points of pride

2008-2009 

In America's Best Colleges 2009, U.S.News & World Report ranked North Georgia College & State University in the top 25 in the South among public universities offering undergraduate and master's programs.

North Georgia's regional economic impact was nearly $165 million with an employment impact of 1,559 jobs during the 2008 Fiscal Year, according to a recent report from the Selig Center for Economic Growth in the University of Georgia's Terry College of Business. The report showed that the economies of six Georgia counties – Lumpkin, Hall, Dawson, White, Forsyth and Union – directly benefited from the university's impact on the region.

Two new major facilities opened on campus in fall 2008 – the Library Technology Center and the Recreation Center and Parking Deck.

The historic drill field at North Georgia was dedicated on April 18 in honor of GEN (Ret.) William J. Livsey, a 1952 graduate and the university's only graduate to achieve the rank of four-star general.

North Georgia enrolled 5,500 students in fall 2008, increasing enrollment by 5.2 percent over fall 2007 and surpassing the University System of Georgia's overall enrollment growth of 4.8 percent.

Divisions and Departments

North Georgia began offering the state's first online master's degree in international affairs in 2009, with its initial concentration in international security. This degree is the latest addition to online courses North Georgia already offers through the Georgia ONmyLINE program.

The university's new Master of Arts in history degree program begins in fall 2009 and offers concentrations in either world history or military history. North Georgia is now one of five universities in the Southeast and 20 in North America that offers a master's program in world history.

The Mike Cottrell School of Business delivered four major service learning projects to the community this year: LEAD consulting, organization development training for non-profit organizations, quality service in hospitality management, event marketing project supporting PAWS, and Volunteers in Tax Assistance.

A new educational series program, developed by NxLeveL, was designed for entrepreneurs in the North Metro Atlanta area. The certificate program is available through a partnership with North Georgia's Mike Cottrell School of Business and Center for the Future of North Georgia, the Greater North Fulton Chamber of Commerce, the Cumming-Forsyth County Chamber of Commerce, and Northpoint Executive Suites.

The U.S. Department of Energy awarded a three-year renewal grant to two North Georgia physics professors. The grant, totaling $333,000 over three years, supports nuclear physics research conducted by Drs. Richard Prior and Mark Spraker in collaboration with the Triangle Universities Nuclear Laboratory (TUNL) and the High Intensity Gamma-ray Source project, both located at Duke University.

North Georgia's Predator Beetle Lab, funded through the Georgia General Assembly and located on campus, has released over 120,000 beetles into north Georgia's hemlock forests since it was established in late 2007. The lab, founded by Dr. Robert Fuller, director of the university's Environmental Leadership Center, and managed by Sarah Osicka, is designed for researchers to raise beetles to help preserve the hem-lock tree population from an adelgid infestation in north Georgia.

The new Center for Language Education was developed to provide opportunities for international and regional students who are future or practicing teachers to develop English or other language skills. It will promote the best pedagogy for educators teaching English as a Second Language and help meet the needs of the state's diverse public school students.

North Georgia opened a Veterans Success Center to assist military service members with financial aid information and education benefits.

A $1.3 million grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration is being used through 2011 to sustain North Georgia's Appalachian Nurse Practitioner Clinic and use of a mobile medical van. These opportunities provide access to quality healthcare for uninsured and low income residents of the North Georgia Appalachian region. The clinic serves about 300 patients each month. A $100,000 grant was received from the Healthcare Georgia Foundation to expand the clinic into Dawson, White and Gilmer counties, and to pay for part of the university's Electronic Health Record Implementation costs for the clinic.

North Georgia introduced an Appalachian Community Studies certificate program, which explores a variety of topics spanning from oral histories to bluegrass music to heirloom gardening, and more to provide a complete overview of the Appalachian mountain region.

The Georgia Appalachian Studies Center has been appointed by the Georgia Council for the Arts as the re-granting agency to administer Grassroots Arts Program funds for fiscal year 2010 in Fannin, Gilmer, Habersham, Lumpkin, Pickens, Rabun, Stephens, Towns, Union, and White counties.

Georgia Rep. Amos Amerson presented the university with a joint resolution from the Georgia House of Representatives and Senate recognizing the Georgia Appalachian Center for Higher Education at North Georgia as the state's official higher education resource center for the Appalachian region.

