USG Foundation Awards for Excellence in Education
Chancellor Erroll B. Davis Jr.
Atlanta, Georgia
March 3, 2007
Thank you Regent Tucker. And let me also extend my thanks to all who have gathered here this evening to help us celebrate the transforming power of higher education in the lives of so many individuals.
We appreciate your breaking bread with us as we honor those who teach, those who have moved from students to alumni to contributing members of society and, finally, a truly special individual whose leadership has created new opportunities for Georgians in higher education.
We are not here tonight by accident or on a whim. Tonight, in addition to honoring our contemporaries for their efforts and achievements in higher education, we also remember our predecessors who had the vision 75 years ago to create a unified system of public higher education in Georgia.
At your place is a lapel pin acknowledging this historic milestone. We hope you wear it with pride. And I will be checking EBay later on in the evening, since this is a very limited edition pin!
Throughout the System's history, our colleges and universities have been guided by the knowledge that higher education is the single most powerful tool to transform individual lives, and, in turn, to transform communities and the state itself. Since its creation, Georgia's leaders, voters and successive Board of Regents have acted at critical moments to strengthen the University System.
Why? Because all recognized the value such a strong, dynamic System brought to the state's growth. One of the constant themes in the System's history is that of access. And the philosophy - the guiding principle -- has always been to act to broaden and increase access.
This has involved the commitment of resources by the state and many local communities to expand existing or create new colleges throughout the state as the demand for higher education has increased. Access also has been maintained by the work of the regents, the governor, and the legislature to maintain Georgia's historically low tuition rates.
Today, 75 years after that first meeting of the Board in January of 1932, the University System provides broad, affordable access to higher education across the state through 35 degree-granting institutions educating 260,000 students. A million more Georgians use the System's continuing education programs. The annual impact of the System on the state tops $23 billion.
Farmers, businesses, libraries, public schools, and local governments -- all rely and depend upon the intellectual capital and resources of the University System to solve problems, create growth opportunities and improve service to the public.
We truly do touch the lives of all. We educate your children. We provide new technology for your workplace. We provide community and economic development.
In short, thanks to the wisdom and vision of those Georgians who acted to create the University System of Georgia 75 years ago, today, through its missions of teaching, research, and service, the System touches the lives of virtually every Georgian.
This success was not inevitable -- nor is continued success guaranteed. As the pundit said: "Survival is not mandatory." That is why we gather here tonight.
You recognize that the continued ability of the University System of Georgia to transform lives depends upon a continued commitment to our 35 institutions. That is a commitment of time, of funds, of resources by many, many individuals, businesses, and the state.
So tonight, as we celebrate 75 years of existence and our special honorees, let's not forget the legacy our predecessors have given us in this great University System. While the next 75 years cannot be predicted; the record of the past 75 years provides a clear outline of the future direction of the University System of Georgia.
That direction is a continued and robust investment in education -- the single most powerful tool Georgians possess to transform individual lives and communities. Georgians are counting on the System's trustees -- the Governor, the General Assembly, and the regents -- to maintain and strengthen the System and to effect the needed changes to meet the evolving needs of this state and its citizens.
And we are very fortunate this evening to have the top Georgian with us -- our own governor, Sonny Perdue. Governor Perdue has been -- and continues to be -- a strong supporter of education -- all education -- in this state. He believes in the power of higher education to transform lives. He knows that a well-educated state is a state ready to compete globally.
Governor Perdue, as you begin your second term, we stand ready to work with you to make the University System the powerful transforming agent that I know you want it to be. We are glad you are here this evening, to help us celebrate and honor some very special individuals.
Ladies and gentlemen, please join me in welcoming the governor of the great state of Georgia --- Governor Sonny Perdue.