UGA launches Women’s Leadership Initiative

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In her blog, “Written by Whitten,” Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost Pamela Whitten explains the Women’s Leadership Initiative, which was recently launched at the university:

The Women’s Leadership Initiative began earlier this month, and I am grateful for the support of the 10-member planning committee that includes administrators, faculty and staff from across campus. We have plenty of work to do as we address issues such as recruitment and hiring, career development, work-life balance and leadership development.

Gender inequities certainly aren’t unique to UGA or to higher education. A recent McKinsey and Company report found that in the private sector, women hold 52 percent of entry-level positions but only 22 percent of middle management positions and 14 percent of senior management positions.

In addition to being the right thing to do, creating a campus environment that enables everyone to achieve their full potential also makes good business sense. A growing body of research suggests that organizations whose leadership is more balanced between men and women outperform those who are less diverse. They also do a better job of recruiting and retaining talented workers and are more likely to make better business decisions because they consider a wider array of viewpoints.

Read the rest of Provost Whitten’s blog here.

Registration now open for 2015 UGA Day Tour

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The University of Georgia is once again hitting the road to bring the Bulldog spirit to alumni, friends and fans around the Southeast.

From April to July, UGA coaches and administrators will travel to seven cities, sharing their insights into UGA’s upcoming athletic seasons and the latest news from campus. Attendees will also learn more about local UGA Alumni Association chapters and how to become involved.

Each stop on the UGA Day Tour will bring delight to UGA fans of all ages – you won’t want to miss out on the action.

Please click on the city nearest to you for more information and registration.

The first 300 registrants in each city will have an opportunity to have a photo made with Coaches Mark Richt and Mark Fox.

If you are interested in serving as a sponsor for UGA Day, please click here for more information.

Alumnae Work to Save our Hearing

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Athens, a town where music flourishes, is packed with music venues and sold-out shows. However, two of Athens’ biggest fans , alumnae Katie Carmody (BSED ’08) and Caroline DeCelles (BSED ’08, MED ’10), realized that most people were unaware of the long-term, damaging effects concerts can have on hearing.

Inspired by their undergraduate studies in music business and communication sciences and disorders and by their passion for music, the two graduates started We’re hEAR for You, a non-profit organization that raises awareness for hearing conservation. We’re hEAR for You supplies free earbuds to concert-goers in Athens and across the nation.

Earbuds provided by We’re hEAR for You

In an interview with the Red & Black, Carmody and DeCelles shared their passion for hearing protection.

“We’re trying to break the stigma of hearing protection. People think that hearing protection will decrease the quality of a show, but it actually filters out damaging frequencies. We’re hEAR for You focuses on education. Once people understand the science on why they need to protect their hearing, they are so much more likely to use hearing protection,” said Carmody.

We’re hEAR for You has established chapters in Atlanta, Nashville, Denver, Boulder, and Fort Collins, but the group’s largest chapter is in the Classic City.

In Athens, the organization’s major effort is to supply music venues, bars and other music-related operations, such as Nuci’s Space, with free ear buds and hearing protection resources. The public is taking full advantage of the earbuds because they have to be restocked frequently.

DeCelles and Carmody are working in collaboration with the UGA Hugh Hodgson School of Music and to encourage students to get involved in advocating for hearing protection. The organization takes part in the annual International Hearing Awareness Day on campus, too.

As the organization continues to grow, it will work with musicians nationwide to promote hearing conservation. Currently, We’re hEAR for You has recruited 25 bands to carry its earbuds on tour. Carmody operates as a liaison with these artists and ensures the bands remain stocked. The organization even coordinates with music festivals to provide the earbuds to fellow music lovers.

Visit We’re hEAR for You online to partner with them or learn more about their cause.

Source: This was originally published in the Red and Black. 

3rd Annual TEDxUGA is Friday, March 27

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UGA is hosting its 3rd Annual TEDxUGA event in Tate Grand Hall on Friday, March 27 from 2:00 to 6:00 p.m. What is TEDx? TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. Our event is called TEDxUGA, where x = independently organized TED event. At the TEDxUGA event, TEDTalks video and live speakers will combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events, including ours, are self-organized. Several UGA alumni will present at this year’s TEDxUGA event:

  • Lemuel LaRoche (BSW ’02, MSW ’03)
  • Michelle Blue (BBA ’13)
  • Julie Rushmore (PHD ’13, DVM ’17)
  • Chris Dixon (ABJ ’89, MMC ’95)
  • Lisa Taylor (JD ’01)

Won’t be in Athens or missed out on tickets for the event? TEDxUGA will be livestreamed begining at 2:00 p.m. on Friday. This will be a great opportunity for alumni and friends to participate and engage from across the country. You can also interact with the event on Twitter.

2015 Alumni Seminar: Food for Thought

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The University of Georgia will host its second annual Return to the Arch Alumni Seminar, a three-day educational gathering for UGA alumni and friends, from May 1-3, 2015. This year’s theme is “Food for Thought” and will feature lectures, tours and interactive seminars that showcase the best that UGA has to offer. Come prepared with open minds and empty stomachs as you experience a fun, food-filled weekend on campus.

Seminar highlights include:

  • A reception and dinner with Food Network star and alumnus Alton Brown (AB ’04)
  • Exclusive behind-the-scenes tours of campus
  • Presentations from leading UGA faculty members
  • Address by Peter Dale (ABJ ’99), owner/chef of The National in Athens, 2012 Food & Wine’s “People’s Best New Chef-Southeast”
  • A farm-to-table dinner under the stars on Herty Field

View the complete seminar schedule.

The registration fee for this three-day seminar is $290 per person, which includes all meals, beverages, transportation, seminars and special activities. It does not include hotel accommodations.

