Points of Pride
Rankings
University-Wide
- Named a “Military-Friendly” school for six years in a row and a Gold School for 2023-2024 by Viqtory Media, publisher of G.I. Jobs, STEM Jobs and Military Spouse magazine
- Georgia Southern has been designated as an Innovation and Economic Prosperity University by the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities
- Recognized for the first time in the Tree Campus Higher Education program through the National Arbor Day Foundation
- Georgia Southern completed the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System (STARS) reporting process and earned a STARS Bronze rating by the Association for the Advancement for Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE)
- For the 11th year in a row, Georgia Southern University was named one of the nation’s top eco-friendly campuses for 2021 in The Princeton Review’s Guide to Green Colleges
- Ranked in the top 10 Affordable Online Colleges for Out-of-State Students for 2023 by U.S. News
- Named a College of Distinction for 2023 in Public Universities and the State of Georgia for Military Support and for the State of Georgia
- Georgia Southern University receives ‘First-gen Forward’ designation, a national honor for commitment to first-generation student success
- One of the 250 Best Graduate Schools nationwide for 2022 by Abound.com
- Top 20 university for African Americans receiving bachelor degrees (#19) by Diverse Magazine
- Top 10 in Georgia’s Top Universities, Top 2 for Best Value and Top 5 for Online Programs in 2021 by James Magazine
- 50 Best Nonprofit Colleges and Universities for Online Doctorates 2022 by Nonprofit Colleges Online
- Ranked in the Top 49 Most Affordable Online Schools in 2022 by Best Value Schools
- For the fourth year in a row, Georgia Southern University has been recognized as a Gold Level Campus by Exercise is Medicine® on Campus (EIM®-OC) in 2021 for the University’s diligence to make physical activities a standard on campus.
- Georgia Southern is ranked one of the Best for Vets in 2022 according to CollegeFactual
- Georgia Southern University is included in the national Campus Pride Index for LGBTQ+ inclusivity
- Ranked in The Top 25 Colleges With The Best Weather for 2022 by Best College Reviews
- Top Adult Programs and Top Online Adult Programs for 2022 by Abound
- One of The 50 Most Beautiful College Arboretums for the Botanic Garden by Best College Reviews
- #1 for Savannah for the Lowest Cost for Higher Education for Best College Towns and Cities by WalletHub
- #1 for the 2022 Best Online Colleges in Georgia by EDsmart
- #1 of 8 in the latest Best Education Options for Veterans by Veterans News Report
- #1 for Best Online Colleges in Georgia for 2022 by Learn.org
More University-Wide Rankings
Allen E. Paulson College of Engineering and Computing
- Receives national endorsement for Allen E. Paulson College of Engineering for 2023 by Colleges of Distinction
- Top 10 university for African Americans receiving bachelor degrees in engineering (#8) by Diverse Magazine
- #1 in 2022 for Best Engineering Technologies Schools in Georgia by CollegeFactual
- #1 in 2022 for Best Schools for Bachelor’s Students to Study Information Technology in Georgia by CollegeFactual
- #1 for 2022 Best Information Science Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Georgia by CollegeFactual
- # 2 for Best in Georgia Offering Manufacturing Engineering Programs for 2022 by Plexuss
- #2 in the 30 Most Affordable Online Master’s Degrees in Computer Science for 2022 by Computer Science Degree Hub
- #3 in the 20 Best Online Master’s in Computer Science Degrees by BestMastersDegrees.com
- #4 for 2022 Best Engineering Technologies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southeast Region by CollegeFactual
- #4 for Best Online Master’s in Computer Science: Students Before Profits 2020 by Nonprofit Colleges Online
More CEC Rankings
College of Arts and Humanities
- Ranked in the 20 Outstanding University and College Choir Programs list by Online-Bachelor-Degrees.com
- #1 for 2022 Best Foreign Languages & Linguistics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Georgia by CollegeFactual
- #2 for Best in Georgia Offering Public Relations Programs for 2021 by Plexuss
- #2 in Best Online Bachelor’s in Liberal Studies: Students Before Profits Award, by Nonprofit Colleges Online
