Georgia Southern University–Armstrong Campus

The Armstrong campus was founded as Armstrong Junior College in 1935 by Mayor Thomas Gamble. Gamble pursued the issue during the height of the Great Depression to benefit Savannah's youth and the community, as well as aid in stimulating the local economy. The college was originally located in the historic Armstrong House adjacent to Forsyth Park in downtown Savannah. Presently, the campus is no longer an independent institution with a separate accreditation. Consolidation with Georgia Southern University On January 11, 2017, the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia, on recommendation by Chancellor Steve Wrigley, voted to consolidate Armstrong State with Georgia Southern University. The merger, without any student-faculty input from the two schools, was to take place as part of a long-term goal of the Board of Regents to consolidate smaller, regional colleges and universities with larger, more well-known institutions. Under the consolidation plan, Armstrong State would inherit Georgia Southern's name, leadership, academics, and athletics, and the merged institution would become the fourth-largest public university in the state: the "New Georgia Southern University". Consolidation, which took a full year to implement, was officially proclaimed by the Board of Regents on January 17, 2018. == Campus ==

The Armstrong campus is located in a suburban setting near the Savannah Mall, with direct access to downtown Savannah via Abercorn Expressway. The landscaped campus includes subtropical ferns and flowers, southern magnolias, oak trees draped with Spanish moss, and a wide variety of native plants scattered throughout the arboretum-style grounds. Lane Library is the main academic and research library on the Armstrong campus. Lane Library's collection comprises more than 200,000 books and printed materials as well as 18,000 audiovisual works. A , $24 million Student Union opened in 2010. It is the university's first green building, built with rapidly renewable and recycled materials and featuring a high-efficiency chilled water cooling system. The Union houses a 300-seat food court (known as the Galley), 200-seat movie theatre, ballroom, bookstore, coffeehouse, convenience store, and expansive porches and lounges. Near the end of the 2017–2018 academic year, there were talks of renovating the campus's current athletic facilities to allow for the university's tennis and soccer teams to practice and play at the Armstrong Campus, in addition to creating new recreational and general purpose fields. More than 1,400 students live on campus within three residential communities located in the southwest portion of the campus. It features private and semi-private suites, music practice rooms, multipurpose classrooms, lounges/social areas, laundry facilities, courtyards with outdoor sitting space and barbecue areas, and two classrooms. ==Academics==

Armstrong features more than 100 academic programs and offers bachelor's degrees, master's degrees, and doctoral degrees through its College of Education, College of Health Professions, College of Liberal Arts, College of Science and Technology, and Graduate Studies programs. In addition, the school offers a Doctorate of Physical Therapy. The campus is classified as a Master’s college and university by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. For the 2010–11 academic year, Armstrong was not ranked and deemed a Tier 2 university by U.S. News & World Report. The university has full accreditation from the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. The university does not utilize graduate students to teach classes as all are taught by members of the Armstrong faculty. Armstrong has nearly 300 faculty members and a student-to-faculty ratio of 19:1. The university offers study abroad and honors programs and opportunities for undergraduates to participate in research across a variety of disciplines. College of Education Armstrong's College of Education offers degree programs via two primary departments: Childhood & Exceptional Student Education and Adolescent & Adult Education. The programs prepare graduates for the education field as well as other positions in education administration. In 2010 the college received continued accreditation through 2017 under performance-oriented standards of the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE). College of Health Professions The College of Health Professionals is the largest academic college at Armstrong in terms of enrollment. The college offers a range of academic programs that prepare students for careers in nursing, public health, health administration, and the allied health professions. It confers degrees ranging from associate's through master's and doctoral. College of Liberal Arts Liberal arts have been the foundation of education at Armstrong since its founding. The College of Liberal Arts includes various departments and interdisciplinary programs that prepare graduates for careers in government, criminal justice, law, business, and entertainment. Students in the College of Liberal Arts study the arts, humanities, and social sciences in classroom environments and through internships, performances, exhibitions, undergraduate research projects, and study abroad programs. Departments include Art, Music and Theatre, Criminal Justice, Social & Political Science, Economics, History, Languages, Literature & Philosophy, Interdisciplinary Programs, and Military Science/ROTC. College of Science and Technology The College of Science and Technology at Armstrong has a strong emphasis on student research opportunities that prepare students for graduate programs. Areas of study in the College of Science and Technology includes: Biology, Chemistry & Physics, Computer Science & Information Technology, Biochemistry, Engineering, Mathematics, and Psychology. Liberty Campus The Liberty Campus in Hinesville, which offers select academic programs to residents of Liberty County and surrounding areas, serves as the third campus of Georgia Southern, which operates under the Armstrong Campus. The Liberty Campus provides special services to Fort Stewart military personnel and their families. A variety of programs are offered or supported, including associate’s degrees in arts and applied sciences, and bachelor's degrees in criminal justice, nursing, early childhood education, middle grades education, and liberal studies, with plans to develop consortium programs with Savannah State University in the upcoming years. The Liberty Campus's current facilities opened in downtown Hinesville in January 2016. ==Student life==

