GEORGIA REGENTS UNIVERSITY
www.grubellringer.com
VOLUME 58, ISSUE 1
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2015
Primate’s death warrants probation By Inesha Howard contributor
SHELLIE SMITLEY | STAFF Chancellor Hank Huckaby asks Regents members to vote on the University’s name change (left). Vice-president and Provost Gretchen Caughman (top) and President Brooks Keel (bottom) address the media’s questions at press conferences in Atlanta.
Augusta University: The ‘A’ Has Returned By Shellie Smitley news editor Members of the Board of Regents unanimously voted to change the name of Georgia Regents University to Augusta University at a monthly board meeting held in Atlanta on Sept. 15. Hank Huckaby, Chancellor of the Board of Regents, said the new name builds on the momentum of President Brooks Keel’s leadership, according to The Board of Regents website. Brooks Keel, President of Augusta University, said in a press conference held in Atlanta that he had nothing to do with making the decision to change the name. “It wasn’t my decision,” Keel said. “I have said all along any decision to name the university or to change the name of the university sits squarely with the Board of Regents and with the Chancellor. They are the ones that chose this name and voted on it unanimously to help move it forward…but the name Augusta University...there was widespread support for this name two years ago when the first name change of the consolidated university was discussed. It was one of the top two names that people seemed to really migrate towards...”
Gretchen Caughman, Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost, said that the name change was an important step in moving forward within the Augusta community and that she was not surprised by the name change but was by how fast it happened. “Understanding how these things grind sometimes I was quite impressed, I would say, by the way that it just got done,” Caughman said. Keel said putting Augusta back in the name of the university was not a sign that opponents of the Georgia Regents University name had won any type of victory. “I’m not sure that it is a victory as much as an affirmation that Augusta is important to this university, hugely important,” Keel said. “We really can’t be successful without the support of the community. What I am most excited about is hopefully this will allow us all to come together, the entire Jaguar nation, really come together as one and support the great things that the university is supposed to do...” He said the idea of changing the hospital’s name will be discussed in the upcoming weeks. “We want to make sure whatever we do, not only as a university but as a health system, that we do it in such
a way that helps us take advantage of the brand,” Keel said. “So I am sure we will be having those conversations with the Board (of the health system) in the next couple weeks.” The name change goes into effect immediately according to a news release posted on The Board of Regents website. However, Keel said the university will continue to be called Georgia Regents University until the name is officially changed and “a lot of moving parts” have to go into the change. “My job right now is to go back and engage the greater university community,” Keel said. “This affects an awful lot of faculty and staff, affects an awful lot of students, so we want to move forward thoughtfully and strategically. We have not had an opportunity to do that so in the next coming days and weeks we will have meetings with our staff, with the faculty, with the students to try to see how best we can do this. There are all sorts of things that are associated with this name change, the logo, how we brand that logo, the mark, (and) those sorts of things. We are going to be using a professional marketing firm that can help us determine the best logos, and the best brands, see AUGUSTA UNIVERSITY on PAGE 5
Georgia Regents University has been placed on probation by the Association of Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care International, (AAALAC). “An inspection last year raised questions about the death of a monkey during surgery and found widespread infection and parasite problems with rats and mice and a lack of good veterinary oversight of laboratory animals in general,” according to The Augusta Chronicle, published on Aug. 30, 2015. AAALAC is a small animal care accreditation group. This group placed GRU on probation last year. “Probationary accreditation is awarded to programs that are already accredited, that during a site visit have one or more mandatory items that must be fully addressed to achieve the reinstatement of full accreditation” Chris Newcomer said, executive director of AAALAC. In addition to the findings by the AAALAC, Michael Budkie, executive director of Stop Animal Exploitation Now (SAEN), said the animal watch group has also launched an investigation. “We have filed two complaints against GRU, the more recent one is relevant to the primate death,” Budkie said. According to a news advisory provided by Budkie, the com-
plaints are seeking the maximum penalty of $10,000 per infraction/ per animal. SAEN is requesting all GRU post-mortem records for monkeys and pigs for the last two years. “GRU negligence has already killed multiple animals, and we are concerned that this may be only the tip of the iceberg,” Budkie said. Mandatory items, in the Council’s judgment, from AAALAC’s guide or international standards that must be corrected to achieve or continue accreditation, are based on the Council’s assessment of the potential to affect health, well-being or safety or animals or humans. Probation can last up to 12 months by vote of the Council. If corrections to the mandatory items are not achieved within the given time, the process to revoke accreditation will be initiated, according to aaalac.org. According to a statement released by the university’s office of media relations, obtained by The Bell Ringer on Sept. 8, 2015, “The university underwent an administration restructuring of its animal care program…Some of the improvements encouraged were oversight of the veterinary care program, increase oversight of drug storage, documentation of log sheets and medical records and safety training for employees working with washers and bulk sterilizers. see PROBATION on PAGE 5
SHELLIE SMITLEY | STAFF SAEN has recently requested two years of post-mortem records from the university.
McBride: Dialogue uncovers policy violation By Shellie Smitley news editor
AUGUSTA CHRONICLE Chief William McBride retired on June 30.