- #5 for the 2022 Best Foreign Languages & Linguistics Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southeast Region by CollegeFactual
- #5 in Georgia for 2021 Graphic Design School Rankings by Animation Career Review
- #5 in Georgia for 2021 Graphic Design School Rankings by Animation Career Review
- #7 for Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies in the 108 Most Affordable Online Bachelor’s Degree in Liberal Arts and Best Buy by GetEducated.com
More CAH Rankings
College of Behavioral and Social Sciences
- #1 for the 2022 Best Interior Design Schools in Georgia by CollegeFactual
- #2 for 2022 Best Parks, Recreation & Leisure Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in the Southeast Region by CollegeFactual
- #2 for Best Criminology Schools in Georgia (Undergraduate) for 2021 by Plexuss
- #2 for Best International Relations Schools in Georgia (Undergraduate) for 2021 by Plexuss
- #4 for 2023 Most Affordable Online College for Sociology Degrees in Georgia by OnlineU
- #4 for 2020 Most Affordable Online Public Administration Degrees by OnlineU
- #6 in the Top 10 Online Cyber Security Graduate Certificate Programs for 2021 by SecurityDegreeHub
- #7 in the 25 Best Bachelor’s in Fashion for 2021 by Bachelor’s Degree Center
- #8 nationwide for the Best Online Criminal Justice Master’s Programs for 2022 by STEPS (Student Training & Education in Public Service
- #10 in the South in Top Fashion Design Schools and Colleges 2020 by fashion-schools.org
More CBSS Rankings
College of Education
- Receives national endorsement for College of Education for 2023 by Colleges of Distinction
- #1 for Best Schools for Teacher Education in Georgia for 2022 by CollegeFactual
- #1 in Best Online Master’s in Elementary Education for 2022 by TheBestSchools.org
- #1 in the 2022 Best Secondary Education Master’s Degree Schools in Georgia by CollegeFactual
- #1 in the 2022 Best Elementary Education Master’s Degree Schools in Georgia by CollegeFactual
- #2 nationwide for the 2022 Best Junior High/Intermediate/Middle School Education & Teaching Master’s Degree Schools by CollegeFactual
- #2 for the 2022 Best Teacher Education Grade Specific Master’s Degree Schools in Georgia by CollegeFactual
- #2 for Best Value Master’s Degree Schools in Georgia for 2021 by Teaching Degree Search
- #2 in the Best 25 Masters in Education Administration Programs in 2021 by Best Value Schools
- #2 in the Top 24 Online Master’s Programs in Early Childhood Education in the nation by Best College Reviews
- #2 in Best 35 Online Master’s in Early Childhood Education for 2021 from College Choice
- #3 in the 2023 Most Affordable Online Master’s in Secondary Education Degrees by OnlineU
- #3 for Best Value Schools in Georgia by Teaching Degree Search
- #4 in the 2022 Best Education Master’s Degree Schools in Georgia by CollegeFactual
- #4 and the Best in the Southeast in the 2022 Top 31 Master’s in Early Childhood Education Degree Programs by Intelligent.com
- #4 and Best MAT Degree in the 2022 Top 41 Master’s in Education Degree Programs by Intelligent.com
- #5 in Best Doctorate In Curriculum and Instruction Online: Students Before Profits 2021 by Nonprofit Colleges Online
- #6 in the Top 50 Most Affordable Master’s in Higher Education Online Programs 2021 by Best Colleges Online
More COE Rankings
College of Science and Mathematics
- #1 for 2022 in Best Schools for General Physical Sciences in the Southeast Region by CollegeFactual
- # 7 in the 30 Best Bachelor’s in Geography for 2021 by College Rank
- #8 in Best Ed.D. in Curriculum & Instruction Degree Programs by BestAccredited Colleges for 2022
- #11 for Best Colleges for Biology Majors in Georgia for 2023 by Niche
- #18 in the Top 25 Bachelor’s in Mathematics for 2023 by BachelorsDegreeCenter.com
Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health
- Top 5 university for African Americans receiving doctorates in public health (#3) by Diverse Magazine
- #1 in the 13 Best Schools for a Master’s in Public Health by SR Education Group
- #4 in Today’s Best Online DrPH Programs nationwide for 2022 by Steps (Student Training & Education in Public Service)
Parker College of Business
- Receives national endorsement for Parker College of Business for 2023 by Colleges of Distinction
- Top 10 university for African Americans receiving bachelor degrees in marketing (#9) by Diverse Magazine
