Gwinnett Daily Post
Georgia Gwinnett College’s Enrollment Numbers Continue to Grow
From Staff Reports
Preliminary numbers show that enrollment at Georgia Gwinnett College continues to grow this spring. Officials from the college’s enrollment management office place GGC’s spring student enrollment at 11,115, which is up 4% from this time last year. “GGC has experienced enrollment growth for five consecutive semesters,” said Michael Poll, GGC’s vice president for enrollment management. “That’s good news for GGC.” Poll said new student admission applications for the fall 2024 semester are currently running 6% ahead of fall 2023, which is an all-time high. Poll said he expects the trend to continue.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Bill would allow Georgia college students to get need-based aid sooner
By Vanessa McCray
Lawmakers are trying once again to relax need-based financial aid rules so that Georgia students can get help earlier in their college studies. House Bill 1124, filed last week and sponsored by Rep. Chuck Martin, R-Alpharetta, proposes changes to the Georgia College Completion Grant Program, which launched in 2022 and is aimed at helping students who can’t afford to finish college. …The state’s technical colleges used almost 58% of their allocated funds for the completion grant program, compared to 73.5% for the University System of Georgia and 86% for private schools, according to a recent commission report.
The Times-Georgian
UWG’s online MBA remains No. 1, online bachelor programs No. 2 in Georgia
By Julie Lineback Special to the Times Georgian
For the third consecutive year, the University of West Georgia’s online MBA program remains top in the state, as announced by media powerhouse U.S. News & World Report’s annual rankings. The institution’s online master’s degrees in education were also noted as being among the highest-quality programs in the nation, which is no surprise, given the programs’ enrollment growth and national reputation in advancing the careers of educators.
WGAU Radio
Five UNG students earn Fulbrights for study in Canada
By Clark Leonard, UNG
Five University of North Georgia students have earned selection for the Fulbright Canada Mitacs Globalink program for summer 2024. The program provides sophomores and juniors the opportunity to conduct 10-12 weeks of fully-funded research in Canada between May and August. UNG had one student take part in the program in 2023. “We are thrilled to see a growth in interest across the disciplines and campuses,” Dr. Anastasia Lin, assistant vice president for Academic Affairs and director of the Nationally Competitive Scholarships office, said. “Our winners include both STEM and humanities majors, and many have taken classes on multiple UNG campuses.”
Columbus CEO
Columbus State University Grants Military Education Credit Toward Graduate-level Studies
Columbus State University continues to develop new pathways for active-duty military personnel to earn their master’s degrees. The newest of those pathways includes awarding soldiers with nine academic credit hours for specific professional military education. Graduates of Fort Bliss’ resident U.S. Army Sergeant Major Academy who pursue the university’s Leader Development track in the Master of Science in Organizational Leadership program are eligible to receive up to nine transfer credit hours. …Earning a master’s degree while enrolled in a Captains Career Course (CCC) has proven to be an effective way for soldiers to advance their careers.
Classic City News
UGA professor recognized for contributions to microbiology
Diana Downs, a Research Professor in the department of microbiology at the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences, has been appointed as a Regents’ Professor by the University of Georgia. This title is a high recognition given by the University System of Georgia Board of Regents. Downs’ work in microbial physiology, bacterial genetics, and metabolism has been acknowledged. She has 126 peer-reviewed publications and has received continuous funding for 30 years from sources such as the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation.
Psychiatric Times
Psychological Pain and Suicidality in Patients With Depression
Brian Miller, MD, PhD, MPH (Dr Miller is a professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Health Behavior at Augusta University in Georgia.)
MDD is associated with an increased risk of suicide, so, identifying risk factors for and predictors of suicide in this patient population is crucial. Psychological pain (psychache) is an important factor in understanding suicide. Psychological pain is characterized by intense feelings of shame, humiliation, anguish, despair, loneliness, and dread, as well as feelings of failure, abandonment, and belief that the pain is irreversible. Suicide may be viewed as the only means of escaping psychological pain that exceeds an individual’s threshold of tolerance. Higher levels of psychological pain are associated with increased suicide risk. A previous meta-analysis explored the impact of psychological pain in suicide, but the role of depression in this relationship remains unclear.
The Daily Star
Hartwick professor presents paper on abortion laws
Staff Report
A recent study on public attitudes toward abortion laws reveals that increased knowledge about pregnancy leads to a higher likelihood of opposing legislation restricting women’s access to abortions, according to a media release from Hartwick College. The study, conducted by a research team that included Laurel Elder, a political science professor and department chair at Hartwick, also indicates that laws limiting abortion after 12 weeks do not enjoy greater support compared to those limiting access after six weeks. …Elder wrote the paper, “Public Opinion on Abortion in Post-Roe America,” with co-authors Steven Greene, professor at North Carolina State University, and Mary-Kate Lizotte, professor at Augusta University.