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According to an investigation report released from the Office of Legal Affairs at Georgia Regents University, an administrative assistant conveyed her concerns about police chief William McBride to the Compliance and Enterprise Risk Management Office. Amanda Flanders alleged that McBride was engaging in inappropriate administration of salary increases, violation of the University Information Security Password Protection Policy, violation of title VII, threatening behavior, and misuse of state funds. A series of interviews were conducted by employees of the compliance office who determined that only the violation of the University Information Security Password Protection Policy was substantiated. The interviews were conducted between May 13 and June 12. According to the report, McBride, Eugene Maxwell, Major, Public Safety, Ernest Black,
ARTS & LIFE | PAGE 3
Major, Public Safety, Roxie Bush, Business Manager 2, Public Safety, Becky Whisenhunt, Assessment Coordinator 1, Institutional Effectiveness, Terry McBride, wife of William McBride and Administrative Assistant 2 at the MCG Dean’s Office were interviewed. McBride tendered his resignation and no further action was taken. According to WRDW–TV, Augusta, Ga., McBride had been placed on administrative leave pending an investigation on June 1 and then announced his retirement effective June 30. According to the investigative report, an organizational action plan includes a national search to assume the position of the Chief of Public Safety and to offer education for Public Safety staff regarding university policies. The university posted the police chief vacancy on Chroniclevitae.com on Aug. 24. Candidate materials will be received by Carolyn H. Burns, PHR Interim Director, Talent Acquisition and Management Assistant Director for
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Executive Search Georgia Regents University. Flanders tendered her resignation on April 16, 2015, and according to the investigative report her resignation was due to issues not related to the allegations. McBride began employment at the university in September 1995. According to usg.edu, The Board of Regents website, this investigation was not the first time McBride’s actions had been looked at. In a letter dated May 13, 2013, the former president of Georgia Regents University, Ricardo Azziz, stated that McBride was one of the attendees at a six-hour training session on the policies of the Board of Regents. The session was conducted by John Fuchko, Chief Audit Officer and Associate Vice Chancellor, University System of Georgia, and was recommended by the Board of Regents audit staff in connection to findings during an audit staff special review. McBride is named in a pending civil law suit filed in the Federal District Court. sbarb@gru.edu
NEWS | PAGE 5
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WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2015
OPINION www.grubellringer.com
editorial
The voice of
Georgia Regents University EDITORIAL STAFF adviser RICHARD KENNEY rkenney@gru.edu editor-in-chief SARAH CARTER scarte14@gru.edu copy editor ERICA RUGGLES eruggles@gru.edu AMY PERKINS aperkin4@gru.edu news editor SHELLIE SMITLEY sbarb@gru.edu arts & life editor JOSHUA ADAMS jadams35@gru.edu sports editor TIM HOWARD thowar20@gru.edu chief reporter AVAILABLE POSITION layout editors ANNA DRESSER adresser@gru.edu JAMIE SAPP jsapp270@gru.edu staff writers TAYLOR MITCHELL tmitch22@gru.edu SIDNEY FOWLER sfowler@gru.edu LESLIE ANNE WIEDMEIER lwiedmei@gru.edu columnist SCHYLO PHILLIPS sphill17@gru.edu contributors Adrienne Hayes adhayes@gru.edu Inesha Howard icarruth@gru.edu photographer POSITION AVAILABLE cartoonist DAQUAN MIDDLETON dmiddle6@gru.edu advertising manager POSITION AVAILABLE webmaster POSITION AVAILABLE Direct advertising inquiries to: Ashley Shelton, Advertising Manager ashelto9@gru.edu Address all correspondence to: The Bell Ringer 2500 Walton Way Augusta, Ga 30904 706-737-1600 www.grubellringer.com
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SIDNEY FOWLER | STAFF Back: Anna Dresser, Erica Ruggles, Jamie Sapp, Joshua Adams, Tim Howard, and Dr. Rick Kenney; Front: Amy Perkins, Sarah Carter, Inesha Howard, and Shellie Smitley
A new southern ‘Bell’ at the Ringer While glancing through my planner the other day, I realized that the fifth week of the semester has already come and gone. Not only does this mean midterm is around the corner, but it also reminds me of the changes in weather that will be occurring soon and the football games and holiday events that will be quickly approaching. Although I am truly a lover of warm weather, the beach, and all things summer, this seasonal shift always brings with it the excitement of change and the anticipation of new beginnings. Let me introduce myself. My name is Sarah Carter and I am pleased to announce that I am the new editor-in-chief of The Bell Ringer for the 2015-2016 academic year. I am an honors senior with a major in English (Professional Writing and Rhetoric track) and a minor in communications (Public Relations track). Throughout my undergraduate career at our university, I have undertaken several student leadership positions, ranging from the Chaplain of the Zeta Zeta Chapter of Alpha Delta Pi Sorority to the President of the Iota Phi Chapter of Alpha Mu Gamma, the National Collegiate Foreign Language Honor Society. I have guided students through the writing process as a tutor at our university’s writing center and conducted research on campus as a Summer Scholars Program student researcher. This past spring, I competed for and was offered an internship position tracking higher education legislation for our university’s Office of Government Relations at the Georgia State Capitol in Atlanta. I am currently in the process of writing and completing my Honors Program thesis, which I plan to present next semester before graduating. Before the beginning of each new