program is to recognize outstanding student leaders and further empower them with tools for excellence. Scholars are selected through a presidential recommendation and endorsement from faculty through a unique combination of academic achievements, campus leadership, civic engagement and entrepreneurial spirit.
Marietta Daily Journal
Kennesaw State grad student joins triple Owl alum at NASA for summer internship
A Kennesaw State University graduate student was selected from a nationwide pool of candidates to join a three-time Owls alum in working for NASA. Amber Fellows, a biology teacher at West Forsyth High School, began pursuing a master’s degree in information systems at KSU after eight years of teaching. She said she has loved teaching but felt it was time for a new challenge, especially as her 10-year-old son grows more independent.
WTVM
Proposed legislation by Senator Raphael Warnock could make Columbus as technology hub
By Katrice Nolan
Dr. Kimberly Shaw has taught physics for 20 years. Her most recent role at Columbus State University is also helping teachers give young students the highest level of exposure to science, technology, engineering and math, also known as STEM. “These are some of the foundational skills that many jobs have in our workforce, and those are becoming more necessary for a lot of jobs,” says Shaw. Jobs are needed in Columbus, which is why U.S. Senator Raphael Warnock is introducing legislation to help build stem programs, specifically Columbus State University.
Connect Savannah
IT’S GRAD SEASON: Savannah State University grad plans to pursue entrepreneurial dreams
By Chantel Britton
Originally from Stone Mountain, Tyler Holloway recently graduated from Savannah State University with her Master’s in Business Administration. A double Tiger, Holloway also completed her undergraduate at SSU receiving a bachelor’s degree in Marketing in Fall of 2020. Since completing her graduate degree, Holloway has big plans for the future. She is currently completing a 12-month Mary S. Peake fellowship, which helps equip recent graduates, veterans, and military spouses with leadership skills to help small and local businesses thrive. …Once she completes her fellowship next February, Holloway has plans to eventually start a few businesses of her own.
WJCL
Savannah State University prepares next generation of journalists through JMC Media Experience
Savannah State University’s Department of Journalism and Mass Communications hosted the Frank Callen Boys and Girls Club on Thursday as a part of the JMC Media Experience Program in Whiting Hall at Savannah State University. SSU’s JMC Media Experience purpose is to expose students to communications and media and to show students the career opportunities and paths that are available in media. Students had the opportunity to take a tour of the JMC Mass Communications facilities on Thursday.
Savannah Tribune
Savannah State University Honors Staff Member of the Year
Kimberly Pitts Earned 2022 Staff Support Council Award, Voted Among Peers
Of Savannah State University’s approximately 250 staff members, Helpdesk Coordinator Kimberly Pitts has been named Staff Member of the Year. Pitts works in the university’s Information Technology (IT) Services department and received the award during the annual Staff Appreciation Day event. The Staff Member of the Year receives a commemorative plaque, a one-year reserved parking permit, one complimentary meal in the campus dining hall, and a special stadium announcement at the homecoming football game. …A native of Savannah, Pitts began working at SSU in February of 2019, and is a double Tiger. She earned her Bachelor of Science degree in computer science technology and an Associate of Science degree in computer engineering technology from Savannah State College, Class of 1994.
Times-Georgian
UWG participates in Pell for Prisoners initiative
By Sam Gentry Special To The Times-Georgian
The University of West Georgia works to build connectivity and meaningful relationships in all areas of the communities it serves. Through a partnership with the U.S. Department of Education (DOE), UWG will now help people who are incarcerated receive Pell Grants, allowing them to continue their education and look toward a fresh start. Only 200 schools in the U.S. currently participate in the DOE’s Second Chance Pell Experiment. Kelley Christopher, senior lecturer in UWG’s Department of Civic Engagement and Public Service, led the efforts to ensure the university was chosen for the program.
Athens CEO
UGA x The Sparrow’s Nest: Helping the Athens Community
Katelyn Bickett
For over 20 years, The Sparrow’s Nest has been serving the Athens-Clarke community. A nonprofit located on Prince Avenue that assists the underserved community and those that struggle under the poverty level, The Sparrow’s Nest is a Christian ministry that provides social services, legal assistance, food programs, shower and laundry services, a clothing pantry, work programs and several classes that allow participants to grow through counseling. Executive director of The Sparrow’s Nest, Jamie Scott, is an Athens native who cares for his community. Inspired by his own personal struggles with poverty and addiction, Scott is now committed to ministering, educating and employing the underserved in Athens through The Sparrow’s Nest. “We’re grateful for the University of Georgia … [and] the multitude of ways they help us,” said Scott.
