July 2025 Provost Notes

The Sandra Dunagan Deal Center for Early Language and Literacy will be hosting the 2025 Governor's Summit on Early Language and Literacy, scheduled to be held Tuesday, July 8, 2025, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and continuing July 9, from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. The Summit will be held in the Magnolia Ballroom and the Arts & Sciences building on the Georgia College & State University campus.

The Dinner with the Deal Center Fundraising Gala will be held Tuesday, July 8th at 6:00 pm and requires a pre-purchased ticket for admission. Contact the Deal Center at ext. 8500 for questions.

Georgia College & State University is continuing to use the highly successful OneUSG electronic faculty contract distribution and e-signature system that was deployed last year. The e-contract eliminates delays with physical mail delivery systems and provides a convenient system for everyone involved in the contract process.

On June 30, an email message containing instructions was sent by Neil Jones (HR) to contract eligible recipients notifying them about the full-time faculty contract process. The electronic contract is available in the same system that houses your pay statements, W-2’s, etc. The due date to respond to the contract is July 21, 2025. Please remember that during peak periods, the USG system’s processing response times may be slow.

Limited term one-year faculty and part-time faculty are an important part of our university instructional team as well. Following Board of Regents – University System of Georgia policies, limited term one-year faculty and parttime faculty employment agreements are covered through the Offer/Acceptance letter and the Part-time Faculty Teaching Agreement (GC Signatures – DocuSign).

New faculty will not have access to the OneUSG System until August when their employment begins. New faculty employment agreements are also confirmed through the Offer/Acceptance letter process.

The Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) Application deadline for Fall 2025 is Tuesday, July 15, 2025. TAP will waive up to nine (9) credit hours for the semester. Please visit the USG's TAP webpage to locate the systemwide TAP Application, Graduate Student Tax Waiver Form (for graduate students only), and to reference the TAP Policy and FAQ if needed.

For more information, click here.

The new assessment software that is replacing Taskstream is ready to go live. For those responsible for writing and/or uploading assessment reports for your area, please plan to attend one of the summer training sessions listed below. As a reminder, all strategic planning reports (APR and P&P II), SMART reports, and accreditation reports will be completed in this system. Please contact Cara Smith at (478) 445-3530 or cara.smith@gcsu.edu with any questions.

APR sessions:

• July 9, 1 p.m., Library 119
• July 17, 2 p.m., Library 119

Department Chair session:

• July 16, 2 p.m., Library 119

This professional development opportunity is highly encouraged for all recently appointed Department Chairs (interim included) and Associate/Assistant Deans. It will be held Monday, July 21st from 8:30am - 4:30pm with lunch provided in the Pat Peterson Museum Education room.

The Office of the Provost invites all Deans, Associate and Assistant Deans, and Department Chairs to a working retreat on Friday, July 25th. This retreat is designed to support strategic planning and collaboration as we prepare for the upcoming academic year. Together, we will focus on welcoming a strong and academically prepared incoming class, while also ensuring a smooth and engaging return for our continuing students and dedicated faculty.

Freshman and Transfer Student Orientation is designed for incoming students and their families to connect with others, be introduced to campus resources, and to complete any last steps toward enrollment.

The final two freshman orientations will take place Tuesday, July 22nd and Thursday, July 24th. Transfer student orientation will take place Wednesday, July 23rd. For more information, please see the New Student Orientation page.

If you have not submitted your book adoptions for Fall 2025, please contact Barnes & Noble - Sophia Pope at (478) 445-8398 or sm8124@bncollege.com for assistance.

The Graduate School and the Office of Graduate Admissions are pleased to host the upcoming Graduate Admissions Retreat—an important opportunity to reflect on recent progress, share updates on admissions processes, and collaborate on strategies to enhance recruitment, retention, and overall graduate education efforts in the year ahead.

The retreat will take place on Friday, August 8th, from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. in the Mayfair Hall Presentation Room.

Cat Crew is a volunteer opportunity for faculty, staff and community members who would like to help the on-campus students move into the University Housing residence halls and apartments.

In past years, more than 500 individuals participated and our goal for 2025 is once again 500+. Volunteers are needed to assist with checking paperwork, distributing water, providing directions and most importantly, helping unload students' cars and get their belongings into their new rooms.

Volunteers are needed Wednesday, August 13 (Central Campus) and Thursday, August 14 (West Campus) from 7:45 am to noon.

Participating in the Cat Crew is a great way to introduce your organization to the newest residents of the Milledgeville and Georgia College & State University communities.

