2026 New Faculty Tour Booklet
A welcome letter from Public Service and Outreach Vice President Stacy Jones
Dear New Faculty Tour Participants:
Congratulations on being selected to participate in the 2026 New Faculty Tour, one of the University of Georgia’s most popular and important faculty development programs. Our goal is to provide you an introduction to the geography, demographics, economy, history and culture of Georgia. We also plan to familiarize you with UGA’s land-grant and sea-grant mission and to the university’s historic commitment to serving Georgia and its citizens.
Matt Bishop and Shannah Montgomery will lead the tour, and I will join for parts of it. We look forward to traveling with you across Georgia and showing you its many assets. From Hartwell, a community of fewer than 5,000 residents, to metropolitan Atlanta, home to more than six million people, you’ll experience the extraordinary diversity of Georgia’s communities, economies and cultures. Each stop offers insight into the people and places that make our state unique, and the many ways UGA serves them.
This tour offers a valuable chance to see firsthand the challenges and opportunities facing Georgia’s communities and to consider how your teaching, research and service might support the state’s growth and prosperity.
Over the next few days, you’ll experience the remarkable diversity of Georgia’s people, industries and communities. From agritourism and agriculture at Paulk Vineyards, Living Water Winery and Bland Farms to economic development at the Georgia Power Headquarters and the Georgia Ports Authority in Garden City, each stop offers a different perspective on the opportunities and challenges shaping our state. You’ll also visit the UGA Tifton campus, where you’ll see firsthand how research, Cooperative Extension and public service come together to support Georgia’s agricultural economy and rural communities.
Throughout the tour you will be able to network with faculty from UGA’s eight Public Service and Outreach units, colleges and schools, as well as a broad cross-section of individuals from around the state.
We are excited that you will join us on this great trip and look forward to getting to know each of you.
Stacy Jones
Vice President for Public Service and Outreach
For more information about UGA Public Service and Outreach and our eight units, visit our website by clicking the UGA Public Service and Outreach logo at the top of the screen.
The NFT is coordinated by the Office of the Vice President for Public Service and Outreach and is made possible by major support from the Office of the Provost, Office of the Vice President for Development and Alumni Relations, and the J.W. Development Institute for Leadership Development. Additional sponsors include a multitude of units and supporters of the University of Georgia.
This document contains information gathered from appropriate websites for resources and the University of Georgia is not liable for any misrepresentation or factual errors that may result.