Included in this Issue

• Welcome to the GCSU Parents & Family Association's eNewsletter for Spring 2008 more...
  
  
• Home Away From Home - University Housing more...
  
  
• Recruiting the best and the brightest: President's Scholars Competition 2007 more...
  
  
• GCSU program receives grant to reduce teen driving deaths - Health Education more...
  
  
• Protecting your student against bacterial meningitis - Student Health Services more...
  
  
• Meet the staff of the Office of Institutional Equity and Diversity more...
  
  
• MOM and DAD
  Georgia College announces its new Student Account Center coming late January 2008 more...
  
  
• Financial Aid Office update - Office of Financial Aid more...

Newsletter 003 | Spring 2008
www.gcsu.edu/parents 

   Welcome to the GCSU Parents & Family Association's eNewsletter for Spring 2008 [top]
     Mrs. Debbie Callas

Our focus this semester is for 100% parent and family membership, participation in our various committees and a Speaker Series for 2008.

Having a sophomore here at GCSU, I hope you share in my opinion that GCSU is the perfect place for our students. It is an excellent learning environment with wonderful resources, faculty and staff.

I want to thank everyone who helped organize the GCSU November 2007 Parents Day. We had a great turn out and more signups for the Parents & Family Association (PFA). During the day the Parents & Family Association signed up 72 new members, sold more than 25 customized PFA t-shirts and had a meeting to discuss the wonderful opportunities for involvement within the association. We would like to invite you to join one of our planning committees:

Membership Committee will develop ideas and strategies to recruit & retain members, help organize local social activities, meetings, assist with administrative needs, and to develop bylaws and policies.

Promotion Committee is all about putting the word out via products, print or media (Tee shirts, coffee mugs, umbrellas) that the Parents & Family Association of GCSU is for you to join and participate.

The Communications Committee works on the bi-annual eNewsletter, and any resource and/or planning guide for communication of the Parents & Family Association.

Parents Rock/Parents Day 2008 Committee will assist in planning and developing the upcoming November 2008 event (promotions, activities, speakers).

Lecture Series/Programming Committee will concentrate on the scheduling of information seminars sharing the latest information about successful parenting and related family subjects pertaining to college students and their learning and independence.

I encourage you to join any of the committees and email me (debbiecallas@bellsouth.net) your thoughts and ideas for future events and topics. The Parents & Family Association is here for you to network with other parents and know that you are not alone in your concerns. As your Parent Coordinator I look forward to meeting you via email or in person at our next event.

Thank you,
Debbie Callas
GCSU Parent Coordinator
Parents & Family Association
Debbie Callas

   Home Away From Home
   University Housing [top]

University Housing is looking forward to welcoming the students back to their home away from home in the residence halls and The Village at West Campus apartments. This past fall allowed us to see many amazing things from your students, and we know the spring semester will be even more exciting.

Very soon, it will be time to make decisions about where your student will live next year. Living on-campus provides your student valuable connections to campus that no other place can.

In addition to providing important opportunities for friendships and to become involved, living on campus connects students to campus resources such as tutoring, study groups and the chance to experience learning outside of the classroom. Statistics show that students who live on campus beyond their freshmen year have higher GPAs and graduate sooner than their off campus peers. Additionally, on campus students are less likely to engage in risky behavior with drugs and alcohol.

The renewal process is simple - applications are being accepted online immediately and students will be able to select their specific rooms in late January. We strongly encourage your family to explore the housing options at GCSU by touring the residence halls and The Village apartments. Please feel free to contact us via our website, www.gcsu.edu/housing, if there is anything we can do to assist your family with this important decision.

It is an honor for University Housing to be involved in your student's life, and we hope to welcome them back for another year next fall.

