VALDOSTA STATE MAGAZINE 13 at something of a crisis level. We have the time now to be able to pull people together, to have conversations, to begin to look for solutions, and to implement those solutions, and if we do that, this will continue to be a place that our children will enjoy calling home generations from now. Valdosta State University Magazine: How does this vision align with Valdosta State University’s mission and its role as the flagship institution of higher education of South Georgia? Dr. Richard A. Carvajal: We need to be a catalyst for regional comprehensive progress. We are uniquely positioned to do that throughout the 41 counties that we serve. We are South Georgia’s university. We have outstanding faculty who have great expertise in a variety of focal areas. Why wouldn’t we marry their talents with the reaffirmed needs and questions that we have throughout South Georgia? One of the things we are working on right now is essentially within our strategic plan — the development of a mechanism that would allow us to make that marriage happen. We want to go out and identify the reoccurring issues that many, if not all, of our counties are dealing with on a regular basis. We want to look at education. We want to look at healthcare. We want to look at the arts. We want to look at government. We want to look at business and industry. We want to identify the reoccurring challenges in each of those areas. Then we want to come back and identify the content experts within our faculty, empowering them to help the individual cities, counties, and beyond find solutions to those problems. We have brilliant folks on our faculty who are, in many cases, the exact right people to help provide those answers. We want to be able to say, “Hey, we think we have some solutions, and we’d like to help you begin to think about how to implement these solutions if you are interested.” It’s huge. It’s scary, honestly. We are going to judge the health of this university based upon the health of South Georgia. If South Georgia isn’t rising, then how can we, as a university, say that we are rising, if in fact our mission is to be connected to the region we serve? It is scary because it’s a lot to take on, but it’s also exciting. We know that if we are successful in this work it could be transformative for generations to come. It is scary because it’s a lot to take on, but it’s also exciting. We know that if we are successful in this work it could be transformative for generations to come.  — DR. RICHARD CARVAJAL “ “