March 26, 2003

CSU Day Set To Highlight University's Impact On The Community
Signs go out in morning; Continuing Education Fair Set For Evening

COLUMBUS - Red, white and blue signs proclaiming 'We Support Columbus State University' will soon again sprout up throughout the area as the university continues its annual tradition of highlighting the vital link between CSU and the community.

Officially designated by city proclamation CSU Day will be on April 3 this year, a day in which the university thanks local supporters and tries to re-emphasize how much success it owes to the community and how much impact CSU has on the community.

The first wave of signs in this 9-year-old event will start appearing Friday. But the sign distribution doesnt kick into high gear until April 3 when more than 100 CSU and community volunteers fan out throughout town to plant the signs in front of businesses and donors who have supported the university. Volunteers will meet at the Turner Center for breakfast at 8 a.m., and then begin the sign distribution in teams about 9 a.m.

Many signs are for supporters of the university's annual fund, which pays for honor scholarships, departmental scholarships, faculty/staff developmental grants, international studies, athletics, alumni activities, health care programs, community outreach and the Science Education Outreach Center. Signs will go to supporters of CSU's ongoing $80 million capital campaign.

'We have an ongoing capital campaign that has attracted some amazing pledges for very significant future projects. While the larger campaign grabs the headlines, what is perhaps not as well known is that CSU still is critically dependent on a its annual fund for a wide variety of educational opportunities for our students and faculty,' said CSU President Frank Brown. 'CSU Day allows us to thank supporters for their assistance, and give us a chance to highlight how much we have accomplished with this community's support.'

The community's return from the investments in CSU abound. In addition to a $146 million impact on the community, consider that more than 50 percent of teachers in Muscogee County are CSUgraduates, more than 80 percent of local nurses were educated at CSU, about 70 percent of local law enforcement officers were trained and educated at CSU and that half of all baccalaureate degree holders in Muscogee County received their degree from CSU.

Another barometer of CSU's impact on the community is the 1,609 continuing education courses offered last year, which attracted an enrollment of 8,787. Many of the participants in CSU's continuing education efforts offer summer camps, which will highlighted during a special Fun Fair at the Elizabeth Bradley Turner Center to close out CSU Day.

Held from 4:30 - 7 p.m. on April 3, the Fun Fair will have sample camp activities, displays of various camps available, face paintings and free refreshments while they last. Camp directors will be on hand to discuss the various camps, which range from sports to ballet to computers to Sci-Fi filmmaking. Everyone who registers for a camp at the Fun Fair will receive $10 off the registration fee. Participants will include the following CSU organizations: Coca-Cola Space Science Center, Rankin Arts Center, Oxbow Meadows Environmental Learning Center and the Columbus Regional Mathematics Collaborative.

The fair will be an appropriate finale to CSU Day, which is the culmination of months of work by a group of dedicated community volunteers who have been raising money for the university and spreading the word about CSU's impact here.

'CSU was founded here and has flourished where we are today because of this community,' said Annual Fund Director Meri Robinson. 'CSU Day is a culmination of a lot of work for a lot of people and ultimately a way to say 'Thank You' for the continued support of where CSU is headed.'

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Contact: Meri Robinson 568-5172