school year, I make an effort to write down and commit to memory a few academic and personal goals for myself. This is a ritual that I have practiced since my freshman year of college because it encourages me not only to stay focused, but to also remind myself of the many reasons I am pursuing a higher education in the first place. I believe that we are all here at Georgia Regents University to achieve a common goal – to gain an excellent education in order to impact our community and society at large while also striving for both academic and personal success within our respective fields of study. My personal vision for The Bell Ringer is that the newspaper will continue to not only be the voice of all students, but that it will also strive to contribute a fresh and upbeat perspective to local college news. For this fall semester, my editorials will discuss several topics of interest for college students, such as how to practice time-management skills and why applying for internships is important as an undergraduate. My desire is to encourage my fellow students to make the most of the time that they have in college by honing invaluable life skills and participating in opportunities that come their way. Something I have learned throughout my undergraduate years is to never underestimate any opportunities. Many of the leadership positions I have undertaken and the majority of my work experiences were simply presented to me as opportunities that I could either respectfully decline or choose to step out of my comfort zone and pursue. I believe that choosing the latter has caused me to grow and mature in ways I would have never dreamed or imagined. As the new editor-in-chief of The Bell Ringer, I am thrilled to see what adventures await our staff during the 2015-2016 school year. I am so honored and blessed to have been considered for and offered this position and I plan to use both my leadership skills and strong writing abilities to help guide The Bell Ringer into the next era of undergraduate news reporting. Before closing, I would like to recognize and personally thank my wonderful and hardworking staff members for this year: news editor Shellie Smitley, features editor Joshua Adams, sports editor Tim Howard, copy editors Amy Perkins and Erica Ruggles, and layout editors Anna Dresser and Jamie Sapp. I want to also thank our adviser Dr. Rick Kenney for being an excellent resource and team mentor. I look forward to collaborating with each of them this year and I know that many exciting things are in store for both The Bell Ringer and Georgia Regents. Being a part of this team effort will be a life-changing learning experience I will never forget.
editorial policy Letters to the editor must be accompanied by the author’s email address. All columns and letters to the editor are the opinion of the author. The views expressed in the opinion section do not necessarily express those of The Bell Ringer, a designated public forum. Anything submitted to The Bell Ringer is open to be edited or rejected. However, The Bell Ringer staff gives all opinions a fair chance to be heard. All letters will be edited for grammar and style. If you would like to contribute a column or a letter to the editor, send an email to: bellringerproduction@gmail.com
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WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2015
ARTS & LIFE www.grubellringer.com
Film is to be made about local artist By Joshua Adams arts & life editor What does it take to be happy? Sometimes we go through so much turbulence on the plane of life that we start to think the whole thing is about to crash into the cold, hard ground. The pilot might offer some assurance that we will pass through the storm momentarily, but it often seems like it lasts forever. For Leonard “Porkchop” Zimmerman, happiness was a choice he made while dealing with the loss of his partner of almost eight years. “For about a year and a half, nothing made sense and I was probably at the lowest I had ever been in my life,” Zimmerman said. “At that point of seeing no light, I realized that if I was going to be happy and if anything was going to change, I was going to have to make it happen. About a year and a half later, I made a conscious effort to see the silver linings that were there. It took a while, but that’s when my life began to turn around.” Zimmerman began to use his sketchbook as a form of therapy. “I started to draw what I was feeling,” he said. “I used robots because robots can represent anyone; any age, any gender. I was trying to illustrate what was this empty feeling I had, or what was this pain,
and that was helping getting out of me. After doing that for years, I feel like I’ve worked through the loss of [his partner]. While it still hurts and every once in a while, I’ll just tear up, it just doesn’t cripple me like it used to.” Every person he gives a button to lights up with a smile. In Augusta - on cars, notebooks and just about any surface you can fathom - you might see his HAPPY robot in the form of a sticker. “In a nutshell, a smile is contagious,” he said. “If you can get someone to smile, they’ll probably pass that on to someone else. A smile from a stranger, I know, has brightened my day before. I’d like to see people interacting like that, passing on some happiness to someone else. The way I’ve been doing that is either passing out buttons or stickers to people.” Zimmerman had the idea during an election season. As a man who works in advertising, he noticed all of the campaign ads and realized that he wanted to advertise something meaningful. Being a graphic designer and knowing the contagious nature of smiles, he decided to advertise happiness. “It started with a few posters that I printed out and put up downtown, but they started to disappear,” Zimmerman said. “I found out, on
JOSHUA ADAMS | STAFF Leonard “Porkchop” Zimmerman expresses excitement at Soul Bar on Sept. 17 during the first night of filming the documentary.
