The Augusta Chronicle
Georgia Attorney General approves Augusta University Health and Wellstar merger
Abraham Kenmore
The merger between Wellstar and Augusta University Health has been approved by the Office of the Attorney General of Georgia. “The report concluded the pending transaction is consistent with the purposes set out in the law, including that the community will receive an enforceable commitment for fair and reasonable community benefits, there are no impermissible conflicts of interest and that there are sufficient safeguards to assure access to affordable care moving forward, including Wellstar’s commitment to provide care to the uninsured and to improve healthcare for Georgians,” read a joint statement from leaders of Wellstar, AU Health and the University System of Georgia released late Thursday.
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The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
WJBF
AU dorms under construction after spring flood
by: Kim Vickers
Preparations are underway at Augusta University for students to move into dorms. Oak Hall is currently under construction to repair some damages caused by a flood in April. That flooding caused significant damage to 6 rooms in the building. “There was a– a flood. And the University, in consultation with Corvias, took the appropriate steps to make sure we got all of the residence halls all fixed up and ready to go. There was 6 rooms that were impacted significantly. In general, the dry wall needed to be- essentially they were brought down to the studs. And so it was a complete refresh of the entire room,” explained Dr. Colin Stewart, Associate Vice President for Student Affairs.
accessWDUN
Two UNG safety officers save a runner’s life
By Steve Winslow Anchor/Reporter
A pair of University of North Georgia public safety officers are recognized for their life-saving efforts in Dahlonega during the July 4th holiday. UNG’s Newsroom page says the effort by Sergeant Brody Clements and Officer Madison Comer saved the life of runner Bryan Schuler, who had collapsed during the Firecracker 5K road race on July 4th. Before numerous spectators and local officials, their CPR procedures resuscitated Schuler, who was then taken to a nearby hospital by Lumpkin County safety workers.
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Augusta CEO
AU Student Writes Children’s Books to Inspire Good Health
Vikash Ayyapan is a cell and molecular biology major at Augusta University, and during his time in school, he picked an interesting hobby. “I wrote three children’s books. It all started as a joke between me and my friends. When I came down here one of my friends said ‘You should read a book this semester,’ and I said ‘I’ll do you one better and write a book,’” said Ayyapan.
WGAU Radio
UGA researchers say gout drug can combat COVID
By Tim Bryant
An anti-inflammatory drug commonly used to treat gout could significantly improve outcomes in patients with mild-to-moderate COVID 19 infections. That’s according to research by a team led by University of Georgia professor Ralph Tripp. The researchers in UGA’s Department of Infectious Diseases say probenecid was originally approved as treatment for gout in 1951.
AgWired
2023 Ag Tech Awards of Excellence
Tech Hub LIVE 2023 honored industry leaders this week with the CropLife Ag Tech Awards of Excellence, part of the Global Ag Tech Initiative. CropLife Media editor Eric Sfiligoj presented the annual awards. …Not present to receive his award in person was Simerjeet Virk with the University of Georgia, who was named Ag Tech Educator/Researcher of the Year. Assistant professor and Extension precision agriculture specialist at UGA, Simerjeet has been involved in research on ag tech in row crops since he arrived in the US in 2010 to pursue his MS at Auburn. His current research is evaluating performance of application technology on sprayers and VRT on fertilizer application equipment to improve application accuracy and placement of pesticides and nutrients.
Express Healthcare Management
Healthcare Data Breaches on the Rise, Warns Expert
Somasetty Suresh
Healthcare data breaches have seen a significant increase in the past three years, according to the Department of Health and Human Services. One recent example is the data breach at Memorial Health’s parent company, HCA Healthcare, which affected 11 million patients. Dr. Hayden Wimmer, an IT professor at Georgia Southern University, suggests that individuals should be concerned about the leaked data and be cautious of potential scams, phishing attempts, and credit card breaches.
