Gov. Nathan Deal has announced that Georgia is one of 10 states to be awarded $1 million by Complete College America to fuel policy innovations and reforms aimed at significantly increasing college completion. In conjunction with this grant, Deal also introduced his Complete College Georgia Initiative.

“By 2018, more than 60 percent of job openings in Georgia will require some form of postsecondary education. To meet this demand, we must increase the number of students with access to higher education and ensure that these students graduate with postsecondary degrees in a timely manner,” Deal said. “My Complete College Georgia Initiative provides concrete steps to address both access and completion. Less than a quarter of full-time students at two-year colleges ever graduate and only 44 percent at four-year colleges get their degree within six years. We also know the problem is fixable.”

The governor’s plan prescribes the following strategies:

Development of comprehensive system-wide and campus-level completion plans

• By Jan. 1, the University System of Georgia and the Technical College System of Georgia must submit comprehensive system-wide completion plans to the governor.

• By July 1, each USG and TCSG institution must submit comprehensive campus-level completion plans to the governor.

• Restructuring of select TCSG programs

• By fall 2012, at least five TCSG programs must be restructured to better support students who work while attending college.
Seamless Education System

• Ensure that the higher education system in Georgia is a seamless system that allows students to transfer with ease in order to complete their postsecondary educations