GC Journeys Newsletter

We will be hosting brief (half-hour) information sessions discussing the GC Journeys Initiative

RSVP Here

• January 22nd, 12:15-12:45
• February 13th, 12:30-1:00
• March 25th, 12:30-1:00
• April 16th, 3:30-4:00

Nine different departments were awarded a 2020 GC Journeys/MURACE Undergraduate Research Mini-Grants, while the School of Health and Human Performance received two different mini-grants. In total, ten different grants were awarded to fifty different faculty members at Georgia College. These awards were competitive awards meant to support faculty who are mentoring undergraduate research on campus.

In order to be eligible for these awards, faculty in each department had to agree to mentor at least one undergraduate student research experience and that the student had to present their research at a conference in the upcoming year.

The 2020 GC Journeys/MURACE Undergraduate Research Mini-Grant award winners:

• Department of Chemistry, Physics and Astronomy
• Department of Communication
• Department of Government & Sociology
• Department of Music
• School of Health & Human Performance x2
• Department of History & Geography
• Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences
• Department of English
• Department of Psychological Science

For more information on the award, see the website: https://www.gcsu.edu/academics/gc-journeys-mini-grant

New data released in November show 584 Georgia College students have successfully completed one of GC’s intensive leadership programs during the 2018-19 academic year. This completion data not only suggest that the recently implemented GC Journeys program has gained traction, but also serve as evidence that the GC Journeys framework is encouraging students to seek out and engage in transformative learning experiences.

The Georgia College Office of Leadership Programs, led by Dr. Harold Mock, maintains responsibility for all GC leadership programs. “At Georgia College, we don't just study the liberal arts; we put the liberal arts into action,” says Mock. “Through a rigorous and scaffolded framework, leadership development and community engagement are built into everything we do, whether in the classroom or beyond.”

The Office of Leadership Programs works collaboratively with faculty and staff to develop affiliate programs, including both courses and co-curricular ventures that engage with leadership-related topics, including mentorship, civic engagement, social justice, strategic thought, and global citizenship.

Students benefit from this integration of leadership-development into their academic and co-curricular lives. “I have seen up close how much students grow as leaders and citizens through Leadership Programs’ events and classes,” says Julian Lopez, senior management major. Lopez is an alumnus of the Emerging Leaders Program, where he currently serves as a peer mentor, as well as the Leadership Certificate Program.

Intensive leadership programs are an integral component of the GC Journeys Program. As opportunities for students to learn and practice their leadership grow, so too will students’ abilities to become adaptive thought leaders and leaders for the public good.

Audrey Redmond 's GC2Y class' Rebel Girls book project had students create one page biographies detailing the lives of extraordinary women around the globe. This assignment was modeled after the bestselling book Goodnight Stories for Rebel Girls.

On December 3rd, 2019 there was an interactive event held by the GC2Y class. Some students from the EC program were invited and got to participate. The GC2Y class had the student authors set up tables and teach the EC kids about each of their biographies with the help of a worksheet which they also created. The event was a success and the books are available for purchase.

Georgia College's GC Journeys was recently spotlighted in a national webinar. On November 19th, Dr. Cynthia Alby led a webinar along with Dr. Caroline Boswell of University of Wisconsin at Green Bay. Dr. Alby discussed the successes and challenges of GC Journeys.

The event was sponsored by the National Association of System Head's "Taking Student Success to Scale Project." Georgia College and Green Bay were chosen from a group of highly regarded "vanguard" institutions from across the country. Of all the participating institutions, NASH felt these two institutions were best positioned to speak on three topics related to the development of High Impact Practices: advice for building a movement, professional development, and equity.

Dr. Mahabaduge published "A Review of Ball Lightning Models" in the Georgia Journal of Science with members of his Statistical Mechanics Class as co-authors (Amir Abdallah, Kyle Castleberry, Anyauna Spikes, Khadeem Coumarbatch, Joshua Ballard-Myer, and Nick Palmer).

Find the article here: https://digitalcommons.gaacademy.org/gjs/vol77/iss2/18/

Email: journeys@gcsu.edu
Website: https://www.gcsu.edu/gcjourneys
Location: Carl Vinson House
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/200218270866218/