Diverse Issues in Higher Education
Open Access Online Course Launches for Higher Ed Faculty, Staff, Leaders
Rebecca Kelliher
On Monday, the Association of Public and Land-grant universities (APLU) and the Coalition of Urban Serving Universities (USU) launched an online, open access course for higher education faculty, staff, and leaders to learn principles of “institutional transformation” that can foster equitable student success. “What we are trying to do with this course is think through what student experience holistically looks like at a university. From the moment students first walk onto the campus, do they feel like they belong?” said Andréa Rodriguez, director at USU and APLU’s Office of Urban Initiatives and the staff lead for this project. …This new course draws from learnings in the case studies of three public urban universities: Florida International University (FIU), Georgia State University-Perimeter College (GSU), and Portland State University (PSU). Through a project called the Frontier Set, which the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation funded, the FIU, GSU, and PSU case studies looked at different kinds of institutional transformation over six years—and what worked as well as what didn’t during such shifts. …The GSU case study detailed lessons from Georgia State University merging with Georgia Perimeter College in 2016.
Albany Herald
PHOTOS: Albany State University Football Team Championship Ring Presentation
Photos by: Reginald Christian
On Monday June 13, Albany State University hosted the Championship Ring Presentation for their football team. The Golden Rams defeated Miles College to win the 2021 SIAC Football Championship.
The Tifton Gazette
Strickland, Walls earn top honors
Becky Taylor
ABAC pitcher Madison Strickland and head coach Jennifer Walls earned two of the top three Georgia Collegiate Athletic Association awards for 2022. Strickland is Pitcher of the Year and Walls earned Coach of the Year in the annual awards after the Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College Fillies won the regular season GCAA title with a 34-18 regular season. ABAC ultimately finished second in the GCAA playoffs, falling to Georgia Military College. Pitching and playing outfield, Strickland went an incredible 16-4 during the season. She had an ERA of 2.35, surrendering only 38 earned runs in 113 innings. She fanned 85 hitters. Player of the Year in the GCAA was Gordon State’s Cayla Bishop. Strickland earned first team All-Region honors, joining outfielders Elizabeth Branch and Caroline Pollock and catcher Karli Williams.
Sun Belt Sports
Georgia State’s Chivu Named to CoSIDA Academic All-America Team
Georgia State women’s tennis standout Eva Chivu has been named to the 2021-22 Academic All-America Women’s At-Large team selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA). Chivu, tabbed on the Academic All-America Third Team, is the first-ever Academic All-America selection for the Georgia State women’s tennis program. The graduating senior from Constanta, Romania, maintained a 4.0 grade point average while majoring in psychology.
Times-Georgian
UWG residence hall gets new mural from alumna
By Kennae Hunter
University of West Georgia Art Department alumna returns to put the knowledge she gained to work with a new mural in a residence hall on the west side of campus. Piper Heaton, a University of West Georgia alumna from Carrollton, was selected to paint a new mural in Center Pointe Suites, a dormitory on the University of West Georgia campus. “The mural was inspired by the idea of the college lifestyle. The mural depicts a dorm room space with educational books, takeout food, UWG swag, UWG events, electronics, and the iconic Wolfie plushie. There are so many more elements to the piece, but those are some to name a few,” Heaton said.
Newswires
AGC Georgia Announces Winners of Prestigious Build Georgia Awards
The Associated General Contractors of Georgia (AGC Georgia) is proud to recognize member construction firms for outstanding achievements in 2021. The prestigious Build Georgia Awards honor the talented individuals who make up the state’s thriving construction industry. To be recognized, construction firms submitted projects judged on criteria including safety, innovation, dedication and excellence in project management. The Awards are categorized into divisions such as project delivery method (design-bid-build, design/build, and construction management at risk) firm size, project size and new construction versus renovation and interior buildout. All projects were completed in Georgia in 2021.
General Contractor First Place Projects
-Georgia Tech Campus Services Warehouse Storage Consolidation; Atlanta
-University of West Georgia Production Control Room; Carrollton
General Contractors Merit Projects
-University of West Georgia Roy Richards Sr. Hall; Carrollton
Savannah Morning News
What does Savannah need to focus on? TEDxSavannah brings roster of speakers to spark discussion
Steven Alford
“Thank you for coming to my TED Talk” — It’s a viral phrase that has become synonymous with sharing something engaging, enlightening, or informative. It’s been nearly three years since Savannah has hosted its own TED Talks at a TEDx speaking engagement. But now, with life returning to somewhat normal, the event is returning as a range of speakers gear up to drop some knowledge. TEDxSavannah is coming Friday, June 24, to the Yamacraw Performing Arts Center, with this year’s 11th anniversary theme: STANDARD DEVIATION. …TEDxSavannah speakers will include …Jay Brandes, Ph.D., Professor, University of Georgia Department of Marine Sciences and Skidaway Institute of Oceanography; Maxine Bryant, Ph.D., Director of the Center for Africana Studies and the Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Center, Georgia Southern University; and more.
