Happy spring! I hope that you are having a great semester as we near the finish line for the 2020-21 academic year. The last 12 months have been an extraordinary, challenging time for all of us, and I am grateful to each of you for your efforts on behalf of the students and our community.

Although the pandemic is by no means over, we see hopeful signs that a sense of normality is returning. Vaccine availability and access continues to expand, and our Georgia State Student Health Center has inoculated thousands of students, faculty, and staff. Make sure to follow the Georgia State Ahead website at https://ahead.gsu.edu/covid-19-resources/covid-19-vaccine/ for the latest on vaccine distribution, registration and other important information. We also continue to provide free COVID-19 tests at all Georgia State campuses.

Many of you are anxious to hear more about the university’s plans for the summer and the fall. As you know, our institution follows the directives of the Board of Regents. At this time, those directives remain the same for the summer — a mix of in-person, blended and online learning with social distancing and mask wearing on campus.  While we continue to monitor the situation, we anticipate a fall semester with significantly more in-person learning and on-campus activities. We will continue to provide updates as soon as possible through your campus email and on the Georgia State Ahead website.

Beyond the pandemic, exciting developments continue with important, key initiatives. My office has established several new online information hubs to keep you updated about them, which you can learn about in this issue of the newsletter. They include:

• COACHE at Georgia State: The site at https://provost.gsu.edu/coache/ includes the university’s new action plan based on the results of the COACHE faculty satisfaction survey, as well as a summary of results, timeline, and updates.
• Academic Integrity at Georgia State: The site at https://provost.gsu.edu/academic-integrity/ contains helpful resources from the Task Force for Academic Integrity, including policies, forms, procedures, and publications about the topic.
• The DEI Resource Library: Over at the Diversity, Equity & Inclusion website, the Resource Library at https://dei.gsu.edu/resource-library/ is a new keyword-searchable database which brings together in one place the numerous listings of books, articles, policies, audiovisual materials, on-demand training and much more.

This academic year, the Diversity Dialogues series brought the university community together to discuss critical issues and how our institution can address racial injustice and inequality. The series wrapped up on April 7 with a conversation about our path forward. If you missed it, check out the related story below for a link to the recording and to learn how you can watch earlier videos in the series.

In discussing diversity, I strongly echo President Becker’s recent message of solidarity for the Asian American and Pacific Islander community following the senseless act of violence in our area in March. As a university, we have a responsibility to address racism and hatred that impact our society, and stand with those who suffer pain, loss, and injustice. You can read President Becker’s statement on the GSU News Hub by clicking here.

Georgia State’s story is one of constant change, and 2021 is no exception. In this issue, you can read more about LaVonda N. Reed, who will become the next permanent dean of the College of Law on July 1. You’ll learn about her academic interests, her experience across multiple aspects of college and university life, interests in student and faculty diversity, and more. I am excited for her arrival and I hope that you will join me in welcoming Dean Reed to the university.

I once again thank Leslie Wolf, who has served as the interim dean of the College of Law during an incredibly challenging period. She not only guided the law school throughout the pandemic, but did so while continuing her scholarship in health law, supporting the Center for Law, Health and Society, and serving as a member of the university’s COVID-19 Task Force. This was no small feat, and I am deeply grateful for her service and dedication.

We also are continuing our search for the next permanent dean of the School of Public Health, and you will learn more about presentation dates and candidates through your campus email. You may also access the faculty/staff SharePoint portal for this search here.

One of the greatest catalysts for change at Georgia State has been President Becker. Under his leadership over the past decade, our university has grown as a national model for student success, with a growing research and scholarly portfolio, and is making further strides in innovation. As he transitions from the presidency of Georgia State, I wish to thank him for all that he has done, both for the university community and for me personally.

Please continue to take care of yourselves and each other, and I hope that you can take some well-deserved rest soon.

Sincerely,

Wendy Hensel, J.D.
Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs

COACHE Action Plan: Building a Path Forward

The Office of the Provost has launched the new Georgia State COACHE action plan, Building a Path Forward Together, based on the results of the faculty job satisfaction survey initiated in collaboration with Harvard’s Collaborative on Academic Careers in Higher Education (COACHE).

The plan, published at the brand-new COACHE at Georgia State website, identifies five overarching areas for improvement:

1. Service
2. Mentoring
3. Appreciation & Recognition
4. Faculty Recruitment, Retention and Belongingness
5. Support for Research/Creative Work

Read the action plan, along with a results summary, timeline, and update feed at https://provost.gsu.edu/coache/.

