The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
House leaders OK budget with $2K raises for teachers, $4K for law officers
By James Salzer
House budget writers on Wednesday passed a spending plan for the upcoming year that places heavy emphasis on police and mental health funding, including $4,000 raises for law enforcement officers. Other state employees, university system workers and teachers would get $2,000 raises in the budget for fiscal 2024 – which begins July 1 – under the proposal approved by the House Appropriations Committee. The full House is expected to pass the spending plan for the new fiscal year Thursday, sending it to the Senate as lawmakers work to finalize the measure and get it through both chambers by the time the session ends later this month.
WGAU Radio
Gov Kemp, Chancellor Perdue mark UNG Day at the Capitol
By Tim Bryant
Governor Brian Kemp and University System Chancellor Sonny Perdue helped the University of North Georgia mark its sesquicentennial, with a Tuesday ceremony at the state capitol marking UNG’s 150th anniversary.
From Clark Leonard, UNG…
The University of North Georgia continued to celebrate its 150th anniversary with a Corps of Cadets review by Gov. Brian Kemp at Liberty Plaza across from the State Capitol in Atlanta on March 7. Lt. Gov. Burt Jones, University System of Georgia Chancellor Sonny Perdue and Maj. Gen. Dwayne Wilson also attended the event. A day before UNG’s visit, legislative leaders approved $1.3 million in design funds for UNG’s Military Science Center expansion in the amended Fiscal Year 2023 budget. Senate Majority Leader Steve Gooch, a UNG graduate, helped secure the funding. …Perdue lauded the way UNG develops leaders through its Corps of Cadets. “I’m delighted that we still have young men and women who are committed to the safety of our nation,” Perdue said. “The culture of leadership development at UNG is one of the best in the nation.”
Diverse Issues in Higher Education
Arrman Kyaw
Gordon State College (GSC) President Dr. Kirk A. Nooks was awarded the 2023 Chief Executive Leadership Award at the CASE District III Annual Conference. “I’m honored to have been chosen as the recipient of this prestigious award. We, at Highlander Nation, have a shared vision of our future as we innovate new ways in fulfilling our strategic plan, Building the Power of WE, and in doing so, learn together and grow,” Nooks said. “I will continue to provide stewardship that empowers regional development, foster innovative strategies, and be proactive in working to understand the needs of our students and community.”
Gwinnett Daily Post
From staff reports
Last week Georgia Gwinnett College counselors traveled to Collins Hill High School to offer seniors at the school a unique opportunity — an instant decision on admission. Called Instant Decision Day, these events allow college hopefuls to meet with GGC admissions counselors, who evaluate their transcripts and help them fill out GGC application forms. Students who met GPA requirements are provided an instant admissions decision on the spot. Twenty-one students were admitted to GGC at the Collins Hill event, which was held on March 2. GGC has offered more than 50 Instant Decision Day events to schools in Gwinnett County and metro Atlanta since September with more to come, Lisa Boone, GGC’s assistant director of admissions, said. “This figure doubles our efforts from last year,” she said.
The Griffin Daily News
GSC students visit Georgia State Capitol
By Gordon State College
Gordon State College leaders and students visited the Georgia State Capitol for GSC Legislative Day at the Capitol.
Albany Herald
Two CAES students selected as USDA Future Leaders in Agriculture
By Amanda Budd UGA/CAES
Two students in the University of Georgia’s College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences were selected to attend the U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Outlook Forum in Washington, D.C., as part of the Future Leaders Program. Megan Cherry, a senior agricultural communications major, and Olivia Phillips, a senior agribusiness and agricultural economics major, were two of 30 students selected nationwide to attend the program based on their demonstrated commitment to agriculture.
The Griffin Daily News
GSC students read to kindergarteners
Damarius Blackmon and Elijah Clemmons, students at Gordon State College and members of the African American Male Initiative (AAMI), read to students in Ms. Wilson’s class and Mr. Fletcher’s class at Lamar County Primary School on Feb. 17 in honor of Black History Month.
