Category Archives: VSU

Save the Remerton Mill! —Ransom Gladwin

LTE in the VDT yesterday. -jsq

Part of my teaching load as a professor consists of supervising student teachers at schools throughout Valdosta State University’s 46-county service area. I have traveled many South Georgia back roads. What was once a charming rural landscape of unique little towns has slowly morphed into sameness. Chain-brand retail stores, fast food, and gas stations are interrupted by strip malls and storage units. The region’s character has receded in the face of nationalization and globalization. However, historical features, be they a restored courthouse or a crumbling tobacco barn, light this bleakness. They give character, history, and pride to communities. One such structure is Remerton’s Strickland Mill, now in danger of complete destruction.

As a member of the Save the Strickland Mill Committee of the Valdosta Heritage Foundation, we recently toured the mill, with the approval of the owners and accompanied by Remerton officials. The original mill is structurally solid. The 1899 structure reflects

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Sinkhole under the shed

The sinkholes are not just in the garage and under the front steps, Michael McCormick walking towards his shed there’s one under Michael McCormick’s tool shed. He already jacked up the shed and put blocks under it after the ground sunk underneath it. With all these sinkholes on his lot (and more in the yard), how are they connected underground? How will they expand?

Here’s a video playlist:

Videos by Gretchen Quarterman and John S. Quarterman for Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange (LAKE), Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 28 August 2012.

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Sinkholes towards the house

The sinkholes are not just in Michael McCormick’s garage. Sinkholes there there and there Michael McCormick showing ground scans of sinkholes to Gretchen Quarterman According to groundscan radar by a VSU professor and students, the sinkholes are also spreading under his front steps and his house.

The steps are sinking and there’s a crack on the wall inside the house.

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Distributing information to citizens —George Boston Rhynes

Received yesterday on Valdosta LMIG resurfacing and transparency. -jsq

Thanks you so much for keeping us informed and it is still a disgrace that our elected officials cannot publish their meetings to all citizens. When will our Mayor; Council and County Commissioners start informing all the citizens and not just a select few of conservatives?

When will it all end? The time has come for change to take place in Valdosta for the good of all citizens and visitors. We need and should demand television, radio, internet and other means of distributing information to citizens.

How sad in 2012?

George included a video of his thoughts on elections hereabouts and elsewhere: Words from our YOUTHS….and where are you? Indeed George Rhynes is out there reporting the truth as he sees it, this time along with two VSU students.

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Film your cause for annual local festival

VSU professor and student publish book chapter about films of Lowndes County. You, too, can submit a film about changes in local culture for the whole world to see.

Matthew Richard and Andrea Zvikas wrote Causes Mini-Film Festival: Anthropology for Public Consumption for the book Building Bridges in Anthropology: Understanding, Acting, Teaching, and Theorizing, Edited by Robert Shanafelt, published this month.

The goal is simple: to get all of us who live in Lowndes County, Georgia, to ponder some of our casual habits and to seek better ways of doing things here. The hope is that the collective wisdom and creativity of various community members can stoke our collective imagination—maybe even our “collective conscience”—and generate improvements in our way of life. The hope is that the collective wisdom and creativity of various community members can stoke our collective imagination—maybe even our “collective conscience”—and generate improvements in our way of life. Our somewhat quixotic reasoning is that change has to start somewhere, so why not initiate it right now, right here “in our own backyard”?

On facebook: “Causes”— Valdosta’s (mini) Film Festival. 2010 Causes Film Festival YouTube channel.

Do you have a cause? If so, please make your own 90-second mini-documentary and we’ll see you in Valdosta the weekend between the Martin Luther King holiday and the Superbowl.

Here’s a sample Causes video:

Dear Valdosta City Council, we need….
Submission for Causes Film Festival 2010

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Where is SGMC in state hospital summit?

AP wrote yesterday, Hospital CEOs to discuss state of care in Ga.,

The chief executives of three major Georgia hospitals are getting together to discuss the future of health care in the state.

Probably a good idea. Which hospitals?

