Georgia Southwestern President says recruiting visit to Albany not unusual

ALBANY — When the Georgia Regents announced the consolidation of Albany State University and Darton State College last November, it sent shock waves through southwest Georgia.

Speculation as to what form the “new Albany State University” would take rippled throughout the community. Many questions are being asked as to what will happen to Darton, and will there be an exodus of students from the college?

Thursday night at the Albany Museum of Art, Georgia Southwestern State University held a student recruitment/alumni function attended by Interim President Charles Patterson along with members of the university’s admission office and several faculty members. The museum is adjacent to the Darton campus.

Patterson said the visit had been planned in advance of the consolidation announcement and assured it was not a raid meant to lure Darton Students to bolt to GSW.

“We are certainly sensitive to what is going on in Dougherty County, but if you look at our student numbers, Dougherty County is one of the largest counties in south Georgia and is our second largest alumni base,” Patterson said. ” We are a regional university, but universities throughout Georgia recruit in Atlanta, they recruit on the east coast in Alabama and South Carolina. Remember that most of the universities in Georgia can provide in-state tuition to Florida, South Carolina and Alabama. So, our recruiting ground is everywhere, including internationally.

“My role as the interim president is to energize our alumni base and to recruit students.”

Patterson said GSW had recruited Albany for years, mainly targeting transfer students, and other schools around the state do likewise in other areas.

“People need to know that our admissions crew goes out and regularly does recruitment events at other universities, we also do it at high schools,” Patterson said. “Transfer students are the lifeblood of many universities including our own. In the past, we’ve even had events at Darton because many of our students are Darton transfers This was happening well before any news of consolidation. So our presence here is kind of status quo; this is what we do.”

With an enrollment of more than 2,800 students. Patterson said GSW has ratcheted up its recruitment efforts. Those efforts bore fruit last year with a three percent increase in enrollment. He added the events will continue at various locations throughout the state.

“We haven’t done near enough of these kind of visits and that has been part of the problem with the identity of Georgia Southwestern State University. We have been actively pursuing several initiatives that could support the university, and it’s certainly not uncommon for presidents to go out and energize their alumni base.

“This is my first recruiting trip, but it is part of my responsibility as interim president to look at our gaps and weaknesses. Our enrollment management function at GSW is maturing and this is one of those events we need to make as a progressive university.”

Patterson added GSW and the AMA have had a working relationship for years.

We’re sitting in an exhibit that is part of the Ralph Harvey retrospective. He is part of our faculty,” he said. “Our pursuit of the arts is part of our identity as a liberal arts institution. And this arrangement we have with the Albany Museum of Art further strengthens that.

“This forum is a great opportunity to bring our alumni back and show them the great things that this university is pursuing, but at the same time are certainly showcase opportunities for potential students.