GYSTC receives contribution from Kirbo Foundation
Published 6:09 pm Friday, July 31, 2015
From Left: Dr. Richard Carvajal, President, Bainbridge State College; Marvalynn Carroll, Treasurer, SWGYSTC; Betsy Green, Executive Director, GYSTC; John Monk, Board Chair, SWGYSTC; Dr. Paula Chambers, Retired Coordinator, SWGYSTC; Marian Monk, Administrator, SWGYSTC; Blake Flowers, Georgia Power Representative, SWGYSTC.
Recently, the Georgia Youth Science and Technology Centers, Inc. (GYSTC) received a $12,500 contribution from the Thomas M. and Irene B. Kirbo Charitable Foundation to provide science related programs to the teachers and students of Southwest GA. The donation will be split equally between Southwest GYSTC (SWGYSTC) located in Bainbridge, GA and the Chattahoochee-Flint GYSTC located in Ellaville, GA.
SWGYSTC stepped into existence in 1997 with the vision and leadership of Mr. Rolfe Hunt, Mr. Ralph Powell, Jr. and the late Dr. Edward Mobley to grow the technological workforce in Southwest Georgia. These great leaders saw the need to help broaden the job pipeline by encouraging students to pursue careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) related fields. GYSTC was just the vehicle to help make that happen!
Under the leadership of Hunt, Powell, Mobley and many others in the community, support was rallied to build a facility, the Dogwood Center, which Dr. Mobley facilitated being located at what was then Bainbridge College (now Bainbridge State College) to serve Decatur, Seminole, Calhoun, Miller, Mitchell, Early and Grady Counties Schools.
The mission of GYSTC is to promote interest and enthusiasm for STEM subjects, and focuses on four main goals aimed at enhancing teaching and learning in the STEM disciplines:
• Promoting interest and enthusiasm for STEM subjects
• Encouraging students to enter STEM job fields
• Improving the teaching-learning process through enhanced teaching methods and content
• Providing more and better qualified employees for industries in our state
Today, the local SWGYSTC Board of Directors works directly with regional county school boards, teachers, students and the community to improve, promote, and facilitate state-of-the-art educational methods and tools.
GYSTC is very grateful and proud to receive this donation from the Kirbo Foundation and is committed to using the funds to serve the teachers and students of southwest GA.
SWGYSTC is member of a network of ten GYSTCs located across the state, and is governed by a state board of directors from business and industry, the Georgia Department of Education, Technical College System of Georgia and the University System of Georgia. GYSTC Headquarters is located at Kennesaw State University.
