Editor’s Letter
We, the staff of The Phoenix, are doing what a phoenix would, dusting ourselves off from the ashes of our past. In recent editions we lacked severely in ad sales, content quality and expedient issue production. To be quite candid, due to our lack of student direction, our presence on campus was severely diminished, and our funding was severely cut. We are working harder than ever to change this. For the first time in a few years, we are reinstating ad sales and producing two issues on a one-issue-per-semester budget. We are also helping program events with the Department of Communication, such as “Journalism Day,” a day where local high school and middle school students could attend workshops lead by local media professionals. Since assuming my position as Editor-in-Chief, I, quickly, had to adopt the characteristics of a leader. Prior to this, my only experience working in publications was as a staff writer. In the
beginning I asked myself the question: What kind of leader do I want to be? I grew to favor the idea of servant leadership, working alongside my writers and designers to help them find contacts, write questions and design layouts. My favorite definition of leadership is “the art of mobilizing others to want to struggle for a shared aspiration,” because struggle, we do. The journalism industry is changing, and print is dying. When I tell people about the magazine I work on, they are quick to tell me they’ve never heard of it. And, while I cannot definitively tell you that I would know about that magazine, had I not decided to join the staff last year, I am doing everything in my power to change this narrative. Yet, I would be selfish to give myself all the credit for improving and expanding the magazine. Our growth can and should be largely attributed to our dedicated staff members who make my job, as editor, a little easier. I would like to thank them for their commitment to these past two editions and faith in me to execute them. I would also like to thank my mother, my AEIC; Lauren
Ramos, Ravyn Chatmon, Haley Knight, Amanda Main and Dr. van Tuyll for being outstanding supporters and offering me counsel that I would surely be lost without. This past semester my schedule was the busiest it’s ever been. But this issue will reflect none of that. I barely slept this year, and, sometimes, when I did, it was in the office on a stack of newspapers. But, if you are wondering if I regret anything, the answer is no. I cannot think of a single experience running this magazine brought me that did not make me into a better leader and a better person. My goal going into this was achieved, despite the trial and tribulations brought on by COVID-19. I can positively say that I did everything I could for this magazine.
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Emily Garcia
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ADVISER Dr. Debbie van Tuyll
PG 4
Cinematic Sensations by Trey Nevard
PG 6
Period Poverty by Madeline Burgin
PG 8
Augusta on the Rocks by Aaron Nipper
PG 10
The Time line of Karen by Emily Garcia
PG 24
A Look at IVF at AU by Savannah Luckey
PG 26
Wingspan
PG 27
Photography by Saint Julian C.
PG 30
Poetry by Trey Nevard
PG 32
Photography by Samantha Dickens
PG 34
Poetry by Kiara Iman
ASSISTANT EDITOR Lauren Ramos DESIGN Savannah Tardy WRITERS Autumn Asbill Madeline Burgin Savannah Luckey Trey Nevard Aaron Nipper WINGSPAN Saint Julian C. Samantha Dickens Trey Nevard Kiara Iman REACH US augustaphoenix@gmail.com 707-737-1600 2500 Walton Way, Augusta, Ga., 30904-220 JSAC Room 237 The Phoenix is a student publication at Augusta University. Opinions expressed are those of the authors and not the editors or the institution. The Phoenix is published twice a semester. The magazine is printed by Claffey Printing, Augusta, Georgia. @aug_phoenix
Cinematic Sensations: What Movies to Look Forward to in 2020
by Trey Nevard
August 14, 2020. Matthew Buzzell, associate Free Guy ( July 3) – Directed professor of film, said, “I think every year is a good year for cinema. It’s just a matter of seeking out films of a particular quality.” What do you have to look forward to in 2020? Note: Because of the coronavirus pandemic, many of these release dates have been changed. Any new release dates will be at the end of each paragraph in bold. No Time to Die (April 10) – Directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga, the latest James Bond adventure promises to be Daniel Craig’s last as the legendary 007. The film is about Bond coming out of retirement and teaming up with his replacement (played by Lashana Lynch) to search for a missing scientist. If you like action movies, this promises to be something you don’t want to miss. No Time to Die has been moved to November 12, 2020. The Personal History of David Copperfield (May 8) – Directed by Armando Iannucci, this adaptation of the Charles Dickens novel originally premiered at the Toronto Film Festival in 2019 to generally favorable reviews. Keep an eye out if you’re interested in a Victorian-era comedy starring such names as Dev Patel, Hugh Laurie, Tilda Swinton, and Peter Capaldi. Wonder Woman 1984 ( June 5) – Directed by Patty Jenkins, this sequel to the 2017 superhero film takes place in 1984. The plot is under wraps, but in addition to the heroine (Gal Gadot) taking on two new foes, Maxwell Lord and the Cheetah (Pedro Pascal and Kristen Wiig, respectively), the film will also feature the return of Wonder Woman’s love interest (Chris Pine) under mysterious circumstances. Wonder Woman 1984 has been moved to