Athens CEO
UGA Works to Restore Native Plants to Roadside Areas
Native plants installed by the State Botanical Garden of Georgia at the University of Georgia near the GA-10 Loop in Athens are changing the area from being covered in kudzu back to a more natural state. The project, funded by Keep Athens-Clarke County Beautiful, was planted in November 2021. Volunteers from the State Botanical Garden, Keep Athens-Clarke County Beautiful, the Georgia Department of Transportation and students from the UGA College of Environment and Design all pitched in to plant the area along the entrance ramp next to the GA-10 Loop at Milledge Avenue. Zach Wood, the grasslands coordinator at the State Botanical Garden, said all the plants chosen for the project are native to Georgia. He said they selected hardy species of plants they felt pretty confident would survive.
Newswise
His focus will be to grow the department and foster translational immune-oncology research
by Moffitt Cancer Center
Moffitt Cancer Center has appointed Paulo Rodriguez, Ph.D., chair of the Department of Immunology and co-leader of the Immuno-Oncology Program. “Moffitt is world renowned for our immunology research. Dr. Rodriguez is an outstanding scientist and will ensure the cancer center’s continued growth and leadership in this critical area. His dedication to collaboration and mentorship will also be invaluable to the advancement of our junior faculty and trainees,” said Elsa R. Flores, Ph.D., associate center director of the Basic Science Division. …Prior to Moffitt, he held an assistant professor position at Louisiana State University and an associate professor position at the Medical College of Georgia.
Southeast AgNet
Georgia Cotton Commission Hosts Mid-Year Meeting
By Clint Thompson
The Georgia Cotton Commission’s first mid-year meeting on Wednesday in Statesboro, Georgia, educated and celebrated with those in attendance. The event at the Nessmith-Lane Conference Center at Georgia Southern University provided growers timely information as they continue to navigate the current growing season. It also celebrated the winners of the Georgia Cotton Quality Awards, which was a significant reason the meeting was started to begin with, says Taylor Sills, executive director of the Georgia Cotton Commission. “We wanted to open that up to more and more gins and more and more producers and wait until people were done ginning their cotton. We pushed the deadline back and gave folks at UGA (University of Georgia) more time to collect that data and then partner with Southeastern Cotton Ginners to do their Georgia preseason meeting here in Statesboro as well.
Morning AgClips
Cotton Prices Get a Bounce, Now What?
Prices have made a nice run and are at their highest level since early March
Don Shurley, University of Georgia
Prices (Dec23 futures) have made a nice run and currently stand just over 85 cents. This is the highest level since early March. Price has improved for 3 consecutive weeks—increasing 3.26 cents last week and 4.79 cents thus far the month of July. At the 85 cents level, price has now reached the upper level of earlier expectations. Further upside to 86 is possible (NOTE: Dec closed at 87 cents today). But without solid and sustained economic support (supply/demand factors), downside risk (retraction) may be increased. So, what can we expect next? USDA’s July production and supply and demand estimates were mostly bearish. Prices have improved nevertheless due to other factors.
WRDW
AU expert shares how to safely spend time outside
By Staff
The CSRA has seen nothing but hot weather lately, so what does that mean for kids during the summer? We spoke with a pediatric physician at Augusta University who shared some helpful tips when spending time outside. “I think the biggest thing really for heat injury is if you know you are going to spend time outside. Really hydrate. Take a few sips of water before you go and take water with you to your activity. Take frequent breaks and go to a shaded area to cool down,” said Natasha Bennett.
Southeast Farm Press
What to do before making a spray drone pesticide application
It is important to understand that the rules and regulations for using spray drones for pesticide applications are very different and complex than flying a normal drone with a camera.
