News
Model UN delegation continues long record of excellence
Georgia Southern’s Model United Nations delegation earned multiple honors at the world’s largest Model UN simulation held in New York City last spring.
The National Model United Nations Conference included more than 600 delegations from every continent except Antarctica. The Georgia Southern team was named an Outstanding Delegation and was recognized for Outstanding Position Papers.
The Georgia Southern delegates participating in the General Assembly 2nd committee were chosen by their peers to address more than 600 students at the opening of a Model United Nations General Assembly session. Georgia Southern was also recognized as one of only seven schools which have had 40 or more years of constant participation in the National Model United Nations Conference.
Author Tina McElroy Ansa named as Visiting Writer
Georgia Southern’s Department of Writing and Linguistics will welcome Tina McElroy Ansa as the Department’s Visiting Writer for 2011. Ansa, a novelist, publisher, filmmaker, teacher and journalist, will teach a creative writing workshop course, “Writing the Novel,” this summer.
Ansa has been a regular contributor to the award-winning television series “CBS Sunday Morning” with her essays, “Postcards from Georgia.” She also writes magazine and newspaper articles, op-ed pieces and book reviews for the Los Angeles Times, (New York) Newsday, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and the Florida Times-Union.
University launches its official mobile application
Georgia Southern has launched its official mobile “app” providing mobile access to the campus directory, map, news and sports, as well as course search, library catalogs, social networks and more. The free application is available via app stores and markets for iPhone®, iPod®, BlackBerry® and Android™ Smartphone users.
“We want to offer our students and other members of the University community the best in technology and access, and that means making Georgia Southern Mobile services and information available to mobile users,” said Steve Burrell, vice president for information technology and chief information officer. “The students attending Georgia Southern today never knew a world without cell phones or the Internet. Our goal is to take Georgia Southern to them and Georgia Southern Mobile is the foundation for future applications and technology.
“This is just the start and we will be expanding the type and number of apps that we offer our students, alumni, faculty, and staff in the near future,” Burrell said. For more information, visit m.georgiasouthern.edu.
Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health
Carolyn Woodhouse named interim dean of JPHCOPH
Carolyn (Lynn) Woodhouse has been named interim dean of the Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health (JPHCOPH). Woodhouse replaces Founding Dean Charles Hardy.
Woodhouse joined Georgia Southern in August 2007 to serve as associate dean and professor of community health behavior and education. Prior to joining Georgia Southern, she served as the director of the East Stroudsburg University (Pa.) M.P.H. program in community health practice from 1987 to 2007.
College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences
CLASS honors longtime benefactor Betty Foy Sanders
Former Georgia First Lady Betty Foy Sanders was recently presented with the inaugural Patron of the Arts Award by the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences. Subsequent awards will be named in honor of Sanders in recognition of her contributions to the College and to the arts.
Sanders, a native of Bulloch County, began her academic career at Georgia Southern. An accomplished artist and arts advocate, she received the first honorary Doctorate of Fine Arts degree from Georgia Southern in 1997. The University officially renamed the visual arts department the Betty Foy Sanders Department of Art in 1999 in further recognition of Sanders’ dedicated support.
She has established academic scholarships, student travel scholarships and opportunities for Georgia Southern art students.
Jack N. Averitt College of Graduate Studies
First Averitt Awards go to grad students from Ga., Conn.
The inaugural Averitt Awards, the highest honors bestowed to graduate students, have been presented to biology major Tomas Condon and English major Drew Keane.
Condon, of Andover, Conn., plans to graduate in December 2011 and pursue a career in wildlife research and management. Keane, of Cartersville, Ga., plans to seek a Ph.D. in English literature. Each winner received a $1,000 honorarium and a unique solid crystal eagle trophy.
The awards recognize outstanding students in the categories of Excellence in Graduate Research and Excellence in Graduate Instruction. Deserving students were nominated by graduate faculty members.
College of Business Administration
Online Executive MBA to start this fall
A University proposal for an online Executive Master of Business Administration (EMBA) degree has been approved by the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia.
Melissa Holland, director of MBA programs in the College of Business Administration, said the news brings both the celebratory feeling that comes with the culmination of months of hard work and the nervous excitement that accompanies launching a new project. “We’ve been working on the proposal and obtaining internal approvals for over two years. This is the end of a long approval process, but we’re very excited,” Holland said. “Actually, this is the beginning – the beginning of a new phase for the College of Business Administration.”
Georgia Southern President Brooks Keel said the EMBA is another example of the University moving toward national prominence.
College of Education
COE alumni named to state Education Advisory Board
Two Georgia Southern alumni, Molly Howard and Pam Williams, have been named to Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal’s Education Advisory Board. Howard is superintendent of Jefferson County Schools and was the 2008 national Principal of the Year. Williams is a teacher at Appling County High School and Georgia’s 2011 Teacher of the Year.
Comprised of four different groups – school superintendents, principals, teachers and school board members – the Board will work with the Deal to ensure the best decisions will be made for Georgia’s students. “The Georgians on these panels are leaders in their fields, and they are giving of their time and talents to help our state strive for educational excellence,” said Deal.
Allen E. Paulson College of Science and Technology
Biology research team seeking new pest controls
Research conducted by biology professors Scott Harrison and Ed Mondor, investigating the genetic diversity of a well-known pest insect, may help farmers more effectively use pesticides and potentially decrease long-term costs.
The research was recently published in PLoS ONE, an international, peer-reviewed, open-access, online publication.
The researchers say that invasive pests’ impact on the U.S. economy is estimated at $138 billion annually. “Understanding the characteristics that make a species a good ‘invader’ are important for prevention of new invasive species and controlling established invaders,” said Harrison. “Our understanding of genetic diversity improves our ability to use pesticides to effectively control pest insects.”