VSU Center for South Georgia Regional Impact

Applications are now open for the 2026 South GeorgiaLEADS' Women's Leadership Initiative class! Applications and letters of recommendation are due November 15, 2025. Sessions begin in January 2026 and run through June.

To learn more about the WLI program and submit your application, southgeorgialeads.org/sgwli

Congratulations to these leaders! We applaud you for focusing on our region and making us all better.

Congratulations to the 25 leaders selected for the 2024-2025 Regional Leadership Initiative class of South GeorgiaLEADS! This group is already hard at work this week with their kick-off session and opening retreat in Sumter County. We can't wait to see what the next 8 months together will bring!

Ashby Autry, JCI Contractors
Nancy Bryan, Ruth's Cottage & The Patticake House
Cheryl Cannon, Terrell County Chamber of Commerce
Joseph Ditto, Pixel Point, LLC
George Dobbins, Georgia Power Company
Alex English, Resilient Georgia
Clint Faircloth, Keller Williams Georgia Communitiesities
DeWana Fields, The Anchor of Hope House
George Foreman, Goodwill Industries of the Southern Rivers
Xavier Gaulden, Georgia Power Company
Keyondria Harris, Southern Regional Technical College
Grant Herring, Ace Electric, Inc.
Chad Horne, Colquitt County School District
Michelle Jones, Valdosta Orthopedic Associates
Alonso Martinez, Wells Fargo Advisors
Andrew McNeal, Hotel Group
Niki Ogletree, Valdosta-Lowndes County Development Authority
Kevin Overlaur, Valdosta State University
Chandra Peterkin, Rae of Sunshine Cleaning LLC
Milton Reese, Dougherty County School System
Mark Scott, The City of Americus Georgia
Jayme Smith, Colquitt Downtown Development Authority
Jennifer Thomas, Turner County Schools
Darquita Williams, City of Nashville, GA-City Government
Cindy Wisham, United Way of Southwest Georgia

Join the Georgia Partnership for Excellence in Education and Valdosta State University for the Education & Workforce Pipeline Summit this Thursday, October 14th, from 8:30 am until 12:30 pm. They will discuss the barriers to and through higher education for South Georgia students and tackle the challenges of improving the education and workforce pipeline.

This event is FREE, but please register, as seating is limited.

Regional Education Pipeline Summit-Valdosta, GA Regional Meeting Hosted by the Georgia Partnership for Excellence in Education & Valdosta State University

The Center for South Georgia Regional Impact's Executive Director, Darrell Moore, was featured in a South Georgia Business + Culture Magazine podcast.

To hear the latest about CSGRI, listen to the podcast at: https://southgeorgiainsider.buzzsprout.com/

In this podcast, we're talking to Darrell Moore with VSU Center for South Georgia Regional Impact. The center is focused on developing partnerships and providing resources to support the growth of communities within a 41-county service region. Locate South Georgia Valdosta State University Valdosta State News

Listen to the podcast: https://southgeorgiainsider.buzzsprout.com/

Subscribe through Apple Podcast, Spotify, and iHeart and join us as we highlight South Georgia as a great place to live, work, and play.

Congratulations, Moultrie-Colquitt County, on unveiling your new community branding!! 👏

'Where Life Grows': Chamber launches new community brand MOULTRIE, Ga. — The Moultrie-Colquitt County Chamber of Commerce unveiled its first updated branding in over a decade Friday.

"Kemp said 74% of new project locations and expansions came outside of the 10-county Atlanta region, along with more than two-thirds of total investments and about one-third of new jobs. He pledged on the campaign trail three years ago to focus economic development efforts on rural Georgia."

Georgia Enjoys Record-Setting Economic Development Numbers Despite COVID-19 Nearly $11 billion in new investments during fiscal 2021, which ended June 30, represented a 46% increase over the last fiscal year, while 33,439 jobs created across the state beat the previous record by 5%.