UGA Columns Dec. 5, 2016

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Pharmacy, education researchers discover possible muscular dystrophy drug RESEARCH NEWS

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Atlanta Symphony Orchestra visits campus for two performances Vol. 44, No. 19

December 5, 2016

columns.uga.edu

UGA GUIDE

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Honors student named university’s 24th Rhodes Scholar By Stephanie Schupska schupska@uga.edu

Andrew Davis Tucker

UGA announced an ambitious goal of $1.2 billion for the Commit to Georgia Campaign as well as a lead gift from the Robert W. Woodruff Foundation on Nov. 17 at a kickoff event at the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta.

‘Generous gift’

Laura Courchesne’s work throughout her three-plus years at UGA paid incredible dividends Nov. 19 as she became one of 32 students in the U.S. to be named a Rhodes Scholar, receiving the oldest and most celebrated international fellowship award in the world. Courchesne, an Honors Program student and Foundation Fellow from Fair Haven, New Jersey, is majoring in economics and religion in the Terry College of Business and the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences, respectively. Her studies focus on the emerging field of behavioral approaches to conflict; her primary research interest is

the link between nonstate armed groups and civilian populations. She is the 24th UGA student to be awarded a Rhodes Scholarship. Recipients are nominated by their colleges and universities and are selected through a process spanning the 50 states, the District of Laura Courchesne Columbia and the U.S. territories. The 2017 scholars will begin their courses of study at the University of Oxford in October. “The University of Georgia is very proud of Laura for earning

See RHODES on page 8

Robert W. Woodruff Foundation gives $30 million STUDENT AFFAIRS $2.4M donation to boost food to university for need-based aid By Katie DeGenova kdgen@uga.edu

The University of Georgia has received the largest single gift in its history to support the top priority of the Commit to Georgia Campaign: need-based financial aid. The $30 million gift from the Robert W. Woodruff Foundation was announced at the kick off of the public phase of the campaign in Atlanta in mid-November. “The Woodruff Foundation is pleased to join alumni and friends of the University of Georgia to help expand opportunity for students with financial need,” said Russ Hardin, president of the Woodruff

Foundation. “Through its generous gift, the Woodruff Foundation has made a transformative investment in the lives of promising young students and in the future of our state,” said UGA President Jere W. Morehead. “Closing the financial aid gap helps open doors of opportunity for Georgia’s best and brightest students.” The full cost of attendance at the University of Georgia, which includes tuition, fees, books, supplies, room and board, and transportation, totaled more than $26,000 for in-state students in the fall 2016 semester. “People often do not realize

that HOPE or Zell Miller scholarships only cover a part of the expenses related to college,” said Rahul Shrivastav, vice president for instruction. For students from the lowestincome households, this may mean juggling two or three jobs or taking out multiple loans to make ends meet. As a result, some students may not be able to take full advantage of all UGA has to offer while enrolled or they may accumulate debt as they begin their careers. “We recognize that many bright, hard-working Georgia students face significant financial barriers to attending the See AID on page 8

FALL 2016 COMMENCEMENT

scholarship, other programs By Stan Jackson ugastan@uga.edu

Like dozens of his fellow UGA students, Kyle McReynolds used to worry about finding enough money for his next meal. “You want to be engaged in class, engaged in studying, but all you can think about is how you’re going to pay for the next thing,” said McReynolds, a junior majoring in business management from Warner Robins. McReynolds and his classmates are now able to focus on their studies thanks to the Let All the Big Dawgs Eat Food Scholarship. The food scholarship and other programs that support students just received a big boost from

UGA graduate Jess Stokely, who is contributing $900,000 to the food scholarship and $1.5 million to general support for students. Stokely’s $2.4 million donation is the largest one-time gift ever made to the university’s Division of Student Affairs. Even with the competitive tuition rates at UGA, more students are finding it difficult to afford a college degree. More than 94 percent of UGA students receive financial aid, such as Pell Grants and the HOPE Scholarship. For some, there is still a gap to cover the full cost of attendance. College student food insecurity, lacking reliable access to a sufficient quantity of affordable, nutritious

See DONATION on page 8

UGA’s first African-American female physics ODUM SCHOOL OF ECOLOGY doctoral graduate urges girls to pursue sciences New center to make UGA By Krista Richmond krichmond@uga.edu

Whitney Ingram’s interest in science started as a girl. This month, she becomes the first African-American woman to earn a doctorate in physics at UGA—and she wants other young girls to do the same. “I hope I can encourage girls to pursue the sciences no matter what might hold them down,” she said. “It’s fulfilling to go after something you really like. Go after what you love.” In particular, Ingram wants to see the number of minorities and women working in sciences grow. “There are not a lot of black

women in physics,” she said. “There are recorded data that show there are less than 150 black females— living or deceased—in physics. I want people to know that because it’s a small number—pitifully small.” As a child, Ingram read a story in National GeoWhitney Ingram graphic about the death of the sun. It scared her, but it also sparked an inquisitive nature that wanted to know more. “I’ve always had a natural interest in science,” she said.

In high school, she took even more of an interest in science. Her physics teacher “made it come to life” by encouraging interactive experiences and taking time to answer questions. “You look at the world differently when you apply physics,” she said. “I like the idea of breaking down what you see and really thinking about it.” Ingram started at UGA as a freshman in 2007 and changed her major to physics early on, saying she “had a whim to stick with something I was passionate about.” After getting her bachelor’s degree in 2011, she started the doctoral program. Ingram  works  in  nanotechnology See GRADUATE on page 8

leader in disease ecology

By Beth Gavrilles bethgav@uga.edu

With the launch of the new Center for the Ecology of Infectious Diseases, UGA is poised to become a world leader in the increasingly important field of disease ecology. “We have a bold mission, but I genuinely believe we can achieve it,” said John Drake, a professor in the Odum School of Ecology and the new center’s director. “We hope to be the best in the world within five years, and I think that’s possible because of the vibrant research community we have here.”

Infectious diseases pose a serious threat to human health, causing millions of deaths around the world every year, according to the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine. They also take an enormous financial toll in lost productivity as well as costs associated with controlling them. Because most emerging infectious diseases originate in animals, a purely medical approach is not adequate for combating them; understanding how ecological processes and human impacts on the environment influence the See CENTER on page 8


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