Columbus CEO
Roger Hatcher of Columbus State University on the Teacher Shortage
Roger Hatcher of Columbus State University talks about the national crisis of a teacher shortage and how the college has worked with local schools to supply qualified teachers back into the system.
Athens CEO
UGA Idea Accelerator Boosts Plan to Help Homeless Students
Merritt Melancon
Across Georgia, more than 31,000 public school students experienced homelessness last school year. Despite the odds stacked against them, some of those students entered college as freshmen this school year. These are students who beat the odds, but it doesn’t mean their struggle is over, Terry College Economics major Christian Dyer told judges at the UGA Entrepreneurship Idea Accelerator pitch contest Feb. 27 at Studio 225. That’s where UnderDawgs comes in. UnderDawgs is a nonprofit startup providing scholarships for housing, food, parking, health insurance and mentorship to students entering UGA after being homeless. It’s a population Dyer knows well since he was in the same situation when he started classes in 2018.
Press-Republican
Former NCCS student leads Georgia Southern Rifle team to Conference Championship
Amy Visconti, a former Northeastern Clinton student, shot a 586 in smallbore to lead the Georgia Southern Rifle Team to its second straight Conference Championship. This also marks the second year in a row that Visconti led all smallbore shooters. GSU fired a team record 4657 for a victory over both the Citadel, which shot a 4616, and North Georgia, which posted a 4616. USB came in fourth with a 4572, followed by VMI and Wofford. In all Visconti outshot 40 college shooters to take the Conference Smallbore Title. She also earned All-Conference honors in both smallbore and air rifle. Her 1171 aggregate score was a personal best and she is only the second athlete from GSU to pass the 1170 mark.
13WMAZ
Houston Healthcare falls victim to cybersecurity attack, tech professor warns on how to avoid
Author: Caleesha Moore
On Monday, Houston Healthcare is not responding to questions about the ransomware attack that hit them last week. As of March 6, the hospital on Watson Boulevard remains open. Meanwhile, experts tell us ransom ware attacks are becoming common among large organizations. On March 3, a representative for Houston Healthcare said they’d gone through a cybersecurity incident and they were using “back up processes” and “downtime procedures.” …Ransomware attacks happen when hackers lock down computer systems until the victim agrees to pay a ransom. Organizations like universities and hospitals are often at the top of the hackers’ lists. “One kind is where the computer itself it taken over by a malicious actor in which you can’t use the computer because someone else controls it. They encrypt the files or prevent you from using it as a computer. The second type is where the files on the computer are exfiltrated, they’re pulled off and the attacker now has access to your information,” Director of Cybersecurity Education at Middle Georgia State University Alan Stines said. He says both types are common.
The Griffin Daily News
GSCS superintendent speaks at Gordon State event
By GDN Staff
Gordon State College hosted its fourth annual Legacy Lecture at the Student Activity and Recreation Center (SARC) on Feb. 28, featuring guest speaker Dr. Keith L. Simmons, Griffin-Spalding County School System superintendent. “There is something unique and authentic about Dr. Simmons’ leadership. His motivation and guidance within the school district has created a culture that will last through the generations,” said GSC President Dr. Kirk A. Nooks.
Grice Connect
Experience the Aurora at GS Planetarium this month
The planetarium will offer this all-ages show on Thursday, March 23, at 6pm and 7pm, and on Friday, March 24, at 6pm, 7pm, and 8pm. Tickets are $4 per person.
Whitney Lavoie
The Georgia Southern Planetarium has its next exciting show scheduled for this month. Experience the Aurora allows you to take a trip into the Arctic Circle to see the Northern Lights. They will be projected all around the dome to give you the closest “big sky” experience to actually being there. The last time the planetarium hosted this show was March of 2020. Researchers traveled to colder than imaginable locations like Svalbard, Norway, and Fairbanks, Alaska, to capture the beauty of the Northern Lights in time-lapse video. The show will share some of the science behind auroras, while offering stunning views of this phenomenon.