by Shawn Levy, Ryan Reynolds plays a bank teller named Guy. Guy finds out that he’s actually a non-playable character in a very violet video game. If the movie is half as good as its trailer is, audiences will be in good hands. Free Guy has been moved to December 11, 2020. Bill & Ted Face the Music (August 21) – Directed by Dean Parisot, the long-awaited sequel to the 1989 classic Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure is about the Wyld Stallyns being pressured to create a song in 78 minutes or risk all life in the universe. The Trial of the Chicago 7 (September 25) – Directed by Aaron Sorkin, this film is about the Chicago Seven, a group of defendants who were charged by the federal government with conspiracy in the 1960s. Respect (October 9) – Directed by Liesl Tommy, Jennifer Hudson plays Aretha Franklin in this biographical film about the famous singer’s life. Godzilla vs. Kong (November 20) – Directed by Adam Wingard, the fourth film of Legendary Pictures’ MonsterVerse promises to be a big one in this title match between the enormous atomic lizard and the gigantic savage gorilla. West Side Story (December 18) – Directed by Steven Spielberg, this adaptation of the 1957 Broadway musical about starcrossed lovers from opposing gangs will star Ansel Elgort and Rachel Zegler in the lead roles. Spielberg first expressed his interest in creating this remake in 2014.
by Madeline Burgin
About half of the population of the world has menstruated or will menstruate. Some of these people with the ability to menstruate will experience what is known as “period poverty.” “When you hear the term [period poverty], most of us think about the obvious part of it: not having the menstrual products. However, it goes beyond that… It’s not just the [lack of ] products, but it’s the places to clean and the ability to clean oneself,” said Dr. Angela Bratton, an anthropology professor at Augusta University (AU). Bratton explained that taxes placed on disposable menstrual products and lack of access creates a “trickle-down effect” on women. The effect is that women and young girls may not be able to go to school or participate in society with as much ease as their
male counterparts. According to Bratton, period poverty can create a discrepancy in education that furthers the cycle of economic poverty for women worldwide. In many states in America, “Pink taxes” and other “luxury taxes” can further exacerbate the financial burden of periods, according to Dr. Liana Babayan, head of Women and Gender Studies at AU. These taxes increase the price of disposable menstrual products and are typically charged at the point-of-sale through sales tax. Babayan said these kinds of taxes coerce people who menstruate into paying more for their disposable menstrual products. The taxes “are a basic discrimination against women and young girls… you are paying an extra tax on those items, which contributes to systematic poverty… for women, who are systematically paid less than men are,” said Babayan. She explained the lack of ac-
tion on change is in part due to “the lack of representation of feminine voice [in legislative forces], [which] has resulted in the unknown understanding of how essential those products are for women. [Women] don’t use tampons and pads out of luxury or for luxury. This is just [a] necessity.”Bratton explained that periods “are something that [most] women [and other people with uteruses] have at some point in their lives, yet in 2020 [they] are still expected to be quiet about it.” Bratton said, “When we think about how we learn about periods, we are taught to associate women being hormonal and unpredictable and emotional with their periods. We delegitimize women, their experience and their feelings, because they are on their period.” Therefore, those who menstruate are not taken seriously when asking for legislation changes to fight period poverty. Hope House Augusta is an organization that works to address period poverty by ending the cycle of poverty for women with mental illnesses and substance abuse. Hope House Augusta provides disposable menstrual products, housing, childcare, mental health treatment, clothing and more to meet women where they are and teach them self-sufficiency, according to Executive Director Karen Saltzman. Saltzman explained how most of the women who come to Hope House Augusta are in survival mode. She said, “They often have not had a good meal. They’re dehydrated. They’re tired. They’re traumatized. They may still be under the influence of drugs. We here to help them regain the per-