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Academic Integrity Resources

The Task Force for Academic Integrity and the Office of the Provost have launched a new information hub where faculty and instructors can find resources addressing the issue of academic integrity, including tips, recommended syllabus statements, academic research, university policies, and more.

The site, located at https://provost.gsu.edu/academic-integrity/, also includes a contact form where instructors can reach out to the task force for advice, questions, or suggestions.

To address areas where improvements are needed to maintain and strengthen academic integrity at the university, Provost Hensel formed the task force during the fall of 2020.

The Task Force identified three areas where improvements are needed, and how they can be addressed: student education, faculty education and assessment strategies. Work continues this spring to refine and advance high priority recommendations.

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President Becker’s Message of Solidarity for the Asian American and Pacific Islander Community

Following violence against Asian American and Pacific Islander communities locally and across the country, President Becker shared a message of solidarity and support for the AAPI community.

You can read the message on the Georgia State University News Hub here: https://news.gsu.edu/2021/03/22/a-message-of-support-for-the-asian-american-community/.

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LaVonda N. Reed Named Dean of the College of Law Effective July 1

LaVonda N. Reed, Associate Provost for Faculty Affairs and Professor of Law at Syracuse University, has been selected as the next permanent dean of the College of Law at Georgia State, effective July 1.

In her current role at Syracuse, Associate Provost Reed is responsible for the oversight of a wide range of areas involving more than 1,700 full-time and part-time faculty, new faculty orientation, research and administrative leaves, promotion and tenure review, policy development and enforcement, awards, honorary degrees and emeritus recommendations, among other duties.

She created two faculty-focused university-level centers, one dedicated to teaching and learning, and the other to faculty leadership and professional development. Associate Provost Reed’s experience with initiatives to diversify the professoriate in recruitment and retention will prove invaluable as Georgia State moves forward with ambitious initiatives in this area. She has led many committees and work groups and has served as a member of numerous other university committees, including Syracuse’s Council on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.

In advancement and donor relations she has been responsible for the stewardship and oversight of the Lender Center for Social Justice, as well as the stewardship of a multimillion-dollar endowment to support teaching excellence across the university.

As an academic, her teaching, research and scholarship are in the areas of wills and trusts, property, and communications law. Her concern for students, especially to the inclusion of students from underrepresented backgrounds, is in line with many of Georgia State’s student success efforts, including strategic efforts to encourage diversification among students in graduate and first-professional degree programs.

Prior to her appointment at Syracuse University in 2006, she served on the faculty of the Louis D. Brandeis School of Law at the University of Louisville. She also previously held the position of judicial clerk for the Honorable Donald W. VanArtsdalen of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and practiced law with the international firm of Paul Hastings LLP. While in practice, she represented businesses and financial institutions in various aspects of communications and corporate law.

She earned her Juris Doctor degree from the University of Southern California Gould School of Law in Los Angeles, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from the University of Virginia.

Dean Reed succeeds Leslie Wolf, who has served as interim dean of the College over an incredibly challenging period for Georgia State and society at large. Dean Wolf served as interim dean while continuing her work as a leading scholar in health law and supporting the Center for Law, Health and Society. She also was an instrumental member of the university’s COVID-19 Task Force.

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Georgia State Online Launches

Our efforts to raise awareness of online and hybrid offerings, grow enrollments and provide an infrastructure for online program administration and quality assurance are well underway. In March the online.gsu.edu website launched. This month, digital advertising began for our online portfolio.

Programs that have signed a memorandum of understanding with the Office of the Associate Provost for Online Strategies and are approved for online delivery are represented on the website. The site continues to evolve as programs are added and online student and alumni testimonials are added over time.

The Georgia State Online staff, led by Associate Provost Kim Siegenthaler, has expanded to include two educational program coordinators, Nakita Afaha and Phil Clopton, whose roles are to liaise with the offering departments in the schools and colleges. The team also includes a recruitment coordinator, Moisés Aguayo, who coaches prospective students, coordinates the online web bot knowledgebase and collaborates with Undergraduate and Graduate Admissions on Slate related projects. Together the team is already making an impact in coordinating information about online programs as well as assisting program leaders in planning for growth.

A first round of program investments has been awarded for the purposes of program development and enrollment growth. Funding opportunities for online and hybrid programs include new program development seed money, enrollment growth incentives and enrollment capacity advance funds.

