GCSU Leadership Programs to host best-selling author

On Monday, Feb. 19, at 5 p.m., Georgia College & State University Leadership Programs will host Deke Copenhaver, best-selling author. The event will mark the second in the Usery Forum on Leadership series for 2024.

Deke Copenhaver is principal of Copenhaver Consulting, LLC. From 2005 to 2014, he served as mayor of Augusta-Richmond County. After leaving office, he hosted There it is ... with Deke Copenhaver, a live daily radio show. He has also served as managing consultant for the Augusta Economic Development Authority. 

“I am delighted and honored to welcome Deke Copenhaver to Georgia College,” said Dr. Harold Mock, director of leadership programs. “He’s an innovator and someone who knows how to bring people together. I know our students will benefit from his wisdom and insights.’”

Copenhaver has been recognized on multiple occasions by Georgia Trend Magazine as one of the 100 Most Influential Georgians. He has spoken widely on city design, economic development, healthcare, veterans’ issues and the nonprofit sector. He currently authors a monthly column on leadership published by the Georgia Municipal Association. 

Copenhaver earned a B.A. in political science from Augusta College and is a graduate of Leadership Georgia and the Mayors’ Institute on City Design. He is the author of The Changemaker: The Art of Building Better Leaders.

The forum will be hosted by Georgia College Leadership Programs. 

The event is free and open to the public and will be held in the Magnolia Ballroom in Milledgeville. To learn more, please visit the event webpage.

The Usery Forum on Leadership honors the legacy of U.S. Secretary of Labor W.J. Usery Jr., exploring leadership that brings people together in service to the public good. The series is supported by a generous gift from Mr. and Mrs. Melvin and Eleyce Usery.

About Georgia College Leadership Programs

Georgia College’s Office of Leadership Programs provides teaching, research and public service related to leadership, citizenship, democracy and public affairs. With the support of a distinguished faculty and practitioners, we educate the next generation of Georgia’s leaders for the public good. Our programs bring together scholars and students, as well as business leaders, non-profit executives, journalists and public officials and offer a trusted forum on citizen-leadership and pressing issues of the day.

For more information, please visit www.gcsu.edu/leadership or contact leadership.programs@gcsu.edu or (478) 445-1227.