E-clips will resume on Wednesday, July 5, 2023. Have a Happy July 4!
Student loan ruling sends shockwaves all the way to CSRA
By Craig Allison
Reaction is pouring in from across the two-state region after the Supreme Court ruled the Biden administration overstepped its authority in trying to cancel or reduce student loan debt. The ruling effectively kills the administration’s $400 billion plan to cancel up to $20,000 in federal student loans for 43 million people. …the University System of Georgia – of which Augusta University is a part – noted that it’s actually been making college cheaper in recent years. …USG’s “Know More Borrow Less” initiative provides students with updated tools that clearly show costs, financial aid awarded and loans available with a recommended loan amount rather than just the maximum offered. All 26 USG institutions have also simplified, standardized and automated how students and families can resolve federal aid form verification issues. Georgia remains among the lowest in the nation and across the South for in-state tuition and fees, the university system said, adding that for the sixth time in eight years, tuition will remain flat. Additionally, USG in 2022 actually reduced college costs by eliminating a mandatory special institutional fee that had been charged systemwide since 2009, saving students and families anywhere between $340 to $1,088 a year.
WSAV
Local reaction to Supreme Court ruling on affirmative action in college admissions
by: Molly Curley
The Supreme Court struck down affirmative action in college admissions Thursday, meaning race cannot be a factor. This will force higher education institutions to look for new ways to achieve diverse student bodies. The court’s conservative majority overturned admissions plans at Harvard and the University of North Carolina, the nation’s oldest private and public colleges, respectively. Asked about the ruling, the University System of Georgia (USG) said race or ethnicity aren’t determining factors in admissions at their 26 institutions. “USG follows the law with regards to the admission of students,” a statement to News 3 read. The USG includes East Georgia State College, Georgia Southern University and Savannah State University.
See also:
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Appeals court sides with state over law targeting boycotts against Israel
By Davis Giangiulio
A federal court ruled against a plaintiff challenging a state law that requires significant state contracts to include a pledge to not boycott Israel. The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled last week in favor of the Georgia Board of Regents, which governs the University System of Georgia, for not moving forward with a contract for Abby Martin to speak at an academic conference after she refused to sign the pledge. Martin — who supports the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement, or BDS, that seeks to economically protest Israeli policy toward the Palestinians — believed the requirement was a violation of her free speech. However, the court ultimately ruled that she failed to prove there was any constitutional violation and therefore ruled with the regents due to qualified immunity, which protects public employees from being sued for doing their jobs for the state.
The Times
Guest Column, Bonita Jacobs: UNG: A 150-year legacy of scholarship, leadership and service
As we wrap up the University of North Georgia’s year-long 150th anniversary celebration, I am proud of the profound impact that our institution has had on our region and our legacy of scholarship, leadership and service.
Times-Georgian
UWG continues to attract foreign students
Special To The Times-Georgian
The University of West Georgia is attracting students from all over the globe, according to Paul Sargent, director of international student admissions and programs at UWG, who recently shared his experiences with foreign students when he spoke to members of the Carrollton Civic Woman’s Club. During his presentation, Sargent explained the process through which the prospective students from abroad go in order to have the opportunity to study in the United States, specifically at UWG.
WGAU Radio
UNG students win scholarships to study in Asia
By Denise Ray, UNG
Two University of North Georgia students were selected for nationally competitive scholarships that will allow them to study abroad. These extremely competitive scholarships are considered some of the most prestigious, merit-based awards in the country. Abigail Sutherland is UNG’s latest recipient of a Freeman Awards for Study in Asia (Freeman-ASIA) scholarship winner. The program grants awards of up to $5,000 for students who demonstrate financial need to fulfill their plans of study abroad in Asia. …In addition, Anabella Miranda received a Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship, having previously been named an alternate.
Columbus CEO
Columbus State’s McCullers Center Names Music Theory Scholar as its 2023 Smith Fellow
Columbus State University’s Carson McCullers Center for Writers and Musicians has named music theory scholar Lauren Irschick as the winner of its 18th annual Marguerite and Lamar Smith Fellowship for Writers. As this year’s writing fellow, she will live and work in Carson McCullers’s childhood home, the Smith-McCullers House, in Columbus this fall. While most Smith Fellows’ work falls in the creative-writing genre, Irschick represents the center’s first fellow with a scholarly emphasis.
Albany Herald
GSW’s Nicki Levering Selected for NCAA Administrators Pathway Program
From Staff Reports
Georgia Southwestern State University Senior Women’s Administrator and Assistant Director of Athletics Nicki Levering has been selected to participate in the 2023-24 NCAA Pathway Program. Levering will join 20 other administrators from all divisions of the NCAA to participate in a yearlong initiative designed to prepare senior-level athletics administrators for the next career step as directors of athletics or conference commissioners. The Pathway Program, under the direction of NCAA leadership development, is an intensive, experiential learning opportunity for selected participants who work at an NCAA school or conference in Divisions I, II or III.
