The Georgia Virtue
Foundation Awards $2.5M Lifelong Learning Grant, 161 Scholarships to Georgia Southern
The National Science Foundation announced a $2.5 million award supporting Georgia Southern University researchers in addressing high-demand workforce needs in information technology and computer science fields. The funded project, “Enabling Lifelong Success in an Information Technology Workforce,” adapts and evaluates evidence-based student support activities within the IT Department, one of the units in the Allen E. Paulson College of Engineering and Computing. The goal of the project is to identify a group of highly qualified students and to render 161 scholarships over a six-year period in an effort to increase student retention and graduation rates.
Middle Georgia CEO
Middle Georgia State University (MGA) is partnering with the Griffin Region College and Career Academy (GRCCA) to offer Aviation Maintenance Technician (AMT) dual-enrollment classes to high school students. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) recently approved the partnership, which launched on August 1 when the first cohort of high school students begins the general curriculum portion of the program. GRCCA serves high school students from Spalding, Butts and Pike counties providing career and technical education training as well as dual-enrollment opportunities. “MGA’s School of Aviation is excited to partner with GRCCA. Aircraft maintenance is a vital part of Georgia’s aviation industry. It is essential that we continuously form partnerships that offer a great career path to more students and help fill this critical workforce need,” stated Middle Georgia State University School of Aviation Dean Adon Clark.
Jagwire
The seeds of success: Augusta University celebrates growth, vision for future with Fall Kick-Off
Written by Milledge Austin
The oak tree is planted firmly in the history surrounding Augusta University. The original Arsenal Oak, a white oak estimated to be more than 250 years old when it was removed in 2004, towered over the university’s Grove and served as the dominant symbol of the Summerville Campus. The oak tree’s historical significance led to its inclusion, along with the university seal, in the branding of AU’s current strategic plan. Along those same lines, when Neil J. MacKinnon, PhD, executive vice president for academic affairs and provost of Augusta University, hosted the ninth annual Fall Kick-Off for faculty and staff on Aug. 14, he opened the event with an audio clip from comedian Steve Harvey regarding the oak tree. …It was a perfect analogy for the growth and potential of Augusta University, billed as a 10-year-old university with a nearly 200-year history, according to Augusta University President Brooks A. Keel, PhD. …In recent years, Augusta University has been one of only a few institutions within the University System of Georgia to continually see enrollment growth, including posting the second-highest growth in the system last academic year. Augusta University was also the leader of the four research universities in the system for enrollment growth during the most recent semester, and for that accomplishment, Keel was presented a trophy, dubbed the Chancellor’s Cup by USG Chancellor Sonny Perdue, in early August with the caveat that he could only keep it if AU once again posted growth in the fall semester.
41WMGT
GCSU Financial Literacy Club teaching students how to manage money
“What I think students here problem need to do a better job of is getting adequately and financially literate.”
By Edward Smart
Georgia College and State University wants to teach students financial literacy. For many, college is the first time students have to manage money. Without guidance budgeting, it can be difficult. With the new semester underway, GCSU offers a Financial Literacy Club to help students manage their money. Professor Brent Evans teaches financial literacy at GCSU. He says choosing to go to college can be one of the most financially important decisions you can make, and it’s important to teach students to manage their money.
Braselton News Today
Hoschton resident awarded PAGE John Robert and Barbara Moore Lindsey Scholarship
Cameron Reid Smith, of Hoschton, is the recipient of the PAGE John Robert and Barbara Moore Lindsey Scholarship. The $1,000 Scholarship goes to an “outstanding Georgia Southern University PAGE member in a teacher education program who will soon be entering Georgia’s classrooms.” Recipients commit to teach in Georgia for three years. Smith is a secondary education major at Georgia Southern University. The scholarship is given each year through the Professional Association of Georgia Educators (PAGE) Foundation.
Americus Times Recorder
Food Distribution Day in Plains Draws Volunteers from Rotary and GSW
By Joshua Windus
The monthly food distribution in Plains took place August 19th. Jennifer Olsen, an organizer for the giveaway, explained how it unfolds. “Every month on the third Saturday we have hundreds of cars and usually serve about three hundred families with food including today milk, chicken, fish, fruit, and vegetables.” …“For probably over four years. Mrs. Carter started this. Before the pandemic she’d be out here at the end of the line giving away the bread at the end of the line as every car came through.” …“This was started as a ministry out of Maranatha Baptist church but today you see we’ve got students from GSW, the leadership program, student athletes, Americus Rotary Club, and a number of other community members.” …Alainey Breaux was one of the freshmen volunteers from Georgia Southwestern. She described how she came to participate. “I’m in the president Jimmy Carter leadership program.” “We do a bunch of community service and so this is our first big event.” She told how volunteering is a core part of the program.