Daily Mail
Caitlin Jensen, 29, returned home eight months after she was paralyzed
Jensen suffered a heart attack and strokes following a chiropractor appointment
She has since regained some movement in her head, legs and arms
By Vanessa Serna For Dailymail.Com
A Georgia Southern University graduate returned home eight months after she suffered strokes and was paralyzed when a chiropractor severed her arteries. Caitlin Jensen, 29, was released from a treatment center on February 16 after regaining movement in her head, arms and legs, months after she was hospitalized on June 16 following an appointment with Dr. TJ Harpham, 42.
WGAU Radio
Ossoff presses White House for more funding for UGA Poultry Lab
By WSB TV
Georgia Senator Jon Ossoff is calling on the White House to prioritize increased funding for the University of Georgia’s Poultry Diagnostic and Research Center. Democrat Ossoff has penned a letter to the US Ag Secretary, saying work done at that center and others in Georgia is essential to combating the avian flu that is driving up poultry and egg prices. …[The letter reads in part] … Georgia leads the nation in production of broiler chickens and is home to the nation’s leading poultry research laboratories, including the U.S. National Poultry Research Center, the Poultry Diagnostic and Research Center at the University of Georgia, and the Georgia Poultry Lab. The avian influenza outbreaks now affecting nearly every state, including Georgia, increase the urgency of funding for the labs and their research work.
Athens CEO
UGA Study: Whistleblowers Losing Faith in Media Impact
Erica Techo
The whistleblowers who once trusted journalism are losing faith in the institution. A new study from the University of Georgia found that many whistleblowers who reached out to journalists in the past no longer believe media has the same ability to motivate change, and they feel let down by a system they once trusted. “If you don’t believe that an outlet or journalist can carry you across the finish line—meaning can affect change, attract enough attention and attract the attention of the right people—then you’re losing faith,” said Karin Assmann, study lead and assistant professor in UGA’s Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication. “So if you think the institution of journalism no longer has the same impact, maybe because you see algorithms dictate what people pay attention to, then you lose faith.”
The Brunswick News
At UGA, bad decisions bring tragic consequences
By Dick Yarbrough
Syndicated columnist
The Beloved Woman Who Shared My Name used to tell her grandsons, “You are free to make any decision you wish. Just remember that with those decisions come consequences, good or bad.” I thought about those wise words while pondering some very bad decisions that have cost two people their lives and have cast a pall over my alma mater. Chandler LeCroy, 24, a recruiting specialist for the University of Georgia football team, and Devin Willock, 20, an offensive lineman, were killed in the early morning hours of Jan. 15 in a car crash after celebrating UGA’s second consecutive national championship win. Two other passengers, recruiting staff member, Tory Bowles, 26, and offensive tackle Warren McClendon, 21, survived. …There is a cloud hanging over the University of Georgia today because somebody didn’t follow the admonition of the Beloved Woman Who Shared My Name: “You are free to make any decision you wish. Just remember that with those decisions come consequences, good or bad.” I hope somebody in Athens will heed her words. For two young people, it’s too late.
Higher Education News:
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Bills to help Georgia police, others with student loans clear hurdle
By Vanessa McCray
Proposals to repay student loans for Georgia police, medical examiners and college nursing instructors are among the bills lawmakers are looking to pass in the final stretch of this legislative session. The bills are part of a higher education agenda that so far has focused largely on workforce needs and steered clear of many hot-button cultural issues. The state House of Representatives also passed a bill this week that would provide more need-based financial aid to low-income students earlier in their academic studies. That vote came on Crossover Day, the deadline by which bills must pass one chamber to progress. Other college-related bills that received committee hearings haven’t gained such traction. House Bill 131, a proposal to lower the cost of public college tuition for young immigrants in Georgia who are part of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, didn’t make it to the House floor for a vote. DACA students pay out-of-state tuition.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Education secretary lauds $1.5B in student loan relief for Georgians
By Vanessa McCray
U.S. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona is touting efforts that he said will result in 18,050 Georgia borrowers receiving more than $1.5 billion in student loan relief. Cardona on Tuesday provided updated numbers on how many Georgians have been approved since October 2021 for loan discharge through the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program. It allows eligible government and nonprofit workers, such as military veterans and nurses, to get their remaining loan balance forgiven after 10 years of qualifying payments. Cardona released the data exclusively to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution in a phone interview Tuesday.
