On January 11, 2017, the Regents of the University System of Georgia announced that the university would merge with Armstrong State University in Savannah as part of the ongoing campus consolidations recommended by the University System of Georgia (USG). Since 2011, in an attempt to improve efficiency and lower costs, the USG has consolidated several colleges and universities within its system, merging some and closing others while altering or transforming curriculums. In January 2018, both Armstrong State and its smaller Liberty Campus, located in Hinesville, formally merged with Georgia Southern.