UGA researchers alerted of possible `unexpected’ FBI visits
This month’s edition of the AJC On Campus Roundup begins with an unusual email.
On Tuesday, University of Georgia researchers received instructions on what to do if they get an unexpected visit from the FBI.
The message from Tina Bosworth, UGA’s director of research security and export controls, said some institutions have received email inquiries and even unplanned in-person visits from federal law enforcement agents expressing interest in university research activities.
“In some cases, these inquiries have begun with questions about controlled or restricted research and have expanded to include broad questions regarding the institution’s fundamental research programs and general research operations,” wrote Bosworth.
She added that all unexpected visits and inquiries related to UGA research need to be coordinated through university channels and that any researchers who receive such inquiries should contact the legal affairs office. The email included a link to a UGA webpage titled, “Responding to Law Enforcement on UGA Property.”
“These processes help ensure proper coordination, protect university interests, comply with applicable obligations, and support reasonable agency engagement,” wrote Bosworth.
She did not specify which institutions have received the inquiries, but it hasn’t yet occurred at UGA, according to the school. Spokesperson Rod Guajardo told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution the email was sent as “proactive guidance” for research faculty.
“I am not aware of any inquiries of this kind having occurred on campus,” he said in a statement to the AJC.
With commencement season wrapped up, the email is a reminder that Georgia’s colleges and universities stay busy year-round even though many students have headed home for summer. Here’s what else you might have missed this past month.
UGA graduates record number of veterans
More than 400 veterans were enrolled at UGA this academic year, a record for the school. It expects that 122 of them will earn a degree this calendar year, making it the largest graduating class since the 2013 founding of the UGA Student Veteran Resource Center.
Their attendance was made possible by nearly $500,000 in scholarships, most of it coming from 46 donors through SVRC scholarships. Nearly a third of UGA’s student veterans don’t receive education benefits from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, according to UGA, meaning that more than 160 need help paying for tuition, books and living expenses.
Valdosta gets new president
When Valdosta State University students return to campus in the fall, they’ll be greeted by a new face. The University System of Georgia announced in May that its Board of Regents has chosen Donald J. Green to lead the public school.
It will be his third time leading a USG school. Currently, he serves as the president of Gordon State College, and he was president of Georgia Highlands College from 2014 to 2021. He then went to Pittsburgh to be president of Point Park University before returning to the Peach State in 2023.
Under Green’s guidance, Gordon State achieved a record Fall-to-Fall retention rate in 2025 and saw a 7.5% increase in spring enrollment. The USG is expected to announce steps regarding leadership at Gordon State in the near future.
“Don Green is a leader who knows how to deliver results, and he’s proven that time and again,” said USG Chancellor Sonny Perdue.
New Leadership at Emory
Emory University also found a new president, naming Christopher L. Augostini to the role this week. But in the early days of May, Georgia’s largest private school also announced two new deans.
Professor Terrence L. Johnson, an ordained itinerant elder in the African Methodist Episcopal Church, has been appointed the next Dean of Emory’s Candler School of Theology. Currently a director at Harvard Divinity School, he’ll now head the Emory school that enrolls more than 500 students.
Days before, Molly McGehee was named dean of Oxford College of Emory University. McGehee has overseen the undergraduate liberal arts college since last fall and first joined it as an associate professor in 2014.
Roughly 45 minutes from Emory’s current Druid Hills location, Oxford is Emory’s original campus and is an option for first and second-year Emory students.
A+ grade for Berry, Emory
Emory is in great financial health, according to the Forbes college financial grades, published in late May. “Designed to assess a private not-for-profit college’s operational soundness and balance sheet health,” Forbes’ analysis gave Emory an A+ rating.
Berry College performed even better, according to Forbes’ model. The school is regarded for its bucolic campus and extensive paid student work program, with 99% of its students receiving financial aid.
“We at Berry College are committed to educating the head, heart, and hands of our students, but we do so while maintaining the sound financial health of our institution, in order that we may continue to serve generations of students to come,” said Berry president Sandeep Mazumder.
Of the more than 900 private schools examined, roughly 100 received an A+ while nearly half were graded a C or worse. Berry and Emory were the only A+ Georgia schools on the list.
KSU chasing R1 status
In March, Kennesaw State University announced that it joined a consortium of research universities across the country.
Two months later, it’s been admitted to the Georgia Research Alliance, which supports recruitment of researchers and provides access to lab facilities and technologies.
“Becoming a Georgia Research Alliance member reflects the tremendous momentum of our research endeavors and the impact that Kennesaw State is making across Georgia and beyond,” said KSU president Kathy S. Schwaig.
Currently a Carnegie-designated R2 research institution, KSU says it’s on track to meet R1 benchmarks for a third straight fiscal year.
Microsoft in West Georgia
West Georgia Technical College has opened the Microsoft Datacenter Academy on its Douglasville campus. The academy is designed to give students real-world experience with careers in data center operations, IT and cybersecurity.
“The academy is part of a global network of Microsoft Datacenter Academy programs that collaborate with educational institutions to expand access to technical training and career opportunities,” the college said in a media release. “These programs are designed to strengthen local workforce pipelines and expand pathways into the technology sector for students across diverse communities.”
New golf coach for Clark Atlanta
Of Atlanta’s historically Black colleges and universities, only one has a women’s golf program. It’s Clark Atlanta University, which recently introduced Erica Payton as the team’s new coach.
An HBCU alum herself, Payton was inducted into the Jackson State University Sports Hall of Fame in 2023 and most recently served as an assistant coach at Millsaps College. Her father, Eddie Payton, spent decades as the Jackson State golf coach, and her uncle was NFL legend Walter Payton, who died in 1999.
About the Author