The George-Anne
Georgia Southern Alumna Launches Dream Career in Savannah’s Film/TV Industry
Taylor Tuscai
Brianna Black has always been captivated by film’s ability to tell a story. From an early age, she developed a deep-rooted connection to movies and television and used them to relate to the world. By 10 years old, Brianna had her sights set on a career in the film industry. …In 2018, Brianna enrolled in Savannah Technical College where one of her professors introduced her to Georgia Film Academy (GFA) courses offered at Georgia Southern University. When she learned of GFA’s unique entertainment arts certifications, she knew she had to take the leap and move schools to begin her journey toward her dream career. …In 2020, Brianna transferred to Georgia Southern University where she eventually earned a degree in multimedia film and production and completed GFA’s Film & Television Production certification in 2022.
WGAU Radio
UGA’s new faculty members recap statewide tour
By Roy Parry, UGA Today
A group of new University of Georgia faculty members traveled across the state last week, visiting 13 cities and passing through 40 counties from the coast to the mountains as part of the 2023 New Faculty Tour, which introduced them to the state’s economic, geographic, social and cultural diversity. The 31 faculty members, including two deans, who made up the tour group represented 17 colleges and schools, four Public Service and Outreach units and four other departments at UGA. The tour left campus Aug. 7 for the Archway Partnership community of Thomson/McDuffie County on its first stop. Faculty listened to community leaders and employees talk about the broad and ongoing impact of UGA. Additional stops on the five-day trip included UGA Marine Extension and Georgia Sea Grant at Skidaway Island in Savannah, the Georgia Ports Authority in Garden City, the Interfor timber facility in Baxley, the UGA campus in Tifton, …
GPB
New tech tools developed by Kennesaw State University will aid Cobb County with mental health calls
By: Ambria Burton
A research team at Kennesaw State University, one of Georgia’s largest universities, is developing new systems and software to help Cobb County first responders appropriately manage mental health 911 calls. This technology brings hope that Cobb first responders can use the system and software throughout Georgia and outside state lines. According to a KSU press release, “The idea began when Cobb Police and Fire recognized the need for help dealing with the overwhelming number of 911 calls they received about people in emotional distress.”
WGAU Radio
UNG faculty lead summer learning experiences
By Clark Leonard, UNG
University of North Georgia students experienced a variety of learning environments through study abroad and study away opportunities this summer. A total of 126 students participated in 10 faculty-led programs this summer, including 89 with study abroad and 37 with study away programs in the United States. An additional 107 students took part in more individualized study abroad experiences. One of the study abroad opportunities was “Film in Italy,” which sent 14 students to Barga, Italy, for five weeks with faculty member James Mackenzie, associate director for film in the School of Communication, Film & Theatre. Students on the trip began producing documentaries, which can be viewed as in-progress projects at this September’s Georgia Film Festival on UNG’s Gainesville Campus.
Middle Georgia CEO
Middle Georgia State University Hosting Visiting Fulbright Scholar-In-Residence From Ukraine
Middle Georgia State University (MGA) has been selected to host a Fulbright Scholar-in-Residence from Ukraine during the 2023-2024 academic year. Dr. Yuriy Loboda, associate professor at the National Defense University of Ukraine, was selected for the Fulbright award by the Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board. The Fulbright Scholar-in-Residence Program brings visiting scholars from abroad to U.S. colleges and universities, helping the institutions internationalize their curricula, campuses and surrounding communities, and diversify the educational experiences of their students, faculty, staff, and stakeholders. Loboda is one of more than forty-five Fulbright Scholars-in-Residence, and among 1,000 outstanding foreign faculty and professionals who will teach and pursue research in the United States for the 2023-2024 academic year through the worldwide Fulbright Visiting Scholar Program. Loboda will be in residence on MGA’s Macon Campus and will serve as a guest lecturer across all campuses, in addition to working with faculty on developing a curriculum focused on civil-military interaction, or CMI.
