UGA Columns Feb. 17, 2020

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RAIL program teaches elementary students STEM concepts through robotics RESEARCH NEWS

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Argentina’s Che Malambo coming to UGA for a Feb. 21 performance Vol. 47, No. 24

February 17, 2020

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UGA GUIDE

4&5

UGA posts record $477.5 million in R&D expenditures

By Michael Terrazas

michael.terrazas@uga.edu

UGA file photo

April 22 will mark the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, and events are planned across UGA throughout the semester.

Earth Day turns 50 Events will be held throughout the semester to educate and inspire action

By Beth Gavrilles bethgav@uga.edu

This year marks the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, and the University of Georgia is celebrating with a semesterlong series of events across campus designed to educate and inspire action for a more sustainable future.

On April 22, 1970, Earth Day was observed for the first time across the U.S. Conceived in the wake of environmental disasters like the Cuyahoga River catching fire and a massive oil spill off the coast of California, Earth Day harnessed growing public alarm about pollution to put environmental protection on the national agenda. Students and faculty at the University of Georgia took part in the nationwide event,

organizing a daylong, public teach-in on the environment featuring lectures, discussions and exhibitions.

“There’s no question that the first Earth Day, with an estimated 20 million participants, expressed political support and thus provided the impetus for the adoption of such ground-breaking actions as the establishment of the Environmental Protection Agency and the Clean Water Act,” said Laurie Fowler, a faculty member in the Odum School of Ecology and School of Law and the director of policy for the UGA River Basin Center, which is one of the celebration’s organizers.

Like the first Earth Day, this year’s celebration includes a teachin—but one that will take place

across campus for the entire month of April. Faculty from every department who include sustainability or environmental topics in their courses are invited to open one or more class periods to the general public. Coordinated by the UGA Office of Sustainability, the Earth Day 2020 teach-in is intended to foster cross-disciplinary education and collaboration and demonstrate the many ways environmental challenges can be addressed. Faculty can sign up at https://bit.ly/2tPIrvu to participate.

Campus operations are part of the celebration as well. UGA Transportation and Parking Services is rolling out a new fleet of electric buses throughout the semester. Through partnerships with the UGA Athletic Association, See EARTH on page 8

The University of Georgia continued a multi-year expansion of grant-funded research programs in fiscal year 2019, increasing its economic impact on the state.

Research and development expenditures reached a record high of $477.5 million—a robust increase of 5.4% over the previous year. Over the past five years, the university’s R&D expenditures have jumped by more than 34%.

“As UGA grows its research enterprise, we are expanding our positive impact on the world while strengthening the economy of our home state,” said President Jere W.

See R&D on page 8

COLLEGE OF PUBLIC HEALTH

Public plays a role in how first responders protect themselves Health care personnel working on the front lines to contain and prevent the spread of COVID-19, the new coronavirus that originated in China, need to take special, yet common, precautions to keep themselves and others safe. But citizens also have a role to play, according to Curt Harris, director of the Institute for Disaster Management at the University of Georgia.

Below, Harris shares some of his expertise on effective prevention for both medical professionals and everyday citizens.

What kinds of precautions do first responders need to take when

DEVELOPMENT & ALUMNI RELATIONS

Morehead. “Gains in agricultural productivity; improvements to health care; the creation of new, marketable products—these are just a few of the many benefits stemming from UGA’s research and development that are driving our increased economic impact on Georgia, which is now estimated at $6.5 billion per year.”

The growth in research expenditures is due to the success of UGA faculty in winning grants and contracts. Notable recent examples include Georgia Research Alliance Eminent Scholar Ted Ross in the College of Veterinary Medicine, who last fall received an award of up to $130 million from the National

dealing with a potentially dangerous infection?

“What we’re doing is we’re training clinicians and first responders — whether they’re EMS, police officers or fire departments—to be able to recognize signs and symptoms so that ultimately not only can they protect themselves and their equipment, but also prevent the spread of infectious disease to others who may be in their facility or who may be at their homes.

“Because lot of times you can actually get a disease on your clothing, and you could actually take that

See HARRIS on page 8

GRADY COLLEGE OF JOURNALISM AND MASS COMMUNICATION Alumni Association reveals Bulldog 100 list; LeaseQuery named fastest-growing UGA business Communicating effectively about

By Danielle Bezila

danielle.bezila@uga.edu

The University of Georgia Alumni Association recognized the fastest-growing companies owned or operated by UGA alumni during the 11th annual Bulldog 100 Celebration on Feb. 8 in the West End Zone of Sanford Stadium.

The 2020 fastest-growing business, LeaseQuery LLC, is led

by CEO George Azih and Chief Revenue Officer Chris Ramsey.

Azih earned his bachelor’s degree in business administration in 2003, and Ramsey earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology in 2005.

Atlanta-based LeaseQuery helps over 10,000 accountants and finance professionals eliminate lease accounting errors through its lease accounting software—the

first of its kind built by accountants for accountants. The company also provides specialized consulting services and facilitates compliance with regulatory reform for companies across all sectors.

“I’m so proud to be recognized by the UGA Alumni Association.

The reason LeaseQuery exists is because of UGA and the professors I had here,” said Azih.

Ramsey added, “UGA is fantastic because if I hadn’t come here, I wouldn’t have met George or the many other UGA grads that form the basis of our company.”

Rounding out the Bulldog 100 top 10 are 2) Roadie, Atlanta; 3) Margaret Long Designs, Atlanta; 4) Castlegate Property Group LLC, Atlanta; 5) RCS Garage Doors, Charlotte, North Carolina; 6)Tape King, Las Vegas; 7) ADD’s Personal Care Pharmacy, Bogart; 8) Terminus, Atlanta; 9) Tier4

Group, Alpharetta; and 10) BOS Security, Athens.

“The Bulldog 100 recognizes outstanding alumni achievements, broadens those business leaders’ networks and celebrates a spirit of innovation at UGA,” said Meredith Gurley Johnson, executive director of the UGA Alumni Association.

“These alumni are leading the way in business, building better communities, and are committed to their ideas, their innovations and their employees. They reflect the value of a degree from the birthplace of public higher education, and we are proud to celebrate their successes.”

The Atlanta office of Warren Averett CPAs and Advisors partners with the UGA Alumni Association each year to review nominated businesses’ financial records to determine the ranked See BULLDOG on page 8

new coronavirus can be difficult

Communicating effectively during an outbreak can be tricky for government agencies charged with protecting the public, according to Glen Nowak, former director of media relations at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and professor of advertising and public relations at the University of Georgia’s Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication.

Below, Nowak shares some of his thoughts about the current COVID-19 outbreak and what agencies have learned from previous outbreaks to make their communications more effective.

Is there anything about this current outbreak that is particularly difficult for people relaying information to the public?

“Well I think the uncertainty

that the new infectious disease brings makes it really hard for a lot of the parties that are involved for the CDC. It is hard because you’re being asked questions about what is going to happen, what is likely to happen, and you don’t have answers.

“And so you have to be focusing on uncertainty. The news media have to make decisions as to how much are they going to play something up or play something down; that’s very difficult to do. Health care organizations have to decide how many resources they’re going to devote to trying to identify and screen patients quickly for this versus other things that are probably more likely to be causing illness at this time of year.”

See NOWAK on page 8

2Feb. 17, 2020 columns.uga.edu UGA LIBRARIES, CENTER FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING

Special Collections Fellows to design archives-based courses Twelve University of Georgia faculty members have been chosen as 2019-2020 Special Collections Fellows. The fifth cohort of the program represents six schools and colleges with interests ranging from art and education to social work and population health.

Sponsored by the University of Georgia Libraries and the Center for Teaching and Learning, the program guides faculty members as they develop courses that apply archives-centered pedagogy and allow their students to engage with the rich array of materials held in UGA’s three special collections libraries.

“As a result of this innovative program, UGA faculty have developed or redesigned more than 40 archives-centered courses in 22 different disciplines,” said P. Toby Graham, university librarian and associate provost. “I have no doubt that students are benefitting, and I trust that our faculty fellows also are discovering among our holdings materials that excite them and stimulate their own curiosity and scholarly interests.”

The 2019-2020 Special Collections Fellows are: • Donna E. Alvermann, Omer Clyde and Elizabeth Parr Aderhold Professor in Education and Distinguished Research Professor, department of language and literacy education, Mary Frances Early College of Education; • Brandy Burgess, assistant professor, department of population health, College of Veterinary Medicine; • Melissa Freeman, professor, department of lifelong education, administration, and policy, Mary Frances Early College

of Education; • Moon Jung Jang, associate professor and area chair of graphic design, Lamar Dodd School of Art, Franklin College of Arts and Sciences; • Lori Johnston, lecturer, department of journalism, Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication; • Kevin Jones, assistant professor, department of history, Franklin College of Arts and Sciences; • Roy Legette, associate professor and area chair of elementary music education, Hugh Hodgson School of Music, Franklin College of Arts and Sciences; • Tony B. Lowe, associate professor at the UGA Gwinnett campus, School of Social Work; • Anthony Madonna, associate professor, department of political science, School of Public and International Affairs; • Jane McPherson, assistant professor and director of global engagement, School of Social Work; • Taylor Miller, assistant professor and academic director of the Peabody Media Center, department of entertainment and media studies, Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication; and • Elizabeth Saylor, clinical associate professor, department of educational theory and practice, Mary Frances Early College of Education.

The program kicked off in December with behind-the-scenes tours of the Libraries’ three special collections units: the Hargrett Rare Book and Manuscript Library, the Richard B. Russell Library for Political Research and Studies and the

ACADEMIC AFFAIRS

Submitted photo

Faculty members tour the vault of the Richard B. Russell Building Special Collections Libraries as they kick off the Special Collections Fellows program, where they will learn to apply archivescentered approaches to their courses.

