New Nursing Technology Enhances Student Success
VSU's College of Nursing and Health Sciences recently purchased 11 new state-of-the-art, high-fidelity manikins with funding from a Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce Nursing School Grant. The new manikins represent different ages, genders, and skin tones and mimic human anatomy and physiology.
"The updated technology brings more realism into simulation, which increases student confidence in performing clinical tasks, making clinical judgments, as well as communicating with patients and each other, and in the real world that translates to better patient outcomes.” — Michele Blankenship, assistant professor of nursing and director of simulation at VSU.
VSU Professor Pursues Fellowship to Improve Teaching, Promote Student Success
As a member of the 2023-2024 Governor's Teaching Fellows Program, Dr. Emma Kostopolus, assistant professor of English at VSU, is on a mission to become a better teacher and ensure the best possible outcomes for her students. She's also working to develop a new Introduction to the Digital Humanities course for the fall.
“For me, teaching is about more than just giving students the content and skills of my field,” she says. “It’s also about giving them space to figure out how they want to be in the world as adults. So, while I am directly teaching the skills of writing, I think my classroom — and all college classrooms — are places where students can build healthy habits surrounding work that they can carry with them into their futures, and I’m dedicated to fostering that and having active conversations about not just the work itself but also how we engage with the work positively.”
• VSU Athletics has lots of Baseball, Softball, Men’s Tennis, Women’s Tennis, and Golf action this month.
• The top-seeded Women’s Basketball team heads into the Gulf South Conference Championship semifinals, with the Lady Blazers playing the Auburn University at Montgomery Warhawks on March 9. The team's 24-game winning streak is the longest in NCAA Division II.
• Blazer Football releases its 2024 schedule; the season kicks off Aug. 31 against the Albany State University Golden Rams.
Carey Mullis, a V-State alumna, recently joined the Archbold medical staff. As a board certified family nurse practitioner, she will work with patients at Georgia Kidney and Hypertension Clinic in Thomasville, Georgia.
Mullis earned a Master of Science in Nursing at VSU in 2023.
Lee Collins, a V-State alumnus, was named District 1 Music Educator of the Year by the Georgia Music Educators Association. He is also a finalist for State Music Educator of the Year.
Collins serves as director of bands at Statesboro High School in Statesboro, Georgia, in 2012. Before that he served 13 years as director of bands at Tattnall County High School in Reidsville, Georgia.
Collins earned a Bachelor of Music in Music Education at VSU in 1999.
Walker James and Brian Troy, V-State alumni, have joined the Draffin Tucker accounting team.
James works in the Albany, Georgia, office as an associate in the firm’s healthcare practice. Troy works in the Atlanta office as a staff accountant providing audit and tax services.
As a VSU student, James earned a Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting and a Bachelor of Business Administration in Management in 2022, followed by a Master of Accountancy in Accounting in 2023. Troy earned a Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting at VSU in 2022.
Mary Kathryn Smith, a V-State alumna, has joined Seabolt Real Estate, a real estate firm in Savannah, Georgia, as an associate broker. Her areas of expertise include luxury real estate, strategic marketing, contract negotiation, out-of-state buyer representation, and client communication.
Before joining Seabolt, Smith owned her own marketing company, LSM Partners, where she managed marketing efforts for more than 50 hotels and restaurants throughout the Southeast.
Smith earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Mass Media at VSU in 2012.
Dr. Scott Manley, a V-State alumnus, will join Georgia College and State University’s J. Whitney Bunting College of Business and Technology as chairman of the Department of Management, Marketing, and Logistics and professor of management on July 1, 2024. He will lead multiple degree programs and more than 20 faculty and 1,000-plus students.
Manley currently serves as professor of entrepreneurship and free enterprise at Midwestern State University, director of the Munir Abdul Lalani Center for Entrepreneurship and Free Enterprise, and chairman of the Department of Management and Marketing in the university’s Dillard College of Business Administration. Before joining academia, he served as a consultant with America’s Small Business Development Center.
A two-time VSU graduate, Manley earned a Bachelor of Business Administration in Management in 1990 and a Master of Business Administration in 1997.
Courtney Parker Fleming, a V-State alumna, has been named interim head coach for Lowndes High School’s varsity girls basketball team. She previously served as assistant coach for the Vikettes from 2005 to 2011 and also coached the Pine Grove Middle School basketball team from 2015 to 2023.
Fleming played for Lowndes High School from 1997 to 2001. She was also a four-year starter at Valdosta State University, where she earned all-conference honors. She has taught students at Dewar Elementary School for nearly two decades and even earned the school’s 2019-2020 Teacher of the Year title.
Fleming earned a Bachelor of Science in Education in Early Childhood Education at VSU in 2005.
Esther-Marie Lawrence, a V-State alumna, is the new director of development and strategic partnerships for Imagine Thomasville in Thomasville, Georgia. She has a passion for making connections and establishing meaningful relationships with people and is known for executing well-thought-out plans and ensuring smooth outcomes.
