ISSUE 18
May
2015
GSConnect
T HE ACADEMIC AFFAIRS NEW SLETTER FOR GORD ON STATE COLLEGE
May is filled with many exciting dates and festivities and
opportunities to show gratitude to those who make a
difference. At the beginning of the month, we at Gordon State
College got to watch over 200 graduates proudly receive their
diplomas and join the ranks of GSC alumni and thank their
families, friends, professors, and GSC staff for helping them
during their educational journey. Throughout the entire month,
we are given opportunities to express our sincerest thanks to the
women who influenced our lives on Mother’s Day, and also to
the men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice for our
country on Memorial Day. May also holds a special week,
Teacher Appreciation Week, where we take a moment or make
a kind gesture to say “Thank you” to the individuals who inspire
our minds and strengthen our love of learning. To the
wonderful faculty at Gordon State College, thank you for
devoting your time and effort to share your wealth of
knowledge with others, and thank you for serving this college by
participating in numerous committees and task force projects
supporting the continuous adaptation of GSC in the everchanging environment of Higher Education.
Whether you are spending the month peddling to celebrate
National Bike Month, planting trees to honor Arbor Day, or
having a fiesta to celebrate Cinco De Mayo, we hope you take a
moment to sit back and remember those who have made a
difference in your life. Happy month of May.
Academic Affairs Updates
Dr. Richard Baskin
Accel Student Orientation: We had our first evening Accel
(high school dual credit ) student orientation on May 12, and it
was a success. 19 Accel students and their parents came for
general academic advising, information about textbooks and
parking, and for the processing of ID’s and paying lab fees.
They also had the opportunity to ask questions about their
individual situations. I appreciate Tom Aiello (academic
advising), Peter Higgins (class scheduling), Ben Ferguson
(Admissions), Jody DeFore (Financial Aid), Laura Shadrick
(Academic Affairs), and Irene Celestin, Jackie Lovejoy, and
Sam Baskin (all Business Office) for helping to make the event
happen. Thanks, also, to IT and Facilities for their support.
Many of the parents truly appreciated the effort and the
information. We plan to have at least a couple more ASO’s this
summer. The next two are planned for June 23 and July 21.
Adult Learning Consortium meeting: Most of our Adult
Learning Committee participated in the ALC Leadership Advance
two-day meeting this week. A Regents Advisory Committee on
Adult Learning has been formed, and Dr. Dennis Chamberlain
has a leadership role on the RACAL. “Adult learners” are those
who are 25+ years old, or 20-24 years old with fewer than 30
credit hours completed. While 25+ years old is the most typical
identifier at the college, we also look for military veterans and
active duty personnel, married students, and those students
working in their career field.
Of special interest to faculty are the various credit opportunities
available for adult learners. Some of the assessment options for
college credit are the CLEP and DSST tests, portfolios, and
departmental challenge exams. Although, with adult learners,
the learning being assessed usually comes from work
experience, it is important to remember that credit is not
granted for experience, but only for the demonstration of
learning, if it meets the expectations for a given college
course. The general term for this process is Prior Learning
Assessment (PLA). For more information, visit our webpage at
the link below, and also review the PLA Student Manual which is
linked at the bottom of the webpage. In addition, you can
contact Tonya Moore, Gordon’s Adult Learning
Coordinator, or Richard Baskin. Ms. Moore is the contact
person for students. If you advise a student who fits the
description of an “adult learner,” please also direct the student to
Ms. Moore so that options can be explored.
GSC PLA website
Updates from the Department
of Biology
Dr. Linda Hyde attended the annual meeting of the Association
of Southeastern Biologists.
Updates from the Department of
Business and Public Service
The Department of
Business & Public
Service would like to
congratulate our
Spring 2015
graduates and we
wish them all the
best in their future
endeavors!
Twenty-four Weekend College students, nicknamed “Alpha
Cohort”, are registered for and will soon begin summer classes
with Drs. Brenda Johnson and Christy Flatt. This will be the
second semester of classes for our first group of non-traditional
Weekend College students.
Dr. Barry Kicklighter attended the Society for the Advancement
of Brain Analysis Conference, May 1-3, 2015.
Dr. Alan Burstein co-authored a paper, with Karen Bradshaw
McCarron, “The Importance of Mathematics as a Prerequisite to
Introductory Financial Accounting,” which was presented at the
Southeast Regional Meeting of the American Accounting
Association.
To help students beat the stress of final exams, the Gordon
State College Rotaract club took advantage of the beautiful
spring weather and hosted “Study on the Lawn” sessions on
April 21st and 23rd. In addition to the quiet environment of the
Remaining Paid Jeans Days
to support Gordon Gives
5/21/2015
