Board of Directors
Dr. Gertrude Robinson, Chair
Dr. Gertrude Robinson is a proud, born and raised citizen of the East Savannah Community in Savannah, Georgia. She attended the public schools in Chatham County and graduated from Sol C. Johnson High School class of 1966. She earned her bachelor’s degree and master’s degrees in business from Savannah State College (currently known as Savannah State University). She earned Education Specialist and Education Doctorate Degrees from South Carolina State University. She also holds doctorate degrees in Christian Counseling and Divinity from Jacksonville Theological Seminary.
Paul Fisher, Co-Chair
Born and grew up in South Dakota
BS Chemical Engineering from South Dakota School of Mines and Technology
30-year career with Dow Chemical
• Jobs in Product Development, Sales, Marketing, Human Resources, and Purchasing
• Held management jobs from front line to Executive Management
Donald Mayer, Treasurer
Bio pending
Tamara Waterman, Secretary
Tamara Waterman is a grant writer and serve as a principal investigator for several Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP) grant awards. Her latest grant secured was a seven-year award in the amount of $3.9 million to serve schools in Savannah-Chatham County Public School System. As a volunteer with various community programs, Tamara is aware of the opportunities and challenges families face in our school system. Her service as director of GEAR UP at Savannah State University (SSU) allows her to assist many at-risk students with realizing their potential. GEAR UP is a community partnership program that prepare students for college, technical school, or the world of work.
Ivan Cohen
Bio pending
Stephanie S. Cutter
Stephanie S. Cutter began her professional career with the State of Georgia in 1976 while a rising sophomore at Savannah State College majoring in Mathematics. She holds a Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting and a Master of Public Administration, both from Savannah State College. In 1989, Cutter left employment with the State of Georgia and accepted a position with the City of Savannah as a Budget Analyst. She advanced throughout the City of Savannah overseeing departments, bureaus and in 2013 became Savannah City Manager.
Dr. Leia Dedic
Leia Dedic has nearly a decade of economic development experience, currently serving as the Vice President of Strategy & Partnerships for the Savannah Economic Development Authority (SEDA). Leia is responsible for the overall planning, budgeting, and management of SEDA’s efforts related to strategic planning, community partnerships, research, and grants while assisting with organizational effectiveness. She also led the effort of identifying target countries for World Trade Center Savannah’s strategic international efforts, helped shape SEDA’s Propel Savannah five-year strategic plan, has written more than $5 million in successful grant applications that enabled the creation of 1,600 jobs and $300 million in investment and is the organization's Salesforce administrator helping the team track progress towards annual goals.
Amanda Drought
Amanda Drought is the Program Manager for Early Childhood with the Savannah-Chatham County Public School District. Amanda previously taught Pre-K at Hodge Elementary and Garden City Elementary Schools for seven years before transitioning to an administrative position.
Amanda oversees 65 classrooms at 28 sites throughout the Savannah-Chatham County School District. She works closely with Bright From The Start to meet the educational needs of the district’s earliest learners.
Amanda was raised in Savannah and attended the local schools, graduating from Armstrong State College. She has been married 32 years and has 4 children and one very special granddaughter.
Dr. Alisa Leckie
Dr. Alisa Leckie began her teaching career in Tucson, Arizona almost 30 years ago. She taught middle-level Language Arts, Spanish Language Arts, and ESL for 18 years, earning her National Board Certification and master’s degree along the way. In addition to teaching her middle-level students, Alisa coached soccer and cross-country. She was also instrumental in developing an award-winning dual language program at her middle school. When Arizona became an English-only state, Alisa and her colleagues provided professional development throughout the state of Arizona to help teachers develop the skills they needed to effectively work with English learners.
Jeff Cole
Jeff Kole is the President of Kole Management Company, a real estate management and investment firm.
He is active in a number of area nonprofit and civic organizations, including the United Way of the Coastal Empire, Senior Citizens Inc., the Chatham Housing Coalition, and the Jewish Educational Alliance.
Before joining Kole Management in 1994, Jeff was a newspaper/newsletter editor and reporter in Washington, DC for 12 years. A Savannan native, Jeff is married to LeeAnn Altman Kole. They have three grown children, Amy, Jeremy and Zachary.
Dr. Kim MacQueen
Bio pending
Jody McIntyre
Bio pending
Chief Roy W. Minter, Jr.
Roy W. Minter, Jr. was appointed as the Chief of Police for the Savannah Police Department on August 27, 2018. He comes to Savannah from Peoria, Arizona where he served as Chief of Police for more than 7 years.
Prior to his appointment in Peoria, Chief Minter served as the Chief of Police for the Denton, Texas Police Department from 2007-2011.
Chief Minter also spent 15 years with the Aurora, Colorado Police Department where he held several positions including: Narcotics Unit Sergeant, Training Section Commander, and Operations Support Section Commander, where he supervised the SWAT Team, K-9 Unit, Gang Intervention Unit, and Pattern Crimes Unit. In his last assignment, he served as Commander of the Department’s largest patrol precinct.
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Advisory Board
Katy Gregg, PhD
Katy Gregg, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor at Georgia Southern University in Child & Family Development. Dr. Gregg teaches courses in child development and methods to support young children, children with special needs, professionalism, and ethics, and supervises internship experiences. She uses naturalistic and mixed methods to research family engagement, young children with challenging behaviors, and inclusion in classrooms and community-based settings.
Dr. Gregg served on the Georgia Association for the Education on Young Children (GAEYC) board for over 7 years, including as President of the organization through 2020.
Since 2015, she has worked with Parent University on data tracking and joined the Parent University Advisory Board in 2021. She lives in Statesboro with her two young daughters, her husband, 1 dog, and 1 cat.
Mayor Van R. Johnson II
Purpose, Passion, and People are the core principles that guide and drive the life of the Honorable Van R. Johnson, II, the 67th Mayor of the City of Savannah, GA.
Born and raised in Brooklyn, NY, but with strong Savannah roots, Mayor Johnson is a graduate of the New York City Public School System and has earned Undergraduate and graduate degrees from Savannah State and Georgia Southern University.
As a former radio talk show host, political commentator, and former author of local weekly columns, Mayor Johnson has distinguished himself as an independent, thoughtful, and passionate voice on current events
Chief Stephenie Price
Bio Pending
Jack Reese
John S. "Jack" Reese, 78, is a native of Pennsylvania, a graduate of Penn State University, and a retired US Army Caption. Jack began a real estate career in Savannah, Georgia in 1968. He formed Reese and Company, Inc. in 1972, specializing in all aspects of commercial and industrial real estate for over 40 years, including the development and management of industrial real estate.
Jack served with Savannah Early Childhood Foundation for several years prior to the merge in 2020 with Parent University. His interests also include the Georgia Coastal Council of the Boy Scouts of America, having recently served as the Council President for 2 years.
Jack is married to Gretchen Kohrt, retired Principal of Largo Elementary School and has one adult child and two grandchildren. He has a deep interest in helping to break the cycle of "children having children" in Savannah.
Steve Sarowitz
Bio Pending
Meghan Dove
Bio Pending
Marjan Yavari
Bio Pending