We would like to welcome the members in our region who have newly-joined SCUP, since July 1, 2010. If you know these people, please give them a call welcoming them to SCUP and offer to help them “learn the ropes,” so they may gain the most from their membership.
Jean Bartels, Provost and Vice President, Academic Affairs - Georgia Southern University
Anthony Blose, Provost and Vice President, Academic Affairs – Angelo State University
Michael Conley, Executive Director, AEC Project Services – University of West Georgia
Matthew Early, Vice President Campus Services – Emory University
Dean Franklin, Assistant Director, Academic Affairs Finance – University of Memphis
Ben Woodrow Giles, Tunnell-Spangler-Walsh & Associates
Mike Hartzell, Assistant Director, Utilities – Kennesaw State University
Sandra Jordan, Provost & Vice President, Academic Affairs – Georgia College and State University
Brooks A. Keel, President – Georgia Southern University
Marshall King, Senior Solutions Manager – BRG
Glenn LaVine, Assistant Director, Planning and Design – Kennesaw State University
Michael Levine, Senior Vice President – BRG
Becky Myers, Senior Analyst, Planning and Performance – Northern Kentucky University
Risa I. Palm, Provost & Vice President, Academic Affairs – Georgia State University
Susan Paraska, Director, Program Review & Accreditation – Georgia Institute of Technology
Frank G. Pogue, President – Grambling State University
Gregory Rhodes, Business Development – Turner Construction Company
Richard Rhodes, Campus Planner II – Kennesaw State University
Lisa Rischenole, Marketing Director – SmithGroup/F&S
Nichole Salerno, Marketing Manager – BRG
Robert Sternberg, Provost & Senior Vice President – Oklahoma State University
Jodie Sweat, Director, Plant Operations – Kennesaw State University
Paul Underwood, Architect – Kennesaw State University
David Wright, Campus Planner II – Kennesaw State University
NEWS FROM STATE AND AREA COMMUNICATION COORDINATORS
FLORIDA – Marilyn Etheridge, metheridge1@verizon.net
College Students Participate in ‘Rally in Tally’ for university funding
Approximately 200 students representing Florida’s 11 public universities rallied on the steps of the state capitol, asking the Legislature to provide better funding for higher education. The state is moving from a service-based economy to a high-tech economy, which is impossible to do without improving higher education, and additional funding is required to turn Florida’s higher education system into a ‘world class’ system. Students visited with House and Senate members, and Governor Charlie Crist, who is pushing for a $7.1 billion higher education budget, a $100 million increase for public universities, and $70 million more for state and community colleges.
Florida a Finalist to Receive Federal Funding
Florida is one of 16 state finalists (out of 40 applicants) for a portion of the $4.3 billion federal education grant intended to encourage school reform. The “Race to the Top” fund is the largest ever federal competitive investment in school reform. It will reward states for past accomplishments, create incentives for future improvements and challenge states to create standards and assessments that prepare students to succeed in college and the workplace to compete in the global economy.
Edison Proposes New University
Edison State College (Ft. Myers) plans to create a private university, which will offer bachelor’s and master’s degrees, a spinoff institution that would be the first of its kind in Florida. Edison University—the proposed name—would be a non-profit institution run by a different president and board of trustees than the existing Edison State College. Students would pay higher rates than at Edison State, but the school will offer advanced liberal arts degrees not offered at Edison State. Southwest Florida already has 10 institutions of higher learning, eight of which are private. Edison University’s niche would be low income and minority students who want an education, but not the cost or residential experience that goes with it; they will be guaranteed admission into the nearby Florida Gulf Coast University.
Florida Atlantic University Names New President
Florida Atlantic University (Boca Raton) has named a new President, Mary Jane Saunders. President Saunders envisions a university that can be a first-choice institution for students and a world leader in science and research. FAU now houses The Scripps Research Institute and the Max Planck Society, two of the world’s giants in biotechnology. First on her agenda is defining the role of a proposed new medical school and FAU’s Harbor Branch Oceanographic Research Institute in Fort Pierce.