As an endeavor housed in the Center for Excellence in Teaching, Learning and Online Education (CETLOE), online program growth also is fueled by increased resources for instructional design. More than 30 professionals were added to the CETLOE team in the last year, and the teams are poised to help faculty develop high quality courses in all types of classroom settings – in-person and online.

To help the campus community stay involved in our online growth strategies, the Online Education Advisory Council was established in 2020. With representatives from each college, the group’s role is to identify and help shape resources needed to support the expansion and improvement of online courses and programs. Contact Kim Siegenthaler with your ideas.

Georgia State’s online and hybrid portfolio will soon grow to more than 90 offerings. Among the new online offerings this fall will be:

• • Bachelor of Social Work
  • Bachelor of Arts in Political Science
  • Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science in Psychology
  • Bachelor of Science in Dental Hygiene
  • Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice
  • Graduate Certificate in Healthcare Leadership
  • Graduate Certificate in Teaching English as a Second Language
  • Professional Graduate Certificate in Geographic Information Systems
  • Master of Public Health in Health Promotion and Behavior
  • Master of Actuarial Science

And more.

To experience what prospective students will see when they peruse online offerings, visit online.gsu.edu.

— Stacy Snow, Georgia State Online/Office of the Associate Provost for Online Strategies

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Launching the Georgia State Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Resource Library

The Diversity, Equity and Inclusion website communications team has launched a new DEI Resource Library to help the Georgia State community connect to DEI resources easily and effectively.

You can find it at https://dei.gsu.edu/resource-library/.

This library is a keyword-searchable directory to assist users in finding helpful and important resources, including books, academic publications, policies and manuals, film and multimedia, services and centers, on-demand training, and other valuable information.

Georgia State faculty and staff can also suggest resources, such as their journal articles or new books, for addition to the resource library. A submission form is available on the website by clicking “Suggest” in the menu bar.

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Expanding Faculty Representation: The SREB Doctoral Scholars Program and the McKnight Fellowship Program

During the 2020-21 academic year, Georgia State worked further to transform and expand its faculty representation to better reflect the university’s diverse student population. Aligning with the Next Generation of Faculty Implementation Steering Committee’s goals, Georgia State’s faculty diversity and pipeline programming activities have endeavored to identify, streamline and recruit underrepresented minority (URM) faculty and graduate students.

The university continued to partner with the Southern Regional Education Board’s (SREB) Doctoral Scholars Program and the McKnight Fellowship Program to assist in seeking such talent.

Georgia State has worked with the SREB Doctoral Scholars Program for many years through funding opportunities for doctoral students and attending their annual meetings. On April 17 and 18, the Office of Faculty Affairs and Graduate School sponsored a virtual institutional recruitment booth for its 2021 annual conference with the Institute on Teaching and Mentoring – an event that hosts nearly 3,000 doctoral and undergraduate URM scholars from various faculty diversity pipeline programs.

Dr. Curtis Byrd, Special Advisor to the Provost on diversity equity & inclusion (DEI), and Dr. Kim Ramsey-White, Special Advisor to Dean of the School of Public Health on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion – and alumna of the SREB Doctoral Scholars Program, served as Georgia State’s institutional hosts at the virtual event.

Georgia State’s virtual booth was attended by nearly 500 undergraduate and doctoral students interested in graduate school and faculty positions at Georgia State. Over two days, Dr. Byrd and Dr. Ramsey-White spoke with nearly 50 scholars virtually in 15-minute meetings.

The second faculty recruitment opportunity was with the Florida Education Fund McKnight Doctoral Fellowship Program. On April 22, Georgia State conducted a workshop for the McKnight Scholars Program, a program similar to SREB but exclusive to doctoral students from Florida universities.

During this workshop, Georgia State met with McKnight Fellows who showed interest in the university’s faculty positions. From this event, 33 scholars attended a webinar on our faculty opportunities. Georgia State was additionally represented by 20 associate deans, department chairs, and faculty representatives.

Dr. Natalie King, Assistant Professor and McKnight Fellow Alum, and Dr. Jonathan Gayles, Department Chair and McKnight Fellow Alum, also spoke about their Georgia State experiences.

The university plans to continue these activities and expand upon them during the next academic year. To learn more about these efforts visit https://dei.gsu.edu. You can also share an interest form at https://dei.gsu.edu/diverse-faculty-recruitment/ with your colleagues and other individuals who might be interested in joining Georgia State’s graduate programs or faculty.

