Georgia Governor Nathan Deal signed legislation Wednesday authorizing Georgia Military College, a junior college, to offer a four-year degree program at select campuses across the state, including its Columbus Campus.

“GMC is committed to supporting Governor Deal’s ‘Complete College Georgia’ initiative, which aims to increase the number of college graduates by 250,000 by the year 2020,” said Lieutenant General William B. Caldwell, IV, GMC president.  “Our new Bachelor of Applied Science (BAS) degree will allow us to contribute even more significantly to Governor Deal’s goal, and position GMC to support technical college graduates seeking to earn four-year degrees.”

In 2012, GMC’s research found two-thirds of technical college students surveyed had an interest in pursuing a four-year degree program at GMC, if the two-year junior college were to offer it.

“These are young men and women who will come to us with an array of associate in applied science (AAS) or associate of applied technology (AAT) degrees, from construction management to computer programing to hotel/restaurant management,” said Mike Holmes, Ph.D., GMC vice president for academic affairs. “Unlike several years ago, many of the leadership positions in those fields now require a four-year bachelor’s degree. Our BAS in supervision and management will offer these students an avenue for advancing their careers across a wide range of technical fields.”

In addition to attracting recent technical school grads, GMC’s BAS program is expected to appeal to working community members who already hold AAS or AAT degrees and want to advance their careers, but cannot uproot their jobs and families to relocate. 

“The BAS degree is currently offered at eight other colleges in Georgia, but these schools are not easily accessible to several of the communities we serve,” said Dr. Holmes.  In order for GMC to offer the BAS in those areas, a change in state law was required because the school was legally limited to offering two-year courses of study.

In addition to being offered in Columbus, the BAS program will also be available at the GMC campuses in Milledgeville, Augusta and Fayetteville.

“None of the four-year institutions currently offering the BAS degree are in the same geographic areas, so we are most definitely filling a void,” Dr. Holmes said. “And GMC will continue to work with the University System of Georgia (USG) Board of Regents to avoid duplication of programs in close proximity to one another.”

Lt. General Caldwell says it is important to note that GMC’s new degree program in no way signals its intent to become a full-fledged four-year institution as the concept applies to sports, ROTC or other extracurricular programs. “We are one of only five Junior Military Colleges in the United States—also serving a large civilian student population—and we intend to maintain that status,” Caldwell said.

GMC’s next step is to seek approval from the Southern Associate of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) accrediting agency. In the meantime, school officials will work with local technical schools to design the BAS degree program curriculum.  Pending SACSCOC approval, GMC is targeting August 2015 to begin offering its new BAS degree program. 

“The Columbus campus is very excited to offer this great opportunity to AAS and AAT graduates from Chattahoochee Valley Community College and Columbus Technical College,” says Ron Hundley, Director of the GMC Columbus Campus.  “Over the coming year we will work with these institutions to ensure their graduates will be able to seamlessly enter this BAS program.”

Georgia Military College, the only public liberal arts junior college located in Columbus, is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award associate degrees. Enrollment for the Summer and Fall 1 2014 terms is currently underway at our new campus. For further information, visit the campus at 7300 Blackmon Road, contact admissions at 706-478-1688, or visit our website at www.gmc411.com.