America's first state-chartered institution of higher education has become one of America's very best public research universities. UGA is a land-grant and sea-grant university with statewide commitments and responsibilities. As flagship of the state university system, it is Georgia's oldest, most comprehensive and most diversified university. Its motto, "to teach, to serve and to inquire into the nature of things," reflects the university's integral and unique role in the conservation and enhancement of the state's and nation's intellectual, cultural and environmental heritage.