Armstrong offers many opportunities for students to participate in extracurricular programs, organizations, performances, forums, and athletics. The university has over 100 student organizations and an expanding Greek life system with nine fraternity and sorority organizations. The Student Government Association, Graduate Student Coordinating Council, and University Programming Board (formerly known as CUB, for Campus Union Board, prior to consolidation) offer many opportunities for involvement, leadership, and entertainment. The Inkwell is the university's student-run award-winning publication, published every Thursday during the semester. The university also sponsors a number of recreational intramural and club sports, including dance, flag football, tennis, rugby, ultimate Frisbee, baseball, bowling, basketball, and billiards. but was retired following the consolidation. Celebrate Armstrong occurs in October and is planned by the University Programming Board (UPB). Celebrate Armstrong consists of different kinds of activities, entertainment, and competitions. The UPB also hosted the annual Big Show in the spring, a concert that has included performances from Gym Class Heroes, Maroon 5, and Migos. The campus offers numerous volunteering opportunities to give back to the local community. The campus started the Initiative for Civic Engagement in 2009, making community service an active part of the curriculum. Hundreds of students, faculty, staff, and alumni turn out for joint outreach projects or the biannual Treasure Savannah Day of Service. Student Government Association The Student Government Association (SGA) for the Armstrong Campus consists of an executive and a legislative branch. The first student association on the campus was the Armstrong Student Association, founded by Armstrong Junior College's inaugural class in 1935. SGA's current system has existed since the summer of 2018, when the constitution for the post-consolidation Georgia Southern University took effect. In addition to the university-wide SGA President, the executive branch consists of an Executive Vice President, who chairs the Campus Executive Board for the Armstrong Campus, which includes the Executive Vice President, the Chief of Staff, other vice-president positions with their own specialty (e.g. for financial or academic affairs), and officers. The Campus Executive Board consists of elected and appointed officers and serves as an advisory body for the campus's University administrators. The legislative branch consists of a Senate, led by a Speaker, who presides over meetings of the Senate. The Senate consists of Senators representing the colleges housed on the Armstrong Campus (currently, the Colleges of Education, Health Professions, and Public Health), as well as two additional "colleges": Graduate Studies and At-Large, to ensure that graduate students and students whose major is not housed on the Armstrong Campus, respectively, are still represented. In addition to presiding over the Senate, the Speaker also chairs the Senate Advisory Council, which consists of the Speaker and other officers of the Senate Leadership, such as the Deputy Speaker, Senate Whip, Parliamentarian, and the chairs for the Senate's various standing committees. The Liberty Campus is represented by the Armstrong Campus, and includes a semi-autonomous Governing Board, led by an elected Director, and a Student Council, led by the assistant director. ==Athletics (1935–2017)==

Armstrong State University's consolidation with Georgia Southern spelled an end for Armstrong's athletics, being announced on March 7, 2017, that Armstrong's athletic program would be discontinued at the conclusion of the 2016–17 academic year. Athletics were suspended during World War II. Following the war, the college added new athletic programs, and in 1948 men's basketball won a second state championship. ==References==