WSAV
Take an exclusive look at new GSU convocation center
by: Eden Hodges
A $64 million Georgia Southern facility is starting to take shape. The 95,000 square foot, double-decker building will be the biggest venue between Savannah and Macon. The GS’ convocation center is the first of their signature buildings on the south campus.
The George-Anne
Black History at Georgia Southern
Briyanna Thompson, Editor In Chief
Founded in 1906, it took Georgia Southern almost 50 years to become integrated. The first black student GS enrolled as a grad student in the Fall of 1965 along with 6 undergraduate students. John Bradley was a high school teacher in Statesboro before he enrolled at GS as a grad student.
Columbus CEO
Columbus State Alumni Lead this Year’s Class of Muscogee County Teachers of the Year
More than two-thirds of this year’s class of Muscogee County School District Teacher of the Year honorees have a Columbus State University degree hanging on their walls. In fact, a quarter of them have two, and sometimes three, CSU degrees. The Muscogee Educational Excellence Foundation (MEEF), which coordinates the annual Teacher of the Year selection and recognition process on the school system’s behalf, announced this year’s honorees on Jan. 24 in the university’s Legacy Hall. Of the 55 educators named teachers of the year by their respective schools, 38 are graduates of Columbus State.
Higher Education News:
Higher Ed Dive
As states drop degree requirements, does a 4-year diploma’s value change?
Although new policies are propping up workers without degrees, experts say higher education will continue to play a role in hiring decisions and pay rates.
By Danielle McLean
In March 2022, then-Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan unveiled a “first-in-the-nation” program rolling back degree requirements for thousands of government jobs. The move was part of an effort to fill a large number of position vacancies. Since then, at least 19 other states have followed suit, either by approving policies to evaluate whether degree requirements should be removed or by nixing them altogether. Policymakers expect for these moves to help fill state government vacancies by providing new job opportunities for workers who didn’t attend four years of college.
Diverse Issues in Higher Education
Arrman Kyaw
Less than a third of parents surveyed (28%) said that they would be disappointed if their child did not pursue college after high school, according to a new report commissioned by American Student Assistance (ASA) and Jobs for the Future (JFF). “Beyond Degrees” focuses on investigating people’s views and ideas of non-degree pathways, defined in this context as “non-degree-bearing education-to-career options,” such as apprenticeships, bootcamps, industry certifications, certificate programs, and occupation licenses. Though some of these pathways can ultimately add up to degrees, it is not a requirement for pathways to do so.
Inside Higher Ed
ACLU Warns Against Adopting Antisemitism Definition
By Johanna Alonso
The American Civil Liberties Union urged U.S. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona to reject the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of antisemitism, arguing in a letter Tuesday that it would chill free speech about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict on campuses.
Higher Ed Dive
Foxx demands Cardona resignation over antisemitism response
The Republican lawmaker said failure to condemn a chant as antisemitic amounted to “cowardly evasion.”
Roger Riddell, Senior Editor
Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-North Carolina, called for the resignation of U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona on Tuesday, blasting him for not condemning the chant “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” as being antisemitic. Referencing reporting from the Jewish Insider, Foxx said in a statement that Cardona’s refusal to acknowledge the chant used by pro-Palestine demonstrators as antisemitic amounts to “cowardly evasion.”
Higher Ed Dive
Birmingham-Southern could get second chance at state bailout
An Alabama bill would install a new loan administrator to replace the state treasurer, who denied the college’s application for $30 million.
Laura Spitalniak, Staff Reporter
Dive Brief:
Alabama lawmakers filed a bill Tuesday that would replace the administrator of a loan program set up to help the financially struggling Birmingham-Southern College after the official denied the private institution’s application last year for a $30 million bailout. The bill could revive Birmingham-Southern College’s chances of receiving a loan from the state. The college’s president, Daniel Coleman, praised the changes Wednesday and urged community members to contact state legislators in support of the bill. Under the proposal, the leader of the Alabama Commission on Higher Education would administer the loan — not State Treasurer Young Boozer. Neither Boozer nor the higher education commission immediately responded to a request for comment Wednesday.
Diverse Issues in Higher Education
College Fund Offers American Indian Law School Scholarship to Attend Harvard Law
Johnny Jackson
The American Indian College Fund has announced its third American Indian Law School Scholarship for a student entering Harvard Law School in the fall of 2024. The scholarship, made possible by a $1 million gift from an anonymous donor, covers tuition and all costs of attendance for an American Indian or Alaska Native law student enrolled in Harvard Law School’s three-year course of study. The goal is to eliminate financial hurdles to earning a juris doctor degree at Harvard Law School.
Inside Higher Ed
U.S. Opens 2nd Civil Rights Investigation Into Harvard
By Katherine Knott
The Education Department has opened a second civil rights investigation into allegations of shared-ancestry discrimination at Harvard University, according to the agency’s updated list of open inquiries. This latest probe comes in response to a complaint from the Muslim Legal Fund of America that alleges Harvard failed to protect Arab and Muslim students and others who support Palestine from harassment and threats, according to a news release from the Muslim Legal Fund.