On-Campus Student Housing Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Project
Florida Atlantic University (FAU) has entered into a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) for the development and management of new student residential facilities (1,216 bed) on the main campus in Boca Raton. The approximately $123 million project is being financed through the issuance of a combination of tax-exempt and Build America Bonds issued by the FAU Finance Corporation.
SOUTH CAROLINA - Michael Watson, mwatson@watsontatesavory.com
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The University of South Carolina has just completed the Ernest F. Hollings Special Collections Library on the main Columbia campus. Vice President Joe Biden was the guest speaker for the dedication on July 23rd and he was joined by Senator Hollings. Senator Lindsey Graham and Representative James Clyburn. The 50,000 SF building is attached by glass bridge to the main Thomas Cooper Library and it will house both the Irvin Department of Rare Books and the South Carolina Political Collections (SCPC) on three levels. It is seeking LEED Gold certification and contains one floor with special environmental controls to preserve the collections in compact shelving. The Rare Books Department is centered around several core collections including the Irvin Collection of Charles Darwin and Darwiniana and the Bruccoli Collection of F. Scott Fitzgerald.
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In 2007 Winthrop University completed the $27 Million West Health, Physical Education and Wellness Center. This LEED Silver facility includes an eight meter pool along with basketball, volleyball, badminton, and racquetball courts. A climbing wall and indoor track is also provided. This facility replaced the old Peabody Gym which was built in 1915. Since completing the West Center, they have begun construction on the DiGiorgio Campus Center next door which will provide a new bookstore, post office, food court, meeting, and seminar rooms and other student activity spaces in 128,000 SF. The combination of these two projects around a newly organized green space, created from the old field-hockey field will create a new activity campus community along the western edge of the historic campus.
They have also taken vehicular traffic away and turned the central campus into a pedestrain zone - called Scholars Walk. Lots of seating and green spaces are provided for student and faculty interaction or for quiet reflection.
The University of South Carolina's Darla Moore School of Business Ranks as ‘Best’
The University of South Carolina's Darla Moore School of Business ranks as the best business school in the world for "international experience," in the newly published Global MBA Rankings by the Financial Times. In the report, released annually by the FT, Moore's MBA program also ranks second in the "International Business" subject area category. The school, which ranks 67th overall, has consistently been rated among the top two in the "international experience" category over the past five years. The school is continuing to build on this leadership position with new initiatives centered on developing leaders for a sustainable, global society. Last year, Dean Teegen announced that the school had successfully matched a $45 million gift by top benefactor Darla Moore to develop future educational initiatives that will benefit the local, state, regional and global economy.
University of South Carolina president Harris Pastides, in an email to alumni, recently decried a proposed 21 percent cut in state funding to the university, which, coming on the heels of other reductions in recent months, would drop state funding to the USC system by more than $100 million by July.
TEXAS - Monica Hardy, monica@pflugerassociates.com
Blinn College to issue bonds for upgrades on campus
Blinn College officials recently approved the issue of $20.155 million in bonds, of which about $15 million will be spent on construction projects at the Brenham campus of the college.
The bonds will be used to build a new 300- to 350-bed dormitory, a new agriculture building and for renovation and expansion of the band hall, college officials said.
ACC set to open Round Rock campus in five months
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Classes are set to begin in five months at Austin Community College's Round Rock campus. Construction is more than 65 percent complete, including building of ACC Round Rock Building 1000 (pictured right). Phase I of the new campus project encompasses approximately 275,000 square feet, about a third the size of all existing ACC campuses combined. The campus will eventually expand to 10 buildings and 575,000 square feet.
Stephen B. Kinslow, ACC president/CEO, said the recent merger of Round Rock Independent School District and the ACC District represents "a significant investment in the future of Round Rock and Williamson County," adding the campus will contribute to the economic prosperity of the region.
The new ACC campus will offer a full-range of instructional programs, including core curriculum classes, specialty workforce training, computer science, welding and health sciences.
Texas State regents approve $50M residence hall
The Texas State University System Board of Regents have approved the development of a $50 million, 612-bed residence hall for the San Marcos campus. Construction on the 189,450-square-foot facility, part of the system's Capital Improvement Plan (CIP), is slated to begin in the fall and become fully operational in 2013.