By Simer Virk, UGA Extension Precision Ag Specialist and Steve Li, Alabama Extension Weed Scientist
With increased availability and interest in spray drones recently, we are starting to see more people getting into the spray drone application business as well as growers who are interested to learn more about the technology and its application capabilities. The wet weather during months of May and June across much of the Southeast also made most fields inaccessible with ground application equipment, hence limiting the timely pesticide applications for most growers. Consequently, there have been lot of questions lately about use of spray drones for pesticide applications in both row and specialty crops.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Zoo Atlanta breaks ground on new $22 million animal care facility
Center is named after long-time zoo leader.
By Bo Emerson
Zoo Atlanta ceremonially breaks ground on a new animal health center today, a facility that will dramatically upgrade the zoo’s ability to diagnose and treat its collection of 1,300 birds, reptiles and mammals. The Rollins Animal Health Center will be ten times the size of the old veterinary facility — 16,000 square feet instead of 1,600 square feet — and will incorporate significant improvements in animal care. …Currently the staff bounces between three different buildings, with treatment facilities in what was originally a city of Atlanta lawnmower shed, the Silberman Clinic for treating great apes, and a separate kitchen/nutrition center. …The addition of an in-house CT imaging department will have an immediate positive effect on the zoo’s ability to diagnose disease, Rivera said. Until now the zoo’s veterinarians have been forced to rely on local veterinary hospitals and the University of Georgia veterinary department, 90 minutes away in Athens, when they needed to generate scans of sick animals.
Farm Bureau Georgia
EEE detected in horses in two South Georgia Counties
By Jay Stone, Georgia Farm Bureau
The Georgia Department of Agriculture (GDA) has confirmed a case of Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE) in Cook County and two others in Charlton County. The GDA reported its findings to the Equine Disease Communications Center. EEE was detected in a deceased quarter horse in Cook County in June and reported to www.equinediseasecc.org on July 7. The two cases in Charlton County were reported on July 20 and July 24. Entomologists Dr. Nancy Hinkle with the University of Georgia College of Agricultural & Environmental Sciences and Dr. Rosmarie Kelly with the Georgia Department of Public Health are urging horse owners to get their horses vaccinated for EEE and West Nile Virus. Kelly recommends that steps be taken for personal protection when outdoors, including using an EPA-registered repellent and dressing appropriately for the weather in lightweight long sleeves and long pants. Dumping out or treating standing water with larvicide will help prevent mosquito populations from developing.
Discover Magazine
What Does Being “Ghosted” Mean and Why Does It Make Us Feel So Bad?
Rejection hurts no matter what, but being ghosted has a much different psychological impact than other breakups, romantic or otherwise.
By Sara Novak
It hurts to know that someone you care about on the other end of a text, phone call or email has gotten your message and chosen not to reply. Whether it’s a potential romantic partner, a friend or a family member, when relationships become uneven, it cuts at our very core. Being “ghosted” isn’t anything new, but it’s made worse in a world of instant messaging, online dating and social media. Experts say this can impact our mental health in ways we might not even realize.
What Does It Mean To Be Ghosted?
A January 2023 study published in the Journal of Social and Personal Relationships found that ghosted people lacked a sense of closure in their relationships. Study author Christina Leckfor, a Ph.D. student in psychology at the University of Georgia, says that being ghosted is more common than it used to be, thanks to modern technology.
Southeast FarmPress
Burrower bug: A sporadic yet troubling peanut pest
For 10 years, Mark Abney has been seeking answers and solutions to the peanut burrower problem and other insect issues in Georgia peanuts.
John Hart
Back in 2010, Mark Abney was happy in his job as a vegetable entomologist at North Carolina State University. But then the peanut burrower bug became a problem in his home state of Georgia, and the University of Georgia beckoned. “There was a lot of burrower bug injury in the state of Georgia in 2010. At that time, I was a vegetable entomologist at North Carolina State University, and very happy. There was no peanut entomologist in 2010 at the University of Georgia. One of them became a dean, and one of them retired, and there was nobody,” Abney said in a talk at the annual meeting of the American Peanut Research and Education Society (APRES) at the DeSoto Hotel in Savannah July 13. “They called me and said ‘do you want to become our peanut entomologist. I said, I’m from Georgia, I’d love to do that. This insect is why I’m here today. Otherwise, I’d be at a sweet potato meeting.” So, in 2013, Abney and his family moved to Tifton to begin work on the burrower bug and other insect challenges as the new Extension peanut entomologist at the University of Georgia.