Walter J. Brown Media Archives and Peabody Awards Collection.

This spring, the fellows will participate in a series of workshops and seminars to introduce the tools and resources of TeachArchives.org, a pedagogical guide developed by the Brooklyn Historical Society.

In May, the fellows will present their course designs and seek feedback from their cohort peers and the fellowship instructional team, which includes archivists from the three special collections libraries and the Center for Teaching and Learning.

Since 2015, SCL Fellows have created or adapted more than 40 undergraduate

and graduate level courses that feature the archives-centered approach, and several have applied the methodology to other courses.

“The foundations upon which all great instructional activities are built include many of the prominent features of archives-based pedagogy,” said Megan Mittelstadt, director of the Center for Teaching and Learning.

“The course designs accomplished by the fellows, under the guidance of a talented instructional team, provide rich and engaging learning opportunities for our students. The SCL Fellows program is a true asset to UGA’s teaching and learning environment.”

FRANKLIN COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES

Search begins for next dean of College of Writing Intensive Program to host Agricultural and Environmental Sciences lecture, panel discussion on Feb. 28

By Sam Fahmy

sfahmy@uga.edu

Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost S. Jack Hu has appointed a 24-member committee to begin a national search for candidates for the position of dean and director of the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

The committee is co-chaired by Jennifer Frum, vice president for Public Service and Outreach, and Dale Greene, dean of the Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources. It includes faculty, staff and student representation, as well as representatives from industry and state government. In addition, the university will retain an external search firm to help identify candidates.

Faculty, staff, students or community members who wish to nominate candidates for consideration are invited to contact Michael Luthi, director of the UGA Search Group, at luthi@uga.edu.

The search committee members are: • Jennifer Frum, vice president for public service and outreach (co-chair); • Dale Greene, dean of the Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources (co-chair); • James C. Anderson II, assistant professor in the department of agricultural leadership, education and communication; • Gary Black, commissioner of agriculture, state of Georgia; • Timothy Brenneman, professor of plant pathology on the UGA Tifton campus; • Bill Brim, chief executive officer and partner, Lewis Taylor Farms; • Kylie Bruce, an undergraduate student majoring in poultry science, a member of the Avian Ambassador Program and the CAES Transfer Team; • Robert E. Burton, chief executive officer, burton + BURTON and a member of the Georgia 4-H Foundation board; • Miguel Cabrera, Georgia Power Professor in Environmental Remediation and Soil

Chemistry in the department of crop and soil sciences; • Toby Carr, vice president for government relations; • Kylee Jo Duberstein, associate professor in the department of animal and dairy science; • Cesar Escalante, professor in the department of agricultural and applied economics; • Mary Formo, academic advisor in the CAES Office of Academic Affairs; • Kent Fountain, president, Southeastern Gin and Peanut; • Mike Giles, president of the Georgia Poultry Federation and a member of the Georgia 4-H Foundation board; • Francisco Diez-Gonzalez, professor in the department of food science and technology and director of the Center for Food Safety on the UGA Griffin campus; • Zenglu Li, Georgia Seed Development Professor in Soybean Breeding and Genetics in the department of crop and soil sciences and a faculty member in the Institute of Plant Breeding, Genetics and Genomics; • Mark McCann, assistant dean for extension; • Lisa Nolan, Georgia Athletics Association Distinguished Professor and dean of the College of Veterinary Medicine; • Steven Stice, D.W. Brooks Professor and GRA Eminent Scholar in the department of animal and dairy science and director of the Regenerative Bioscience Center; • Michael R. Strand, H.M. Pulliam Chair in the department of entomology; • Esther van der Knaap, professor in the department of horticulture and a faculty member in the Institute of Plant Breeding, Genetics and Genomics as well as the Center for Applied Genetic Technologies; • Ron Walcott, professor in the department of plant pathology and interim dean of the Graduate School; and • Jeanna L. Wilson, professor in the department of poultry science.

Samuel Pardue, who has led the college since 2016, recently announced that he will be stepping down as dean on June 30.

The Writing Intensive Program, Write@ UGA, will host a lecture and panel discussion on Feb. 28 in Room 350 of the Miller Learning Center. Both events are open to all interested UGA faculty, graduate students and staff.

The morning lecture, “Increasing Student Success with Writing Across the Disciplines,” will be given from 10-11 a.m.

by Cristyn Elder, associate professor of rhetoric and writing and director of writing across the curriculum at the University of New Mexico.

In this keynote address, Elder will present data on writing as a high-impact tool for learning across the disciplines, describe effective writing activities and assessment tools for large and small enrollment classes for both general education and courses in the major, and offer strategies for reducing faculty time spent responding to writing while still offering effective feedback.

Elder has a great deal of experience supporting students as writers in a variety of global contexts—from serving as a Peace Corps master’s internationalist in Ukraine to working as an English language specialist in Tajikistan, Panama and El Salvador. She also has published widely in leading writing studies journals, including WPA: Writing Program Administration, Composition Studies, Composition Forum, Across the Disciplines and the Writing Center Journal.

Register for Elder’s lecture at https://bit.ly/2UeMmwA. The lunch panel, “Writing and Thriving at UGA,” will be a discussion about supporting student writers and writing instruction across the curriculum. The discussion will be held from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Preregister by the Feb. 21 deadline at https://bit.ly/2vzEJqh. Faculty from across campus will discuss existing programs and initiatives designed to support student writing at every level, challenges and roadblocks faced at a large institution like UGA and opportunities for developing more comprehensive support

for writing in every field for all students and faculty.

Lunch is provided, and attendees are welcome to bring their questions to the conversation. This panel discussion will be moderated by Elder.

Panelists include Ben Ehlers, associate professor of history, Writing Intensive Program faculty member and former Writing Fellow, Franklin College of Arts and Sciences; Jennifer Gonyea, clinical associate professor, human development and family science, College of Family and Consumer Sciences; Becky Hallman-Martini, director of the UGA Writing Center and assistant professor of English, Franklin College of Arts and Sciences; Katie Darby Hein, assistant professor and undergraduate coordinator, health promotion and behavior, College of Public Health; Keith L. Herndon, journalism professor of practice, William S. Morris Chair in News Strategy and Management and director of the James M. Cox Jr. Institute for Journalism Innovation, Management and Leadership, Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication; Alice Kinman, senior lecturer and writing specialist, economics department, Terry College of Business; Jake Knox, writing coordinator, Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources; Nate Kreuter, director of first-year Writing and associate professor of English, Franklin College of Arts and Sciences; and Christina Lee, graduate writing coach, Graduate School, and Ph.D. candidate in anthropology, Franklin College of Arts and Sciences.

For more information, contact Lindsey Harding, director of the Writing Intensive Program, at lharding@uga.edu.

Write@UGA 2020 sponsors are the Center for Teaching and Learning, the Office of Instruction, the English department’s Ballews Lecture Fund, the Office of Research, the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences, the Division of Biological Sciences, the First-year Writing Program and the Office of Faculty Affairs.

RESEARCH NEWS

columns.uga.edu Feb. 17, 2020

GREAT COMMITMENTS

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Digest The Georgia Review to present reading of poetry and fiction on Feb. 20

Andrew Davis Tucker

From left, graduate student Yingxiao (Karen) Qian works with professors Roger Hill, Ike Choi and John Mativo on development of STEM Robotics curriculum in the Mary Frances Early College of Education’s Research and Innovation in Learning, or RAIL, Lab.

Mission accomplished RAIL program teaches elementary students STEM concepts through robotics

By Leigh Beeson lbeeson@uga.edu

Heath Laird and Hudson Reivitis are laser focused.

There are just two more days to finish programming a robot and perfecting its route before the competition on Wednesday, but the bot is taking a corner a bit too fast to stay on the right path.

They add a couple tenths of a second into the robot’s code and race off to test it again. With a couple little tweaks, their chances of winning are looking good.

And then it’s off to science class—in Bramlett Elementary inAuburn,Georgia.

Heath and Hudson are in Todd Smith’s robotics class, a course aimed at teaching fourth and fifth graders how to code and build a functional robot while learning about history, math and science.

The curriculum for the course was developed by a team of University of Georgia researchers,led by Mary Frances Early College of Education professor Ike Choi.

Choi had purchased a robotics kit for his son, and as Daniel drove the robot into the hallway of the River’s Crossing Building on UGA’s campus,he caught the attention of education college associate professor John Mativo, a mechanical engineer, and professor Roger Hill, a math and science

education expert. Seeing how enthralled Choi’s son was with the toy, the educators started brainstorming ways to incorporate robotics and programming lessons into the elementary school curriculum.

“The core question we had in developing the curriculum was how can we help children solve realistic problems by integrating science,math,technology and engineering?” said Choi, who also directs the Research and Innovation in Learning, or RAIL, lab.

Enter Theodore Kopcha, an associate professor in the education college whose research focuses on integrating technology and STEM-based projects into K-12 curricula.

They settled on a six-unit lesson plan with a student workbook. First, students would brainstorm and analyze ways for scientists to study dangerous environments. The robot they build will need to grab three samples from a volcano and then make it back to where it came from. In the second lesson, they’ll actually assemble their robots from a box of parts. The third through fifth steps focus on programming and optimizing their robots to navigate the tricky terrain. And finally, students will test their robots on a grid that represents the paths and obstacles the robot would face on its

mission. Students will then reflect on and share their learning experiences.

Once the workbook was developed, the researchers invited a group of teachers to learn about and implement the curriculum in their classrooms. One of those teachers was Todd Smith. A UGA grad himself, Smith was eager to give it a go and start incorporating the program into his coursework.