MSN
Here’s the age when Americans get the least amount of sleep
Adam Barnes
Story at a glance
Medical College of Georgia (MCG) investigators used data from a nationally representative sample of 11,279 participants age 6 and older, each of whom wore a device on their non-dominant wrist that measured movement and gauged sleep. The participants wore the device for 24 hours a day over a period of seven days, finding generally that nighttime sleep declines with increasing age. Yet the study suggests Americans’ sleep efficiency — time one is actually asleep compared to time carved out for sleep — also declines with age but tends to stabilize from age 30 to 60. Americans get the least amount asleep around age 40, researchers found in a new study.
Psychiatric Times
Glucose Metabolism and Obesity in Bipolar Disorder
Brian Miller, MD, PhD, MPH (Dr. Miller is a professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Health Behavior at Augusta University, Augusta, Georgia. He is on the Editorial Board and serves as the schizophrenia section chief for Psychiatric Times)
…The authors found a 10% prevalence of type 2 diabetes, an approximate 20% prevalence of impaired glucose tolerance, an almost 30% prevalence of obesity, and an over 50% prevalence of abdominal obesity in patients with bipolar disorder. Study strengths included the large sample size; consideration of impaired glucose tolerance and abdominal obesity separate from diabetes and general obesity; and the consideration of several potential moderators. Bipolar disorder is associated with an increased prevalence of diabetes, impaired fasting glucose, and general and abdominal obesity. Primary prevention, screening, and treatment efforts are needed for this patient population to mitigate increased cardiovascular disease morbidity and mortality.
Outdoor Life
Study Finds Panthers Are Now Top Predator of Whitetail Deer in Southwest Florida
This brings up some questions about wildlife management and opportunities for deer hunters
By Wade Thiel
A new study conducted by the University of Georgia found that Florida panthers are now the number one cause of mortality for whitetail deer in Southwest Florida. The study focused on factors of survival for whitetails. The research, published in the Journal of Applied Ecology, revealed that panthers killed far more deer than previous studies showed.
Connect Savannah
Get to know Eric Davis, the first-ever Gretsch Distinguished Scholar of Guitar/Music Industry
By Special to Connect Savannah
Professional and award-winning musician Eric Davis joined Georgia Southern Univ.’s faculty in the Fred and Dinah Gretsch School of Music in January. Davis has a variety of experience in the music realm having played professionally since a young age. Davis says he enjoys mentoring students not only to enhance their musical talents, but also to ensure they are ready for a lifelong career in music. Read on to learn more about Davis, his musical influences and plans for his role at GSU.
Higher Education News:
Inside Higher Ed
What’s Wrong With Students? No—What’s Wrong With Us?
Rather than blame students for a lack of well-being, colleges should consider institutional factors that contribute to the student mental health crisis, Philip J. Rosenbaum and Richard E. Webb write.
Philip J. Rosenbaum and Richard E. Webb
The past few years have seen a well-documented rise in reported adolescent and college student distress, and college counseling centers are overwhelmed with the task of providing services. The $64 million question often asked is “What is wrong with these students?” This question is an unfortunate invitation to blame and scapegoat our students. This simplistic thinking falls short of considering the contextual and systematic factors contributing to students’ distress. We look toward them as the problem rather than thinking about how our communities are working together (or not) to create the current challenges. In what follows, we offer some thoughts about what institutional factors are contributing to students’ suffering.
Inside Higher Ed
Lawmakers Put Pressure on Ed Department for Student Debt Relief
By Meghan Brink
Democrats and Republicans are putting pressure on the Biden administration to clarify many questions regarding his plan to cancel student debt. Republicans are asking for specific information regarding the president’s legal authority to cancel student debt, while Democrats are requesting information on plans for the execution of Biden’s impending decision on whether to cancel at least some student debt. A coalition of 55 Democratic lawmakers wrote a letter to Miguel Cardona, education secretary, on Wednesday demanding specific information on what plans the Education Department has in place to ensure there are no “unnecessary roadblocks and obligations” when Biden moves forward with his debt relief plan, which is now expected in late summer.
Diverse Issues in Higher Education
Education Secretary Dr. Miguel Cardona Calls on Congress to Offer Citizenship Path to Dreamers
Arrman Kyaw
As the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) policy reaches a decade, U.S. Secretary of Education Dr. Miguel A. Cardona is calling on Congress to offer a path to citizenship for Dreamers, undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. at a young age who are protected from deportation. These individuals must meet certain requirements to qualify from the program.
Inside Higher Ed
$73 Million Awarded in Duplicate Stimulus Grants
The awards were corrected, but the Education Department watchdog says more needs to be done to prevent future mistakes.
By Meghan Brink
The Education Department accidentally awarded $73 million in pandemic emergency funding through the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund to 24 colleges as of August 2021, a new report from the department’s Office of the Inspector General found. Federal stimulus funding helped to keep colleges afloat during the pandemic and helped to boost state budgets for higher education. The duplicate funds were a result of processing errors from the Education Department Office of Postsecondary Education, which occurred as a result of processing applications from colleges that accidentally applied to the same HEERF program twice or processing the same application twice. The department says the colleges did nothing wrong.