- Georgia Southern University Parker College of Business ranked as one of 243 on-campus MBA programs selected for the list, Best Business Schools for 2023 by Princeton Review
- #1 for 2022 Best Supply Chain Management Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Georgia by CollegeFactual
- #1 for 2021 for Online MBA programs in Georgia with the lowest debt at graduation by Discover Business.US
- #1 in Best Online Master in Economics Degree Program 2023 by TheBestSchools.org
- #1 in the list of 2020 Best Online MBA Programs in Georgia by MBACompass.com
- #1 for Most Affordable College Online for a Master’s in Economics 2023 by OnlineU
- #2 for the Top 25 Online MBAs No GMAT Requirement for 2022 by College Values Online
- #2 in the Best Online Master’s Degrees in Economics by BestMastersDegrees
- #3 in the 2023 Best Online Master’s in Economics Programs by Bestcolleges.com
- #3 for 2021 in the 21 Best Online Master’s Degree Programs for Economics by Best Value Schools
- #3 for 2021 for Online MBA programs in Georgia with the highest three-year graduation rates by Discover Business.US
- #4 in the Best 15 MBA Programs in Georgia for 2023 by Best Value Schools
- #4 in Master’s in Economics Online: Top 8 Values for 2020 by College Values
- #5 in the 10 Best Online Master’s Programs in Economics 2022 by Master’s Programs Guide
More PCOB Rankings
Waters College of Health Professions
- Receives national endorsement for School of Nursing for the Waters College of Health Professions for 2023 by Colleges of Distinction
- #1 in the 2022 Best Health Sciences & Services Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Georgia by CollegeFactual
- #1 for 2022 in the Top 15 Most Affordable Emergency Nurse Practitioner Online Certificate Programs by BestCollegesOnline
- #1 for 2022 Best Health Sciences & Services Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Georgia by CollegeFactual
- # 1 for Best in Georgia Offering Recreation and Leisure Studies Programs for 2021 by Plexuss
- #1 in 20 Most Affordable Online BSN Degrees by College Choice
- #2 in the Best Online Nursing Programs in Georgia for 2023 by EduMed
- #2 in the Most Affordable Online Nurse Practitioner Programs for 2022-2023 by NPSchools.com
- #2 in the 2022 Best for Concussion Management and The Top 48 Master’s in Training And Development Degree Programs by Intelligent.com
- #2 and the Most Affordable for the 2022 Top 50 Online Accelerated RN-to-BSN Programs by Intelligent.com
- #2 in the Top 15 Best Sports Psychology Degree in 2021 for the Master of Science, Kinesiology, Sport and Exercise Psychology concentration by Best Value Schools
- #2 in The 2022 Three Best Online Sports Management Degree Programs in Georgia by Sports Management Degree Hub
- #2 for the Master of Science in Kinesiology with an emphasis in Coaching Education among 15 Best Online Master’s in Coaching Education by Sports Management Degree Hub
More WCHP Rankings
Centers and Institutes
- #19 for The 30 Most Amazing Higher Ed Natural History Museums by Best College Reviews
- Garden of the Coastal Plain is in The 50 Most Beautiful College Arboretums by Best College Reviews
Academics
Georgia Southern University’s 10 colleges, schools and departments offer approximately 138 different degree programs at the bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral levels on the University’s campuses in Statesboro, Savannah, Hinesville and online instruction.
Georgia Southern is now the fifth-largest public university in Georgia serving nearly 26,000 students.
The Fred and Dinah Gretsch School of Music
With approval from the University System of Georgia Board of Regents, Georgia Southern University has established the Fred and Dinah Gretsch School of Music. Naming the University’s school of music comes after Fred and Dinah Gretsch pledged a historic gift, plus their Gretsch Collection of historic drums, guitars and company archives to Georgia Southern. The University has cataloged and displayed Gretsch’s storied instruments — a collection estimated to be valued in the millions — that tell a compelling story of musical history from American jazz to English-born rock to popular modern worship bands in Australia. The Great Gretsch Sound! Gretsch Museum has opened in Savannah through a partnership with The Kessler Collection. This permanent display of music memorabilia, highlighting over 135 years of Gretsch instruments, is featured in District Live’s lobby and performance space.
