A team of researchers from the University of Georgia and other institutions will return to the Gulf of Mexico to assess the environmental impacts of the 2010 Deepwater Horizon blowout that discharged roughly 5 million gallons of oil into the ocean over a period of 84 days.
The researchers will conduct a series of dives in locations near the Macondo wellhead using the recently upgraded deep submergence vessel, Alvin. Alvin is a research submarine owned by the U.S. Navy, which allows scientists to view the ocean floor, record the observations through high-definition cameras, and collect water, sediment and biological samples.
Ryan Nesbit, who has served the University of Georgia as interim vice president for finance and administration since last July, has been named to the position permanently effective April 1. The appointment was announced today by UGA President Jere W. Morehead.
University of Georgia graduate programs continue to rank among the best in the nation, according to U.S. News & World Report's 2015 edition of America's Best Graduate Schools. The School of Law moved up to rank 29th, the College of Education moved up to rank 33rd and the Terry College of Business moved up to rank 48th.
Researchers led by a University of Georgia College of Family and Consumer Sciences faculty member have identified candidate genes associated with disease-causing free radicals. By identifying the specific genes that influence the cell's ability to fight free radicals—the reactive molecules strongly linked with a variety of chronic diseases—researchers say the findings can be a starting point for future studies aimed at the origin of chronic illnesses such as cardiovascular disease and diabetes, for example.
For the 25th consecutive year, the University of Georgia Debate Team has qualified for the National Debate Tournament. At the district competition held in late February at Emory University, UGA qualified two teams—the maximum number available to any university—to the season-concluding national championship, which will be held March 28 to April 1 at Indiana University.
The teams that qualified are made up of Shyam Shanker of Marietta, a fourth-year student double majoring in biology and political science, and Will Caplan of Alpharetta, a second-year double major in political science and international affairs minoring in communication, as well as Margaret Davis of Johns Creek, a third-year double major in sociology and political science minoring in Spanish; and Robert Galerstein of Dunwoody, a second-year double major in political science and international affairs minoring in comparative literature.
A group of 438 University of Georgia students will forgo typical spring break trips like the beach and amusement parks to spend the week of March 8 participating in community service work at 20 sites across the U.S.
These students will serve in soup kitchens, clean up state parks, build family housing and work with abused children. The students have signed on for IMPACT, a program that offers substance-free, experiential service-learning projects and encourages an understanding of pressing societal issues. Students perform short-term projects for community agencies and learn about social justice issues, including homelessness and poverty, children's wellbeing, affordable housing and construction, human rights, environmental topics, animal advocacy, Native American culture, disability awareness and HIV/AIDS awareness.
University of Georgia student Tess Hammock testified at a U.S. House of Representatives hearing Tuesday on behalf of the 7 million 4-H'ers in America.
The hearing, held before the subcommittee on horticulture, research, biotechnology and foreign agriculture chaired by Rep. Austin Scott (R-Ga.), recognized Cooperative Extension's centennial year.
"It is an honor for me to share my story," said Hammock, a youth trustee of the National 4-H Council, "and to tell you how the Smith-Lever Act and one of the world's most innovative educational ideas ever—the Cooperative Extension System of our nation's land-grant universities—has helped to shape my life and the person I am today."
Hammock, from Forsyth, Ga., is an agricultural communications major in the UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.
A Sea Grant Town Hall meeting will be held March 19 at 6:30 p.m. in the St. Marys Little Theatre (Theatre by the Trax), 1000 Osborne Road for St. Marys residents and municipal leaders to learn about the development of a flood resiliency plan and share feedback on issues related to flooding, sea level rise and storm surge. The public meeting will include summaries of the plan by researchers from Georgia Sea Grant, the University of Georgia Carl Vinson Institute of Government, Marine Extension and three UGA public service and outreach units.
Addressing the growing demand for financial advisers, the University of Georgia College of Family and Consumer Sciences will begin offering an online master's degree program in financial planning this fall. The non-thesis degree program will prepare graduates to sit for the Certified Financial PlannerTM examination.
Three University of Georgia faculty members have received the university's highest recognition for superior instruction at the undergraduate and graduate levels, the Josiah Meigs Distinguished Teaching Professorship.
The 2014 Meigs Professors are:
• James Hamilton, associate professor of advertising and public relations in the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication;
• Audrey Haynes, associate professor of political science in the School of Public and International Affairs; and
• David Mustard, associate professor of economics in the Terry College of Business.