son they lost, or learn who they are.” She explained how often people who have never experienced poverty or people without a uterus, overlook the importance of having disposable menstrual products. “I think it would surprise people to know how lacking people are,” said Saltzman, “I’ve had [women] come in with toilet tissue, paper towels all kinds of things [to absorb ].” According to Saltzman, SNAP and WIC benefits do not cover the cost of menstrual products. She then explained that there is a general lack of access to disposable menstrual products or to basic necessities such as shelter within Augusta due to its geography and lack of quality public transportation. Recently, Augusta University has taken steps to address the lack of access to disposable menstrual products on campus. Last year was the first year that free menstrual products were made available in women’s restrooms across the Summerville and Health Science campuses. The disposable menstrual product dispensers at Augusta University are a part of a project started by Babayan and the Women and Gender Studies Program. Babayan noted that “ Our female students would sometimes have to miss a class in order to drive somewhere [to obtain sanitary products].” Babayan said that, although the bookstore carries these products, they are outrageously expensive to students. According to the AU JagStore, sanitary pads cost a unit price of 45 cents each and tampons cost 69 cents each. The nearest pharmacy to AU’s Summerville cam-
pus is Walgreens approximately 2 miles away. At Walgreens, the unit price of sanitary pads is 6 cents and tampons is 9 cents. Babayan explained there were people who actively found excuses to not have the disposable menstrual products available. These excuses ranged from that there was not enough wall space in the women’s bathrooms to a fear of vandalization. Pushing through excuses and other obstacles, Babayan and the Women and Gender Studies program wrote a proposal and presented it to multiple committees within AU. Then, Dr. Candace Griffith, chair of Student Affairs committee, presented the proposal to the Faculty Senate for endorsement. After the proposal was endorsed, Babayan, Griffith, and Dr. Darla Linville worked alongside AU Facilities for implementation of the disposable period product dispensers. The Women and Gender Studies program also included and fought for gender neutral bathrooms and lactation rooms to be included in their proposal. As of today, “There are 14 [menstrual product] dispensers on both of the campuses. Right now, all of them are on the firstfloor bathrooms…After [the pilot program], we were told that the program will expand to all women’s and gender-neutral bathrooms,” Babayan said. Period poverty is a global issue. There are a variety of ways to combat the issue and to get involved. Babayan explained that the only way to affect change globally is to start locally.
Augusta on the Rocks by Aaron Nipper
On St. Patrick’s Day 2019, Victoria Sinclair, 23, nervously walked down Broad Street with her friends at 10 p.m. Police cars patrolled the street. Sinclair remembered her friends happening upon a large group of people arguing when suddenly they heard gunshots and saw people running in every direction. The Augusta Chronicle later reported that four people had been shot that night, and the shooter, 24 –year-old Muntreze Roundtree, turned himself in immediately afterwards. According to the same report, all four people shot survived. Sinclair said she has friends at Augusta University who warned her about going to bars on Broad Street, saying things can get out of hand with some bar patrons. The Richmond County Sherriff ’s office released a letter pertaining to the Augusta nightclub ordinance in August 2019 to address alcohol-related violent crimes related to the downtown club scene, inspired by an attack on then 24- year old Brittany Ste-
vens earlier that month outside of The Scene nightclub. “Within the last several months, the Richmond County Sheriff ’s Office has assigned an increased number of deputies to patrol the Augusta Downtown Corridor on Friday and Saturday nights to reduce the number of incidents involving violence and disorder,” said Sheriff Richard Roundtree’s letter to the public. The letter was addressed to all bars and restaurants serving alcohol, as well as all Richmond county citizens, reiterating several things laid out in the ordinance and providing the sheriff ’s office with “broad and sole discretion” concerning the safety aspects of establishments. The purpose of the Augusta Nightclub Ordinance is to lay out basic security rules for nightclubs in Augusta and withhold the liquor licenses of establishments that are non-compliant with these rules, according to Augusta District Attorney Natalie Paine. County commissioner Dennis Williams said that there are different safety requirements for
