University of North Georgia

Justin Wlosko comes from a family including an educator and language teacher, encouraging him to learn a second language. His passion for the Korean culture started at an early age and remained through his four years at the University of North Georgia (UNG).

Collaboration is the key word with the Faculty Undergraduate Summer Engagement (FUSE) program. The two-month summer program has roughly a dozen University of North Georgia (UNG) students working on collaborative research projects with a faculty mentor in their field.

Tara Crow has achieved a significant honor that will accelerate her professional growth. Before graduating from the University of North Georgia (UNG) in May, Crow earned the Georgia Chapter of the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (GAHIMSS) 2026 David Cowan Scholarship, which provides $3,000 toward further education. This scholarship was established to promote the development of emerging leaders in health information technology management. Crow was one of five students in the state awarded this distinguished scholarship.

The University of North Georgia's (UNG) Summer Scholars STEM Institute served as a pivotal experience this summer for pre-service teachers in the College of Education to teach alongside experienced mentor teachers who supported them. It also inspired rising fourth-graders through eighth-graders with hands-on learning in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Mary Casillas, a senior from Gainesville, Georgia, pursuing a degree in secondary education with a major in biology, will be part of UNG's Teacher Candidate Residency Program (TCRP) at World Language Academy in Gainesville, Georgia, this fall.

For four University of North Georgia (UNG) students, leading academies within the Center for Civic Engagement's ENGAGE Youth in Government Expo was an opportunity to hone their leadership skills and interact with youth about various aspects of government this spring.

Students from the University of North Georgia (UNG) made a strong showing in the annual Japanese Speech Contest in Atlanta, Georgia, this spring. Four of them earned top-three recognition in their categories, with another garnering honorable mention.

A team of University of North Georgia (UNG) students finished in fourth place at the Kennesaw State University Regional American Marketing Association Conference and Case Competition during the spring semester. Two other UNG teams also competed at the event.

UNG student Helene Nilsson has been selected for the STEM NetX Fellowship and earned a grant from the fellowship to support her research with Dr. Amber Ignatius.

Four University of North Georgia (UNG) students from the Department of Music presented a workshop at the fifth annual String Band Summit at East Tennessee State University. The string band included Archer Callahan, Adam Oussaid, Cooper Sandefur, and Erol Savas. All four students participated in the workshop and then later performed at a local music festival.

Biology research teams from UNG presented their work on 12 projects at the Georgia Academy of Science meeting, with two UNG groups earning awards.

Sales students at the University of North Georgia (UNG) made strong showings in multiple sales competitions during the spring semester.

Two previous attendees of Steps to College (S2C) at the University of North Georgia (UNG) gave back this summer to the program that helped shape them by serving as a teaching assistants. S2C ran from June 1-24 at UNG's Gainesville Campus. Brissa Salazar and Mario Angel Climaco were grateful for the chance to help students get high school credits and practice their English. But even more, their S2C roles helped them recall what it was like to be in their students' shoes.

Five students partnered with Dr. Ahmad Ghafarian, a University of North Georgia (UNG) professor of computer science and cybersecurity, on the application of machine learning algorithms to network security research projects during the 2025-26 academic year. The students said the experience is setting them up for success in their future careers.

Students from the University of North Georgia (UNG) turned in a litany of strong performances at the National Professional Agriculture Student (PAS) Organization Conference in Branson, Missouri, this spring.

Three teams from the University of North Georgia (UNG) practiced their leadership skills and placed in the top six of the Collegiate Leadership Competition (CLC) Southeast Regional held March 28 at Berry College in Rome, Georgia.

Eight University of North Georgia (UNG) students and three alumni attended the Sigma Tau Delta International English Honor Society Convention in New Orleans in late March. They are part of the Alpha Upsilon Phi chapter of Sigma Tau Delta at UNG's Gainesville Campus. This year's convention theme was "Second Lines and New Beginnings," picked for the resilience and inclusivity embodied in the area's Second Line funeral parades.

UNG Department of Music student CJ Yeager placed second in the Southeast Regional Tuba Euphonium Conference Young Artist Solo Competition.

The University of North Georgia (UNG) inducted 24 nursing students into the Sigma Theta Tau international nursing honor society during the spring 2026 semester.

Four University of North Georgia (UNG) students and six faculty members presented their research at the March 25-28 Association of Southeastern Biologists (ASB) meeting in Mobile, Alabama.

Dr. Lily O'Clery is jumping into her physical therapy career with a prestigious opportunity. O'Clery, who earned her Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) degree in May, will complete an acute care physical therapy residency at Duke University during the 2026-27 academic year.

The UNG Esports team finished off a decorated 2025-26 academic year with a second-place finish in the National Esports Collegiate Conference Marvel Rivals tournament.

University of North Georgia (UNG) student Alexandra Soto finished in second place in the virtual Georgia Interstate Oratorical Association (IOA) competition before taking part in the 152nd annual IOA competition hosted by the University of Florida. IOA is the oldest national speech and debate tournament in the U.S. The only other time UNG had a student compete in the national IOA event was virtually during the COVID-19 pandemic, so Soto became the first UNG student to ever take part in the event in person.

Anna Shelley's win in the Southeastern U.S. Korean Speech Contest earned her a full-tuition scholarship and dormitory support to attend the Dankook University International Summer School.

Five students in the University of North Georgia's (UNG) College of Education were featured in the Georgia Association of Literacy Advocates (GALA) FOCUS Newsletter for spring 2026. Three Master of Education in elementary education students provided K-12 book reviews. Two undergraduate students recorded "Book Talk" videos.

More than 100 undergraduate students presented their work at UNG's Annual Research Conference held this spring at the Gainesville Campus. Multiple students earned awards at the conference.

Grace McGill keeps finding new avenues to serve as a leader. Fresh off a junior season where she served as a captain and led the University of North Georgia (UNG) women's soccer team with 10 goals, McGill has taken on the highest leadership role in UNG's Corps of Cadets. She will serve as brigade commander for the 2026-27 academic year.

UNG junior Micah Chandler has won the Barry Goldwater Scholarship, the preeminent undergraduate award in the sciences, engineering and mathematics.

More than 100 military awards and scholarships were presented to University of North Georgia cadets at the March Military Awards Ceremony and the Military Awards Review during Alumni Weekend in April.

University of North Georgia (UNG) alumnus Kian Esmaeili said he prefers to take things to the next level, so it wasn't a surprise when he chose to take his Honors Program thesis one step further and presented his research at IEEE SoutheastCon 2026 in Huntsville, Alabama. The Woodstock, Georgia, resident earned his degree in cybersecurity with a minor in entrepreneurship in May.

UNG students who showed promise, demonstrated creativity, displayed excellence, served others and exceeded all expectations had their moment in the spotlight during the annual Student Awards events held in April.