Media Contact
Kenya King
Director
Public Relations and Marketing Communications
Perimeter College
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ATLANTA—A new program for first-year students seeking on-campus housing and the full college experience — while benefiting from experienced Perimeter College faculty and lower Perimeter College tuition and fees — began this fall.
The Panther Gateway program is geared specifically to first-year students who applied to Georgia State and have at least a 3.0 -3.3 grade point average, but who were deferred admittance to the Atlanta Campus.
“The program seeks to recruit and retain students who may have otherwise selected another institution and have only just missed the cutoff for the admission to Georgia State,” said Dr. Laura Edmunds, Perimeter College’s interim associate dean for Academic Affairs.
The yearlong program is by invitation only and administered through the Office of Student Success. There are 164 students enrolled.
“The Panther Gateway program offers several advantages for these students,” said Edmunds. “They are taught by experienced Perimeter faculty or experienced graduate teaching assistants mentored and guided by the Perimeter faculty. They also get the benefit of the lower Perimeter College fees and tuition, while gaining the ‘live away from home’ experience, which these students have indicated they want.
“And while their classes are on the Atlanta Campus, these are Perimeter College students,” she said.
Students participating in the Panther Gateway program are grouped in specific cohorts in either STEM or non-STEM pathways, and must take five prescribed courses, (15 credit hours total per semester). The courses in the program are core curriculum courses that satisfy a wide variety of pathways, so students who may change their program of study in their sophomore year are not getting behind.
Faculty participating in this fall’s program are Dr. Sarah Harrell, associate professor of English; Michelle Chung, instructor of mathematics, Dr. Nicole Harsch, associate professor of psychology, Dr. Stacey Mitchell, associate professor of political science and Dr. John Russell, assistant professor of communication.
All participating faculty receive some release time to teach in the program and mentor graduate teaching assistants. For Perimeter faculty, it is an opportunity to explore the Atlanta Campus and try on their mentoring and supervisory skills.
After earning 30 credit hours, students can transfer to the Atlanta Campus bachelor’s programs, or continue their education toward an associate degree at the Perimeter campus of their choosing.