“The most important thing when we disseminated the curriculum was that it was designed in a way that was flexible enough to customize the content,” Choi said. “Helping blind people navigate a city, gathering soil samples for a scientific study—there are so many possibilities.”

For students like Heath and Hudson, learning to code and build something has sparked an interest in a career field they’d never really thought of before.

And though their robot got off to a rocky start, the boys’ hard work and attention to detail paid off. In their class competition, Heath and Hudson tied for second place.

Editor’s note: This story is part of the Great Commitments series, which focuses on cutting-edge research happening on UGA campuses. Read more about UGA’s commitment to research that changes lives at greatcommitments.uga.edu.

WARNELL SCHOOL OF FORESTRY AND NATURAL RESOURCES

University joins new partnership to combat feral swine

By Kristen Morales kmorales@uga.edu

The University of Georgia is a key partner in a new federal initiative to combat feral hogs and will partner with federal and state agencies as part of a $1.5 million, three-year project in Southwest Georgia.

The Feral Swine Eradication and Control Pilot Program, established as part of the 2018 Farm Bill, allocates $75 million to targeted areas across the U.S. where feral swine have been identified as a threat. In Georgia, the animals cause more than $150 million in damage each year to agriculture and natural areas.

“This project will evaluate the effectiveness of corral trapping, teach landowners to successfully implement their own trapping program and monitor ecosystem recovery after feral swine removal,” said Michael T. Mengak, professor and wildlife specialist at the UGA Warnell School of Forestry and

Natural Resources. Warnell received a subaward of the grant awarded to the Flint River Soil and Water Conservation District.

In Georgia, the pilot project includes parts of Calhoun, Baker, Terrell and Dougherty counties and will have three components: removing feral swine by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health and Inspection Service, restoration efforts through the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service and direct assistance to landowners through partner agencies.

As part of the effort, Mengak and researchers with the Jones Center at Ichauway in Newton will provide assistance with surveying populations, data analysis, water quality monitoring, outreach and education workshops, crop damage surveys and native species recovery following feral swine removal.

Each of these aspects will be critical in understanding the long-term success of the project.

The Southwest region of Georgia is

significant in terms of both agriculture and natural habitat. The counties in the pilot program are more than 50% agricultural, producing more than $2 billion in goods each year. The area also includes the Chickasawhatchee Wildlife Management Area, managed by the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, and overall is an important habitat area for bobwhite quail, gopher tortoise and four species of threatened or endangered aquatic mussels.

But, unfortunately, it’s also a growing refuge for feral swine.

“Feral swine can cause significant damage to crops and grazing lands, while also impacting the health of our natural resources,” said Terrance O. Rudolph, state conservationist for the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service. “By collaborating with our partners nationally and here in Georgia, our hope is to control this invasive species—improving operations for farmers while also protecting our natural resources for the future.”

On Feb. 20, The Georgia Review will host an evening of poetry and fiction featuring Carmen Giménez Smith and Tiphanie Yanique. Open free to the public, this event will take place in the Ciné Lab at 6 p.m., with a book signing to follow. Copies of the poets’ books and The Georgia Review will be available for purchase.

Giménez Smith’s most recent book, Be Recorder (Graywolf, 2019), was a finalist for the National Book Award in Poetry.

Born in New York, Giménez Smith is the daughter of South American immigrants. A Fellow and now co-director of the literary organization CantoMundo, she earned a bachelor’s degree in English from San Jose State University and a master’s degree in creative writing from the University of Iowa Writers’ Workshop.

Yanique is the author of the novel Land of Love and Drowning (Riverhead, 2014), which was chosen as a Best Book of 2014 by NPR and winner of the Flaherty-Dunnan First Novel Award from the Center for Fiction, the Phillis Wheatley Award for Pan-African Literature and the American Academy of Arts and Letters Rosenthal Family Foundation Award. Her debut collection of stories, How to Escape from a Leper Colony (Graywolf, 2010), won her a listing as one of the National Book Foundation’s 5 Under 35.

Ciné is located at 234 W. Hancock Ave. Visit www.thegeorgiareview.com or call 706-542-3481 for further information.

University of Michigan political scientist to deliver annual Parthemos Lecture

University of Michigan political scientist Vincent L. Hutchings will deliver the annual George S. Parthemos Lecture, co-hosted by the political science department and the School of Public and International Affairs.

His lecture, “Whitewashing: How Obama Used Implicit Racial Cues as a Defense Against Political Rumors,” will be presented on Feb. 28 at 3:30 p.m. in Room 480 (the Pinnacle Room) of Baldwin Hall. It is open free to the public.

Hutchings is the Hanes Walton Jr. Collegiate Professor and Research Professor in the Center for Political Studies in the Institute for Social Research at the University of Michigan.

During his two-day residency, Hutchings will teach an undergraduate class and meet with faculty and graduate students.

The Parthemos Lecture honors the late political science professor George S. Parthemos, who taught at the University of Georgia from 1953 until his death in 1984.

UGA SNAP-Ed rolls out nation’s first evidence-based online program

The University of Georgia Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Education Program has launched Food eTalk, the country’s only evidence-based online SNAP-Ed program.

UGA SNAP-Ed, a nutrition education and obesity prevention program funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture that targets low-income audiences, is delivered through the UGA Extension network in partnership with diverse stakeholders and communities across the state.

Food eTalk is a smartphone-based eLearning nutrition education program tailored to the specific needs of SNAP-eligible adult Georgians.

The program features six 10-minute interactive lessons, cooking videos and just-in-time learning videos, backed by research conducted by UGA faculty, graduate students and staff within the College of Family and Consumer Sciences.

The program reaches around 2 million Georgians a year through direct, online and social marketing interventions and has received more than $20 million in funding since its founding in 2013.

PERIODICALS POSTAGE STATEMENT Columns (USPS 020-024) is published weekly during the academic year and

biweekly during the summer for the faculty and staff of the University of Georgia by the Division of Marketing & Communications. Periodicals postage is paid in Athens, Georgia. Postmaster: Send off-campus address changes to Columns, UGA Marketing & Communications, 286 Oconee Street, Suite 200 North, Athens, GA 30602-1999.

For a complete listing of events at the University of Georgia, check the Master Calendar on the web (calendar.uga.edu/­).

The following events are open to the public, unless otherwise specified.

Dates, times and locations may change without advance notice.

UGAGUIDE

EXHIBITIONS

Beautiful and Brutal: Georgia Bulldogs Football, 2017.

Through Feb. 28. Rotunda Gallery, Special Collections Libraries.

706-542-6170. hasty@uga.edu.

Master, Pupil, Follower: 16th- to 18th-Century Italian Works on Paper. Through March 8. Georgia Museum of Art. 706-542-4662. hazbrown@uga.edu.

Rachel Whiteread. Through March 8. Georgia Museum of Art. 706-542-4662. hazbrown@uga.edu.

Hye Kyung Han. Through March 8. Visitor Center, Great Room, State Botanical Garden of Georgia. 706-542-6014. connicot@uga.edu.

Material Georgia 1733-1900: Two Decades of Scholarship.

Through March 15. Georgia Museum of Art. 706-542-4662. gmoa@uga.edu.

The Monsters Are Due on Broad Street: Patrick Dean.

Through March 29. Georgia Museum of Art. 706-542-4662. hazbrown@uga.edu.

Kevin Cole: Soul Ties. Through April 19. Georgia Museum of Art. 706-542-4662. hazbrown@uga.edu.

Louis Comfort Tiffany: Treasures from the Driehaus Collection. Through May 10. Georgia Museum of Art. 706-542-4662. hazbrown@uga.edu.

Experiencing Cortona: Celebrating 50 Years of UGA Study Abroad. Through May 29. Hargrett Library Gallery, Richard B. Russell Special Collections Libraries. 706-583-0213. jhebbard@uga.edu.

The Strategies of Suffrage: Mobilizing a Nation for Women’s Rights. Through July 2. Hargrett Library Gallery, Richard B. Russell Special Collections Libraries. 706-583-0213. jhebbard@uga.edu.

Drama and Devotion in Baroque Rome. Through Aug. 23.

Georgia Museum of Art. 706-542-4662. hazbrown@uga.edu.

Paving the Road to Progress: Georgia Interstate Highways.

Through Aug. 31. Russell Gallery, Richard B. Russell Special Collections Libraries. 706-542-5788. washnock@uga.edu.

MONDAY, FEB. 17 PRESIDENTS DAY Classes in session; offices open.

J.W. FANNING LECTURE Robert Johansson, chief economist at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, will be the guest speaker at the 35th annual J.W. Fanning Lecture. His lecture is titled “U.S. Farm Outlook for 2020: Policy and Uncertainty.” 10:30 a.m. Room R, Georgia Center. eclance@uga.edu.

READING Neil Hegarty was born in Derry in Northern Ireland and now lives in Dublin. He holds a doctoral degree in English from Trinity College Dublin and has written a number of key works in cultural history, including the bestselling Story of Ireland (BBC Books), which accompanies the BBC television series; and London: The Secret History of our Streets (BBC Books). Of his latest novel, The Jewel, published by Head of Zeus in 2019, the Irish Times wrote: “Hegarty has gifted us a vital book for our time.” 7 p.m.

Fire Hall No. 2. davemarr@uga.edu.

TUESDAY, FEB. 18 COURAGEOUS CONVERSATIONS Connect with others and discuss important, compelling topics that are sometimes “swept under the rug.” Learn techniques that will help when discussing challenging topics, including issues of diversity, equity and inclusion. Open to faculty of all ranks. Facilitator: Anneliese Singh. 8:30 a.m. 479 Tate Student Center. mary.carney@uga.edu.