    Recruiting the best and the brightest:
    President's Scholars Competition 2007 [top]

The Georgia College Office of Admissions was most pleased with this year's interest in one of our favorite annual events -- the President's Scholars Competition. During this special day, amazing students from all over Georgia and beyond come to campus to interview for our top award, the Presidential Scholarship. Since this scholarship is renewable, it carries a potential value of approximately $18,000.

As a result of overwhelming interest, the Admissions Office had to review over 100 registrations in order to select the finalists to take part in the competition. In the end, 47 students attended. Their average SAT score was 1308 (on the old 1600 scale) and they had an average academic GPA of 3.8. Furthermore, as a collective group, they literally had hundreds of Advanced Placement (AP) classes on their transcripts.

After the opening session, the student guests took part in a simulated Honors class, led by faculty members, Dr. Jim Winchester and Dr. Sunita Manian. This year, each participant was mailed a copy of Jeffrey Sach's The End of Poverty and was asked to read certain excerpts in preparation for their simulated class experience. Eye witness reports tell us that the class experience was the highlight of the day!

A dozen of the participants opted to register for a special overnight option where they experienced campus life and residential life with a student host from the Honors & Scholars community in Bell Hall. A trip to Russell Auditorium for the GCSU Jazz Band's holiday concert was the perfect ending to a full and busy day.

GCSU Director of Admissions, Mike Augustine, stated that "The President's Scholars Competition allows some of the Southeast's best students to gain special insight of our university's unique atmosphere. Even if a student is not a recipient of the top scholarship, their visit helps them realize the tremendous value of the Georgia College experience."

Once the scores were totaled, six of the students were selected as Presidential Scholarship recipients, with the awards going to students from Wheeler HS (Marietta), St. Pius X Catholic HS (Atlanta), Chapel Hill HS (Douglasville), Thomasville HS, and Tattnall Square Academy (Macon).

   GCSU program receives grant to reduce teen driving deaths
   Health Education [top]

In an effort to involve Georgia students in reducing injury and death to young adult drivers, the Georgia Governor's Office of Highway Safety (GOHS) has awarded a highway safety grant to Georgia College & State University to establish a new or enhance an existing peer education program to educate the students on highway safety. GOHS believes that student input into the solution will help alleviate the problem of young adult driver fatalities in Georgia.

GCSU's program is titled 'Safe and Sound' and this is the fourth consecutive year that they have been funded. Grant amounts of previous years have ranged from $10,000-$13,500 and this year's grant amounts to $8,200. Barbara Funke, GCSU professor of Health Education, and sponsor of the program says, "We currently have a group of students who are Peer Educators called the P.A.W.S.: Peers Advocating Wellness Successfully. The grant helps us recruit and train new peer educators, send them to conferences, and involve them in activities focused on preventing high risk alcohol use (part of which is impaired driving)." According to GOHS Director Robert F. Dallas, "Our state's teen drivers represent a disproportionate number of drivers involved in crashes that involve injuries and deaths on Georgia's roadways. We look forward to our colleges/universities working with their peers to change the perception that crashes are accidents, which can't be prevented. They can. Our hope is to have every college student graduate without being involved in a crash or any student being injured or killed in a crash."

During 2003 there were 271 fatalities on Georgia highways involving 16-20 year olds. Unintentional injuries, including motor vehicle crashes, are the number one cause of death in the United States for drivers ages 1-34.

By having a comprehensive effort statewide, GOHS/YAP plans to cover young adult driving issues including safety belt use, speed, inexperience, and impaired driving in a coordinated manner. Participating schools will focus on a variety of highway safety issues throughout the school year.

For more information contact Barbara Funke at (478) 445-4072 or e-mail at barbara.funke@gcsu.edu

   Protecting your student against bacterial meningitis
   Student Health Services [top]

We were informed this morning by the Baldwin County Health Department that they have an abundance of Menactra Vaccine (to protect against Bacterial Meningitis) and will give the vaccine free until it is gone. Check with your child's health care provider to see if they need the vaccine. There is usually a $100+ charge for the vaccine. The following information is for adults concerning the vaccine:

From the CDC.... As an adult, do I need it?
You should get either the MPSV4 vaccine or the MCV4 vaccine if:

• You are a college freshman living in a dormitory.
  
