Board of Advisors

Ms. Jan B. Anderson

Jan Anderson, a retired educator who lives in Statesboro, was recognized as Alumna of the Year for the College of Education in 2005. She is President of the Bulloch County Historical Society and Regent of the Archibald Bulloch Chapter of the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution (NSDAR). She won the NSDAR’s National Historic Preservation Medal and National Individual Award for the preservation and restoration of the Oak Grove One Room School that was donated to Georgia Southern University and placed in the Botanical Garden.

Anderson taught readiness first grade and was selected to teach a math class that was aired on Public Broadcasting System Channel 9. In 2004, the library at Calvary Day School in Savannah was named in her honor. Anderson has been a church pianist, choir member, and Sunday school teacher for more than forty years.

Dr. Joseph Barrow

Dr. Joseph C. Barrow, Jr., is Superintendent of Fayette County Schools and is President of the Georgia School Superintendents Association. Before becoming Superintendent in Fayette, Barrow served as Superintendent of Ware County Schools. He also served as Principal of Glynn Academy in Brunswick, GA. Prior experience included being Principal of Meadows Elementary in Vidalia; Principal of Bethlehem Elementary in Barrow County; Assistant Principal of Appling County Primary in Baxley; teacher, coach at Appling County High; and teacher, coach at Appling County Junior High.

His honors and awards include the State Senate Resolution for Excellence in Education 2003; Governor’s Cup Award Winner for highest SAT scores in the region, 2004-2005; Outstanding Educator Award given by the Georgia Association of Secondary School Principals; and National Association of Secondary School Principals Urban Round Table State Representative.

As a Superintendent of Ware County Schools, Dr. Barrow successfully led the county’s schools to increase its graduation rate more than 30% in just five years. Under his leadership, the system received its first AYP (Adequate Yearly Progress) award from the state in 2011.

Dr. Tom Bigwood

Dr. Tom Bigwood is Superintendent of Candler County Schools, a position he has held for nine years. Before becoming Superintendent in Candler County, Dr. Bigwood was principal of Southeast Bulloch High School in Brooklet, GA, from 1983 until 2003. During his service at Southeast Bulloch High the school was named a school of excellence twice and a national school in 2000.

After retiring Dr. Bigwood became an Educational Consultant with six counties in the First District RESA before serving as Candler County Schools Superintendent. Dr. Bigwood’s accomplishments at Candler County include the institution of vision, mission and accountability measures which resulted in an increase of the graduation rate from 56% to 83% over a five-year period. With the help of the School Board of Distinction, and the support of the community, Dr. Bigwood also built a state-of-the-art K-8 Educational Complex.

Mrs. Dayle Burns

Dayle Burns is an educator and active Georgia Southern alumna and Eagle enthusiast.

Burns is currently the K-5 Curriculum and Professional Learning Coordinator for the Effingham County School System. Prior to working in the curriculum office she was New Teacher Induction Coordinator for the school system. She has been an art teacher, school counselor, and principal at Springfield Elementary School. Burns is active in educational organizations and was past president of the District 1 Georgia Association of Elementary School Principals. Burns and her husband, Jon, are active in the Georgia Southern University Eagle Fund for Athletics. She received her B.S., Masters, and Education Specialist degrees from Georgia Southern.

Dr. Eugenia Fulcher

Dr. Eugenia (Genie) Fulcher is a retired educator in the field of adult education. Fulcher has taught in nursing schools that grant a diploma in nursing and in technical and adult education in the fields of nursing and medical assisting. She has served for the past 20 years as an accreditation surveyor in the field of medical assisting and has served as national chairman of the Medical Assisting Educational Review Board – the board responsible for providing initial and continuing accreditation to those schools who meet the Committee on Accreditation of Allied Health Programs – and was responsible for writing the current medical assisting standards. During her teaching career at Swainsboro Technical College she was twice selected for the President’s Award of Excellence for her performance in instructional duties, and was selected to represent southeast Georgia for the Rick Perkins Award given to the most outstanding instructor in the Georgia Department of Technical and Adult Education.

At present Fulcher is serving as the President of the Burke County Woman’s Club. As an avid GS alum, she has served as the county director of the Athletic Foundation in Burke County, and is presently on the Georgia Southern Alumni Board of Directors.
Genie holds an Associate Degree from Emory-at-Oxford and a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Emory University School of Nursing. She received a Master’s in Adult and Technical Education and Doctorate of Education in Curriculum Studies for Georgia Southern. She was the second graduate of the doctoral program and the oldest graduate in the Spring of 1999. She is a Master Flower Show judge emeritus, past president of the Town and Country Woman’s Club and past president of the Burkeland Garden Club and the Burke County Council of Garden Clubs.

Along with her husband, Fulcher is a published author in the field of pharmacology with multiple books presently in publication. She is proud that both of her sons were with the athletic program in the 1980s and both graduated from Georgia Southern. Fulcher lives in Waynesboro, Georgia.

