News from the University System of Georgia: region 6

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 insur-
ance/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 Fort Valley State University's Cooperative Development Energy Program (CDEP) -- which prepares students for technology-oriented careers in the energy industry -- is the only program of its kind and has been designated as a national model by the U.S. Department of Energy. The program serves students of African, Asian and Hispanic descent, as well as women.
I Georgia College & State University has pooled resources with four other USG institutions -- Georgia Southern , Kennesaw State, West Georgia and Valdosta State -- in offering an exclusively web-based master of business administration (WebMBA) program to reach markets in Georgia not served by traditional delivery methods.
I Macon State College is developing a bachelor of science in nursing (BSN) degree program that will help to address the shortage of registered nurses in Middle Georgia. The BSN is referred to as a "completion degree" because it enables those with associate's degrees who already are working as nurses to complete their educations by earning bachelor's degrees. Macon State will continue to offer an associate degree in nursing (ADN) as an entry point for careers in registered nursing.

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, Fort Valley State University, Georgia College and State University and Macon State College collectively generated a combined total of approximately 4,400 jobs and infused approximately $348 million into the local economy during Fiscal Year 2001.
N Fort Valley State University's campus radio station, WFVS AM 530, was ranked second in the nation among college radio stations operating on fiber-optic cable. The station, which also has won several Black College Radio Awards, serves as an excellent training ground for students interested in hands-on experience in the field of radio broadcasting.
N Georgia College & State University recently partnered with Robins Air Force Base in preparing 20 college graduates to fill positions as procurement officers at the base. Through a program developed by the University System's Intellectual Capital Partnership Program (ICAPP), the university's School of Business faculty offered select, newly hired base employees an intensive, 16-week course in procurement procedures on-site at the base.
FVSU Secures Rural Development Funds
Fort Valley State University (FVSU) is among 11 land-grant colleges and universities in the United States that have been selected to receive special funds from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to develop new entrepreneurial and employment opportunities in rural communities.
The university will receive $150,000 to provide information, technical assistance and financial support to individuals and groups involved in business start-up or expansion, job creation, and program development designed to retain jobs. The counties to be served by the grant include: Crisp, Dooly, Macon, Peach, Crawford and Taylor.
"Fort Valley has a history of excellence and is a tremendous resource for Middle Georgia," said F. Stone Workman, state director of USDA-Rural Development. "These funds should help spark small business initiatives and stimulate economic growth."

NEWS

FROM

The University System of Georgia

Macon State's Warner Robins Center
Business and community leaders alike are looking forward to the opening next fall of Macon State College's new Warner Robins Center.
The facility -- expected to serve more than 1,500 students -- was made possible when the Warner Robins City Council, the Robins Federal Credit Union, members of the Central Georgia legislative delegation and other business and community leaders collaborated to bring a permanent college campus to Warner Robins. Macon State is expected to be a catalyst for commercial and residential development in the city's central business district.
"The new Warner Robins Center is going to give synergy to this part of town and provide stability and support for Robins Air Force Base," says Mayor Donald Walker. "Macon State is going to take the city to the next level."
MSC President David Bell predicts that the opening of the center will usher in a new era of educational opportunities and partnerships with Houston County and the Air Force base. The new facility will serve as headquarters for the Institute for Information Management, Macon State's economic-development arm.
"I'm very excited about it," said state Rep. Larry Walker of Perry, who led the effort to secure $5 million from the Georgia General Assembly to fund the center. "Like the Museum of Aviation and the Georgia Agricenter, it's going to be a tremendous boon for Houston County."
Did You Know?
N Georgia College & State University and Fort Valley State University are two of 15 universities in Georgia participating in a new fasttrack teacher-training program called Georgia Responds, which offers unemployed professionals a new career in teaching and is helping to ease the severe shortage of qualified teachers in Georgia classrooms.
N Macon State College graduate Theresa A. Merrow recently became Georgia's first female U.S. Marshal and one of about 20 female marshals in the service's 213-year history. Merrow, who earned a degree in criminal justice at MSC, was confirmed in July as President George W. Bush's choice to head the marshals' service in the 70-county Middle District of Georgia.

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 150,700 students and alumni have posted their resumes for review since February 2000, and more than 12,800 employers have searched the database during that period.
Georgia Chamber, GC&SU Mentoring Future Leaders
The Georgia Chamber of Commerce has partnered with Georgia College & State University (GC&SU) on a pilot program to give college students workplace experience while enabling leaders in business to contribute to the development of the state's future leaders.
The brainchild of GC&SU President and Georgia Chamber Board Member Dr. Rosemary DePaolo, the Georgia Education Mentorship (GEM) program matches 25 selected students with Georgia leaders from a broad field of endeavors such as health care, education, the arts, information technology, recreation and business. Through the program, the students will gain exposure to public affairs, corporate meetings and company activities. They also will attend leadership seminars and receptions.
"The GEM program is an exciting opportunity for our students to develop the leadership skills necessary for success in their professions, as well as their lives," said DePaolo.
The pilot program was funded by a $200,000 grant from the Robert W. Woodruff Foundation. For more information on GEM, call Max Allen, executive assistant to the president and director of university relations for GC&SU, at 478/445-6802.