amphitheater, with snacks
6/12/2015
and water provided by
Rotaract, the Student Success
6/25/2015
Center provided tutoring
services to help students
prepare for those all-important final exams!
Dr. William Brent Carper’s manuscript entitled “Transparency
and Sustainability: The Role of Global Ethics 2014 Report” has
been accepted for presentation at the 17 th Annual Global
Business and Technology Association Conference (GBATA) in
Peniche/Lisbon, Portugal, July 7-11, 2015. Many of the
conference sessions will be held at the Polytechnic Institute of
Leiria’s Peniche Campus. GBATA was founded in 1998 and its
membership consists of approximately 2,500 members from
over 40 countries. The annual conference has been sponsored
by well-known universities and institutions all around the globe.
Annually, more than 400 participants from around the world
attend the conference.
Brent has co-authored a second manuscript with his wife
Mrs. Betty E. Carper entitled “Global Hospitality Management: a
Cultural Perspective,” which also has been accepted for
presentation at the GBATA Conference. Betty is the Academic
Services Assistant for the Department of Mathematics and
Physical Sciences.
News from Department of History
and Political Science
The faculty of the Department of History & Political Science took
part in inducting five new members to GSC's chapter of Phi
Alpha Theta, the history honor society, on Wednesday, April 22,
2015. To be inducted, students must have taken 12 hours of
history, earned a 3.1 GPA in history classes, and earned an
overall 3.0 GPA. As a part of the ceremony, the faculty read
passages as representatives of periods in history (Dr. Don Butts,
Prehistoric - Dr. Dr. Tom Aiello, Ancient -Dr. Gary Cox, Medieval
- Dr. Jeffry Rogers, Early Modern - Dr. Jeremy Richards,
Contemporary - and Dr. Brian Webb, Future). Dr. Erica Johnson,
the advisor of Phi Alpha Theta, presided over the induction of
(from left to right) Sabrina Thompson, Benjamin Joiner, Hannah
Mixon, Rebecca Williams, and Douglas Lindsay (not pictured).
Humanities and Fine and
Performing Arts Updates
Dr. Masoud Nourizadeh completed a fifteen –day
online eCore training course in May, and received a
faculty certification to teach with eCore Program.
Dr. Karen Guffey is travelling with 13 students to
Barcelona, May 23-June 20.
To celebrate the arts at Gordon State College, crowds of
people gathered in the Foundation Room during a festive
opening reception for Faculty/Student Art Show on the
evening of April 9th. The show was breathtaking. Special
thanks to Professor Marlin Adams and Professor
Bob Detamore for preparing our students. The art show
lasted through the last week of April.
News from the Department
of Math and Physical
Sciences
Recently, Dr. Richard W. Schmude,
Jr. has been exceptionally busy. He
has accomplished the following:
Papers Published
1. R. W. Schmude, Jr. (2015) “The
North Polar Cap of Mars” Georgia
Journal of Science, 72: 88-93.
2. R. W. Schmude, Jr. (2015) “Some
Recent Studies of Mars: The North Polar Cap, Cecropia and
Hellas” Georgia Journal of Science, 72: 109-119.
Presentations
1. “Near-infrared brightness of Mars in 2014” a 12 minute talk
given at the Georgia Academy of Science meeting at Georgia
College and State University on March 14, 2015.
Science meeting at Georgia College and State University on
March 14, 2015.
3. “Telescopes and Temperature” a 45 minute hands-on workshop given to Mrs. Lisa Head’s 6th grade science class at Appling
Middle School in Macon, Georgia on March 27, 2015.
Poster presentations
1.“Near-Infrared Photometry of Jupiter and Saturn” (Abstract
1530) a poster presented at the 46th Lunar and Planetary
Science Conference at The Woodlands, Texas on March 17,
2015.
2. Richard and his student Ali Goode also presented a poster at
the GSC Undergraduate Research Symposium on April 1, 2015.
2. Near-infrared brightness measurements of Jupiter and
Saturn” a 12 minute talk given at the Georgia Academy of
Upcoming RFP: Textbook Transformation Grants
The Request for Proposals will be announced soon. Stay tuned
for the release announcement and more information in
upcoming newsletters, emails, webinars, and at the Affordable
Learning Georgia website. The RFP announcement is pending
the implementation of new grant management software.
Deadlines
 Round 3: May 31, 2015
 Round 4: September 7, 2015
 Round 5: December 15, 2015
Funding Levels
 Single Course: $10,800
 Sections/Courses/Department-Wide: $30,000
Categories
 No-Cost-to-Students Learning Materials
 OpenStax Textbooks
 Specific Top 50 Lower Division Courses
What Can You Do with $1,440,000,000?
If you haven’t seen the video, check it out at the link below.
ALG Video
Visit the ALG Website
Updates from
Hightower Library
Now that graduation is behind us, we have really started
to focus on the library move in preparation for the
renovation start. We do not have an exact date for the
start of this exciting project. As soon as we find out, I will let
everyone know. However, we do know the project is slated to
begin in July 2015 and will be completed in Spring 2016 with the
hopes of opening at the beginning of Summer 2016 (one year
project). In the meantime, I would like to share with you what is
happening now. Please excuse me if this is lengthy as I want to
ensure I give you all the information I have up to this point.

