University of Georgia to add degree programs at Griffin campus
Writer: Sharron Hannon, 706/583-0728, shannon@uga.edu
Contact: Bob Boehmer, 706/542-2558, bboehmer@uga.edu
Apr 27, 2006, 08:51

Athens, Ga. – The University of Georgia will offer two new bachelor’s degree programs at its Griffin campus, as well as a “math leaders” graduate degree program aimed at elementary school teachers in that area.  The programs were approved by the University Council this week and will be available in the fall, pending approval by the University System of Georgia Board of Regents.

The new undergraduate programs are in Consumer Economics, leading to a Bachelor of Science in Family and Consumer Sciences (B.S.F.C.S.), and Agribusiness, leading to a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture (B.S.A.). 

The new graduate program, offered through UGA’s Department of Mathematics and Science Education, leads to a Master’s in Education (M.Ed.) or a Specialist in Education (Ed.S.). 

“We are very pleased to expand University of Georgia programs at the Griffin campus and look forward to increasing our enrollment there this fall,” said Bob Boehmer, who has been named senior administrator for UGA programs in Griffin.  He also coordinates UGA programs offered in Gwinnett. 

The Agribusiness program becomes the third bachelor’s degree program offered in Griffin by UGA’s College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.  The other two programs, which began in fall 2005, are in Environmental Resources Science, leading to a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science (B.S.E.S.), and Biological Science, leading to a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture (B.S.A.).

Consumer Economics is a very popular major at UGA’s main campus in Athens and is not offered by any other school or college in Georgia. “The extension of the program to the Griffin campus will meet the needs of students in that portion of the state,” said Anne Sweaney, head of the Department of Housing and Consumer Economics at UGA.  

The graduate math program is being offered in response to school superintendents in the Griffin Regional Education Service Agency area who indicated the need to provide elementary school teachers with enhanced mathematics content and pedagogical knowledge. 

Course content for the new degree offerings in Griffin will correspond to the same programs offered in Athens, and standards for admission also will be the same.  The undergraduate programs are upper-division programs open to transfer students or those holding a bachelor’s degree and seeking a second degree.  Transfer students need to have completed 60 hours of transferable coursework with a minimum grade point average of 2.5.

Undergraduate application forms can be downloaded from the Griffin campus web site (www.uga.edu/griffin).  Completed forms, with a $50 application processing fee, should be mailed to UGA Admissions, Terrell Hall, Athens, GA 30602-1633. 

Applicants for the math leaders program should contact mathematics education professor Larry Hatfield (lhatfiel@uga.edu).  

UGA’s Griffin campus, located 40 miles south of Atlanta, was established as the Georgia Experiment Station in 1888 and has become one of the premier agricultural research centers in the region.  Academic degree programs in Griffin were first offered in fall 2005 and are expected to expand in the future as a new Student Learning Center is constructed with funds raised through a $10 million special purpose local option sales tax, overwhelmingly approved by Spalding County voters last November.  Gov. Sonny Perdue and the General Assembly have included additional start-up funding for the new degree programs in the FY 2007 budget, and UGA has committed money for repairs and renovations to existing buildings as space is converted for teaching.         

“We are excited about the prospects for future development of the Griffin campus and grateful for the support of the governor and the local legislative delegation, as well as the people of Spalding County,” said Boehmer.  “Additionally, I’m appreciative of the excellent stewardship by Dr. Gerald Arkin and other personnel at the Griffin campus as these new degree programs get up and running.”   

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