Deal appoints 14 to boards

Kevin Curtin, Board of Directors of the Georgia Emergency Communications Authority
Curtin is the assistant vice president of Legislative Affairs for AT&T. He is a former chairman of the Government Affairs Council for the Georgia Chamber of Commerce and sits on the Chamber’s board of directors. Curtin is a member and former chairman of the Technology Association of Georgia’s Governmental Relations Task Force. He earned a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from the Terry College of Business at the University of Georgia and a master’s degree from the J. Mack Robinson College of Business at Georgia State University. Curtin and his wife, Julie, have two children and reside in Atlanta.

Billy Grogan, Board of Directors of the Georgia Emergency Communications Authority
Grogan is the chief of the Dunwoody Police Department. He is a former president of the Georgia Association of Chiefs of Police. Grogan earned a master’s degree in Public Administration from Kennesaw State University and graduated in the 193rd Session of the FBI National Academy. He and his wife, Wanda, have two children. 

H. W. “Billy” Hancock, Board of Directors of the Georgia Emergency Communications Authority
Hancock is the sheriff of Crisp County and has more than four decades of experience in public safety. He began his career as an emergency medical technician with Crisp County EMS and currently serves as the emergency management director of Crisp County. Hancock is a former vice president of the Peace Officers Association of Georgia and a former board member of the Georgia Peace Officer Standards and Training Council. He is a member of the Georgia Sheriffs’ Association and the National Sheriffs’ Association. Hancock sits on the Georgia Sheriffs’ Association training board and the 911 Advisory Board. He twice received the Georgia Deputy Sheriff of the Year Award from the Georgia Sheriffs’ Association and was honored by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police for his teaching contributions in Canada. Hancock is a member the Cordele Lions Club and has held multiple leadership roles in the organization. He is a graduate of the Moultrie Technical College EMS program and the 57th Georgia State Patrol Academy. Hancock and his wife, Mary Ellen, live in Cordele.

John McDonough, Board of Directors of the Georgia Emergency Communications Authority
McDonough is the city manager of Sandy Springs. He retired as a colonel in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve and was a co-founder of the Chattahoochee River E-911 Authority (ChatComm). McDonough is the chairman of the North Fulton Regional Radio System Authority and the immediate past president of the Georgia City-County Management Association. He sits on the board of directors for the Sandy Springs/Perimeter Chamber of Commerce. McDonough earned a bachelor’s degree from The Citadel and a master’s degree in Public Administration from Indiana University. He and his wife, Elizabeth, have three children. 

Charlotte Nash, Board of Directors of the Georgia Emergency Communications Authority
Nash is the chair of the Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners. She retired from the Gwinnett County government following nearly 28 years of service. Nash sits on the board of managers for the Association of County Commissioners of Georgia and the Atlanta Regional Commission Board. She is also a district chair of the Metropolitan North Georgia Water Planning District Governing Board. Nash earned a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Georgia. She and her husband, Michael, have two children and two grandchildren. They reside in Dacula. 

Steve Nichols, Board of Directors of the Georgia Emergency Communications Authority
Nichols is the chief of fire and emergency services for Banks County. He retired from Gwinnett County Fire and Emergency Services following more than three decades of service. Nichols is the chairman of area one for the Emergency Management Association of Georgia and a member of the Northeast Georgia Region 10 Emergency Management Services Council. He is also the assistant chief of the Nicholson Volunteer Fire Department. Nichols is a graduate of Pikes Peak Community College. He and his wife, Dana, have four children and nine grandchildren. They live in Nicholson.  

Peter Olson, Board of Directors of the Georgia Emergency Communications Authority
Olson is the county administrator of Bartow County. He previously practiced law with a focus on local government law, land use and zoning. Olson sits on the board of directors for the Cartersville-Bartow County Chamber of Commerce. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Vanderbilt University and a law degree from the University of Texas School of Law. Olson has two children and resides in Cartersville.