social media, that people were taking them down and putting them up in their apartments. I started making buttons and stickers and just left them around places downtown.” Through social media, word of mouth and traveling, the HAPPY has made its way around the country. “It’s cool to log on to Facebook and see a photo that someone tagged me in, like Seattle or Brooklyn, where stickers are popping up,” he said. Upon the spread of HAPPY, producer/director Michael Patrick McKinley heard Zimmerman’s story and was inspired to make a documentary about it and HAPPY. “I first became familiar with Porkchop on social media, which led me to his TED talk,” McKinley said. “It was very powerful and it moved me. There was a moment last January where I had an epiphany that someone needed to take Leonard’s story in the TED talk and expand on it and make a film about it.” McKinley said that the film will
be portrayed as a survivor story. “It is one man’s journey through the storm and the sunshine he found on the other side of it,” McKinley said. “The idea is to create a positive storytelling experience that leaves people feeling really good after watching it. Hopefully it’ll shine the spotlight on the happy campaign. Hopefully we’ll get billboards and stickers in more places throughout the country. We want to reach people with HAPPY.” The whole film will be shot in Georgia, with most of it being shot in Augusta, and the rest will be shot on location in Athens and Atlanta, McKinley said. It is planned to be released in the film festival circuit in early 2016 and will be available for digital download and DVD after its run in the circuit. “The documentary is broken down into two filming chunks,” Zimmerman told me. “The first one will be in Augusta during Arts in the Heart. Augusta is going to be looking its best, and I love my hometown and I want it to look its best.” He is not doing it for money.
He never even puts his name on any of the HAPPY merchandise, which ranges from buttons and stickers to T-shirts and phone cases. Any money he receives from the HAPPY campaign is used to purchase more merchandise. In a society that relies so much on money, why does he want to spread his work for free? “What’s amazing is how this one simple thought, smiling and being happy, can spread,” he said. “Seeing other people get happy is what is so powerful about this whole thing. Yes, it’s just a dumb little robot sticker, but the emotional impact it has on people is really kind of fantastic.” So what does it take to be happy? Zimmerman, who has endured just about all the turbulence a person can withstand, found out what he had to do-he took his seatbelt off, stood up, walked to the cockpit and became a pilot. He flew straight through the storm and into the sunshine. How much longer can you be a passenger on this plane called life? jadams35@gru.edu
Faculty hosts art show on campus By Anna Dresser layout editor Tucked away in Washington Hall is the Mary S. Byrd Gallery of Art, which hosts an annual Georgia Regents University faculty art show. Although it is not boisterous in size, it contains little hidden gems. The art show was directed by Scott Thorp, Chair of the Department of Art, and held a variety of media, including photographs, oil paintings, ceramics and art made with food. The opening reception was held on August 27 and the work was on display until September 17. The gallery has shown work from internationally known artists such as Sue Co and David Maisel, according to Randy Pace, photography lecturer in the Department of Art. “I really like how it exposes students to our work,” he said. “It’s fun to try something new. We take chances with our work.” Pace had a single photograph in the gallery titled “Desolate.” “I wanted to get back to the basics,” Pace said about his inspiration for the photograph. He also said that light and subject matter were two important elements of the photograph and since the light at the beach was different than other places, that became the
ANNA DRESSER | STAFF
Thomas A. Crowther’s “Southern Walks to Come: 4 Seasons” hangs in GRU’s Mary S. Byrd Gallery of Art.
location for the piece. Set in Edisto Beach, South Carolina, the photo was taken with a pinhole camera, or a lensless camera, with an exposure of 10 seconds. Another artist whose art is on display is Thomas Crowther, also a lecturer at GRU. His two works consisted of “Jessie” and “Southern Walks to Come: 4 Seasons.” “Jessie” was a traditional academic figure study, Crowther said.
“We work with a life model,” said Crowther. “That piece was generated through working with [students].” Another unique quality of the piece is that it is an oil painting on cardboard. “I like giving life back to something that was to be discarded,” Crowther said. His second piece, “Southern Walks to Come: 4 Seasons,” is a document of time. The landscape is loosely based on the four
seasons and is an oil painting on canvas. Sectioned off in vibrant colors are the four seasons of life. The painting is set in a southern American landscape that Crowther has found artistically pleasing to the eye and quite different than the United Kingdom where he grew up. It became an inspiration for this particular painting. Another faculty artist, Kristin Casaletto, a Professor of Art at GRU mainly worked with food as a medium. “This is a suite of maybe 20 works in which I’m using a female figure as a personification of America, and she’s functioning as sort of a base from which to examine contemporary culture,” Casaletto said. Casaletto aimed to create art that appeared to be very patriotic and glitzy, and although made to be beautiful, it is fleeting, unsubstantial and fragile due to the nature of the food. Casaletto said she used herself to model for the pieces. “I kind of use my art to think things through,” she said. “It’s my way of philosophizing. It doesn’t have to be formal, that’s fine, but I need it to have conceptual meaning.” adresser@gru.edu
New all-ages music venue to open in October By Joshua Adams arts & life editor A local musician signed the lease for a new all-ages music venue in a familiar location Aug. 18. The planned building for the venue was formerly the home for Augusta’s all-ages music scene in the past decade, Sector 7G. Brad Belcher, a mechanic at the Savannah River Site, said he decided to open a new venue because he feels like there is not an outlet for certain types of music. “There’s nowhere to play,” Belcher said. “We need something bigger and better.” Instead of continuing to operate under Sector 7G, Belcher said that he decided to come up with an original name, which was slightly
JOSHUA ADAMS | STAFF
The new venue, The Iron Heights, located at 631 Ellis Street, is set to open Oct. 30.
