The words featured on Georgia Tech’s seal—“Progress and Service”—are not just a motto. They’re a living, breathing promise made real by the Tech community.
Around the globe, our alumni, staff and students work to enhance the lives of those around them and make the world a better place.
In this issue, you’ll see just some of the stories of great volunteer service being performed by amazing Ramblin’ Wrecks.
While we can’t recognize all of the service work of our Tech community in a single issue, I’d like to highlight the alumni volunteers in our Networks and Affinity Groups, who do great work advancing the reputation of Georgia Tech in their local communities.
And we can’t talk about service without saluting those in uniform who serve this great country and protect our way of life. Thank you to the many members of the Tech community who serve or have served in the armed forces. We’re blessed by the sacrifices that you make.
In other news, for the second year in a row, Smart Money magazine has ranked Georgia Tech No. 1 in return on investment. Here’s what they had to say: “The Georgia Institute of Technology … flies under the reputational radar. Even its president, G. P. Peterson, goes by the unassuming, guy-next-door nickname of ‘Bud.’ But based on our Payback Score, the school deserves a higher profile—and some bragging rights. After all, it’s offering the best academic deal in America. Recent Georgia Tech grads earn $59,000, or a stellar 67 percent of what they paid in tuition. Grads in their 30s average $102,000 a year, more than three times their 1990s tuition tab.”
Part of Tech’s success is because our degree programs are focused on science and engineering, and those fields pay well. However, tuition at Tech is lower than it should be relative to the outstanding educational and life experiences that students receive. But state support is declining, so there’s pressure to raise tuition.
As an alum and a parent of a Tech student, I’m not advocating higher tuition. But I also know that if we’re to maintain the quality of the educational experience, things must change. During this past year, for the first time in decades, tuition revenues outpaced state support. This is not a criticism of the state—to the contrary, the University System of Georgia Board of Regents and government leaders are very supportive of Georgia Tech. They simply have other, more pressing priorities.
Higher education in the United States is changing. And you know from our last issue that efforts like Tech’s Coursera partnership will shape the future. We need to have courage to embrace the change. General Eric Shinseki, retired chief of staff of the U.S. Army once said, “If you don’t like change, you are going to like irrelevance even less.” I concur. And Georgia Tech will continue to progress and grow with your support as leaders, volunteers, ambassadors and donors.
Joseph P. Irwin, IM 80 President & CEO Georgia Tech Alumni Association
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