Deal names appointments to State Board of Education
Helen Odom Rice, 3rd Congressional District
Rice is a classroom teacher with more than two decades of teaching experience in Georgia. She has worked as an instructor in both elementary and high school classrooms in several school systems throughout the state. Rice has also served on several boards and community organizations, including the Troup County Council on Child Abuse, the United Way Board of Directors and the West Georgia Health Foundation. She earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a master’s in Education (T5) from Valdosta State University. She and her husband, Bill, have one son and three grandchildren. They live in LaGrange.
Daniel Israel, 4th Congressional District
Israel heads Consumer Mobile Product Management and Strategy at Home Depot. He has worked as a writer at Atlanta Jewish Times and a radio show contributor for WMLB 1690 and is a member of Atlanta Kiwanis. Israel earned a bachelor’s in economics and international studies, a master’s of Science from the London School of Economics, and his MBA from the Ross School of Business. He and his wife, Maya, have two children. They reside in Atlanta.
Kenneth Mason, 5th Congressional District
Mason is director of Urban Initiatives for the Southern Regional Education Board. He is a founding board member and advisory council chair for KIPP Strive Academy and teaches high school students on a civil rights emergent experience called Sojourn to the Past. Mason has also been a community liaison and robotic engineering consultant for Berkeley National Laboratory and served as a corps member adviser for Teach For America. Mason earned a bachelor’s of Science degree from Hendrix College and a master’s of Teaching/Education degree from the University of San Francisco. He and his wife live in Atlanta.
Barbara Hampton, CPA, 6th Congressional District
Hampton is the senior vice president and chief financial officer of the Georgia Transmission Corp. She serves as the chairman of Leadership Georgia and was a finalist for the Atlanta Business Chronicle’s CFO of the Year Award in 2010. Hampton earned a bachelor’s degree from Northeast Louisiana University and a master’s degree from the University of Georgia. She and her husband, Randy, have two children. They reside in Roswell.
Mike Royal, 7th Congressional District
Royal currently works at BWT Risk Advisors, LLC, and has 15 years of experience in the insurance industry. He serves as chairman of the Gwinnett County Zoning Board of Appeals, as a board member of the Governor’s Office of Consumer Protection and is also a member of the Legislative Council of the Gwinnett County Chamber of Commerce. Royal earned a bachelor’s in Finance with an emphasis in Risk Management and Insurance from Georgia Southern University. He and his wife, Lori, have three daughters. They live in Lawrenceville.
J. Grant Lewis, M.D., 11th Congressional District
Dr. Lewis practices internal medicine in Rome. He currently is on staff at several hospitals including Floyd Medical Center, Redmond Park Hospital and Beverly Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center, all in Rome. Lewis earned undergraduate degrees from both Oxford College and Emory University and a medical degree from Emory University’s School of Medicine. He also served on the Georgia Composite State Board of Medical Examiners. Lewis has three grown children and seven grandchildren.