inspired by the iron bars on the windows and front door of the building. “We’re calling it The Iron Heights,” he said. “We got it from a prison in a DC comic.” Belcher said he and his bandmates started a GoFundMe page to raise money for the venue and that it has already received about $430
in donations. “We’re trying to raise funds for air conditioning,” Belcher said. “That’s the biggest expense. Everything else I can pretty much take care of.” Nick Laws, the initial owner of Sector 7G, said he ran the venue for six years before selling it to Bryan
Levy in 2011, who shut it down in February 2014. “I felt like I kind of had my fun with it,” Laws said. “It never was a big money maker.” Laws said he feels like he sold the venue at a good time because of the fluctuating music scene. “It probably has less to do with how you’re running the place than how things get popular or unpopular,” he said. “We relied on other people to promote and book the shows. I think it was that partnership of owner and promoter that kept Sector 7G alive.” Local promoter Carlin Thompson said that it is a good idea to open a new all-ages venue because it helps inspire younger generations to play music. “There is a big draw for local
all-ages shows,” he said. “There’s a lot of kids who are wanting to go to shows and are getting introduced to shows, but they don’t have a place to go to. An all-ages music venue gives kids in high school the opportunity to start a band. If there’s no all-ages music venue, a kid has nowhere to play besides bars, which his friends wouldn’t be able to come to.” Thompson said that a new all-ages venue would be better off in a location less familiar. “If it were opened in a nicer location with a new building, it could do a lot better,” he said. “It would be better [if the new venue were to be] closer to Columbia County or somewhere on Broad Street.” Belcher said that The Iron Heights is set to open Oct. 30. jadams35@gru.edu
THE BELL RINGER
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sports www.grubellringer.com
The Hot Corner Timothy Howard sports editor
Changes may not be permanent, but change is TIMOTHY HOWARD | STAFF Georgia Regents University football may seem exciting, but there are several issues that would have to be addressed before a team could begin play.
Football problems By Timothy Howard sports editor The merger of Augusta State University and Georgia Health Sciences University into Georgia Regents University in 2012 has brought many changes and new possibilities to the Augusta area. One of those possibilities is the addition of a football team for the university’s athletic program, the Jaguars. While some may be excited about having a college football program in Augusta, there are several issues that would need to be addressed before starting a program. Title IX, which “prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in any federally funded education program or activity,” according to the U.S. Department of Justice’s website, would mean that Georgia Regents would have to ensure that its women’s sports teams would be receiving equal benefits to its men’s sports teams. In other words, Georgia Regents would likely have to add new women’s teams to offset the costs that come with a football team, assuming that Georgia Regents chooses to remain in the NCAA’s Division II instead of making the jump to Division I. The Peach Belt Conference, the conference in which the Jaguars compete in all sports with the exception of men’s and women’s golf, does not sponsor football. Only one of its member schools – the University of North Carolina at Pembroke – has a football team, which competes in Division II as an independent. If the Jaguars were to start a football program in Division II, the Jaguars would have to either do what UNC Pembroke has
done and be independent, or join a conference that sponsors football. There are a few conferences that sponsor football whose footprints are close to Augusta, but joining those conferences could be difficult for Georgia Regents. The Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference is comprised of public and private historically black colleges and universities. While there are no issues between the conference and Georgia Regents – crosstown rival Paine College is a non-football member of the conference – it is not known whether or not the conference would extend an invitation to Georgia Regents, as all of the conference’s past and present members have been historically black colleges and universities. The South Atlantic Conference is another nearby conference, which “is a group of 12 private, liberal and civic arts colleges and universities, similar in size and athletic philosophy,” as described by the conference’s profile on its website. Since Georgia Regents is a public liberal arts university with nearly 9,000 students, it would likely not be a good fit for the SAC. The conference’s largest university in regards to enrollment is Anderson University, which has an expected enrollment of 3,200 for 20142015, according to its website. Finally, the Gulf South Conference is comprised of a mixture of public and private universities located in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi and Tennessee. While this extends further than the Peach Belt Conference’s geographical reach, it would be the most logistically-sound option should Georgia Regents choose to move to a different Division II conference.
