Middle Georgia College (MGC) was a four-year state college unit of the

University System of Georgia The University System of Georgia (USG) is the government agency that includes 26 public institutions of higher learning in the U.S. state of Georgia. The system is governed by the Georgia Board of Regents. It sets goals and dictates gener ...

, United States. On January 8, 2013, it was consolidated with

Macon State College Macon State College was a four-year state college unit of the University System of Georgia. On Jan. 8, 2013, it was merged with Middle Georgia College into a new institution, Middle Georgia State College, which was renamed on July 1, 2015 to ...

into a new institution, which is now known as

Middle Georgia State University Middle Georgia State University is a public university with its main campus in Macon, Georgia, United States. It is part of the University System of Georgia and offers programs to students on five campuses in Middle Georgia and online. Middle ...

. The college's main campus was in Cochran, and that campus is now a satellite campus of Middle Georgia State University. The campus continues to operate with the same facilities as it had before consolidation. MGC had two other campuses — located in Eastman and Dublin — and they also continue to operate as campuses of Middle Georgia State University.

History

Middle Georgia College dates back to the establishment of New Ebenezer College, which occupied the site of the current Cochran campus of Middle Georgia State University and was established in 1884 by the New Ebenezer Baptist Association. The association was composed largely of Baptist churches in Pulaski,

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, Laurens, and Telfair counties. The first building on the campus was completed in 1886, and classes were first held in 1887 with approximately 100 students. During the early period, the institution was divided into preparatory and collegiate departments. A stated purpose of the curriculum, as described in the catalog of 1887, was "to prepare pupils for business or for the Junior Class in Universities. This includes Latin, Greek, Mathematics, Natural Science and several modern languages, with English studies and Music." The New Ebenezer Baptist Association discontinued their financial support for their namesake college in 1898, forcing the school to close its doors. The college's building served as a high school for the city of Cochran until 1913, when the high school moved. No documentation exists regarding the facilities from 1913 to 1919, leading to the presumption that it was unoccupied during that time. In 1919, the Georgia State College of Agricultural and Mechanic Arts (a division of the

University of Georgia The University of Georgia (UGA or Georgia) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university with its main campus in Athens, Georgia, United States. Chartered in 1785, it is the oldest public university in th ...

) opened a branch dedicated to serving the needs of the Twelfth congressional district in the building formerly used by New Ebenezer College. In 1927, the school's name was changed to Middle Georgia Agricultural and Mechanical Junior College, though it remained a branch of the state agricultural school. In 1929, the school's name was changed to Middle Georgia College and responsibility for its operation was given to a nine-person board of trustees. MGC was finally made an independent institution in 1931, when it was created as one of the original units of the newly created University System of Georgia. During World War II, MGC hosted the 50th College Training Detachment of the U.S. Army Air Force and graduated 17 classes of aviation students from March 1943- July 1944. In 1964, Dr. Louis C. Alderman, Jr. become president. Many new buildings as well as renovations of existing facilities marked his tenure in growing the college's reputation, academic excellence, and campus beauty. During this term, the Dublin Campus was opened in 1984. Dr. Alderman died on December 13, 1987, having served the longest term of any past or subsequent president of the college. Alderman Community Hall was dedicated to his memory on May 21, 2009. A new program and campus was added to the school in 2007, when the Georgia Aviation Technical College in Eastman was merged with Middle Georgia College. In January 2012, the Board of Regents of the

approved the consolidation of the college with

. The Board of Regents approved the name change to

Middle Georgia State College Middle Georgia State University is a public university with its main campus in Macon, Georgia, United States. It is part of the University System of Georgia and offers programs to students on five campuses in Middle Georgia and online. Middle ...

on Tuesday, May 8, 2012, and also laid out a path for elevating the consolidated institution to university status after a review process. The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, the regional accrediting agency, gave its approval of the consolidation in December 2012, and the Board of Regents acted to make the consolidation official, effective immediately, on Jan. 8, 2013.

Baseball program

The Middle Georgia College Warrior baseball team won 4 NJCAA national championships: •1979 •1980 •1982 •1995 The team reached the JUCO World Series 13 times: •1975, Third-Place Finish •1980 •1982 •1983, NJCAA Runner-Up •1984, Fourth-Place Finish •1990, NJCAA Runner-Up •1995 •1996, Third-Place Finish •2001 •2002 •2004 •2009 The Warriors won 38 conference, division, or region championships, and finished district runner-up 6 times.

Notable alumni

* Antonio Cochran, former NFL player *

Andrico Hines Andrico Hines (born December 10, 1980) is an American former professional football quarterback who played three seasons in the Arena Football League (AFL) with the Cleveland Gladiators and Pittsburgh Power. He played college football at Middle G ...

, former AFL player * Frank Jones, forer college football coach * Will Pettis,

Arena Football Hall of Fame The Arena Football Hall of Fame is the official Hall of Fame of the Arena Football League (AFL). The inaugural class was announced in 1998 and the Hall was not formally organized until 2011. Prior to 2011, there were four classes: 1998–200 ...

player *

Josh Reddick William Joshua Reddick (born February 19, 1987) is an American former professional baseball outfielder. The Boston Red Sox selected Reddick in the 17th round of the 2006 MLB draft, and he made his major league debut in 2009. He also played in Ma ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

player * George Thornewell Smith, politician *

James Arthur Williams James Arthur Williams (December 11, 1930 – January 14, 1990) was an American antiques dealer and a historic preservationist based in Savannah, Georgia. He played an active role in the preservation of the Savannah Historic District for over 35 ...

, preservationist * Jerry Zulli, college baseball coach

References

{{College sports in Georgia Education in Bleckley County, Georgia Defunct public universities and colleges in Georgia (U.S. state) Universities and colleges accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Universities and colleges established in 1884 Educational institutions disestablished in 2013 Buildings and structures in Bleckley County, Georgia Education in Dodge County, Georgia Education in Laurens County, Georgia NJCAA schools 1884 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state) 2013 disestablishments in Georgia (U.S. state)