Left to right: Dr. Ron O’Meara - Vice President of Academic Affairs, Dr. Jeremy Green - Land, Forest, Wildlife Management Program Chair, Mr. Jim Glass – President, Mitchell Brumbley - SRTC LFW student, Russell Rarick - SRTC LFW student, Aubree Plymale – SRTC LFW graduate and future TU student, Dr. Andy Sheppard – President, Ms. Elizabeth Harrell - Assistant Professor of Biology, Mr. John Meis - Vice President of Academic Affairs
On the morning of Tuesday, June 9, Southern Regional Technical College (SRTC) and Thomas University (TU) finalized an articulation agreement that will allow SRTC’s Land, Forest, Wildlife Management (LFW) graduates to seamlessly transition to the Bachelor of Science in Natural Resource and Conservation Management program at Thomas University in Thomasville, Georgia.
The partnership between the two institutions will provide students with a smooth curriculum transition that minimizes loss of credit and duplication of coursework. With this goal in mind, the two colleges drafted the articulation agreement to allow any student who successfully completes the LFW Associate of Applied Science at SRTC the opportunity to earn a higher degree efficiently as they seek to advance in their academic and career pursuits.
“This is an excellent opportunity for our Land, Forest, Wildlife Management students,” said SRTC’s LFW faculty Dr. Jeremy L. Green. “In our program at SRTC, they learn and are exposed to conservation and land management with an emphasis on technical skills that are directly relevant to managing ecosystems specific to the Red Hills region and the Southeast US. After earning their associate degree, our students routinely gain employment in entry-level positions with local quail plantations, state organizations, and forestry companies. This partnership allows our graduates to build on their strong technical skills background by exposing them to broader levels of conservation science on a global scale, learning higher-end applications in geospatial science. This in turn will broaden their employment prospects and make them even more competitive for greater career endeavors, like pursuing graduate school, conservation education, becoming a wildlife biologist or ecologist, or entering the GIS field, among many other opportunities. This is truly a win-win partnership.”
The most recent articulation agreement augments the already strong partnership between SRTC and TU. The two colleges have previously established agreements for Accounting, Business Management, Medical Laboratory Science, Criminal Justice, Elementary Education, Nursing, and Social Work programs.
“We are delighted to join with Southern Regional Technical College in this new partnership that will benefit both our students and our schools,” said Elizabeth Harrell, Assistant Professor of Biology at Thomas University. “When students come into our program from SRTC, they already have a genuine interest in natural resource conservation along with a strong foundation of hands-on conservation management practices. At TU, these students will build on that foundation by broadening their conservation perspective and learning to apply geospatial science and remote sensing tools to conservation management practices. All this can be applied at not just a local level, but also at a global level. Plus, having a bachelor’s degree in addition to their associate's degree will further open doors for career opportunities.”
In addition to the transfer agreements with TU, SRTC currently has standing agreements for specified programs with Albany State University, Georgia Military College, Valdosta State University, and St. Matthew’s University, School of Veterinary Medicine on Grand Cayman Island. Additionally, there is a statewide agreement between TCSG and USG schools for transferability of over 28 general education (core) courses. To learn more about SRTC’s articulation agreements please visit https://southernregional.edu/transfer-agreements