The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Georgia colleges weigh use of ACT, SAT test scores in admissions decisions
By Vanessa McCray
Georgia colleges are revisiting a relic of the COVID-19 pandemic era: the test-optional admissions policy. Numerous schools around the state and the nation paused ACT or SAT mandates in 2020 when the spread of the virus made it difficult to administer the exams to groups of test-takers. Now, the Georgia Board of Regents, which governs the University System of Georgia, will soon decide whether it should continue to waive the test requirement at 23 of its 26 schools or reinstate testing for those applying for admission in fall 2025.
Americus Times-Recorder
Apply for free to GSW this spring during Apply to College Month
By Joshua Windus
Georgia Southwestern State University (GSW) is waiving its undergraduate application fee throughout the months of March and April and continues to waive SAT/ACT test score requirements for students with a 3.0 or higher high school GPA. The Georgia Student Finance Commission (GSFC) has partnered with the University System of Georgia, the Technical College System of Georgia, and private institutions to provide application fee waivers to Georgia high school seniors through the Find Your MATCH in March initiative. Georgia Southwestern is one of 49 institutions across the state participating in the initiative and will extend their application fee waiver through April as well. This is the 3rd year GSFC has promoted application fee waivers for the month of March, and the first year to incorporate the new GEORGIA MATCH direct admissions initiative.
Albany Herald
UGA class of ’23 graduates achieve 96% employment, continuing education rate
By Clarke Schwabe
The University of Georgia is succeeding in its efforts to ensure students’ success beyond graduation. According to career outcomes data released by the UGA Career Center, 96% of UGA’s Class of 2023 graduates were employed or continuing their education within six months of graduation. “This impressive career outcomes rate reflects the University of Georgia’s campuswide commitment to student success and the tireless efforts of countless individuals here,” UGA President Jere W. Morehead said. “Students and their families can be sure that a UGA education provides an extraordinary return on their investment.” According to career outcomes data released by the UGA Career Center, 96% of UGA’s Class of 2023 graduates were employed or continuing their education within six months of graduation.
See also:
Albany Herald
Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College hosts southwest Georgia minority participation summit
From staff reports news
Students from Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College recently hosted the 2024 Southwest Georgia Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation annual summit. Supported by the National Science Foundation, LSAMP promotes historically underrepresented students in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields. The overall mission of the Southwest Georgia LSAMP is to increase the number of qualified underrepresented minorities receiving baccalaureate degrees in STEM and those entering graduate school and the work force.
The Chronicle of Higher Education
Can This University Change Its Teaching Culture
The University of Georgia is making a push to adopt active learning. It could serve as a model.
By Beckie Supiano
Tim Samples could tell that his students were stuck. Earlier this semester, Samples, an associate professor in the legal-studies program at the University of Georgia, was teaching students about the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act in an upper-level course. The questions they were asking revealed to Samples that the class wasn’t quite getting it. So he had his students work together in small groups to organize information into a pro/con grid. Creating such lists, Samples has found, is a good way to identify and clear up misconceptions during class time — and students like walking out of class with a study guide, too. Samples says he’s long used active-learning techniques in his teaching, even before he knew that’s what he was doing. But working with the university’s teaching center has helped him grow more sophisticated in his approach. This summer, he went through the university’s Active Learning Summer Institute, an intensive program in which professors get stipends and support to redesign a course. That process pushes them to think through not just what they’re doing in the classroom, but why. The University of Georgia is trying to establish itself as a place where teaching the way Samples does — deploying active-learning techniques in a thoughtful way — is the norm.
