VSU Police Department Earns State Recertification
The Georgia Association of Chiefs of Police recently honored the VSU Police Department with its Georgia Law Enforcement Certification Program Award for Recertification.
Of the more than 1,100 law enforcement agencies across the Peach State, the VSU Police Department is one of only 138 certified by the Georgia Association of Chiefs of Police. This certification recognizes the university’s commitment to professionalism, positive community engagement, transparency, ethical conduct, and more.
“We pursue this certification because our university community — our students, faculty, staff, and guests — deserve the very best,” said Alan Rowe, chief of the VSU Police Department.
VSU’s Cheyanne Stone Awarded Valdosta Rotary Club’s Inaugural McLane Scholarship
VSU’s Cheyanne Stone of Douglas, Georgia, is the recipient of the Valdosta Rotary Club’s inaugural Judge H. Arthur “Mac” McLane Scholarship.
Stone graduates in May with a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice and a Minor in Psychology. She is a member of VSU’s Philosophy and Religious Studies Club. As one of the university’s highest achieving students, she is frequently recognized on the VSU Dean’s List for exemplifying excellence in the attainment of her educational goals.
Stone plans to enjoy a gap year after graduation before returning to VSU to pursue a master’s degree.
VSU Athletics has lots of Baseball, Softball, Men’s Tennis, Women’s Tennis, and Golf action this month. Men’s Basketball and Women’s Basketball are on track to play in the Gulf South Conference Championship rounds. Blazer Football releases its 2023 schedule; the season kicks off against the Point University Seahawks on Sept. 2.
Cameron Asbell, a V-State alumna, was recently named Library Director of the Year by the Georgia Public Library Service. As director of the Ohoopee Regional Library System in Vidalia, Georgia, she has built support for the library, restored donor confidence, planned 21st century library renovations, cultivated programming, and increased visitor volume.
Asbell began her library career as a clerk at the University of Georgia Library on the Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College campus in Tifton. She continued at Statesboro Regional Public Library System as a part-time circulation clerk and worked her way up to the position of director of information technology and technical services. She came to the Ohoopee Regional Library System in 2015 as the IT and cataloging librarian and was hired as the regional director in 2016.
Asbell earned a Master of Library and Information Science from VSU in 2012.
Rebecca Ballard, a V-State alumna, was recently named Library Employee of the Year by the Georgia Public Library Service.
Ballard began her library career at the Athens-Clarke County Library in Athens, Georgia, working in educational technology, teaching, and assisting patrons with computers and software. When a position in children’s services opened, she began developing new programs highlighting music and puppetry. She relocated a few years later to the Oconee County Library in Watkinsville to serve as the children’s services manager, developing creative library programming and increasing children’s program attendance by 400 percent. She currently serves as regional children’s services coordinator for the Athens Regional Library System and as president of the Georgia Library Association for 2023.
Ballard earned a Master of Library and Information Science from VSU in 2018.
Heather Bernard, a V-State alumna, was recently named executive director of Epilepsy Foundation Nebraska, the leading advocate for nearly 20,000 people living with epilepsy in the Cornhuskers State.
Bernard has worked as a Georgia public school teacher and as a practicing social worker at a nonprofit agency dedicated to helping adults with developmental disabilities. She built and ran a psychogenic non-epileptic event clinic at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, and she opened and operated a private practice where she provided psychotherapy services to children, adolescents, and young adults. She relocated to Omaha after accepting a position with Children’s Hospital and Medical Center.
Bernard earned a Master of Social from VSU in 2010.
Dr. Gregory M. Tanner was recently named interim president of South Georgia State College, which has campuses in Douglas and Waycross and operates the VSU Entry Program in Valdosta.
Tanner most recently served as SGSC’s vice president for advancement, government relations, and athletics. He first came to what was then South Georgia College in 2012 as dean of students. Prior to SGSC he served as a school principal at primary, elementary, and high schools in Douglas, Georgia; Ware Shoals, South Carolina; and Nicholls, Georgia. He was named Georgia Region XVII Softball Coach of the Year after leading Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College in Tifton, Georgia, to the 1995 National Junior College Athletic Association Softball Championship.