different establishments. Williams gave examples of dance halls, clubs that serve only liquor, and clubs that serve liquor and food all having different ordinance requirements to abide by. The ordinance lists 12 different licenses for clubs, ranging from on-premise consumption of beer, wine or liquor, off-premise consumption and “manufacture of malt beverages” to wholesale beer, liquor and wine and Sunday sales. “Some restaurants, if they’re selling [food], they can stay open till 4 o’clock [a.m.],” Williams said, adding that if a club stops serving alcohol at 3 a.m., people must be out of the club by 2:30 a.m. The ordinance is not foolproof, however. And, Williams says business owners can only do so much to ensure the safeguarding of their patrons. Williams said there are “lots of things you can’t prepare for.” The Augusta Nightclub Ordinance has technically been in existence for years, although it doesn’t always get enforced, according to both Williams and
Paine, who also say it is unclear whether it affects the number of violent incidents that occur in clubs around Augusta. Paine mentioned that around six to nine months ago, there were a large number of violent incidents in downtown Augusta bars such as a fight that broke out at The Scene, a double homicide that occurred at Private Eye and a homicide at another downtown club. “It comes in waves, like you’ll have five incidents and then you won’t have any happen for six months,” Paine said. Paine said that enforcing the ordinance is a little bit reactionary, and in direct response to the influx of shootings in the downtown area. She also said she hadn’t heard much else about follow-up since the initial statement. Paine said that the main thing the ordinance does is “requires the businesses [serving alcohol] to provide additional security or share in some responsibility [keeping their patrons safe]. I think, generally, if you’ve got good bouncers in there, they’ll be keeping an eye [out],” Paine said. Yet, Paine explained, if a bouncer asked two hostile parties to leave, this may not suffice to do anything except move the scene of the violence from inside the bar to out into the street. The letter to Alcohol Consumption Establishments also states that each establishment designate one person to be a point of contact for the sheriff ’s office in regard to a security plan. “Designated security personnel will be listed and can be a member(s) of your staff, a uniform private security firm or special duty law enforcement personnel,” the letter says.
It also states that security is “responsible for the safety of the patrons upon exiting the establishment” by recommending that “patrons upon exiting the establishment be released in limited numbers close to and at the conclusion of business hours.” This means that rather than exit all at once, bar exiting will be staggered. “The main thing (about the exit plan) is to get the people out at a certain hour,” Williams said, also adding, “If your license said you have to stop selling at 2:30, your club has to be empty by 3.” Sheriff Roundtree’s letter states that the overall objective of reinforcing the Augusta Nightclub ordinance is to ensure that businesses operate “in a safe and responsible manner ensuring the safety of patrons and the general public.”
On October 15, 2020, Karen Mobley was terminated from her position as director of multicultural student engagement, locked out of her email promptly after and later denied unemployment and severance pay.
Mobley worked for Augusta University (AU) for 17-and-a-half-years. On January 7, 2020 Mobley is referred to as a complainant in documents sent to AU by the Georgia Commission for Equal Opportunity (GCEO). The documents AU sent to the GCEO in response state that AU’s stance is, “There is no evidence to support her allegations that these employment decisions were due to illegal discrimination, harassment, or retaliation based on race, age, ethnicity, or disability.” The GCEO will neither confirm nor deny if they are still in the process of investigating AU for a complaint of discrimination on Mobley’s behalf. Mobley said in an interview that she he felt her employers were not comfortable working with people of color and that she felt targeted and discriminated against in her work as a result of this. Gina Thurman, the associate dean of students and Mobley’s supervisor said she acknowledged that Mobley mentioned feeling discriminated against but that Mobley never made any kind of formal complaint prior to being fired. Dr. Susan Davies, vice president of Enrollment & Student Affairs at AU, declined to comment on Mobley’s feelings of discrimination.
The following timeline is written using information collected through interviews, documents, recordings and emails, mostly obtained through Georgia Open Records Act (GORA) requests filed with the Augusta University Office of Legal Services to help the student body understand Mobley’s termination from Augusta University. In the AU employee handbook the policy for termination states, “Involuntary terminations involve the dismissal of an employee due to unsatisfactory job performance, a reduction in force or other circumstances.”
November 21, 2014: Warning #1 A graduate student, employed at Paine College as the adviser for the student government association (SGA), was working in Mobley’s office late one night as part of his graduate internship and needed to rush to a dinner meeting with the Paine College SGA. The student did not have enough time to go to Paine College and get a tax exemption form to use for the SGA’s dinner, and asked Mobley if she had a copy of the document that he could use.