The Eagle Battalion
The Eagle Battalion is proud to have one of the largest Army ROTC Nursing programs in the nation, and Georgia Southern’s School of Nursing is consistently ranked among the top in the country. The strong relationship between these elite programs has ensured that our Nurse Cadets receive top-quality education and experience while being held to high academic and ethical standards, preparing them for becoming both Army officers and leaders in the field of medicine.
Study Abroad at the Wexford, Ireland Learning and Research Center
Georgia Southern University has established its first overseas learning center in the town of Wexford on the southeast coast of Ireland. The first cohort of Georgia Southern students studied in Wexford in 2022, enjoying its state-of-the-art classrooms, housed in a restored stunning building from 1812. The second cohort will be studying and researching in Wexford in the summer of 2023. The Wexford campus experience extends well beyond the classroom — to participating in educational field trips, to enjoying the café culture, to interacting with Irish people and to visiting Irish schools, universities, research centers and workplaces.
New Engineering Doctoral Programs
Georgia Southern’s Allen E. Paulson College of Engineering and Computing is now offering two doctoral programs. The College also houses Georgia’s first undergraduate manufacturing engineering program and one of the few in the nation.
Biology Research Center
Georgia Southern University’s Department of Biology is the largest center for biology research and education in south Georgia.
Eagle Academy
Georgia Southern is home to the EAGLE Academy Inclusive Post-Secondary Education program. EAGLE Academy, named for its commitment to Equal Access to Gainful Learning and Employment, is a comprehensive transitional program for young adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The non-degree program offers courses and internships that advance students’ life skills and assist with their career aspirations. Upon completion, students earn a certificate.
The National Latina Organization MANA
The Armstrong Campus in Savannah was designated as the first college campus in the country to have a collegiate chapter of the National Latina Organization MANA, which represents the interests of Latina women, youth and families in the areas of education, health and well-being, financial literacy, equal and civil rights, and immigration reform.
Betty Foy Sanders Georgia Artists Collection
The Betty Foy Sanders Georgia Artists Collection, one of Georgia Southern University’s largest permanent collections has celebrated its 50th anniversary. The collection was established in 1967 by former Georgia first lady Betty Foy Sanders, a Statesboro native.
Jack and Ruth Ann Hill Convocation Center
Georgia Southern University expects to complete the construction of the Jack and Ruth Ann Hill Convocation Center by spring 2024. The 95,000-square-foot center is named in honor of the late Georgia State Sen. Jack Hill and his wife of 46 years, Ruth Ann Hill. Both graduated from Georgia Southern. Serving as the signature building on Georgia Southern’s south campus in Statesboro, the center Center will be the largest event venue space between Savannah and Macon. Jack Hill was the longest-serving Georgia senator when he died in April 2020. As the Appropriations Committee chairman, he was instrumental in helping the University expand its programs and build several new state-of-the-art facilities, including the Engineering and Research Building, which opened for classes in January 2021.
First-Gen Forward
Georgia Southern University has been named a “First-Gen Forward” institution for its commitment to improving experiences and advancing outcomes of first-generation college students. The Center for First-generation Student Success, an initiative of the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) and The Suder Foundation, selected Georgia Southern for the designation. Approximately 37% of Georgia Southern’s students are first-generation college students, meaning they are the first in their immediate family to attend college.
Top 100 Degree Producer for Diverse Students
Georgia Southern University has ranked in the top providers nationally for degrees conferred to diverse students among higher education institutions.
For several years, Diverse Issues In Higher Education has produced the Top 100 Degree Producers rankings of the institutions that confer the most degrees to diverse students. The data was reported at the end of 2022 for the previous year of 2020-2021.