Tanner earned a Master of Education in Health and Physical Education (Grades PreK-12) in 1994 and a Master of Education in Educational Leadership in 1996 from VSU.
Ivie S. Wright, a V-State alumna, was recently promoted to a second-level associate position with Draffin Tucker’s healthcare practice. She works in the firm’s Albany, Georgia, office and assists with audit services and Medicare cost reports for clients.
Wright earned a Master of Accountancy from VSU in 2021.
Matthew T. Mitchell, a V-State alumnus, was recently promoted to a second-level associate position with Draffin Tucker’s commercial practice. He works in the firm’s Albany, Georgia, office, provides tax services, and assists with audit and review services.
Mitchell earned a Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting in 2020 and a Master of Accountancy in 2021 from VSU.
Andrea Russell Dixon, a V-State alumna, was recently named assistant principal at Blackshear Elementary School in Blackshear, Georgia. She has worked for the Pierce County School System for two decades.
Dixon earned an Education Specialist in Educational Leadership from VSU in 2008.
Ellen Drury Fitzgerald, a V-State alumna, was recently appointed to the State Board of Optometry by Georgia Governor Brian Kemp.
She opened Fitzgerald Family Eyecare in Douglas in 2005. She is an active member of the Coffee County Chamber of Commerce, the Douglas Lions Club, the Coffee Regional Medical Center Hospital Board of Directors, the Coffee County Low Vision Support Group, the Georgia Optometric Association, and the American Optometric Association.
Fitzgerald earned a Bachelor of Science in Biology from VSU in 1998.
Chris Page, a V-State alumnus, was recently honored with Ogeechee Technical College’s 2023 Rick Perkins Award for Excellence in Technical Instruction. He serves as director of the Statesboro, Georgia-based school’s Paramedicine Technology Program and was recognized for his contributions to technical education through service, innovation, and leadership in his field.
Page holds 16 professional certifications. He has served as a firefighter for the Statesboro Fire Department and as an emergency medical technician / paramedic for Emmanuel County Emergency Medical Services. He currently serves in those same capacities with the Bulloch County Fire Department and Bulloch County EMS.
Page earned a Master of Public Administration from VSU in 2022.
Kevin Brown, a V-State alumnus, was recently named director of the Pontiac Public Library in Pontiac, Michigan. He grew up attending events at his neighborhood library with his mom in Atlanta, Georgia. He even spent his after-school hours doing homework at his neighborhood library until his mom was finished with work.
Brown worked in academia at the Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library before transitioning to the Fulton County Library System, where he served in a number of roles, including branch manager, youth outreach librarian, children’s librarian, and, most recently, librarian principal for the system’s Central Library.
Brown earned a Master of Library and Information Science from VSU in 2010.
Steve Armour, a V-State alumnus, spends his days collecting, preserving, and providing access to more than two centuries of University of Georgia history in his role as university archivist. He says it’s a privilege to serve the first state-chartered public institution of higher education in the United States, and he enjoys connecting people with the immediate, tangible, and one-of-a-kind resources housed in the UGA Special Collections Libraries.
Armour earned a Master of Library and Information Science from VSU in 2013. His wife, Mollie, is also a librarian at UGA. She earned a Master of Library and Information Science from VSU in 2012.
Air Force ROTC Commander Chats with VSU Cadets, Explores Flight Simulation Room
Colonel John Caranta, commander of the Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps Southeast Region, recently visited VSU’s Detachment 172, where he participated in candid conversations with cadets and cadre and learned more about VSU’s Air Interest and Ground School, particularly the state-of-the-art flight simulation room.
Committed to developing the leaders of tomorrow, VSU’s Air Force ROTC program has a current enrollment of 56 active students, each one working to become an officer in the United States Air Force or Space Force while earning a college degree. Ten of those students are on track to graduate in May, after which they will have the opportunity to pursue their career dreams as they defend and protect the nation.
