Contact: Justin Pauly, Director of Communications, 770-962-6843, jpauly@77.104.138.114
The Georgia School Boards Association’s Board of Directors is pleased to announce Mrs. Valarie Wilson as the next Executive Director.
Current Executive Director, Sis Henry, who has served GSBA for 14 years and has been involved in public service for 44 years is retiring June 30, 2015. The GSBA Board of Directors voted to approve Mrs. Wilson’s hire at their May 8 meeting.
“Valarie brings an unsurpassed perspective along with a high level of knowledge and experience about public education and leadership to the Association. We look forward to this new endeavor with Valarie as Executive Director and will continue to support the excellent work of school boards and public education all across Georgia, said Nath Morris, GSBA President and Chair of the Hall County Board of Education.
Mrs. Wilson joined the school board of the City Schools of Decatur in 2002 and became the moving force behind the establishment of the College Heights Early Childhood Learning Center, acting on research that shows that early childhood education is critical to success in the K-12 years.
As Decatur City Schools Board Chair from 2005-2011, Mrs. Wilson along with the other members of the board, helped to turn around the finances of the district. Through reorganization, the district was able to move forward during the recession with no teacher furloughs or shortening of the school year.
Mrs. Wilson joined the Georgia School Boards Association in 2009 and was its president in 2012-2013. She helped create the Georgia Vision Project, an educational framework for boards that included input from board members, superintendents, teachers, teaching colleges, elected officials, parents and students. Over 80 percent of the state’s school boards have agreed to support the Vision’s recommendations.
As GSBA president, Mrs. Wilson was involved in leading the association and improving the grassroots network in influencing statewide policy. She has also served on Governor Deal’s Education Advisory Board and was a member of the Decatur Education Foundation.
Mrs. Wilson was the Executive Director of the Atlanta BeltLine Partnership, Inc. and Director of the Human Services Department in Fulton County, responsible for an annual budget of $26 million and directing programs that serve the elderly, children and youth. She has also been Director of Fulton County’s Office of Aging.
In 2014, Mrs. Wilson ran for the Office of State School Superintendent.
A native of Swainsboro, Georgia, Valarie is a graduate of Clark College and completed graduate studies in public administration at Troy State University. She now lives in Decatur with her husband Carter. Mrs. Wilson has one son, Nicholas who resides in West Virginia.