Marietta Daily Journal
University System of Georgia CFO Tracey Cook receives leadership award
From staff reports
University System of Georgia Chief Fiscal Officer Tracey Cook has been named the State Higher Education Executive Officers Association (SHEEO) David L. Wright Memorial Award winner in recognition of her leadership and support of USG institutions and students. The award is the highest national honor given to an agency staff member by SHEEO, an organization that serves the executives of statewide governing, policy and coordinating boards of post-secondary education and their staffs. SHEEO made the announcement Tuesday evening.
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Inside Higher Ed
In Statehouses, Tenure Was Bruised, but DEI Was Walloped
This year, Republican lawmakers in multiple states proposed bills eliminating tenure and targeting diversity, equity and inclusion. But legislatures only ended up passing significant bans on DEI.
By Ryan Quinn
In multiple states where Republicans targeted tenure and diversity, equity and inclusion this year, tenure survived while DEI was curtailed. That doesn’t mean tenure is safe. It’s been eroded for decades, including through posttenure-review policies that higher education leaders enact outside of statehouses, and by institutions offering fewer tenured positions. The American Association of University Professors says 68 percent of U.S. faculty members held contingent appointments in fall 2021, compared to about 47 percent in 1987. “It’s not like we’ve seen this constant decrease in the number of institutions with a tenure system,” said Glenn Colby, senior researcher at AAUP. “It’s more that the institutions are relying more and more on faculty working contingent positions and graduate assistants and so forth.” Colby noted that his own reports might understate tenure’s decline by, for instance, considering Georgia public universities to still have tenure despite the University System of Georgia’s controversial posttenure-review policy. On the other hand, many institutions are improving employment conditions for those in contingent roles, including through multiyear contracts, he said.
WRDW
Medical College of Ga. students look to serve areas in SWGA
Video: 750 physician graduates of the Medical College of Georgia are now practicing in Southwest Georgia.
Coastal Courier
Hinesville native Kenneth Lockhart was among the students recognized for academic success at Savannah State University’s annual honors convocation. During the ceremony, SSU president Kimberly Ballard-Washington presented Lockhart with the Board of Regents Academic Achievement Award. On April 25, Lockhart was among those honored at the University System of Georgia’s Annual Academic Recognition Day.
WGAU Radio
UGA Rhodes Scholar studies in Russia
By Erica Techo, UGA Today
Natalie Navarrete didn’t know Russian when she came to the University of Georgia. Now, she has studied it around the globe. Navarrete graduated in spring 2023 with several new stamps in her passport, as well as bachelor’s degrees in international affairs, Russian and Spanish, and a minor in Latin American and Caribbean studies. She capped off her academic career at UGA as a 2023 Rhodes Scholar, receiving the oldest and most celebrated international fellowship in the world. She was one of only three public university students, in addition to the nation’s service academies, to receive the honor this year. “Coming to UGA and learning Russian without knowing a single letter in the alphabet was incredibly difficult, but also very rewarding,” said Navarrete, who studied in the university’s Russian Flagship Program, a federally funded languages initiative housed in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences.
The Brunswick News
CCGA acquires The Village Oven
By Taylor Cooper
College of Coastal Georgia announced last month that it had acquired former Village Oven café and bakery at 1407 Union St. in downtown Brunswick for its culinary program. “The facility will help sustain the college’s contribution to the region’s hospitality, tourism and culinary arts industry and economic development efforts,” per a press release from the CCGA.
WRBL
Local space-enthusiast discusses NASA’s Artemis moon missions
by: Olivia Yepez
Space exploration is far from over. Nearly 55 years after the Apollo 11 mission landed on the moon, a Columbus space-enthusiast discussed the importance of today’s space missions. Space Exploration Day occurs annually on June 20, the date Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin first stepped on the moon in 1969. It was declared a holiday in 1984 by President Ronald Reagan. “I just feel like it’s very interesting. It captures the imagination. It gives people something positive to strive for, you know?” said Scott Norman, educational director at Columbus State University’s Coca-Cola Space Science Center. …While he started as a volunteer, Norman soon became a full-time employee and by 2003 attained his current position as educational director. In 2011, Norman was able to watch the Atlantis space shuttle launch, the final one of its kind, in-person at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
WJBF
SRS offers a Richmond County educator shadowing opportunity
by: Ty Grant
A local educator recently shadowed two Savannah River Nuclear Solutions engineers to obtain a STEM Education Endorsement that will help bridge the gap between her students’ high school classes and potential engineering careers at the Savannah River Site. Carla Biley, who teaches biology and forensics at Richmond County Technical Career Magnet School, will use the endorsement from Augusta University to open the door to new classes at RCTCM. The STEM Education Endorsement focuses on effective ways to integrate content, teach productive collaboration skills and use inquiry-based approaches to solve problems. The two-day shadowing assignment with SRNS engineers was the final step in earning this endorsement.