PSST Wins 10 Broadway World Tallahassee Awards
Peach State Summer Theatre’s 2022 season — “Ain’t Misbehavin’: The Fats Waller Musical Show,” “Sister Act,” and Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “Cinderella” — recently earned 10 Broadway World Tallahassee Awards.
Season memberships are on sale now for PSST's 2023 season, which runs June 2 through July 22.
VSU Hosts Science Saturday March 4
The College of Science and Mathematics, Department of Mathematics, and Department of Computer Science at VSU present Science Saturday: Adventures in Math and Computer Science from 9 a.m. to noon on March 4 in Nevins Hall. Activities are free of charge and open to the public.
Science Saturday: Adventures in Math and Computer Science is a fun-filled and educational opportunity that invites learners of all ages to explore robotics, mandarin orange math, origami and geometry, beads and binary codes, tangrams, programming through games, and more.
VSU Welcomes Seventh Annual SGFF to Campus March 3-5
Featuring 95 films, including six by VSU alumni and students, the South Georgia Film Festival returns to VSU March 3-5.
The South Georgia Film Festival celebrates the art and industry of film, particularly those films that showcase the beauty of South Georgia and its people. Preference is given to filmmakers from Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Tennessee, and South Carolina, but the festival also includes films from across the United States and around the world. Selected films represent a variety of categories, including shorts, features, family friendly, high school student made, and college student produced.
Visit http://southgeorgiafilm.com/ to purchase passes and view the full schedule of special events, screenings, and panel discussions.
SGFF Screens VSU Alumnus Brock Drury’s “The Sim Racer”
Brock Drury earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Mass Media from VSU in 2016. Blazer Nation can meet him and support his film, “The Sim Racer,” by making plans to attend the South Georgia Film Festival.
Q: How do you hope “The Sim Racer” impacts audiences?
A: The film was written for the sim racing community, and I have said all along that I want the film to bring more awareness to sim racing and show sim racing in a good light.
SGFF Screens VSU Alumnus Lucas Hicks’s “Under The Sun”
Lucas Hicks earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Mass Media from VSU in 2014. Blazer Nation can meet him and support his film, “Under The Sun,” by making plans to attend the South Georgia Film Festival.
Q: What advice do you have for emerging filmmakers?
A: Just do it. You will learn so much from just getting out there and creating a film. You can study film all you want, but just pull the trigger and create something. Use whatever resources you have, set a deadline, and go for it. Even if it isn’t good or perfect, it is an opportunity to learn and grow. In this film I made so many mistakes I would change, but overall we created something I am proud of that is going to make me a better filmmaker for the next one!
SGFF Screens VSU Student Emily Sanchez’s “CAMP: A Field of Opportunity”
Emily Sanchez, a first-generation college student, plans to graduate from VSU in May with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Mass Media and a Minor in Sociology. Blazer Nation can meet her and support her film, “CAMP: A Field of Opportunity,” by making plans to attend the South Georgia Film Festival.
Q: What is your film about?
A: My work is a 14-minute documentary that gives insight on VSU’s College Assistance Migrant Program (CAMP) with the help of Rosalyn Martinez, CAMP director, and Oscar Sanchez, nursing student and CAMP alumnus. They share how CAMP opens a field of opportunities to migrant and seasonal farmworker children by helping them reach their dreams of continuing higher education and obtaining a college degree.
SGFF Screens VSU Student Robert Greene’s “Aberration”
Robert Greene plans to graduate from VSU in 2024 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Mass Media and a Minor in Art, specifically three-dimensional art. Blazer Nation can meet him and support his film, “Aberration,” by making plans to attend the South Georgia Film Festival.
Q: What inspired you to make this film?
A: My main inspiration for my film was early cinema horror films. With restricted budgets the directors of the time had to find creative ways to get their vision made, and I find this really inspiring. As a student filmmaker I also have almost no budget to work with and end up relying on many techniques used in these old films, which spur on new ideas in my own work.
SGFF Screens VSU Alumnus Ben Strickland’s “No Limits No Refunds”
Ben Strickland earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Mass Media from VSU in 2022. Blazer Nation can meet him and support his film, “No Limits No Refunds,” by making plans to attend the South Georgia Film Festival.