Dr. Georj Lewis

Georj Lewis was named the vice president for student affairs at Armstrong Atlantic University in Savannah, Georgia, in 2013. Among his responsibilities, Dr. Lewis provides leadership and advances strategic goals at Armstrong. An alumnus of the College of Education, he received his Ed.D. in Leadership/Higher Education Administration in 2007.

Prior to joining Armstrong University, Dr. Lewis served as the vice chancellor for student affairs at Indiana University Northwest in Gary, Indiana. He also served as dean of students at Georgia Southern University for nine years and, prior to being named to that position, was the director of the Multicultural Student Center at Georgia Southern.

Originally from Connellsville, Pennsylvania, Dr. Lewis received his undergraduate and master’s degrees from Edinboro University of Pennsylvania.

Mrs. Sheila Hoynes

Sheila Garvin Hoynes, a COE alumna, is a life-long educator and continues to serve even after her retirement as a first grade teacher.

She has served as President of her Alpha Delta Kappa Chapter, a national organization for outstanding women educators; treasurer of the local chapter of Professional Association of Georgia Educators (PAGE) and President of the Rockdale Retired Educators Association. She is also a member of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools visiting committee in Georgia. A passionate Georgia Southern alumna, she has been a member of the Georgia Southern Alumni Board of Directors, serving as President from 2000-2002; a member of the Georgia Southern Athletic Foundation Board of Directors; and has been on the COE Board of Advisors since 2004. She is a member of Zeta Tau Alpha National Fraternity. She received her BSED from Georgia Southern College and her MED from the Savannah Graduate Center at Armstrong Atlantic State.

Mr. Eddie Pollard

Eddie Pollard, a COE alumnus, is a life-long educator. Among his many honors, Pollard was named Georgia’s 2011 National Distinguished Principal. He was recently named as Flint River Academy Head of School. Prior to his position at Flint River Academy, Pollard was principal of Tyrone Elementary school, a position he held for 14 years. He has also served as principal of Flat Rock Middle School, Braelinn Elementary, and North Fayette Elementary. Two of these schools were named a Georgia School of Excellence under his leadership. Pollard received his Ed.S. and M.Ed. from West Georgia College and his B.S.Ed. from Georgia Southern.

Mr. Mike Royal

In 2011, Mike Royal was named to the Georgia State Board of Education from the Seventh Congressional District. A graduate of Georgia Southern’s College of Business with a B.B.A. in Finance, Royal is a successful businessman. He helped establish BWT Risk Advisors, LLC, in 2004, and in 2012 he founded and is president of Partners Risk Services in Johns Creek, GA. He was recently named the Chairman of the State Board of Education’s Budget Committee. Royal is frequently working on legislative issues at the state and federal level and serves on the Government Affairs Committee of the National Association of State Boards of Education in Washington, DC. In addition to his service work in the business arena, Royal is active in his community serving as chairman of the Gwinnett County Zoning Board of Appeals, as a board member of the Governor’s Office of Consumer Protection, and as a member of the Legislative Council of the Gwinnett County Chamber of Commerce

Johnny Tremble

Johnny Tremble has served as clinical supervisor for teacher education at Western Governors University (WGU) since 2013. Prior to joining WGU he served as clinical instructor from 2005 to 2013 in the Department of Teaching and Learning at Georgia Southern University.

Tremble taught middle grades education at Marvin Pittman Laboratory School (MPLS) for seven years. After his teaching experience at MPLS he was named principal of MPLS and served as principal for fourteen years, and until the school was closed in 1998. In 1998 Tremble was honored as Alumnus of the Year for the College of Education at Georgia Southern University.

In 2005 Tremble retired from Bulloch County Schools after serving as principal of Langston Chapel Middle School from 1998 to 2005. Upon his retirement from Bulloch County Schools he was honored by the Langston Chapel Middle School Athletic Complex being named the Johnny W. Tremble Athletic Complex.

Mrs. Susan S. Young, Ed.D.

Dr. Susan Young is the Director of Educational Services for ATLAS Ministry, Inc., in Greensboro, GA. She is responsible for the programs provided through ATLAS for Greene County Schools, including the HOPE program for character education and the Christian Learning Center.

Prior to joining ATLAS in 2015, Dr. Young was a National Consultant with the Center for the Collaborative Classroom (CCC).  She worked with schools and districts across the country to establish relationships and assist in decisions about curriculum and professional development needs. She also presented workshops and professional development for administrators, literacy coaches, and teachers. Dr. Young also presented at state, regional and national conferences on topics related to literacy.

Dr. Young is a former elementary and middle school teacher and continues to hold teaching and administrative credentials in Georgia. She also served as a faculty member with appointments as Academic Dean and Department Chair at Aiken Technical College in Aiken, SC.

Dr. Young completed her Bachelors Degree in Elementary Education from the University of GA. She was awarded her Masters in Adult Education and Doctorate in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of SC. She and her husband Sam reside in Greensboro, GA.