A supplemental dining package for non-attendee spouses/guests may be purchased for $115. This includes the Friday reception and dinner with Alton Brown, the Saturday reception and Ffarm-to-table dinner on Herty Field, and a local lunch market on Sunday.

Register today!

EXTENDED DEADLINE: Dawg Trot 5K for Scholarships

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Registration for the Dawg Trot 5K for Scholarships has been extended to Monday, March 16.

Join hundreds of UGA alumni and friends for one of Athens’ largest 5K races on Saturday, March 21! This year, the UGA Alumni Association is proud to announce the Dawg Trot 5K for Scholarships will raise awareness and funds for student scholarships at UGA. Your participation ensures a bright future for students!

  • Individual: $25 (without T-shirt)
  • Individual: $40 (with T-shirt)
  • Family of Four: $65
  • Team of Ten: $155
  • UGA Student Organization Team of Ten: $110
  • UGA Student: $15

Alumnus Spotlight: William Shepard Rose III

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William Shepard “Shep” Rose III (AB ’02), business owner and entrepreneur, is a familiar face to many fans of reality television. Having spent a few years after college in Charleston, Shep recently returned to his Southern roots to star in the popular Bravo television show “Southern Charm.” Bravo describes the show as “a peek into the notoriously closed society of Charleston starring a group of the city’s most charismatic gentlemen and their Southern belle equals.”

Season two airs Monday, March 16 at 10:00 p.m. on the Bravo network.

Shep, far left, and the cast of “Southern Charm”

Bravo describes Shep’s accomplishments since season one, “The success of the show has allowed him to cultivate a number of endeavors. He’s opened up a new restaurant and bar called The Palace Hotel that serves gourmet hot dogs, tacos, and cold beverages in an ‘off the beaten path’ neighborhood in downtown Charleston. He also built a home in this same neighborhood, and has begun renovations on an old nightclub nearby that should be ready in the Spring.”

To learn more about Shep’s restaurant, The Palace Hotel, check out its feature in Charleston Magazine.

Source

UGA Grady College announces recipients of 2015 Alumni Awards

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The University of Georgia Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication has honored four outstanding graduates with 2015 Alumni Awards.

“Recipients of Grady’s annual Alumni Awards serve as a vivid reminder of the excellence of our graduates, and of the varied paths they take upon graduation,” said Charles Davis (MA ’92), dean of the Grady College. “From the boardroom to the classroom, Grady graduates lead. This year’s winners embody the fine work being done by Grady alums far and wide, and serve as a point of pride for all of us.”

Joel Babbit, a 1976 Grady College graduate, received the John Holliman Jr. Lifetime Achievement Award; Michael Giarrusso, a 1992 Grady College graduate, was honored with the Henry W. Grady Mid-Career Alumni Award; Dawn Brun, a 2004 Grady College graduate, is awarded the John E. Drewry Young Alumni Award; and Denise E. DeLorme received the Distinguished Alumni Scholar Award. DeLorme has three degrees from Grady College: a Bachelor of Arts in advertising in 1989, a master’s in journalism in 1991 and a doctorate in mass communication in 1995. They will be recognized during the college’s Centennial Gala on April 18 at the Classic Center.

Learn more about these outstanding alumni.

Alumnus Spotlight: Alex Crevar (AB ’93)

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The University of Georgia, which ranks among the top 20 public universities by U.S. News & World Report, has a student body of more than 34,000. While many students arrive at UGA right out of high school, many do not. For example, consider journalist Alex Crevar (AB ’93). After graduating from UGA in the early 1990s, Alex spent nearly 20 years traveling abroad and working as a freelance journalist, contributing to The New York Times, Men’s Journal, National Geographic and more.

Alex has returned to UGA to pursue a masters degree from the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication. He still works full time as a travel editor for Paste Magazine and part time as a spin instructor at the Ramsey Student Center. Assistant Director of Communications Jamie Lewis (AB ’12, AB ’12) sat down with Alex to discuss the biggest changes he’s noticed at UGA since his undergraduate years and what it’s like to return as a non-traditional student.

What prompted you to first attend UGA? What was your major and were you involved in any students activities? 

UGA was one of the only schools I applied to and it was where all my friends were. Frankly, in those days, it was not a hard place to be accepted. I knew I would have fun. As a student, I was a communications major. I ran triathalons and played ultimate frisbee for UGA. I took a semester off to ski. I had a great time and still graduated with fairly good grades.

What did you do between graduating from UGA the first time and returning to earn your masters? How did your time at UGA prepare you for your career?

For the last 18, I have been a journalist. I lived between Europe and the U.S., covering travel for a variety of newspapers and magazines.

During my time at UGA, I became an adult — of sorts — and someone who was confident that he could try new things and visit new places. UGA and Athens have always been comfortable for me and because of those roots, I could live elsewhere knowing I always had a place to return, which is no small thing for any person.

Alex during his undergraduate years at UGA in the early 1990s

What made you want to return to Athens and UGA?

I came back to earn a masters in journalism. I want to eventually teach journalism at the college level while continuing to freelance.

Briefly discuss some of the biggest differences between your first time at UGA and now? How has campus changed, biggest difference in the student body, etc.

The biggest difference, without question, is technology. There was no Internet when I attended UGA. Now, of course, people are on their phones and laptops all the time. I find myself a little frustrated by the constant need to be in touch by device and the Internet.

The students today seem to be much more focused on school than I was … or my friends were. But again, UGA wasn’t the kind of place you had to fight to get into back then. Having said that, my generation loved Athens for Athens. Largely we were here because of the town. It seems that students are here now more for the school, which is appropriate, of course.

Are you interested in returning to UGA to earn a graduate degree? Click here to learn more about opportunities with UGA’s Graduate School, which has many nationally ranked programs.