Forbes
Where To Earn An Online Doctorate in Information Technology In 2024
By Mariah St John, Contributor
Pursuing or advancing a career in the tech industry can be highly rewarding and lucrative. This dynamic field stands at the cutting edge of innovation and boasts abundant job opportunities spanning diverse sectors, such as healthcare, education, finance, banking, consulting, automotive, and the government and public sector. …Earning an online doctorate in information technology can equip you for advanced research positions, including university-level teaching roles and leadership jobs. This article overviews the only two schools that meet our ranking criteria and offer online doctoral degrees in IT. …Middle Georgia State University, based in Macon, Georgia, offers an online Doctor of Science (D.Sc.) in information technology. The interdisciplinary curriculum comprises doctoral seminars and technology research, leadership and management courses, and focused topics coursework. Specific course offerings include contemporary IT issues, organizational cybersecurity management strategy and statistical analysis for decision making. Students engage in an applied research project that encourages them to find solutions to complex IT challenges. While all classes take place online, learners must complete brief residences at the beginning and end of the program.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Georgia Southern University mourns former president Nicholas Henry
By Vanessa McCray
Nicholas L. Henry, who championed Georgia Southern University’s ascent from a Statesboro-based college to a comprehensive university while serving as its president from 1987 to 1998, died Tuesday. He was 80. Henry was at the school’s helm in 1990, when the Georgia Board of Regents designated what was then known as Georgia Southern College as the state’s first regional university. The school celebrated the occasion with fireworks and, later, a speech by then-U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, whom Henry had gotten to know when he was a dean at Arizona State University and O’Connor was sitting on the Arizona Court of Appeals.
WGAU Radio
Morgans establish STEM scholarship at UNG
By Clark Leonard, UNG
University of North Georgia alumni Ray and Susan Morgan have established the Ray and Susan Prather Morgan Scholarship to support STEM students at UNG. Ray Morgan graduated from the university in 1969 and Susan Morgan in 1970. “We received a great foundation for life during our time at UNG, and we both went on to build successful careers,” Susan Morgan said. “We are very much encouraged by President Michael Shannon’s vision of the future of UNG with students at the center. We are very pleased to be a small part of that future.” Their generosity will provide an annual scholarship of up to $20,000 per year to a student in the College of Science & Mathematics. The full scholarship will cover tuition, fees, books, housing, and meals. Students are eligible for the scholarship by completing the general UNG scholarship application.
Athens CEO
Local Youth Focused on Future Through UGA, Clarke County Schools Partnership
Staff Report From Georgia CEO
The Georgia Possible program is helping high school students like Cedar Shoals High School 11th grader Jamar Bailey envision their futures. On a recent visit to Athens Technical College, Bailey had an opportunity to visit the welding department and meet with faculty and staff about the program. “Without Georgia Possible, I would not have learned as much about college,” Bailey said. “I have seen a path for the future laid out in front of me and through the program I can expand on what I want to do after high school.” Created by the University of Georgia and the Clarke County School District, Georgia Possible began as an initiative from University of Georgia President Jere W. Morehead. Launched in 2019, an inaugural class of 36 students graduated from the program in April 2022.
The Baldwin Bulletin
Grace Hopper and TAPIA pave the way for women in computing
By News Staff
From smartphones to social media to artificial intelligence, the technology industry is critical to our day-to-day lives. But it is not representative of our society. “It’s so heavily maledriven still,” said Jeannie Pridmore, chair of Georgia College & State University’s Department of Information Systems & Computer Science.
13WMAZ
CENTRAL GEORGIA FOCUS WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH
Video
Author: 13wmaz.com
Raymond Tubb and Middle Georgia State history professor, Dr. Kara Svonavec, discuss Women’s History Month.
Southern Living
How To Attract Birds To Your Feeder, According To An Expert
Make your backyard a bird’s paradise with these bird feeder tips.
By Abby Fribush
There’s nothing quite as delightful as getting a visit from a little backyard bird. From bluebirds to woodpeckers to hummingbirds, these avian beauties add music and movement to yards and gardens all throughout the South. Not only are they lovely to look at, they keep the insect population down and are a huge contributor to proper pollination. Just as birds come in all different shapes, colors, and sizes, each species is attracted to different feeders and feed. In fact, some birds don’t eat seeds at all. All bird species have their own set of behavioral patterns and diets that dictate which types of feeders they are more likely to frequent. Learn from the expert how to attract more birds to your feeders so you can enjoy the company of feathered friends. Mary Farr holds a B.S. in Biology from Georgia College and State University with a concentration in ornithology.
Clayton News-Daily
TIMOTHY DALY: Separating gardening myths from facts
By Timothy Daly Henry County Extension Services
For the home gardener, the internet provides a multitude of information. However, only some things you see in it are true. Many popular myths exist about growing and maintaining your lawns and garden plants. Trying to determine what is true and what is not can be challenging. Here are some common myths that many believe are true: …Myth: “The soil under pines and oaks is acidic.” Fact: The soil’s acidity depends upon the rocks beneath it, not the trees above it. Test your soil to see if your soil needs liming and how much to apply. Soil test through UGA Extension Gwinnett now, apply lime and fertilize using this information. Please contact the Extension office for instructions on testing your soil.