NBC News
Heavy precipitation in California — the largest U.S. vegetable producer — flooded farmland and reduced crop supply, economists said.
By Greg Iacurci, CNBC
Even as U.S. inflation broadly cools, frozen vegetable prices are hot. The average shelf price for frozen veggies rose by 18% in the past year — the largest increase among all grocery items, according to the consumer price index for June 2023. Among all consumer goods and services, only a few — like motor vehicle repair, school meals and tax-return preparation — saw prices jump faster in the past 12 months, according to CPI data. The price spike on frozen veggies is attributable to many factors, like immigration trends, high costs for labor and fertilizer, and ripple effects from the war in Ukraine, economists and food experts said. …Heavy rain “provided many challenges” for agricultural producers, Pam Knox, an agricultural climatologist at the University of Georgia, wrote recently. It destroyed crops, delayed planting schedules, and prevented farmers from doing field work for weeks, for example, she said.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Indicted Marietta man had illegal machine gun on Georgia Tech campus, feds say
By Henri Hollis
Modified Glock could fire more than 1K rounds per minute, U.S. Attorney says
A Marietta man was indicted Tuesday on charges that he took an illegal machine gun onto Georgia Tech’s campus after police found the modified pistol in his vehicle in April, federal officials said. Floyd Barrow, 34, was arrested April 8 during a traffic stop after Georgia Tech police discovered he had a modified Glock 22, according to U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia Ryan K. Buchanan. The semi-automatic handgun had been altered with a Glock Switch device that allowed it to fire automatically at a rate of more than 1,000 rounds per minute, Buchanan said. Georgia Tech officers confiscated the gun and placed Barrow under arrest, and he was indicted on federal charges more than three months later, Buchanan said.
Other News:
Savannah Morning News
CNBC: Georgia ranks top 5 in states for business, takes No. 1 spot in important category
Miguel Legoas
Augusta Chronicle
The Peach State is looking ripe when it comes to infrastructure and business. CNBC’s annual study ‘America’s Top States for Business’ gave Georgia high marks overall and the top spot on the study’s infrastructure ranking. The study scored all 50 states on 86 metrics in 10 broad categories of competitiveness. Each category is weighed based on how frequently states use them as a selling point in economic development marketing materials. Here was CNBC’s top 10 states in business: 4. Georgia … Overall scores were given to each state based on a variety of factors such as workforce and cost of doing business. Georgia saw the most success in infrastructure. …Here are the top five states in infrastructure: 1.Georgia
Savannah CEO
Georgia Experiencing Record High Job Numbers in June
Georgia Labor Commissioner Bruce Thompson announced today that Georgia’s June unemployment rate remained steady at 3.2 percent, unchanged from a revised 3.2 percent in May. The unemployment rate is also four-tenths lower than the national average of 3.6 percent. “Georgia continues to become an economic powerhouse, attracting leading-edge businesses from around the globe,” said Commissioner Bruce Thompson. “While low unemployment is crucial for a thriving economy, balancing job growth with a skilled workforce capable of meeting the demands of new and existing industries is crucial. This balanced approach will help guarantee that businesses of all sizes have the talent they need to grow, scale, and succeed.”
Higher Education News:
Diverse Issues in Higher Education
Study Shows that FAFSA Verification Doesn’t Lead to Lower Enrollment
Jon Edelman
The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) has long been considered one of most confusing and frustrating governmental forms, a 108-question gantlet of information on finances and family for students trying to pay for college. But for around 18% of FAFSA filers, the burden is even worse. These students are selected for verification, a process in which aid applicants have to provide additional documentation, which can include tax returns, wage statements, and high school diplomas, to each institution to which they’re applying, as a way of proving that their FAFSA information is accurate.
Inside Higher Ed
Lack of Awareness Causes Students to Fall Through the Cracks
New data suggest that institutions overestimate student awareness of key support services on their campuses. Solutions include more active and effective promotion of these resources.
By Ashley Mowreader
Colleges and universities employ various strategies to promote student success, but how many are students aware of, and how many are supporting students in the ways they should? A new report by Tyton Partners found 60 percent of students were unaware of the full scope of services offered to them at their college or university, creating gaps in student-facing offices that could negatively impact student retention and success. Tyton’s surveys, on which the report is based, found two out of three students were unaware of available student support resources, including academic advising, career advising or academic registrations. Academic advising was the most recognized support among students (62 percent).
Inside Higher Ed
‘Teaching on Eggshells’: Students Report Professors’ Offensive Comments
A recent survey shows about 75 percent of students would report professors for saying something they find offensive.
