Columbus State University and Fort Moore have inked a 10-year partnership to advance the post’s geospatial services program. The Intergovernmental Support Agreement (IGSA) agreement will provide Fort Moore with access to faculty expertise in geographic information systems (GIS). At the same time, its students will gain practical, field-based experience through internships working alongside military personnel.

As the nation’s sixth-largest military installation, Fort Moore is a city within a city. It encompasses 182,000 acres (284 square miles) that span two states and supports more than 120,000 soldiers, family members, veterans, civilians and contract employees daily. At Fort Moore, geospatial services provide the information required to map, analyze data from and navigate the installation’s physical footprint and environment, including terrain, hard infrastructure, utilities and on-post resources.

“As the military landscape continues to evolve, one constant remains: geospatial services are essential to our success,” said Maj. Gen. Colin Tuley, Fort Moore’s commanding general, at the IGSA-signing ceremony. “[The IGSA] will enable our readiness and effectiveness; [Columbus State University gives] us the knowledge we need to plan and execute with precision.”

Columbus State President Stuart Rayfield touted the contributions faculty will make and the experience GIS students will gain through the IGSA partnership.

“We have students and faculty who are now going to have the opportunity to stand alongside [Fort Moore personnel] and work with them to solve real-world problems related to an academic discipline on our campus,” Rayfield said. “I can think of no better way for our students and faculty to be involved in problem-solving than to do it on the installation and in this way.”

Tuley noted that Fort Moore anticipates saving $1.8 million over the agreement’s duration—approximately 17% of its current geospatial information services program budget. The military establishes IGSAs to partner with governmental agencies and entities (including public universities) for shared support services. These offer a variety of benefits ranging from cost savings and enhanced efficiency to access to specialized expertise and improved community relations.

EXPANDING MILITARY PARTNERSHIPS

Rayfield referred to the community impact and economic competitiveness tenets of the university’s recently launched five-year strategic plan as drivers behind this and future Fort Moore partnerships.

“GIS is used to analyze systems, look at data, plan and ultimately make informed decisions and solve problems—and that is the central focus of how we contribute to the community,” she explained. “A public state university’s mission is to contribute to the growth and development of the region and state that it serves, and this allows us to do just that.”

This agreement marks Fort Moore’s 19th IGSA and its first with Columbus State. It came a week after Fort Moore hosted the grand opening for its Maneuver Innovation Lab, a joint venture with Columbus State University’s Robotics Engineering program and other military partners.

“This is only the beginning,” Tuley said. “This is at its infancy, and we see much more in the future of our partnership. This will only strengthen the community, the partnership, and the collaboration between soldiers and [Columbus State] and its students.”

STUDYING GIS AT COLUMBUS STATE

“Columbus State is uniquely positioned to be able to provide the support that Fort Moore will need for its geospatial needs,” said Dr. Troy Keller, chair of the university’s Department of Earth & Space Sciences. “We have lots of classes that provide geospatial training to our students already, and we have access to a large amount of technology that we can bring to bear to help solve [Fort Moore’s GIS needs].”

As part of the agreement, Fort Moore will host and train up to four student GIS interns to work on the project throughout each academic year. Keller called the partnership a “gamechanger” for the program and its students.

“When we integrate the academic perspective with the military application side, it gives us this cross-fertilization opportunity—this idea that we might be able to do something that’s really special, that no one actually thought about doing before,” Keller said.

Columbus State students in any major can pursue a Geographic Information Systems certificate. The 16- to 18-hour program is designed to help students deepen their studies or career opportunities in the GIS field. GIS courses are also included in the Digital Humanities Minor, which is based in the Department of History, Geography & Philosophy.