University System News:
13WMAZ
After two years of enrollment decline, the University System of Georgia is seeing an increase
The growth includes some schools in Central Georgia.
Author: TJ Anthony
Eager, ambitious, but still a little confused about the future. That’s how many high school seniors feel after graduating, not knowing their path. Northside High School graduate, Kayla Chapman, found herself in that situation and headed to Denver after graduation. “I wanted to go somewhere to find out what I wanted to do,” explained Chapman. A job as a sales agent for a ski resort helped Chapman discover her love for marketing. … Chapman is pursuing a marketing degree at Middle Georgia State University. She’s one of the students who has caused fall enrollment at the University System of Georgia to hit a record high of 344,392. It’s an increase after two years of enrollment declines.
Americus Times-Recorder
Rosalynn Carter’s immeasurable impact on Georgia Southwestern State University
By Ken Gustafson
Rosalynn Carter had an immeasurable impact on millions of lives throughout the state of Georgia, around the nation and around the world through the many passions and causes that she championed. One place that felt her impact and still does to this day is her alma mater, Georgia Southwestern State University (GSW). “Her impact has been enormous,” said GSW President Neal Weaver, Phd. “She by far is our most famous alumnus. She’s certainly among the most accomplished of our alumni. I think she sends a message to all of our students and all of our other alumni that no matter where you come from, you can really make a difference in this world. Georgia Southwestern can be a part of that journey and we should all be very proud of our institution and how we do things and the culture that we have.” Dr. Weaver went on to say that her legacy on campus is remarkable and that the Carter family is incredibly important to the university. … Rosalynn Carter graduated from Georgia Southwestern in 1946, when it was a two-year institution. Rosalynn Carter was also very involved with the university during the years after she graduated from GSW. According to Dr. Weaver, about 35 years ago, she established the Rosalynn Carter Institute for Caregivers on the GSW campus.
See also:
WTVM
WALB
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Bulldogs strengthen grip on No. 1 in College Football Playoff rankings
By Chip Towers
There certainly was no surprise in Georgia remaining No. 1 in the fourth College Football Rankings release of the season Tuesday night. The Bulldogs looked dominant in every sense of the word in defeating a top 25-ranked Tennessee team 38-10 on the road before over 100,000 fans Saturday night in Knoxville. But there was a new No. 4 among the top four Tuesday – the Washington Huskies — and that could become relevant to Georgia (11-0) later if it can win its next two games against Georgia Tech and Alabama and hang onto the No. 1 spot. … After facing Georgia Tech on Saturday in Atlanta (7:30 p.m., ABC), the Bulldogs still have a game remaining against Alabama in the SEC Championship game.
Times-Georgian
Wolves nationally ranked, Jackson honored for second straight week
By Darrell Redden UWG Sports
After a perfect start to the 2023-24 season, the University of West Georgia Men’s Basketball team find themselves in the NABC Division II Coaches Poll, coming in at #22, which was announced by the NABC on Tuesday. The Wolves are recognized as the 22nd best team in the country, after going 4-0 in non-conference play with double-digit wins coming against Embry-Riddle, Palm Beach Atlantic, Fort Valley State, and Point.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Georgia Tech takes on UGA – in annual toy drive
23rd annual Michael Isenhour Toy Drive benefits children’s shelter
By Jozsef Papp
Liz Patterson and a couple of her Georgia Tech volleyball teammates stood outside Bobby Dodd Stadium during the final home football game of the 2021, hoping to best University of Georgia fans off the field. The friendly wager between Tech and Georgia fans — who could donate the most money and toys? — benefited the Atlanta Children’s Shelter. … The tradition continues on Nov. 25 for the 23rd consecutive year as Georgia Tech student athletes host the Michael Isenhour Toy Drive. Isenhour, a former Georgia Tech basketball player, launched the event after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks to help families impacted by the tragedy. The drive was named in honor of the Lawrenceville native after he died in 2002 after a battle with acute lymphoblastic leukemia. The drive, always held at the last home game of the football season, benefits the Atlanta Children’s Shelter and honors Isenhour.
Savannah Morning News
Georgia football vs. Georgia Tech: Scouting report, prediction
Marc Weiszer, Athens Banner-Herald
Georgia football is winning its share of rings and hardware these days. Last year’s team won the SEC East, the SEC championship, the Peach Bowl and of course the national title. This year’s team wrapped up the East title Nov. 11 and has everything else still in front of it. First things, first. They want to be able to make it six in a row against Georgia Tech. “You’re playing for something every time you play them because you’re playing for a state championship, so it’s important,” coach Kirby Smart said.