• You are a military recruit.
  
• You have a damaged spleen or your spleen has been removed.
  
• You have terminal complement deficiency.
  
• You are a microbiologist who is routinely exposed to Neisseria meningitidis (the causal pathogen)
  
• You are traveling or residing in countries in which the disease is common.

The Student Health Clinic has a few remaining flu shots...come by for one if you haven't already.... $20 cash or check.

   Meet the Staff of the Office of Institutional Equity and Diversity [top]

Dear Parents,

The Office of Institutional Equity & Diversity provides institutional leadership on all matters of diversity and equity, under the auspices of President Dorothy Leland and the President's Commission on Diversity.

Our prevention work serves to ensure that agents of the university do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, sex, sexual orientation, religion, national origin, age, disability, veteran status or any other irrelevant non-bona fide qualification in the administration of educational and employment programs, or any other activity administered by the university.

• Yves-Rose SaintDic, Director
• Patrice Terrell, Associate Director
• Mike Chambers, Assistant Coordinator, Disability Services, Assistant Director for Disability Services
• Scott Dillard, Volunteer, Pride Alliance Volunteer
• Jennifer Graham Stephens, The Women's Resource Center, WRC Coordinator
• Nadirah Ross, Diversity Program Coordinator
• Annette Johnson, Senior Secretary

Know more. Be more. Do more. Diversity is more.

Office of Institutional Equity and Diversity
131 MSU - Campus Box 004
Milledgeville, GA 31061
(478) 445-4233
FAX - (478) 445-1287

   MOM and DAD
   Georgia College Announces its New Student Account Center Coming
   Late January 2008 [top]

• No more paper bills
• Receive email notifications as new bills are posted
• View most recent statement and billing history
• See current account activity since last statement
• Make payments using credit card or electronic check
• Sign up for FACTS Tuition Payment Plan
• Make payments for housing and confirmation deposits

Important Note: Students can authorize parents' access into the new online billing account by registering parents at: http://mycats.gcsu.edu

   Financial Aid Office Update
   Office of Financial Aid [top]

Aid for Summer Semester 2008

Students planning to enroll in Maymester or other Summer mini-terms will need to complete a short application to apply for financial aid including the HOPE Scholarship program. This on-line application will be available from their myCATS account during the course registration period in March 2008. Students must be receiving aid and/or have a complete file for the 2007-2008 academic year to be considered for summer aid.

Aid Application Procedures
Academic Year 2008-2009

The Financial Aid and Scholarship application season for 2008-2009 has begun! The GCSU Financial Aid Staff encourages students to review the processes and deadlines to avoid missing out on aid opportunities.

Federal Aid

• Students and at least one parent can apply for or obtain their forgotten PIN (Personal Identification Number) with Department of Education at www.pin.ed.gov in order to e-sign application
• Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) at www.fafsa.ed.gov (must be completed annually). Students should have their and their parent's 2007 Federal Tax Returns available to complete this application.
• Consideration for federal aid programs (grants, employment and loans) as well as Georgia's HOPE Scholarship program.

HOPE Scholarship

• Students choosing NOT to apply for federal aid (FAFSA) may apply for the HOPE Scholarship program ONLY by visiting www.GAcollege411.org.
• This is a one-time application will remain active at GCSU from academic year to year.

GCSU Scholarships

• Current Freshmen, Sophomores, Juniors, and Graduate students can all apply.
• General criteria: Minimum 3.0 GPA, completed 24 semester hours for undergraduate students and 18 hours for graduate students, full-time enrollment for the 2008-2009 school year.
• One common on-line application in myCATS for all available scholarships.
• Most scholarships for 2008-2009 have a deadline of Friday, February 1, 2008.