Popular Science
Sea cucumbers are the ‘scum suckers’ corals desperately need
These blob-like invertebrates keep critical ecosystems clean.
By Laura Baisas
Coral reefs all over the world are in serious danger. However, a critical way to keep reefs healthy likely comes from a lowly animal, some of whom spray goo out of their butts in self-defense. According to a study published February 26 in the journal Nature Communications, about 25 percent of coral reef’s health is dependent on sea cucumbers that keep the reefs clean. …Over harvesting a critical member of the reef Coral reefs currently face numerous threats, from ocean temperatures soaring to 100 degrees Fahrenheit to light harming their reproduction to bleaching. Reef health also may depend on sea cucumbers and the role that they play in the reef ecosystem. There are more than 1,200 species of sea cucumbers in the world’s oceans. These marine invertebrates can be less than an inch long up to six feet long and use their butts for both eating and breathing. They gobble up sediments on the ocean floor and on coral reefs similar to robot vacuum cleaners, sucking up, digesting, and then excreting sediments and eating bacteria. However, sea cucumbers have been over harvested for hundreds of years and cannot reproduce in low density areas and are much more difficult to find.
The Post and Courier
‘Brown Ocean Effect’ reveals how mud influences South Carolina’s hurricanes
By Jonah Chester
When Hurricane Florence hit South Carolina in 2018, it dropped nearly 2 feet of rain over its oddly long life. The flooding that ensued washed out entire communities. Now, researchers might have a better idea of what fueled Florence. The “Brown Ocean Effect” occurs when tropical systems pass over waterlogged ground. It could provide important lessons on how future hurricanes that strike the swampy Southeast behave. …Rethinking Saffir-Simpson J. Marshall Shepherd, director of the University of Georgia’s Atmospheric Sciences Program and an expert on the Brown Ocean Effect, said Florence and other Brown Ocean-influenced hurricanes reveal the flaws of relying too much on the Saffir-Simpson Scale. Ranging from Category 1 to Category 5, the scale is the most common measurement forecasters use to convey hurricane risk.
Grice Connect
New Statesboro Food Bank will feed families while nourishing local pride, and it’s coming along!
The Statesboro Food Bank’s new building aims to be a community center with classrooms, gardens, a dining hall, and a 6,500 square-foot food pantry. The vision is coming to life on West Parrish, but local support is still needed.
Jordan Wilburn Jordan Wilburn
Walking into the new Statesboro Food Bank building on West Parrish Street in Statesboro, one thing is immediately clear: it’s a building brimming with life. Visions of cooking classes, educational programs, community gardens and landscaping filled with edible plants spring into view through a tapestry of metal beams, pipes, and electrical wiring. …A vision brought to life The entrance opens into an inviting lobby for meeting with clients, and doorways for two community classrooms are visible on the left. Leach, who is a professor of interior design at Georgia Southern University, says her interior design students helped create some of the preliminary sketches and concepts.
Poets & Writers
Arts & Letters Prizes in Poetry, Fiction, and Nonfiction Are Just Around the Corner
This year’s Arts & Letters Prizes mark a quarter century for the contest in which three decorated judges select a group of poems, a short story, and an essay. The deadline for the twenty-fifth annual contest is March 31. The prize awards $1,000 and publication in Arts & Letters, a journal that has attracted both emerging and established writers such as Donald Hall, Sonja Livingston, and Xu Xi. …Founded by Martin Lammon in 1999 and operating out of Georgia College & State University’s MFA program in creative writing ever since, Arts & Letters has for nearly a decade been headed by its second editor, Laura Newbern, who’s also an associate professor in English at GCSU and a recipient of the 2010 Writer’s Award from the Rona Jaffe Foundation.
BVM Sports
Zawdie Jackson Named GSC Tournament MOP
After leading the University of West Georgia Men’s Basketball team to a GSC Championship on Sunday, Zawdie Jackson and Camron Donatlan were recognized by the conference with Jackson being named Tournament MOP and Donatlan being named to the All-Tournament team. Jackson was selected as the Tournament’s Most Outstanding Player…
BVM Sports
Women’s Basketball Takes Second in PBC Tournament Championship
The third-seeded Columbus State University women’s basketball team took second place at the Peach Belt Conference Tournament Championship on Sunday, March 10 after losing 52-57 to first-seeded Georgia Southwestern State University.