Register to volunteer yourself or your organization before August 1st.

For questions, contact University Housing.

Support student engagement and critical thinking by leading a GC Reads discussion group this year. GC Reads will be held on Friday, August 15, for all new students during Week of Welcome. GC Reads is a 75-minute micro-seminar that gives new students an introduction to college academic discussion. In alignment with the QEP, Bobcats FIRST, all of the essays are related to mental health and wellbeing. Seventy (70) facilitators are needed to make GC Reads a success. Facilitators are faculty and staff who help guide a discussion about the assigned essay. Facilitators can be as creative as they wish, and discussion templates will be made available for those wanting more guidance.

To sign up, please complete the form here: https://forms.office.com/r/8mMK2D9WnN.

Reach out to emily.jarvis@gcsu.edu or cara.smith@gcsu.edu with any questions.

Assessment Day will be held Thursday, August 7, 2025 from 8:30-11:00am. Location of the meeting will be forthcoming. Please plan to attend for the latest updates and information.

8:30-9:00: Department chairs’ session (accreditation update, academic assessment overview/review, strategic planning assessment overview/review, discussion of reports and due dates, Q&A)

9:15-9:45: Program assessment coordinators’ session (accreditation update, discussion of 2024 and 2025 SMART reports, information regarding training for new software)

10:00-11:00: Core IMPACTS session (general overview, assessment of Core IMPACTS, panel presentation, Q&A)*

Please contact Dr. Cara Smith (cara.smith@gcsu.edu or extension 3530) if you have any questions.

*Faculty teaching in the core are highly encouraged to attend the Core IMPACTS session since new information will be shared regarding implementation, assessment and support resources.

Faculty Contract Start Date: Friday, August 1st, 2025

New Faculty Orientation: Friday, August 1st, Monday, August 4th, and Tuesday, August 5th starting at 8:30 am in Peabody Auditorium

Assessment Day: Thursday, August 7th, 2025

Syllabi Posted in Simple Syllabus: Monday, August 11th, 2025

Faculty and Staff Fall Kickoff Event: Friday, August 15th; 9am-11am

GC Reads: Friday, August 15th; 1pm-4pm

First Day of Class: Monday, August 18th

First Year Convocation: Friday, August 22nd

• 2:30-3:15pm: Meet Your Major
• 4:00-5:00pm: Convocation
• 5:00-7:00pm: Cookout/Picnic
• 7:00-9:00pm: Block Party with RSOs

As part of the University System of Georgia’s (USG) strategic plan, GCSU aims to promote affordability for students through responsible resource stewardship and increased system efficiency. A major element of this effort includes reducing costs associated with course materials and textbooks. While faculty autonomy in selecting instructional materials is respected and supported, cost considerations for students are encouraged during the decision-making process.

To support these objectives, several existing resources are available to assist institutions and academic units in selecting affordable instructional content. The Affordable Learning Georgia (ALG) initiative offers a range of tools aimed at increasing textbook affordability, including:

• Open Educational Resources (OERs): Faculty-reviewed open textbooks accessible through platforms such as the Open Textbook Library, OER Commons, and LibreTexts.

• USG Faculty-Created Materials: Resources authored by USG faculty and hosted on OpenALG.

• Library Resources available at no cost to students through GALILEO: Academic content including case studies, scholarly books, and educational videos.

• Inclusive Access Course Materials: Commercial materials offered through campus bookstores at low cost (typically $40 or less), ensuring day-one access for enrolled students.

Additional support is available via Affordable Materials Grants, designed to assist in transforming courses through the creation, adaptation, or adoption of open and low-cost materials.

Since its establishment in 2014, the ALG initiative has enabled over 1.5 million students to collectively save more than $195 million in textbook expenses. Institutional contributions and adoption outcomes can be explored via the searchable database available on ALG’s "Our Impact" page.

Faculty and academic units are encouraged to prioritize affordability in course material selection by adopting open or low-cost resources, utilizing inclusive access programs when feasible, and avoiding the requirement of costly printed materials when lower-priced digital versions are available.

Please reach out to the below GCSU ALG Champions with any questions:

Dr. Shaundra Walker, Dean of the University Library and Faculty Champion; ext. 0987 or shaundra.walker@gcsu.edu

Mr. Jonathan Harwell, Associate Director of Collection and Resource Services and Library Champion; ext. 0983 or jonathan.harwell@gcsu.edu

Dr. Jaclyn Queen, Instructional Designer and Instructional Design Champion; ext. 1276 or jaclyn.queen@gcsu.edu