Legislative update: a briefing for faculty and staff of the University System of Georgia, No. 6 (Feb. 11, 2002)

LEGISLATIVE UPDATE
A Briefing for Faculty & Staff of the University System of Georgia

No. 6, Feb. 11, 2002

University System a Key Player in Bringing New Jobs to Georgia, Governor Says

The University System of Georgia's role in supporting the state's economic development through job creation was strongly highlighted in Gov. Roy E. Barnes' 2002 State of the State Address on Feb. 6.
Acknowledging the recession has caused a sobering drop in state revenues, the Governor said, "Even though we face some difficult challenges in the coming months, I believe the future of Georgia is bright and secure."
In addition to an aggressive school construction program that will create an estimated 25,000 new jobs, Barnes also has recommended funding support for several existing programs that bring jobs to Georgia.
Gov. Barnes cited the University System's Intellectual Capital Partnership Program (ICAPP) and Yamacraw -- a program that seeks to assure Georgia's leadership in global telecommunications -- as two of the best examples of how the state is "capitalizing on the strength of our 34 state colleges and universities" in building a stronger economy.

Thomas C. Meredith, the new chancellor of the University System, reacted positively to the attention Gov. Barnes afforded the System's economic-outreach efforts in his speech. "We are pleased to play an integral part in the state's economic development," Meredith said. "Job creation remains a high priority for the System."
ICAPP helps Georgia to secure new knowledge jobs by putting the intellectual resources of University System institutions to work for businesses in need of an educated workforce. The ICAPP staff works with businesses in creating accelerated, customized degree programs to quickly produce the kind of graduates that are in high demand and low supply. Students who enroll in these programs are recruited by participating companies and are guaranteed well-paying jobs upon completion of their education.
As an example, the Governor cited in his address "an ICAPP partnership recently announced between Georgia College & State University and Robins Air Force Base, in which

the university will provide training to help fill 30 new, high-paying jobs as procurement officers."
Many of the businesses that have benefited from the ICAPP Advantage program to date are in the information-technology field, but the innovative ICAPP model works wherever employees are in high demand and low supply. Now, the University System wants to send ICAPP to the rescue of Georgia's health-care profession, which is experiencing a critical shortage of educated workers such as registered nurses and pharmacists.
In addition to recommending $414,000 to continue funding the ICAPP Advantage program in the FY 2002 Amended Budget, Gov. Barnes has recommended $1.53 million in the FY 2003 Budget to fund the health-careprofessionals initiative.
"We are so pleased that the Governor is lending his support to this initiative to address the workforce shortages that exist in Georgia," said Terry Durden, who, as director of ICAPP operations, is heading

the new health-care profession initiative.
Yamacraw is another public-private partnership in which the University System has taken a leadership role as the academic arm of a strategic economicdevelopment initiative that includes academe, industry and state government. Barnes himself launched this initiative in 1999 in one of his first acts as Governor, bringing together officials of the University System, the Georgia Department of Industry, Trade and Tourism, and the Georgia Research Alliance (GRA) in a $100 million effort to make Georgia a world leader in the design of broadband communications systems, devices and chips.
To achieve that goal, Yamacraw officials work at attracting appropriate firms to Georgia and encouraging existing firms to expand their operations. They also recruit college faculty skilled in select areas of computer science and electrical engineering, revise and update college curricula as needed, and work to greatly increase
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LEGISLATIVE UPDATE -- February 11, 2002, Issue No. 6

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the number of graduates with specialized Yamacraw training to provide a steady flow of high-tech employees.
"Yamacraw set a goal of recruiting 10 companies involved in telecommunications and chip design, and creating 2,000 new jobs within seven years," the Governor noted. "Well, in just three years, we've signed up more than 30 companies. They have already created 1,100 new jobs, and another 3,100 jobs are projected over the next few years."
The progress being made is equally impressive on the academic side of the initiative. A total of 63 Yamacraw faculty members have been

hired towards the initial goal of 85, and the number of graduates educated in the disciplines relevant to Yamacraw has been increased from 400 in 1999 to more than 700 in 2001 (the initial goal was 1,000 graduates by FY 2004).
"The University System of Georgia is working closely with its partners in industry, the Department of Industry, Trade and Tourism, and GRA to make Yamacraw a success," said Dr. Daniel S. Papp, senior vice chancellor for academics and fiscal affairs. "We are ahead of schedule in most areas and are very pleased with the continuing support of the Governor."
To keep this program

on track, Barnes has recommended $7 million in bonds and general funds in the FY '02 Amended Budget and $2.8 million in the FY '03 Budget to enable Yamacraw to continue its work and finance the construction of a new building near the Georgia Tech campus in Atlanta that will provide a permanent home for the Yamacraw Design Center.
Barnes also continued to place a heavy emphasis on the importance of supporting K-12 education, just as he did last year. He stressed that obtaining a good education for the state's children is his top priority. "That's why more than one half of my budget proposal for next year is devoted to education,"

he said. "The families of Georgia know there is nothing more important than a good education, and we know it, too."
The 5,000 new classrooms that the Governor's $900 million construction package will fund will help shrink class sizes, enabling children to receive more personal attention, he said. In schools where this has already been achieved, teachers report much better student success, Barnes said.
"To those who would complain that we would mortgage the future by building these classrooms for our children, I say no -- we are investing in the future. I want to build the extra classrooms we need to keep pace with growth."

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