Atlanta Business Chronicle
Power 10: Here’s the health care leaders you should know
By Rebecca Grapevine and Melanie Lasoff Levs
There is no shortage of exceptional health care professionals in metro Atlanta. Between the only Level 1 trauma center in the city to globally recognized research facilities and medical schools to nonprofits and expanding suburban health systems, the region runs the gamut of what is necessary for a community to thrive. …The Chronicle’s Power 10, chosen by members of the editorial staff, are compelling people executives need to know. They keep metro Atlanta in the news, in the conversation and on the national and global stage. …Huanbiao Mo Dean, Lewis College of Nursing and Health Professions at Georgia State University …Huanbio Mo began his tenure as dean of Georgia State’s nursing school on July 1, 2020, right in the middle of a pandemic that shined a spotlight on the critical need — and gratitude -—for nurses. He was interim dean for a year and prior to that role, was the chair of Georgia State’s Department of Nutrition. Mo also is a professor of nutrition and holds a joint appointment in the university’s Department of Chemistry.
Americus Times Recorder
GSW’s fifth annual Day of Giving scheduled for Thursday, September 21
By Ken Gustafson
Georgia Southwestern State University (GSW) will host its fifth annual Day of Giving on Thursday, September 21. GSW’s Day of Giving is a yearly challenge to raise funds and support for the University. This year, the goals are to reach at least 400 individual donors and receive a gift from all 50 states, ultimately “turning the map gold.” “Each year, many of GSW’s contributors from all over the country circle this day on their calendars and we are incredibly grateful for every single donor,” said Stephen Snyder, assistant vice president for Advancement. “We anticipate more participation than ever for the 2023 Day of Giving.” The University will focus on raising money for six specific funds supporting the areas of scholarships,
The George-Anne
Vanessa Countryman, Special Projects Reporter
The GS Office of Public Safety sent an email to all GS students with some safety reminders to keep in mind. “While crime can happen anywhere, Georgia Southern officers, staff and faculty are committed to the security of our community,” said the Office of Public Safety.
University Business
Here are 2 campus safety measures colleges are buying into
A 2023 report by Campus Safety found that more than seven out of 10 (71%) campus protection professionals in higher ed, K12 and hospitals say they either plan on deploying new or upgraded mass notification solutions in the next two years, a 20-point increase compared to 2017.
By Alcino Donadel
With classes now well underway this fall for the majority of institutions, colleges and universities are looking to optimize their students’ success, especially among first-year students. But institutions are also looking to optimize campus safety amid a wave of stark reminders about how necessary it is. …
Intelligent video surveillance
Colleges and universities now have access to surveillance equipment with back-end systems that can analyze footage and transmute it into data that IT teams have access to using a “database-like search,” according to EdTech. Georgia Southern University employed a surveillance system in February that records the license plate of every car that goes into one of its parking lots. Collecting all the information on the place, it even has the capacity to jot down whether a car has a tag or not. New surveillance systems are able to record such crisp, granular surveillance—and turn it into quantifiable data—now that they are equipped with 1080p or even 4K video capturing technology.
Savannah Morning News
Coalition of Savannah organizations supporting mothers through National Breastfeeding Month
Laura Nwogu
August is National Breastfeeding Month and Healthy Savannah, along with local advocates, is continuing its push to help support families with newborns and increase inclusivity in the workplace. Breastfeeding provides many benefits for infants and mothers, including lowering the risk of certain diseases such as asthma and type 1 diabetes as well as providing a boost to the baby’s immune system. …That push is also seen locally. Nandi Marshall, an associate professor and associate dean of academic affairs in the Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health at Georgia Southern University, works with Chatham County employers to help make sure they have places for mothers to pump in the workplace.
Athens Banner-Herald
UGA researchers to perform necropsy on Lolita, the killer whale from Miami, per report
Sarah Dolezal
Lolita, the well-known killer whale also known as Toki, died Friday at the Miami Seaquarium. The 57-year-old orca was transported to the University of Georgia where a necropsy to determine cause of death will be performed by UGA researchers, according to the Miami Herald. Pritam Singh, who founded the nonprofit Friends of Toki, told the Herald a contract with UGA was signed “quite some time ago.” The Seaquarium posted on social media that the presumed cause of death was renal failure. Lolita has had multiple health scares over the years, including an infection that caused her to stop eating back in October.
