GGC Named #5 Top Southern Public Regional College

In only seven years, Georgia Gwinnett College has risen from obscurity to the fifth highest-ranked
Southern public regional college, according to results released today by U.S. News & World Report
magazine.
“We are particularly excited that the score placing us so high was academic peer assessment, which 
represents GGC’s academic standing,” said Dr. Lois C. Richardson, acting senior vice president 
for Academic and Student Affairs and provost. “This is unheard of for an access institution, and an 
achievement of which our faculty, staff and students, as well as the University System of Georgia, can be 
very proud.”
Criteria used by the magazine to calculate college rankings include academic peer assessment, freshman 
retention rate, graduation rate, percentage of classes under 20 and over 50 seats, student/faculty ratio, SAT/
ACT percentile data, freshmen’s high school rankings, acceptance rate and alumni giving rate.
In addition to peer assessment, GGC scored highly in its freshmen retention of 71 percent, an area where 
it is comparable to Georgia’s state universities, surpassing other Georgia state colleges. It also scored 
favorably for its small classes and student/faculty ratio.
“It is remarkable that Georgia Gwinnett has achieved such impressive rankings in only seven years,” said 
Dr. Stas Preczewski, interim president. “It is a testament to our innovative model for higher education and 
reflects our employees’ proven dedication to improving student success.”
The high rankings follow on the designation of Georgia Gwinnett as a College of Distinction. More 
information is available at www.collegesofdistinction.com. In addition, GGC has been named to the 2014 
list of Military Friendly Schools at www.militaryfriendlyschools.com. 
Full ranking information is available online at www.usnews.com/colleges. The 2014 U.S. News & World 
Report Best Colleges edition will soon be available in hard copy.