2024 Ignite tracks
Students will take a 1 credit GT 1000 class and 2 other classes (6-7 credits total).
Analyzing Atlanta
Track Leader
We are currently working on finding the next track leader for this track! Be sure to check back once we’ve finalized the role to learn more about who will lead this track. Thank you for your patience!
About the Track
Welcome to your new city for the next few years! Atlanta has so many great opportunities to learn, develop and have fun to aid in your overall experience at Georgia Tech. From Centennial Olympic Park, to over a dozen museums and so much more, this track will focus on getting you off campus and exploring the city. Students interested in learning more about the history of Atlanta, and learning more about the culture and everything our amazing city has to offer would be a great fit for the track. Any out-of-state or international student is encouraged to join!
GTF1RST
Track Leader
Charmaine Troy Ph.D. currently serves as the Associate Director of First-Generation Student Initiatives at Georgia Tech. In this role, she is focused on the access, equity, and success of first-generation students. She leads the university’s work in supporting the co-curricular success of first-generation college students and overseeing the planning, development and implementation of preprogramming for first-generation students. Prior to joining Tech, she served as the Assistant Dean for First-Generation Student Success at Virginia Tech. She is also co-editor of the book Graduate Education at Historically Black Colleges and Universities: A Student Perspective.
About the Track
This track is designed to advance first-generation and limited income student success by focusing on entrepreneurship. This track will seek to demystify what entrepreneurship can be at a tech school and introduce first-generation and limited income students to possible careers as entrepreneurs. Students will learn about successful first-generation entrepreneurs and their career paths to entrepreneurship. Students will also participate in entrepreneur and innovation events in the Atlanta community.
Health & Wellbeing
Track Leader
Emily Brown is originally from Pennsylvania, where she completed her undergraduate education at Shippensburg University and played soccer. After receiving her bachelor’s degree in business, she went on to Jacksonville University to obtain her master’s in Business Administration and Sport Management. She has served as an academic advisor for the Penn State football team and is currently serving as an academic advisor for the men’s basketball team here at Georgia Tech.
About the Track
This track aims at cultivating habits that promote total well-being as specified in the Institute’s Strategic Plan. This track will focus on ways in which students can better understand how their mental and physical well-being play a role in their development not only as students at Georgia Tech, but as future leaders of our world.
Innovation
Track Leader
We are currently working on finding the next track leader for this track! Be sure to check back once we’ve finalized the role to learn more about who will lead this track. Thank you for your patience!
About the Track
This track will focus on entrepreneurship and creative problem solving! Students who are interested in understanding how customers think, making or building, and would like to increase their knowledge about startups would be interested in this track.
Leadership
Track Leader
Stacey is currently serving as the Program Director for Leadership Education and Development. She encourages an open and growth mindset, coaches students and employees, and supports professional empowerment while effectively designing and implementing individual and team leadership curriculum, strategic product and program plans. Stacey has served as the leadership track leader for multiple years now and plans many great on-campus and off-campus events for students in the leadership track.
About the Track
Developing a leadership style and understanding your strengths are key maximizing your potential at Georgia Tech and beyond. This Track will focus on learning the principles of leadership and how to work well with others. Students who are interested in learning leadership skills in preparation for getting involved on campus would be interested in this track!
Pre-Health
Track Leader
Brooke Sheetz is passionate about working with students interested in pursuing a career in the health professions. She has over 9 years of experience working with students seeking a career in Medical, Dental, Vet, Optometry, Physician Assistant, Pharmacy, Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy and more! Whether you are an entering freshman at Georgia Tech or currently in the application process to professional school, Brooke can help guide you by providing resources and assistance.
About the Track
This track will help students explore on-campus opportunities for those who have an interest in health and wellness-related careers. Students interested in developing skills related to obtaining clinical and volunteer positions, as well as recognizing how their strengths play into potential future careers in health would be interested in this track.
Sustainability
Track Leader
Drew Cutright works with stakeholders and leaders across campus and beyond on sustainability projects, events, reporting, policy, buildings, and communications. She has been at Georgia Tech for seven years, and is currently serving as the Director of Sustainability Engagement and the Program Director of the University Global Coalition (UGC).
About the Track
This track incorporates key elements of sustainability into its theme. Participants can expect on and off campus educational experiences in the topics of energy conservation, green buildings, local food systems, and more in addition to the standard GT1000 instruction. Come learn how Georgia Tech and the greater Atlanta community are approaching these critical issues!
Undergraduate Research
Track Co-Leaders
Dr. Courtney Hoffman is an Academic Professional for Undergraduate Research Writing, in which capacity she teaches research proposal and thesis writing courses as well as provides administrative support for Georgia Tech’s Undergraduate Research Option Program (UROP). Her personal research focuses on the intersection of literary and writing studies, pedagogically focusing on social justice in writing courses and also concerned with 18th-century correspondence and culture. One of her current works in progress is “On the Shoulders of Giants: Natural Philosophy in First-Year Composition,” where she argues 18th-century science texts can serve as models for transdisciplinary thinking and as vehicles for multimodal communication in first-year writing. She is also collaborating with a colleague on a project examining 18th-century midwifery manuals as texts to produce and reproduce culture through genre development as technical writing. Courtney recently completed a term as a Marion L. Brittain Postdoctoral Fellow at the GeorgiaTechn, where she also served as Assistant Director of the Writing and Communication Program.
As Director of Undergraduate Research, Laura Williams collaborates with faculty, academic units & colleges, and campus organizations to lead and contribute to new and existing undergraduate research initiatives across Georgia Tech. She develops data-informed programs—to utilize both inside and outside the classroom—to boost quality, implementation, and engagement—and to reduce disparities and enhance participation among underrepresented student groups. She also oversees the undergraduate research curriculum and operations of the Research Option and the research-themed sections of GT1000 and GT2000; coordinate existing undergraduate research programming; and develop and fortify partnerships with school administration, faculty, staff, and campus programs like VIP, Create-X, REUs, VP of Research, etc.
About the Track
This track will focus on undergraduate research and how it can benefit you as an undergraduate and beyond! Students interested in learning more about undergraduate research opportunities would be interested in this track.