Georgia Southern ranked highly in the following categories:
- #2 for international (temporary resident) students receiving doctoral degrees in public health
- #3 for African American and total minority students receiving doctoral degrees in public health
- #5 for African American students receiving bachelor’s degrees in the physical sciences
- #6 for African American students receiving bachelor’s degrees in communications disorder sciences
- #6 for African American students receiving bachelor’s degrees in parks and recreation
Athletics
Georgia Southern sponsors 17 NCAA Division I varsity athletics programs, 15 of which compete in the Sun Belt Conference. Rifle competes in the Southern Conference while women’s swimming and diving competes in the Coastal Collegiate Sports Association (CCSA), , moving to the Sun Belt for the 2023-24 season.
Georgia Southern’s football program has a rich history, winning six NCAA Division I-AA National Championships before moving up to the FBS in 2014. In that first year, the Eagles won the Sun Belt Conference with a perfect league mark and won their first bowl game in school history a year later, trouncing Bowling Green 58-27 in the GoDaddy Bowl in Mobile, Alabama. The Eagles have made four appearances in an NCAA postseason bowl game since joining the Sun Belt Conference, winning three of those contests.
The Georgia Southern rifle team for the second time in a row claimed the 2023 Southern Conference rifle title, the second in program history. Addy Burrow was named both the Smallbore and Air Rifle Athlete of the Year. Ashley Judson was given the Pinnacle Award, given to the student-athlete on the championship team with the highest cumulative GPA.
For the first time in facility history, Georgia Southern University’s J.I. Clements Stadium served as a regional site for the opening round of the NCAA Baseball Tournament when it was selected in 2022. The selection marked the Eagles’ 14th overall appearance in NCAA postseason play and the first since 2014.
Georgia Southern women’s golf won the Sun Belt Golf Championship in April 2022. It was the team’s first Sun Belt women’s golf title since Georgia Southern started the program in 2015-16. The team advanced to the NCAA Championship Tallahassee Regional, where they finished seventh.
Construction of the Anthony P. Tippins Family Practice Facility is underway. The $12.3 million facility adjacent to Allen E. Paulson Stadium will serve all 17 NCAA-sponsored athletic programs. The transformative project, which is slated for completion in 2023, will benefit the needs of student-athletes while also creating new revenue-generating activities for the athletics department.
The Georgia Southern men’s golf squad hosts one of the top college golf tournaments in the country each March, the Schenkel Invitational. Teams from around the country have descended upon Forest Heights Country Club in Statesboro for more than 40 years for the competition. Men’s golf won the 43rd playing of the Schenkel Invitational in March 2023. It’s the fourth Schenkel Invitational team title for the Eagles, who won their first in 2014. Men’s Golf won Stroke Play at Sun Belt Championship in 2023. The team advanced to the NCAA Regional Championship in 2023, and tied for seventh in the NCAA Salem, South Carolina Regional.
For the second year in a row, Georgia Southern won the SoCon Rifle Championship in 2023. Georgia Southern hosted the 2019 Southern Conference Rifle Championships at the ultramodern $5.8 million Shooting Sports Education Center in Statesboro. The 30,000-square-foot facility features indoor archery and firing ranges, as well as an outdoor archery range. In 2023, Georgia Southern’s Shooting Sports Education Center hosted the USA Archery Collegiate Target Nationals, hosting nearly 450 of the top collegiate archers from across the country.
Student-athletes continue to earn top honors in the classroom, as the over 400 student-athletes who make up the Georgia Southern Athletics Department earned a 3.11 GPA for the 2022-2023 academic year. This breaks the mark set in 2021-22. Overall, 277 student-athletes earned a place on the honor roll (3.0 or higher). Of that group, 89 made the Dean’s List (3.50-3.99) and 93 made the President’s List for earning a perfect 4.0 semester GPA.
Facilities
Jack and Ruth Ann Hill Convocation Center
The new Jack and Ruth Ann Hill Convocation Center is being built on the Georgia Southern University south campus in Statesboro. When completed, the 95,000-square-foot center will be a multi-story complex that provides approximately 7,000 square feet of additional instructional space for the Waters College of Health Professions. A multipurpose arena will be utilized for large-scale events such as commencement ceremonies, speakers, concerts, job fairs and other University and community assemblies. With an estimated total cost of $64.4 million, the center will also be the home court for Georgia Southern Eagles NCAA basketball games. The late Jack Hill (‘66) served 30 years in the Georgia senate where he was instrumental in helping the University expand its programs and build several Georgia Southern state-of-the-art facilities. His wife Ruth Ann, a Triple Eagle, focused her life on public education.
