Founded in 1890, Savannah State University is the oldest historically black university in the State of Georgia. The University operates three colleges, including the College of Business Administration, College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences, and College of Science and Technology. It also has an Office of Graduate Studies and Sponsored Research, and participates in a number of other research centers and projects through its many long-standing partnerships.

Dr. Cheryl Davenport Dozier was named interim president in May of 2011. She received appointment to the position permanently one year later. “I’ve always had an interest in higher education,” said Dozier, now in her twentieth year in higher education leadership. “Leadership is something I believe is a natural gift that I have. I have had many leadership positions in my previous work before entering the Academy.”

An interest in education is something Dozier said her family has always instilled in her. “Working with young people inspires me to see them transformed into future leaders of the world,” she said. Dozier has worked in the Georgia State University System since 1994. Prior to her appointment at Savannah State, Dozier served as associate provost and chief diversity officer in the Office of Institutional Diversity at the University of Georgia. Before that, she served four years as assistant vice president of Academic affairs at the Gwinnett University Center.

Born in Brooklyn, N.Y. and raised in Queens, Dozier later relocated to Westchester County New York before coming to Georgia with her husband and youngest daughter. “My family roots are in Southwest Georgia,” said Dozier. “Georgia is the extended family location for us.”

Dozier is a graduate of Fairleigh Dickenson University. She holds a Master of Social Work degree from Atlanta University (now Clark-Atlanta University). She received her doctorate in Social Work Administration from Hunter College at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York.

When asked what Dozier finds most rewarding about her work at Savannah State, she said it is definitely the students. “Seeing these young people come in, many of them straight from high school and some returning to college, their zeal and zest for learning is just so exciting,” said Dozier. “It’s the opportunity for us to impart knowledge to them and for us to learn from them. We have a very bright group of young people. This opportunity to provide an education socially as well as academically is very exciting.”

Dozier said there is no question about the quality of education that is provided at Savannah State. “We are a destination campus,” she said. “Where one of only five institutions in the state that has had an over 5 percent increase in enrollment over the past academic year.” What this also means, according to Dozier, is that the campus is at capacity. “The state recognizes that we are growing and that we are providing programs that no other institution in the state provides,” said Dozier. “We are the only campus in Georgia that has a marine science program that sits on the saltwater estuary. Our vessel is parked right there on our campus to do research on the three waterways we have in Savannah.”

The university is now seeking state funding to build a marine science lab building. The current classroom building dates back to the late 1950s. “There’s absolutely no question of the value for us to upgrade those facilities,” said Dozier. “Our programs are important not only to the Savannah region, but to the entire state. I believe we have a good chance of receiving this funding from the state.” Savannah State is requesting 2.5 million for design and planning of new and renovated facilities. Dozier said they would ask the state for another $20 million next year for construction.

Savannah State has recently received accreditation to provide teacher education for middle and high school teachers in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) which the state has a shortage of in its public school systems. “The building funds were asking for will also help to prepare that teacher workforce as well,” said Dozier.

Savannah State is a global campus with a number of international students. That number is increasing due to the partnerships the university has made and continues to make, around the world. “We have five partnership agreements with universities spanning three major continents including the Americas Africa and Asia,” said Dozier. “We are sending students to them and they are sending students to us.” Soon Savannah State, in collaboration with their partners in China, will be one of only three institutions in Georgia to have a Confucius Institute. “Our students must be ready to take jobs abroad,” said Dozier. “We teach a number of global languages including Mandarin and we will be continuing to prepare our students for the global workforce.”

Dozier said there are some misconceptions about Savannah State that need to be addressed. “I want the public to recognize that the students who are coming to our institution that are traditional students–that is straight from high school–as well as those students who are nontraditional because they had to leave school for work and are now coming back, are all committed to receiving their education,” she said.

One problem is that the statistics for graduation rates are heavily skewed. This information comes from the IPEDs data center which is part of the national Center for education statistics US Department of Education. IPEDs has four rather arcane criteria for counting graduations. Students must: be a first-time freshmen straight from high school, must enter college in the fall semester, must be full-time students, and must complete their degree programs in four years. What this means is that anyone who transfers in from another institution, takes time off before or during college for military service or family obligations, requires more than four years to graduate, or simply enters in the spring semester rather than the fall, will not be counted, even though they graduate. “Many of my graduates won’t get counted,” said Dozier. “We had 120 first-time freshmen enter this January, so even if they graduate in four years, they won’t get counted.”

Dozier said the school has received some criticism about whether it is graduating its students on time. “My students know that I am very committed to their graduation, in four years if possible and no more than six,” she said. “We work very hard and I’m very proud of our students. I’m equally proud of those students that take even seven or eight years to graduate, because they have been working and raising their families. I always stop at commencement to acknowledge those students. The data people look at is misleading. The academic progress of our students, which is definitely attested to by the data we keep is quite high.” Dozier said that students today take a little longer to complete college. “Over two thirds of my students are working, and many have family responsibilities, but the number of students we’re graduating is constantly increasing.”