Greg Whitaker, Board of Directors of the Georgia Emergency Communications Authority
Whitaker is the director of Douglas County E-911. He previously worked with the Douglas County Sherriff’s Office and served on the Governor’s Commission on 9-1-1 System Modernization and Balanced Funding Model. Whitaker is serving a fourth term as president of the Georgia 9-1-1 Directors Association. He is a member of the National Emergency Number Association and the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials. Whitaker is a graduate of the North Central Georgia Law Enforcement Academy (NCGLEA). He has served as a guest instructor for the Fulton County Public Safety Training Center, the Clayton County Regional Law Enforcement Academy and NCGLEA. Whitaker and his wife, Vicki, have two daughters and live in Douglas County.

William Wright, Board of Directors of the Georgia Emergency Communications Authority
Wright is the 911 manager for Barrow County and has 30 years of experience in emergency management. He sits on the board of directors for the Emergency Management Association of Georgia. Wright is a member of the Georgia chapter of the National Emergency Number Association, the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials and the Georgia 9-1-1 Directors Association. He is a Georgia Certified Emergency Manager and is nationally certified as a 911 Communication Center Manager. Wright graduated from Gupton-Jones College of Funeral Service and is a licensed embalmer and funeral director. He resides in Winder.

Ted Wynn, Board of Directors of the Georgia Emergency Communications Authority
Wynn is the director of public safety and emergency management for Bulloch County and has more than three decades of experience in public safety administration. He is a former president of the Georgia chapter of the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials. Wynn earned a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Georgia Southern University. He is also a certified peace officer. Wynn and his wife, Terri, have three children and five grandchildren. They live in Statesboro.

Phillip Peacock, Board of Homeland Security
Peacock is the director of corporate security for Georgia Power and has 45 years of experience in law enforcement and corporate security. He specializes in investigations, security risk and crisis management. Peacock completed executive leadership programs at the Naval Postgraduate School, Northwestern University and Georgetown University. He is a graduate of the Georgia International Law Enforcement Exchange Program through Georgia State University and holds certifications in Infrastructure Protection and Insider Threat Security from the Texas A&M Engineering Extension Service. Peacock received the Distinguished Alumni Award from Georgia State University. He earned an associate degree in Criminal Justice from South Georgia State College, a bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice from Georgia State University and a law degree from the Woodrow Wilson College of Law. Peacock and his wife, Sandy, reside in Smyrna. 

Rep. Alan Powell, Board of Homeland Security
Powell is a real estate broker and represents the 32nd district in the Georgia House of Representatives. In the House of Representatives, Powell is the chairman of the Public Safety and Homeland Security Committee and a member of the Appropriations, Governmental Affairs, Motor Vehicles, Regulated Industries, Rules and Small Business Development committees. He earned a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Georgia Southwestern State University. Powell lives in Hartwell.

Kyle Sapp, Board of Homeland Security
Sapp is the sheriff of Tattnall County and has more than three decades of experience in law enforcement, including with Georgia State Patrol. He sits on the board of directors for the Canoochee EMC Foundation and the advisory board for the Georgia Crisis Intervention Team. Sapp is a former president and life member of the Peace Officers Association of Georgia. He and his wife, Gloria, have three children and reside in Collins. 

Erika Shields, Board of Homeland Security
Shields is the chief of the Atlanta Police Department (APD). Since 1995, she has served in numerous roles with APD including patrol officer, sergeant, major and deputy chief. According to the FBI Uniform Crime Report, in Shields’ first full year as police chief in 2017, major crimes were down 8 percent, armed robberies were down 32 percent, burglaries were down 23 percent and murders were down 29 percent compared to the previous year. She serves on Criminal Justice Coordinating Council and was previously the commander of the APD Field Operations Division. Shields is a member of the Georgia Association of Chiefs of Police, the International Association of Chiefs of Police and the Police Executive Research Forum. She earned a bachelor’s degree in International Studies from Webster University and a master’s degree in Criminal Justice from Saint Leo University.