WORKSHOP The CTL welcomes UGA professor Lindsey Harding for this workshop on citation practices. In this session, presenters will review citation practices at UGA, as well as research on citation practices across the disciplines. Participants will learn strategies to teach students how to cite effectively, ranging from student-constructed style guides to writing project assessment practices. Instructors will discuss opportunities to facilitate the transfer of citation practices from class to class and field to field. By the end of the session, participants will be able to explain why citations confound students and apply instructional strategies for citations to their own course contexts.

9:30 a.m. M.A.L.L. N6, Instructional Plaza. 706-542-1355. jamie.adair@uga.edu.

WORKSHOP Citation management tools help researchers integrate sources into papers, organize and archive notes on different readings and create accurate citations. UGA has site licenses to the citation management tools EndNote and RefWorks, making them free to students, faculty and staff. In this workshop, participants will learn the differences between them and ways to use these tools to build on their research over time. Registration encouraged but not required. Part of the Libraries Graduate Research Workshop Series. 1 p.m. Instruction Lab, Main Library.

706-542-0516. elwhite1@uga.edu.

TOUR AT TWO Join Annelies Mondi, deputy director and in-house curator of the exhibition Louis Comfort Tiffany: Treasures from the Driehaus Collection, for a tour. 2 p.m. Georgia Museum of Art. 706-542-4662. hazbrown@uga.edu.

ECOLOGY SEMINAR “From Phenomenon to Mechanism: What is the Role of PlantSoil Feedbacks in Plant Community Dynamics?” Anny Chung,

Ensemble Series features Hodgson Wind Ensemble in a ‘roller coaster’ concert

By Camille Hayes ceh822@uga.edu

The Hugh Hodgson School of Music Ensemble Series continues with the award-winning Hodgson Wind Ensemble on Feb. 25 at 7:30 p.m. in Hodgson Hall featuring works by Yurko, Stravinsky and Mozart.

The Hodgson Wind Ensemble, under the baton of Cynthia Johnston Turner, director of bands, and graduate conductors Andrew Blair, Emily Eng and David Stanley, will begin the program with Bruce Yurko’s “Intrada.”

“Written in a C Locrian mode, which is pretty unusual, gives the music a mood-shifting quality,” Johnston Turner said. “It’s an exciting way to open a concert with its grandiose and angular melodic fragments that give and take against each other.”

The program continues with Igor Stravinsky’s “Symphonies of Wind Instruments,” which he wrote as a kind of ritual offering to one of his mentors, Claude Debussy, who died in 1918. Rather than a assistant professor of plant biology at UGA. A reception follows the seminar at 4:30 p.m. in the Ecology Building lobby.

Host: Jill Anderson. 3:30 p.m. Auditorium, Ecology Building.

706-542-7247. bethgav@uga.edu.

WEDNESDAY, FEB. 19 GRADTEACH WORKSHOP Teaching Statements, including Teaching Philosophy Statements and Academic Diversity Statements, are living documents that allow instructors to reflect on their teaching and share with others their values, beliefs and goals. In this workshop, participants will discuss the purpose of teaching statements and typical components to include, and how teaching statements are situated within and align with the larger Teaching Portfolio. Instructors will also engage in activities to help attendees start writing their own teaching statements. 12:20 p.m. North Conference Room, Instructional Plaza. 706-542-1355. gradteach@uga.edu.

UNIVERSITY COUNCIL MEETING 3:30 p.m. Tate Theatre, Tate Student Center. 706-542-6020.

LECTURE “Confronting An Ugly Past, Building a Beautiful Future: The Legacy of Jim Crow at the Birmingham Museum of Art,” Graham C. Boettcher, R. Hugh Daniel Director of the Birmingham Museum of Art. 4 p.m. Georgia Museum of Art. 706-542-1817. hazbrown@uga.edu.

LECTURE “The Sacred Anthropocene: On Religious Interpretations of Planetary Change,” Willis Jenkins, University of Virginia. Presented by the Willson Center for Humanities and Arts in partnership with the departments of anthropology and religion and the Coasts, Climates, the Humanities and the Environment Consortium. 4 p.m. 275 Miller Learning Center. davemarr@uga.edu.

SOFTBALL vs. Samford. 5:30 p.m. Jack Turner Stadium.

MEN’S BASKETBALL vs. Auburn. $15. 7 p.m. Stegeman Coliseum.

THURSDAY, FEB. 20 FILM SCREENING AND DISCUSSION Join a screening of the film Glory followed by a discussion led

by Holly Pinheiro. Glory is the story of the first black regiment to fight for the North in the Civil War and stars Matthew Broderick, Denzel Washington, Cary Elwes and Morgan Freeman. Pinheiro is an assistant professor of history at Augusta University. 1 p.m.

Ciné. 706-542-2053. history@uga.edu.

LECTURE Michael L. Thurmond, DeKalb County CEO and Athens historian, will discuss his book A Story Untold: Black Men and Women in Athens History, updated and re-released in 2019, 40 years after its original publication. 2 p.m. 285 Special Collections Libraries.

706-542-6367. kdotson@uga.edu.

WORKSHOP “Effective Assessment of Student Learning Outcomes: Why and How to Close the Loop” will provide recommendations from assessment experts on “closing the loop” of an assessment cycle, or in other words, making use of the data. Participants will learn how assessment can strengthen programs as well as increase retention and graduation rates. The workshop is offered on Feb. 20 from 2:30-4 p.m. in Training and Development Room AB and Feb. 24 from 10-11:30 a.m. in Training and Development Room L. mary.carney@uga.edu.

ARALEE STRANGE LECTURE “Black Appetite. White Food,” Jamila Lyiscott, scholar, spoken word artist and educational consultant. 5:30 p.m. Georgia Museum of Art. 706-542-4662. hazbrown@uga.edu.

THIRD THURSDAY Eight of Athens’ established venues for visual art hold Third Thursday, an event devoted to art in the evening hours, on the third Thursday of every month. The Georgia Museum of Art, the Lamar Dodd School of Art, Lyndon House Arts Center, Glass Cube & Gallery@Hotel Indigo-Athens, Ciné, the Classic Center, ATHICA and CCBC Gallery at Creature Comforts Brewing Company will be open from 6-9 p.m. to showcase their visual-arts programming. Full schedules are posted at 3Thurs.org.

PERFORMANCE Michael Butten, UK guitarist, performs. $25; $5, students. 7 p.m.

Calendar items are taken from Columns files and from the university’s Master Calendar, maintained by Marketing & Communications. Notices are published here as space permits, with priority given to items of multidisciplinary interest. The Master Calendar is available at calendar.uga.edu/.

symphony in the traditional ways (form, duration, harmonic motion), Stravinsky went back to the word’s ancient connotation of groups of instruments “sounding together.”

“He described it as ‘a grand chant; an objective cry.’ It’s kind of an emotional roller coaster,” said Johnston Turner.

The “Gran Partita” is a symphony, Serenade No. 10 for winds by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

“It’s a massive, gorgeous, rollicking, bar room brawl, delicate dance, and in many ways another emotional roller coaster. And we’re doing things a lot differently,” said Johnston Turner.

Seven movements use traditional forms, interspersed with some unusual elements.

“It is okay to clap when you feel like it,” said Blair. “There are too many exciting moments to wait until the very end.”

Tickets for the concert are $12 for adults and $3 for UGA students and are available at pac.uga.edu. Live-streaming will be available at music.uga.edu/live-streaming.

State Botanical Garden. 706-542-6014. connicot@uga.edu.

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL vs. Texas A&M. $5. 7 p.m. Stegeman Coliseum.

PERFORMANCE Playwright Kate Hamill breathes new life into William Makepeace Thackeray’s classic novel. Vanity Fair follows anti-hero Becky Sharp and her meek friend Amelia. Becky, a penniless woman with limitless ambition, uses her romantic entanglements and risky business deals to climb the social ladder while the privileged Amelia already sits atop it. Performances run Feb. 20-22, 25-29 at 8 p.m. and March 1 at 3:30 p.m. Cellar Theatre, Fine Arts Building. 706-542-4247. wclay87@uga.edu.

FRIDAY, FEB. 21 ART + EDUCATION FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE SYMPOSIUM The symposium, which runs through Feb. 23, focuses on how art and education promote social change, utilizing contributions from in and outside the field of education. It is jointly hosted by the Lamar Dodd School of Art and the School of Social Work.

8 a.m. Lamar Dodd School of Art. 706-542-0244. lcornel@uga.edu.

WORKSHOP Participants in “Writing Tools and Resources for Peak Productivity” will learn about and share tools and resources to enhance their writing practices. Enjoy coffee from 8-8:15 a.m., then spend an hour on approaches to overcoming writing roadblocks and gaining momentum. Facilitator: Lindsey Harding. Reading Room, Miller Learning Center. mary.carney@uga.edu.

LECTURE “Women at the Forefront of Global Solutions: Plastic, Recycling and Haiti,” Chris Cuomo, women’s studies and philosophy; and Jenna Jambeck, engineering. Part of the Women’s Studies Friday Speaker Series. 12:20 p.m. 150 Miller Learning Center.

706-542-2846. tlhat@uga.edu.

SOCIOLOGY COLLOQUIUM SERIES “The Politics of Losing: Trump, the Klan and the Mainstreaming of Resentment,” Rory McVeigh, University of Notre Dame.

3:30 p.m. 214 Miller Learning Center.

SOFTBALL vs. Central Michigan. 3:30 p.m. Jack Turner Stadium.

