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Appeals court reinstates bias suit
A federal appeals court has reinstated the discrimination lawsuit of a rejected white applicant who challenged UGA’s use of racial preferences in admissions.
On April 19, a unanimous three-judge panel of the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit reinstated the claims raised by Craig Green, denied admission to UGA for the fall of 1997.
“There is simply no question that Green’s application was treated differently, and less favorably, than the applications of non-white candidates solely because of race,” wrote Judge Stanley Marcus in the decision. “That is enough to give him standing to challenge the policy.”
The opinion overturned the earlier ruling of a federal judge, B. Avant Edenfield, who had thrown out Green’s lawsuit.
The appeals court did, however, affirm rulings by Edenfield that two other white students lacked standing to sue the university, and it dismissed claims by a group of African-American plaintiffs who alleged that the state’s historically black colleges unlawfully discriminate against applicants who are not black.
On May 22, the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals will hear UGA’s appeal of a ruling by Edenfield that the use of race as a factor in undergraduate admissions is not a compelling interest.
Shepherd Center joins with UGA in rehabilitative sciences initiative
The Shepherd Center, the nation’s largest hospital for brain and spinal cord injuries, has joined UGA to launch a biomedical research and education initiative to benefit people with central nervous system injuries and illnesses.
The agreement between the two institutions was recently announced by Mike Jones, vice president of research and technology at the Shepherd Center, and Karen Holbrook, UGA’s senior vice president for academic affairs and provost.
The goals of the alliance are to increase scientific collaboration in the study, prevention and treatment of disease and disability; expand funding opportunities; and capitalize on opportunities to combine research, clinical practice and advanced training to prepare a new generation of biomedical scientists and health professionals.
“This partnership creates a wide range of opportunities for both organizations,” says Holbrook. “The beneficiaries will be people with spinal cord injuries, head trauma, multiple sclerosis and other neurological conditions.”
According to Gary Dudley, director of the Muscle Biology Laboratory in UGA’s School of Health and Human Performance, this initiative formalizes a relationship that has been growing over several years.
“This is a good thing getting better,” Dudley says. “We have collaborated with the scientists and doctors in the Crawford Research Institute since it was founded five years ago at Shepherd Center. They are really first-rate and this opens the door to do more with them.”
Regents approve tuition hike
The University System Board of Regents approved tuition increases at its April meeting.
The increases are 3 percent at state and regional universities and 5 percent at research universities. Tuition for in-state undergraduate students at UGA, Georgia Tech, the Medical College of Georgia and Georgia State University will increase from $1,253 to $1,316 per semester or $126 a year. Tuition at the state’s 13 two-year colleges will remain the same.
Transportation and health fees at UGA also will increase $7 per semester.
“Attending Georgia’s public colleges and universities continues to be one of the best higher education deals in the nation,” said University System Chancellor Stephen R. Portch. “This board is committed to maintaining affordable access to high-quality, public higher education.” |
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