Groundbreaking Ceremony of New Instructional Campus

School officials from North Georgia College & State University (NGCSU) and Gainesville State College joined about 100 people, including state lawmakers, city and county officials, Tuesday in a ceremonial groundbreaking of the new instructional campus in Cumming.

Construction of the new campus called University Center | GA 400 is underway. The site is located behind the and  at 300 Aquatic Circle, off Pilgrim Mill Road.

The instructional center, slated to open this fall, will offer a range of two- and four-year undergraduate programs, graduate programs and professional development opportunities. North Georgia's MBA program, currently located in the Cumming City Hall building, will move to the new facility.

The Cumming site won't be residential, and is expected to alleviate some of the capacity pressure at both the Dahlonega and Oakwood campuses.

With nearly 6,100 students, North Georgia is nearing capacity at its Dahlonega campus and Gainesville State's capacity has exceeded 100 percent on the Oakwood campus since 2000.

As of fall 2011, more than 1,500 students from Forsyth County were enrolled at the schools — 782 at North Georgia and 806 at Gainesville State.

Due to inclement weather, the ground breaking ceremony was held indoors at the Cumming Aquatic Center, which is adjacent to the construction site.

Hear what school officials and Cumming Mayor Ford Gravitt had to say about the future of the University Center at this week's event.