UTA In The News — Wednesday, August 26, 2020
Online learning
With tens of thousands of students in North Texas learning online from home, some parents are facing multiple challenges including dealing with their anxious kids and perhaps their own anxiety, KDFW FOX 4 reported. UTA’s Peggy Semingson, associate professor in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction in the College of Education, offered parents advice on calming everyone's nerves and protecting family privacy while practicing online learning.
Semingson also spoke to GovTech.com about the digital divide, as the school year begins online in many areas of the country. According to Semingson, the pandemic didn’t create the problem, it just brought the issue to the surface. Factors such as income, race and geography affect which side of the divide families will fall on, she said.
Political conventions
UTA’s Rebecca Deen, associate professor of political science, spoke to KERA and the Texas Standard about the different ways the Democrat and Republican parties are using their national conventions to further their agendas and party goals. “Conventions are supposed to unify the base, also to introduce the voters to the nominee,” Deen explained. “President Trump doesn't have to unify a base nor does he have to introduce himself to the nation, not only because he's the incumbent president, but also because people have pretty firmly solidified views of the President.”
Back to school
UTA has begun in-person classes with special safety and health guidelines in place, The Dallas Morning News and Al Día reported. According to the publication, UT Arlington officials indicated any decisions regarding retrenching or further precautions would be based on local conditions, as well as guidance from federal, state and regional public health agencies and UT System leadership.
Move-in day
UTA students began moving into residential housing for the 2020-21 academic year, following new schedules and processes to keep them and their fellow Mavericks safe and healthy, Mirage News reported. This semester, University Housing modified its traditional move-in process to encourage enhanced social distancing. “Reducing the risk of COVID-19 transmission will require a joint effort between the University and its students,” said Eric Leidlein, executive director of UTA Auxiliary Services. “Overall, our goal is to support the housing, dining and educational needs of our residents.”
Student debt and full-time employment
A recently published study led UTA’s Ariane Froidevaux, assistant professor of management in the College of Business, says that student debt may hurt students' chances of securing full-time employment due to added pressure in their job search, Phys.org reported. “Student debt mainly had more negative effects on college students' likelihood of securing a full-time job than beneficial ones,” Froidevaux said. “You can do certain things like getting a job during the summer that may help you get a full-time job upon graduation. But in the end, student debt leaves students with a lot of stress, and it is long-lasting.”
Alumna selected for committee
UTA alumna Pamela Reese-Taylor was selected as one of seven health professionals to serve on Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins’s School Public Health and Education Committee, Focus Daily News reported. The committee was created to address the COVID-19 pandemic. Reese-Taylor is the only K-12 school health professional on the committee.