Friday, May 26, 2023

Good afternoon colleagues,

As most of you saw in yesterday’s Daily Digest, I have been named the sole finalist for president at University of North Georgia (UNG). This is an incredible leadership opportunity for me and one that my time as the interim executive vice president for Administration and Finance (A&F) has prepared me well for. I could not be prouder of our accomplishments over the last 10 months as we, as a team, worked tirelessly to advance the Institute’s instructional, research, and service missions. Together, we made a difference in the lives of so many students! I thank you all from the bottom of my heart for welcoming me as your leader and demonstrating what it is like to be a part of something bigger and greater than oneself — to be a part of this wonderful Yellow Jacket family! Something that was so special to me, not only as a professional, but also as a two-time GT alumnus. 

Upon the final vote of the Board of Regents, I anticipate starting my new role as president of UNG on July 1. There is a lot to do before I depart, and I am committed to ensuring a smooth transition of leadership over the next few weeks. More information about those transition plans will be coming soon. Also, I will be making time to say goodbye to as many of you as possible. Please stay tuned. 

Fortunately, I won’t be going far and will be a phone call away if I can ever be helpful to you. I look forward to seeing great achievements coming from this A&F team. Thank you for all that you do!  

All my best,

Mike Shannon
Interim Executive Vice President for Administration and Finance
Interim Chief Business Officer

Georgia Tech continues to earn attention for its impressive return on investment. The latest validation comes from The Princeton Review, which ranks Tech as the No. 1 best value public university in the country.

The Board of Regents (BOR) of the University System of Georgia (USG) voted Tuesday to maintain tuition and mandatory student fees at current levels for most USG institutions, including Georgia Tech, in the 2023-24 academic year. The BOR also voted to allocate to Georgia Tech $484 million in state appropriations for fiscal year 2024 (FY24) — a 6% increase over last year. 

The Department of Audits & Accounts presented Georgia Tech with the Award of Distinction for Excellent Financial Reporting for Fiscal Year 2022. This is the 9th time Georgia Tech has received this award since 2014.  

Jeff Leinbach, deputy director for Georgia Tech Human Resources, was recently selected to the American Research Universities Human Resources Institute’s (ARU-HRI) Chief Human Resources Officers (CHRO) Academy. The ARU-HRI CHRO Academy provides an opportunity for HR leaders from ARU-HRI universities who report to R1 University CHROs to develop the skills required to be an influential chief HR executive leader in a disruptive world, driving HR performance and delivering meaningful results for their HR workforce and university employees. The applicant pool is competitive and only 15 individuals are selected annually. 

Georgia Tech's main campus, with 400 acres and more than 14,000 trees, has a team of landscape professionals maintaining its beauty year-round. Tech Lawn and Garden taps into the knowledge of lawn and garden experts in Landscape Services, showing how they do what they do and sharing tips you can use at home.

Georgia Tech Human Resources has kicked off its twelfth annual Buzzin’ Back to School Backpack Drive! This annual school supply drive benefits Georgia Tech employees who may lack the financial resources to purchase school supplies for their children in grades K-12. 

The deadline to order supplies from SchoolKitz is Tuesday, June 12 and the deadline to request a backpack is Friday, June 30.  

Memorial Day — the unofficial start of summer — is a good time to relax and dive into the books on your reading list or select a book you had not considered. We asked several readers for recommendations. The books range from an anthology of poems with commentary by Edward Hirsch, a top poetry critic, to a climate fiction novel set in the near future.

Georgia Tech’s senior leadership is encouraging employees and teams to leverage our workplace flexibility during the summer semester. This includes doing our best to uphold "no meeting" Fridays, and we want to hear from you about the timing of the summer virtual A&F Town Halls.

In July 2023, eligible Georgia Tech employees will begin receiving a $2,000 Cost of Living Adjustment recently approved by Governor Brian Kemp and the Georgia General Assembly.  

The majority of pay adjustments will be completed in July, but there are many unique situations, such as mid-year hires, job changes, and leave statuses, that will require manual pay adjustments through the end of August.