GHC APPOINTS WATTERSON INTERIM VP
Georgia Highlands College has named Dr. Renva Watterson interim vice president of academic affairs, following the departure of Dr. Virginia Carson who is serving as interim president of South Georgia College. Watterson was chair of the humanities division at GHC.
She came to Georgia Highlands in 2005 from Shorter College, where she served as dean of the school of liberal arts and chairperson of the communication department. Previous positions include associate professor of communication and director of the Master of Liberal Arts program at Henderson State University in Arkansas.
She holds a Doctor of Education in college teaching and communication studies, as well as a Master of Arts in interpersonal and organizational communication from the University of Arkansas. She received her bachelor’s degree from Shorter in speech and theater.
Additionally, Watterson received a Wall Street Journal/Newspaper Fund fellowship to study scholastic journalism at the University of Missouri, a grant in broadcast journalism/media ethics studies at the Poynter Institute in Florida and a C-Span fellowship in collegiate broadcast and public affairs journalism in Washington, DC. She also studied in Little Rock, the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany under a Rockefeller grant for study of American and international education, innovation and change.
Watterson applauded Carson’s many accomplishments and said, “GHC is fortunate to possess a dedicated and highly competent faculty, a hardworking staff and an administration that deals admirably with unparalleled student population growth. I have consistently met with a conscientious and earnest student body working toward worthy personal goals. These elements provide a wonderful opportunity to meet today’s educational demands. I’m privileged to be offered this role, and I look forward to its many challenges.”
Watterson grew up in Calhoun and has lived in Rome for many years, participating actively in a number of community and civic groups, including service on the board of directors of the Network Day Service Center for adults with developmental delays and the Rome Exchange Club, where she has served as youth awards coordinator and board member. She currently co-chairs the art exhibit committee for the Exchange Club-sponsored Coosa Valley Fair. She has served on the board of directors of the National Creative Society, which fosters children’s creativity in the fine arts at the local level, and she has just finished a term as president of the Georgia Communication Association.
Georgia Highlands College is a two-year unit of the University System of Georgia, serving more than 4,000 students at six sites in Rome, Cartersville, Acworth, Marietta and Carrollton.