GaBiz Magazine
GaBiz Editor in Chief talks with Chancellor of the University System of Georgia Sonny Perdue about the HOPE Scholarship’s 30th anniversary, student loans, and how the state stays competitive through education.
By Jennifer Bradley Franklin
A strong continuing education system is key to maintaining Georgia’s status as a top place to do business. The University System of Georgia (USG)—made up of 26 institutions, including four research universities, four comprehensive universities, nine state universities, and nine state colleges—leads the charge. The 2022–2023 school year saw more than 334,000 students enrolled in the USG statewide, 35 percent more than in 2003. Here, Chancellor Sonny Perdue, who served as the state’s 81st governor from 2003 to 2011, shares insight about the HOPE scholarship program’s educational boost, how USG is helping mitigate student loans, and how USG is rising to meet the needs of Georgia-based companies.
The Daily Tribune News
Former governor speaks in Bartow
James Swift
Former Georgia Governor and current University System of Georgia (USG) Chancellor Sonny Perdue spoke at a Cartersville-Bartow County Chamber of Commerce event on Aug. 1. Perdue began his presentation at the Clarence Brown Conference Center by discussing a recent visit to a truck stop chain — where starting pay for cashiers was listed at $18 an hour. “These kids coming out of high school, they’re saying ‘man, I can go get a $20 an hour a job, why should I pay to go to school?’” he said. “Well, that’s short sided thinking because you know what happens in a few years — they’re bright, aggressive young people and the manager comes and sits them aside and says ‘we’d love to move you into a managerial team, but our requirements are a four-year degree.’” Perdue cited longitudinal data indicating that individuals who obtain a four-year degree, on average, tend to make $1 million more over the course of their lifetimes compared to those who only obtain a high school diploma. “That’s why we do what we do,” Perdue stated at the Chamber’s quarterly luncheon gathering in Cartersville. “We are preparing lives for prosperity.”
accessWDUN
New UNG President: Community has been ‘warm, welcoming’
By Austin Eller News Director
Dr. Michael Shannon, the new president of the University of North Georgia, said he has been “nothing but impressed, excited, inspired,” in his first month in the role. Shannon took up the role on July 1, following the retirement of former President Bonita Jacobs. In an interview this week with AccessWDUN’s Austin Eller, Shannon said the university community has been very welcoming.
Emanuel County Live
Your future starts today at EGSC
David Schecter, President of East Georgia State College
To parents and students in the region:
I am going to start with a trick question if that’s okay. If I gave you $1 million just for going to college and earning a bachelor’s degree, would you take it? For most people the answer is an absolute ‘Yes’ and they would think I was crazy for asking. Why am I starting there? Because no matter what national data you look at, earning a bachelor’s degree means you will earn about $1 million more over the course of your lifetime. Statistically, you will earn an extra $30-$33,000 a year, on average, than someone with a high school diploma alone. Multiply that by thirty or thirty-five years of work – there is your $1 million. Pretty good deal. …I am inviting you to join us this Fall at East Georgia State College (EGSC) and start making your dreams a reality. … take those bold steps that you need right now to either come back to school and finish your degree or start classes with us on Monday, August 14th and get that ball rolling.
Gwinnett Daily Post
Georgia Gwinnett College students spend summer gaining real-world experience through internships
By Ken Scar Special to the Daily Post
Most college students take a break from their studies during the summer months, but a good number of proactive Georgia Gwinnett College students have spent that time learning career-defining skills as interns at a variety of companies and organizations. Here are a few of their stories:
Grayson Scott, business major
Grayson Scott, a senior from Lawrenceville studying management in GGC’s School of Business, landed an internship at the Atlanta office of the U.S. General Services Administration’s Office of Professional Services and Human Capital (PSHC). He was one of only 17 students selected for an internship position with the PSHC nationally, and the only college student from Georgia to do so. The PSHC is responsible for delivering federal government professional services, human capital and charge card management services.