By Jessica Blake
Nearly three-quarters of all college students, regardless of their political affiliation, believe professors who make comments the students find offensive should be reported to the university, according to a new report. A similar rate of students would also report their peers for making insulting or hurtful remarks. The report by the Sheila and Robert Challey Institute for Global Innovation and Growth at North Dakota State University is based on a survey of 2,250 students from 131 public and private four-year institutions across the country and was released Wednesday. Over all, the percentage of students who said they would report a professor was higher among self-identified liberal students (81 percent) than among self-identified conservative students (53 percent). Sixty-six percent of liberal students and 37 percent of conservative students said they would also report peers who made offensive comments.
Inside Higher Ed
Bipartisan Trio of Senators Drafts Federal NIL Rule
By Katherine Knott
A bipartisan trio of senators is looking to standardize and regulate name, image and likeness rules for college athletes, Yahoo Sports reported. Yahoo Sports received a draft of the bill, which was co-written by Kansas senator Jerry Moran, a Republican, along with New Jersey senator Cory Booker and Connecticut senator Richard Blumenthal, who are Democrats. The bill would set a national policy allowing college athletes to profit off of their name, image and likeness, which would trump state policies, and create the College Athletics Corporation to administer the bill and create specific policies. The CAC would be overseen by a 15-member board that would include athletes.
Inside Higher Ed
Florida State Fires Professor Over ‘Extreme Negligence’ in His Research
By Scott Jaschik
Florida State University has fired Eric Stewart, a professor of criminology, for “extreme negligence” in research, The Tallahassee Democrat reported. The charges against Stewart followed a full investigation into his research. A letter to Stewart from James Clark, the provost, said, “You demonstrated extreme negligence in basic data management, resulting in an unprecedented number of articles retracted, numerous other articles now in question, with the presence of no backup of the data for the publications in question.”
Higher Ed Dive
Kentucky lawmakers to study creating new public university in state’s Southeast region
They’ll also review whether “traditional” academics should be housed by community and technical schools or taken up by regional publics.
Jeremy Bauer-Wolf, Senior Reporter
Dive Brief:
Kentucky lawmakers this month authorized over $600,000 to study whether a new public university should open in the state’s Southeast region. Legislators approved the study in March. It will also examine if responsibility for traditional academic subjects should move from the Kentucky Community and Technical College System to the state’s regional public institutions. The evaluation — which consultant Ernst & Young will conduct — is due back to policymakers Dec. 1.
Higher Ed Dive
Association of private New York colleges drops opposition to legacy admissions ban
The Commission on Independent Colleges and Universities said the public views these policies as “expanding privilege instead of opportunity.”
Jeremy Bauer-Wolf, Senior Reporter
Dive Brief:
A prominent association representing New York’s private colleges and universities will no longer oppose banning legacy preferences in admissions. The Commission on Independent Colleges and Universities, or CICU, said in an email Thursday that while “legacy admission has been an important recruitment tool for some New York colleges, we recognize the public’s perception that the practice also has the effect of expanding privilege instead of opportunity,” CICU’s statement comes as colleges nationwide are reconsidering admissions, including legacy preferences, after the U.S. Supreme Court ruling last month that restricted race-conscious policies at Harvard University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Higher Ed Dive
House passes bill to deny funding to schools, colleges housing migrants
Unlikely to become law, the Republican-initiated bill does not have companion legislation in the Senate and faces opposition from the White House.
Kara Arundel, Senior Reporter
Public K-12 schools and universities that house migrants on their campuses would have their federal education funding stripped away under legislation passed by a 222-201 mostly partisan House vote late Wednesday. H.R. 3941, known as the Schools Not Shelters Act and introduced by Rep. Marcus Molinaro, R-N.Y., aims to prevent school funds from being diverted to support immigrants crossing into the country illegally. The bill also would protect student safety, according to its supporters. The measure is a rebuke of President Joe Biden’s immigration policies, which bill supporters said allow too many migrants to cross the border without first going through the steps to request legal entry.
Higher Ed Dive
Higher ed’s guide to the U.S. News rankings drama
The undergraduate Best Colleges list is due to publish in a couple of months. Where do things stand after colleges’ defections?
Jeremy Bauer-Wolf, Senior Reporter
Last year’s news that Yale and Harvard universities’ law schools will no longer cooperate with U.S. News & World Report’s rankings brought on waves of speculation in the higher education world. Would the Ivy League institutions’ moves be the first cracks in the foundation of U.S. News’ system? Would they prompt major changes to its methodology? Would other institutions follow? The answer to the last question was yes, as more law schools, and then medical and undergraduate colleges, abandoned the rankings over the past several months. With each college defection, questions arose anew.