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Mobley said she looked online to ensure that Paine College and AU used the same state tax exemption form and confirmed they did. Since both schools used the same document, Mobley assumed she could give the Paine College employee a blank tax exemption form. Only when she downloaded and printed the form did she realize it was already filled out with AU’s information. Mobley then edited the AU tax exemption form to fit in Paine College’s information. (see tax document from Paine College, fig. 1 and tax document from AU, fig. 2)
“It was falsification of university documents. We’re a state institution and Paine College is not a state institution. So, to take our name off of it and put their name on it, that was the problem,” said Debra Arnold, director of employee relations at AU. 2
February 19, 2019: Attempted Grievance Filing Mobley sends an email to Debra Arnold at Human Resources and asks for assistance in filing a grievance for discrimination from her superiors. Mobley wrote, “Hello Debra, I need your assistance please. I attempted to find formal university grievance procedures online, but the policy has been removed so I’m not sure the right way to go about this, but any assistance you are able to provide will be appreciated.” In Arnold’s response to Mobley’s email inquiring about a grievance, Arnold did not outright tell Mobley that she should be filing a complaint rather than a grievance, only stating that they would need to meet to further discuss Mobley’s requests. Per university policy, a complaint may be filed at any time, but a grievance may only be filed after punitive action has been taken against an employee, such as termination, salary cuts or demotion from position. Mobley did not yet have any such punitive actions taken against her. Mobley recalled this interaction with Arnold, and said in her grievance hearing, “I assumed that when I emailed and said I was fearful of retribution and that I wanted to file a grievance, [that filing a grievance was the appropriate thing to do] I didn’t know any other steps; it’s not easy to find the steps on our website.”Arnold responded, “I’d like to see the email that said you wanted to file a grievance.” The email correspondence between the two is titled “KAM – Grievances” Arnold also said, “I feel like I would’ve said that the grievance process was different.” (see response email sent to Mobley from Arnold, fig. 3)
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February 26, 2019: Meeting with D. Arnold Arnold meets with Mobley to discuss Mobley’s concerns. About the meeting, Arnold said in Mobley’s grievance hearing, “We discussed that you didn’t know if it was racism or if they just didn’t like you.”
May 2019: Multicultural Student Center Opens Multicultural Student Center opens in the Jaguar Student Activity Center, located on Summerville Campus.
July 24, 2019: Warning #2 During a Division of Enrollment and Student Affairs Directors Meeting, Mobley had her name mentioned by Dr. Davies, who Mobley said misquoted her in speech. Mobley said Dr. Davies said something to the effect of, “Well, Karen always says…” although Mobley did not remember the rest of Dr. Davies’ statement. Mobley said she felt mis-characterized by the way Dr. Davies was talking about her and spoke up to make a correction to Dr. Davies’ statements. Dr. Davies declined to confirm this interaction. Mobley and Dr. Davies proceeded to engage in a back and forth conversation that was described as tense yet not lacking in professionalism, said David Munoz, a former digital specialist for AU, who was in the room preparing for his own presentation during the meeting. Munoz said he overheard Dr. Davies tell Mobley to take the conversation offline. Mobley said she did not hear Dr. Davies tell her this. Mobley was issued her second warning for violating rule 9, “Behavior which interferes with the work performance of other employees and/or disrupts any teaching, research, administrative or other activity of Augusta University” and rule 13 “Insubordination or Willful Disobedience.”
July 26, 2019: Final Warning Mobley received a final warning letter, stating that “….future work rule violations or other problems with your performance or behavior will result in immediate discharge.” In Mobley’s grievance hearing, Arnold said, “Karen to be honest with you, there was concern about [giving you a final warning]; they didn’t know if they were going to terminate you for that [the incident at the director’s meeting].”
October 9, 2019: MSC Closed Before Spring Pause The MSC was partially closed for cleaning. To explain the partial closure to students Mobley put up two signs on the door. (see MSC signs with comments written by Mobley’s superiors, including Thurman, fig. 4)
Thurman said she felt the signs did not make sense. Thurman said the message was confusing and that if she couldn’t understand it, she couldn’t expect students to. “It says here [on the sign] that the goals of the center is, [for it to be] a place where students of all cultural identities will have the opportunity to engage in conversation. It’s kind of weird that we want everyone to feel comfortable but we’re only opening it to these groups [that Mobley mentioned],” said Thurman. Thurman said if a request for closure would’ve come through the chain of command, it would have been approved to close for fall pause. Thurman said there was no communication on Mobley’s end. Dr. Wallace texted Mobley to inform her that he re-opened the MSC and asked to speak with her about her decision the next day.
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October 10, 2019: Mobley Unavailable for Meeting Mobley replies to Wallace’s email that she will not be able to meet due to illness and a family medical concern that would require her to drive two hours to visit with family. Several moments later Mobley forwarded multiple work emails to her personal email accounts.
