Georgia leaders discuss southwest Georgia growth at Albany State, Phoebe

ALBANY — State leaders visited Albany Thursday for a community tour and to hold discussions on growth and expansion in the southwest Georgia region.

Stata Sen. Freddie Powell-Sims, D-Dawson, served as de facto host to Lt. Gov. Burt Jones, Senate President Pro Tempore John F. Kennedy, R-Macon, and other members of the Senate who body visited Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital and Albany State University to see some of the expansion efforts that community leaders and institutions are working toward.

The trip included a walk-through of ASU’s campus, where the group met with academic leaders, students and faculty to discuss how higher education impacts the region. Jones has planned a tour of the state’s historically black colleges and universities over the next few weeks.

Jana Dyke from the Albany-Dougherty Economic Development Commission, as well as ASU health and science professors, presented ideas for growth.

The audience at ASU represented various counties and communities and was a significant gathering for southwest Georgia to hold conversations on economic development in the region, Sims said.

Southwest Georgia is the least populated part of the state and continues to lose population because of a lack of economic growth that other parts of the state experience, she said. It was important for the lieutenant governor and other state leaders to visit Albany and brainstorm with regional leaders and community members on how they can expand this growth.

“We are so far away from the seat of government,” Sims said. “It’s important to forge that relationship — so people will not forget the needs of southwest Georgians.”

Conversations with state leaders were about how we grow our institutions, whether it’s health care, education or corporate extensions, she said. All are important to the constituency of southwest Georgia.

“We were able to tour the campus at ASU because education is extremely important,” Sims said. “When you talk about economic expansion, you just can’t have one without the other.”

The group also visited Phoebe to look at the Living Learning Center that is under construction and to visit the hospital’s simulation lab, which is used to train nurses and medical personnel.

The lab offers opportunities not only in the hospital but to students at educational institutions across the region, the state senator said.

Jones said he left Albany feeling impressed.

“Where a lot of schools in the state have been losing college enrollment, Albany State has actually increased their enrollment, which is impressive and speaks for the leadership there,” the lieutenant governor said.

Jones was invited by Sims to see some of the progress toward growth happening in the region as well as to see how the state could do more to help.

He called the historic campus beautiful and applauded the facilities. He said he saw and discussed with ASU President Marion Fedrick needs for on-campus student housing as well as updated or new facilities.

“It was a good conversation and good dialogue,” Jones said. “We’re gonna see what we can do to help make some of those things happen.”

The lieutenant governor applauded two of ASU’s programs that were discussed during the meeting. He pointed out the potential for the nursing program to be a feeder program for Phoebe and took interest in a STEM program that is focused on agriculture.

A lot of economic growth in Georgia is happening outside of the Atlanta metro area, Jones said, which affords people the opportunity to stay in these outside areas to work, live and start families.

“We need to be looking for similar opportunities here in southwest Georgia,” he said. “It’s mostly agricultural here. … We need the next generation to be involved in agriculture.”

Jones said he hopes his visit to Albany and to communities across the state help him to better understand the needs of each area.

“When you’re elected statewide, you want to try to touch every corner of the state because every place you go, there’s different things that need to be done,” he said.

Between conversations with ASU and Phoebe leaders, Jones said he got a better idea of how the state can help meet the needs of southwest Georgia.

Funding for student housing and remodeling buildings on campus and getting Phoebe designated as a Trauma 1 hospital were emphasized.

“They both talked about some of the things that they would like to accomplish with the state’s help, and we’re gonna do our best to make them happen,” he said.