October 6, 2022

Longtime academic partners Columbus State University and Columbus Technical College have expanded their relationship to include health and recreation programs on CSU’s Main Campus. A recent agreement provides CTC students membership access to CSU’s Student Recreation Center, as well as the university’s Intramural Sports programs.

CTC students, employees and their families can now become members of CSU’s Student Recreation Center for $22 a month. This is the same rate available to CSU employees, retirees and alumni. Student membership is included in semester fees paid by CSU students.

Opened in 2011, Columbus State’s 106,000-square foot Student Recreation Center offers a wide variety of exercise and fitness options, including weights, basketball, racquetball, a running track, 37-foot climbing wall, lap and therapy pools, and a lazy river. Members also have access to fitness classes throughout the day and into the evening.

CTC students who want to level up their fitness activities can—for an additional $67 fee per semester— participate in Columbus State intramurals and club sports. CSU offers a wide range of semester-long intramural sports, tournaments and events including basketball, bass fishing, dodgeball, equestrian activities, flag and tackle football, lacrosse, soccer, rugby, ultimate Frisbee and volleyball.

“We are excited to give CTC students the opportunity to develop themselves physically,” said Martha Ann Todd, president of Columbus Technical College. “Partnering with Columbus State to help keep students fit is another way that we are investing in the overall wellness of scholars who choose to attend CTC. With CSU, we are leading the way by promoting overall student health as we work together to create strong and vibrant members of the Chattahoochee Valley workforce community.”   

Leaders at both institutions have long supported ways to cooperatively enhance educational opportunities for Chattahoochee Valley residents.

“Columbus-area students benefit from two outstanding pathways to achieve their academic and vocational goals,” said Dr. John M. Fuchko III, interim president of Columbus State University. “What I’m especially excited about are the conversations occurring on how CSU and Columbus Technical College can build on those pathways to benefit area students and the regional business community that will ultimately employ those students after they graduate.”

“Reaching across the aisle in this way to ensure that students receive everything they want and need to build a successful career and future for their families should be the standard in education,” Todd added. “We also want to help visualize a pathway for those interested in a four-year experience by giving them direct access to a community partner university dedicated to articulating a smooth transfer from CTC to CSU.”

Those efforts include building on existing transfer agreements that will make it easier for students with CTC students with associate degrees to pursue a bachelor’s degree in the same or allied field at Columbus State. Fuchko and Todd are also exploring additional ways in which the two institutions can better recruit and retain Chattahoochee Valley-area students as a way of bolstering the region’s workforce talent.

For additional information about Columbus State’s campus recreation programs, visit columbusstate.edu/campus-recreation. 

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About Columbus State University

Columbus State University is a four-year regional public university founded in 1958 in Columbus, Georgia. It hosts more than 7,500 students, nearly 40,000 alumni, and offers more than 90 degrees and programs of study. Across all programs and majors, Columbus State's curriculum is grounded in academic excellence and creativity. We challenge students to be “creative to the core” by thinking in new ways, turning ideas into innovations, and building a career for today's global economy. CSU is one of 26 public colleges and universities administered by the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia and is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC). For more information, visit columbusstate.edu.

About Columbus Technical College
Columbus Technical College, a unit of the Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG), is a two-year public college which offers more than 200 programs of study and has an annual enrollment of about 5,000 students. The College is dedicated to student success and supplying the workforce needs of the community through traditional and distance learning, as well as customized training. Students can obtain associate degrees, diplomas, certificates of credit, and high school equivalency credentials.  Columbus Technical College is an equal opportunity institution. For more information, visit www.columbustech.edu.