The University of North Georgia has received a $200,000 grant from Google in hopes of increasing entrepreneurship in Lumpkin County. The grant focuses on improving the economic ecosystem of the rural communities in northern Georgia and providing access to important community programming and entrepreneurial resources.
Google and UNG partnered with the Lumpkin Chamber of Commerce, the Lumpkin County School District, and the Development Authority of Lumpkin County.
The effort to assist specifically rural communities comes as UNG expands programs in computer science and cybersecurity through UNG’s Mike Cottrell College of Business.
Lilyn Hester, the head of Southeast External Affairs & Government Relations for Google, said "Increasing access to computer science and STEM programming is important to Google because it's important to the future of our country and our communities."
The grant comes as the University prepares to hire a new director for the Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation and the county has been making efforts to improve economic resources in recent years, including a new co-working space.