If Georgia Regents chose to move to a Division I football-playing conference, its options would be limited to two conferences, both of which are comprised of public and private universities: the Big South Conference (of which Augusta College was a founding member in 1983) and the Southern Conference. Joining either of these conferences would not only result in football at the Division I level, but all of the university’s other teams as well, except for men’s and women’s golf, which already compete within Division I. A football team would also result in several new costs that would cause additional increases to student fees. To have a team, a university needs a coaching staff and an ability to recruit players. Georgia Regents would have to accumulate the funds necessary to pay salaries for a head coach and his coaching staff. It would also have to provide money for coaches to travel and see potential recruits in action. Additionally, there is no football stadium on campus, so the university would either have to rent a stadium for the short term, if it chose to build an on-campus stadium, or the long term if it chose not to build its own stadium. Whether or not the stadium rental would be brief or extended, these would be additional costs, not including the costs of staff and concessions. Georgia Regents could certainly start a football program one day, be it at Division II in a new conference or by making the leap to Division I, but the logistics of the venture would require months, if not years, of research before a team would begin play. thowar20@gru.edu
Rounding third and heading home By Timothy Howard sports editor Baseball is a game of great endurance, perhaps unlike any other major North American sport in its ability to grind down teams over an arduous 162-game season and separate the good teams from bad ones. Some teams that begin the season as favorites to win their division end up falling short of expectations, while other teams that begin the season as an afterthought end up surprising baseball experts. Prior to the start of the 2015 season, ESPN polled 88 experts to predict which teams would win their respective divisions, which teams would win their respective League Championship Series, and which team would win the World Series. The Washington Nationals were the favorite to win not only their division – 85 of the 88 experts chose the Nationals to win the National League East – but the World Series as well, receiving 42 percent of the vote from the panel. Meanwhile in the real world, the New York Mets – who were picked by only one
of those 88 experts to win their division – are eight games ahead of Washington, and have been one of the hottest teams in baseball since the Aug. 1 trade deadline. The Mets have had a rollercoaster year, to say the least, and in a way, I became part of it when I visited New York City this summer and attended a Mets game on June 9 against the San Francisco Giants. Giants pitcher Chris Heston threw a no-hitter at that game – the first no-hitter I have seen in the 75 or so major league games I have attended in my lifetime – and shut out the Mets by a score of 5-0, dropping their record to 3128, only half a game ahead of Washington. A few weeks later, during a July 29 game in New York against the San Diego Padres, Mets rookie shortstop Wilmer Flores heard from fans that he was going to be traded, and was so moved by the news that he was seen wiping away tears when he took the field in the eighth inning. After the game, news broke that the trade fell through and Flores would remain a Met, but
the display of affection he had shown for his team was fully reciprocated by Mets fans, who have showered extra praise upon the shortstop whenever he comes up to bat. Aside from that incorrect prediction, there have been a few other glaring ones, namely in the American League Central and the American League West. The Cleveland Indians were picked by nearly half of the voting panel (43 of 88 voters) to win the American League Central, followed by the Detroit Tigers (25 votes) and the Chicago White Sox (17 votes). All three of those teams have winning percentages below .500, and the Detroit Tigers, three years removed from a World Series appearance, have the second-worst record in the American League. The Kansas City Royals were only picked by three of the 88 experts to win that division, despite making it to the World Series last season for the first time since 1985 and retaining a large portion of their roster. The Royals not only lead
their division by 11 games, but are the best team in the entire American League and have the third-best record in all of baseball. Over in the American League West, the top team is the red-hot Texas Rangers, who lead the Houston Astros by 2½ games. None of the voters on the panel picked either of these two Texas-based teams to win their division; instead, their top choice to win the division was the Seattle Mariners, who are in fourth place and will almost certainly miss the playoffs for the 14th consecutive season. Predictions and speculation can be lots of fun – just look at all the time and effort people put into making their brackets during March Madness – but it can also be a way for fans to call out sports experts on their failed predictions. I don’t want to call out those experts; instead, I like to focus on the surprises that this season has brought so far, both good and bad, and with the excitement of the playoffs fast approaching, anything can happen. thowar20@gru.edu
There are a lot of surprises that have come as a result of the merger of Augusta State University and Georgia Health Sciences University, some of which have been good and some of which have been bad. In the last few months, however, I have been fortunate enough to have been treated to two very pleasant surprises. July saw the choice of Brooks Keel, the hometown hero, to replace Ricardo Azziz as president of Georgia Regents University. This week, there was the blindsided choice to rename Georgia Regents University to Augusta University. I’m sure that every opinionated person in Augusta has spoken at length about why the Georgia Board of Regents should have gone with the name back in August 2012, or how much money the rebranding will cost. Instead of discussing that, I want to focus on the impact the renaming will have on Jaguar sports. Augusta may not have the sports prestige of a city like Boston, but it has its own history. Not many cities can say Bobby Jones started a golfing tradition there. Recruiting is a necessity to any university’s athletic program, and having an easily-recognizable name is just as important. When a student athlete commits to the University of Louisville or the University of Memphis, there is no confusion about where the school is – the student athlete knows exactly where the institution is located. In renaming the school to Georgia Regents, coaches had to explain to recruits that this school was in Augusta, and that it used to go by Augusta State, whose golf team won two national titles over Oklahoma State and Georgia, and whose men’s basketball team dominated the Peach Belt Conference year after year. With the return of Augusta