WattPoultry
Darkling beetles: An economic threat to poultry producers
If the industry could determine the economic impact darkling beetles present to producers, it will be one step closer to eliminating them.
Meredith Dawson
The financial impact that darkling beetles have on broiler production is currently unknown. This is because darkling beetle infestations have a wide range of implications for producers that are near impossible to quantify. “There are at least one million darkling beetles, including the pupae, in every broiler house and there is currently no way to completely eradicate them,” said Nancy Hinkle, a University of Georgia (UGA) entomology professor. According to Hinkle, a research study to determine the economic impact of darkling beetles on poultry production would be extremely challenging, if not impossible. No two broiler houses or flocks are the same, making the economic impact of darkling beetles on each house different. However, finding out the impact is highly desirable, explained Hinkle.
Higher Education News:
Inside Higher Ed
South Carolina Drops ‘Diversity’ From Vice President’s Title
By Doug Lederman
The University of South Carolina has dropped the term “diversity, equity and inclusion” from the title of its chief administrator responsible for access and equal opportunity, The Post and Courier reported. Julian Williams, previously vice president for diversity, equity and inclusion, will henceforth be known as the vice president of access, civil rights and community engagement, according to an email message sent to the campus Monday, the newspaper reported.
Inside Higher Ed
Hundreds of Students Protest WVU’s Proposed Program and Faculty Cuts
West Virginia University students staged a walkout Monday to oppose the university’s significant proposed employee layoffs and program cuts.
By Ryan Quinn
West Virginia University’s proposal to eliminate nearly a 10th of its majors and 169 full-time faculty positions from its flagship campus led hundreds of students to protest Monday, as a student union’s organizing power added volume to the online employee protestations and national media coverage that’s been buffeting the institution for more than a week. Pressure on the administration to reverse its recommended cuts is growing as the WVU Board of Governors’ Sept. 15 vote on the proposals nears. The suggested cuts—not the first in recent years at West Virginia—were discussed around the end of the spring and through the summer, but WVU’s big reveal of how extensive the proposed layoffs and degree reductions would be didn’t come until Aug. 11.
Diverse Issues in Higher Education
National University Announced The Launch Of The Cause Research Institute
Veronica Fernandez-Alvarado
National University (NU) announced the launch of the Cause Research Institute (CRI), a new applied Research and Development arm that will coordinate research, scholarship, and other innovation efforts focused on social sector challenges, including education, health, human services, and criminal justice. This institute will seek to close the academic barriers that marginalized and nontraditional students face in higher education. The CRI will concentrate on expanding undergraduate, graduate, and postgraduate research opportunities for underrepresented students and institutions. The institute will serve as a hub that will work with broad-access universities, community colleges, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Hispanic Serving Institutions, and K-12 schools that can now engage members of NU’s community to support various academic fields.
Inside Higher Ed
AI Raises Complicated Questions About Authorship
As the public awaits clarity on the legality of generative AI outputs, academics parse differences between how machines and humans borrow in creative pursuits.
By Susan D’Agostino
Not long ago, readers who wanted access to original New York Times reporting generally had one option—access the stories via a paid subscription to the newspaper’s website or print edition. But OpenAI’s release of ChatGPT in late 2022 changed the news-consumption landscape. Now, readers can ask the bot to report on the newspaper’s (earlier) coverage, which diminishes incentives to visit its site. As a result, The New York Times is considering legal action against OpenAI, as reported by NPR. The move echoes recent open letters, social media posts and lawsuits from authors, academic publishers and others seeking to protect their intellectual property rights from generative AI tools.
Higher Ed Dive
University of Michigan offers striking graduate employees ‘last, best and final’ deal
The graduate student union could ratify the proposal as early as this week.
Laura Spitalniak, Associate Editor
The University of Michigan has moved to end a nine-month negotiation with the union representing its graduate student instructors and assistants, offering the group its “last, best and final offer.” The three-year contract proposal, which comes a week before the fall semester begins, includes varying pay increases for graduate employees at the university’s three campuses, improved workplace safety policies and lower healthcare costs. The Graduate Employees’ Organization, or GEO 3550, is one of the oldest graduate student unions in the country. It represents roughly 2,300 graduate employees teaching at the University of Michigan’s Ann Arbor, Dearborn and Flint campuses. Union members are expected to vote on the offer this week. If the union accepts the deal, it could bring an end to the nearly five-month strike, the longest in GEO 3550’s 53-year history.
