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Savannah State University Employees Selected for USG Executive Leadership Institute

Two Savannah State University (SSU) employees are among the 35 faculty and staff members named to the 2022 – 2023 University System of Georgia’s (USG) Executive Leadership Institute (ELI).

Kisha Aites, Ph.D., associate professor of Engineering Technology Education and interim chair of the College of Education, and Sheri Rouse-Mainor, executive director for the SSU Foundation, Inc., and University Advancement & Philanthropic Operations have been selected to participate.

The ELI is a comprehensive six-month, 120-hour development program designed to enhance leadership skills and prepare participants for advanced and cabinet-level leadership positions within the University System of Georgia. The SSU team joins employees from 25 USG institutions and the University System Office. Presidents nominate one academic leader and one staff leader to participate. From the nominees, individuals are selected for the program and participate in a leadership development curriculum that includes content, personal reflection, job shadowing and cross-mentoring.

“I was happy to nominate Dr. Aites and Mrs. Rouse-Mainor to participate in the University System of Georgia’s Executive Leadership Institute,” said President of Savannah State University Kimberly Ballard-Washington. “Over the past few years, I’ve had opportunities to work closely with Dr. Aites and Mrs. Rouse-Mainor and it is clear they possess the leadership potential to move into senior leadership roles. Their dedication to our University is beyond reproach.”  

Kisha Aites, Ph.D.

Aites has been at Savannah State University since 2013 and now serves as the interim department chair of the College of Education and associate professor of Engineering Technology Education. She is a graduate of The School of the Arts in Rochester, N.Y., where she majored in dance and clarinet. She completed her undergraduate and graduate work in technology education at North Carolina A&T State University and her Ph.D. in workforce education and training development with a concentration in post-secondary technical leadership from The Pennsylvania State University. Aites is a Georgia Association for Engineering & Technology Education Awards Honoree, 2015 and 2016. She is also an Advance Career Technical Education Fellow and continues to travel locally, nationally, and internationally to focus on educational topics such as gender equity in technology and critical issues in teaching and learning. 

Sheri Rouse-Mainor

A native of Savannah, Rouse-Mainor is an alumna of Savannah State University, having earned two Bachelor of Business Administration degrees in Accounting and Computer Information Systems. She also earned a Master of Arts degree from Liberty University, Va. Rouse-Mainor has been employed at SSU for nearly 20 years, and has served the university in a variety of accounting and business positions. For the past 17 years, she has been an advisor for Greater Impact Campus Movement, a student organization focused on bringing Christian values to faculty, staff and students. Rouse-Mainor is a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., the Council for the Support and Advancement of Education, Association of Fundraising Professionals, the Association for Donor Relations Professionals and the Association for Advancement Services Professionals.

USG has hosted ELI for faculty and staff for more than a decade as an investment in future leaders within the University System of Georgia and offers professional development opportunities to help them grow their careers.

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