University, College Merging into One Entity

Two of the state’s most well-known institutes of higher learning are consolidating into one school following the Georgia Board of Regents’ approval of the plan on Tuesday.

According to a statement from Georgia State University, the four-year research institution will consolidate with two-year institution Georgia Perimeter College to help students across the metro Atlanta area achieve their educational goals.

Georgia State will provide its expertise on maintaining high graduation and retention rates, while Georgia Perimeter will contribute its skill in providing collegiate access to students across the metro area, the statement said. The combined enrollment of the two institutions was almost 54,000 students during the recently-completed fall semester, the highest number in the state.

Georgia State’s president Mark Becker will lead the consolidated institutions, which will operate under the Georgia State name. If everything goes according to plan, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges will sign off on the consolidation by the end of the year, with Board of Regents approval coming in 2016.

Both Georgia State and Georgia Perimeter will now work together to hammer out the specifics of the consolidation.