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have the opportunity to participate in clinical rotations
and externships at Piedmont Augusta, where they work
alongside healthcare professionals in a hospital setting.
The hospital also provides guest speakers and training
sessions for Augusta Tech faculty and staff.
In addition to these opportunities, Augusta Tech has
also received financial support from nearby Piedmont. The
hospital donated funds to the college’s Foundation, which
provides scholarships and resources to students in need.
Also, through this partnership and a $1 million endowment, nursing students who agree to work for the hospital
for two years after graduation have their tuition paid for.
Learning in Various “Real-life Situations”
One of the most notable fields of study at Augusta
Tech is cybersecurity, which is an ever-growing and essential field in today’s world. Augusta Tech offers a range
of programs in cybersecurity that aim to educate and train
students to combat cyber threats and protect organizations’ sensitive information.
“We’re proud of the strides we’ve made in this field
that have set us apart,” said Whirl. “We’re home to the only
cyber accounting program in Georgia, and the only school
in the state offering an associate degree in cloud computing
technology. In 2021 we were ranked among the top cybersecurity programs in the nation by Newsweek.”
Whirl says Augusta Tech is the first in Georgia to
open a Security Operations Center where students will
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actually “sell their services” to small businesses to protect and secure their work.
“This is a win-win,” the president says. “Our students
get hands-on experience, we provide critical services to
small businesses at a nominal price, and the program is a
revenue generator.”
There are other examples of Augusta Tech being on
the “leading edge of ensuring students get the opportunity
to learn in real-life situations.”
The school is planning to renovate an old Cadillac
facility in Augusta and turn it into the largest automotive
learning facility in Georgia. Not only would this include
training students to be automotive technicians, but Whirl
also wants to operate the only facility in the state that
trains students in all other aspects of car dealerships –
sales, finance, and operating a parts department.
In the area of logistics, plans include building a 50,000
square foot facility to replicate “an Amazon facility” to
give students the real-life experience of working with the
supply chain and logistics. “Our goal is to provide seamless
real-world experience for our students in so many areas of
study, and to become a nationally recognized institute of
higher education,” said Whirl. “We not only want to be a
model in Georgia, but we also want to be a national model.”
Considering these future plans, Augusta Tech appears
well on the road to achieving that goal.
Cindy Morley is a staff writer for James and InsiderAdvantage Georgia.