Lawrence’s diverse experience in banking, real estate, public speaking, fundraising, and marketing will support the Thomasville-Thomas County Chamber of Commerce and Payroll Development Authority in their efforts to connect businesses and build community.
Lawrence earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Speech Communication at VSU in 1998.
Dr. Carly Womack-Wynne, a V-State alumna, was recently selected by the United States Department of State for a four-month English Language Specialist Program project. She will work with partner institutions to create a reading integration course for pre- and in-service teachers of the very young in Serbia as well as participate in a digital literacy forum and workshops on the integration of artificial intelligence into teacher training programs in Albania.
This is Womack-Wynne’s third Department of State award in the last five years. When not pursuing global collaborations, she works as a professor in the College of Education at the University of North Georgia.
A two-time VSU graduate, Womack-Wynne earned a Bachelor of Science in Education in Secondary Education in 2000 and a Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership in 2007. She was named Graduate of the Last Decade in 2011..
VSU Celebrates Engineering Education Success
VSU’s College of Science and Mathematics recently recognized National Engineers Week (Feb. 18-24) by hosting Engineering Night. It was an opportunity for students to engage with industry leaders and learn about some of the engineering and technology careers available to them across South Georgia and around the world.
VSU's Engineering Technology program will celebrate its first class of graduates this spring. Dean Pierre-Richard Cornely says VSU is ready to embrace the critically important challenge of educating and training more science, technology, engineering, and mathematics professionals who are capable of transforming society.
VSU Costume Exhibit Open in Odum Library
“Trust or Bust: The Historical Accuracy of ‘Othello,’” a theatrical costume exhibit, is now open in VSU’s Odum Library. It is an opportunity for visitors to enjoy the art of costume design while also learning a bit about the importance of maintaining historical accuracy in live theatre.
This exhibit was created by students in VSU's Costume History class, using costumes designed by Chalise Ludlow, assistant professor and costume designer, and draped/stitched by VSU students. It will remain open through early May.
VSU Student Named Dean at Augusta Tech
Aherial Polite, a doctoral student at VSU, was recently appointed dean of the School of Arts and Sciences at Augusta Technical College in Augusta, Georgia. She plans to defend her dissertation and earn her Doctor of Education in Leadership in Summer 2025.
“The leadership program at VSU has already impacted my new role,” she shared. “I’ve learned about the various types of leadership, such as transformative and servant, and used them to reach the faculty, staff, and students at Augusta Technical College during the first few weeks of transitioning to the position. This program has also instilled in me the importance of being a team player and a leader. Strong leaders support their team members and are able and willing to step in to assist in fulfilling the institution's mission. Lastly, my doctoral program has taught me about the significance of qualitative and quantitative data; utilizing both data types can provide a deeper understanding of patterns and behavior, especially those pertaining to students. As I immerse myself in this role, I plan to collect and analyze qualitative and quantitative data to comprehend our students’ needs better.”
VSU History, Art Students Collaborate on Civil Rights Exhibit
A student-produced civil rights exhibition in VSU’s Odum Library is open to the public now through mid-May.
Curated by students in Dr. Sarah FitzGerald’s HIST 4215: Introduction to Public History class, the exhibit highlights civil rights and social justice movements using archival materials. It also features contemporary photography from Lindsay Godin’s ART 4072: Color Photography class.
The artifacts on display are from a variety of sources — VSU Archives and Special Collections, VSU Copeland African American Museum, Valdosta City Schools, the Lowndes County Historical Society and Museum, as well as community historians Dr. Willie Houseal and James Edward Alexander.
Art & Design, Theatre & Dance Engage with Future Blazers
• Thirteen high school freshmen, sophomores, juniors, and seniors recently spent the day exploring VSU’s Department of Art & Design, where they participated in a sculpture workshop and plein air drawing activity, ate lunch in Palms, and toured parts of campus.
Monika Meler, department head, says it was an opportunity for the future Blazers to discover what it’s like to be a VSU Art & Design major and connect with current VSU students.
• A group of visiting high school students had a chance to spend the day engaging with faculty, staff, and students from VSU Theatre & Dance. They participated in a variety of workshops in dance, performance, musical theatre, as well as production and management.
The high schoolers had an opportunity to tour campus, audition to be a VSU Theatre & Dance major, and network with current VSU students.
VSU Professor Continues E-Bike Research, Talks to The Conversation
VSU’s Dr. Luke Jones, in collaboration with researchers from the University of Tennessee and Portland State University, continues to study e-bike incentives and their impact on getting more people to replace car trips with bike trips. You can read the latest update on this work in The Conversation.
Jones joined the VSU faculty in 2011. He is a professor of economics in the Harley Langdale Jr. College of Business Administration’s Department of Economics, Finance, and Healthcare Administration.
This e-bike research received funding from the National Institute for Transportation and Communities and PeopleForBikes and could be used to guide policymakers through the process of creating equitable and effective e-bike incentive programs across the country.