— Shelby Birch, Digital Communications Graduate Assistant for the Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Website, Office of the Provost

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Announcing Distinguished University Professor Appointments and Recognitions of Faculty Achievement

The Office of the Provost is pleased to announce the appointments of Distinguished University Professors and recognitions of faculty achievement and excellence.

Distinguished University Professors

• Deron Boyles, Educational Policy Studies, College of Education & Human Development
• Tim Denning, Institute for Biomedical Sciences
• Glenn Eskew, History, College of Arts & Sciences
• Glenn Harrison, Risk Management & Insurance, J. Mack Robinson College of Business
• William Sabol, Criminal Justice & Criminology, Andrew Young School of Policy Studies

The appointment of Distinguished University Professor at Georgia State is intended to recognize a sustained and outstanding record in scholarship and instruction, and to provide the impetus for continuing high achievement. Distinguished University Professors are expected to serve the university as exemplary faculty members by contributing to its research, instructional, and service missions.

The term of the Distinguished University Professor is five years and may be renewed once upon successful re-application and re-evaluation. No more than 5 percent of the university’s tenured faculty members may hold this title at any time.

A list of previous Distinguished University Professors is available here.

Outstanding Faculty Achievement Award

• Deanna Joseph, Music, College of the Arts
• Alessandra Raengo, Film, Media & Theatre, College of the Arts

This award recognizes a faculty member for outstanding achievements across all three areas of scholarship, teaching and service. It is open to Georgia State graduate faculty members at the Assistant or Associate Professor rank who have been at Georgia State University for at least four years.

A list of previous award winners is available here.

Alumni Distinguished Professorship Award
Joyce King, Educational Policy Studies, College of Education & Human Development

• Todd Henry, Physics & Astronomy, College of Arts & Sciences

Georgia State views the “teacher-scholar” as the ideal for university faculty. The Alumni Distinguished Professorship recognizes outstanding faculty who balance and integrate their teaching and scholarship activities. The competition is open to tenured graduate faculty.

A list of previous award winners is available here.

Exceptional Service Award

• Brian Thoms, Physics & Astronomy, College of Arts & Sciences
• Anne Murphy, Neuroscience Institute, College of Arts & Sciences
• Kim Ramsey-White, Health Policy & Behavioral Science, School of Public Health

This award recognizes faculty members for exceptional, sustained and impactful accomplishments in service. This award competition is open to all Georgia State full-time faculty members who have at least 4 years of faculty employment at the university.

A list of previous award winners is available here.

Further information about Regents’ Professorships is forthcoming.

Regents’ Professorships are bestowed on the most distinguished faculty of Georgia State, whose scholarly achievements are recognized both nationally and internationally as innovative and renowned. The appointment is made by the University System of Georgia’s Board of Regents on recommendation of the university president as per Board of Regents policy manual 8.3.2. Read more about the honor on the Regents website here.

Learn more about previous Georgia State Regents’ Professors here.

More information about faculty awards and honors is available at https://faculty.gsu.edu/for-continuing-faculty/.

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Georgia State’s Health Law Program Ranked First in the Nation by U.S. News & World Report, Other GSU Graduate Programs Also Score Highly in Latest Rankings

Georgia State University’s Health Law program moved to No. 1 in the nation and programs across the university continue to be highly ranked, according to the 2022 U.S. News Best Graduate School Rankings released this spring.

The Health Law program has consistently ranked among the top 10 in the nation and moved from No. 2 to No. 1 this year.

Several programs in the Robinson College of Business also moved up. The school’s business analytics program moved from 33 to 21 in the nation, tying with Harvard, the University of Arizona, UCLA, the University of San Francisco and Wake Forest. Its real estate program moved from eighth in the country to seventh.

The Andrew Young School of Policy Studies is ranked 19th in the nation overall, tying with Carnegie Mellon, Duke, George Washington, Georgetown and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Its Public Policy Analysis program moved up eight points to 17th overall and its criminology program is ranked in the top 20 in the country at No. 18.

The College of Education & Human Development placed 41st in the nation overall. U.S. News ranked the college’s elementary education (No. 20) and special education (No. 26) graduate programs among its rankings for those specific fields.

U.S. News graduate program rankings result from quantitative and qualitative data at the college and school level, qualitative data (peer assessments) at the departmental level.

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In Case You Missed It: Diversity Dialogue 5 – Vision for Georgia State and Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Georgia State wrapped up the Diversity Dialogues series on April 7 with an event named “Vision for Georgia State and Diversity, Equity & Inclusion: Where do we go from here?”

The discussion included national, regional and local diversity, equity and inclusion leaders, with a conversation about moving Georgia State to become a model for inclusive excellence.

Watch the event by visiting https://dei.gsu.edu/diversity-dialogues/dialogue-5/.

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Georgia State Named 2020 Virtual Innovation Award Recipient for Excellence in Delivering Virtual Student Services

Georgia State University has been named a winner of a Virtual Innovation Award from the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) for its virtual student support services during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The university is one of 10 higher education institutions recognized for virtually providing exemplary academic, financial and community-building services to students.

“Serving such a large and diverse student body, this award will help Georgia State continue to scale our virtual support services as we strive to reach every enrolled student and maximize their success,” said Michael Sanseviro, dean of students and interim vice president for student engagement & programs at Georgia State. “We will continue enhancing our proactive network of integrated and holistic case management that engages all elements of the student experience.”

Georgia State’s award selection highlights the new Financial Hardship and Emergency Assistance program introduced in March 2020 when the university responded to the substantial challenges faced by students because of the pandemic.

“Student support services are essential to students’ progress in college, as resources such as advising, orientation, clubs and activities, and health and wellbeing programs address a wide range of student needs,” said Amelia Parnell, vice president for research and policy at NASPA. “These institutions are leading the path to improved student outcomes.”

Georgia State’s work providing virtual student support services will be featured in a case study being published later this year to inform the field at large.

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Research News: Interdisciplinary Georgia State Team to Develop New Radon Gas Measurement System in Metro Atlanta

An interdisciplinary team of Georgia State University scientists has received a $1.2 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to develop and test a new radon gas measurement system in metro Atlanta.

The four year project, entitled SitS: A Novel Large-Scale Radon Measurement Wireless Testbed for Spatio-Temporal Study of Radon in Surficial Soil, is a global first, said project director Ashwin Ashok, an assistant professor of computer science.

“Nothing like this network is available anywhere in the world,” said Ashok. “This test bed will measure radon gas continuously, 24 hours a day, seven days a week and the data can help builders plan mitigation efforts ahead of time.”

North Georgia, including the Atlanta area and its suburbs, is a region where bedrock is prevalent and is well known for its high natural rates of radon.

Radon is an odorless, radioactive gas that is produced as naturally occurring uranium in the soil decays. Outdoors, it disperses and presents no risk. Indoors, however, the gas can infiltrate homes and other buildings and is the second leading cause of lung cancer, after cigarette smoking. Exposure to radon gas kills nearly 22,000 people a year in the United States, including 800 in Georgia, according to the state’s Consumer Protection Division.

Exposure to indoor radon gas is estimated to cause up to 20 percent of lung cancer deaths, other researchers have found.

Learn more at https://news.gsu.edu/2021/03/30/georgia-state-research-team-receives-1-2-million-grant-to-develop-novel-radon-testing-system-in-metro-atlanta/.

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The Graduate School: 2021 Three-Minute Thesis Competition Winners

Graduate students across disciplines took top prizes in the final round of the 2021 Three-Minute Thesis (3MT) competition, where they were charged with explaining their research in language appropriate for a non-specialist audience in a short time.

Developed by the University of Queensland in Australia in 2008, 3MT was designed to encourage students to develop their academic, presentation and research communication skills. The competition supports student abilities to explain their research in language appropriate to a non-specialized audience.

For the second year, Georgia State’s 3MT competition was held virtually, providing students with an opportunity to use different technological skills required for online presentations, compared to the skills used in in-person events.

Seven master’s and six doctoral students from various programs competed, and a panel of judges comprised of faculty and staff awarded first-, second- and third-place prizes. The Georgia State community was also given an opportunity to name a People’s Choice winner in each category.

To view the presentations, visit https://graduate.gsu.edu/3mt-virtual-competition/. For a list of winners, click here.

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Georgia State Designated Exclusive Host Sponsor for Diversity Abroad, Global Inclusion 2021

Georgia State is pleased to announce its designation as the exclusive host sponsor for Diversity Abroad, Global Inclusion 2021, a global education conference that will take place Oct. 25-29. As a national leader in graduating students from diverse backgrounds and enterprising urban research institution, Georgia State embodies the conference’s mission of advancing diversity, equity and inclusion in global education and cultural exchange.

With the university’s location in Atlanta, a thriving global and historic city, conference guests will have the opportunity to explore the leading cultural and economic center of the Southeast. Education and diversity-focused professionals from across the US will come together as a community to learn, collaborate and inspire action to develop strategies to lead and support diversity initiatives and programs related to global education and cultural exchange.

Would you like to attend? Interested in presenting? Learn how to register and submit a presentation proposal for this hybrid (virtual and in-person) conference.

– Iris Eben, Manager of Marketing & Public Relations for the Office of International Initiatives

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Jurée Capers: Public Policy Faculty Member Investigates Policies Affecting Educational Equity

Dr. K. Jurée Capers, an Associate Professor in the Department of Public Management and Policy at Georgia State University is investigating the connection between social and racial equity in the world of politics. Through approaching this overlap with the lens of racial equity Capers examines impact in historically marginalized populations with a focus on education.

“I come from a family of educators, and I also grew up in a rural area [of South Carolina] where the quality of education differs significantly from what you experience in a more urban and suburban areas,” she said.

When the education systems that are available to students are different in quality, this drastically alters the students’ competitiveness prior to setting foot in the wider world and job market.  She became aware of how to impact the problem from living in it.

“I saw this issue in an early 2000’s court case where advocacy groups such as the NAACP sued South Carolina because it was providing such a low quality of education to schools along the I-95 corridor,” she said.

It was then that Dr. Capers realized that political actors, not local education staff or people directly involved in the education system at the local level, affected education quality and equity Political actors drive the education requirements in the states. The whole system was set up to fail on the macro level because of the political process and policies already in place, Dr. Capers explained.

Read more at https://provost.gsu.edu/2021/03/11/public-policy-faculty-member-investigates-state-policies-affecting-educational-equity/.

— Luke Lew, Graduate Administrative Assistant/Writer, Office of the Provost

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Harcourt Fuller: Exploring Black History Through Legal Tender

When Harcourt Fuller was around nine years old, he found a wallet hidden underneath his neighbor’s cellar in Jamaica. Inside were a couple of old banknotes, but there was one that caught his attention: a half-dollar issued by the Bank of Jamaica featuring an image of Marcus Garvey, a Black nationalist, Pan-Africanist and Jamaica’s first national hero. It was the first time Fuller had seen a Black person on currency.

“I ran to the first adult that I saw to show them my discovery,” he says. “That was the last time I saw the wallet, but it got me wondering, who were these individuals that I was seeing on the money?”

Later, as a teenager in the Bronx, Fuller would spend his extra cash on banknotes from Latin America and the Caribbean, Africa, the Middle East, Asia and Europe, eventually collecting thousands of bills. He began paying close attention to the figures, places and events depicted on currency, researching how they related to the history and values of the countries issuing the notes.

“If you look at Haitian bank notes, you see that the Haitian Revolution is perhaps their proudest moment, when this formerly enslaved French colony defeated its slave master,” says Fuller, associate professor of history. “In Great Britain, you see the queen. Money is where we celebrate our most cherished individuals or stories.”

As an undergraduate at City College, Fuller started exhibiting his collection of bills at local colleges and banks in New York City, giving talks about his research. After graduating with degrees in international studies and history, he enrolled at the London School of Economics, where he wrote his dissertation on how Ghana’s first president used symbols of nationhood — including monuments, the flag, the anthem, stamps and money — to build national identity and consolidate his own political power.

Read more at https://news.gsu.edu/research-magazine/on-the-money-black-money-exhibit.

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David Maimon: Cybercrime During the Pandemic

The disruptive and disorienting nature of the COVID-19 pandemic has given rise to record-breaking levels of cybercriminal activity. The Federal Bureau of Investigation reported last April a 400 percent increase in complaints about cyberattacks a month into the crisis. David Maimon, associate professor in the Andrew Young School’s Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology, heads the university’s Evidence-Based Cybersecurity Research Group. Their goal: to better understand the cybercrime ecosystem, working closely with industry and the federal government.

“Organized criminals and terrorists thrive in times of chaos and uncertainty,” he says, and as the dust settles on the pandemic, the scale of the problem is coming to light. In the Georgia State University Research Magazine, he discusses some of the COVID-related scams and schemes the Evidence-Based Cybersecurity Research Group has been tracking.

Read more here: https://news.gsu.edu/research-magazine/collateral-damage-david-maimon-cybercrime-pandemic.

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