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The academic world is rapidly becoming aware of the UGA tradition
of excellence, but achieving our goals for the 21st century
— becoming one of the world’s best universities,
for example — requires raising the bar in all areas
of teaching, research and service. UGA is creating an enhanced
physical environment to support learning by building new academic
facilities and residential halls, as well as maximizing the
physical beauty of campus by emphasizing greenspace over pavement.
Students enjoy a number of learning opportunities both in
and out of the classroom, including several residential colleges
that offer an enhanced learning environment. Faculty members
include eminent biomedical researchers, distinguished diplomats
and a Pulitzer Prize winner. And programs from Food Services,
Housing and the Parents & Families Association help students
create a home away from home.
Home sweet home
Student Katie Jackson enjoyed the next best thing to her mom’s
cooking Dec. 5 during Food Services’ annual "Taste
of Home." More than 100 recipes — from Apple Pamlets
to Zucchini Squash Patties — submitted by parents were
served during breakfast, lunch and dinner at campus dining
halls. Katie, a junior, said her mother has tried since her
freshman year to get a recipe in "Taste of Home"
and finally succeeded with one of her daughter’s favorites,
Chocolate Crowned Peanut Butter Squares. To celebrate, Rosemary
Jackson traveled from Valdosta to have dinner with Katie.
"Taste of Home" is just one example of how the student
learning environment encompasses more than the classroom.
There are numerous opportunities to explore academic and extracurricular
activities as well as residential hall facilities that provide
an enhanced learning experience.
The Franklin Residential College, established in Rutherford
Hall in 2001, brings faculty members and students into the
residence hall to live in a community, creating the opportunity
for daily interaction. The program is designed to facilitate
personal growth in an environment that feels like that of
a small college. Michelle Garfield, associate dean in UGA’s
Franklin College of Arts and Sciences, is the first residential
dean for FRC.
"This is a way to make this large university feel small,"
she said. "We have so many resources here, but it’s
easy for students to feel lost, so it helps students benefit
from those resources when we put them together in a setting
like this."
Tutoring sessions and academic advisors from Franklin College
are available to students in Brumby, Russell and Creswell
Hall. And Mary Lyndon Hall is home to UGA’s language
communities in Spanish and French. Residents of those communities
are immersed in an environment where they have the opportunity
to speak their second language daily, accelerating the learning
process and preparing them for travel and study abroad.
UGA also created the Parents & Families Association to
help bridge the gap between students’ new lives and
the ones they left behind. PFA sponsors events like Parents
& Families Weekend, an annual event held in the fall that
attracts several hundred people to campus. The weekend focuses
not just on academics but also on the changes students experience
during college. The point, according to PFA co-creator Peter
Amann, is to encourage communication and understanding as
well as introduce parents to UGA.
"Anything we can do to help make a large university smaller
benefits everybody," he said.
The Parents & Families Council, the governing entity of
PFA, also takes a more direct approach to enhancing the student
experience by awarding grants to campus organizations. Money
generated from fund-raising efforts is used by the council
to fund proposals from buying furniture for student lounges
in Dawson Hall to supporting disability awareness education
to purchasing a tent for the Georgia Students of Landscape
Architecture — just three of the past proposals that
were funded.
UGA’s commitment to providing an enhanced learning environment
for students is rooted in the belief that education is about
more than grades — it’s also about helping the
next generation make the transition to living adult lives.
While our students are earning degrees at UGA, we help them
create a home away from home.cutline: Students got a taste
of home Dec. 5 when Food Services prepared more than 100 favorite
recipes submitted by parents and served them during breakfast,
lunch and dinner at campus dining halls. Rosemary Jackson
(right) traveled from Valdosta to have dinner with her daughter,
Katie, a junior. For dessert they enjoyed Chocolate Crowned
Peanut Butter Squares, a favorite recipe of Katie’s
that was submitted by her mother.
Office of Student
Affairs
University of Georgia
201 Holmes-Hunter Academic Building
University of Georgia
Athens, GA 30602
706-542-3564
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