DIGI COLLOQUIUM Nora Benedict, assistant professor of Spanish and digital humanities at UGA, will walk attendees through the complications and opportunities provided by translating print materials into a digital format. 4 p.m. DigiLab, Room 300, Main Library. digi@uga.edu.

BASEBALL vs. Santa Clara. $8. 5 p.m. Foley Field.

SOFTBALL vs. James Madison. 6 p.m. Jack Turner Stadium.

PERFORMANCE UGA Opera Theatre will be performing Gioachino Rossini’s famous Il barbiere di Siviglia, which is an opera buffa written in two acts. Performances are Feb. 21 and 22 at 7:30 p.m. and Feb. 23 at 3 p.m. On Feb. 21, all UGA students with a valid ID can receive a free ticket. $20; $3 for students. 7:30 p.m. Fine Arts Theatre, Fine Arts Building.

Che Malambo is bringing the unique South American cowboy dance tradition to Athens for a Feb. 21 performance.

By Bobby Tyler btyler@uga.edu

UGA Presents is bringing Argentina’s Che Malambo to Athens Feb. 21 for a 7:30 p.m. performance in Hodgson Concert Hall. The percussive dance and music spectacle features an all-male company of gauchos directed by Gilles Brinas, French choreographer and former ballet dancer.

Che Malambo celebrates the unique South American cowboy tradition with live music, powerful footwork, drumming of the bombos (Latin American drums) and high-speed whirling of the boleadoras (lassos with stones on the end). Danced solely by men, the malambo began in the 17th century as competitive duels that would challenge skills of agility, strength and dexterity. Zapeteo, the gaucho’s fast-paced footwork, is inspired by the rhythm of galloping horses in their native Argentina.

Brinas was fascinated by the malambo, so he

By Bobby Tyler btyler@uga.edu

UGA Presents is bringing the Vienna Piano Trio to Athens on Feb. 26 for a 7:30 p.m. performance in Hodgson Concert Hall. The trio’s program will include Haydn’s Trio in E minor and Ravel’s Piano Trio in A minor. The concert will also feature Beethoven’s “Archduke” Trio in celebration of the 250th anniversary of Beethoven’s birth.

The Vienna Piano Trio was founded in 1988 by the Viennese pianist Stefan Mendl. His partners are the Californian violinist David McCarroll, a member of the trio since 2015, and the Austrian cellist Clemens Hagen, who joined in 2018. McCarroll plays a 1761 Gagliano violin, and Hagen plays a Stradivari cello from 1698. Together, the players embody the ensemble’s continuing commitment to bridging the traditions and practice of Europe and America.

Since the 2006-2007 season, the Vienna Piano Trio has had its own subscription series at the Vienna Konzerthaus and has been a regular visitor to the world’s major concert halls, including the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Palau de la Musica Catalana in Barcelona, Konzerthaus Berlin, Wigmore Hall in London and Cité de la Musique in Paris.

The trio’s extensive prize-winning discography on the Naxos, Nimbus and MDG labels covers the complete piano trios of Brahms, Dvorák, Saint-Saëns, Schönberg/Steuermann, Schubert, Tchaikovsky and Zemlinsky, as well as works by Beethoven, Haydn, Ravel, Schumann and others.

The Vienna Piano Trio’s Athens concert will be recorded for broadcast on American Public Media’s ORCHID MADNESS: VANILLA SUNDAY The finale of Orchid Madness includes an abundance of orchids, a specialty vanilla drink and a solo performance by Leah Partridge, who has performed throughout the country, including with the Metropolitan Opera. $25; children ages 12 and younger admitted free. 5 p.m. Visitor Center & Conservatory, State Botanical Garden. 706-542-1244. garden@uga.edu.

CTEGD RESEARCH IN PROGRESS Presenters: West Lab. Moderators: Srinivasan Ramakrishnan and Michael Newberry. 8:30 a.m. 175 Coverdell Center.

BASEBALL vs. Santa Clara. 1 p.m. Foley Field.

WORKSHOP “Promotion and Tenure Dossier Preparation” will provide instructions on the assembly of promotion and tenure dossiers and tips for avoiding problems that weaken dossiers. Staff who assemble dossiers, department heads, and tenure track and clinical faculty who are preparing dossiers for full review in the fall are encouraged to attend. Facilitator: Sarah Covert.

9 a.m. Room C, Training and Development Center. mary.carney@uga.edu.

SOFTBALL vs. Austin Peay. 1 p.m. Jack Turner Stadium.

MEN’S TENNIS vs. Florida Atlantic. 2:30 p.m. Dan Magill Tennis Complex.

SOFTBALL vs. Central Michigan. 3:30 p.m. Jack Turner Stadium.

SUNDAY, FEB. 23

TO SUBMIT A LISTING FOR THE MASTER CALENDAR AND COLUMNS Post event information first to the Master Calendar website (calendar.uga.edu/). Listings for Columns are taken from the Master Calendar 12 days before the publication date.

Events not posted by then may not be printed in Columns.

flew to Bueno Aires to research the dance. Inspired by the talented artists he found there, he created Che Malambo from the best malambo dancers in Argentina. The company debuted in Paris in 2007.

Che Malambo embarked on a three-city U.S. tour in 2013 and in 2015 was invited to perform on the opening night of New York City Center’s annual Fall for Dance series. Since 2016, the company has performed in more than 100 cities in 11 countries in Europe, Asia and the Middle East, as well as four North American tours and extended engagements in London, Berlin, Cologne and Paris.

Tickets start at $30 and can be purchased at the Performing Arts Center box office, online at pac.uga.edu or by calling 706-542-4400. A limited number of discounted tickets are available to current UGA students for $10 with a valid UGA ID (limit one ticket per student).

Hodgson Concert Hall is located in the UGA Performing Arts Center at 230 River Road in Athens.

Vienna Piano Trio to perform Feb. 26 show

MONDAY, FEB. 24

SOFTBALL vs. James Madison. 1 p.m. Jack Turner Stadium.

4&5

Argentina’s Che Malambo coming to UGA on Feb. 21

SATURDAY, FEB. 22 BASEBALL vs. Santa Clara. $8. 1 p.m. Foley Field.

columns.uga.edu Feb. 17, 2020

Any additional information about the event may be sent directly to Columns. Email is preferred (columns@uga.edu), but materials can be mailed to Columns, Marketing & Communications, 286 Oconee Street, Suite 200 North, Campus Mail 1999.

The Vienna Piano Trio will visit Athens for a Feb. 26 concert.

Performance Today, the most popular classical music program in the U.S. A pre-performance talk will be given by Theresa Chafin, a graduate of UGA’s Hugh Hodgson School of Music. The talk begins at 6:45 p.m. in Ramsey Concert Hall.

Tickets for the concert start at $35 and can be purchased at the Performing Arts Center box office, online at pac.uga.edu or by calling 706-542-4400. A limited number of discounted tickets are available to current UGA students for $10 with a valid UGA ID (limit one ticket per student).

Hodgson Concert Hall and Ramsey Concert Hall are located in the Performing Arts Center at 230 River Road in Athens.

ANIMAL VOICES FILM FESTIVAL Bird of Prey tells the story of the world’s largest and rarest eagle. Discussion will be led by Richard Hall, an assistant professor in UGA’s Odum School of Ecology and infectious diseases department in the College of Veterinary Medicine. 7 p.m.

350 Miller Learning Center. 706-224-3796. sos@uga.edu.

COMING UP FACULTY PERSPECTIVES Feb. 25. Ben Ehlers, associate professor of history at UGA, will give a gallery talk about the exhibition Master, Pupil, Follower: 16th- to 18th-Century Italian Works on Paper. 2 p.m. Georgia Museum of Art. 706-542-4662. hazbrown@uga.edu.

MARY FRANCES EARLY COLLEGE OF EDUCATION NAMING CEREMONY AND LECTURE Feb. 25. As the first African American graduate of the University of Georgia, Mary Frances Early’s impact as a civil rights icon and music educator endures. The naming of the Mary Frances Early College of Education was approved by the board of regents on Oct. 16, 2019. To celebrate this occasion, Albany State University President Marion Ross Fedrick will deliver the 20th annual Mary Frances Early Lecture, named in honor of Early

by UGA’s Graduate and Professional Scholars. 2 p.m.

Hugh Hodgson Concert Hall, Performing Arts Center.

NEXT COLUMNS DEADLINES Feb. 19 (for March 2 issue) March 4 (for March 16 issue) March 11 (for March 23 issue)