WGAU Radio
UGA’s Mini Medical Camp inspires local students
By Kristen Linthicum, UGA Today
Carla Tipiani-Tumen, a rising junior at Clarke Central High School, is working toward her goal of becoming a psychiatrist. She is taking health classes at the Athens Community Career Academy and is learning about the medical profession. When she signed up for the University of Georgia’s Mini Medical Camp, she knew she would learn more about the path to medical school. But she was excited to find herself practicing sutures and interacting with a simulated patient. “It really surprised me that we learned how to suture skin and practiced it. I never would have expected to learn to do that,” she said. “We also got to talk to the patient dummy. I got the hang of it, and it was really fun.” Tipiani-Tumen joined about 30 other high school students this summer for a June session of UGA’s Mini Medical Camp. The weeklong program is offered five times throughout the summer to groups of 30 middle or high school students. It is administered through the Georgia Center’s Summer Academy Camps, and instruction is provided by Augusta University/University of Georgia Medical Partnership students.
Savannah Business Journal
Georgia Southern University to offer new executive master’s in criminal justice degree
Savannah Business Journal Staff Report
Georgia Southern University is offering members of the law enforcement community a chance to boost their careers with a brand new executive master’s in criminal justice (EMCJ), a program specifically tailored for law enforcement professionals seeking career advancement. This program is certified by the Georgia Peace Officer Standards & Training Council (P.O.S.T.) and offers a comprehensive curriculum designed to accommodate the demanding work schedules of law enforcement agencies. Students in the program follow a unique schedule that features two, three-week modules per semester, requiring only one week of on-site attendance at the Armstrong Campus in Savannah, Georgia. Program participants can complete their degree in just two years.
Georgia Trend
By Mary Anne Dunkin
Of all the occupations affected by the pandemic, perhaps none was affected more on in more ways than nursing – which was already suffering before the first COVID patients started arriving at Georgia hospitals in March of 2020. …At Augusta University College of Nursing, 20% of students enrolled in degree programs are men, says Tanya Sudia, dean of the college and associate vice president for Academic Affairs for Nursing. “there has definitely been a big push in the past decade to be more open across gender lines and across socioeconomic lines in both medicine and nursing,” says Blackmon. …Several nursing schools in Georgia – including Albany State University, Emory University, Georgia Southwestern State University, Georgia State University, Kennesaw State University, Mercer University and Valdosta State University – offer accelerated BSN degree programs for people who already hold a bachelor’s degree in an unrelated field. An accelerated BSN program launched this year at the University of North Georgia for people with an existing but unrelated bachelor’s or master’s degree.
Episcopal News Service
Episcopal leaders pledge support for Black male students at College of Coastal Georgia
By Caleb Galaraga
Around a dozen Black male students meet every Tuesday afternoon during the academic year inside the active learning space in the College of Coastal Georgia’s library to learn from and interact with community leaders. The weekly meetings on the Brunswick campus are part of the college’s African-American Male Initiative, which was established in 2001 by the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia to fill in the gaps in degree attainment existing between Black male students and their peers. Research shows there’s up to a 25% gap in college degree attainment for Black male students.
Athens Banner-Herald
18th century naturalist William Bartram remembered in Athens through speeches and beer
Wayne Ford
Famous 18th century naturalist William Bartram began a well-documented exploration in March 1773 as he entered an unmapped wilderness of what today is Georgia. That journey 250 years ago will be the subject of much discussion at the 2023 Bartram Trail Conference planned for Friday and Saturday at the University of Georgia Special Collections Library. The historic surveying expedition would not end until 1777 as Bartram and others crossed several Southern states, but spent most of the first year in Georgia. Bartrams’ eventual book, “Bartram’s Travels,” became a classic that describes the untarnished fauna, flora and native Indians of those bygone days of history.
Forbes
We Just Lived Through Earth’s Hottest July On Record – Why That Is Particularly Alarming
Marshall Shepherd, Senior Contributor (leading international expert in weather and climate and is Director of the University of Georgia’s (UGA) Atmospheric Sciences Program)
…We just lived through the hottest July on record. Let’s provide some context for that statement from a historical and future perspective. … The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) declared that the month of July was going to be the hottest on record four days before the month ended. In a press release the organization said, “According to ERA5 data from the EU-funded Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S), the first three weeks of July have been the warmest three-week period on record and the month is on track to be the hottest July and the hottest month on record.” Such heat has been associated with brutal and persistent heatwaves in the Northern Hemisphere. United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres went on to say, “Short of a mini-Ice Age over the next days, July 2023 will shatter records across the board.”