Higher Ed Dive
Performance-based funding linked to higher SAT scores in bottom quarter
Laura Spitalniak, Associate Editor
Dive Brief:
The more a public college’s revenue is tied to performance, the more their students’ SAT scores in the bottom quarter increase, according to peer-reviewed research published recently in Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, a SAGE academic journal. Researchers linked each percentage point increase in performance-based funding across all types of public colleges to a 0.9 point increase in the 25th percentile of SAT scores. No significant relationship exists between the funding model and the 75th percentile of SAT scores, according to the study. Acceptance rates also remained unchanged. But moderately selective colleges — defined as those with an average 75th percentile SAT score of about 1,200 and an acceptance rate around 70% — also saw enrollment decreases among students who are racial minorities as more of their funding depended on performance.
Higher Ed Dive
U.S. News escalates battle over rankings, saying ‘elite’ colleges don’t speak for higher ed
The magazine also wrote to Education Secretary Miguel Cardona, a rankings critic, suggesting he require more data from institutions.
Jeremy Bauer-Wolf, Senior Reporter
The CEO and executive chair of U.S. News & World Report delivered an impassioned defense of the magazine’s rankings last week, arguing the prominent colleges snubbing them “don’t want to be held accountable by an independent third party.” Eric Gertler’s missive in The Wall Street Journal escalates a three-month feud over the rankings as dozens of law and medical schools have withdrawn, accusing U.S. News of valuing prestige ahead of academic quality. The U.S. education secretary also recently took a stand against the rankings, prompting the publication to go on the defensive. Gertler wrote in the Journal last week that U.S. News’ rankings represent one of the few sources where students can find “accurate, comprehensive information” on colleges.
Inside Higher Ed
The Republican governors of Florida, Texas and Virginia are drastically reshaping higher education in their states—which some see as a precursor to the 2024 presidential race.
By Josh Moody
Though the 2024 presidential election is still more than 600 days away, a couple of well-known Republicans have already entered the primary race. Others—including Florida governor Ron DeSantis—have indicated they will likely join the fray. While he hasn’t declared his candidacy yet, political observers say DeSantis is clearly seeking to energize the Republican base by throwing them red meat on pressing social issues—particularly education, at both the K-12 and postsecondary levels. And many experts believe DeSantis’s education agenda in Florida is intended more as a preview of his platform for 2024 than as a serious attempt to address policy concerns in his state. He’s not the only one; Greg Abbott of Texas and Glenn Youngkin of Virginia are also politicking on hot-button issues, driving the GOP higher education agenda while flirting with White House runs. Both have sought to bend education in their respective states to their political will, and while they have been more circumspect about their presidential prospects than DeSantis, both remain in early conversations about the 2024 election.
Higher Ed Dive
Kansas Republicans move to block state’s public colleges from using DEI statements in hiring
Jeremy Bauer-Wolf, Senior Reporter
Dive Brief:
Republicans in the Kansas Senate are attempting to ban the state’s public colleges from using diversity, equity, and inclusion, or DEI, statements in hiring decisions. State Sen. J.R. Claeys successfully introduced an amendment into a budget bill last week that would block public institutions from relying on DEI statements, which typically involve job applicants detailing their commitment to diversity. Claeys said in an online message these statements promote “perpetual victimhood, resentment and division.” Liberal lawmakers opposed the move, and it could face a veto from the state’s Democratic governor, Laura Kelly. However, Republicans hold supermajorities in both legislative chambers and could override a veto.
Higher Ed Dive
Texas universities eschew DEI initiatives at governor’s direction
The domino effect of Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s DEI ban is in full tilt.