The Creative Coast
Girls Code Summer Camp Empowers the Next Generation of Female Coders
By James GaNun
This July, The Creative Coast’s Girls Code Savannah program took place in the form of an aviation-themed summer camp designed to teach girls the basics of coding, free of charge. The camp took place at Georgia Southern University’s Armstrong Campus in a five-day segment. From July 10th to 14th, 33 fifth to eighth-grade girls within the public school system gathered in a computer lab to learn about the basics of coding and the possibilities that tech-oriented careers can offer them in the future.
Savannah CEO
Goodwill Southeast Georgia, Bank of America Celebrate National Intern Day
This week, Goodwill Southeast Georgia and Bank of America are celebrating the success of the 2023 class of Student Leaders®. Tyron Ford-Everett, a rising senior at Savannah Arts Academy, and James Thompson, an upcoming freshman at Augusta University, have spent nearly eight weeks developing leadership and practical workforce skills while working a paid internship with Goodwill Southeast Georgia. The Student Leaders® program is part of Bank of America’s support of summer youth employment, which also connected 60-70 teens and young adults to paid jobs across Savannah with YMCA of Coastal Georgia. Just in time for National Intern Day on July 27, Ford-Everett and Thompson had a chance to present a preview of their final summer projects to their Goodwill leaders and mentors.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Yellow Jackets come together to celebrate Bobby Gaston’s coming 100th birthday
Former Georgia Tech football player was a long-time SEC referee
By Chad Bishop
A life well-lived was a life well-recognized Thursday. Robert Gaston, or Bobby as he’s known to most, was the guest of honor at the Savoy Automobile Museum, where some of those closest to him came together to wish him a happy birthday. Gaston turns 100 on Oct. 18. “I have more friends from Georgia Tech than anywhere else,” Gaston said shortly after entering a private room set up for his birthday party. Gaston enrolled at Tech in 1942 to play football for legendary coach William Alexander.
Savannah Business Journal
United Way of the Coastal Empire announces board of directors
Savannah Business Journal Staff Report
United Way of the Coastal Empire has announced the 2023-2024 Board of Directors. United Way depends on volunteer leadership from the communities it serves to oversee the organization to accomplish its mission to improve lives. Board members began their duties on July 1, 2023.
Incoming Board Members: …Chief Lenny Gunther, Savannah Police Department; Executive Committee:
…Race Equity Opportunity Chair: Kimberly Ballard-Washington, Attorney; Returning Board Members:
…Dr. John Lester, Georgia Southern University; …Dr. Mike Toma, Georgia Southern University
Higher Education News:
Savannah Morning News
Professor: Colleges can play a role in helping keep aviation safe In America
Innovative program at LaGrange College is meant to address lingering airline pilot shortage.
John A. Tures and Brian Peterson
This commentary is co-authored by John A. Tures, a professor of political science at LaGrange College, and Brian Peterson, LaGrange’s vice president of academic affairs.
When we were younger, it felt like major plane crashes happened often. Many of us have stories about times they learned that a loved one was due to board an airplane, only to hear that a horrible plane crash had happened at the airport they took off, on the same airline they were flying on. While many air accidents are mechanical, many other accidents occur due to pilot error. That’s why today’s debate over aviation policy is so critical. …But is there something we can do to help would-be pilots and others in the aviation industry, without loosening safety rules? LaGrange College has just partnered with Paragon Flight School to create an aviation program that will give students the opportunity to learn to fly while they pursue their bachelor’s degrees. This addresses the issues within the aviation industry in two distinct, but fundamental, ways.