Albany CEO
Andrea Dozier on ASU’s Nursing Program
Andrea Dozier of Albany State University talks about the education available at the college for those seeking a career in nursing.
WTVM
StartUP Columbus announces third annual BizPitch Competition
By Jessie Gibson
StartUP Columbus announced its third annual BizPitch Competition. StartUP Columbus is an entrepreneurial support organization that teamed up with Columbus State University’s Abbott Turner College of Business and Technology to host the competition. The competition provides local entrepreneurs with the opportunity to showcase there startup business. BizPitch follows the format of popular TV show “Shark Tank” – giving entrepreneurs a platform to pitch there innovative business ideas to a panel of judges. This competition will take place in November 9 of this year.
EurekAlert!
The Vidalia onion is a trademarked variety of sweet onion that can only be grown in several counties in Georgia by law. These prized vegetables are currently threatened by the bacterial pathogen Pantoea ananatis, which severely damages the plant by rotting the onion bulbs and leaves. This results in substantial losses for onion growers in Georgia, as there are no disease resistant cultivars available. The plant toxin pantaphos, produced by the P. ananatis pathogen, causes the rotting symptoms in onion. More specifically, the eleven genes responsible for producing this toxin are grouped together in a cluster called HiVir (high virulence). However, most of the genes from the cluster have an unknown role in bacterial pathogenesis, so there is much more to discover about how this bacterium infects onion. To combat this critical plant disease, Dr. Brian Kvikto and Dr. Bhabesh Dutta from the University of Georgia have developed an aggressive research program. A recent study led by Dr. Gi Yoon (Gina) Shin from Dr. Kvikto’s lab has confirmed which genes in the HiVir cluster are essential and which genes contribute partially to this disease.
WGAU Radio
UGA study links tree genetics to biodiversity patterns
By Kristen Morales, UGA Today
It’s easy to think of trees as part of the landscape. But what if the trees were the landscape? That’s what a new study by a researcher at the University of Georgia asks us to imagine. By considering each tree as a world that hosts its own populations of insects and fungi—and looking at the genetic variation that supports these communities—we can better understand the role trees play in the larger ecosystem.
Times-Georgian
UWG athletics announce Jeep raffle to support athletic programs
By UWG Athletics
Fans of the West Georgia Wolves can get their ducks in a row and win a brand new Jeep Wrangler 4-Door Sport 4×4 to support the student-athletes at the University, as UWG Athletics announced Wednesday the Wolves Grand Raffle. Partnering with Scott Evans Automotive Group, UWG Athletics will draw the name of one lucky winner at halftime of the Homecoming Game on October 21, with the winner to receive a 2023 Jeep Wrangler. The raffle is an initiative of the UWG Athletics Foundation, which is focused on elevating UWG Athletics through these types of activities.
Independent.ie
New Ross councillor John Fleming becomes 126th Cathaoirleach of Wexford County Council
Pádraig Byrne
Wexford People
Despite Fine Gael putting forward their own candidate, Fianna Fáil’s John Fleming found enough favour among his council colleagues to succeed Labour councillor George Lawlor as the 126th Cathaoirleach of Wexford County Council. …At the AGM there were also numerous tributes to outgoing Cathaoirleach George Lawlor who had reflected on some of the local authority’s achievements of the past year such as the commencement of the CPO of the SETU college campus, the sod turning at the new Wexford Women’s Refuge, the securing of Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann and the growing links with Georgia Southern University.
Higher Education News:
The Washington Post
Supreme Court rejects Biden student loan forgiveness plan
By Robert Barnes and Danielle Douglas-Gabriel
The Supreme Court on Friday said President Biden does not have to authority for his nearly half-trillion dollar plan to forgive student loan debt, the latest blow from a Supreme Court that has been dismissive of this administration’s bold claims of power. The vote was 6 to 3 along ideological lines, with Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. writing for the court’s dominant conservatives. Biden contended his administration had the authority to forgive student loan debt under the Higher Education Relief Opportunities for Students Act of 2003. The law allows the education secretary to waive or modify loan provisions in response to a national emergency, such as the coronavirus pandemic.
See also:
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Inside Higher Ed
What the Supreme Court Rejection of Affirmative Action Means
Justices deem admissions programs at both Harvard and UNC Chapel Hill to be unconstitutional. But decision did say applicants can write about their experiences with racism, if colleges follow the rules.
