Georgia Piedmont Technical College will select a mascot for the first time in the college's history. Students, faculty and staff will have an opportunity to help select GPTC's official mascot.

The list of suggestions is narrowing from a field of 174 names. A few of the suggestions are: Panther, Patriot, Tiger, Lion, Eagle and Spartan.

College mascots, although traditionally associated with sports teams, reflects and incites a shared school spirit that connects students, alumni, faculty, staff and others associated with a college. Discussions are ongoing about how the mascot will be used at GPTC.

"We are excited about the possibilities and look forward to building new traditions with GPTC students, alumni, faculty, staff and the surrounding communities," said Dr. Jabari Simama, President of Georgia Piedmont Technical College.

Georgia Piedmont Technical College, a unit of the Technical College System of Georgia, has nine campuses in DeKalb, Newton, Rockdale, and Morgan counties. Georgia Piedmont Technical College currently has more than 5,000 students enrolled in diploma or degree programs and more than 9,000 in adult education classes. For more information, go to www.GPTC.edu.