Category: students

Like the Science Maymester, Croatia Maymester Study Abroad offers students an opportunity to study in different disciplines with top faculty - for this program, in a slice of Europe between the Adriatic and the Danube:

Croatia is a beautiful and culturally rich country with crystal-clear seas, more than 1,100 islands, countless beaches and harbors, unspoiled villages, mountains, vineyards, Roman ruins, medieval towns, and baroque cities.  You find a rich cultural heritage everywhere you look .  The Romans and Venetians left a Latin influence on the coast, while the interior's Central European heritage  is a legacy of  the Austro-Hungarian Empire.   Today Croatia is a stable, peaceful, easygoing country that has applied for admission to the European Union. 

The Croatia program, which started on May 13 and runs through June 5 this year, offers students:

the opportunity to earn six hours credit studying various aspects of Croatian culture and society while traveling through this beautiful and fascinating country. Courses are taught by UGA faculty and use active engagement approaches that will take students into different regions and allow them to interact with scholars from Croatian universities and research institutes, local government officials, leaders of non-governmental organizations, and citizens from different walks of life.

Faculty on the trip this year are from Germanic and Slavic languages, politocal science, environment and design, and health promotion and behavior. That should about cover it. Ajmo!

Ten current or former UGA students have been awarded graduate research fellowships from the National Science Foundation. Six of the ten are from the Franklin College:

[The fellowships will allow students] to conduct research while working on their master's and doctoral degrees. The awards provide students with up to $126,000 during a five-year period to conduct research in the areas of science, technology, engineering and mathematics. Eleven students and alumni also received honorable mentions.

This year's Fellows include:

Cameron Brown, of Savannah, GA

Kao-Wie Chua, of Johnson City, TN

Caitlin Elizabeth Conn, of Port Royal, Penn.

Chelsea Cunard, of Warren, R.I.

Caitlin Ishibashi, of Camarillo, Calif.

Uma Jyothi Nagendra, of New Orleans, La.

and from the Odum School of Ecology:

Daniel Joseph Becker, of West Chester, Penn.

Doug Booher, of Dalton, Ga.

Robert Daniel Harris, of the Drumkeerin area in County Leitrim, Ireland,

Carly Phillips, of Columbus, Ohio

Congratulations to these students and alums. Read more at the link about the work these fellowships will support.

It's that time of year, and the UGA commencement exercises on Friday May 10 are an exciting culmination of profound investments in and expansions of human potential. We salute all UGA graduates and the feeling of accomplishment that extends to family and friends, and of course to faculty and staff throughout the university.

Some great new research published out of the department of sociology, concerning the signals teachers get from students and how teacher perceptions shape student performance:

Elementary school students bring varied skills and experience to the classroom, commonly referred to as cultural capital. And when teachers notice and value these skills, students do better in school.

A new University of Georgia study, published in the April issue of the journal Sociology of Education, expands the notion of cultural capital to include a digital dimension, demonstrating that computer fluency is as important of a signal to teachers as visiting museums and attending concerts.

"We know that cultural capital matters, that teachers like to know about kids doing well outside the home and bringing that into the classroom," said study co-author Linda Renzulli, associate professor in the UGA Franklin College of Arts and Sciences department of sociology. "But maybe we need to update cultural capital and think about this other piece of information teachers are gaining about students, which isn't the ballet and isn't travel. It's actually digital capital."

In a society as broad and diverse as the U.S., inequality is a perennial issue - though it's simply not the case, as some ideologues would have it, of trying to create some uniform set of experiences for every person. Equality of opportunity is another matter, and the more we learn about how to help provide this for all young students, no matter their personal circumstances, the better-able they will be to discover their person potential and grow up to make their unique, positive contributions to society.

Image: via Wikimedia Commons, used by permission of an Art Libre license.

The Franklin College and UGA are venturing into online offerings like never before. For summer 2013,  a great selection of courses is available to help students stay on track for graduation even if they are studying abroad, involved in an internship and/or working a summer job.

Have a look. Sign up. Stay on track.

From its rich beginnings in the early 70's as the Pamoja Singers, the University of Georgia African American Choral Ensemble (AACE) has endeavored to keep concert halls and churches filled with the powerful sounds and wealth of indigenous musical treasures birthed from the African American experience. Since its earliest days at UGA, AACE has been a beacon tower of fellowship for the university community. Herein, people of many cultures come to share and learn the messages of hope, love and liberation that have sustained a people and this nation.

This Sunday April 28 the AACE, under the direction of associate professor Gregory Broughton, presents a free concert at 3 p.m. at the Milledge Avenue Baptist Church. The concert is free and the public is invited to attend.

Image courtesy of the UGA Choral Association.

It's a busy time of year but don't forget to get out and see some art! It's the season for BFA Exit Shows in the Lamar Dodd School of Art. The Photography, Printimaking and Sculpture show is up for a couple of more days. Next up: Painting and Drawing, Jewelry and Metals, Art X.

Image: poster of and by the sculpture students. See? Good work.

The University is celebrating outstanding students, staff, faculty and alumni at events throughout this week. Among these events is the Faculty Recognition Banquet, which was held on Monday evening:

Sponsored by the Office of the Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost, the event will recognize the winners of this year's awards for teaching excellence, including the Josiah Meigs Distinguished Teaching Professorships and the Richard B. Russell Awards for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching as well as faculty and staff who will be acknowledged as outstanding advisers and mentors.

The Franklin College was well represented in each award area, with five faculty members garnering the distinction of Outstanding Teaching Faculty:

Geography professor and president of the American Meteorological Society J. Marshall Shepherd has an article out in the current issue of Ebony magazine extolling how African Americans can be more competitive in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics careers of the future:

As a professional in the atmospheric sciences,  I see how extreme weather like Superstorm Sandy, Hurricane Katrina and changing climate affect society. As a result, President Obama continues to tout a new “green” economy built on renewable energy, climate change solutions, and sustainability.  This economy will require a new generation of professionals that understand changing weather patterns, climate science, wind and solar engineering, environmental sustainability, and mitigation-adaptation strategies,

U​nfortu​nately, many African Americans won’t be prepared for them due to woeful under-representation in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) careers.  According to The National Science Foundation, only 9.9% of master's degrees in STEM fields were awarded to Blacks as compared to 63.2% of Whites.  Surprisingly, this is an improvement. In 2001, Blacks made up only 8.6% of STEM-field master's degrees. While we are headed in the right direction, the number of Blacks in STEM fields is far too small. Fortunately, there are some things we as a community can do to improve the situation.

Read the rest at the link. Kudos to Dr. Shepherd for taking to the popular media to get (further) involved with the future of young people and the future of the country.

Image: Ebony magazine.

But in April we schedule events designed to highlight the importance of sustainable living:

From April 22-27, the UGA Office of Sustainability, Students for Environmental Action and other campus and community organizations will host events highlighting opportunities ranging from alternative transportation and local food to water resource preservation and career insights from industry leaders.

UGA Earth Week is held in conjunction with Athens-Clarke County Green Fest, a community-wide event that provides citizens with the opportunity to increase their awareness of and interest in improving the environment of their homes, yards, businesses and communities.

Creating the Office of Sustainability was a good step for a community with the size and impact of ours; we can and should do much more to encourage living within our means. Check the complete schedule at the link(s) and use these events to learn more about what you can do. Because every week is Earth Week.