Dear SSU Campus Community,
As I leave Savannah State University and we prepare for the arrival of the institution’s 15th President, Dr. Jermaine Whirl, I would like to sincerely thank SSU students, staff, faculty, alumni and the greater Savannah community for supporting the SSU mission during my period of leadership. Since I arrived in July 2023, working collaboratively we have accomplished and achieved so many wonderful milestones that clearly indicate that SSU is still rising. Although I knew from the beginning that I was only here for a season, I endeavored to give my all to the betterment of this great institution and I am proud of what we as a campus community achieved together through diligence, sacrifice and commitment. Our successes included enrollment growth, fiscal stability and growth in scholarships, physical improvements to the campus, expansion of our educational programs, improvements to shared governance and everyday focus on students and customer service.
Of all our successes in the last 21 months, I am most proud to report that through strategic planning, realignment, the cooperation of essential partners and hard work, SSU boosted its enrollment in 2023 for the first time in seven years. Enrollment continued to increase for fall 2024 with 3,208 students enrolled. With key initiatives now in place, including refined and expanded recruitment efforts, enhanced student support services along with faculty engagement and renewed support from our national alumni network that are once again sharing the news about SSU’s phenomenal programs and family, SSU’s enrollment is projected to reach 3,300 for fall 2025.
After successfully invigorating recruitment and retention efforts, our next mission was aligning our course offerings to meet local and regional workforce needs to ensure our students graduate with the necessary skills to immediately find employment. Our faculty and staff strategically targeted expanding job markets, diligently pursued grants and wrote proposals which resulted in developing new courses in elementary education, forensic toxicology, and film. Aware that our students benefit from real world experience in addition to their scholarly work, we collaborated with local, national and international partners, to secure internship opportunities for our students in manufacturing, healthcare and with several Dutch-owned companies, pursuant to a successful summer visit with the King and Queen of the Netherlands.
With the welfare of our expanding student body in mind, we pursued and secured more than $15.4 million to fund campus student wellness and structural improvements, including a newly resurfaced stadium, repaired and maintained existing buildings and enhanced security measures. In addition, SSU raised $412,000 for scholarships and received a $900,000 grant for forensic toxicology studies and $399,999 to develop an AI center on campus. Our efforts included the completion of a 10-year master plan that will help shape the next generation of physical growth on the campus.
As we looked toward the future, we were constantly reminded of the great legacy that paved the way for our achievement by the outstanding examples set by our alumni and represented by numerous accolades including SSU’s new 40 Under 40 awards, Founders Awards, Gala Awards as well as University System of Georgia (USG) awards.
I am extremely proud of the SSU’s men basketball team for winning the 2025 SIAC division championship; this represents the third time in history that SSU has claimed this title. (SSU claimed the SIAC title in 1970, 2022 and 2025). The members of this year’s basketball team are extremely accomplished athletes, as well as scholars and leaders on campus. Likewise, during my time at SSU we were able to grow our marching band, the Powerhouse of the South, from 80 music scholars to 120.
I wholeheartedly encourage our faculty, staff, alumni and greater community to join me in supporting SSU’s new president, Dr. Jermaine Whirl, as the 15th president of this historic institution. I know with your support SSU can become the premier public HBCU in our state and a driver of economic success in Savannah.
I look forward to continuing to support the SSU mission as well as that of all 28 USG institutions from my new leadership position at the USG office. Although I am sad to go, I am proud of all we have accomplished together. It is my joy to have safeguarded this prestigious institution’s legacy, preserved its high ideals, and planted seeds of excellence for current and future students.
In Tiger Pride,
Cynthia Robinson Alexander, J.D.
Interim President