By Gil Pound and Amanda Respess

W ith campus move-in set for Wednesday, Aug. 13, and the first day of classes five days later, Georgia College & State University is preparing to welcome the class of 2029.

But 1,754 first-year students won’t be the only newcomers to town. Joining them are 47 new full-time and 23 part-time faculty members, ready to deliver dynamic lectures and hands-on learning experiences to help students flourish.

“At Georgia College & State University, we are committed to hiring exceptional faculty who embody the teacher-scholar model – individuals who are not only experts in their fields and dedicated to student engagement, but who also actively contribute to the broader community,” said Dr. Holley Roberts, interim provost and vice president for Academic Affairs. “Their work inside and outside of the classroom reflects our mission to foster academic excellence, advance scholarly and creative endeavors, and promote civic responsibility.”

Georgia College is preparing for the university’s largest ever total enrollment this fall at more than 7,200 students. This record high extends a years-long period of extraordinary growth for the university. Applications to attend GCSU are up 51% since 2022.

The administration’s commitment to hiring new faculty means that small classes remain a cornerstone of the Bobcat experience. The university’s 16:1 student-to-faculty ratio guarantees that about 50% of classes have fewer than 20 students. Three of every four classes at Georgia College have fewer than 30 students. 

Roberts added that faculty members have been appointed to address high student demand in programs like nursing and business, as well as core curriculum in the College of Arts & Sciences.

Meet the Teachers

One of the 70 new faculty members on campus, Dr. Susan Shelton joined the Georgia College School of Nursing as an assistant professor, coming from clinical practice as a nurse midwife in Tallahassee, Florida. Prior to that she worked 17 years in academia, partly at Florida State University where, as assistant dean for undergraduate programs, she helped double enrollment to the university’s nursing program.

“Education is what I love,” said Shelton, who will be lending her expertise to the graduate nurse midwifery online program, while also teaching undergraduate pre-nursing courses. “I enjoy watching students thrive. I cherish the lightbulb moments and helping mold the next generation of nurses. That is everything Georgia College is about.”

Bird is the word for ornithologist Dr. Michelle Moyer, another new professor on campus. She’ll be teaching introductory biology courses this fall and ornithology – the study of birds – in the spring.

“I’m really looking forward to meeting the students,” Moyer said. “It’s been a while since I’ve taught non-majors, so I think it’s really exciting to get people who don’t necessarily think biology is relevant to them and showing them how it’s going to impact them no matter what they do.”

As a doctoral student at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, Moyer served as a Smithsonian intern at the Migratory Bird Center in Washington, D.C., where she contributed to public outreach that showed the importance of tracking birds’ migratory patterns. 

“I’ve always been passionate about animals, and I think birds are a really accessible type of wildlife,” said Moyer. “You can literally see them all day, every day no matter where you live. There’s also so much diversity in their behaviors and their ecology. I find it to be a really exciting field.” 

Header Image: The fall 2025 class of new Georgia College faculty. (Photo: Jaclyn Queen)