The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
After-school program brings Gwinnett students to college campus
By Josh Reyes
Parents will be able to receive instruction as well
Georgia Gwinnett College launched a new after-school program for local elementary school students and their families that it hopes will be a model for community education across Georgia. The new Grizzly Academy Dreamers program began in November and brings Gwinnett elementary students to the college campus for academic support and other activities. It will also launch an educational program this spring for the students’ parents, with career, financial, language and other courses that parents have requested. The vision is a community learning center “that provides a safe and productive environment for children after school and provides resources, opportunities and services to their parents,” according to a news release.
The Jagwire
Augusta University president named one of Georgia’s most influential
Kevin Faigle
For the ninth consecutive year, Augusta University President Brooks A. Keel, PhD, has been named to Georgia Trend’s list of “100 Most Influential Georgians” for 2023. Each year the magazine recognizes the top 100 leaders who demonstrate the strongest leadership qualities, power and influence in the state. “I am honored to receive this distinguished recognition because it is a testament to everything our faculty, staff and students at Augusta University are doing to continue to grow our university and make a positive impact in our community and across Georgia,” said Keel.
WTOC11
Volunteers renovating a house for partially paralyzed woman
By Flynn Snyder
A Richmond Hill group is working to renovate a house for Caitlin Jensen. In June, Jensen’s family claimed she was left partially paralyzed after a visit to the chiropractor sent her to the I.CU. Renovations have been taking place over the past few weeks while Jensen has been undergoing treatment in Atlanta. Volunteers hope that by making the home more accessible for Jensen, she’ll have an easier time in her recovery. Work is almost finished at Caitlin Jensen’s new home just days before the Georgia Southern grad leaves the hospital. Family friend Amy Barton created the group Richmond Hill Cares to help organize volunteers and donations for the job.
WGAU Radio
Five UGA researchers earn top scientific honors
By David Mitchell, UGA Media Relations
Five University of Georgia faculty have been named new Fellows for the American Association for the Advancement of Science, bringing the university’s total representation on this prestigious list to 42 Fellows are elected annually by the AAAS Council for extraordinary achievements leading to the advancement of science. This year, UGA’s new Fellows, representing four different disciplines, are Joseph Hermanowicz, Ping Ma, Lisa Nolan, Stephen Trent and Ronald Simons.
Savannah Business Journal
Staff Report
Georgia Southern University’s Staff Council Professional Development Committee, in coordination with the Office of Military and Veteran Services, will offer Green Zone Training to faculty and staff on the Statesboro and the Armstrong campuses in February. “This training will highlight our military-connected student population, military culture and experiences, and help participants recognize obstacles these students face in higher education,” said Georgia Southern Director of Military and Veteran Services George Fredrick, Ed.D. “In addition to the Georgia Southern Military Resource Center, Green Zone Training will assist in identifying other campus resources that are available for students, staff and faculty.”
The Creative Coast
Chris Curtis searches for targets of opportunity with the Savannah Logistics Innovation Center
By Bradley Mullis
I’m running a little late to my meeting with Chris Curtis [He’s the Vice Provost of Georgia Southern’s Research and Scholarships initiative, and he’s heavily involved in SLIC. (Savannah Logistics Innovation Center)] on Tuesday. It’s because I’m looking for the Georgia Southern Research Labs, somewhere near the Armstrong Campus on Savannah’s Southside. I eventually find it after a quick search; it’s sitting in a nondescript building on Mohawk Drive. The building’s exterior is a clash of brick and dull, sun-baked beige stucco. The words “Coastal Regional Crime Laboratory” have been pressure-washed away, but a faint outline remains. Next to it, a small metal sign ID’s the property as “Georgia Southern Research Labs.” The building is being renovated. The GBI was leasing the land, and when the contract came up for renewal, they left for a shiny new lab in Pooler.
KPVI
A promise fulfilled: Bridging the gaps in Alzheimer’s care
By Lauren Baggett University of Georgia
Lisa Renzi-Hammond remembers the last months of her grandmother Evelyn’s life in flashbulb moments. For 10 years, Alzheimer’s disease had steadily chipped away at Evelyn’s memory and executive functioning until she needed full-time care. …Jenay Beer was there once, too. It took some time for Beer and her family to realize something was going on with her 80-year-old grandmother, June, who lived in another state. …When they first joined the Institute of Gerontology at the UGA College of Public Health, Renzi-Hammond and Beer were pursuing individual lines of research focused on helping people live better as they age. Over time, the seed of an idea began to form, an idea to innovate Alzheimer’s and dementia care — to combine the best of prevention education, care technologies and post-diagnosis support in one place and make it accessible to people beyond the borders of the UGA campus. In 2019, the Cognitive Aging Research and Education Center, or CARE Center, was born — a promise, they said, to their grandmothers.
Medical Xpress
New vaccine targets life-threatening fungal infections
by Leigh Beeson, University of Georgia
Fungal infections cause 1.5M+ deaths each year, and there’s no vaccine to prevent them. A new vaccine from the University of Georgia could be the first clinically approved immunization to protect against invasive fungal infections, a growing concern as antifungal drug resistance increases.
Patch
Question: What is the debt ceiling?
Toma: Congress tries to limit itself in terms of how much it spends relative to how much it takes in terms of revenue. So, if the government spends more than it takes in the form of tax revenue, that creates debt on a year-to-year basis; that’s referred to as the deficit. But when you add up all those deficits over time, we have the national debt, which is now $31 trillion. It fundamentally means that the government is not taking in enough tax revenue to pay for all the bills that it’s incurring. And so the debt ceiling is a legislative limit created by Congress that says that we will spend more than we take in terms of tax revenue up to a certain point. And that certain point is the debt ceiling. The first debt ceiling was created back in 1917. So this is not a new thing.
