University of North Georgia

Almost 50 of the University of North Georgia's (UNG) newest cadets began their time in the Corps of Cadets with Freshman Recruit Orientation Group (FROG) Week from Jan. 7-11. The week mixed physical challenges with an array of workshops about available services and how to succeed as a cadet and a student.

Sophomore Mauricio Gonzalez became the first UNG student to be selected for the eight-week Douglas-O'Connell Internship in Ireland.

A record-breaking nine Center for Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities (CURCA) mini grants were awarded to University of North Georgia (UNG) students for the 2024-25 year. Each project will receive $1,000 to fund supplies and will be presented at either UNG's Annual Research Conference March 21 at the Dahlonega Campus; another CURCA-sponsored event; or a disciplinary conference or published. "The only way we can break the record of number of projects that we fund is because the Provost's office works with us," Dr. Diogo Pinheiro, CURCA assistant director and associate professor of sociology, said. "We wouldn't have the funds to support all nine without that help."

Students Dawson Yang and Alec Reeb have created an app aimed at helping people find available resources in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene in Augusta, Georgia.

Eight University of North Georgia (UNG) students in STEM degree programs were selected to attend the National Science Foundation (NSF) Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (S-STEM) conference in Chicago in November. They are part of UNG's STEM Scholars (STEMS) Program funded by a $1.5 million NSF grant. Students included: Rayya Abdullah, Micah Chandler, Jiselle Gonzalez, Hanzhen Guo, Shae Jolivette, Chase Manzanarez, Luke Millaway, and Albany Zavarce.

Five UNG students were selected as Gilman scholarship program recipients in December. The scholarships help students study or intern abroad. A total of 1,600 scholarships were awarded from the 7,100 applications.

The University of North Georgia (UNG) Esports program achieved its greatest milestone yet, earning the fall 2024 Halo college national championship. Esports entails competitions on multiplayer video games, and Halo is a wildly popular science fiction game.

For the fall 2024 semester, the University of North Georgia (UNG) awarded more than 900 degrees and certificates to graduates. More than 650 of the graduates participated in the fall 2024 commencement ceremonies held Dec. 7 at the Convocation Center at UNG's Dahlonega Campus.

UNG graduate student Andrew Clements and faculty member Dr. Bryson Payne presented their research at the Information Systems & Computing Academic Professionals conference in Baltimore, Maryland, in November.

University of North Georgia (UNG) President Michael P. Shannon recognized students who achieved a 4.0 GPA during the fall 2024 semester. Students enrolled in 12 or more credit hours in bachelor's degree programs who achieved a 4.0 grade point average were named to the President's Honor Roll. Students enrolled in associate degree or dual enrollment programs who met the same level of achievement were named to the President's List.

The deans of each of UNG's colleges announced the names of those students who made their respective lists for fall 2024. Dean's List recognition is achieved by having at least a 3.5 grade point average, carrying 12 or more credit hours in one semester and having no grade lower than B.

Five nontraditional female students at the University of North Georgia (UNG) each earned a $2,000 scholarship from the Women of UNG on Dec. 5 at the Women's Holiday Scholarship Luncheon.

In a ceremony held Dec. 6 by the University of North Georgia, 17 graduating cadets were awarded commissions as second lieutenants.

Twenty University of North Georgia students held a variety of roles in the Gainesville Theatre Alliance's fall 2024 production of "A Monster Calls," which ran from Nov. 8-16 in the Ed Cabell Theatre at UNG's Gainesville Campus.

Thirteen University of North Georgia students held a variety of roles in the Gainesville Theatre Alliance's fall 2024 production of "The True Story of the Three Little Pigs," which ran from Oct. 5-12 at Brenau University's Pearce Auditorium.

The University of North Georgia's (UNG) College of Education (COE) co-sponsored Future Georgia Educators (FGE) Day to identify, recruit, prepare, and retain the next generation of Georgia's teachers. Roughly 175 students from local high schools attended the Oct. 31 event, held at the Convocation Center at UNG's Dahlonega Campus.

Recent alumnus Nathanael Hine and senior Jessica Case have earned their first peer-reviewed publication for a piece studying political rhetoric surrounding the Ukraine-Russia war.

The iDEA (innovateDahlonega Entrepreneurship Accelerator) Community Pitch Challenge was held Nov. 7 at the University of North Georgia (UNG) Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation (CEI) Launch Pad on the Dahlonega campus, with seven out of the original 13 applicants vying for a prize package of $20,000.

University of North Georgia (UNG) senior Sydney Glouse received the first ever student DAISY Award given by Northeast Georgia Health System (NGHS). DAISY stands for Diseases Attacking the Immune System.

Twenty-four cadets have been named Distinguished Military Graduates for the 2024-25 academic year, including five who are in the top 70 out of more than 5,000 in the national ROTC class.

The University of North Georgia (UNG) poultry team placed sixth in the 58th National Collegiate Poultry Judging contest at the University of Arkansas in November. Team members included Alyssa Foster, Grant Justus, Devin Self, and Conner Watson.

The University of North Georgia (UNG) honored 28 of its Blue Ridge Campus students with almost $15,000 of scholarships and celebrated the philanthropy that made those scholarships possible at the seventh annual Tomato Sandwich Supper held Nov. 7.

Three students are working with Dr. Andrew Taylor, a professor of biology, on research helping restore habitat connectivity for a federally-threatened fish species.

A student and a faculty member in the University of North Georgia's (UNG) Department of Visual Arts have partnered with the City of Dahlonega to create a rendering of a pedestrian bridge that will be built soon. The pedestrian bridge will be over Yahoola Creek at the Reservoir.

University of North Georgia (UNG) cadet Vincent Furtado was awarded the 2024 National Military Intelligence Foundation (NMIF) Fecteau Scholarship and received $4,000 on Sept. 8. Furtado, who is pursuing a degree in modern languages with a concentration in Chinese for global professionals, is expected to graduate in spring 2026.

The University of North Georgia (UNG) earned gold in the collegiate division of the 200-meter race in the Atlanta Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival at Lake Lanier Olympic Park in Gainesville, Georgia, on Sept. 9.

A total of 18 University of North Georgia (UNG) cadets earned Distinguished Military Student (DMS) status for the 2024-25 academic year. The cadets were formally recognized at the DMS dinner and review the weekend of Sept. 20-22.

Maya Adok and Alexandra Soto were among the five University of North Georgia (UNG) Debate Team members who competed in the Soda City Debate in Columbia, South Carolina, on Sept. 14. The duo placed first, and UNG students also garnered second and third place at the event, hosted by the University of South Carolina (USC),

University of North Georgia (UNG) junior William Edwards is the school's presidential fellow to the Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress (CSPC) for 2024-25. Monthly online seminars will allow Edwards, a cadet who is pursuing a degree in history, to study the public policymaking process and the president's relationship with Congress, allies, the media, and the public. A multiday leadership conference in Washington, D.C., will wrap up the program.

University of North Georgia (UNG) senior Jack Curry earned a President's Volunteer Service Award at the bronze level for his 180 hours of community service in 2024. Curry, a cadet pursuing a degree in cybersecurity, has offered community service in a variety of ways. The effort where he has dedicated the most time is through "The Ability Experience" with his fraternity, Pi Kappa Phi. "The Ability Experience" is the fraternity's philanthropic initiative that aims "to instill a passion for lifelong service in our fraternity members while helping to empower people living with disabilities."