6 Feb. 17, 2020 columns.uga.edu

CAMPUS CLOSEUP

RETIREES January

Forty-two UGA employees retired Jan. 1. Retirees, their job classification, department and years of service are: Rebecca Baggett, academic advisor III, Franklin College-Dean’s Office-Academic Services, 26 years, 5 months; Sharon Bradley, librarian IV, School of Law, King Law Library, 16 years, 2 months; Rose Bullock, maintenance worker, Georgia Center for Continuing Education & Hotel, operating services, 13 years, 6 months; Hilda Butler, cashier clerk, Auxiliary Services-Bolton Dining Commons, 18 years, 4 months; C. Dale Carey, grounds foreman I, FMD-grounds maintenance, 20 years, 8 months; Leslie Carithers, building services supervisor, FMD-servicesbuilding services, 10 years, 10 months; Dawn H. Cartee, director, Georgia Center for Continuing Education & Hotel, 3 years, 6 months; Janice Coley, optician, University Health Center Vision Clinic, 10 years, 5 months; Wanda Y. Delyons, Chatham County program assistant, Cooperative Extension-Southeast District, 15 years, 9 months; Anoush Ebrahimi, IT professional specialist, Auxiliary Servicesinformation technology, 18 years, 6 months; John David Fields, support manager for hardware/software, Development & Alumni Relations-information technology, 36 years, 6 months; George Foreman, associate professor, Franklin College-Hodgson School of Music, 10 years; Laura L. Garrett, county agent, Cooperative Extension, Northwest District, 30 years, 11 months; Joy L. Glenn, building services worker II, Athletic Association-building services, 15 years, 5 months; Marjanne Goozé, associate professor, Germanic and Slavic studies, 33 years, 3 months; Mark A. Harrison, professor, food science and technology, 36 years, 6 months; Mary J. Hill, systems administrator associate, Development & Alumni Relations-information technology, 15 years, 2 months; Lisa D. Hood, administrative manager I, College of Veterinary Medicine-BTH Administrative Services, 30 years, 5 months; Charles S. Hopkinson, professor, School of Marine Programs, 12 years; Martha “Martee” T. Horne, executive director, Terry College-development & alumni relations, 22 years, 3 months; Debbie J. Huth, grants coordinator II, Center for Family Research, 25 years; Paula Ivey, business manager I, CAES-Tifton campus, 13 years, 6 months; Beata Kochut, research professional II, Selig Center for Economic Growth, 31 years, 5 months; Michael H. Landers, IT professional principal, EITS-web and mobile, 22 years, 3 months; Richard A. Lebo, database administrator specialist, EITS-systems engineering, 26 years; Crystal P. Lester, administrative associate II, Finance Division-payroll, 24 years, 9 months; Yvette Leverett, director, University Testing Services, 11 years, 6 months; Richard Lewis, professor, foods and nutrition, 33 years, 7 months; Jean C. Mann, administrative associate I, Public Service and Outreach-conference and event planning, 13 years, 2 months; John Mayne, assistant director, Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program-Griffin campus, 24 years; Teresa R. Melton, business manager III, College of Engineering-Business Office, 23 years; Dale Monson, professor, Franklin College-Hodgson School of Music, 10 years, 4 months; Teresa Pearson, administrative associate II, Office of Research Services/Central Research Stores, 38 years, 6 months; Barbara Jean Reaves, senior research scientist, College of Veterinary Medicine-infectious diseases department, 10 years, 5 months; Bobby E. Storey, associate research scientist, College of Veterinary Medicine-infectious diseases department, 12 years, 5 months; Teresa J. Taylor, business manager II, Institute of Higher Education, 25 years, 4 months; Tammy D. Thomas, cook I, Auxiliary Services-Bolton Dining Commons, 30 years; Anne M. Threlkeld, county secretary, Cooperative Extension-Northeast District, 22 years, 1 month; A. Bruce Webster, professor, poultry science department, 25 years, 4 months; Mark G. Wilson, professor, College of Public Health-health promotion and behavior department, 32 years, 3 months; Adrian John Wolstenholme, professor, College of Veterinary Medicine-infectious diseases department, 10 years, 4 months; and Wendy B. Zomlefer, professor, plant biology department, 19 years, 5 months.

February

Nine UGA employees retired Feb. 1. Retirees, their job classification, department and years of service are: Jerry Benoit, HVAC systems control technician, FMDOperations & Maintenance, steam production, 10 years, 6 months; Mark T. Cherry, IT senior manager,Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources-information technology, 23 years, 6 months; Martha Davis, director-administrative, University Health Center-patient services, 31 years, 10 months; Alzena Haynes, baker I, Auxiliary Services-Village Summit, 14 years, 10 months; Edna M. Maddox, building services worker II, FMD-Services-building services, 10 years, 1 month; Karen R. Shetterley, senior public service associate, PSO-Georgia Center for Continuing Education & Hotel, 28 years, 7 months; Dennis Sterling, grounds keeper II, Skidaway Institute of Oceanography, 31 years, 6 months; Katherine L. Stevenson, professor, plant pathology, 28 years, 1 month; and Shelia Williams, administrative associate II, FMD-Work Request Center, 29 years, 9 months.

Source: Human Resources

Amanda Ganger, associate director of payroll, helped to build UGA’s system during the OneSource project.

Dorothy Kozlowski

Associate payroll director shares how small details can have a big impact in her work

By Krista Richmond krichmond@uga.edu

Amanda Ganger’s career has all added up to her current position.

“I always try to keep a positive attitude about anything that happens,” she said. “Work hard and never get discouraged. That project you’re asked to serve on that seems like it will never end will ultimately be a growing experience.”

Ganger said she balances her budget for fun and has always been good with numbers. Her position as associate director of payroll allows her to combine her affinity for numbers with her desire to help others by making sure everyone is paid accurately and on time.

“I love it when you add things up, and they equal, and there’s a correct answer,” she said. “You’re helping real people get paid.”

After graduating from UGA with her bachelor’s degree, Ganger was hired as a cashier at the Veterinary Teaching Hospital. About a year later, she transferred to the hospital’s human resources department. In that position, she worked closely with the university’s Central Payroll Office and eventually took a position as a payroll specialist there.

“I feel very fortunate for the opportunities I’ve been given,” she said.

“People notice when you’re working hard and giving it your best.”

Ganger was asked to be the time and labor functional lead on the OneSource project, which was implemented in December 2018. During that process,

she was able to have a hand in building UGA’s system and a voice in decisions made at the University System of Georgia level.

“It was a huge learning opportunity,” she said.

Now, Ganger oversees payroll when it runs every other week. She’s always listening to feedback on the new system and submits change requests for OneSource and comes up with ideas for new functionality that could enhance the user experience. She then tests those changes and ideas and helps coordinate release dates and other details.

“I think our users—our employees and staff—pay more attention in the system,” she said. “That’s been a great help in creating a more cohesive system.”

Ganger takes the lessons she learned from the OneSource project with her.

For example, she said that while her team wasn’t able to incorporate everything they’d like, it’s important to see the silver lining and focus on the good things the compromises accomplished.

Sharing input continues to be crucial.

In fact, two of the change requests put forth by Ganger already have been implemented. She also said that it’s OK to not have an immediate answer, especially on new projects, because that’s how both the people and the system grow. But the most important lesson is that every detail matters.

“The biggest surprise was how little things you might not think are important are actually huge. The smallest detail can have the biggest impact,” she

FACTS Amanda Ganger

Associate Director of Payroll Central Payroll Office M.B.A., Human Resources Management, Georgia State University, Summer 2020 (anticipated) A.B.A., General Business Studies, University of North Georgia, 2017 A.B.J., Advertising, University of Georgia, 2014 At UGA: Five years

added. “We’re all learning together.”

In addition to working on technical improvements, Ganger is also assisting with policy cleanup related to OneSource. Eventually, she would like to branch out into all aspects of payroll, including accounting and taxes.

“There is so much more growth I see happening in this system,” she said.

“I’m so connected to it at this point, and I definitely want to see it through.”

Changes in Ganger’s own life seem to follow changes in her career.

She began graduate school just as the university transitioned to OneSource, and she’ll finish that degree and get married this spring.

Outside of work, Ganger enjoys reading, crafting and scrapbooking.

She also hopes to travel more.

“It’s so important to set goals and understand your value and your worth,” she said.

FRANKLIN COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES

Romance languages professor awarded NEH fellowship

By Alan Flurry

aflurry@uga.edu

The National Endowment for the Humanities has awarded a research fellowship to Rachel Gabara, associate professor in the University of Georgia Franklin College of Arts and Sciences’ department of Romance languages, funded as a part of more than $30 million in new NEH grants for 188 humanities projects nationwide.

The fellowship will fund the completion of Gabara’s second book manuscript. The project, Reclaiming Realism: From Documentary Film in Africa to African Documentary Film, traces the history of documentary film in West and Central Africa from colonial French newsreels in the first years of the 20th century to contemporary films by postcolonial African documentarists.

“For over half a century, French

c o l o n i a l d o c umentary claimed to capture the truth about Africa and Africans. After independence, African filmmakers reclaimed the cinema and their cinematic image Rachel Gabara by experimenting with documentary content, voice and style. This project will demonstrate the vital importance of documentary first to French colonialism, then to a post-independence reframing of African identities and modes of filmic discourse,” Gabara said in describing the book. “A transnational study, it intervenes in contemporary critical debates about global documentary and the nature of filmic representations of reality.”

“Rachel Gabara is an intellectually

gifted and accomplished scholar whose study of African documentary film in its transnational context will surely result in an outstanding monograph,” said Martin Kagel, associate dean in the Franklin College. “Being awarded an NEH fellowship represents a signature achievement in Dr. Gabara’s career.

It is a most deserved distinction that reflects the university’s excellence in research in the humanities.”

The National Endowment for the Humanities is an independent federal agency created in 1965. It is one of the largest funders of humanities programs in the U.S. Applications were selected for support after completing a rigorous three-step review process conducted by panels of scholars in the field, Endowment staff, and the National Council on the Humanities. Jon Peede, NEH chairman, then made final decisions on the funding of each eligible application.

2020 PRESIDENT’S FULFILLING THE DREAM AWARD

Faculty recipient of Dream Award emphasizes equality and service

By Carolyn Crist

columns@uga.edu

For Cesar Escalante, the tenets of fairness and humanity tie together as major themes that flow through his research and mentorship at the University of Georgia.

A native of the Philippines, Escalante joined UGA’s College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences in 2001, and for two decades, his research has investigated issues of social significance on Georgia’s farms, including immigration concerns, disparities in loans and labor shortages.

“People sometimes think I do research about immigration because I’m an immigrant, but in reality, this research on farm labor came about because the farmers themselves raised the issue to me about their businesses not doing well,” said Escalante, who is a professor of agricultural and applied economics.

As part of his service-oriented research with UGA Cooperative Extension, Escalante traveled to farms around Georgia to discuss agricultural economics, where he discovered major concerns about labor and immigration.

