President Jere W. Morehead began his tenure as the 22nd University of Georgia President on July 1, 2013. Under his leadership, the University has risen in the rankings of the best public colleges and universities and has completed a series of initiatives to enhance student learning and success, including a requirement for experiential learning for all undergraduates.

Additionally, the University already has surpassed the $1.2 billion goal of its ongoing fundraising campaign and launched an Innovation District initiative to create UGA’s campus of the future, where students and faculty will partner with industry to generate ideas and solutions to continue the University’s role as a powerful driver of economic development in Georgia. Research expenditures have increased 30 percent in the past five years, and UGA was the top U.S. institution for products based on university research reaching the marketplace in 2018.

In keeping with his focus on student success, President Morehead launched the ALL Georgia Program to support students from rural areas and created the Double Dawgs program, which enables students to save time and money by earning an undergraduate and graduate degree in five years or less. UGA graduates are in demand: in 2018, 96 percent of graduates were employed or in graduate school within six months of graduation.

President Morehead has served the University of Georgia since 1986 in both faculty and administrative roles. Before becoming President, he was Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost from 2010 to 2013. Prior to 2010, he held several key administrative assignments, including Vice President for Instruction, Vice Provost for Academic Affairs, Associate Provost and Director of the Honors Program, and acting Executive Director of Legal Affairs.

He is the Meigs Professor of Legal Studies in the Terry College of Business, where he has held a faculty appointment since 1986. He is a co-author of several books and book chapters, including The Legal and Regulatory Environment of Business, and he has published scholarly articles on legal topics ranging from export controls to jury selection. He has served as Editor-in-Chief of the American Business Law Journal.

His external service currently includes serving as Co-Chair of the University Leadership Forum, a national initiative led by the Council on Competitiveness to expand the role of American higher education in the global innovation economy. He is Vice President of the Southeastern Conference and a member of the SEC Executive Committee, which oversees the financial and fiscal affairs of the SEC. He also serves as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I Presidential Forum and the NCAA Legislative Working Group on Name, Image, and Likeness. Additional service includes membership on the boards of the Georgia Chamber of Commerce, Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce, Georgia Research Alliance, University System of Georgia Foundation, Atlanta Regional Council for Higher Education, and Emory University Candler School of Theology. He also serves on the Association for Public and Land-grant Universities Committee of Research Intensive Universities.

President Morehead has received several University-wide teaching awards, including the Josiah Meigs Award—UGA’s highest honor for teaching excellence, the Richard B. Russell Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching, the Teacher of the Year Award in the Terry College of Business, and the Lothar Tresp Outstanding Honors Professor Award.

He holds a bachelor’s degree from Georgia State University and a law degree from the University of Georgia.

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Dr. Pharr holds the dual roles of Chief of Staff of the President’s Office and Interim Vice President for Marketing and Communications.

As Chief of Staff, Dr. Pharr provides counsel to the President and serves as the principal liaison with the University System Chancellor’s Office. She also serves as the administrative liaison with the UGA Office of the Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost, as well as the vice presidents of Government Relations, Development and Alumni Affairs, and Finance and Administration, all of which report directly to the President. In addition, she provides administrative oversight of the offices of Internal Audit and Equal Opportunity, which report through the Chief of Staff to the President.

She further supervises the Assistants to the President, acts as principal liaison with the UGA Foundation, and provides administrative oversight of the President’s Sky Suite during football season and of all special events involving the President. In addition, Dr. Pharr serves on a number of special task forces and committees as the President’s representative.

As Interim Vice President for Marketing and Communications, Dr. Pharr oversees the Division of Marketing and Communications, which partners with key University units to develop research-driven, results-oriented communications, marketing, and media plans that advance University objectives and tell the institution’s story. The division includes Strategic Marketing, Media Communications, WUGA-FM, and the UGA Visitors Center. Dr. Pharr supervises the Interim Senior Executive Director of Marketing and Communications, who manages day-to-day operation of the division.

