July 06, 2023
by Jere W. Morehead, President
On July 1, I celebrated 10 years of leading the University of Georgia as President. The past decade has been an incredible period of achievement for our institution as we have reached new heights of excellence across every facet of our mission. For example:
- UGA has ranked among the top 20 public universities for seven consecutive years, and the number of applications for admission has more than doubled.
- Three out of four UGA students now complete their degree in four years—a completion rate 13% higher than a decade ago—and the six-year completion rate has reached 88%.
- We have created a state-of-the-art research and learning environment, adding nearly 2.5 million square feet to campus facilities and renovating over 1 million more.
- Academic initiatives such as experiential learning, Double Dawgs, entrepreneurship, and active learning have set new standards in undergraduate education.
- We have greatly expanded need-based financial support for students, helping to make UGA financially accessible for more students regardless of their family’s income.
- We have added over 100 endowed chairs and professorships to help recruit and retain the very best faculty.
- Annual R&D expenditures have risen more than 50%, surpassing half a billion dollars.
- UGA has ranked among the top two universities in the U.S. for the number of commercial products based on faculty research for the past seven years.
- We launched the Innovation District to further expand collaboration among faculty, students, entrepreneurs, and industry leaders.
- We have contributed billions of dollars to Georgia’s economy, including an estimated $7.6 billion last year alone.
- We received the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities’ highest award for public service.
All of these achievements were made possible by the remarkable generosity of our alumni and friends, strong support from state leaders, and the hard work of our faculty and staff. Thanks to their commitment to expanding UGA’s impact, we are positioned like never before to lead the way in higher education, and I am deeply grateful. The UGA community is ready to boldly shape the future, and that is exactly what we will continue to do in the decade to come.