Georgia Southern establishes Barbara W. Bitter Scholarship
The Georgia Southern University Academic Success Center has established the Barbara W. Bitter Scholarship, named after the former head of the Learning Support Department at Georgia Southern. The deadline to apply for the scholarship is March 8 at noon.
Bitter was known around the state for her tenacity and fighting for students she believed were underprepared or underrepresented and deserved a chance in college.
“Almost all students need a little extra help with funding their advanced education today and our nontraditional students have fewer opportunities to apply for scholarships,” said Theresa Novotny, coordinator of testing services. This scholarship isn’t automatically given to the students who have the highest GPA. The committee is looking for the students who have the greatest need and will most likely progress to graduation at Georgia Southern, as well as make an impact in their community as an alumnus.”
For more information and to apply for the scholarship, visit https://academics.georgiasouthern.edu/success/scholarships/.
Georgia Southern elected to serve as home institution to Georgia Association of Historians
Georgia Southern has been elected to serve as the home institution to the Georgia Association of Historians (GAH), following a vote by the organization’s board.
Lisa L. Denmark, Ph.D., associate professor of history, is the GAH Executive Secretary-Treasurer.
The GAH serves as a statewide professional organization for the study of history. The group encourages and promotes historical research, preservation, record keeping, publication and high standards in the teaching of history.
Members of the society pursue a variety of historical interests, including United States history, public history, European history, Middle Eastern history and Latin American history, among others. Annual meetings, held since 1974, are the primary venue of face-to-face communication between members.
The GAH publishes the Journal of the Georgia Association of Historians, a peer-reviewed publication open to all historians in the state as well as all participants at the association’s annual conference.
Harvard professor to discuss misinformation crisis during 2021 Mark Finlay Memorial Lecture
The Georgia Southern University College of Arts and Humanities (CAH) will host Thomas Patterson, Ph.D., Bradlee Professor of Government and the Press at Harvard University, for the 2021 Mark Finlay Memorial Lecture. The virtual presentation will stream March 3 at 6 p.m. on the CAH Facebook page.
Patterson’s lecture, “How America Lost Its Mind: Our Misinformation Crisis,” will address the United States’ political landscape, which according to Patterson, is currently filled with distrust, gridlock, partisanship, pettiness and deceptive messaging.
“Professor Patterson will discuss how we can help transfer power from ideologues and disrupters to a citizenry committed to tolerance and civil dialogue,” said Allison Scardino Belzer, Ph.D., associate professor of history. “So many of us feel overwhelmed with talk of fake news and deliberate disinformation. This lecture will help crystalize our focus on creating networks of reliable news outlets that can help rebuild trust.”
For more information about the Mark Finlay Memorial Lecture, click here.
College of Engineering and Computing extends research experience application deadline
The Georgia Southern University College of Engineering and Computing has extended the application window for the summer 2021 Research Experience for Undergraduates program “Propulsion, Aerodynamics, Materials and Controls of Aerial Vehicles.”
Due to overwhelming demand, the application process will remain open until March 15 to give all interested students an opportunity to apply. Applications are accepted from undergraduates across the United States who are interested in an opportunity to engage with and work side by side on real-world research in state-of-the-art engineering labs. Special consideration will be given to students who are currently enrolled in Historically Black Colleges and Universities, tribal colleges, and community colleges where research opportunities may not be available.
For more information, email Allen E. Paulson Chair of Renewable Energy Valentin Soloiu, Ph.D. at vsoloiu@georgiasouthern.edu, or recruitment chair Kania Greer, Ph.D., at kagreer@georgiasouthern.edu or visit georgiasouthern.edu/reu-aerospace-propulsion/home.
The program is sponsored by the Department of Defense and the National Science Foundation ASSURE program.
Center for Art and Theatre to host visiting contemporary art exhibition
The Georgia Southern University Center for Art and Theatre on the Statesboro Campus will host “Mode/Code,” a contemporary art exhibition featuring paint, textiles, illustration and digital exploration, through Feb. 12. A virtual artist talk will be on Feb. 11 at 5:30 p.m.
“I’ve followed the work of these artists for years,” said Betty Foy Sanders Department of Art Gallery Director Jason Hoelscher. “I have seen and shown some of their work before. I’ve never seen them exhibited together, however, and I look forward to seeing what visual and conceptual magic happens when their work converges in one gallery space.”
The virtual artist talk will feature emerging artists Trish Andersen, Andrea Caretto, Will Penny, Michael Porten, Jen Small, Britt Spencer and Ben Tollefson. Due to COVID-19, gallery capacity is limited and guests must wear a mask and stay 6 feet apart. Attendees can fill out the mandatory registration to view the talk here.
Georgia NAACP President James “Major” Woodall to serve as 2021 MLK Celebration speaker
Georgia NAACP President and Georgia Southern University alumnus Rev. James “Major” Woodall (’18), will serve as the 2021 Martin Luther King Jr. celebration speaker on Jan. 26 on the Armstrong Campus and on Jan. 27 on the Statesboro Campus.
Doctor of Physical Therapy students, faculty help keep Tybee clean
Students and faculty in the Department of Rehabilitation Sciences Doctor of Physical Therapy program helped clean the beaches on Tybee Island as part of the Physical Therapy Day of Service, a national event for individuals to raise awareness in their communities about physical health.
“In previous years, we have hosted free health screenings for the community such as blood pressure and balance assessments, but due to safety precautions with COVID-19, we decided this year to choose an event that did not require direct contact with the community to reduce everyone’s risk of exposure,” stated Lauren Potter, Physical Therapy Club advocacy chair. “We still wanted to impact the health of the people living around us, so we decided to partner with Tybee Clean Beach to clean the beach.”
The volunteers cleaned North Tybee Beach and filled approximately eight five-gallon buckets with trash and recyclable items.
“We all love our city and want to do our part to help keep it clean,” Potter added.
Statesboro Campus to host 3rd annual Gullah Geechee Celebration
Georgia Southern University’s Office of Multicultural Affairs will host the 3rd annual Gullah Geechee Celebration Nov. 18 at 6 p.m. at the Williams Center multipurpose room on the Statesboro Campus.
The Gullah Geechee people are the descendants of African slaves on the rice, indigo and Sea Island cotton plantations of the lower Atlantic coast, including Georgia. The celebration will highlight Gullah Geechee people’s unique, African-influenced culture. Their distinctive arts, crafts, foodways, music and language formed due to their isolation on island and coastal plantations.
For more information, email Paris Lawrence, coordinator of diversity education and program outreach, at plawrence@georgiasouthern.edu.