Foundation Spotlight
GHC Foundation, Inc. welcomes three new members to serve on the organization’s board of trustees DR. GAYLAND COOPER Spending 40 years working in public education with roles ranging from high school science teacher to principal to Assistant Superintendent and then Superintendent for Rome City Schools, Gayland Cooper says he and his late wife, Barbara Cooper, have always wanted to serve their hometown of Cedartown and the Northwest Georgia
region. “Cedartown was very good to us when we were growing up, and we have always wanted to give back,” Cooper said. “Georgia Highlands is absolutely the greatest value for a college education around, and here it is right in our own community.” Following a lifetime of public service through educa-
SALLY PLATT With a history of community service through her expansive career in Nursing, Education, and Information Technology, Sally Platt will bring her years of mentorship and civic outreach experience to the GHC Foundation. Platt, of Marietta, most recently served as a Registered Nurse for 33 years, retiring from the Scottish Rite campus of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta in 2009. Platt became involved with GHC after mentoring a Rotary Club scholarship recipient who initially began their academic career at another nearby institution. “The student I was mentoring transferred to Georgia Highlands and I didn’t know that much about the college,” Platt said. “He asked me if I would still be his mentor, and I said ‘sure,’ and we transferred his scholarship to GHC so he could continue his education.” That was when Platt decided to learn more about GHC and what the college has to offer. She invited then-
CINDY WILLIAMS Cindy Williams, who serves as the CEO of the Cartersville-Bartow County Chamber of Commerce, will apply her background in the chamber industry to a new role as a member of the GHC Foundation Board of Trustees. Williams has worked with the Cartersville-Bartow County Chamber since February 2016 and has worked in the Chamber industry since 2006. In her previous role as President & CEO of the Blairsville-Union County Chamber of Commerce, she oversaw the development and implementation of a community-wide tourism marketing plan, led a local festival to its first ever designation
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tion and community outreach, Cooper, who retired in 2012, said he is always looking for ways to serve. His longtime commitment to education means his role on the board will be student-focused, with the overall goal being to help students continue a path of higher education. “I want the young people in our area to be successful and to earn a college degree and have the American dream someday for their family,” Cooper said. “I feel privileged that I was asked to serve, and I hope that I can contribute to the GHC Foundation financially and with my experience as well.” Cooper is a member of the Rotary Club of Rome and serves on the Boys and Girls Club Board of Northwest Georgia and is a past president. He serves on the board of the Rome Symphony Orchestra and on the board at Harbor House. He is past president of the Rome/Floyd County Commission on Children and Youth and past chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Rome/Floyd United Way.
president Don Green and now interim president Dana Nichols to speak at a Rotary meeting and later was asked if she would like to serve on the GHC Foundation’s Board of Trustees. “Mentoring is something I have done a lot of. I taught high school for 10 years before I went into nursing, and with five children and stepchildren of my own and many grandkids, I have a sense of how kids think in a way,” Platt said. “And the last 10 years of nursing I was in pediatrics, which is ages birth to 21.” Platt said the more she learned about GHC, the more she wanted to become involved and become a champion for students and the GHC Foundation, She said the affordability and quality of programs offered by the college should make the institution a first choice for anyone seeking a college degree. “I love to do public speaking, so I see part of my role as being able to spread the word about Georgia Highlands,” Platt said. The Rotary Club of Marietta Metro, of which she is a longtime member and past president, now offers by way of its Foundation, a scholarship through the GHC Foundation.
as a Southeast Tourism Society Top 20 Event, and led the Chamber to achieve the Georgia Certified Chamber designation. Williams has earned her certification as a Georgia Certified Chamber Executive. She is a graduate of Leadership Georgia, the Institute for Organization Management, and the Georgia Academy for Economic Development. She currently serves as the Chair-Elect on the Board of Directors for the Georgia Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives and locally on the Board of Directors for the Cartersville-Bartow County Convention & Visitors Bureau and Art in Bartow. In addition, she holds a Business Marketing degree from Piedmont College and a Master of Business Administration from Auburn University.