Junior Achievement Colonial Group Discovery Center
The Junior Achievement (JA) Colonial Group Discovery Center is now open on the Georgia Southern University Armstrong Campus in Savannah. The former Armstrong Student Recreation Center was renovated into a 25,000-square-foot interactive environment that resembles Forsyth Park in Savannah. The facility is the first of its kind to be developed on a university campus and the first to utilize college students as instructors. It will serve 15,000 local middle school students annually and employ about 45 Georgia Southern students as interns and instructors each semester. Discovery Center instructors are usually volunteers, but this center uses Georgia Southern students as interns, paid as Dulany Waters Leadership Scholars thanks to private support from local donors.
Armstrong Hall of Fame Champions
The new Armstrong Hall of Champions on the Armstrong Campus honors and celebrates 50 years of Pirate Athletics. Located in the lobby of the Armstrong Recreation Center, the Hall of Champions houses the Armstrong Athletics Hall of Fame and championship trophies from the NCAA and the Peach Belt Conference. It also features a complete listing of All-America honors earned by student-athletes and showcases championship banners that hung from the rafters of the Alumni Arena. The banners are displayed on a wall built from the original wood floor of the basketball gym built in 1967.
Center for Engineering and Research
The Georgia Southern University Center for Engineering and Research building is the largest and newest building on the Statesboro Campus. The three-story, 135,000-square-foot building, which officially opened in 2021, is home to the Manufacturing Engineering program and several mechanical engineering faculty. It comprises 21 cutting-edge instructional research labs including high bay areas and a precision manufacturing/Class 10,000 clean lab, 25 academic learning spaces, a conference center/seminar space, configurable labs and research areas, and a renewable energy rooftop lab. The facility provides faculty and students the opportunity to conduct research to strengthen existing companies and attract new companies to the region.
Health Professions Academic Building
The new building housing the Waters College of Health Professions opened in the 2018-19 academic year on the Armstrong Campus. The $22 million state-of-the-art facility is being used by faculty to teach and train students in health-related fields ranging from nursing to radiology and sonography. Designed to simulate the environment of a hospital or medical facility, it serves as a model for health care training to help meet regional workforce development needs.
Interdisciplinary Academic Building
Georgia Southern University’s $33.6 million Interdisciplinary Academic Building opened in the 2018-19 academic year on the Statesboro Campus. The 110,000-square-foot building houses teaching space for a variety of academic disciplines including interior design, fashion merchandising and apparel design, history, foreign languages, writing and linguistics, and international studies.
Nessmith-Lane Partial Renovation
Georgia Southern University is currently working with East Georgia State College on a project to renovate a portion of the East Georgia State College – Statesboro Campus Building, located on Highway 301 South, and renovate a portion of the Nessmith-Lane Building located on the Statesboro Campus. The project is currently in the design selection phase and the design should be complete by winter 2020 in preparation for the construction phase.
University Museum Exhibit Renovations
What began as a simple project to repaint the Georgia Southern University Museum turned into a two-year undertaking of making major architectural renovations in the 1937 Rosenwald Building, which houses the museum. Now, the Museum is an up-to-date exhibit space with two permanent galleries. The Delma and Beverly Presley Gallery showcases the natural history of Georgia’s Coastal Plain, transporting visitors through millions of years of changes to Georgia’s landscape. It also displays the ever-popular mosasaur skeleton and tells the stories of giant sharks and ice-age creatures. The Jack and Addie D. Averitt Gallery on the other side of the rotunda focuses on the cultural history of the Coastal Plain. It highlights the important stories of the interactions between cultures and the people who transformed the region. A new third gallery features annual changing exhibits that are curated by faculty and students.
Pirate Athletic Center and Volleyball Gymnasium Renovations
The Pirate Athletic Center on the Armstrong Campus has been transformed into the new Student Success Complex. It provides a one-stop shop area for students to receive the support services provided by the Academic Success Center, Academic Advisement Center, TRIO Student Support Services, First Year Experience, Major/Career Exploration Center and the Office of Testing Services.
