Warner Robins–Mercer University President R. Kirby Godsey and Warner Robins Air Logistics Center (WR-ALC) Commander Brig. Gen. Michael A. Collings reaffirmed a longstanding partnership between the University and the Base Thursday.
Godsey and Collings signed a modified educational partnership agreement between the WR-ALC and the University. The University established the School of Engineering in 1985 as a commitment to assist WR-ALC in fulfilling its mission by providing well-rounded, highly educated engineers in the Central Georgia area.
Mercer University School of Engineering now provides the largest percentage of engineers to Robins of any educational institution in the nation, with an estimated 40 percent of the new engineers hired by the Base this fiscal year being Mercer graduates.
“The University values its partnership with Warner Robins Air Logistics Center,” Godsey said. “We have an institutional commitment to strengthening the communities we serve as well as our state and our nation through quality education. By educating young men and women to become highly qualified engineers, Mercer is enabling Robins to accomplish its critical work of defending and securing our nation.”
The partnership agreement provides a win-win situation between WR-ALC and Mercer in the area of research and development. In part, the Center benefits from attaining extra assistance and a new perspective in research and development areas of interest to its work, and Mercer students, faculty and staff have access to resources, such as unique, state-of–the-art equipment and expert knowledge, along with the opportunity to work on practical problems of the Department of Defense and the aerospace industry.
“This partnership enables us to prepare engineering students with a level of expertise that would not be available only in the classroom setting,” said School of Engineering Dean Dayne Aldridge. “Our students have a more in-depth knowledge of translating theory into practice so they can better address the important engineering needs of the Base and Air Logistics Center when they graduate. And our faculty and staff benefit from opportunities to continue important research in their fields of expertise.”
Named one of the top engineering schools in the Southeast by U.S. News & World Report for the past five years, Mercer University School of Engineering is known for producing graduates ready to work in the industry and government. The innovative Mercer School of Engineering curriculum emphasizes teamwork as well as opportunities to gain hands-on experiences. Mercer engineering graduates are known for their strong communication skills, as Mercer is one of few engineering institutions in the nation to house a Technical Communication Department within the Engineering School.
The University also operates Mercer Engineering Research Center in Warner Robins. The Center is the University’s formal research and development arm, and contracts with both government and commercial customers.
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