Higher Ed Dive
Cornell will not renew Starbucks contract amid student pressure
The university’s agreement with the coffee giant ends in June 2025, and some students are counting Cornell’s decision to source a new vendor as win for organized labor.
Aneurin Canham-Clyne, Reporter
Cornell University plans to stop serving Starbucks coffee at its dining facilities at the end of June 2025, which is when its contract with Starbucks and Nestle’s “Proud to Serve Starbucks Partnership” expires, Cornell Vice President for University Relations Joel Malina confirmed in an email Thursday. Cornell appears to be the first university to cancel its contract with Starbucks as a result of the company’s response to the Starbucks Workers United campaign, according to Starbucks Workers United. Students at the university began pushing the administration to cancel its contract with Starbucks in May, when Starbucks announced it would close its last two corporate stores in Ithaca, New York, both of which were union stores, said Danielle Donovan, a student involved in a campaign to get the college to end its deal with Starbucks. Similar campaigns are underway at the University of Washington and in the University of California system to pressure those schools to stop serving Starbucks, a Starbucks Workers United spokesperson said.
Inside Higher Ed
Migrants Must Vacate Buffalo State Dorms
By Susan H. Greenberg
Buffalo State University will evict 44 migrants from its dorms this weekend after abruptly ending an agreement with a community health center to house undocumented immigrants on campus, The Buffalo News reported. The university, part of the State University of New York system, has allowed the migrants to live in dorm rooms since May to help alleviate overcrowding at the Jericho Road Vive Shelter. Buffalo State’s interim president, Bonita Durand, said that the arrangement was supposed to end this month but that the shelter had asked for an extension until February.
Diverse Issues in Higher Education
Students Mobilize for a New March on Washington
Jon Edelman
Sixty years ago this weekend, an estimated 250,000 people gathered on the National Mall to demonstrate for the civil and economic rights of African Americans in the famed March on Washington. At the protest, which is credited with playing a role in the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his famous “I Have a Dream” speech. Although progress has undoubtedly come in the ensuing decades, recent years have brought roadblocks. The Voting Rights and Fair Housing Acts have been gutted, as have the right to abortion and affirmative action. America has a yawning Black-white wealth gap and an epidemic of police violence. Hate crimes are up, and LGBTQ+ protections are being chipped away. And King’s speech is often twisted in service of arguments for race blindness or “neutrality.” With this in mind, civil rights leaders have organized a new March on Washington for August 26th, under the banner “Not a Commemoration, A Continuation.” Much like the March 60 years ago, one of the key constituencies will be students. Reverend Al Sharpton, president and founder of the National Action Network, the civil rights organization that is spearheading the new March, said that the participation of college students and young people is critically important given the recent assaults on affirmative action and the Supreme Court’s decision to reject student loan debt relief.
Cybersecurity Dive
Critical infrastructure security spending to grow 83% by 2027: ABI Research
Matt Kapko, Reporter
Dive Brief:
Critical infrastructure providers are poised to increase global spending on cybersecurity at a compound annual growth rate of 13%, according to projections ABI Research released Tuesday. The firm predicts cybersecurity spending among critical infrastructure organizations will jump from an estimated $129 billion in 2022 to almost $236 billion by 2027. The biggest security spenders in critical infrastructure this year will include organizations in information and communication technologies, finance and defense. The three sectors will account for more than 60% of all security spending across critical infrastructure this year, according to ABI Research.
Cybersecurity Dive
Cuba ransomware group exploits Veeam to hit critical infrastructure
The threat actor also used malicious tools from previous campaigns, according to BlackBerry research.
Matt Kapko, Reporter
Dive Brief:
A critical infrastructure organization in the U.S. was attacked by the Cuba ransomware group via a months-old vulnerability in Veeam, according to BlackBerry research. The prolific ransomware group “deployed a set of malicious tools that overlapped with previous campaigns associated with this attacker, as well as introducing new ones, including the first observed use of an exploit for the Veeam vulnerability CVE-2023-27532,” BlackBerry said in Thursday blog post. The vulnerability, which affects Veeam Backup & Replication software, allows an attacker to potentially access credentials stored in the configuration file on victim devices.