Flagpole
Sale of UGA President’s House Spurs Call for Preservation
by Blake Aued
The University of Georgia recently announced that it plans to sell the nearly 170-year-old President’s House, the university head’s official residence since 1949. But to whom, and for what? “I’m sure they have a buyer in mind,” Athens-Clarke County Commissioner Melissa Link said. “They [the Board of Regents] don’t do something like that without someone waiting in the wings.” … The President’s House is on the National Register of Historic Places, but that federal designation offers no protection, and it is not in a local historic district. However, the property is currently zoned “government,” so whoever buys it will have to go through the ACC Mayor and Commission for a rezoning, meaning there will be opportunities for public input, and ultimately commissioners will decide whether any proposal passes muster. … “The fact that it has to go through the planning commission and the mayor and commission is an opportunity to guide that development,” Link said. “I’m not losing my mind yet.”
WGAU Radio
UGA names new campus police chief
By Tim Bryant
There is a new police chief for the University of Georgia Police Department: the promotion goes to Deputy Chief Jeffrey Clark, a 26-year veteran of law enforcement at UGA and in the Athens-Clarke County Police Department. Clark fills the vacancy created when former campus police chief Dan Silk became the University’s vice president for public safety.
From Hayley Clement, UGA Media Relations…
Jeffrey L. Clark, deputy chief for engagement, training, and standards for the University of Georgia Police Department, has been named chief of police following the conclusion of a national search. Clark’s distinguished career in law enforcement spans an impressive 26 years between the UGAPD and the Athens-Clark County Police Department.
See also:
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Athens Banner-Herald
Former Georgia football player back with Bulldogs in role to help current athletes
Marc Weiszer
A former Georgia football linebacker under both Kirby Smart and Mark Richt is joining the UGA Athletic Association in a role to beef up its name, image and likeness staffing. Reggie Carter comes aboard with the title Athlete Marketing Manager in collaboration with outside firm Altius Sports Partners. Carter will work with UGA’s NIL director Tanner Potts and others “to ensure effective communication, compliance, and maximize NIL opportunities for UGA athletes,” the school said Wednesday.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Gainesville babysitter charged with assault after choking child, cops say
By Henri Hollis
A Gainesville woman was arrested months after she allegedly choked and “nearly killed” a child while she was babysitting, authorities said. Abby Elizabeth Chosewood, 23, was charged with felony assault in connection with an incident that took place in February, Gainesville police announced Tuesday. She is accused of nearly suffocating the child in her care, causing bodily harm, police said. The child was just a year old, Channel 2 Action News reported. …Chosewood, who said on her public Facebook page that she graduated from Georgia Southern University in 2022, is on probation after she pleaded guilty in Bulloch County to multiple charges related to stealing a debit card.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The Jolt: Former Trump Cabinet members voice misgivings about his candidacy
News and analysis from the politics team at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
By Patricia Murphy, Greg Bluestein and Tia Mitchell
Some of the politicians who know former President Donald Trump the best are steering clear of his comeback bid as he faces mounting legal issues, including a federal indictment this week and likely Fulton County charges later this month. … The first is former Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue, who was one of the few cabinet officials and senior aides who joined the Trump administration in 2017 and remained in their jobs through his 2020 election defeat. Perdue, a former two-term governor, now heads Georgia’s higher-education system, the University System of Georgia. He has declined comment on Trump’s candidacy given the theoretically apolitical framework of his job.