Other Texas CIP projects include renovations of the Academic Services Building-North ($985,000), the Department of Housing and Residential Life office building ($15.8 million), the Mitte Clean Room ($1.1 million), Lampasas Hall ($1.7 million), and the Multipurpose Educational Facility site ($2.2 million). The initiative also calls for the addition of a rescue house and climbing tower for the Advance Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training (ALERRT) program ($950,000).
Sam Houston to upgrade building with local funds
The Texas State University System Board of Regents has approved Sam Houston State University for renovations to the Katy and E. Don Walker Sr. Education Center. Upgrades will begin in June and are set to be completed by the end of the summer.
SHSU President Jim Gaertner said the center serves as "a portal to the Sam Houston Memorial Museum and is visited by thousands of citizens each year."
The university recently received $560,000 from the Cultural Activities Foundation of Huntsville/Walker County to renovate and expand the meeting space on the lower level of the facility. The project will approximately double the size of the activity area, allowing up to 250 attendees for seated meals.
US VIRGIN ISLES – Mary Ann LaFleur, mlafleu@uvi.edu
Territorial constitution before Congress
The US Congress has invited delegates to the Fifth Constitutional Convention of the Virgin Islands and members of the VI legislature to testify on the proposed constitution developed last year at the convention. President Obama sent the draft constitution to the Congress on March 1 with comments. Witnesses and invitees at the March 17 hearing included Governor deJongh, US Attorney General Eric Holder, Jr, VI Senate President Louis Hill, Senate Majority Leader Neville James, and VI Senate Minority Leader Usie Richards.
Economic outlook
The territories unemployment rate is approximately 8.5%, a percentage not seen since April 2001. Consumer spending declined in recent months as business gross receipts dropped 15%. Individual income declined 25% while corporate income declined 71%. This has resulted in $120 million drop in revenues. As the US economy continues to recover from the recession so should the economy of the US Virgin Islands given the considerable links between the two economies also recover albeit lagging behind the US.
New holiday created
October 1 will be celebrated as Fire Burn Day in commemoration of the 1878 laborers’ revolt for higher wages and better living and working conditions. This will not be a paid holiday.
UVI inaugurates new president, David Hall
David Hall became the fifth president of the University of the Virgin Islands on March 6, 2010. In his inauguration address he stated that he hopes to see the following achievements in five years.
- New facilities on both St. Thomas and St. Croix
- Expanded university research programs and new research programs begun especially focused on developing the aquaculture and aquaponics research at the St. Croix’s Agriculture Experiment Station with the goal of creating a sustainable source of local food.
- Brothers With a Cause will be a robust mentoring program guiding middle and high school students to post-secondary education
- More freshmen will graduate with their bachelors degree.
- The university has incorporated spiritual awareness into its curriculum, a holistic approach to education is “not just a theory,” and students are graduating “with a stronger sense of self.”
UVI board of trustees meeting March 13, 2010
The Board agreed to accept President Hall’s recommendations that university’s divisions be re-named as either schools or colleges, and for the creation of a Master of Arts in psychology. President Hall discussed his initiative, Brothers With a Cause (BWC), a program designed to recruit, retain and graduate male students.
NORTH CAROLINA NEWS - Bethany Early, bearly@emht.com
East Carolina University partners with neighborhood association
www.reflector.com/news/truna-ecu-working-together-42417
East Carolina University’s Board of Trustees plans to partner with the Tar River University Neighborhood Association (TRUNA) to develop a statement that will address what each envisions for the future of the Fifth Street corridor. The corridor borders both the ECU campus and TRUNA’s neighborhood, which has a high population of ECU students in rental housing. “I believe there are a lot of initiatives that we could undertake in the neighborhood that would help the neighborhood and the university,” David Brody, ECU Board of Trustees chairman said.
Brody said the university’s investigation into future plans for the chancellor’s residence led to discussions with TRUNA about quality of life in the neighborhood. Due to size limitations, the chancellor’s residence, the Dail House, presents many challenges during the 100+ social events hosted there each year. University officials are discussing options for Dail House renovation, or for purchasing new property for a house in the future. The discussion of future plans for the chancellor’s residence has drawn fire from some who are critical of the university for considering an upgrade to the residence while students face tuition increases. Several officials have stressed that any action taken would be funded through private funds and not university operating dollars.
