CEHD Selects TLAB Mobile Technology Lab, TOUR Championship as 2024 Partnership Award Recipients

ATLANTA—Georgia State University’s College of Education & Human Development (CEHD) has selected the TLAB Mobile Technology Lab and the TOUR Championship as the 2024 recipients of the CEHD Partnership Award.

This annual award honors the valuable partnerships that exist between the college and members of the community. It celebrates these joint efforts to address educational and community challenges and advance the public good through sustained and collaborative initiatives.

The TLAB Mobile Technology Lab is a family-owned business that provides underserved communities with access to STEAM-centered education through its self-contained, mobile units equipped with high-tech computers and gaming equipment. It leverages its resources to equip and empower the next generation of professionals through exposure and access to skills training, unlocking career possibilities in computer science, esports and other technology-related careers.

The TLAB has partnered with CEHD Associate Professor Natalie King on her National Science Foundation-funded STEM projects, including her I AM STEM summer camp for Black girls. Through their partnership, King and the TLAB staff have created and led STEM activities for students at the Boys and Girls Club, Girls Inc. of Greater Atlanta, Prosperous Kids at Abundant Faith Church and Ivy Preparatory Academy. These sessions have fostered creativity through technology and encouraged innovative thinking and artistic expression for students in underserved communities throughout Atlanta.

“Our partnership has provided hands-on learning experiences in areas such as drone operation, music production, esports and artificial intelligence to young people in the community,” King wrote in her nomination letter. “These programs have not only exposed students to potential career pathways such as aviation, game programming and design, and sound engineering, but have also equipped them with valuable skills for the future.”

The TOUR Championship is an annual PGA golf tournament at the East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta, where the 30 best PGA players in the world compete in front of thousands of spectators. As part of the event, the TOUR Championship’s philanthropic arm and its sponsors donate to several local charities; in 2024, they donated $6.96 million across five charitable organizations: The East Lake Foundation, First Tee - Metro Atlanta, Focused Community Strategies, the Grove Park Foundation and Purpose Built Schools Atlanta.

Professor Beth Cianfrone and the college’s sport administration program have partnered with the TOUR Championship for the last three years, giving undergraduate and graduate students volunteer experience at a major sporting event. These students serve on the TOUR’s Safety Committee, a group of volunteers who identify, report and address risk management issues during the event; the committee’s success has inspired other PGA tournaments to create a similar safety model for their events. This partnership not only helps the tournament maintain a safe environment for spectators, players and staff, but also gives students practical learning experiences in a real-world setting.

“The TOUR Championship staff work hand-in-hand with the students, teaching them about the behind-the-scenes logistics and planning,” Cianfrone wrote in her nomination letter. “This partnership is mutually beneficial. The TOUR Championship receives smart, energetic and well-qualified event volunteers to support their event, while sport administration students gain an unparalleled experiential opportunity to learn new skills, see a major event and add valuable experience to their resumes.”

This year’s award recipients were formally recognized at the college’s Partnership Award Luncheon on Nov. 7.

“The partnerships with TLAB and the TOUR Championship reflect the commitment to innovation and lifelong learning, which are hallmarks of our programs in the college,” said DaShaunda Patterson, CEHD associate dean for faculty affairs. “Through our partnerships with these organizations, our students are participating in authentic experiences that bridge research to practice through applied, hands-on experiences in tech, sport and their related fields. We are grateful for the partnerships that allow us to support successful outcomes for our students and our communities.”

For more information about the college’s Partnership Award, visit https://education.gsu.edu/cehd-partnership-award.

Top photo: (left to right) Department Chair Gertrude Tinker Sachs, Associate Dean DaShaunda Patterson, TLAB founder Robert Harden, Associate Professor Natalie King, Dean Paul Alberto and TLAB technical director Corey Harden pose for a photo outside the TLAB. Bottom photo: Representatives from the TOUR Championship pose with Dean Paul Alberto and CEHD sport administration faculty and students.