to the university’s name, coaches will not have to worry about describing the university to a prospective student athlete, as they have had to do recently. Instead, players and parents will instantly know exactly where their child will be playing. Additionally, hometown student athletes may feel an increased sense of pride in knowing that their school carries the name of their hometown, instead of a governing body located 150 miles away. That city pride extends to supporters of Jaguar athletics, too. During the year of the merger, the men’s basketball team won just 14 games amidst issues both on and off the court, but fans still showed up to support their team and university. The following two seasons saw an increase in wins, but a decrease in fan attendance. Many alumni and supporters who were proud of Augusta State were turned off by the name and did not attend games because they did not want their money going to a university they did not support. What they failed to realize, however, was that not attending games hurt the players more than it hurt the university. It hurt me, too, because I remember when Christenberry Fieldhouse routinely averaged 1,500 fans per game and was one of the toughest places to play in all of Division II. Instead, I was now seeing lots of empty seats and quieter-than-normal crowds. For one particular game in December 2013, it took a celebration of Aquinas High School’s recently-christened state championship football team to get people to show up. Had the players, parents and supporters of Aquinas football not come, I don’t think there would have been 300 people in attendance. Returning Augusta to the university’s name has shown that the university and the Board of Regents not only care about their perception by locals, but that they also care about the city of Augusta. Hopefully, this gesture will not go unnoticed by Augustans, because I am ready to hear loud crowds at basketball games, the way it should be. thowar20@gru.edu
THE BELL RINGER
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NEWS www.grubellringer.com
Great joy is found by new dean By Jamie Sapp layout editor On a sunny Friday afternoon, Zach Kelehear gave a glimpse of himself being active as the new Dean of the College of Education at Georgia Regents University. Kelehear said he met with a group of assistant professors, associate professors and professors on Sept. 4 in order to listen to their unique issues and challenges. “For me, understanding the people behind the positions is core to who I am and what I like to do,” he said. “…This is with faculty and staff, and my chairs and associate deans, and all of the people that I come in contact with regularly. And in that experience, I have been just delighted to come to know them because I am absolutely in the right place at the right time. I have found good decent people.” Kelehear said he has enjoyed watching the students and getting to know them at the university. “I know they must think ‘Who is this guy and why is he talking to us, especially at 8 o’clock in the morning?’” he said. “But I roam the halls and greet people. And for
me, the first day of class…was so important because I wanted to be in the hall and help people find classrooms, and welcome them to GRU.” Michelle L. Bryan is the Chair of the Department of Counselor Education, Leadership, and Research of the College of Education. She is also an instructor of the Social Foundations of Education and finds teaching opportunities to guest lecture in faculty’s courses. Bryan said she and Kelehear worked together at the University of South Carolina. “We were there for a period of nine years,” Bryan said. “Zach was already on the faculty when I arrived there…he was the chair of our education leadership department then he became an associate dean for academic programs.” Bryan said she was surprised to find out that Kelehear applied for the dean position at Georgia Regents University. “I always knew that he had a desire to become dean somewhere,” she said. “But I did not know that he had applied for the dean position here until after I had already applied. I actually had asked him for a reference for me, and that’s when
JAMIE SAPP | STAFF
Zach Kelehear, Dean of the College of Education, helps students in the EDTD 6100 course on Sept. 8 with a group assignment.
I found out that he had also looked at GRU. ” Kelehear said there is a blend between his professional and personal goals in being at Georgia Regents with all of the components coming together to make the university a stronger institution. “It’s a holistic and unifying energy that I found so exciting that every day I am so eager to be here,” Kelehear said. “And there’s not a day I looked over my shoulder with any regrets. The other deans across all the colleges had been fantastic and had welcomed me. …The provost (Gretchen Caughman), I knew pretty well early on and she’s been gracious, and I am excited to have our new president (Brooks Keel) here.” Kelehear said he has found great joy in meeting the superintendents of schools within the community. “Now, I know that sounds may-
be boring to someone who’s not in my world, but I see in the leadership of districts around the area here - great excitement,” he said. “I find them all very much affirming and positive. They’re strong leaders, and I am just eager to have my teacher candidates in their schools and are working together.” Kelehear said the superintendents can make Georgia Regents become a better college and can help the superintendents to meet challenges in their schools. “But it’s important to emphasize that I look for that to be a two-direction benefit,” he said. “We’ll be better from their influence and they’ll be better from ours.” Bryan said it has been a real pleasure being able to do her work under the leadership of Kelehear, saying that Kelehear is widely supportive of his faculty and has been an incredible mentor to her. “One of the things that I think is
really important about Dr. Kelehear is that he values relationships,” she said. “And so he makes it a point to try to have an individual relationship with all of the faculty and staff in the college. And so… My first encounter with him is probably first thing in the morning, where he just comes around to send a greeting say ‘Hello.’” In the Dean’s office, there were many decorative art pieces around, some pieces of bee-shaped chocolate candies on a coffee table, and a basketball from the GRU Athletics department near the windows. But there was one new additional piece of art in the office. “I have a new jaguar that I brought into my office,” Kelehear said. “That’s my new addition to my art. …That’s a very heavy bronze there… but it’s my commitment to being here.” jsapp270@gru.edu
Accident results in second fatality By Adrienne Hayes contributor A pedestrian was rushed to Georgia Regents Medical Center after being struck by an SUV on Aug. 25 while walking in the crosswalk on Harper Street near Cushing Lane. Jo McGahee, 76, was pro-
ADRIENNE HAYES | CONTRIBUTOR
Richmond County Sheriff’s Department officers speak with the driver who struck a pedestrian in a crosswalk on Harper Street on the morning of August 25, 2015.
