The man leading one of the largest, non-manufacturing, employers in the Augusta area is preparing to step down.
Dr. Brooks Keel, President of Augusta University (AU), will be retiring from the position effective June 30, 2024. He assumed the role in July 2015.
Prior to his arrival, the Health Sciences campus downtown and the Summerville campus suffered a year-after-year decline in enrollment. Annual decreases ranged from 1.4% to 5.9% for a yearly average decline of 3.2% between 2010 and 2015.
The turnaround began his first year as president.
“We have had year-over-year increases in enrollments averaging about 3%. Since 2015, if you look at the five years before that year over year, we are decreasing enrollment by 3% at that time,” he said. “Total from 2015 to this past fall, about a 27% increase in enrollment. And this next fall looks to be even greater than that. So, we see no end in sight, which is a great thing.”
In 2023, fall enrollment at AU broke through what had been considered a glass ceiling for enrollment. It was believed surpassing enrollment of 10,000 students was unlikely. Last fall, 10,546 students enrolled.
Another area that has grown is the number of new academic programs. In 2015, AU added 124 programs that ballooned to 168 in the fall of 2023.
Among the latest programs, AU began the accreditation process for the School of Public Health to prepare students for the significant role public health plays in today’s society. It also launched Augusta University Online, opening the school to welcome students from around the world.
The most recent addition is a Bachelor of Science in Data Science in the School of Computer and Cyber Sciences. The Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia approved it just days before Keel delivered his final State of the University address.
Keel said the growth isn’t about adding classes to rack up numbers. The programs being added are very deliberate to address the ever-changing needs of society and the workforce.
“This particular one, Data Science, really sort of gets in a whole wave of programs that are now out to involve analysis of big data,” he explained. “How do you use big data in a variety of things, it could be everything, from business decisions for an organization all the way up to doing clinical trial research and patients. This one also takes advantage of the combination of the College of Science and Mathematics, with the School of Computer and Cyber Sciences.”
Cyber has become the buzzword for myriad new opportunities and AU was part of that growth.
“When the Army made the decision to move Cyber Command here, that was absolutely phenomenal and created what’s been referred to as this cyber tsunami,” said Keel.
But he recognized Augusta was not prepared for what was coming, including the influx of military personnel, their families, and cyber-centric businesses. If Augusta did not get ready, it would likely go somewhere else.
That’s when Georgia invested $100 million to build the 320,000 square feet Georgia Cyber Innovation and Training Facility in two buildings off 12th Street in Augusta, creating what Keel with a chuckle called “Disneyland for Cybersecurity.”
“It was done intentionally, very deliberately, very strategically to be an ecosystem of business and industry, government and academia, all in one place. Everybody is committed to this intermingling of those three types of entities,” he said. “You’ve got soldiers walking around in fatigues. And Fortune 500 business executives there. And you got Augusta Tech, the only facility I’m aware of, of the whole state, where you have TCSG (Technical College System of Georgia) and USG (University System of Georgia) actually in the same facility, seamless pipelines for students.”
He said the center shines a light on Augusta, both the community and the university. That, he believes, is a factor in the number of manufacturing plants connected to electric vehicles (EV) that have chosen Augusta for their new facilities.
“The cyber center, what it offers is more than just analysis of ones and zeros. It really is an ecosystem of folks that can provide this sort of support across a number of fronts,” he said. “We’re beginning to expand our computer science resources into more engineering-type things. I think over the next five years, you’ll begin to see more engineering degrees come out of that. It won’t be a classical engineering school. We probably won’t have mechanical and chemical, but certainly engineering as it relates to computer science. And potentially electrical engineering.”
Another point of personal pride for Keel was finalizing the partnership with Wellstar, creating Wellstar MCG Health. Keel said they began working on the agreement prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. It was signed in August 2023.
“It’s not just a business transaction, it’s a true partnership. It is phenomenal for the Medical College of Georgia. It is outstanding for the community. And it’s not just MCG, it will have a positive impact on the entire university.”
Keel’s selection as President of Augusta University nine years ago marked a full-circle moment. An Augusta native, he earned his undergraduate degree at what was then Augusta College. He earned his graduate degree from MCG.
Wednesday, ABD will talk with Keel about returning home, the community discontent he would face, his favorite moments as president, and his hope for the university’s future.
