December 1999: Vol. 79, No. 1December 1999: Vol. 79, No. 1 |
 TO UNDERSTAND EL AZUL  In honor of the inaugural Opening Convocation, English professor Judith Cofer composed this poem: We dream in the language we all understand, If I say el azul, you may not see the color Begin with this: the cool kiss Do you know what I mean?
Still, everything we dream circles back. towards the boundless azul. Judith Ortiz Cofer has written two critically acclaimed novels, The Line of the Sun and Silent Dancing; two books of poetry, Terms of Survival and Reaching for the Mainland; and The Latin Deli: Prose and Poetry, which contained a short story that was honored with the 1993 O. Henry Award. | |
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 How many people can link Teddy Roosevelt and Anna Karenina in an anecdote about the importance of reading? Zell MIller can—and did. |
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The first thing I hope you will understand is the difference between information and knowledge.
Did you know that if you were a flea you could jump 65 stories high? What's more, you could do it 30,000 times without stopping. That is information. And at some point in your life it might be useful to know the jumping capacity of a flea, but I kind of doubt it. You see, information like that is not knowledge.
Knowledge is more of a process than a destination. And what your future employers will value in you is not the facts and data you have memorized, but an inquisitive and questing mind. As the poet, William Butler Yeats, put it, "Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire."
I would remind you that the wisdom of the ages is waiting for you at the University library. Michelangelo and Sir Isaac Newton, Will Shakespeare, and Plato are all there, waiting to share their ideas, their theories, their lives, and even their jokes with you. No technology, no gizmo or wing ding that anybody ever invented can replace ideas, and nothing, absolutely nothing, can provide you with as much sustenance and reward as a good book.
Once when Theodore Roosevelt was living along the Little Missouri River, a couple of thieves stole his rowboat. He took off by himself in pursuit on a makeshift raft in the dead of winter with the temperature below zero. After days on the river, he finally caught up with them, got the draw on them with his trusty Winchester rifle, and they surrendered. Then he found and hired a man with a wagon to drive 40 miles across the snow-covered Badlands to bring the thieves to justice in the nearest town. And he walked behind the wagon with the Winchester to make sure they didn't escape.
Now, that's an adventure if I ever heard one. But Teddy Roosevelt said that the most satisfying thing that he got out of it was that he was able to read all of the great novel Anna Karenina while walking behind the wagon. I tell you that story to encourage you to take every opportunity you can to read good books and remember T.R. behind that wagon when you think you don't have time.
The students and faculty here are going to be much more diverse than any group you've ever been part of. Your fellow freshmen come from across this nation and all around the world.
Here in America we have developed a bad habit of talking too fast, of e-mailing incomplete sentences, of talking past each other or over our shoulders. Somehow, we have to learn how to better talk to each other, and even more important, how to better listen to each other. Face to face, eye to eye, we have got to learn to listen as hard and as much as we talk. We have got to learn to treat each other with mutual respect and regard.
That is the only way to heal today's divisions caused by intolerance and bigotry and treat the youth who are angry. We must speak out against prejudice and hate everywhere we find it. Hate, and the turmoil it causes, concerns everyone who lives in America. As Martin Luther King, Jr. once put it, we may have come over here in different ships, but now we're all in the same boat.
Retiring vps total 62 years at University
 Gene Younts |
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 Allan Barber |
When Allan Barber and Gene Younts retire from their respective vice presidential posts—Younts on Dec. 31, Barber no later than March 1, 2000—the University will lose a total of 62 years of top-level experience at UGA.
Barber joined UGA in 1966 as associate treasurer and assumed his current position, senior vice president for finance and administration, in 1998. Younts was named vice president for public service and outreach in 1972, succeeding the late J.W. Fanning.
Barber (BBA '57, MBA '59, DPA '78) is also vice president, treasurer, and a member of the board of directors of the UGA Research Foundation; treasurer and member of the board of directors of the UGA Athletic Association; and fiscal agent of the UGA Foundation.
In 1980, Barber was named Outstanding Alumnus of the Terry College of Business. This year, he received the Faculty Service Award from UGA's National Alumni Association.
Younts, who is also an associate provost, will remain at UGA as Distinguished Public Service Scholar until he retires. Plans will be announced later for a search to fill his position.
A former soil scientist, Younts built UGA's public service program into the largest campus-based outreach program in the nation. The program includes 14 service units plus outreach activities in all of UGA's schools and colleges. Service staff members annually deliver more than 6 million contact hours to Georgia citizens, and reach many thousands in other states and nations.
