North Georgia earns magazine's military friendly designation for second year
2/2/2012 3:12:31 PM
(Feb. 3, 2012) North Georgia College & State University
has been recognized by Military Advanced
Education magazine in the publication's 2012 Guide to America’s Top
Military-Friendly Colleges & Universities. It marks the second year North
Georgia has been included in the guide.
Institutions of higher education
that wished to be considered for the inclusion in the guide submitted a
questionnaire that was then evaluated by the magazine's judging panel. Education
service offices from all branches of the military assisted in coming up with
the set of criteria for inclusion in the guide. All institutions were judged
based on the same criteria, regardless of size or status as a public or private
school.
"This decision was based on a belief that regardless of
size or degrees granted there are efforts any institution can make to better
serve those who have served the nation," Editor Maura McCarthy wrote in
the issue featuring the guide. "In this sense, I am sincerely impressed by
the initiatives of some schools that choose -- because it is a choice -- to
enact academic, support and financial aid policies that favor our sevicemembers
and facilitate their educational pursuits."
Designated by the Georgia General Assembly as The Military
College of Georgia, nearly 800 of North Georgia's more than 6,100 students are
members of the university's Corps of Cadets. Many cadets, as well as many of
the instructors and support staff in the Department of Military Science and the
Office of the Commandant, are active members of the military or veterans who
have served in the military. Each semester, a number of graduating cadets at
North Georgia are commissioned as second lieutenants in the U.S. Army.
North Georgia opened a Veterans Success Center in May 2009.
The center is to assist service members and their families by serving as a
one-stop shop as they enroll, register or apply for GI Bill benefits. The
centers also help service members with housing availability, counseling, work-study
opportunities and campus activities as well as serving as a hub for military
student and veteran social activities.
In addition, North Georgia awards college credit for
military training, accepts transfer credits, offers distance learning, is part
of Georgia's Soldiers 2 Scholars program, and is in the coalition of Service
members Opportunity Colleges (SOC).
Soldiers 2 Scholars is designed to help those in military
service make the transition to civilian life by means of a college degree.
SOC, which currently has some 1,900 member institutions
including North Georgia, was created in 1972 to provide educational
opportunities to service members who had trouble completing college degrees because
they frequently moved from place to place.