FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, September 16, 2010

Contact:  Robert Preston, Jr.,
              912.260.4276
              robert.preston@sgc.edu

Record SGC Enrollment Helps Minimize Budget Cuts

For the fourth year in a row, student enrollment at South Georgia College is at an all-time high. The Fall 2010 semester opened with 2,214 students reporting to class, the most in SGC’s 104-year history. This number represents an 11 percent increase over the student population in Fall 2009.

“This is very exciting news. Maybe the most important indicator is the number 1,002, which represents the number of first-time applicants who enrolled here this fall. This shows that new students are driving the growth of this institution. It’s a strong sign marking the overall health of our College,” says Dr. Virginia Carson, SGC President. “These students provide a tremendous boost to our local economy.”

These current numbers reflect growth at each of the College’s sites: the main campus in Douglas, the nursing program at Waycross College, as well as the entry programs at Georgia Southwestern State University and Valdosta State University. The number of students at all four sites showed an impressive increase: 1,512 in Douglas (6 percent growth), 417 in VSU (up 11 percent), 149 at GSW (41 percent increase), 101 in the nursing program at Waycross (31 percent increase), and 35 students who are either employees taking classes or high school students in the joint enrollment program.

Over the last few years, SGC has implemented a progressive recruitment and retention plan, and, with the completion of Tiger Village I and Tiger Village II, added state of the art student housing that can accommodate over 600 residential students. “The new residence halls have definitely helped attract new students. But there’s more to our growth than just Tiger Village I and II. Our faculty and staff have worked very hard to bring more and more students to campus, and they have committed themselves to retaining as many students as possible. A great deal of hard work by many, many people has helped us reach this milestone,” comments Dr. Carson.

The increase in students has helped offset the staggering budget cuts handed down by the state government. The past two fiscal years, the state has cut the SGC budget by 19 percent. Beginning August 1, Gov. Sonny Perdue directed that four percent of this year’s budget be held back. That brings the total cuts in state funding to 23 percent over the last three fiscal years. Though enrollment is growing at an unprecedented rate and tuition rates are higher this year, those two factors alone are not enough to completely overcome these state cuts.

The increase in enrollment has helped stabilize the budget for FY 2010-2011. There have, however, been increases in instructional expenses, security/public safety, and student services functions for the growing student population. In order to further streamline an already stressed SGC budget, the College has taken three additional steps to comply with the latest directive. Reduction decisions were made in accordance with the strategic plan and include using all the reserves from fiscal year 2011, deferring spending on the technology equipment replacement plan and the elimination of two full-time, non-instructional positions.

“These are very difficult fiscal times, and it is a struggle to be growing at the rate we have over the past few years and continue to cut at these levels. In spite of this, SGC continues to be a healthy institution with increasing enrollment, additional faculty, external funding for support of academic programs, and considerable investment in this historic campus,” comments Dr. Carson.

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About South Georgia College

South Georgia College (www.sgc.edu) was founded in 1906 and is an accredited two-year institution in the University System of Georgia. Located in Douglas, Ga., the college's environment gives students exceptional opportunities for interdisciplinary study and close collaboration with faculty. With over 20 majors and transfer opportunities, South Georgia College provides the finest education possible to the citizens of its service area.