Dr. Pharr has risen through the ranks of the University of Georgia since joining the School of Law as its Director of Communications and Public Relations in 1993, following six years in broadcast news. She has served previously as Assistant to the President, Assistant Vice President for Finance and Administration, Director of Health Sciences Campus Administration, and Associate Vice President for Institutional Affairs.

She holds three degrees from UGA: a bachelor’s degree summa cum laude in journalism, a master’s degree in public administration, and a doctorate in higher education management. In 1996, she received the Young Alumnus Award from the Georgia chapter of the Blue Key National Honor Society. Dr. Pharr speaks as an invited guest lecturer for various campus leadership programs on such topics as crisis management, leadership development, and higher education communications.

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Dr. Tschepikow serves as Special Assistant to the President and Director for Strategy and Innovation. His work focuses primarily on supporting the development of an innovation district at the University of Georgia. He also supports the President’s Office in the areas of university strategic planning, regional accreditation, and presidential communications. Additionally, he serves as the office liaison to the UGA Research Foundation and the Georgia Research Alliance.

Before assuming his current role, Dr. Tschepikow served for four years as Assistant to the President with responsibilities in the areas of presidential speechwriting and executive communications, senior administrative retreat planning, and athletics, among other duties.

Dr. Tschepikow received his bachelor’s degree in English literature from Henderson State University in Arkansas in 2003 and his master’s degree in the same field from the University of Wales—where his dissertation was awarded distinction—in 2005. He earned his doctorate from UGA’s Institute of Higher Education in 2012.

His academic accomplishments include peer-reviewed journal articles, a chapter in a monograph, and papers and presentations at various conferences. He has taught graduate and undergraduate courses on a range of topics, including college student outcomes assessment and accreditation, medieval literature, and Shakespeare and has led study abroad courses in Italy and England.

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Ms. Davis joined the President’s Office in September 1993 and has served in three administrations in a number of capacities. In her current role as Assistant to the President, her work focuses primarily on facilities, admissions, and athletics. She also serves as the liaison to the UGA Real Estate Foundation, Faculty Admissions Committee, and Georgia Athletic Association. In addition, Ms. Davis is the coordinator of the Senior Administrators Retreat, a member of the Commencement Steering Committee, and liaison to the Office of Special Events for the Presidents Club reception.

Immediately prior to her role as Assistant to the President, Ms. Davis served as Operations Specialist in the President’s Office, providing day-to-day oversight of administrative staff operations, helping to coordinate the President’s SkySuite during football season, and serving as liaison for capital projects and related special events.

Ms. Davis earned her bachelor’s degree in political science from Georgia Southern University in 1992 and her master’s degree in public administration from Jacksonville State University in 1993.

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Mr. Standifer joined the President’s Office as Assistant to the President in July 2019. His work focuses primarily on student affairs, diversity relations, and community engagement. He serves as the liaison to the Staff Council, Retirees Association, Board of Visitors, and Student Government Association while also representing the President’s Office in the planning of several annual events, including the Holmes-Hunter Lecture Series, Mary Frances Early Lecture, Staff Appreciation Day, and the presentation of the President’s Medal during Founders Day. Additionally, he oversees the awarding of grants through the President’s Venture Fund.

Immediately prior to his role as Assistant to the President, Mr. Standifer served as Director of New Student Orientation and Associate Director of Undergraduate Admissions at the University of Georgia. Before joining UGA in 2014, he served at Georgia Southern University in a variety of student-centered roles as a graduate student, including Assistant to the Dean of Students, Coordinator of the Panhellenic Association, and Coordinator of Georgia Southern’s Pathways to Success program.

Mr. Standifer emceed the 2019 TEDxUGA and has been selected to participate as a member of LEAD Athens in 2020. He remains involved with the International Town Gown Association; the Association for Orientation, Transition, and Retention in Higher Education (NODA); and NASPA. He is a graduate of the Enrollment Leadership Academy hosted by The College Board.

Mr. Standifer earned his bachelor’s degree in middle grades education and his master’s degree in higher education administration from Georgia Southern University. He is currently pursuing a doctorate in public administration and policy from the UGA School of Public and International Affairs.

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