By Scott Jaschik
The U.S. Supreme Court declared Thursday that the admissions systems used by Harvard University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill illegally violate the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. “Both programs lack sufficiently focused and measurable objectives warranting the use of race, unavoidably employ race in a negative manner, involve racial stereotyping, and lack meaningful endpoints. We have never permitted admissions programs to work in that way, and we will not do so today,” said the decision, by Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. “At the same time, as all parties agree, nothing in this opinion should be construed as prohibiting universities from considering an applicant’s discussion of how race affected his or her life, be it through discrimination, inspiration, or otherwise,” the decision added. “But despite the dissent’s assertion to the contrary, universities may not simply establish through application essays or other means the regime we hold unlawful today.”
Inside Higher Ed
Advocates Celebrate End of Race-Conscious Admissions
Students and supporters of affirmative action also descended on the Supreme Court, pledging to continue fighting to make higher education accessible to students from underrepresented backgrounds.
By Katherine Knott
For Yukong Zhao, the Supreme Court’s decision on Thursday to strike down the use of race in college admissions was a “sweet and long-overdue victory.” “Today we finally see the justices of the U.S. Supreme Court provide equal protection laws to our community,” said Zhao, a co-founder of the Asian American Coalition for Education, which was part of a group that filed a complaint with the Justice and Education Departments over Harvard University’s admission policies. “This is a victory for our community because our children will no longer be treated as second-class citizens in college admissions.”
Higher Ed Dive
Gen Z values education — but doesn’t think a four-year degree is the only option
Laura Spitalniak, Associate Editor
Dive Brief:
The current cohort of high school students, part of Generation Z, values postsecondary education but is increasingly interested in alternatives to four-year colleges, according to a new report from ECMC Group, a nonprofit focused on student success, and Vice Media. In 2023, 65% of surveyed students said they would need education beyond high school, compared to 59% pre-pandemic, the report said. But 59% said they could be successful if they don’t get a four-year degree. Almost half, 48%, of high schoolers said their postsecondary education would ideally take three years or less, and just over a third, 35%, said it should take two years or less.
Cybersecurity Dive
What to do after a data breach
Long before a data breach, well-prepared companies set up incident response teams with workers from multiple departments.
By Sue Poremba
At some point, every organization will have to deal with some sort of cyber incident. In a perfect world, the post-attack reaction is well choreographed, with everyone taking their positions and flawlessly executing their often-rehearsed roles in the data breach response plan. More often, incident response resembles a group of young children on a soccer field. It’s pure chaos, with everyone surrounding the goal and trying to kick the ball at the same time — no one has any success. It might look cute on a schoolyard, but that type of reaction by the security team will lead to large fines, loss of business and reputation, and in some cases, employees being fired.
Cybersecurity Dive
White House releases cyber budget priorities for next fiscal year
Federal agencies are advised to demonstrate how their spending aligns with the national cybersecurity strategy.
Matt Kapko, Reporter
The White House outlined its cybersecurity budget priorities for fiscal year 2025 in a memorandum sent to executive departments and agencies Tuesday. The Biden administration is looking to connect cybersecurity investments to the five pillars of the national cybersecurity strategy it released in early March, the document shows. The letter, signed by Acting National Cyber Director Kemba Walden and Office of Management and Budget Director Shalanda Young, advises federal agencies to prioritize spending on critical infrastructure defense, disrupting and dismantling threat actors, software that is secure by design, resiliency and international partnerships. “Agency investments should lead to durable, long-term solutions that are secure by design,” Shalanda and Walden wrote in the letter. …Federal agency budgets should use government purchasing power to improve accountability in the software supply chain and strengthen defense across agencies, the memo said.
Cybersecurity Dive
AI linked to new crop of business email scams
Alexei Alexis, Reporter
Dive Brief:
Generative artificial intelligence tools such as ChatGPT could be aiding the proliferation of more convincing email scams aimed at stealing money from businesses, according to cybersecurity firm Fortra. In the first quarter of 2023, threats in corporate inboxes hit new highs with a quarter of all reported emails classified as malicious or untrustworthy, Fortra said in a recent report. Nearly all of these threats (99%) were classified as impersonation attacks. Fraudsters appear to be turning to generative AI to assist them in crafting well-written email messages at scale — without the poor spelling and grammar that has historically been associated with scams, John Wilson, a threat research senior fellow at Fortra, told CFO Dive. Recent evidence also suggests that scammers may be relying on AI to perform language translation, he said.
Inside Higher Ed
Professor and 2 Students Stabbed in Gender Issues Class at Canadian University
By Scott Jaschik
A professor and two students were stabbed Wednesday in a philosophy class on gender issues at the University of Waterloo, in Canada, the Associated Press reported. A suspect in the stabbings is a member of the “university community,” a spokesman said. The suspect is being questioned. The three who were stabbed were being treated at a hospital for what were described as non-life-threatening injuries.