nounced dead at 1:30 p.m. on Sept.14, according to WJBF in Augusta, and there is no further information as to whether the driver will face additional charges. The driver of the SUV has been cited by Richmond County law enforcement for failure to yield to a pedestrian in a crosswalk, according to GRU Assistant Chief of Police Major Eugene Maxwell. The incident is not the first time this year that a pedestrian has been struck on campus. According to a Jan. 16 report on WRDW.com, a GRU employee was struck before 10 a.m. on Jan. 16, while crossing Laney Walker Boulevard. The Augusta Chronicle reported on March 11, 2008 that 29-yearold Ji Cheng, a graduate student studying biomedical science, died after being struck by a city bus while crossing near Laney Walker Boulevard and 15th Street. Maxwell said there are ways to keep pedestrians safe on campus. “Whenever I do the orientation I tell the kids yes, when you step into a crosswalk, you have the right-of-way, but that crosswalk does not make you ten-feet-tall and
bulletproof,” Maxwell said. “You have to stop. I tell them to make eye contact with the driver. Make sure they see you. Make sure they are going to acknowledge you before you step out in there.” Maxwell said that the driver, who was in a SUV, stopped for the crosswalk, looked both ways, and never saw the pedestrian, adding that “all indications are that this was just a tragic accident.” Maxwell said there is equal responsibility in preventing accidents. “We just need people, everybody, to be real careful, slow down, don’t get in a hurry, (for) both foot traffic and vehicle traffic,” Maxwell said. Maxwell said that Harper Street is worrisome because of the enormous amount of activity, including the ambulance entrances for the VA and Georgia Regents Medical Center, as well as the parking decks, patients and visitors for both facilities and shuttle stops. Public Safety is doing its part to enforce pedestrian safety measures. adhayes@gru.edu
Augusta University CONTINUED from PAGE 1
and best marks. “ ...We will have the greater community of the university help us decide which are the best ones we have.” Keel said he is not sure if this year’s diplomas will say Georgia Regents or Augusta University and said that is an issue to be addressed with students. Additionally, Keel said there has been community support pledged for the costs that are associated with the name change.
“I think that it is way too premature at this point to know exactly what the cost of the name is going to be,” he said. “...I think that it’s going to bring in resources to the university and the support from the community that‘s going to go far and away beyond, well beyond, the actual cost of changing the name.” Keel said with the change in presidency the time was right to adopt the new name. sbarb@gru.edu
Probation CONTINUED from PAGE 1
The university has begun making progress toward addressing the areas cited for improvement by hiring a new director of Veterinary Service and Chair and Vice Chair of the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee. An associate vice president for Basic Science Research and Labo-
ratory Animal Services and an administrative director are two new positions that have been created during the restructuring. Re-classification and salary adjustment for nearly all Laboratory Animal Services staff, concerted efforts at team building and improved communication and a new incident
reporting policy are also improvements that have been addressed.” According to the released statement “the university retains its accreditation but remains on probation until AAALAC Council reviews its program improvements.” Icarruth@gru.edu
SHELLIE SMITLEY | STAFF
Marc Lamont Hill met and spoke with students on Sept. 9 at the Augusta Marriott.
Students meet Huffpost Host By Shellie Smitley news editor Marc Lamont Hill, author, professor and journalist, offered students a chance to ask random questions in a one-on-one session during the fifth annual Diversity and Inclusion Summit held on Sept. 9 Antony Robinson, Professor of Management, marketing and entrepreneurship, said the session was an “incredible” opportunity for students. “He is making himself available to speak to students one-onone in a more intimate setting and this guy is brilliant,” Robinson said. “He is nationally respected but he is going to take the time to speak to them…about their issues, about their concerns, about opportunities to be more successful. I am delighted to be a part of the university that
is bringing down such an incredible speaker.” Teka Downer, an Alumni of Augusta State University, traveled from Columbia, South Carolina to meet Hill. “I am familiar with the ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement,” Downer said. “He and Dr. Cornel West have been very thorough in their opinions of it not being a militant group and I started to follow him after I realized he was trying to really calm down the people that were trying to yell, murder to police officers...” Ledarius Scott, political science freshman, said that Hill is his role model and that he keeps up with him by reading his books and social media. Scott said that he was able to meet Hill and take pictures after the session. sbarb@gru.edu
Civil law suit continues By Shellie Smitley news editor An order filed Aug. 21 in the U.S. District Court allowed a civil law suit to proceed against officers Wesley Martin and Brian Jackson and former Police Chief, William McBride. According to official court documents, a complaint was filed in the interest of Frederick Gibbons against various members of the MCG Department of Public Safety and the University System of Georgia Board of Regents through its Chair, Phillip Wilheit Sr., on Feb. 28, 2014. Gibbons asserted claims that he was deprived of his first, fourth, fifth, 13th and 14th Amendment rights. The case stems from a traffic stop on Sept. 23, 2010, and another on March
1, 2012, during which Gibbons states he was tased five times by Martin. According to the Aug. 21 order, Judge J. Randal Hall ruled that all claims against the defendants excluding six claims against Martin and one claim each against McBride and Jackson have been dismissed. Christen Carter, Associate Vice President, News & Communications, said that as a rule, “Georgia Regents University does not comment on pending litigation.” She released a statement saying that on Sept. 15, Martin was placed on administrative leave until further notice. There are no further details available and it is unclear whether the leave is connected to the pending civil law suit.
sbarb@gru.edu
PAGE 6
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2015
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