James July-August 2025 web - Flipbook - Page 35
T. Dallas Smith is the founder and chief executive of昀椀cer
at T. Dallas Smith & Company, specializing in tenant representation. He founded the company in 2006 at the urging of his mentor, the late Herman J. Russell, who oversaw
a highly successful construction and management 昀椀rm.
Smith went on to lead projects across the country with
metrics exceeding more than eight million square feet of
tenant and buyer representation in of昀椀ce and industrial
space, and more than 5,000 acres of land acquisitions.
The Atlanta native received a Bachelor of Business
Administration (Marketing) degree from Georgia State
University. In 1989 he became the 昀椀rst African-American
real estate broker at Cushman & Wake昀椀eld of Georgia,
and he’s proud to note that his af昀椀liation with that company opened doors for many minority brokers.
This innovator and thought leader in the commercial real estate industry was appointed by Gov. Brian
Kemp in 2020 to the University System of Georgia Board
of Regents, which oversees 26 public colleges and universities. In November 2024 Smith was named by fellow
Regents as chairman for a one-year term.
PHIL KENT The University System is
DS As of fall 2024, 287,452 USG gradu-
experiencing progress in the state’s
higher education graduation rates
because of the Complete College
Georgia plan. What is the total number of degrees and certificates conferred annually by USG institutions
since this plan began in 2011?
ates were Georgia residents, and that
was up five percent from the previous
year. Fall 2024 enrollment hit a record
of 364,725 students, so the majority
are still in-state students.
Furthermore, sixty eight and a
half percent of USG graduates from
Fiscal Year 2021 (the latest data
available) were employed in Georgia
one year after graduation.
DALLAS SMITH University System
of Georgia (USG) institutions in
Fiscal Year 2024 awarded a record
of 76,571 degrees, an increase of
1.8 percent over the previous year.
Also, we are proud to report that the
number of degrees awarded annually has risen by 39.6 percent since
USG joined the Complete College
American alliance in 2011 and prioritized increasing degree completion
in Georgia.
PK How many of the undergraduate
population in USG institutions hail
from Georgia, and how many graduates who enter the workforce get
jobs in Georgia?
plant variety protection certificates
were issued, and 1,101 businesses
were supported by these institutions.
We are also ranked eighth
among all 50 states according to National Science Foundation data for
higher education research and development expenditures. Additionally, we are ranked sixth by the NSF
regarding higher education research
and development expenditures from
federal funds.
PK Can you tell our readers about the
growth of the USG’s research enterprise?
DS Let’s discuss both R1 and R2
institutions. (Publisher’s note: These
are doctorial universities with high
research activities. R1s are required
to have minimal funding of $43.8
million per academic year. R2s have
a much lower minimum funding
requirement.) Research expenditures
for Fiscal Year 2024 were $2.7 billion,
up 12 percent from the previous year.
In Fiscal Year 2023, 145 patents and
PK What is the USG policy on cam-
pus free speech and what are the
guardrails and guidelines? The Regents and Chancellor Sonny Perdue
had to deal with that in the spring of
2024 when there were swift arrests
of demonstrators at the University of
Georgia who violated campus rules.
DS First, let me say free speech and
academic freedom are essential
to USG’s mission. Two years ago,
the Board of Regents approved a
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