Dr. Ray Perren, Wiregrass Georgia Technical College president, center right, accepts the Gov. Sonny Perdue Technical College of the Year award. Perren is surrounded by Technical College System of Georgia Board Chairman Dean Alford and the TCSG’s Ron Jackson and Ben Copeland.

Wiregrass Georgia Technical College was named the Gov. Sonny Perdue Technical College of the Year Thursday.

Wiregrass is the first technical college in the state’s 26-school system to receive this honor.

“Our technical colleges in Georgia are critical components of our overall economic development strategy,” Governor Sonny Perdue said. “I am proud to congratulate Wiregrass Georgia Technical College on this honor. Georgia’s technical colleges are emerging from this downturn stronger and ready to meet the advanced, high-tech workforce demands of today’s global economy.”  The announcement came during the meeting of the Technical College System of Georgia’s meeting in Atlanta. Dr. Ray Perren, Wiregrass president, attended the meeting with Ben Copeland, a TCSG board member.

“We are extremely honored to be named the first TCSG Technical College of the Year,” Perren said. “Thanks to the faculty and staff for all of their hard work everyday. It is our love for what we do, our commitment to our students, and our passion for our mission of workforce development that makes us the number one technical college in the state.”

The governor’s award will be presented annually to the top college in the TCSG. Wiregrass met nearly two dozen performance criteria, according to the governor’s office. These criteria include enrollment numbers, graduation rate, student retention, job-placement rate, cost efficiency, completions in adult education programs, and meeting demands in specialized workforce training.  Dean Alford, TCSG board chairman, hailed Perdue’s contributions to the state’s technical schools.

Read more about it in today’s edition of The Times.