Library materials moved to Guillebeau will be accessible;
however, no one will be able to physically browse those
materials except library personnel. We are expecting
Guillebeau to be setup in time for the start of Summer
school on May 20. However, with any move we may have to
account for slight delays. I will keep everyone posted on item
availability as we progress through this phase of the move.
Once these items are ready, requests can be made using an
online form and they will be searchable via the online library
catalog. Items requested from Guillebeau before 10am may
be picked up any time after 12p on the same day of request.
Items requested after 10a from Guillebeau but before 2pm
may be picked up any time after 4p on the same day of
request. Any items requested after 2p may be picked up the
next day in which the library is open. All items will be
available for pickup from the Circulation Desk.

Faculty desiring library instruction for their classes can still
make requests. An online form is available on the library’s
website for your completion. When making your requests
please keep in mind that we will need to conduct the
instruction in your classroom. Our teaching area near the
Reference Collection will be used for general student study

seating. We are also setting up new online library
information literacy research modules that can be used by
any class. More information about this will be forthcoming.
These modules can be accessible via GALILEO, personal web
page, and Brightspace by D2L. We hope to have these fully 
setup by the end of Summer in time for the start of Fall
semester.
Seventy percent (70%) of the lesser used book and reference
collections, all bound periodicals, all microfilm, some VHS/
DVD recordings, and all albums will be located in Guillebeau.
Some of these items will be moved back into the renovated
library.

The library hours for Summer will be the same as the
campus summer hours with one exception. While the library
staff will be working Monday through Friday, the library
building will be closed to the campus and public on Fridays
to allow us dedicated time to work on various renovation
projects. I will post the hours on the library’s website and
signs will be posted on the front door – Monday through
Thursday 8a-6pm and closed on Friday.

We will have many methods for students, and faculty and
staff to contact us for assistance – phone, face-to-face,
email, web based software to set up consultation
appointments, and online guides and tutorials. Look for
more information on our web site.


Circulation Desk with any requests you might have. The
group study rooms will not be available for checkout. This
will help us to ensure the safety of our students as the
movers are working on the 2nd floor.
Only the first floor of the library will be open to the public.
The movers arrived on Monday morning, May 11 to begin

labeling and packing materials that will be moved to
Guillebeau Hall. The library staff will pull any materials for
students or faculty/staff who may need them for Summer
classes. We are working on an online request form to help
make this process go smoothly but for now please go to the
Library materials that remain in the library until we move into
the IC Building will be moved to the first floor. Again, the
second floor will be closed to everyone and study rooms will
not be available.
Laptops will continue to be available to students until we
move into the IC Building. Once we move to IC, laptops will
not be checked out for in-library student use. Computers
and printing will be available in the IC labs.
The library will move into the IC Building in June at which
time we will occupy Rooms 112, 116, and 117. More
information regarding the library layout and location of
library personnel will be made available closer to our move
in June. Hours will remain the same as they are now Monday through Thursday 8a-6pm and closed on Friday.