Inside Higher Ed
Senate Proposes $250 Pell Grant Increase
The Senate wants to give the Education Department more money; House Republicans would cut billions. Dueling budgets show the yawning gaps between the chambers.
By Katherine Knott
Senate appropriators, in drafting the budget for the Education Department and other agencies, say they made the most of a difficult situation to reach a compromise on a bill that can pass both chambers of Congress and be signed into law. That compromise would give the Education Department about $370 million more in discretionary funds than it received for the current fiscal year, according to a sparse bill summary released ahead of Thursday’s appropriations committee markup. The Senate plan also would increase the maximum Pell Grant award from $7,395 to $7,645 for the 2024–25 academic year.
Inside Higher Ed
House Subcommittee Members Disagree Over Higher Ed’s Value
Republicans argue that college prices are too high for inadequate outcomes and that institutions are to blame. Democrats focus their ire on for-profit colleges.
By Katherine Knott
Higher education is in need of innovation, better data for students and new systems to better hold colleges and universities accountable, a panel of witnesses told a House subcommittee Thursday, though they differed on specific solutions. The hearing focused on the cost of higher education and the value it provides to students and taxpayers. The Republicans on the House higher education subcommittee used the opportunity to criticize the growth of nonteaching staff positions on campuses, increasing tuition costs and their general dissatisfaction with the state of American higher education. Democrats pointed to the need to hold bad actors accountable with a focus on for-profit institutions and voiced concern about the Republicans’ vision of higher education.
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Higher Ed Dive
Gainful employment plan could lead to more loans fully repaid
A new analysis from Urban Institute researchers digs into how the regulatory plan would impact borrowers in income-driven repayment plans.
Laura Spitalniak, Associate Editor
Dive Brief:
The share of student loan borrowers who fully repay their undergraduate debt under income-driven repayment, or IDR, plans would rise from 55% to 60% under a recent regulatory proposal from the U.S. Department of Education, according to a report this week from the Urban Institute. The proposed rule, known as gainful employment, would pull federal financial aid from for-profit colleges and certificate programs whose graduates don’t earn enough to repay their student loans. The researchers say it could also lower the IDR program’s loan forgiveness costs by cutting off federal funds from poor-performing institutions. Across all undergraduate programs, the portion of student loans typical borrowers are expected to pay back under IDR plans would increase from 85% to 92% once programs failing the gainful employment proposal are excluded, the researchers found.
Diverse Issues in Higher Education
Education and Labor Departments Announce Efforts to Support Teacher Prep Programs
Arrman Kyaw
The U.S. Departments of Education (ED) and Labor (DoL) have announced new efforts to expand Registered Apprenticeships for educators and bolster teacher preparation programs. The efforts range from monetary investment to new guidelines, such as more than $27 million in awards from ED to support educator preparation programs; more than $65 million from DoL for Registered Apprenticeship programs in critical sectors, including education; and new National Guidelines for Apprenticeship Standards (NGS) for Registered Apprenticeships for K-12 teachers.
Inside Higher Ed
By Josh Moody
Facing a $25 million budget gap, Virginia Commonwealth University is cutting 14 jobs in the Department of Focused Inquiry, according to The Richmond Times-Dispatch. Departmental faculty had been bracing for the cuts since earlier this year. The 14 affected faculty members will lose their jobs in 2024 or 2025, the newspaper reported, noting that the department has about 65 full-time contract employees. With recent enrollment declines and rising operational costs, officials have said the number of employees in the department is unsustainable. According to the VCU website, the Department of Focused Inquiry features “small, seminar-style classes for first and second-year students as part of the core curriculum at Virginia Commonwealth University” with an emphasis on “inquiry-based, community-engaged and experiential learning” led by interdisciplinary faculty members.
