Dalton State College

Dalton State College (DSC or Dalton State) is a public college in Dalton, Georgia. It is part of the University System of Georgia. Founded in 1963 as a junior college, the college became a four-year institution in 1998. Dalton State is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS).

Dalton State College
Former names
Dalton Junior College (1963–1987)
Dalton College (1987–1998)
TypePublic college
Established1963[1]
Parent institution
University System of Georgia
Endowment$25.3 million[2]
PresidentMargaret Venable[3]
Academic staff
160 (full-time), 72 (part-time)[2]
Students5,047(2012)[4]
Undergraduates5,987 (2010)
Location, ,
United States
CampusSmall city, 146 acres (0.59 km2)
ColorsBlue and silver[5]
 
AthleticsNAIA
NicknameRoadrunners
Websitedaltonstate.edu

History

The college was founded as Dalton Junior College in July 1963 and opened in September 1967. It offered programs designed to provide the first two years of college work for students preparing to transfer to four-year degree-granting institutions. The addition of a technical division in 1976 also enabled the school to serve students wishing to develop work skills at the certificate or associate degree level. In 1987, the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia removed the word "Junior" from the college's name and it became Dalton College.

In 1998, the University System of Georgia upgraded Dalton College to four-year status under a new name, Dalton State College, and authorized it to offer bachelor's degrees. The first bachelor's programs began that year, in business and technology.

In 2009, Dalton State opened an extended campus in Ellijay called the Dalton State Gilmer County Center. More than 200 students enrolled for the spring semester. Dalton State also opened its first on-campus residential housing, Dalton State at Wood Valley.

Today, Dalton State College offers baccalaureate degrees in accounting, biology, chemistry, communication, criminal justice, early childhood education, English, history, interdisciplinary studies, management, management information systems, marketing systems, mathematics, operations management, psychology, social work, and technology management. The college also offers 22 associate degree and several certificate programs.

Academics

Lorberbaum Liberal Arts Building

Dalton State College is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. The Early Childhood Education program is accredited by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE).[6] The Social Work program is accredited by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE).[7] The Business Administration programs received initial accreditation by Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) in January 2010.[8]

Campus

Dalton State College's Wright School of Business

The Dalton State College main campus consists of 146 acres (0.59 km2) on I-75 in Whitfield County, Georgia, 30 miles south of Chattanooga and 80 miles north of Atlanta. An additional campus exists in Ellijay, Georgia, southeast of the main campus.

Dalton State Bell Tower viewed from the north at night
Health Professions Building

Demographics

The almost 5,000 traditional and non-traditional students are from a 10-county service area of Northwest Georgia in addition to 38 foreign countries. The average student age is 24; females make up 62 percent of the student population. On-campus housing has been offered since fall 2009.[9]

Nickname

The Dalton State mascot is the roadrunner. When the college became a four-year college, all students commuted to school due to the fact that Dalton State did not offer on campus housing. This led to the nickname of the Roadrunners.

Athletics

The Dalton State Athletics program, known as the Roadrunners, began in 2012 and is part of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA).[10] It consists of men's and women's golf, women's cross country, men's and women's soccer, women's track and field, and men's basketball. The men's basketball team won the NAIA National Championship in 2015.[11]

The athletics program was reorganized in 2017 in order to bring the program into compliance with Title IX requirements and to reduce costs. As part of the reorganization, volleyball, men's cross country, and men's and women's tennis were dropped from the program and women's track and field was added.[12]

Student life

The Campus Activities Board (CAB) is a student-run organization that strives to enhance the Dalton State College student experience through quality entertainment, creative programming and community involvement. Its stated goal is to strengthen the missions of both the Office of Student Life and Dalton State College by providing a variety of social, recreational, cultural and educational programs.

Through the expertise of an appointed student executive board, CAB works to ensure leadership development, networking with the college community, building campus traditions and school spirit.

Alpha Kappa Lambda became the first men's fraternity on campus when it received its charter on 7 April 2014. Delta Chi began colonizing on campus in fall 2015, becoming the second IFC fraternity on campus. Alpha Omicron Pi, colonized in spring 2014, is the first National Panhellenic Conference sorority on campus. Alpha Sigma Tau was the second sorority on campus, chartered in spring 2016.

Student housing

In fall 2016, Dalton State opened new dormitories.[13] Mashburn Hall holds 363 beds and replaced the Wood Valley complex, on-campus apartments that previously housed 160 students.[14]

References

  1. "2007 Facts & Figures: History of the College" (PDF). Dalton State College Office of Institutional Research & Planning. Retrieved 3 December 2008.
  2. "2007 Facts & Figures: Ten-Year Historical Trend: 1998/99 – 2007/08" (PDF). Dalton State College Office of Institutional Research & Planning. Retrieved 3 December 2008.
  3. "Dalton President John O. Schwenn to Retire in December". Dalton State College Office of the President. Retrieved 12 January 2015.
  4. "Dalton State celebrates record enrollment". Dalton State College Office of Public Relations. Retrieved 8 December 2008.
  5. Dalton State College Brand Book Standards and Guidelines (PDF). 14 August 2015. Retrieved 28 April 2016.
  6. http://www.daltonstate.edu/education/pdf/progs/BS_EarlyChildhoodEducation.pdf
  7. http://www.cswe.org/CSWE/
  8. "2007 Facts & Figures: Institutional and Program Accreditation" (PDF). Dalton State College Office of Institutional Research & Planning. Retrieved 3 December 2008.
  9. "News Release: Dalton State College began offering residential housing in 2009". Dalton State College. Retrieved 4 December 2008.
  10. "History – Dalton State College". daltonstate.edu. Retrieved 4 March 2019.
  11. "Dalton State cruises to NAIA championship". ESPN. 25 March 2015. Retrieved 4 March 2019.
  12. Nicholson, Ken (26 January 2017). "Dalton State College reorganizing athletics program". wrcbtv.com. Retrieved 4 March 2019.
  13. "Dalton State Celebrates Mashburn Hall Topping Out". School Construction News. 10 February 2016. Retrieved 10 June 2017.
  14. Cobb, Shaka (22 July 2016). "New dorm at Dalton State College 'personifies campus life'". Dalton Daily Citizen. Retrieved 10 June 2017.

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