Other News:
accessWDUN
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp dangles the possibility of increased state spending after years of surpluses
By The Associated Press
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp said Wednesday he’s ready to loosen the purse strings after years of huge budget surpluses, reaped partly by holding down spending despite strong state revenue. In a yearly memo that kicks off the state budget process, Richard Dunn, director of the Office of Planning and Budget, told state agencies they can ask for 3% increases both when the current 2024 budget is amended and when lawmakers write the 2025 budget next year. He also invited agencies to propose one-time ways to spend the state’s unallocated surplus, which could top $10 billion once the books are closed on the budget year ended June 30. All proposals “should be targeted at initiatives that can ‘move the needle’ on program outcomes, improve customer service, or provide future improvement on how we do business or deliver services as a state,” Dunn wrote. …Georgia’s budget pays to educate 1.7 million K-12 students and 435,000 college students; house 49,000 state prisoners; pave 18,000 miles (29,000 kilometers) of highways; and care for more than 200,000 people who are mentally ill, developmentally disabled, or addicted to drugs or alcohol. Education is the state’s biggest expense, followed by health care.
Higher Education News:
Inside Higher Ed
Defining ‘First Generation’ in Different Ways
Colleges and governments offer financial and academic support for these students, but there’s no set standard among colleges for what the term means, as limits on affirmative action raise the stakes.
By Jessica Blake
Ahigh school junior who is thinking ahead about college wants to know if he can identify as a first-generation student on applications and qualify for financial and academic support tied to that status. His mother has a master’s degree, but she attended college outside the U.S. and is unable to help him navigate the American college application process. The student knows he will face challenges typically associated with first-generation status such as navigating the academic and social dynamics of college, learning how to apply for financial aid, and figuring out the course load needed each semester in order to graduate on time. But he’s unsure if he even qualifies as a first-generation student, and the contradictory and confusing information on the websites of the colleges he’s considering certainly don’t help. Brown University broadly defines first generation as “any student who may self-identify as not having prior exposure to or knowledge of navigating higher institutions.”
Inside Higher Ed
Students From Immigrant Families on the Rise
New reports suggest recruiting students born to immigrant parents and undocumented students is critical for colleges to stay diverse and stave off enrollment declines.
By Sara Weissman
Students from immigrant families now make up nearly a third of all students enrolled at American colleges and universities, according to a new report commissioned by the Presidents’ Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration. Students with immigrant parents, or who are immigrants themselves, represented 31 percent of all college students in 2021, up from 20 percent in 2000. The Presidents’ Alliance released two reports Wednesday. The first, developed in partnership with the American Immigration Council, explores the demographics of the undocumented student population, which is now 1.9 percent of the all college students nationwide. The second, produced by the Migration Policy Institute, focuses on students from immigrant families as a whole. The reports found that both groups of students make up a significant share of U.S. enrollments and boost the racial and ethnic diversity of student bodies.
Inside Higher Ed
2 More College Leaders Exit Abruptly
By Josh Moody
The last few weeks have brought a string of presidential departures across higher education, a trend that continues this week. Sonya Williams, chancellor of the Eastern Iowa Community Colleges, resigned in a special meeting on Tuesday night for personal reasons, according to The Quad City Times. Williams was hired to oversee the three-campus system last year, formally stepping into the job in August. She lasted only a year in the role. Mary K. Boyd, president of Emmanuel College, also stepped down in recent days, according to a Wednesday news release. The announcement indicated that her resignation was effective July 31—two days before the statement was issued—and cited “personal reasons” as the cause for her departure. Boyd had been at the Roman Catholic college in Boston for slightly over a year. The news of both resignations comes amid a wave of leaders resigning across the sector in recent weeks, many of whom were trailed by various controversies.
Cybersecurity Dive
Businesses improved cyber incident response times following Log4j, report finds
An Immersive Labs study showed security teams improved response times during attacks, but post-incident recovery still lagged.
David Jones, Reporter
Dive Brief:
Average security response times to cyberattacks improved from 29 days to 19 days between the 2021 and 2022, according to a study released Wednesday from Immersive Labs. The improvements in response time were largely driven by the Log4j crisis and other high-profile vulnerabilities discovered during the period. The research is based on organizations completing cyber simulations, spanning more than 1.1 million exercises and labs between April 2022 and April 2023. But security teams are largely unprepared to deal with the post-incident recovery, with most of their focus dealing with the earliest stages of an attack, Immersive Labs said.