CHAIRMAN’S LETTER / FALL 2013 Dear Friends… It was great to see everyone at our fall board meeting in Athens! I really sensed a spirit of enthusiasm and camaraderie which will serve us well as we continue our work to help advance the university’s academic mission. We enjoyed a very productive couple of days and I am appreciative to each of you for volunteering your time and talents in support of our efforts. In follow up to that meeting, I am elated to note that we closed on the property at 608 Massachusetts Avenue in our nation’s capital that will provide a new home for the university’s Washington, D.C. programs. The new facility, which we expect to be ready for use by January 2015, will include one classroom and housing for 32 students. I will share more details as they become available. In the meantime, my sincere thanks to our Immediate Past Chair Bill Young and Executive Director Cindy Coyle for their hard work and diligence in leading us to this point. In addition, there is more good news to share in the stories that follow with regard to the forthcoming investiture of our new president, a record number of students participating in the Center for Undergraduate Research programs and accomplishments of faculty that are supported by University of Georgia Foundation endowments. I hope to see all of you at our winter board meeting in Athens February 20 and 21 and that you will make plans to stay over and participate in the Foundation Fellows Interview Weekend Friday evening the 21st and on Saturday the 22nd. I’ll have more information on the upcoming meetings in the Winter newsletter which is scheduled for January. Between now and then, we have the major November and December holidays just around the corner, and though it is a bit early, I wish you and yours the very best for a safe and enjoyable season. Sincerely,
John Spalding (AB ’82, JD ’85) Chairman
Investiture Ceremony for President Jere W. Morehead set for November 19 I hope to see many of you at the Hugh Hodgson Concert Hall on UGA’s East Campus on November 19 when the university will celebrate the investiture of Jere W. Morehead as our 22nd president. U.S. District Court Judge and UGA Foundation Trustee Steve Jones will offer a welcoming for the day’s program that will include Governor Nathan Deal; University System of Georgia Chancellor Hank Hukaby ; William “Dink” NeSmith, chair of the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia and an emeritus trustee of the foundation; and Nancy B. Denson, mayor of the Athens-Clarke County Unified Government. U.S. District Court Chief Judge Julie E. Carnes will preside over the ceremony. The president also will be greeted by representatives from the faculty, staff, students and alumni before providing the investiture address. The investiture is a ceremony in which the leader of an institution is vested with the garments, insignia or ornaments signifying the Investiture Ceremony authority of the Honoring Jere W. Morehead office. Tuesday, November 19, 2013 10:00 AM If you are unable Hugh Hodgson Concert Hall to attend in person, the celebration will be broadcast live on Channel 15 on the University of Georgia and Charter cable systems and streamed live on the Internet at http://www.ctl.uga.edu/. Additional viewing areas include the Ramsey Concert Hall in Hodgson Hall, the M. Smith Griffith Auditorium in the Georgia Museum of Art and the Tate Student Center Theater. A reception will be held immediately following the investiture on the Performing Arts Quadrangle.
Congratulations to two UGA professors for recent awards Two University of Georgia professors, Donna E. Alvermann and Denise A. Spangler have been appointed to professorships in the College of Education. Both professorships are endowed in the University of Georgia Foundation and are named for the late UGA President Omer Clyde Aderhold and his late daughter, Elizabeth (BeBe) Aderhold, who served as a faculty member in childhood education. Alvermann, (at right) is a Distinguished Research Professor of Language and Literacy Education. She was named the Omer Clyde and Elizabeth Parr Aderhold Professor in Education. Spangler, (at left) who heads the department of mathematics and science education, was named the Bebe Aderhold Professor in Early Childhood Education. The special appointments, approved by the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia, are among three positions established with funds in a gift bequest from the estate of O.C. Aderhold, former UGA President (1950-67) and dean of the College of Education (1947-50). The third appointment is the Omer Clyde and Elizabeth Parr Aderhold Professorship in Research Methodology which has been held by Allan S. Cohen, since 2011.
UGA sets record for student enrollment in CURO program Fall enrollment for courses in the Center for Undergraduate Research Opportunities (CURO) is the largest in the program’s history. This semester, a record 234 UGA students are participating in individualized research projects, continuing an upward trend in CURO participation. In the 2012-2013 academic year, 449 students took 536 CURO courses, an all-time high. While the program is filled primarily by Honors Program students, the number of non-Honors students has more than doubled from last fall to more than sixty.
Dr. Rick Tarleton’s research at UGA is saving lives around the world It was an honor to hear from Dr. Rick Tarleton (below) at our lunch session during the fall board meeting in Athens. Dr. Tarleton has been on the UGA faculty for 30 years and leads research on tropical and emerging infectious diseases and immunology. He shared an overview of his work which has led to the creation of more effective prevention measures, diagnostics and vaccines.