Emanuel County Live
A lasting impression: Meet inspiring teacher, Sonya Rountree
It’s safe to say that we have all experienced at least one inspirational teacher who helped us understand their subject more and taught us to become a better person. The best teachers pass on this burning enthusiasm to their students, inspiring students to view the subject through refreshed lenses and to see things from a different perspective. Mrs. Sonya Rountree was chosen by Twin City Elementary as their Teacher of the Year. When asked as a teacher and student representative what message she would communicate to her profession, Mrs. Rountree stated, “The teaching profession is one of ups and downs, lots of hard work, worry, and overall fatigue, but it is also one of the most fulfilling and humbling adventures one will ever experience. The students that come to my classroom are special. They were sent to me with a purpose, and it is my aspiration to make a personal connection with each of them. In no time at all, they are referred to as “my babies.” The love for each of them grows from there. The joy of educating them begins with loving them.” Quoting Aristotle, she said, ‘“Educating the mind without educating the heart is not education at all.” Sonya is married to Darrell Rountree and they have two daughters, Anna Wilson and Camryn Rountree. They also have two grandchildren, Hunt and Henley. Sonya enjoys spending time with her family, drinking coffee and working in her flower gardens. Mrs. Rountree graduated from Georgia Southern University in 1992 and began her teaching career in Emanuel County in August of that same year.
Morning AgClips
UGA Hosts Southern Regional Dairy Challenge®
Fifty-six students from 11 colleges worked to improve their dairy management skills
The Rock Eagle 4-H Center in Eatonton, Georgia was home base for the 2023 Southern Regional Dairy Challenge held November 16 to 18. The event was hosted by the University of Georgia. Fifty-six dairy students from 11 colleges worked to improve their dairy management and communication skills, networked with other students, and explored industry careers. Dairy Challenge is a unique, real-world experience where dairy students work as a team and apply their college coursework to evaluate and provide solutions for an operating dairy farm. The events were coordinated by the southern regional planning committee. Teams were compiled from different universities into four and five member teams. Teams competed for awards based on their quality of farm analysis and appropriate solutions.
Independent News
Wexford councillors assured that Adoration Convent student accommodation plan is progressing
Pádraig Byrne
Wexford People
Members of Wexford County Council have been assured that work is continuing behind the scenes on the project to convert the historic Adoration Convent in Wexford town into student accommodation to serve the Georgia Southern University (GSU) Wexford campus in the old municipal buildings. It’s now been two years since the announcement that Wexford County Council was to partner with the American university to deliver desperately needed student accommodation in the old convent building, which was vacated by the Adoration Sisters back in 2019. In May of this year, GSU President Kyle Marrero arrived to sign contracts worth in the region of $400,000 to progress the project, with Stephen Carr Architects appointed to the design.
Medical Xpress
Study investigates using telemedicine for flu diagnosis
by Lauren Baggett, University of Georgia
Imagine you’re feeling achy. You have a cough, and you might have a fever. It’s flu season, so you want to have a doctor check you out. Almost a quarter of Americans now opt for a telehealth visit, which public health experts say has helped to keep sick people out of community spaces where they can spread illness. But the transition to telehealth visits also means rewriting some of the rules clinicians depend on to make diagnostics decisions. “We know that telemedicine is working in identifying high-risk patients, but we know that we can do better also,” said Zane Billings, an epidemiology and biostatistics doctoral student at the University of Georgia’s College of Public Health. Billings and co-authors from UGA Public Health recently published a study in the Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine that tests the accuracy of existing clinical decision rules for flu in a telehealth setting using only patient-reported symptoms.
Pharmacy Learning Network
Drug Purchases From Foreign Countries Lack US Safeguards
Jolynn Tumolo
Rising prescription drug prices may prompt some consumers to seek less expensive medications from foreign countries, but pharmacists can help promote drug safety by educating patients on US safeguards such as the Prescription Drug Marketing Act, according to an article in StatPearls. “The primary concern surrounding the purchase of prescription drugs from abroad is the challenge of monitoring the storage and handling of the medications and the increased risk of counterfeit medications. This leads to the lack of safety and efficacy of medications,” wrote authors Christian Cullen, MD, of the Medical College of Georgia, Augusta, Georgia, and Rachel Stephens-Utne, PharmD, of Augusta University Medical Center, Augusta, Georgia.
The Rheumatologist
Rheumatic Disease & Reproductive Health
Jason Liebowitz, MD
Updates from the ACR Convergence 2023 Review Course, part 7
The pre-conference Review Course at ACR Convergence 2023, held Saturday, Nov. 11, and moderated by Noelle Rolle, MBBS, assistant professor in the Division of Rheumatology, associate program director of the Rheumatology Fellowship at the Medical College of Georgia, Augusta University, and Julia Schwartzmann-Morris, MD, associate professor, Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell, Great Neck, N.Y., tackled numerous important topics in rheumatology.