Younts led planning that resulted in an $8.4 million grant from the Kellogg Foundation to enlarge the Georgia Center for Continuing Education. He was instrumental in obtaining funds for renovation of the Lucy Cobb Institute (which houses the Institute of Government) and expansion of the State Botanical Garden.
While serving as a Distinguished Public Service Scholar, Younts will work on international matters, serve as a liaison with the consular corps in Atlanta, assist campus international offices, and maintain overseas contacts.
Uga VI takes over for famous pop
What becomes a legend most? In the case of Uga V, who retired prior to the South Carolina game on Sept. 11, it's the ability to hand your collar to an offspring who will continue a tradition that has spread from magazine covers to the silver screen. Uga VI is bigger than his old man, who notched 65 victories in his nine-plus seasons as Georgia's mascot, and his Larry Munson-inspired registered name—Whatchagot Loran—made him an instant hit.
Biomedical initiative would link UGA, MCG
A request for $4 million for a biomedical-sciences collaboration between UGA and the Medical College of Georgia is included in the board of regents' FY2001 budget request. The regents voted on the items in their budget package at their September meeting.
Funding for the budget request for the University System must be approved by Gov. Roy Barnes, then by the General Assembly during the upcoming legislative session.
The $4 million requested for the biomedical-sciences initiative will be used to expand collaborative, interdisciplinary research and graduate education between UGA and MCG.
"A collaboration will expand the flow of research funds to the state," says Karen Holbrook, UGA's senior vice president for academic affairs and provost. "Private and federal support for biomedical research has increased dramatically in the past few years and we want to capture a larger share of these funds. By combining expertise, we can create stronger interdisciplinary research programs."
UGA and MCG are already exploring ways to take advantage of mutual strengths in molecular medicine and technologies related to human disease, and behavioral and health-policy research.
Stuart Feldman, former dean of UGA's College of Pharmacy, is serving as acting director of the working group. An endowed chair in biomedical sciences at UGA is included in the regents' budget request.
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 In most pedestrian accidents, drivers say they just didn't see someone crossing the street until it was too late to stop. The LightGuard System uses flashing in-roadway lights that are activated only when a pedestrian steps into the crosswalk. The pulsing lights are visible up to 1,500 feet away and give drivers an early warning to step on the brakes. |
Lumpkin Street should be safer for pedestrians to cross, thanks to a new system that uses flashing lights installed in the pavement to alert drivers that they are approaching a pedestrian who is attempting to cross the street. To activate the flashing lights, a pedestrian pushes a button. Two Lightguard Systems have been installed on Lumpkin—one across from Boggs Hall, midway between Cedar and Baxter streets, and another between Wray and Baldwin Streets on the northern end of campus close to downtown. Each system costs approximately $20,000, with the cost being shared by the UGA police department, physical plant, and the environmental safety division.
Command central staff ready for Y2K bug watch
The year 2000 is practically upon us, and the University is confident that its proactive efforts will squash the "millennium bug" when the New Year's Eve ball drops. UGA's Millennium Readiness Office has been working to develop solutions to existing problems and has created a contingency plan to handle setbacks which may arise when the clock strikes midnight.
"We have been working diligently to make sure that everyone in the University community, as well as those entities which interact with UGA, are aware of the challenges facing us as we address these Y2K issues," says Kirk Bertram, director of the Millennium Readiness Office. "All faculty, staff, administrators, and students need to conduct self-assessments of their work environment and procedures to determine if and how they will operate after January 1, 2000."
Bertram will establish a campus-based "command central" on New Year's Eve comprised of police, public safety officials, physical plant personnel, and emergency specialists. This group will evaluate and respond to any crises on campus.
Bertram is particularly concerned about complacency. "This, potentially, is a very serious dilemma," he says. "We have developed a comprehensive contingency plan, but I am hoping that this will be a non-event. Regardless of what may happen, we will be ready."
After living with Borneo's Penan nomads for nearly four years, UGA anthropology professor Peter Brosius observed the demise of the Penan's traditional way of life as it paralleled the death of the over-logged rain forest around them. He voiced his concerns in National Geographic's August 1999 issue.
Charles Baquet III, acting director of the Peace Corps, spoke in late August to UGA groups gathered for the signing
of the inaugural Master's International Program (MIP) between UGA's International Agriculture Department and the Peace Corps.
The Atlanta-based Indigo Girls performed for Homecoming on October 22. Emily Saliers, spoke to GM before the show.
Former UGA College Republican president and Christian Coalition Executive Director (1989-1997) Ralph Reed (AB'85) spoke about America's political direction and the role of the Right Wing. He appeared at the Tate Center on Oct. 20.