The CURO courses offer undergraduates the opportunity to participate in one-on-one research with faculty mentors. Courses range from research projects on the effects of music on male aggression to range shifts in alligator populations due to changes in sea level. "The increased participation in CURO we are seeing is very exciting," said David Williams, associate provost and director of the Honors Program. "UGA is one of only a handful of institutions in the country that offers the opportunity to conduct undergraduate research for a full four years in any academic discipline. This gives students extensive and sustained contact with faculty mentors, who are able to open doors for students throughout their undergraduate experience."
Dr. Tarleton is a central player in one of the largest and most productive groups of tropical disease researchers in the world. He is an active advisor on policy related to tropical diseases for the Institute of Medicine in the U.S., the World Health Organization, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation among others.
More students are working on independent projects, enjoying one-on-one time with faculty earlier in their careers and more students are exposed to research.
Research in his laboratory at the University of Georgia has resulted in publication of more than 130 scholarly reports, produced four patents and more than $20 million in external grant funds.
"This leads to high levels of student achievement," Williams said. "The benefits include more thorough letters of recommendations from faculty mentors to graduate and professional schools, more students making informed decisions about careers in research and more research coming out of the University of Georgia."
Dr. Tarleton is the UGA Athletic Association Distinguished Professor of Biological Sciences in the Department of Cellular Biology. It is a professorship that is endowed in the University of Georgia Foundation.
Board of Visitors planning programs in Atlanta February 6 and May 1, 2014
UGA Foundation publishes 2013 Annual Report
A reminder that the Board of Visitors has scheduled luncheons in Atlanta on February 6 and May 1 and all trustees are cordially invited to attend. You do not have to be a member of the Board of Visitors Sub-committee. Our fall program featured President Jere Morehead who offered a compelling overview of his vision for the university in the years ahead.
The 2013 edition of the UGA Foundation Annual Report has been published. Copies from the initial print run were shared at the board meeting in Athens; hard copies were subsequently mailed to top donors and Georgia State Senator Cecil Staton and University System shared by email with all other contributors. of Georgia Board of Regents Chancellor Hank Huckaby chat during the fall Board of Visitors meeting in Atlanta.
For the foreseeable future, all meetings will be held in Atlanta to accommodate the greatest number of work schedules. The networking and meeting agenda is maintained on a rigid timeline so that you may attend and return to your business concerns as soon as possible. As of the writing of this newsletter, our February 6 meeting will feature a presentation by Sean McMillan from the University of Georgia’s Economic Development Office in Atlanta. The location is to be determined, but this promises to be an interesting and informative meeting that I encourage all of you to attend if possible. The subject matter and location for the May 1 meeting is in the planning stages. More information on both sessions will be coming your way soon.
My thanks to the Development & Public Affairs Committee’s Communications Subcommittee led by Trustee Gail Hunnicutt for their hard work in this effort. The electronic version is available to view or download online by clicking here. If you desire additional copies of the printed edition, contact Chip Stewart at (706) 5424583 or via email at chips@uga.edu.
Dates to remember November 9, 2013:
Football (Homecoming) UGA vs. Appalachian State Sanford Stadium 12:30 PM
November 16, 2013:
Football UGA at Auburn Auburn, Alabama Time TBD
November 19, 2013:
Investiture of President Jere W. Morehead Hugh Hodgson Concert Hall 10:00 AM
November 23, 2013
Football UGA vs. Kentucky Sanford Stadium Time TBD
November 30, 2013
Football UGA at Georgia Tech Atlanta, GA Time TBD
December 13, 2013:
Fall semester commencement Stegeman Coliseum Undergraduate ceremony 9:30 AM Graduate ceremony 2:30 PM
January 25, 2014:
UGA Alumni Association Bulldog 100 Awards Celebration Marriott Marquis Atlanta, GA 6:00 PM Reception, 7:00 PM Dinner
February 6, 2014:
UGA Board of Visitors meeting Exact Location and Times TBD Atlanta, GA
February 20-21, 2014:
UGA Foundation Board meeting Various campus sites in Athens
February 21-22, 2014:
Foundation Fellows interview weekend Various campus sites in Athens
May 1, 2014:
UGA Board of Visitors meeting Atlanta 11:30 AM – 1:00 PM
May 9, 2014:
Spring semester commencement Graduate ceremony – 10:00 AM Stegeman Coliseum Undergraduate ceremony – 7:00 PM Sanford Stadium (rain or shine)
June 19-20, 2014:
UGA Foundation spring/summer board meeting St. Simons Island, Georgia
August 1, 2014:
Summer Semester Commencement Stegeman Coliseum 9:30 AM
University of Georgia Foundation 394 South Milledge Ave., Suite 100 Athens, Georgia 30602-5582 Telephone (706) 542-6677 www.ugafoundation.org