“We have to find a way to stop the deterioration of the neighborhood that is just behind Fifth Street,” said trustee Bob Greczyn. “It is not in the best interest of the university to see that neighborhood deteriorate.”
NC State’s new building to be distributed energy and green grid showcase
http://pr-usa.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=443640&Itemid=33
NC State’s newly-constructed, 72-000 sq-ft Keystone Science Center will house the National Science Foundation-sponsored FREEDM Center. The FREEDM Center plans to create a one mega-watt green grid as part of the building’s infrastructure. The grid will serve as a test-bed for research and will demonstrate the potential for the center-developed technologies. It will also be used to showcase third party renewable energy technologies, such as plug-in vehicles, battery storage, solar and fuel cell. FREEDM researchers want to test how each energy component works together in a distributed electrical system. NC State is partnering with institutions and laboratories in 28 states and 9 countries in order to make the electrical system a reality. The FREEDM Center is being supported by an $18 million grant from NSF and $10 million from institutions and industry members.
"Integrating alternative technologies with the current grid system gets very complicated," said Dr. Alex Huang, center director and Progress Energy Distinguished Professor Electrical and Computer Engineering at NC State. "We hope to work through many of the issues related to integration over the next several years in the lab."
SCUP INTERNATIONAL NEWS – Bethany Early, bearly@emht.com
King Abdulaziz University to create next-generation digital campus with SunGard Higher Education and ITS
www1.albawaba.com/en/news/king-abdulazizuniversity-selects-its-and-solutions-sungard-higher-education-create-next-generat
King Abdulaziz University (KAU) has selected SunGard Higher Education and International Turnkey Systems (ITS) to create and implement a connected digital environment for the school that will transform it into a major center of excellence in Saudi Arabia. SunGuard is a global provider of software solutions, consulting and technology management. ITS provides integrated IT solutions and software services.
"As one of the largest universities in the Middle East, information technology is fundamental to our strategy at KAU and we are engaging leading technology solution providers such as SunGard Higher Education and ITS to help us achieve our vision," said KAU's Rector, Professor Osama S. Tayyeb.
Tayyeb believe KAU’s efforts will speak to their long-term commitment to creating a prestigious education center in Saudi Arabia and will also prepare graduates to cope with changing intellectual needs of the region.
KAU will deploy solutions from the Banner Digital Campus, including Banner Student, Banner Financial Aid, Banner Advancement, Banner Workflow, Banner Operational Data Store and the Luminis Platform from SunGard Higher Education. All of these solutions will help KAU create a digital campus with collaborative communities and virtual research portals for students, researchers and faculty.
Qatar U rolls out lecture capture in four colleges
http://campustechnology.com/articles/2010/06/08/qatar-u-rolls-out-lecture-capture-in-4-colleges.aspx
Qatar University has begun recording Pharmacy, Education, Business and Engineering class lectures using Echo360, a platform that records lectures and converts them into podcasts, video and rich media. Qatar U’s 8,000 students will have access through Blackboard, and can revisit the lectures at any time or place. Qatar confirmed the demand for Echo360 by tracking usage patterns to learn that the lectures have high viewing rates immediately after a class and in the days prior to an exam.
India unveils world’s cheapest laptop
www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE66M0R720100723?feedType=nl&feedName=ustechnology
India’s Human Resource Development Minister Kapil Sibal has unveiled a $35 laptop—the cheapest in the world. The device, a touch-screen computing machine, was designed specifically for students. Sibal has already initiated mass production with global manufacturers.
Sibal said the Linux based computing device was expected to be introduced to higher education institutions from 2011 but the aim was to drop the price further to $20 and ultimately to $10. "We have reached a (developmental) stage that today, the motherboard, its chip, the processing, connectivity, all of them cumulatively cost around $35, including memory, display, everything," he told a news conference.
The device was developed by research teams at the Indian Institute of Technology and the Indian Institute of Science—two of India’s premier technological institutes.
Society for College and University Planning