October 15, 2019: Notice of Discharge Mobley received a notice of discharge. The notice stated that she had five days to appeal the decisions and 10 days to file a grievance with HR. The notice of discharge included references to Mobley’s previous warnings in 2014 and 2019, as well as repeated tardiness, rule number 5, for the past four weeks. Mobley said within a matter of hours she was locked out of her AUGUSTA.edu email. In an interview for The BellRinger, President Brooks Keel declined to comment on whether or not this was common procedure when terminating a staff member. Mobley continued forwarding a number of emails concerning her work as MSC director from her AUGUSTA.edu account to her personal email addresses, until around the end of the work day. All further correspondence with faculty and staff at AU is made from Mobley’s Gmail account.
October 22, 2019: Appeal to Dr. Davies Mobley sent her appeal to Dr. Davies. The appeal was 13 pages, most front and back, and included several letters of support from individual students, coworkers and Lambda Alliance. (see appeal components with comments written by Mobley’s superiors, including Thurman, fig. 5 and fig. 6)
5 The Black Student Union and Lambda Alliance protests by sitting on the steps of Bellevue Hall, holding up a sign that reads, “Bring Karen Back!” (see student protest at Bellevue Hall, fig. 7)
6 During the protest, a video was taken by a student protester, showing fellow students engaging in conversation with Thurman and Dr. Wallace. In the video, students voiced concerns to Dr. Wallace and Thurman of a lack o timeliness in being informed about Ms. Mobley’s firing. Most students found out about Mobley’s termination from other students, rather than administrators. Vice President of the Lambda Alliance, Joe Wallace explained that he learned of Mobley’s termination when he became the point of contact for vendors and found out through a vendor. The vice president of the Lambda Alliance said, “It’s not fair to us, to leave us in the dark. We have a stake in this as well.” Another student asked if it was possible for Karen to have “just have her job back,” because of the impact she had on coordinating events and individual connections with students.
October 23, 2019: Letter Confirmation Dr. Davies indicates via an email to Karen that she has received the letter.
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October 29, 2019: Mobley Files Grievance Mobley files a grievance with HR for her discharge. (see HR grievance fig. 8)
October 30, 2019: Denied Appeal Dr. Davies sent a letter to Mobley denying her appeal. Davies wrote, “After carefully reviewing your appeal and documentation supporting your discharge, I am upholding your supervisors’ decision to terminate your employment.” Mobley said she herself never saw documentation supporting her discharge.
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November 1, 2019: Rejection Letter Received Mobley indicated to Dr. Davies via email that she received the rejection letter
November 13, 2019: Hearing Requests Mobley sent an email after meeting with Patrick Hatch, IT project coordinator at AU, and Renee Wray, employee relations specialist at AU, for a pre-hearing briefing. Mobley asks for the recording the HR grievance hearing. This hearing is a grievance hearing with HR. Mobley requested a change in the members sitting on her hearing panel. Taken from her email, Mobley wrote, “I ask that Darrell Gentry, Dental College be replaced, please. My preference is that the replacement not be from the College of Dentistry.” Mobley indicated in a later email to Hatch that this “has to do with Diversity and Inclusion issues in the College of Dentistry where Mr. Gentry works.”
November 19, 2019: Grievance Hearing HR Grievance hearing takes place.
December 11, 2019: Memorandum to Hearing Panel Wray sent out a memorandum to hearing panel members Kay Roland, Diego Vasquez and Carol Poque, informing them that AU president, Dr. Brooks Keel, accepted the panel’s recommendation to uphold Mobley’s termination.
December 13, 2019: Unemployment Hearing Scheduled Cathy Hess, an unemployment hearing representative from Corporate Cost Control scheduled an unemployment hearing for December 26 at 1 p.m. This hearing was to decide whether Mobley would receive unemployment and severance pay. This email was sent to several HR employees, including Arnold.
December 26, 2019: Denied Unemployment Mobley appealed to receive unemployment and severance pay. She was denied both.
January 7, 2020: Interrogatories Sent to AU
Jazmyn Frye, on behalf of the GCEO, sent a series of interrogatories to Augusta University’s about allegations of discrimination made by Mobley. The interrogatories were sent to Glenn Powell, director of employment equity. According to a draft of AU’s response to these interrogatories, “It is Augusta University’s position that there has been no discrimination or retaliation against the Complainant, Ms. Karen Mobley, in any way.”
