Atlanta – The State Board of the Technical College System of Georgia has given their approval to Governor Nathan Deal’s nomination of Gretchen Corbin as the system’s next commissioner.
The 22-member board made their vote during the board’s monthly meeting in Atlanta on December 4, 2014.
Corbin will replace the current TCSG commissioner, Ron Jackson, who has announced his retirement at the end of January. Jackson has been leading the system of 23 colleges since 2006.
Corbin’s first day with the TCSG will be on January 12, 2015.
“We are pleased to welcome Gretchen Corbin as the next commissioner of the Technical College System of Georgia. We look forward to working with her as we continue to build upon the many successes of the best technical college system in the nation,” said Board Chairman Joe Yarbrough. “We also want to express our heartfelt appreciation to Commissioner Jackson for the years of outstanding leadership that he has provided for our system and the dedicated service that he has given to our students and the people of Georgia,” said Yarbrough.
Corbin stated that she is looking forward to leading the agency that plays a key role in the state’s economic and workforce development. “It is a high honor and great privilege to be chosen to be the next commissioner of the Technical College System of Georgia. I wish to thank Governor Deal and the TCSG State Board for their confidence in me. I look forward to working with the TCSG family of colleges and their talented presidents, faculty, and staff who are dedicated to creating excellent career opportunities for our fellow Georgians,” said Corbin.
Corbin is presently the commissioner of the Department of Community Affairs, a position that she has held since 2013. She previously served as the deputy commissioner for global commerce at the Georgia Department of Economic Development, where she had worked since 1998 in a wide variety of roles.
She is involved in a number of professional and civic organizations, including serving as the chairman of Leadership Georgia and member of the Board of Visitors for the University of Georgia. Corbin is also a Rotary International Paul Harris Fellow. She graduated from Clemson University and the University of Oklahoma’s Economic Development Institute. She and her husband, David, have two children and reside in Rome.
Corbin will become the system’s fourth commissioner since its inception in 1988 as the Department of Technical and Adult Education: Dr. Kenneth Breeden (1988 to 2004), Mike Vollmer (2004 to 2006), and Ron Jackson (2006 to 2015). The department was renamed the Technical College System of Georgia in 2008.
About the TCSG: The 23 colleges of the Technical College System of Georgia offer affordable education and excellent training in more than 600 certificate, diploma and two-year associate degree programs. Students of all ages take advantage of low tuition, outstanding instructors, hands-on learning and state-of-the-art equipment to gain the skills needed for today’s in-demand jobs.
In academic year 2014, the TCSG colleges delivered 2.3 million credit hours of instruction to more than 141,000 students. The TCSG is online, too, serving 70,000 students through the system’s Georgia Virtual Technical Connection.
TCSG students enjoy the benefits of Georgia’s HOPE grant and scholarship and the federal Pell grant, which will pay for a significant portion of a TCSG education.
Last year, the TCSG Office of Adult Education delivered programs to 61,000 adult learners, including GED preparation and testing services that enabled almost 15,000 men and women to earn their GED credential.
The TCSG Quick Start program has provided customized workforce training in 2014 to almost 56,000 employees of new and expanding companies in Georgia.
For more information about the TCSG and links to all of the TCSG colleges, go to www.tcsg.edu.
