Campus News
Record graduation, economic impact increases at GHC Despite a slight decrease in fall enrollment, Georgia Highlands College is reporting record graduation numbers and a new economic impact of over $181 million. GHC awarded 943 degrees during its commemorative 50th graduation ceremony held virtually in July 2020, which also kicked off the college’s 50th anniversary year. This was a 14% increase in graduates over the previous graduation. In addition to celebrating GHC’s 50th class since the college’s inception as Floyd Junior College in 1970, GHC reported a significant increase in its economic impact. GHC has seen steady economic impact growth for the last five years and now holds the second-highest economic impact among state colleges in Georgia. The University System of Georgia (USG) recently released its newest total economic impact on the state of Georgia. Of the more than $18 billion reported by the USG as a whole, GHC’s contribution was over $181 million. This USG report is for Fiscal Year 2019 and is
conducted by the Selig Center for Economic Growth in the University of Georgia’s Terry College of Business. GHC’s exact economic impact $181,400,770. This represents an increase of over $4 million from the Fiscal Year 2018 report. According to the USG report, a Class of 2019 graduate is predicted to earn $888,563 more over the course of their career as a result of their degree from a USG institution. Additionally, the annual economic impact study revealed every dollar spent by USG institutions generates an additional 47 cents for the regional economy. The USG also recently reported enrollment numbers showing an increase in overall enrollment in the system despite a slight decline of 7% among all state college enrollment. These enrollment numbers were released in the USG’s “Fall 2020 Semester Enrollment Report” which breaks down enrollment by institution, class, race and ethnicity, in-state, outof-state and international students, as well as gender and age.
New 24/7 hotline among well-being student support programs now provided Thanks to a new initiative by the University System of Georgia (USG), students at Georgia Highlands College now have access to additional mental health support services. The USG launched a comprehensive plan in November 2020 to significantly expand student mental health services during the COVID-19 pandemic. Governor Kemp announced in August that Georgia will allocate $11.5 million of the Governors Emergency Education Relief (GEER) funding – set aside by the federal CARES Act – to support mental health and student support services within the USG. Titled “Thrive@GHC”, students can now connect to a continuously monitored mental health support line, online-based cognitive behavioral therapy, and additional psychiatric services. “Students can engage in no-cost telehealth and in-person treatment sessions provided by licensed
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mental health physicians, virtual psychiatric clinics to offer assessment and medication management, personal student navigators to assist with referral coordination and support, as well as a self-directed Internet-based Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (ICBT) program,” Director of Student Support Services Angie Wheelus said. The 24/7 mental health support line, 1-833-8550082, is for in-the-moment support and direction on the next steps a student should take when seeking mental health resources. ICARE is a research-supported, mobile-friendly, and self-guided cognitive behavioral training (ICBT) developed specifically for college students experiencing depression, anxiety, or both, who do not need psychotherapy. In addition, there is FasPsych, free psychiatric THRIVE– continued on page 15