Q: What is your film about?
A: This documentary takes just shy of half an hour to cover Gus Altenburg, his early-life struggles with Autism, and his athletic achievements despite his diagnosis. The story is told through the words of his parents, one of his closest friends, and his wrestling coach and covers the first times he started showing symptoms, how he used friends and sport to challenge himself in overcoming his unique struggles, then culminating to his five regional tournament matches that earned him the respected title of “state qualifier.”
SGFF Screens VSU Alumnus Levi Johnson’s “The Buick Special”
Levi Johnson earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Mass Media from VSU in 2019. Blazer Nation can meet him and support his film, “The Buick Special,” by making plans to attend the South Georgia Film Festival.
Q: What challenges did you have to overcome during the making of this film?
A: One struggle we had was that due to practical restrictions, there were certain scenes where the car — an actual 1952 Buick Special with an older shifting mechanism — had to be pushed by our some of our crew members, sometimes uphill, in order to make it look like the person in the driver’s seat was actually driving the car. You’d never be able to tell that when you’re watching the film, but knowing the lengths and efforts that our cast and crew went to in order to make this film happen is extraordinary.
VSU’s Tori Talks Economic Outlook
VSU's Dr. Cynthia Tori recently reported on the economic outlook of the local community during the Valdosta-Lowndes County Chamber of Commerce's 13th Annual Business Outlook Breakfast.
Tori predicts Valdosta-Lowndes County and South Georgia will see growth in 2023, as businesses and individuals continue to migrate to the area. She is a professor of economics with VSU's Harley Langdale Jr. College of Business Administration.
VSU Students Support Improved Communication Between City, Citizens
The Valdosta City Council recently recognized a group of VSU students for their continued efforts to improve communication between city government and the community.
During Fall Semester 2022, students in Dr. David Nelson's COMM 3421: Social Media Strategies class partnered with the City of Valdosta to develop a social media plan to help promote Adopt-A-Street, a program designed to create public awareness of the litter problem along city streets.
This ongoing partnership highlights VSU's commitment to serving as a resource for South Georgia and to offering students real-world transformational and experiential learning opportunities. VSU believes that learning is best done actively and in collaboration with others.
VSU’s Ben McCranie Named Employee of the Semester
Ben McCranie joined VSU’s Physical Plant as a framer and cabinetmaker in September 2000 and currently serves as a member of the university's Key and Electronic Access Control team. His collaboration, critical-thinking, and customer service skills recently earned him the title of Fall 2022 Employee of the Semester.
McCranie’s supervisor describes him as "a versatile employee who adapts well to the ever-changing landscape of the Physical Plant" and "an excellent example of how cooperation can produce great results."
VSU’s Beta Alpha Psi Students Offer Income Tax Assistance
The VSU chapter of Beta Alpha Psi recently kicked off its fifth year with the Internal Revenue Service’s Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) Program, providing free federal and state tax return preparation and electronic filing for low- to moderate-income earners across the area.
Several VSU accounting and finance majors volunteered their time to work with the IRS VITA Program this year. All of them passed tax law training that meets or exceeds IRS standards, including maintaining the privacy and confidentiality of all taxpayer information.
VSU Gallery Presents “Enchanted Forest Fire” through March 9
The VSU Dedo Maranville Fine Arts Gallery presents “Enchanted Forest Fire” through March 9. This exhibition features works by Raina Belleau, a Minneapolis, Minnesota-born artist inspired by cinema, natural history, and environmental issues.
According to her bio at Rhodes College, where she teaches art and art history, Belleau creates surreal scenes and characters with an underlying dark sense of humor. These scenes are at times ideals and at others, dystopias. They convey her personal desires and anxieties surrounding the environment and its inhabitants. Her work has been influenced by a cultural relationship to nature and personal experiences. Through her sculptural work she examines nature’s influence on society with an empathetic yet critical eye.
VSU will host an artist talk with Belleau at 5:30 p.m. on March 9.