The Brunswick News
UGA professor explains mining process
By Gordon Jackson
C. Rhett Jackson, University of Georgia professor of water resources, has expressed concerns about a proposed mining project near the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge, but he thinks he can do better. He “presupposed” people would have a good understanding of how the mine planned by Twin Pines Minerals would work, which is why he is offering another explanation.
Newstrail
Cole & Van Note Announces Georgia Southern University Data Breach Investigation
Scott Cole
Author: Scott Cole
Cole & Van Note, a leading consumer rights law firm, announces today its investigation of Georgia Southern University on behalf of its consumers/clients, arising out the company’s recent data breach. According to the company, the private information of a massive number of people may have been stolen in the hacking of its information network. It is currently unknown how many people have had their information used for criminal purposes. If you received a notice of this alarming data breach and/or have transacted in any way with Georgia Southern University, your information may already be in the hands of cybercriminals, making your urgent attention to this situation very important. Every case starts simply—with one person having the courage to make one contact.
Athens Banner-Herald
Athens officials estimate $56,000 in damage done after Bulldogs National Championship win
Wayne Ford
The damage that resulted in downtown Athens after a jubilant celebration in early January over the University of Georgia’s second national football championship amounted to almost $56,000, according to information recently released by Athens-Clarke police. The damage occurred mostly along Clayton Street, a main throughfare that was the subject of an improvement project that widened the sidewalks and installed new trees, lighting and artwork. Police estimated that from 10,000 to 15,000 people congregated in downtown at about 11:30 p.m. Jan. 9 as people “stormed out of the bars.”
Higher Education News:
Inside Higher Ed
More adults across the country now hold a college degree or credential, according to the latest data from the Lumina Foundation. But major racial disparities persist.
By Sara Weissman
New data from the Lumina Foundation on college degree or credential attainment rates for U.S. adults show both good and bad news. The national share of working-age Americans who hold college degrees increased across racial and ethnic groups and rose in all states between 2019 and 2021. The share of adults with degrees or other post–high school credentials, such as workforce certificates, also grew. But Black, Latino and Native American adults still hold degrees at rates well below other Americans.
Inside Higher Ed
Reforms Urged on Education Dept. Admissions Data Collection
By Scott Jaschik
A coalition of progressive education groups is today sending a letter to the Education Department asking it to collect and publicize:
Data on applications and admits, disaggregated by race and ethnicity. (It currently disaggregates those data by gender. It only disaggregates enrollments by race/ethnicity.)
Data on legacy applicants, admits and enrollments, disaggregated by race/ethnicity and by low-income status on enrollments.
Data on early-decision and early-action applicants, admits and enrollments, disaggregated by race/ethnicity.
Inside Higher Ed
Temple Grad Students Start Strike
By Ryan Quinn
Temple University graduate students began striking Tuesday for the first time in that union’s history, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported. Bethany Kosmicki, a member of the Temple University Graduate Students’ Association’s negotiating team, said in a news release that “Temple’s administration has repeatedly ignored our demands, refusing us fair pay, affordable dependent health care and increased parental leave.” She said teaching and research assistants are “a core function of the university, teaching essential courses and conducting world class research. We deserve a contract that reflects our value to the university.”
Inside Higher Ed
Florida governor Ron DeSantis vowed to defund DEI initiatives on the same day his hand-picked trustees convened at New College of Florida and fired the president.
By Josh Moody
The Ron DeSantis takeover of Florida higher education was on full display Tuesday. First the Republican governor announced plans to defund diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives at state colleges and universities. Then, later that day, his handpicked trustees at New College of Florida convened for their first board meeting, where they ousted the president and began the process of reshaping the institution into a facsimile of Hillsdale College, a private Christian institution in Michigan. DeSantis, now in his second term, launched the opening act on Tuesday when he announced promised higher education reforms. He proposed defunding DEI efforts and restricting the use of DEI statements in hiring practices, giving boards and presidents the power to review tenure at any time, and requiring that state research universities spend $50 million annually on research related to STEM and business initiatives. Lawmakers are likely to take up the reforms when the state Legislature convenes in March.
Diverse Issues in Higher Education
The Critical Race Theory Debate
Jon Edelman
The battle over critical race theory raging across America in recent years is most often fought in the realm of K-12 education, where white parents have asserted newly discovered rights to prevent their children from being taught aspects of American history that might make them feel guilty. But the fight to ban the idea that racism is not only a product of individual bias but is embedded in legal structures has also hit higher education, where academic freedom is traditionally more protected and where concepts derived from critical rate theory are more likely to be taught.
Cybersecurity Dive
On deck for the business of cybersecurity: Fire sales and due diligence
Enterprise cybersecurity is navigating market turmoil and vendor consolidation. Here’s what experts expect to happen to the industry in 2023.
By Naomi Eide, Matt Kapko, and David Jones
Hype around investing in cybersecurity is giving way to talk of economic headwinds and cybersecurity, seen as a cost center, is closely watching the budget chopping block. This turmoil in 2023 is expected to adversely affect the cybersecurity vendor landscape, spurring a spree of consolidation. One CISO even equated some of the potential market movement to a fire sale. Even when resources are tight, cybersecurity executives are expected to fall in line with regulation. From the CISO’s desk, there is also a lot of attention on what due diligence means following the guilty verdict of Uber’s CISO last year. Cybersecurity Dive asked researchers and analysts what they expected to see hit the business of cybersecurity this year. Below is how four experts responded: