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New Research by Turner College Economist Frank Mixon Investigates Los Angeles Area Surfers' Responses to Beach Closures in the Aftermath of the 2025 Pacific Palisades Wildfires

Contemporary news coverage of the property damage and human cost associated with the California wildfires of 2024 and early 2025 provided some of the most heart-wrenching images of a natural disaster in U.S. history. According to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, more than 8,000 individual fires had, by the end of 2024, burned almost 1.1 million acres of California property and destroyed more than 1,700 structures.  The combination of drought conditions, thick underbrush and Santa Ana winds worked to extend the fires into January of 2025, particularly around Los Angeles and San Diego. Prominent among these fires was the Pacific Palisades fires, which began in the Santa Monica Mountains in Los Angeles County on 7 January 2025 and would eventually devastate large swaths of Pacific Palisades, Topanga and Malibu before ultimate containment of them on the last day of the month.  More than 30 lives were lost as a result of the fires and estimates of the prop...
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TSYS School's Amjad Hossain Utilizes Hands-On Approach to Graduate-Level Computer Science Education

Over the five different graduate level courses he has taught since the fall of 2024, TSYS School computer science professor Amjad Hossain has consistently aimed to create an engaging and inclusive learning environment that supports student success and active participation. " In my [graduate] courses, students get enough opportunities to learn through hands-on activities. I use multiple assessment methods throughout the semester to evaluate their learning, including programming assignments, quizzes, exams, discussions, and collaborative projects," Hossain explains. Hossain utilizes  ClassPoint, a tool for adding interactive quizzes to PowerPoint, during his graduate course lectures to offer  interactive learning opportunities. He typically asks students to come to the whiteboard and discuss and  derive potential solutions to a given problem. They write programs using Java and Python to solve  small to moderate-sized exercise problems and submit them through ClassPoin...
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TSYS Center for Cybersecurity to Host CISO Panel Discussion on April 10th

The TSYS Center for Cybersecurity is looking forward to hosting the CISO Moderated Panel Discussion on April 10th, from 12:00 noon to 2:00 pm in the Synovus Center Theater on CSU's main campus. The discussion will be moderated by Sean Glieberman , Director of the TSYS Center for Cybersecurity. The panelists will include Kevin Gowan, Chief Information Security Officer at Synovus, Nigel Miller, Deputy Chief Information Security Officer at Maximus, Alicia Herring, Chief Information Security Officer at Cognizant Americas, and Mike Kane, Senior Vice President of Global Security Operations at Global Payments. These panelists will s hare their wisdom and experience with attendees. There will be time allotted for student questions as well. You are highly encouraged to attend and participate in the event.
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DREAM Scholarships One Step Closer to Reality

According to Ty Tagami's recent report for Capitol Beat, a  taxpayer-funded college scholarship based on financial need rather than academic merit is now closer to becoming a reality in Georgia now that a Senate committee approved the bipartisan measure. As Tagami explains,  House Bill 1413 passed the Senate Higher Education Committee unanimously after three other bills were merged with it. According to Tagami, t he bill puts the Georgia Student Finance Authority in control of the fund, with $325 million in seed money already allocated in the amended budget for the current fiscal year.  “I want you to know how important the DREAM scholarship is for our state. And I want you to know how excited I am for the DREAM scholarship to be implementable,” committee chairman Sen. Max Burns, R-Sylvania, said after the vote.  The bill advanced after several hearings wherein experts testified about a relatively high dropout rate among students from low-income households. These stu...
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Turner College Finance Prof Joshua Brooks Making a Difference at CSU and in the Community

MBA Program Director, Chair of the Assurance of Learning Committee, and Faculty Senator are just some of the service roles that Turner College finance professor Joshua Brooks fills each academic year. These accompany a long list of other service activities, including development and delivery of a new RIVER course, QEP grading, QM peer review, and membership on about six Honors College thesis committees, making him a strong contender for the 2026 Turner College Service Award. Brooks' service work is not contained within the boundaries of CSU, as he serves as a reviewer for multiple academic journals, a s cientific advisor for two fintech startups, a member of various a dvisory boards, and a director of a n on-profit board. Lastly, Brooks' community service extends to his children's educational pursuits given that he is the  PTA Treasurer, putting him in charge of the organization's accounting information system, multiple online payment channels, petty cash and cash depo...
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CSU to become Exclusive Territory of Coca-Cola Beginning April 1st

CSU recently awarded its non-alcoholic beverage vending and pouring rights to Coca-Cola Bottling Company United Inc., making the university a Coca-Cola-only campus beginning April 1.  Under the new agreement, Coca-Cola and its family of products will be featured across all campus vending machines and beverage locations.  The partnership offers several advantages for CSU and its students, including scholarships, contributions to student life programs, and funding for campus marketing initiatives and student engagement activities. The agreement also provides sponsorship support for campus events and athletics, as well as product rebates.  CSU leaders say the partnership aligns with its efforts to foster a more active and engaging environment and will boost campus events, support student programs and create new collaboration opportunities between CSU and Coca-Cola United. Although t he new agreement officially takes effect next week, a wider selection of Coca-Cola products s...
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Columbus Ranked 6th Best City to Live in the U.S. for Young Adults

As Lydia Mansel notes in her recent report for Travel + Leisure magazine, t here are many reasons that individuals and families relocate, and some of them depend on one's current stage of life.  Young people , for example, often focus on career opportunities and affordability. Mansel focuses on determining the top  eight young person-friendly spots in the U.S., and in doing so she finds that Columbus ranks sixth, behind Atlanta, Washington, D.C., Raleigh, Denver and Pittsburgh, and just ahead of Austin and Boston. Her summary of Columbus states, " Atlanta isn’t the only Georgia city that young people should consider making their home base. 'Columbus is often overlooked, but that’s part of its appeal. It’s a military-connected city with a steady employment base, which creates economic stability and diversity,' explains [Danielle] Andrews, [a realtor with Realty One Group Next Generation ]. 'The presence of military, healthcare, education, and logistics jobs brings ...
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