Outreach
Georgia Southern’s European Study Abroad and Research Center in Wexford, Ireland
Georgia Southern University has established its first overseas campus in the town of Wexford on the southeast coast of Ireland. The Irish learning center is an outgrowth of a partnership between Wexford and Savannah, and Georgia Southern’s Center for Irish Research and Teaching. Georgia Southern faculty and students have long examined immigration from Wexford and southeastern Ireland to Savannah in the 19th century, and the impact it had on generations of Irish and Americans in both countries. The global hub for learning, housed in a historic 1812 building, features state-of-the-art classrooms and other amenities. The Wexford Campus experience extends well beyond the classroom — to participating in educational field trips, to enjoying the café culture, to interacting with Irish people and to visiting Irish schools, universities, research centers and workplaces.
Annual National Youth Advocacy and Resilience Conference
Georgia Southern University’s College of Education hosted the 34th annual National Youth Advocacy and Resilience Conference (NYAR) in Savannah in March 2023. The annual event has grown from a regional conference of 150 participants to one that attracts more than 1,200 professionals over a four-day period. The conference aims to help professionals in education, social work, law enforcement, counseling, and other child and family advocacy entities create safe, healthy, caring, and intellectually empowering educational environments for children and adolescents.
University’s Institute for Health Logistics and Analytics
Georgia Southern University is engaged in efforts to protect Georgia’s K-12 students from COVID-19. The University’s Institute for Health Logistics and Analytics (IHLA) has garnered a $15.7 million contract with the Georgia Department of Public Health to manage COVID-19 mitigation efforts in K-12 schools to help keep them operating safely. IHLA staff aims to support the implementation of mitigation strategies in the schools through resource acquisition and delivery. The team will review proposals and offer assistance to the schools to ensure items ordered and delivered can effectively stop the spread of the virus. Some mitigation efforts include high-efficiency particulate air fan/filtration systems and other personal protective equipment to reduce exposure to the virus.
Eagle Engineering Ambassadors
Georgia Southern has launched a NASA-funded engineering mentorship program with high schools in the Savannah area. The Eagle Engineering Ambassadors (EAA) program partners students in the University’s Allen E. Paulson College of Engineering and Computing with teams of high school students. It introduces high schoolers to engineering concepts through hands-on projects and mentorship from Georgia Southern students. The program is funded through a grant from the Georgia Space Grant Consortium.
Innovation and Economic Prosperity University
Georgia Southern has been designated as an Innovation and Economic Prosperity (IEP) University by the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities. The University received the designation after an independent panel reviewed the school’s application, which included an internal review and analysis of its economic engagement activities that were conducted with outside stakeholder input. The national designation acknowledges public research universities working with public and private sector partners in their states and regions to support economic development through a variety of activities, including innovation and entrepreneurship, technology transfer, talent and workforce development, and community development.
Georgia Southern and Nine Line Foundation
Georgia Southern and Nine Line Foundation have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to promote veteran education with the help of the Armstrong Campus’ Sustainable Aquaponics Research Center (SARC). Aquaponics, or soilless farming, mixes aquaculture, the farming of fish, and hydroponics to fuel the growth of plants in water. Through the program with Nine Line Foundation, homeless veterans can enroll in the Georgia Southern Aquaponics training program to learn new skills and reengage in society. The SARC, a 4,100 square-foot greenhouse, has four independent recirculating systems, each containing 900-gallon tanks capable of holding more than 100 mature tilapia.
Research
Public Impact Research Focus Flourishes
Research activities and expenditures at Georgia Southern continue to grow, again validating the University’s classification as a “high research activity” institution, according to two national organizations. The Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education has again classified Georgia Southern as an “R2” institution, which means it is a doctorate-granting university with “high research activity.”
Carnegie lists only 139 universities in the country as having achieved this R2 designation. Carnegie Classification is regarded as the leading framework for recognizing and describing institutional diversity. Carnegie has designated 141 institutions as Doctoral Universities: Very High Research Activity, or R1. Part of the reasoning behind Georgia Southern’s R2 designation is research expenditures. For the fiscal year 2021, Georgia Southern reported $37.2 million in research expenditures to the National Science Foundation’s Higher Education Research and Development Survey, the primary source of information on research and development expenditures at U.S. colleges and universities.