January 9, 2020: Response to Interrogatories Powell sent an email to Dr. Wallace and Thurman regarding what should be included in the final draft of responses to the GCEO interrogatories. Initially, Thurman wanted to include a log of Mobley’s absences and tardiness. However, Powell explained that he noticed a number of absences were recorded as sick leave and responded to Thurman, “With the federal laws related [Family Medical Leave Act] FMLA and [Americans with Disabilities Act] ADA, we should be careful that it is not perceived we are penalizing an employee for being sick or using earned sick leave.” Powell continued, “I would concentrate on the big discipline issues: 2 Final Warning and Termination. As long as we document those reasons, we should be OK.” The drafted response Thurman sent back to Powell did not include a log of absences, but cited repeated tardiness as a reason for discharge. Although, Thurman later on said in an interview that tardiness was not part of AU’s decision to terminate. Dr. Davies declined to comment on Mobley’s reasons for termination.
February 22, 2020: Mobley Requests Hearing Recording Mobley submitted a GORA request to AU’s Office of Legal Services for the grievance hearing recording, as well as the hearing panel’s comments and packet of information submitted to the AU’s president and provost, along with their responses.
March 17, 2020: Mobley Receives Hearing Recording, but... Mobley received the recording of grievance hearing from the legal services coordinator, Denise Webster but has still not received the panel’s comments or the responses from the president or provost.
Mobley has the option of pursuing litigation or deciding to drop the case entirely. This timeline is ongoing.
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the embryo stage and places these embryos in the uterus, according to Dr. Larisa Gavrilova-Jordan, professor of obstetrics and gynecology, IVF director, and director of the Fertility Preservation Program (FPP) at Augusta University. In-vitro fertilization has grown considerably since then, Gavrilova-Jordan said. Currently, assistive reproductive technology (ART), a blanket term used to refer to all treatments addressing infertility issues, allows for results that would otherwise not be possible. Gavrilova-Jordan said, “[The program] has truly blossomed within the last fifteen years. Today we can screen embryos for genetic abnormalities, egg maturation problems, and overcome problems of aging eggs.” She said that the chances of conception from IVF now are double what they were 10 years ago.
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Over 41 years ago, Robert Edwards and Patrick Steptoe underwent the first successful IVF treatment. The simple IVF treatment collects eggs from female partner, sperm from male partner, fertilizes the two haploid cells in vitro, growing them into
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When Michelle Lee was 24-years-old she decided she was ready to start a family. After trying five rounds of intrauterine inseminations (IUI’s) with no success, Lee said she felt broken. “I felt less than a woman because my body was not doing what it was made to do,” said Lee. In 2018, Lee underwent in-vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment to conceive her firstborn son at the age of 30.
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Gavrilova-Jordan said she takes absolute joy in being able to help couples conceive, who previously thought they never would. “I’ve known for a long time that, if my husband and I ever needed fertility treatment, I wanted Dr. Jordan to be our doctor,” said one of Dr. Jordan’s patients, who wished to remain anonymous for personal reasons. The patient’s journey began in July of 2019 and she was announced pregnant in December 2019, after two consecutive IUI’s followed by an IVF cycle. The patient said it’s important that individuals choose a doctor they trust with infertility treatments. “Dr. Jordan and her team also do a really good job educating patients at their consults and along the way and pointing them to resources,” the patient said. “The idea that you can help couples to have cystic fibrosis free babies, or prevent the transmis-
sion of Huntington’s disease, is absolutely inspiring,” said Gavrilova-Jordan.
Gavrilova Jordan said Augusta University is a unique hub for ART because they receive referrals from rural Georgia, adjacent South Carolina areas, as well as Augusta locals. The IVF program has made a huge difference in Georgia’s rural areas that may otherwise not be able to receive such treatments due to geographic and socioeconomic boundaries, according to Gavrilova-Jordan. “In the last five years over 750 patients received ART treatment at Augusta University, with a continuous increase in the number of patients having PGT (preimplantation genetic testing), utilization of gestational carrier program. Good prognosis patients conceive three out of four from a single cycle of IVF. Augusta’s onco-fertility program [a program that serves the fertility needs of cancer survivors] has seen over 150 patients in the last five years. There are three babies that were born to cancer survivors using cryopreserved ART specimens,” said Gavrilova-Jordan.