Higher Education News:
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Opinion: Why CTAE is a golden opportunity for Georgia students
By Greg Dozier and Richard Woods
Greg Dozier is commissioner of the Technical College System of Georgia. Richard Woods is superintendent of the Georgia Department of Education. In this guest column, Dozier and Woods discuss the benefits of state programs that aim to prepare Georgians for careers in several growing industries.
As the No. 1 state in the nation to do business, Georgia stands as a beacon of opportunity in today’s rapidly evolving job market. For parents and influencers in the Peach State, guiding our young learners toward a future that is both fulfilling and economically robust requires a keen understanding of the educational pathways available. Among these, Career, Technical and Agricultural Education (CTAE) programs in Georgia offer a unique blend of academic rigor and hands-on experience, tailor-made to meet the burgeoning demands of the modern workforce. Let’s explore why CTAE in Georgia is a golden opportunity for students readying for their careers.
Inside Higher Ed
Louisiana Stops Requiring FAFSA Completion in High School
Some state officials say the policy was burdensome and promoted college-going over more vocational paths. Critics of the change fear it will impede college attainment for needy students.
By Jessica Blake
In 2018, Louisiana became the first state in the nation to require all public high school students to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid before they graduate, boosting the number of Louisianans applying for federal financial aid and the flow of Pell Grants to students there. Despite those gains, the state has become the first state to eliminate such a requirement. The Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education voted to end its mandate last week, even though the policy appeared to increase financial aid awareness, and the state has been deemed a model for other states adopting similar requirements. State higher ed officials and some policy makers say Louisiana’s course change will relieve students and parents of a burdensome and invasive requirement and counter the narrative that college is the best path for everyone. But some higher ed experts worry the move will hinder public awareness of financial aid opportunities and impede the state’s efforts to ensure equitable access.
Inside Higher Ed
Lumina Awards Millions for Admissions Innovations
The seven winning states and university systems will use the funds for direct admissions, universal transfer pathways and other initiatives to simplify admissions.
By Johanna Alonso
Given the ambiguous future of standardized testing, troubles with FAFSA and the impact of the Supreme Court’s ban on race-based admissions—all unfolding in the shadow of the enrollment cliff—college admissions are at an inflection point. That’s why the Lumina Foundation decided to offer higher education institutions funding to rework their admissions processes. Launched last fall, the Great Admissions Redesign awards grants to governmental offices and higher ed systems looking to make admissions simpler and more accessible. Lumina targeted the effort at systems, agencies and groups—rather than individual institutions—because officials wanted to support initiatives that would be far-reaching and “pre-scaled,” according to Melanie Heath, strategy director for participation at Lumina.
Higher Ed Dive
Can microcredentialing help address teacher shortages?
UCLA’s ExcEL Leadership Academy aims to use the model to create a pathway for current teachers to earn multilingual certification.
Anna Merod, Reporter
As the need surges for teachers with multilingual instructional skills, the University of California, Los Angeles’ ExcEL Leadership Academy developed a microcredentialing program to help educators equip themselves with the necessary tools to serve multilingual learners. With funding from federal National Professional Development Program grants and UCLA’s Center X, ExcEL created 12 microcredentials in multilingual instruction. The academy has also worked with cohorts of educators throughout New England piloting the asynchronous learning modules during the program’s rollout. Microcredentials are a competency-based training approach that helps professionals gain and demonstrate new skills through asynchronous online learning.
Inside Higher Ed
Virginia Bans Legacy Preferences in Admissions
By Susan H. Greenberg
Virginia governor Glenn Youngkin signed bills Friday prohibiting the state’s public universities from giving preference to legacy applicants in admissions decisions. The legislation, unanimously approved by both chambers of the General Assembly, holds that public institutions cannot offer an admissions advantage based on a student’s legacy status or “familial relationship to any donor to such institution.” “There really wasn’t any pushback,” Democratic senator Schuyler T. VanValkenburg, who sponsored the Senate bill, told The Washington Post. “I think colleges know that these practices are indefensible.”