The Library Technology Center, in partnership with Lyrasis, a national consortium of libraries, has selected a sample group of historic university catalogs and yearbooks for digitization. With funding from the Sloan Foundation and a modest charge to the library, the collaborative creates high-quality digital copies that are housed, backed-up, and accessible online.

Corps of Cadets

North Georgia is one of three schools in the country designated by ROTC Cadet Command as a strategic language hub for cadets who are commissioning through ROTC and wish to study critical languages to pre-pare for international leadership roles both during and beyond their military careers. The other schools were San Diego State University and Indiana University.

The Blue Ridge Rifles took first place in two events and second in two other events, earning the unit second place overall, at the National Invitational Drill Meet at Auburn University. The team placed second in the Squad Basic and Individual Exhibition events and first in the Squad Exhibition and Dual Exhibition events.

Keith Antonia, director of cadet admissions, was one of 11 former U.S. Army Rangers who was inducted into the Ranger Hall of Fame in 2009. Antonia was selected for his outstanding service to the U.S. Army and the Ranger community during his 20-year military career.

Earl Porter, who graduated from North Georgia in spring 2009 with a degree in criminal justice, earned the top spot on the Army's annual ROTC National Order of Merit list in 2008. The assessment ranked 4417 students in more than 270 ROTC programs across the country based on their grade point averages, performance at the Army's Leadership Development Assessment Course at Fort Lewis, Wash., physical fitness, and campus-based leadership performance.

SFC Eric Leid and the NGCSU Sports Shooting Team won first place in the team competition during the Fort Benning Rifle and Pistol Championship held this year. Members of the team were cadets Michael Smolucha, Kevin Bernhardt, Sean-Paul Adams, and Zachery Guyton. 

Athletics

North Georgia had 17 Peach Belt All-Conference performers in 2008-09, while three athletes earned First-Team All-American honors.

The Lady Saints softball team finished their historic season as the #3 team in the nation with the program's best winning percentage in school history with a record of 50-5. North Georgia captured the Peach Belt Conference Regular Season Championship, PBC Tournament Championship, NCAA Southeast Dahlonega Regional Championship, and the NCAA Southeast Super Regional Dahlonega Championship to advance to their first-ever Division II College World Series.

North Georgia's head softball coach, Mike Davenport, and assistant coaches Andrea Moss and Keri McKee were named the Southeast Regional Coaching Staff of the Year by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association.

Syretha Marble wrapped up her historic career as a member of the Lady Saints basketball team last season. Marble was a four-time PBC All-Conference player during her career, and ranks 5th in the history of the PBC with 1,881 points, and 6th in rebounds with 926.

The women's soccer team had its highest regular season finish in the Peach Belt Conference, taking fourth place to host its first-ever playoff game.

The rifle team won the Southeastern Collegiate Sectionals and was awarded the Most Improved Team in the Southeastern Rifle Conference.

Faculty and Staff

Dr. Jim Chesnut, professor of modern languages, received the President's Certificate of Excellence Award from the Foreign Language Association of Georgia.

GACHE Director Shirley Davis was selected for the 2009-10 Education Policy Fellowship Program, sponsored by the Georgia Partnership for Excellence in Education.

Dr. Brad Herbert, chemistry professor, won the 2008-2009 G. E. Philbrook Teaching Award for Out-standing Undergraduate Teaching from the North-east Georgia section of the American Chemical Society. He also will receive the Outstanding Advising award from the National Academic Advising Association this fall.

Dr. Jonathan Miner, a professor of political science, was named a 2009‑10 Academic Fellow with the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies. He participated in an educational program in Israel that focuses on the threat of terrorism to democracy.

Dr. Richard Oates, associate dean of the School of Education, was elected vice president-elect of the National Association of Kinesiology and Physical Education in Higher Education.

Dr. David Potter, president, was named to the Atlanta Business Chronicle's 2009 Who's Who in Education list, which features education leaders who are shaping Georgia's K-12 and higher education systems.

Dr. Alice Sampson, director of the Georgia Appalachian Studies Center, is president of the Appalachian Studies Association. North Georgia will host the association's 2010 conference, March 19-21. Dr. Donna Gessell, executive director for regional engagement, will serve as chair of the conference's local arrangements committee.