Caroline Colvin, Reporter
In Texas, the anti-DEI dominos are falling, in a design constructed by Gov. Greg Abbott. In February memos to state agencies and public universities, Chief of Staff Gardner Pate announced the administration’s intentions to ban the “innocuous-sounding notion of diversity, equity and inclusion” — on the grounds of reducing identity-based discrimination. Just a month later, the University of Houston leadership said it will not use DEI initiatives in its hiring practices.
Higher Ed Dive
Why Vermont State’s digital library idea is so controversial
Digital-first libraries already existed in higher education. But librarians have concerns about adopting them for all disciplines and materials.
By Lilah Burke, Contributor
The library is often part of the quintessential vision of a New England college campus. And books — dusty, worn, in carts or flipped open on desks — are an essential part of that nostalgic picture. But as many higher education services traditionally offered in person move online, more library materials and experiences have jumped to digital formats. Now, Vermont State University — a new institution to be formed from three existing Vermont public colleges — has announced that it will be transforming its libraries to be “all-digital.”
Inside Higher Ed
Board Reinstates President of North Idaho College
By Scott Jaschik
Nick Swayne is again the president of North Idaho College. The board, which placed him on administrative leave without cause in December, on Monday acted on the orders of State Judge Cynthia Meyer. In her ruling, Meyer said, “The board’s majority has wrongfully locked its captain in the brig while steering NIC toward an iceberg. The board’s decision to keep him on leave without cause is hostile and arbitrary.” She added, “It appears that the investigation [into Swayne] is a sham and a pretext for Dr. Swayne’s removal from his position as president.” She granted a preliminary injunction ordering the reinstatement. “The majority of the board members don’t necessarily agree with the court order, but the college will abide by the court’s ruling,” Chair Greg McKenzie said prior to the vote, reported by The Coeur d’Alene/Post Falls Press.
Inside Higher Ed
Temple Faculty Union Still Discussing No-Confidence Vote
By Ryan Quinn
The union that says it includes nearly 2,500 Temple University faculty members, professional librarians and academic professionals is still discussing whether to hold a no-confidence vote in Temple’s “central administration.” The Temple Association of University Professionals (TAUP) is separate from the currently striking graduate student workers’ union but likewise affiliated with the American Federation of Teachers. On Friday, TAUP announced in a news release that 580 of its members had gathered virtually to discuss a possible no-confidence vote.
Inside Higher Ed
$4.175M Settlement in Iowa Football Racial Bias Suit
By Jaime Adame
A racial discrimination lawsuit filed by about a dozen former University of Iowa football players has been settled for $4.175 million, the Associated Press reported. The players, who are Black, alleged the use of racial slurs as well as being required to abandon hairstyles and other aspects of their culture to fit in with what the lawsuit called the “Iowa Way” under Coach Kirk Ferentz. The players, who filed the lawsuit in 2020, also alleged they were retaliated against after speaking out about their treatment. Ferentz, the university’s head coach since 1999, said in a statement that he was “greatly disappointed” in how the lawsuit was resolved and that he believed “the case would have been dismissed with prejudice before trial.” Ferentz also noted that he and other coaches were dismissed from the lawsuit as part of the settlement and that “there is no admission of any wrongdoing.” A state board Monday approved $2 million in taxpayer money to go toward the settlement, with the rest coming from the university’s athletics department, The Des Moines Register reported.
Higher Ed Dive
‘Mother’ of disability rights movement Judy Heumann dies at age 75
Heumann’s work in civil rights included leading the Education Department’s special education office from 1993 to 2001.
Kara Arundel, Senior Reporter
Disability rights advocate Judith “Judy” Heumann, who was instrumental in securing landmark education-related laws and regulations that expanded accessibility for students and people with disabilities, died at age 75 in Washington, D.C., on March 4, according to her website. Known as the “mother” of the disability rights movement, Heumann was born in 1947 and contracted polio at the age of 2, leaving her unable to walk. When a school principal said she couldn’t enter kindergarten because she used a wheelchair, Heumann set out on a lifelong path of “fighting for the inherent dignity of people with disabilities,” according to a statement from President Joe Biden, who called Heumann a “trailblazer.”