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ALBANY, GA --
Albany Technical College selected the four finalists out of 13 nominees for its annual Georgia Occupational Award of Leadership (GOAL) for his year.

The final four include Rolanda Bailey (Business Logistics Management), Ivey Norton (Dental Assisting), Kayla Robinson (Computer Information Systems) and Reginald Sweet (Early Childhood Care and Education). 

An Albany Area Chamber of Commerce panel will interview these finalists later this week; one will be selected to compete at the State GOAL competition that will be held April 23 to 27 in Atlanta.

"That's an awesome honor because we serve almost 4,000 students, and to be chosen number one out of those 4,000 students it makes a huge difference when employers are looking at that and you receive that award," says Charlene Duncan, Early Childhood Care and Education Instructor who also nominated Sweet.

The state winner is the official spokesperson for technical education in Georgia for 2012. The Albany Tech winner will also have an opportunity to compete at the Regional Competition for GOAL, which will be held for the Southwest Georgia consortium on Feb. 23, at Moultrie Tech’s Tifton campus.

All 13 nominees will also be honored at a banquet on Tuesday, January 31, 2012 in the Kirkland Conference Center at Albany Tech. They will be presented with certificates, along with the four finalists. The final winner will be presented at this ceremony. The GOAL program recognizes exceptional technical college students from across the state for their academic excellence and personal achievement. The program also spotlights the important role of technical training in our economy.

The four GOAL finalists were selected out of 13 nominees during an on-campus interview panel held on Monday, Jan. 23.