Cathy Cox To Become Next President At Georgia College & State University

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Former Georgia Secretary of State Cathy Cox has been chosen as the sole finalist to become president of Georgia College & State University in Milledgeville.

Credit: Mercer University

Former Georgia Secretary of State Cathy Cox has been chosen as the sole finalist to become president of Georgia College & State University in Milledgeville.

Cox, who has spent 14 years in academia since leaving state government, currently serves as dean of the Mercer University School of Law. Before that, she served for a decade as president of Young Harris College.

“Cathy Cox knows and appreciates the impact of a 21st-century liberal arts education while deeply understanding the need to support students and commit to their success,” Teresa MacCartney, the University System of Georgia’s acting chancellor, said Thursday.

“Cathy’s experience and record show she is the best candidate to continue Georgia College & State University’s progress toward becoming a preeminent national public liberal arts university.”

Cox, a Democrat, was elected Georgia’s first female secretary of state in 1998. She served two terms before running unsuccessfully for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination in 2006.

The Bainbridge native also served two terms in the Georgia House of Representatives.

Cox earned a journalism degree from the University of Georgia and worked as a newspaper reporter in Bainbridge and Gainesville before entering the law school at Mercer. She practiced law for a decade after graduating magna cum laude.

She also earned an associate degree in agriculture from Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College in Tifton.

“As someone who earned her undergraduate degrees through the University System of Georgia, I know how important it is to give students a strong foundation and the skills they need to help themselves and the state succeed,” Cox said.

“I am very excited for the chance to build upon Georgia College & State University’s reputation and work with faculty and staff to create a world-class destination for the liberal arts right here in Georgia.”

The university system’s Board of Regents will take action on Cox’s appointment at a future board meeting.

Current Georgia College President Steve Dorman has announced he is leaving this fall.

This story comes to GPB through a reporting partnership with Capitol Beat News Service.