Complete College Georgia (CCG) – Gov. Nathan Deal’s initiative to increase the numbers of Georgians earning a degree – reached another milestone today with the release of a report with specific plans by institutions in both the University System of Georgia and Technical College System of Georgia.

The campus plans detail exactly how the ambitious goal of adding an additional 250,000 postsecondary graduates to the state’s rolls by 2020 is going to be met. As institutions begin to implement the plans, higher education officials point out that they will receive continued assistance to improve the plans and will be held accountable for progress. (See highlights of the Middle Georgia State College plan below.)

“The plans are a signal of the immense effort to date, a renewed and strengthened focus on access and graduation, and a commitment to continue and expand the work over the coming years,” said Lynne Weisenbach, the USG’s vice chancellor for Educational Access and Success, who is leading the CCG efforts in the University System. “Increasing Georgia’s college completion rate is not something that can be changed overnight and is about the learning process to continually improve and find what works.”

Weisenbach said that throughout the University System, many efforts will have a positive effect on college affordability by shortening the time to degree, lessening the likelihood a student may stop-out temporarily from their education, and providing options so students may attend school while working, serving their country and raising a family.

University System institutions have built upon localized partnerships with K-12 schools, TCSG, businesses, and foundations in developing the plans. “This is about serving and working with the local community and in many cases Complete College Georgia gives institutions a new avenue to reach out and build on those relationships,” said Weisenbach.

In the executive summary of the Complete College Georgia plan, the authors noted that the campus plans address a number of components that, taken together, will work to increase access to college and college completion. These are:

• Better data collection and analysis to identify strengths and areas for improvement as well as the needs of various regions and populations;
• Increased 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;
• The development of new models of instruction and learning for students;
• The transformation of remediation.

The campus plans also look at different ways to use technology and online learning to attract new student populations, the ease with which students can transfer between systems and institutions, and the use of prior learning assessment to give college credits to those who have significant life experiences that traditionally have not been factored into a student’s potential.

The full Complete College Georgia report is available online at: http://www.usg.edu/educational_access/documents/USG_Campus_Completion_Plans.pdf

Highlights of Middle Georgia State College’s Plan:

Goals and Data Analysis:
•    Increase certificate, associate and bachelor degree completion.
•    Develop an institutional infrastructure to support retention, progression, and graduation.
•    Increase student success, especially for diverse learners and underrepresented groups (i.e., minorities, military, adult learners, low income, first generation, students with disabilities).
•    Implement specific strategies that support student success throughout a college career.

Strategies and Objectives:
•    Partnerships with K-12. This would include increasing opportunities for dual college enrollment for high school students. Part of that would be the expansion of GAMES (Georgia Academy of Aviation, Mathematics, Engineering and Sciences), a dual enrollment residential program for high school students.
•    Improving access and completion for traditionally underserved students. This would include an intense immersion intervention educational experience for underprepared students.
•    Shorten time to degree. This would include expansion of articulation agreements between Georgia’s technical colleges and Middle Georgia State College. More tech college students would be able to seamlessly transfer to MGSC. Another objective would be to increase opportunities for students to use Prior Learning Assessments (PLA) and alternative course exams (AP, CLEP, DANTES).
•    Restructuring Instructional Delivery. This would include the introduction of new techniques and strategies in courses with lower success rates, such as gateway math courses.

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