News from the University System of Georgia: region 11

NEWS

FROM

The University System of Georgia

Two USG Universities Rank Among Nation's Top 20 Public Institutions
Georgia has two institutions ranked among the top 20 public national universities in the United States in U.S. News & World Report's "America's Best Colleges 2003."
Georgia Tech is No. 9 on the coveted list, while the University of Georgia is No. 18.
The 2003 "Best Colleges" report, released in September 2002, and the magazine's 2003 edition of "Best Graduate Schools," released in April 2002, also contain a variety of other rankings.
The reports rank Georgia Tech: First among the nation's graduate and undergraduate schools
of industrial and systems engineering; Second among undergraduate programs in aerospace/aero-
nautical/ engineering; Third among undergraduate programs in civil engineering; Fourth among undergraduate programs in mechanical engi-
neering; and Fourth among graduate engineering programs overall.
The reports rank UGA: Among the top three public law schools in the South; Third among graduate programs in public
management/administration and public finance; Fourth among graduate programs in vocational/ technical
education; and Fourth in terms of "best value" among national public uni-
versities.
The reports rank Georgia State University: First among the nation's public universities with part-time
MBA programs and fifth overall; and Second among undergraduate business programs in insurance/
risk management.
The reports rank the Medical College of Georgia: Sixth among the nation's graduate programs in nursing anes-
thesia (a ranking held since 1998).
Facts About the USG Institutions Represented at This Luncheon:
I Valdosta State University is headquarters for the South Georgia Institute, a regional economic-development agency that works closely with VSU's Small Business Development Center.
I Waycross College has an agreement with Albany State University that allows students to earn a bachelor's degree in criminal justice on the Waycross campus.
I South Georgia College's Division of Nursing has introduced a certificate program in school-health nursing focusing on training registered nurses and licensed practical nurses in the unique health-care issues of school-age children. Nearly 30 nurses received this certification in Summer 2002.
I In partnership with Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College and the South Georgia Rural Development Council, Tifton's Downtown Development Authority has received a $500,000 OneGeorgia Grant to develop a Tift-Area Workforce Center, set for completion in Fall 2003.

Did You Know?
N The Board of Regents is celebrating its 70th anniversary this year. The original 11 regents developed a plan in 1932 that for the first time centralized governance of the state's higher education institutions.
N According to a recent economic-impact study coordinated by the Board of Regents' Office of Economic Development, Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College, South Georgia College, Valdosta State University and Waycross College collectively generated a total of more than 4,500 jobs and infused nearly $342.5 million into the local economy during Fiscal Year 2001.
N South Georgia College is the state's oldest publicly supported two-year college.
N Valdosta State University received a grant from the State of Georgia Pulp and Paper Consortium to establish a Laboratory of Physical Environmental Sciences. The industry-driven consortium developed a novel source of ozone, which is used in the production of pulp and paper. The university secured a patent on the idea and a spin-off company, MICS Systems Inc., has received a Small Business in Innovative Research contract to use this ozone technique to improve the shrimp-farming industry.
ABAC Helps Local Hospitals Fill Nursing Positions With New Program
Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College (ABAC) has partnered with Tift and Colquitt Regional Medical centers to address the critical shortage of skilled nurses in South Georgia.
With a $158,300 grant from the University System's Health Professionals Initiative -- developed by the Intellectual Capital Partnership Program -- ABAC and its corporate partners have created a unique program that allows licensed practical nurses (LPNs) and paramedics to become registered nurses (RNs) by taking two one-day-a-week nursing courses per semester.
The two medical centers have committed to hiring graduates of the LPN/Paramedic Transition Track, which is expected to fill 80 nursing positions in South Georgia over a two-year period.
The program also will allow ABAC to triple the number of students accepted into its nursing programs each year.

NEWS

FROM

The University System of Georgia

Waycross College Offers Older Students A Deal
Aspecial incentive welcomes non-traditional students to Waycross College, where forty-five percent of the students are 23 years of age or older and the average age is 25.
Under the terms of the Adults Start College Grant, the Waycross College Foundation will cover the cost of one course for any student who enrolls five or more years after graduating from high school and has earned fewer than 15 transferable semester hours (or 20 quarter hours) of college credit. The program's funds are limited and are awarded on a "first come, first served" basis.
Non-traditional students wishing to take more than one course also may be eligible for additional financial assistance through the college's Office of Financial Aid.
SGC Mobile Nursing Clinic Brings Free Health Care to Medically Under-Served
South Georgia College's Nightingale Mobile Clinic brings free essential health-care services to thousands of adults and children in rural South Georgia while serving as a valuable learning experience in community-based nursing for the college faculty and students who staff it.
The clinic received national attention in 2000 when it was written up in the journal Nursing and Health-Care Perspectives.
Nightingale, a 37-foot motor coach, has served migrant workers with pesticide poisoning, factory workers with respiratory and repetitive-stress ailments, women and children with anemia and vision problems, and elderly and disabled clients who might never have received medical care without this service.
Rural Town Gains a Grocery Store With Help of VSU's Small Business Development Center
The tiny hamlet of Pavo, a rural community in Thomas County, recently experienced a surge in employment and revenue when Valdosta State University's Small Business Development Center (SBDC) helped a local man establish a small grocery store there.
Ken Driggers opened his store in December 2001 after the SBDC staff helped him arrange $397,000 in loans for construction and start-up costs. He now employs 16 people and is generating considerable revenue for the tax digest.

USG Resume Database Helping Employers to Recruit
FusionPoint Technology Solutions of Macon is one of the latest Georgia businesses to benefit from the University System of Georgia's online statewide database of college students and alumni seeking consideration as job candidates.
The consulting firm recently hired three Georgia Tech graduates located through GeorgiaHire.com, which provides cost-effective one-stop shopping for businesses in need of qualified job candidates. Students and alumni can post their resumes on the web site free of charge. It costs nothing for potential employers to search the database for job candidates and only a nominal fee to post job openings and company profiles.
More than 150,000 students and alumni have posted their resumes for review since February 2000, and more than 12,600 employers have searched the database during that period.
Did You Know?
N Valdosta State University has offered four-year degree programs on the campuses of Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College, South Georgia College, and Waycross College for several years, but improved collaboration between the institutions recently has led to more cohesive programs of study.
N South Georgia College's Elderhostel program is one of the strongest in the nation with a regional economic impact of more than $908,800 during Fiscal Year 2001, when 1,035 people over age 55 participated in learning adventures on such topics as bridge and golf through the college.
N Founded in 1970, Waycross College, is one of the newest institutions in the University System of Georgia.
N Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College's Business Division maintains an alliance with Tifton's accounting firms by providing them with interns -- students planning to major in accounting -- during tax season.