“It’s not that the farmers wanted to keep immigrants in their fields but that they seriously needed help,” he said. “One farmer in south Georgia asked his son to stop going to school and his son-in-law to shift jobs in order to salvage the blueberries that were rotting away in the field because he couldn’t find anyone to work in the unbearable summer heat for the wages he could offer.”

While talking to farmers, Escalante also learned about controversial lending decisions and disparities in loan terms, interest rates and loan amounts for African American, Hispanic, Native American and female farmers.

“Farmers shared their experiences and frustrations about not getting approved or not receiving fair treatment in terms of interest rates, and I began pulling together borrowing data to validate the allegations,” he said. “We’re still revisiting and looking at other dimensions of borrowing issues for racial and gender minorities, as well as the guest farm worker visa program.”

Escalante’s research opened up opportunities for mentorship, as graduate students naturally began to gravitate toward his work.

Minority students, in particular, appreciated his viewpoint, advice and exploration of racial and gender equality.

“Since I was a minority student myself, I understand the challenges they have. I always make a point of talking about the

columns.uga.edu Feb. 17, 2020

2020 PRESIDENT’S FULFILLING THE DREAM AWARD

Community Dream Award winner helps students find ways to excel

By Matt Chambers columns@uga.edu

Dorothy Kozlowski

Cesar Escalante brings fairness and humanity to his service-oriented research.

challenges and helping those who feel like they don’t fit in,” he said. “They open up about their problems, and I share my stories about inferiority and insecurity from the past.”

Escalante earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from Ateneo de Manila University in the Philippines, a master’s degree in agricultural economics from the University of Guelph in Canada and a Ph.D. in agricultural economics from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.

He joined UGA after earning his doctorate and never left.

“My graduate students are eager to work on this research, and at a land-grant institution like UGA, I’m free to do the service-oriented applied research that I enjoy,” he said. “It’s telling that everyone in the department tends to stay in their positions for decades and retire here.”

For his research, mentorship and service, Escalante has earned numerous awards during his career, including the 2019 First-Year Odyssey Teaching Award, the CAES Faculty Diversity Award and the departmental Outstanding Faculty Member three times. Most recently, he was awarded the 2020 President’s Fulfilling the Dream Award. Presented at the Martin Luther King Jr. Freedom Breakfast on Jan. 17, the award recognizes those in the UGA and Athens-Clarke County communities who have worked to make King’s dream of equality and justice a reality.

“It’s a great honor to receive this award, and I feel humbled,” he said. “For me, the biggest payoff comes when I see my students successfully overcome their obstacles and find wonderful opportunities. Even after they graduate, we stay in touch and help each other.”

WEEKLY READER

Marvin J. Nunnally Jr. has had mentors since the fifth grade. Many of the notable Athens-area figures—Howard B. Stroud, Lawrence Milton Scotland, his cousin the Rev. David Nunnally Sr. and Vinnie Williams—helped push him to focus on bettering himself through education.

“There weren’t that many opportunities coming from Oconee County,” said Nunnally, a Watkinsville native. “I worked very hard, but I was fortunate to have the influential foundation that propelled me to where I am today. Those teachers, the counselors and all those people helped me stay hungry for education.”

Now, decades later, Nunnally is doing the same for a younger generation of students. His efforts mentoring and propelling local youth recently earned him the 2020 President’s Fulfilling the Dream Award, presented at the Martin Luther King Jr. Freedom Breakfast on Jan. 17. The award recognizes those in the UGA and AthensClarke County communities who have worked to make King’s dream of equality and justice a reality.

“I think that I was lucky that others took time to pull me aside and say they saw something in me,” Nunnally said. “I think that’s what’s missing in a lot of people’s lives, so that’s what I try to do.”

To help shape and mold students, Nunnally launched the In Touch Management Group Youth Academy seven years ago. The youth academy helps about 20 students a year from six school districts grow academically and find opportunities to excel.

“I challenge them and push them hard,” Nunnally said. “But then those kids go on to be Merit Scholars, Zell Miller Scholars, even Bill Gates Millennium Scholars. The things we’ve been able to watch them accomplish has just been amazing.”

Over the seven years, youth academy participants have gone on to study at Howard, Emory, Stanford and Harvard universities and Agnes Scott College. Many of the students received scholarships from a variety of areas thanks to Nunnally.

“The best part about the academy is that it’s laying a foundation for the kids to dream,” he said. “We start by just encouraging them to dream. We’ll figure the road they need to travel to get to that dream, but they just have to start.”

Nunnally came up with the idea for the

Peter Frey

Marvin Nunnally mentors students through his youth academy.

youth academy more than a decade ago but left the proposal for it sitting on a shelf for three years because he didn’t have the means to make it happen. But after a meeting with Cheryl Dozier, former associate provost and chief diversity officer at UGA, he was able to propose the program as a community piece in a grant, and things took off from there.

“I believe that education is the equalizer,” Nunnally said. “Once you get that education and you continue to grow, you can’t stop. That’s why I push the kids so hard to go for it.”

As the first in his family to go to college— he earned a Bachelor of Applied Science degree in political science and government in 1982 from UGA—Nunnally also helps students succeed in other ways. He’s helped raise more than $2 million in scholarships through the Athens Area Human Relations Council, the Masonic Order and the Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity.

“When I joined the fraternity, we took an oath, which I take it very, very seriously, to help promote the community,” Nunnally said.

“It is rewarding for me to see these young people excel and take advantage of all the opportunities that we weren’t exposed to.”

But Nunnally is quick to give credit to others. He says that he’s just tapping into his network and putting out the call for help; others are helping create the foundation for student successes alongside him.

“The amazing thing is that we get the community to believe in the future of the students, too,” he said. “They sponsor the scholarships. We don’t mind getting out there and hustling to get the scholarships, but they’re the ones giving.”

CYBERSIGHTS

ABOUT COLUMNS

New book features working-class authors

Coming of Age in a Hardscrabble World: A Memoir Anthology Edited by Nancy C. Atwood and Roger Atwood UGA Press Hardback: $99.95 Paperback: $29.95

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Nonfiction storytelling is at its best in this anthology of excerpts from memoirs by 30 authors—some eminent, some less well known—who grew up tough and talented in working-class America. Their stories, selected from literary memoirs published between 1982 and 2014, cover episodes from childhood to young adulthood within a spectrum of life-changing experiences.

All of these perspectives are explored within the larger context of economic insecurity in Coming of Age in a Hardscrabble World: A Memoir Anthology. These memoirists grew up in families that led “hardscrabble” lives in which struggle and strenuous effort were the norm. Their stories offer insight on the realities of class in America, as well as inspiration and hope.

Nancy C. Atwood has practiced psychotherapy and has served on the adjunct faculty at Smith College School for Social Work.

Roger Atwood is the author of Stealing History.

Columns is available to the community by ­subscription for an annual fee of $20 (second-class delivery) or $40 (first-class delivery). Faculty and staff members with a disability may call 706-542-8017 for assistance in obtaining this publication in an alternate format.

Columns staff can be reached at 706-542-8017 or columns@uga.edu

Editor Juliett Dinkins

Site navigates students through resources

student.uga.edu

In partnership with the Division of Student Affairs, the Student Government Association has launched a student resources website.

Organized into subject areas, the site lowers the informational hurdle students face when navigating the campus departmental structure.

The mobile-optimized

website integrates with the uga.edu Students tab, as well as the UGA App, and serves as both a resource for students as well as a reference for faculty and staff when assisting students.

For questions and suggestions about the resources included on the website, contact Stan Jackson at ugastan@uga.edu.

Associate Editor Krista Richmond Art Director Jackie Baxter Roberts Photo Editor Dorothy Kozlowski Writers Leigh Beeson Hayley Major The University of Georgia is committed to principles of equal opportunity and affirmative action.

The University of Georgia is a unit of the University System of Georgia.

8 Feb. 17, 2020 columns.uga.edu

R&D from page 1

BULLDOG from page 1 list. Nominations were accepted between February and May 2020. Approximately 533 nominations were received for the 2020 Bulldog 100. Each organization must have been in business since 2015, experienced revenues in excess of $100,000 for the calendar year 2016 and be owned or operated by a former UGA student who owns at least 50% of the company or is the CEO, president or managing partner.

The Bulldog 100 recognizes the fastestgrowing businesses regardless of size by focusing on a three-year compounded annual growth rate. The average compounded annual growth rate for this year’s Bulldog 100 businesses was 59%.

During the Feb. 8 event, the UGA Alumni Association presented the third

annual Michael J. Bryan Award to 1999 UGA graduate Bonneau Ansley, CEO and founder of Ansley Atlanta Real Estate.

Bryan, the co-founder and managing partner of Vino Venue and Atlanta Wine School in Dunwoody, passed away in 2017 after a long battle with cancer. The award recognizes a returning Bulldog 100 honoree whose business has not only sustained growth, but also demonstrates the entrepreneurial spirit and commitment to UGA that was Bryan’s hallmark.

For more information about the Michael J. Bryan Scholarship or to view the complete list of 2020 Bulldog 100 businesses, visit www.alumni.uga.edu/b100.

Nominations for the 2021 Bulldog 100 opened Feb. 10.

NOWAK from page 1 How important is communication with the public during the beginning of an outbreak like the one we’ve seen associated with COVID-19?

“It’s essential to have constant and good communication, because one of the things you’re doing is setting, guiding and managing people’s expectations. A lot of times we think that we’re trying to give people information. We are, but we’re also trying to get them to kind of understand what’s happening, how it’s unfolding, how it could unfold, so that they have the appropriate and best responses.”