She predicted that this number is only going to continue growing. “I’m very fortunate to fulfill my dreams of 22 years and to lead the IVF program at Augusta University and spearheading Telemedicine to Assistive Reproductive
Technology. It’s an incredible field,” says Gavrilova-Jordan. “After learning that my husband also had some medical challenges that when combined with my endometriosis would make it impossible to get pregnant naturally, we were introduced to IVF. We were told this would be our only option and there was no guarantee that it would work,” said Carolyn English, an AU alumna who began her IVF journey in 2006 after her endometriosis diagnosis at 23 years old. English said that many who deal with infertility are not comfortable being open about their plight. However, English said, “They [others struggling with infertility] need to hear about it and know that they are not alone.” “It really helped to talk to other women who could really understand what I was going through. I am actually still friends with one of those women to this day. We are friends on Facebook and we talk on the phone every three to four months.” said English. Due to the possibly symptoms of depression and anxiety that may arise from infertility, a support group is a very important part of the IVF process, said Gavrilova-Jordan. “A lot of patients are sharing their experience through online platforms and supporting each other. This dissipates stigma. A lot of my patients are actually excited and feel fortunate to be able to have that ability to proceed and do it,” Gavrilova-Jordan said. Dr. Gavrilova-Jordan also described how involved doctors performing IVF are in preserving and protecting their patients. “There are massive regulations and guidelines everyone must follow: American Society for Re-
productive Medicine guidelines that we follow very closely, FDA regulations for donor tissues, as well as American College of OBGYN guidelines for general reproductive health principles of management. We follow all 3 bodies. We also follow College of American Pathologists to ensure quality as well as procedure safety and lab,” said Gavrilova-Jordan. According to Gavrilova-Jordan, it is a tremendous amount of work to build a successful IVF program, “that’s why most universities do not have IVF programs.” “I can tell that about ten years ago, people felt IVF was almost a curse because they felt nature failed them. Now we have a newer generation and information available these days that has gapped medical fields and patients much closer,” said Gavrilova-Jordan. “Infertility made me feel I had no control and I needed to take my power back,” said English. To learn more about Augusta University’s IVF program visit https://www.augustahealth.org/ infertility
WINGSPAN
CREATORS
Saint Julian C. Samantha Dickens Trey Nevard Kiara Iman
Photo by Saint Julian C.
Landscape Beach by Saint Julian C.
Landscape 4 by Saint Julian C.
Landscape Sheep by Saint Julian C.
Landscape 2 by Saint Julian C.
The message began, “Is it too early?” I read in her soft voice, a siren sound. “I love you,” she said; she said that to me. Began with a hook, it grasped totally, Like a leash pulling a distracted hound. The message began, “Is it too early?” “To say,” the question continues, as she Nervously types on her keyboard: Pound! Pound! “I love you,” she said; she said that to me. Short it was, yes, but it filled me with glee. Rereading it lifts me off of the ground. The message began, “Is it too early?” Most likely, she sent this reluctantly, And with my answer, her fears were unfound. “I love you,” I said, as she said to me. Our love grew and grew, but now I sit lonely, As her words in my head make one more round. The message began, “It is too early?” “I love you,” she said; she said that to me.
Was It Too Early? By Trey Nevard
What If by Trey Nevard
Have you ever wondered “What if ?” What if a bloodhound forgot how to sniff ? Or a bouncy ball fell off of a cliff ? Or Abe Lincoln never went cold and stiff ? Or riots in the streets remained a li’l tiff ? But fights break out when someone bickers While trolls ‘neath the bridge watch and snicker And God and the angels watch and get sicker And break the love in Jesus’s ticker “But don’t let your heart ache, Lord” Folks say “You present us with the Sword The Sword of the Spirit” But what does that mean? That you can make a Mosque a crime scene? Keep your sword clean Step away from the screen ‘Lest you choose to demean
Your own message; I mean Is this what God wanted When he sent the Holy Ghost? Or will we be haunted For your Facebook post? You claim America is ruined by PC, But I see That DC Beat us to the punch, see? Why do you care if I kneel or rise, Open my eyes, Or let out some cries? Have I no reason to scream? I thought we were on the same team! “Onward ho! Full steam!” Now I see a divide in between And every little subsection of folks are annoyed Tired of being toyed So they go back home to their void Forgive me and my weary old riff; I’m just scared from thinking “What If ?”
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Orion in the Winter by Samantha Dickens
Blue by Samantha Dickens