New Center for Rehabilitation and Independent Living
Georgia Southern has established a new research center to improve the health and quality of life for people in coastal Georgia. The Center for Rehabilitation and Independent Living (CRIL) is housed in the Waters College of Health Professions. It will offer specialized services, including clinical gait screenings, sport-specific, athletic movement analyses, concussion assessment, overuse injury prevention methods, and evaluations of daily activity performances for clinical populations. CRIL plans to engage an array of partners – rehabilitation clinics, school districts, the military and first responders – to assess their specific needs and then develop programs to meet those needs.
Research Center to Investigate Growing Water Challenges
Georgia Southern University has established the Institute for Water and Health to investigate the complex interactions between water and human activities, and to protect and restore public health in a changing environment. As part of the University’s focus on public impact research, the new research and outreach center fosters collaboration among scientists, government agencies, industry, nonprofit organizations and communities. Coastal Georgia is the perfect location for such an institute to conduct interdisciplinary research because it lies at the intersection of many social, economic and ecological issues. The center supports the region through research, workforce training for students and by actively involving communities in the water resource management decision-making process.
Georgia Southern’s SPAR Program Goes National with $5.7 Million in Federal Funding
What began in 2016 as a partnership between Georgia Southern University and the 3rd Infantry Division at Fort Stewart has become a nationally recognized educational and research program with $5.68 million in federal funding to improve soldier health and performance to ensure force readiness.
The Soldier Performance and Readiness (SPAR) program aligns with the U.S. Army’s Holistic Health and Fitness (H2F) initiative, and represents a multifaceted partnership with the Army to provide onsite training that decreases musculoskeletal injuries; deliver an online certificate program in tactical fitness for college credit; collaborate with the Army’s Research Institute for Environmental Medicine (USARIEM); and develop programs to enhance and assess cognitive performance in tactical situations.
The online Tactical Athlete Certificate program, available exclusively to soldiers on active duty, in the National Guard or reserve, is the centerpiece of the SPAR program. It teaches soldiers the fundamentals of exercise and biomechanical concepts, strength and conditioning principles, and rehabilitation through a series of courses. The program parallels the Army’s Master Fitness Trainer curriculum, with additional rehabilitation principles, and provides soldiers with nine college credits from Georgia Southern University upon completion.
Georgia Southern Libraries designated as Patent and Trademark Resource Center
Georgia Southern University Libraries has been designated as a Patent and Trademark Resource Center (PTRC) by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. PTRCs comprise a network of 84 libraries nationwide that disseminate patent and trademark information and support the diverse intellectual property needs of the public. Georgia Southern Libraries is one of two officially designated PTRCs in Georgia. Inventors or entrepreneurs utilizing the new PTRC service at Georgia Southern will be able to determine the potential for their patent applications and federal registration for a trademark on their products or services.
Ogeechee Riverkeeper Fellow Plans Yearlong Monitoring Project
Georgia Southern University graduate student Molly McKean is the second recipient of the Ogeechee Riverkeeper (ORK) research fellowship. The $25,000 fellowship is funded by investments secured from the settlement reached after the huge 2011 fish kill in the Ogeechee. The fellowship is designed to support research activities for graduate students conducting work in the Ogeechee River Basin as part of their degree program. For a year, McKean will conduct a monitoring project focused on an upstream site near Sylvania, Georgia, a site at the closing textile plant, and a site where Black Creek meets the Ogeechee River downstream of the new EV plant development. Monitoring these sites will help contrast and compare how the upstream site will compare with these two downstream sites and the health of the river.
Research at Bo Ginn Fish Hatchery
Georgia Southern’s College of Science and Mathematics signed a memorandum of understanding with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to allow University biology students and faculty to use the Bo Ginn Fish Hatchery as a resource to better understand the future of ecosystems in the southeastern U.S. Most of the experiments at the hatchery explore the ways rainfall changes due to climate change will affect ephemeral ponds, which are vital habitats for many aquatic species in the region.
Last updated: 5/22/2023
