Middle Georgia State University Information

Middle Georgia State University is a public university with its main campus in Macon, Georgia. It is part of the University System of Georgia and offers masters, bachelors and associate degrees, as well as some certificates, to students on five campuses in Middle Georgia, and online.

The institution, originally known as Middle Georgia State College, was founded in 2013 through the merger of Middle Georgia College and Macon State College. Through these legacy institutions, Middle Georgia State University traces its history to 1884. In 2015, the institution adopted its current name to reflect its elevation to state university status.

Middle Georgia State is a relatively new institution in name, though it has been in existence in several forms for most of 130 years.

The institutions beginnings date to the establishment of New Ebenezer College, which occupied the site of the current Cochran Campus. New Ebenezer was established in 1884 by the New Ebenezer Baptist Association, which was composed largely of Baptist churches in Pulaski, Dodge, Laurens, and Telfair counties of Middle Georgia. The first building on the campus was completed in 1886, and classes were first held in 1887 with approximately 100 students. However, the association discontinued its financial support for their namesake college in 1898, forcing the school to close its doors.

The colleges building served as a high school for the city of Cochran until 1913, when the high school moved. No documentation exists regarding the facilities from 1913–1919, leading to the presumption that it was unoccupied during that time.

In 1919, the Georgia State College of Agricultural and Mechanic Arts (a division of the University of Georgia) opened a branch dedicated to serving the needs of the 12th Congressional District in the building formerly used by New Ebenezer College. In 1927, the schools name was changed to Middle Georgia Agricultural and Mechanical Junior College, though it remained a branch of the state agricultural school. In 1929, the schools name was changed to Middle Georgia College and responsibility for its operation was given to a nine-person board of trustees.

Middle Georgia College was made an independent institution in 1931 when it was created as one of the original units of the newly created University System of Georgia. During World War II, Middle Georgia hosted the 50th College Training Detachment of the U.S. Army Air Force and graduated 17 classes of aviation students from March 1943 – July 1944.

In 1964, Dr. Louis C. Alderman Jr. became president and served 23 years, the longest term of any president of the college. Many new buildings as well as renovations of existing facilities marked his tenure in growing the colleges reputation, academic excellence, campus beauty and athletic programs. Middle Georgia College continued to operate as a separate unit of the University System until the end of 2012.

In 1965, with Middle Georgia College continuing to operate in Cochran, the University Systems Board of Regents passed a resolution to create another public two-year college in central Georgia. Subsequently, the voters of Bibb County approved a bond issue to fund the college.

Macon Junior College, as it was then known, opened its doors in 1968 to the largest enrollment ever for a new state college in Georgia. In 1970, the Board of Regents directed Macon Junior College to serve civilian and military employees at Robins Air Force Base. The Robins Resident Center, located on the base, was subsequently established.

In the 1980s, the two institutions continued to grow and experience change. Middle Georgia College opened a Dublin Campus in 1984. In 1987, the Regents removed "Junior" from the Macon colleges name, but Macon College remained a two-year school, and in 1991 it began offering classes in a building at an office park in Warner Robins.

In 1996, the Regents approved a change in mission of Macon College and introduced the Bachelor of Science degree. Later that year, the school became known as Macon State College to indicate the new status. Both changes formally took effect in 1997. The first bachelors degrees were awarded in May 1999. With support from the City of Warner Robins and funding from the General Assembly, the college constructed a new building and renovated another to establish a new campus in Warner Robins in 2003.

Middle Georgia College also was expanding. A new program was added in 2007, when the college assumed the programs and facilities that had been the Georgia Aviation Technical College in Eastman. With that consolidation, Middle Georgia had campuses in Cochran, Dublin and Eastman.

Although Middle Georgia College had built residence halls, for its first 40 years Macon State was strictly a commuter college. However, in 2010 the college assumed operations of a 300+ apartment complex adjacent to the Macon Campus. The units opened as student housing for the fall 2010 semester.

In 2010, Macon State also became the host of the International Cherry Blossom Festivals annual Tunes and Balloons event.

From 2011 to 2015, the two institutions went through dramatic change, beginning in June 2011 when Dr. David Bell ended his 14-year presidency of Macon State. He was replaced in July 2011 by Dr. Jeff Allbritten.

Six months later, in January 2012, the Board of Regents set in motion the consolidation of Macon State College with Middle Georgia College. In May, the Regents decided on a name for the new institution—Middle Georgia State College—and also laid out a path for elevating the consolidated institution to university status after a review process. Allbritten left the presidency after only one year. In July 2012, he was replaced by Dr. John Black, who had retired as president emeritus of East Georgia State College. Black became interim president of Macon State, while Dr. Michael Stoy continued to serve as president of Middle Georgia College.

In the fall of 2012, students at the two colleges selected a new mascot to replace the Blue Storm (of Macon State) and the Warriors (of Middle Georgia). More than 1,000 students on the campuses of the two legacy institutions voted to select Knights as the new mascot. Students also selected new school colors of purple, black and silver, and they voted among several choices on the design of the new mascot. The new mascot and color selections were at least partially influenced by the two institutions previous identities. The Blue Storm was depicted as a horse in clouds, while the Warriors were fighting humans. Some students saw the "knight," an armor-wearing fighting soldier often depicted as riding a horse, as a combination of the two former mascots. Selection of the new colors was similarly influenced by the past. The Blue Storm colors were blue and gold; the Warrior colors were red and black. The combination of blue and red form purple, a regal color often worn by knights. Students also proposed many names for the new mascot; the name "Duke" was selected in another student vote.

The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC), the regional accrediting agency, gave its approval to the consolidation of the two colleges in December 2012.

The Board of Regents voted to make the consolidation official, effective immediately, on Jan. 8, 2013. Black was re-appointed as interim president of the new institution, Middle Georgia State College. His term ended in December 2013, and Dr. Christopher Blake assumed the presidency on January 2, 2014.

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