Inside Higher Ed
Universities Expect to Use More Tech in Future Classrooms—but Don’t Know How
By Lauren Coffey
University administrators see the need to implement education technology in their classrooms but are at a loss regarding how to do so, according to a new report. The College Innovation Network released its first CIN Administrator EdTech survey today, which revealed that more than half (53 percent) of the 214 administrators surveyed do not feel extremely confident in choosing effective ed-tech products for their institutions. “While administrators are excited about offering new ed-tech tools, they are lacking knowledge and data to help them make informed decisions that benefit students and faculty,” Omid Fotuhi, director of learning and innovation at WGU Labs, which funds the network, said in a statement.
Inside Higher Ed
Views
With Confidence in Higher Ed Plummeting, Colleges Must Recommit to Teaching
The best way to rebuild confidence in higher ed is to focus on teaching, Holden Thorp and Buck Goldstein write.
By Holden Thorp and Buck Goldstein
Much has been written about how confidence in higher education has plummeted. As devastating as they are, the surveys cited showing this crisis of confidence predate the disastrous events in December when three prominent and accomplished college presidents were ambushed in Congress about antisemitism on their campuses. If the surveys were run now, the results would likely be even worse. Twenty years ago, the two of us—one (Buck) an entrepreneur who loved his alma mater and his experience there, and the other (Holden) a lifelong academic steeped in the traditions and principles of university life—started writing about the ways in which higher education had failed to live up to public expectations. While much of what we wrote underestimated the difficulties that lay ahead, many of the themes have come together in this moment. The most conspicuous of these is the need for institutions to rededicate themselves to education above all else.
Higher Ed Dive
Opinion // President Speaks
How universities can prepare graduates for an AI-driven world
Colleges should focus on teaching the life skills that will outlast inevitable technological changes, the president of High Point University contends.
By Nido Qubein (Nido Qubein is the president of High Point University, a private nonprofit institution in North Carolina)
When the AI-powered ChatGPT made its big debut, higher education leaders naturally questioned how their students would use high-tech tools like it to write essays and research papers for class. Just a short time later, we know that’s only a microscopic way that AI is impacting higher education. There’s a bigger question that universities should answer: How can we help students succeed and lead in a complex, AI-powered world after graduation? I believe the answer is life skills — the kind that outlast and extend beyond inevitable technological changes. We should stop fearing AI and instead teach students to be resilient, self-reliant, compassionate and capable of sound judgment.
Diverse Issues in Higher Education
NASPA Centers the Stories of Diverse Student Affairs Professionals
Prominent student affairs practitioners of color shared powerful stories of leading in higher education amid major challenges, including the recent COVID pandemic and ongoing attacks to diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. “Navigating the Opportunities in Uncertainty: Stories of Diverse Student Affairs Professionals Across the Career Span,” was among the dozens of panels held on Sunday during the opening day of the NASPA annual conference–the nation’s largest gathering of student affairs professionals. The panel was organized by the Melvin C. Terrell Educational Foundation, a nonprofit committed to supporting the next generation of practitioners and was moderated by Dr. Terrell L. Strayhorn, vice provost and interim dean of the School of Arts & Sciences at Virginia Union University.
Diverse Issues in Higher Education
MEGA Symposium Tackles Trauma and Healing
Liann Herder
“I came for the opportunity,” said Kash Shahzaman, a 17-year-old from Ewing High School in Ewing, NJ, near Trenton. “It’s good to go out and experience as much as we can. That’s why we’re all here to be honest.” Shahzaman was joined by other high school students, all men of color from high schools across the state, most located in urban, low-income areas. Each young man volunteered to come to Montclair State University (MSU) on Friday, March 8 to attend the second Male Enrollment and Graduation Alliance (MEGA) symposium. They hoped to learn more about what attending MSU might look like for them, but they were also looking to find community and connection in their shared experiences. MEGA is a workgroup at MSU that targets the recruitment and retention of Black and Latinx men to college.
Diverse Issues in Higher Education
Diversity Proponents Respond to ‘Divisive’ Narrative
Johnny Jackson
Diversity proponents are countering a narrative expressed during a recent House Committee on Education and the Workforce subcommittee hearing, titled “Divisive, Excessive, Ineffective: The Real Impact of DEI on College Campuses.” Paulette Granberry Russell, the president and CEO of the National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education (NADOHE), described the March 7 subcommittee hearing as “a continuation of the steady stream of gross misrepresentations of our work to pursue a political agenda.”