For media information, contact:
Dana Urrutia, 678-495-3638
durrutia@gwinnetttech.edu

February 24, 2012

Delta Air Lines Donates $500,000 to Gwinnett Technical College

Gift to Legacy of Lives Campaign Creates Nursing Program Endowment

Delta Air Lines has donated $500,000 to the Legacy of Lives campaign at Gwinnett Technical College, establishing a nursing professorship endowment to support the college's growing registered nursing program.

The earnings from the endowment will underwrite an additional fulltime faculty member for the nursing program, enabling the continued expansion of the program and ultimately increasing the number of nursing graduates. GTC's registered nursing program, launched in 2009, graduated its first class in June 2011 and doubled in size with the acceptance of 60 students fall semester. The college will expand the program to over 180 students with the addition of an LPN to RN Bridge program and a Paramedic to RN Bridge program, both of which will be implemented in 2012.

"Delta believes in supporting the communities where we live and work to create positive local and global change," said Tad Hutcheson, vice president, Community and Public Affairs. "Delta's Force for Global Good is committed to improving global wellness through health initiatives like the Legacy of Lives campaign right here in our hometown through our partnership with Gwinnett Technical College."

Gwinnett Tech's Legacy of Lives campaign unites business, healthcare and civic leaders to support the education and training of the healthcare professionals needed for the region. GTC's new Life Sciences Center, the focus of the campaign, is a vivid example of strong partnerships between business and education and the resulting quality of life benefits for the community.

"Delta's generous and far-reaching support of Gwinnett Tech reflects both their commitment to their hometown region and their global vision and understanding of the tremendous need for healthcare education. Delta President Ed Bastian, honorary chair of the Legacy of Lives campaign, and Delta's leadership team recognize the vital role healthcare plays in our lives and the call to educate and train the healthcare professionals our region will need in the immediate future," says GTC President Sharon Bartels.

Opened in August 2011, the three-story, 78,000-square-foot Life Sciences Center is dedicated to educating and training those life sciences and healthcare professionals. Over the next four years, the region will need to add 27,000 healthcare jobs to serve residents.

The new Center serves 3,000 students annually, enabling GTC to accept additional students and expand program offerings. With more than a dozen health sciences programs, Gwinnett Tech serves the state's highest number of health science students and now has more than 140,000 square feet in two buildings dedicated to health science education.

In addition to the nursing program expansion, GTC has already added new programs in health information technology, diagnostic medical sonography, cardiovascular technology and for patient care assistant. Six existing health science programs are also being expanded.

With support from leaders in healthcare, technology and the private sector, the Legacy of Lives campaign has raised over $30 million to date, about 60 percent of its $50 million goal. Nursing, one of the country's in-demand professions, has a high program cost due to essential equipment, low faculty-to-student ratio requirements and supplies. Providing healthcare education programming costs GTC three times more than traditional programs.

Gwinnett Tech offers more than 50 degree, diploma and certificate options that can be completed in two years or less. For more information, visit www.GwinnettTech.edu or call 770-962-7580.

Get the latest news about Gwinnett Tech: www.GwinnettTech.edu/news.

About Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines serves more than 160 million customers each year. Delta was named by Fortune magazine as the most admired airline worldwide in its 2011 World's Most Admired Companies airline industry list, and was named the "Top Tech-Friendly U.S. Airline" by PCWorld magazine for its innovation in technology. With an industry-leading global network, Delta and the Delta Connection carriers offer service to 342 destinations in 61 countries on six continents. Headquartered in Atlanta, Delta employs 80,000 employees worldwide and operates a mainline fleet of more than 700 aircraft. A founding member of the SkyTeam global alliance, Delta participates in the industry's leading trans-Atlantic joint venture with Air France-KLM and Alitalia. Including its worldwide alliance partners, Delta offers customers more than 13,000 daily flights, with hubs in Amsterdam, Atlanta, Cincinnati, Detroit, Memphis, Minneapolis-St. Paul, New York-JFK, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Salt Lake City and Tokyo-Narita. The airline's service includes the SkyMiles frequent flier program, a world-class airline loyalty program; the award-winning BusinessElite service; and more than 50 Delta Sky Clubs in airports worldwide. Delta is investing more than $2 billion through 2013 in airport facilities and global products, services and technology to enhance the customer experience in the air and on the ground. Customers can check in for flights, print boarding passes, check bags and review flight status at delta.com.

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About Gwinnett Tech
Gwinnett Technical College, one of Georgia's largest technical colleges, is committed to delivering relevant knowledge to meet the workforce training needs of its community. The college offers more than 50 associate degree, diploma and certificate programs and hundreds of seminars, workshops and courses providing specialized training. GTC is Gwinnett County's largest provider of corporate training and now serves residents and businesses in north Fulton County. Gwinnett Technical College is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award the associate degree. Contact the Commission on Colleges at 1866 Southern Lane, Decatur, Georgia 30033-4097,404-679-4500, www.sacscoc.org for questions about the accreditation of Gwinnett Technical College. For more information, visit www.GwinnettTech.edu.

A unit of the Technical College System of Georgia.