Inside Higher Ed
Union: UC Berkeley Graduate Student Researchers Get Back Pay
By Ryan Quinn
University of California, Berkeley, graduate student researchers have received around $600,000 in back pay, their union announced Wednesday. The payouts, which go as high as $10,000 for individual workers, came in response to a union grievance about the university’s “arbitrary” appointment levels for employees, UAW 2865 said in its news release. This allowed administrators to circumvent the nominal GSR [graduate student researcher] salary scale and underpay thousands of workers,” the release said. “The 2022–2025 GSR union contract ended this system on paper, but ending it in practice in the face of UC’s inertia took months of determined organizing.”
Diverse Issues in Higher Education
New College of Florida to Request $2 Million for Center to Combat “Cancel Culture” in Higher Ed
Arrman Kyaw
The New College of Florida Board of Trustees has voted to advance a $2 million budget request to the Florida Legislature for a center to combat “cancel culture” in higher ed, Axios reported. The New College Freedom Institute aims to “promote freedom of inquiry and champion tolerance of civil discourse among those of opposing views,” according to the budget request. The center plans to “discuss the challenges to free speech principles,” and mentor “leaders who have worked to promote freedom of speech and inquiry.”
Inside Higher Ed
Accreditor Requests Closure of the King’s College
By Josh Moody
Faced with the possibility of closure since January, the King’s College’s chances of survival took another blow Thursday when its accreditor announced that it has asked the small evangelical college in New York City to “submit a substantive change request for institutional closure” by Aug. 11. The accreditor, the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, also announced that it “will consider the institution closed and no longer operational with students actively enrolled as of the fall term of 2023.”
Higher Ed Dive
Thomas Jefferson University pays $2.7M to settle claims it misused federal funds
The allegations center on a federal program designed to help aspiring primary care physicians with their education costs.
Natalie Schwartz, Editor
Dive Brief:
Thomas Jefferson University has agreed to pay $2.7 million to settle allegations that it improperly used federal student loan funds to boost its investments, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania announced this week. The allegations stem from a federal loan program called the Primary Care Loan award, which is intended to address the nation’s dearth of primary care physicians. Colleges use the program to provide loans to their medical students. However, the private Philadelphia research university was accused of investing into its endowment nearly all the funds it received for the program between 2009 and 2016.
Inside Higher Ed
Man Arrested for Planning Mass Shootings at Brown, UConn
By Scott Jaschik
Aman was arrested last week for second-degree threatening, second-degree breach of peace and second-degree failure to appear, and he had visited Brown University and the University of Connecticut to plan mass shootings there, authorities said, according to The Hartford Courant. …Instead of attending court earlier this month, a person close to Hernandez told police, he allegedly drove to UConn and Brown to “map out the schools,” according to Bristol police reports. The person who shared the texts “surmised” that he was planning to commit a shooting, police wrote.
Cybersecurity Dive
Valid account credentials are behind most cyber intrusions, CISA finds
The success rate of these techniques underscores the staying power of the most common methods threat actors use to gain initial access to targeted systems.
Matt Kapko, Reporter
Valid account credentials are at the root of most successful threat actor intrusions of critical infrastructure networks and state and local agencies, according to the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. Valid credential compromise combined with spear-phishing attacks accounts for nearly 90% of infiltrations last year. Valid accounts, including former employee accounts not removed from the Active Directory and default administrator credentials, were responsible for 54% of all attacks studied in the agency’s annual risk and vulnerability assessment released Wednesday. Spear-phishing links — malware-laced emails sent to targeted individuals — were responsible for 1 in 3 attacks, the report found.
Cybersecurity Dive
SEC votes to overhaul disclosure rules for material cyber events
After a fierce debate, the agency voted to require companies to come clean on material breaches and attacks within four business days of determination.
David Jones, Reporter
The Securities and Exchange Commission approved a measure by a 3-2 margin to require companies to disclose material cybersecurity incidents within four business days of such determination. Companies will need to disclose the incident with the SEC on form 8-K, which is available for review by investors and the general public. Companies will also need to make annual disclosures regarding their cybersecurity risk management, governance and strategies.