Does all the attention paid to COVID-19 distract from potentially more important public health issues such as influenza?

“You know, one of the challenges when you have something like coronavirus, which is new and is getting a lot of attention, is are people going to pay attention to other, more likely, health threats? And I think CDC and other organizations are aware of that. And CDC is still trying to get

EARTH

messages out regarding influenza. I think one of the challenges that’s probably on the media front is that reporters who are following coronavirus are focused almost exclusively on coronavirus. They just don’t have the time and ability to cover more than one disease or health issue at a time.”

What lessons have we learned from previous outbreaks?

“There have been many lessons that have been learned. One of the first lessons is that you need to get information out quickly to more than one audience. And as a result, CDC and other organizations are not just working to get information out through the news media. They’re working to get information out through multiple channels, such as their website, such as health care providers, such as partners, people who can reach other, airline travelers and cruise lines. So, there are a lot of things that are happening that are not quite as visible as the media relations.”

from page 1

Office of the President and Georgia Power, Sanford Stadium will be powered by renewable solar electricity during UGA’s annual G-Day spring football game on April 18 with the entire main campus being powered by solar electricity on Earth Day, April 22.

“Earth Day 2020 is an opportunity to celebrate and expand UGA efforts to implement social, environmental and economic initiatives that enhance quality of life on campus and in the communities we serve,” said Kevin Kirsche, director of the UGA Office of Sustainability, one of the Earth Day organizers.

The Office of Sustainability will also host the annual Earth Day Fair from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on April 22 at UGA Tate Student Center Plaza. The fair will include a solar-powered tiny house, a visit from the UGA Chew Crew prescribed grazing project and other engaging activities hosted by campus and community organizations working toward an increasingly sustainable UGA and Athens.

Other highlights include lectures by prominent speakers. On Feb. 21, the Red Clay Conference, hosted by the Environmental Law Association, will feature the Peter Appel Lecture by Love Canal activist Lois Gibbs, who led the fight for her community to be relocated after discovering that the neighborhood had been built atop 20,000 tons of chemical waste. Gibbs successfully pushed for the site to be cleaned up, and her efforts eventually led to the creation of the U.S. EPA’s “Superfund” program. Her talk and the conference are open to the public and free for members of the UGA community but requires registration. More information is available at http:// law.uga.edu/environmental-law-association.

The Willson Center for Humanities and Arts will host the Odum Environmental Ethics Lecture by Pulitzer Prize-winning author and environmental historian Jack Davis on April 16 as part of the Global

Georgia Initiative public event series. On Earth Day itself, the Georgia Museum of Natural History will present the inaugural Blum Lecture by Lynn Faust, author of Fireflies, Glow-worms, and Lightning Bugs, published by the University of Georgia Press. Also on April 22, poet and essayist Aimee Nezhukumatathil will headline The Georgia Review’s 12th annual Earth Day program with a children’s nature-writing event in the afternoon and an evening reading to be held at the State Botanical Garden of Georgia.

The Earth Day anniversary celebration will provide opportunities for hands-on volunteer activities across campus and throughout Athens. Participants can help local organizations with projects like invasive species removal, stream monitoring and creating native plant “seed bombs.”

University students can also take part in a sustainability-focused Athens Startup Week from April 13-17 hosted by the Terry College of Business and UGA Entrepreneurship Program, culminating in the Life’s a Pitch competition, hosted by the Society of Entrepreneurs to address global sustainability challenges through innovative business solutions.

“Earth Day 2020 is an important opportunity to celebrate and strengthen UGA’s commitment to research, teaching and service focused on healthier people, a more secure future and stronger communities,” said John Gittleman, Foundation Professor and dean of the Odum School of Ecology. “The breadth of Earth Day offerings reminds us that regardless of our area of study, whether science and engineering, arts and humanities, law, business or any other discipline, we all depend on a healthy environment, and we can all contribute in our own way.”

For a complete listing of Earth Day anniversary events, including exhibits, film screenings and conferences, visit https://sustainability.uga.edu/earthday/.

Institutes of Health to develop a universal flu vaccine; Distinguished Research Professor Jessica Kissinger in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences, who won two awards in the past year totaling up to $16.2 million to develop health informatics databases; and associate professor David Okech in the School of Social Work, who since 2018 has been awarded nearly $20 million from the U.S. Department of State to combat human trafficking.

The success of UGA faculty in competing for grants extends across the university. UGA’s Willson Center, for example, has received more than $600,000 since 2018 from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, denoting record levels of grant funding in the humanities.

UGA currently ranks No. 57 among U.S. universities in the National Science Foundation’s survey of overall R&D expenditures.

The ranking, which lags a year behind, is based on UGA’s FY2018 R&D expenditures of $453.2 million.

“Increases in external research funding at the University of Georgia signal our growing role in addressing urgent challenges to health, security and community vitality,” said S. Jack Hu, the university’s senior vice president for academic affairs and provost. “I appreciate the dedication of our faculty and staff to applying their expertise to benefit society. As an institution, we are committed to expanding the impact of our research even further.”

UGA’s Innovation District initiative was

created last year in part to expand upon the university’s interest and success in translating research activity into commercial products and applications. UGA currently ranks first among U.S. universities for the number of new products brought to market annually, and more than 775 products based on UGA research have been introduced to the market to date.

Over the past four years, invention disclosures from UGA investigators have risen 60% and licensing revenue has grown 70%.

For more than a decade, UGA has ranked among the top 10 U.S. universities for the number of technology license agreements signed by industry and among the top 20 public universities for licensing revenue. In some cases, bringing UGA discoveries to market is best done by starting new companies, and this number is trending upward as well. The number of startups born out of UGA research has jumped 150% since 2015.

“UGA’s growth as a research university is due to the successes of our faculty and their research colleagues in generating and translating new knowledge, as well as to the strategic investments made by the university and our friends and partners across the state,” said David Lee, vice president for research. “With exciting initiatives like the Innovation District and capital expansions like the $65 million Interdisciplinary I-STEM Research Building currently under construction, I look forward to notable expansion in the years to come.”

HARRIS from page 1 back home to your kids or spouse and those are things that we want to avoid.

“So, we train responders on how to properly don personal protective equipment as it relates to different types of hazards and different types of infectious diseases. So, not only how to don it, but perhaps more importantly is how do you take it off.

“Because once you’ve treated an infectious person or you’ve been around somebody that has a serious communicable disease or an infectious disease, the proper protocol to take that personal protective equipment off is just as important as the way that you put it on. And so we’re training our first responders how to do that. We’re training clinicians how to do that in health care settings so that ultimately we can all be more protected.”

What should people in health care do to protect themselves and other patients?

“Clinicians need to be especially mindful of what’s going on right now. So, you think about if you’re a doctor and you’re working at a primary care or an urgent care clinic—think about all the people who are sitting out in your waiting room.

“If you have someone come in and they potentially have an infectious disease or a communicable disease, they’re likely sitting around others who do not. One of the points we emphasize is to make sure personal protective equipment like surgical masks are available in the lobby. This affords infectious patients the opportunity to go ahead and put the mask on to prevent spread of disease to others sitting in the waiting room.

“Also, for clinicians it’s important if you identify symptoms of fever, cough and lower respiratory issues consistent with characteristics we’re seeing with coronavirus right now that you try to isolate that individual as soon as humanly possible and then ask travel related questions. Anyone who’s experienced these symptoms with a positive travel history to Wuhan, China, or has been in direct, physical contact with someone from the Wuhan area that has been confirmed, then there is a pretty good chance that they could have it as well.”

What can regular citizens do to protect themselves from COVID-19 and other infectious diseases?

“It’s simple things like making sure that you’re washing your hands with warm, soapy water and doing so for about 20 seconds.

A lot of times when we do wash our hands it’s not long enough. So, washing for about 20 seconds is a good practice. Other public health practices also prevent the spread of disease like sneezing into your elbow and trying to avoid contact with your hands into your eyes, nasal cavity or mouth.

“And it’s also understanding yourself and knowing that if you have symptoms, you do

not need to be around other people. You need to seek medical attention immediately and try to isolate yourself from others so that you prevent the spread of disease.”

What should people do if recommendations change about the coronavirus?

“Any time we look at new and emerging infectious diseases, there’s no way for us to know all the science behind it. There are researchers and clinicians all around the world who are currently working day and night to try to understand this virus, know how it’s spread and know what antivirals and potential vaccinations could be out there. So we want to be clear about that: there are no definitive antivirals for this new coronavirus yet. There are no vaccines for it yet.

“However, the science is changing rapidly.

And so just because they may have issued a warning today or they may have issued guidance on how to do things appropriately today, that has the potential to change tomorrow as the scientific community continues to learn.”

Has COVID-19 led to any unintended consequences in the public health profession?

“I think there is a bit of irony in the coronavirus outbreak right now, because I think it’s making people more aware of infectious diseases in general. If you look at the United States right now, we are in the middle of a major flu outbreak. The same public health practices like sneezing into your elbow; washing your hands with warm, soapy water for 20 seconds or longer; avoiding touching your eyes, nasal cavity and mouth; and isolating yourself from others when you are not feeling well or are displaying symptoms are best practices for preventing the spread of the coronavirus and flu.

“So, by having this at the forefront and getting this information out to people we have the chance to lessen the impact of each illness.”

Bulletin Board TEDxUGA registration

Registration for TEDxUGA 2020: Next Level is now open.

The eighth annual celebration of ideas worth spreading will be held on March 27 at 7 p.m. at the Classic Center Theatre. Individuals may register for $20 or $30 with a T-shirt.

For more information, visit TEDxUGA.com/register.

Bulletin Board is limited to information that may pertain to a majority of faculty and staff members.