Athens Technical College - Spotlight
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Deal releases college completion plans
Gov. Nathan Deal, on Monday, September 10, released the college completion plans submitted by every institution in the University System of
Georgia and the Technical College System of Georgia, making Georgia the first state in the nation to have a completion plan for every public higher
education institution. In Georgia, the colleges detailed how each one will help meet Deal’s goal of adding 250,000 post-secondary graduates to
Georgia’s rolls by 2020. The call for the completion plans was part of the governor’s Complete College Georgia initiative launched last August.
“I am encouraged by USG and TCSG’s swift response to this critical issue and commend the partnerships they have formed in an effort to raise
college completion rates,” Gov. Deal said. “These necessary actions will provide a highly-educated workforce to businesses that choose to operate in
Georgia and allow us to continue on the path of making our state the No. 1 place in the nation to do business.”
A study done last year by Georgetown University found that, to meet projected workforce needs, Georgia must increase the percentage of its
population that holds a post-secondary credential from 42 percent to 60 percent over the next eight years.
"As the first state in the country to obtain college completion plans from every public institution, Georgia has established itself as a national
leader in efforts to significantly increase college student success," said President of Complete College America Stan Jones. "Gov. Deal's Complete
College Georgia initiative is vitally important to the future of the state and will produce great benefits for all Georgians, including making college
degrees and certificates more affordable, accessible and lucrative as the state attracts more high-paying, high-skill jobs."
The state’s initiative looks at three key areas where higher education plays a role in Georgia’s economic prosperity and assesses how colleges and
universities can strengthen their contributions to these areas: One, keeping Georgia competitive in an age where other states and countries are
producing a more educated workforce; two, ensuring the academic quality and standards to which graduates and institutions are held; and three,
providing the opportunity to pursue higher education and supporting student’s success through the effective use of resources.
“A year ago, Gov. Deal laid out his vision of increasing student access to college, maintaining their enrollment and doing more to graduate them
on-time and into Georgia’s workforce,” said TCSG Commissioner Ron Jackson. “The Technical College System of Georgia and University System
of Georgia have answered his challenge with an unprecedented collaboration, focusing on innovative strategies that aim to improve student readiness
for college, enhance remediation for those who need it and open more articulation avenues between our systems. Now, each of the 56 college-level
plans show that Georgia’s higher education systems are entirely focused on building seamless pathways to improve college completion rates and
produce an increasing number of graduates that will keep our state competitive in the global economy.”
After a year of work, campuses statewide submitted individual institutional plans to the governor’s office. These plans look at different ways to
use technology and online learning to attract new student populations, giving those who have significant life experiences — which traditionally
hinder a student’s potential — the opportunity to earn college credits.
In response to Deal’s call for campus completion plans, the institutions addressed the following:
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Data collection and analysis to identify strengths and areas for improvement, as well as the needs of various regions and populations
Partnerships with K-12 to improve college readiness for students out of high school
The improvement of access to college and graduation for all students
The reduction of the time it takes to earn a college degree
New models of instruction and learning for students
The transformation of remediation
Under the guidelines of Deal’s Complete College Georgia initiative, the state will continue to improve post-secondary education access, retention
and completion by continuously directing their efforts toward these main areas:
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Development of comprehensive system-wide and campus-level completion plans
Restructure of select TCSG programs to better support students who work
Increase in articulation between TCSG and USG to build a seamless education system
http://www.athenstech.edu/Spotlight.cfm?i=396
9/11/2012
Athens Technical College - Spotlight
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Improvement in remediation as a part of the $1 million Complete College America grant
Creation of the R.E.A.C.H. Scholarship—a privately funded, needs-based college scholarship
Formation of the Higher Education Funding Commission to study ways to change the funding formula to incentivize completion
The full completion plans for institutions in the University System of Georgia and the Technical College system of Georgia are available at
https://www.usg.edu/usgweb/complete_college/
Don Nelson
706 227-5460
http://www.athenstech.edu/Spotlight.cfm?i=396
9/11/2012
Athens Technical College - Spotlight
http://www.athenstech.edu/Spotlight.cfm?i=396
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