Specialty Crop Grower
Pecan Producers Contemplating Farming Futures Amid Discouraging Season
By Clint Thompson
While input expenses remain high, pecan prices are staggeringly low. That has forced some growers to contemplate their farming future, says Lenny Wells, University of Georgia Extension pecan specialist. “There’s a lot of discouragement out there right now. The costs of production have gone up. The prices have dropped. Even in the face of a short crop, the prices aren’t going up where it seems like they should,” Wells said. “This has been happening for several years now. It’s not a good place for a lot of them. A lot of them are discouraged and trying to figure out how to make it work.”
Higher Education News:
Inside Higher Ed
An AI Playbook for Improving College Completion
Complete College America released a playbook and equity paper detailing AI’s potential use in scaling and achieving a degree.
By Lauren Coffey
A national nonprofit group focused on college completion has released a playbook looking at uses for artificial intelligence to equalize and scale access to college degrees. Complete College America’s 78-page playbook and accompanying equity paper offers specific steps for institutions that the group says can help boost college attainment and close equity, race and socioeconomic gaps. The playbook and paper mention over 200 uses for AI, from identifying students who need support to mining datasets. It follows the growing use and interest in AI following the launch of ChatGPT last year, and flows from the group’s creation of a 20-person Council on Equitable AI in Higher Education.
Inside Higher Ed
Debating the ‘Art’ of Institutional Statements
Four university presidents discussed the growing challenge of deciding when and whether to weigh in on controversial domestic or international affairs.
By Jessica Blake
College presidents have long had to balance the rights of students, faculty and staff to speak freely, protest peacefully and debate civilly while also ensuring their campuses are safe spaces open to free exchange of ideas and political and religious perspectives. Doing so was never easy, but it has grown exponentially difficult since the start of the Israeli/Palestinian war. College leaders are now grappling with numerous challenges to this often delicate balancing act and finding themselves under fire from internal stakeholders and external critics, including federal and state lawmakers, national advocacy groups and influential thought leaders and deep-pocketed donors. Four university presidents recently took part in a virtual conversation about their differing approaches and processes for deciding when to speak on behalf of their institutions about the major issues of the day and how they’ve navigated recent tensions on their campuses. The event was held last week and organized by the Bipartisan Policy Center, a Washington think tank.
Diverse Issues in Higher Education
Survey: Jewish Students Face Fear and Anxiety Post Oct. 7 Hamas Attack
Arrman Kyaw
Jewish students find themselves in fear and facing sadness on their college campuses ever since the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel, according to a recent survey by Jewish campus organization Hillel International.
The online survey – conducted by market research firm Benenson Strategy Group for Hillel International from Nov. 14-15 – included 300 Jewish college students.
Inside Higher Ed
U. of Tampa Added to List of Colleges Under Investigation for Bias Against Jews, Muslims
By Katherine Knott
The Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights has opened an investigation into the University of Tampa for possible discrimination involving shared ancestry, as well as a second probe into Columbia University. The department has now initiated 12 such investigations—eight of which involve a college or university—since the start of the Israel-Hamas war that has spurred protests on campuses and a flurry of antisemitic or Islamophobic incidents. That’s according to a public list that was first released last week and will be updated weekly. OCR has seen an influx of complaints in response to rising campus tensions. Last year, the office opened 15 investigations related to shared ancestry discrimination, according to CNN.
Higher Ed Dive
University of Nebraska at Kearney to cut around 2 dozen faculty positions
The 6,000-student campus is facing an expected budget shortfall of $4.3 million, according to officials.
Laura Spitalniak, Staff Reporter
Dive Brief:
The University of Nebraska at Kearney will eliminate 24.5 faculty positions and nine academic degree programs to help mitigate an expected $4.3 million budgetary shortfall. A significant portion of faculty cuts will affect the theater, English and music departments, the university said in a Monday statement. Laid-off faculty will be notified by May, though some cuts are expected to come through voluntary buyouts or eliminating vacant positions. The cuts are projected to save the university $2.3 million. The system’s board of regents will have to approve the degree discontinuations.
Inside Higher Ed
South Dakota College Proposes Cannabis Education Requirement
Voters approved medical cannabis in the state in 2020, but the industry still has critics. Can an education program for marijuana dispensary workers improve the industry’s credibility?
By Kathryn Palmer
A South Dakota college wants to support the state’s emerging, but controversial, medical marijuana industry by creating an education program for dispensary workers. Benjamin Valdez, vice president of academic affairs at Southeast Technical College in Sioux Falls, presented the preliminary idea to the state legislature’s Medical Marijuana Oversight Committee earlier this month. The proposed semester-long certificate curriculum would include courses on medical marijuana laws, pharmacology, ethics, compliance in dispensing and a capstone where students would demonstrate their knowledge in an industry setting. “If we are to ensure the safety of citizens of South Dakota and of this narcotic as it is being dispensed in the form of medication, we are advocating that we look at some form of education for these individuals,” Valdez told the committee.