CEOs scheduled to sit on the panel are Tim Stack of Piedmont Hospital in Atlanta, Don Faulk of Central Georgia Health System in Macon and Maggie Gill of Memorial Health University Medical Center in Savannah.

Where is SGMC CEO Randy Sauls? What about what he described on 5 April 2012:

“…the vast array of services offered at SGMC. We are a progressive hospital with many services that are unique to South Georgia.”

So who organized the hospital CEO discussions?

The Executive Forum, an outreach program of Mercer University’s business school, will host the hospital CEOs….

Hm, maybe VSU could host some hospital CEOs. Maybe unlike Mercer’s Forum, they could make the discussion open to the public. Maybe even invite questions from the public.

-jsq

 

Earth Day and Valdosta Farm Days Saturday 21 April 2012

It’s a food festival Saturday in Valdosta! Before, after, or during stocking up on local food at Valdosta Farm Days at the historic Lowndes County Courthouse, you can mosey up Patterson Street to Drexel Park for lunch, music, fun, and education at Earth Day! Drive, bike, or even walk; it’s only a little more than a mile.

What: Come celebrate the Earth with us, and learn about growing your own food!!
When:10AM-3PM Saturday 21 April 2012
Where:Drexel Park,
across Patterson St from VSU,
E. Brookwood Drive,
Valdosta, GA

Appended is the text of the announcement.

-jsq

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Videos of VSU Debate 2012-03-20

Debate at Valdosta State University between Democrats and Republicans, 20 March 2012, organized by Phi Alpha Delta Law Fraternity, International Pre-Law Chapter.

Moderator: Dr. Jim Peterson

Democrats: President Kelli Cody and former President Alex Thomas

Republicans: Chairman Ron Bearwall, Political Director George Lee, and Secretary Preston Porter.

Somebody please correct any misspelling of names.

Here’s a playlist:


Videos of VSU Debate 2012-03-20 between VSU Democrats and VSU Republicans,
Valdosta State University, Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 20 March 2012.
Video by John S. Quarterman for Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange (LAKE).

Here are the debate questions:

A few more videos will follow. -jsq

VSU Health Sciences: much better than a private prison

I hate to agree with the VDT but Health Sciences at VSU would be good for the community. If we weren’t spending so many state tax dollars locking people up, we’d be able to afford that more easily. And it turns out the Georgia House found the money.

Staff Writer editorialized yesterday, A ray of hope for VSU project,

Amid the lost homes of this past weekend’s tornado and severe storms, South Georgia could use an infusion of hope.

Good news came Monday with word that the Valdosta State University Health Sciences and Business Administration building has a renewed shot at becoming reality.

Earlier this year, the $23.5 million project was assumed dead. Though its inclusion had been expected, the building was not part of the 2012 state budget.

Later that day it was back in the proposed 2013 Georgia budget. David Rodock wrote today for the VDT, Funding for new VSU building approved, Continue reading →

Blazer Gardens recognized by VDT for promoting healthy food

Healthy food got recognition on the front page of the VDT today.

In today’s capitalistic food market, several people have felt compelled to begin “living organically.” This philosophy has been brought to Valdosta and centralized by a group at Valdosta State University.

Bobbi Hancock, a VSU student, founded Blazer Gardens@VSU in August 2010. The group currently has 14 active members.

“There was reports of a food pantry being implemented on campus and that was implemented because there was students going to the dining hall asking for food,” said Hancock. “I just thought, if we could teach students how to grow food, it would eliminate a lot of the issues we have with campus hunger.”

Blazer Gardens started as nothing but seeds in the yard of Kathryn Grant, an organization member.

“This was an opportunity for me to understand and for me to appreciate how my food is grown,” said Grant.

From their professor:
Dr. Miryam Espinosa-Dulanto, Blazer Gardens faculty advisor and VSU professor of modern classical languages, said she feels compelled to get involved with this organization.

“I think we are what we eat, so I want to be clean and organic and safe,” said Espinosa-Dulanto.

Maybe they can help us all not eat poisons and even stop Monsanto and ConAgra from poisoning our food supply. It’s good health and it’s good business.

-jsq