Administrative Professionals Day Conference

BREAKOUT SESSIONS

Nurturing a Leadership Mindset
Sayge Medlin, M.S.W., Assistant Director and Public Service Associate,
J.W. Fanning Institute for Leadership Development, UGA

Digital Transformation in Administrative Processes
Greg Creech, MCAS-I, CompTIA CTT+,
Techedutainment Services, Inc.

What Shape are You? Exploring Personality Styles
Brendan Leahy, Ed.D., Public Service Associate,
J.W. Fanning Institute for Leadership Development, UGA

Developing Emotional Intelligence in Administrative Excellence
Elizabeth Lutz, Public Service Assistant,
J.W. Fanning Institute for Leadership Development, UGA

Building Professional Development Plans for Administrators
Laura Finney, Chief Empowerment Officer,
Laura Finney Enterprises

Customer Service Excellence for Administrative Professionals
John Salazar, Ph.D., CHE
Professor and Coordinator of Hospitality and Food Industry Management, UGA

Strategic Networking for Career Advancement
Angel Jackson Ed.D, Archway Partnership

Sonya McCoy-Wilson, Ed.D., is an Associate Vice President of Learning at Atlanta Technical College. She is also an Executive Coach, Consultant, and Professor. She was named one of the “2023 Top 40 Black Leaders Worldwide” by Black Leaders Worldwide. Dr. McCoy-Wilson's academic and research interests include diversity, equity, and inclusion, culturally responsive leadership, emotional intelligence, organization development, adult learning, and transformative professional development. Her most recent publication, “A culture of caring”: Leading differently in the twin pandemics was published in Equity in Education and Society. Dr. McCoy-Wilson is currently working on the link between bell hooks' concept of “love as a practice of freedom” and diversity, equity, and inclusion. Dr. McCoy-Wilson is a native of Los Angeles, CA, but has lived in Atlanta, GA, for over 30 years. She holds a Doctor of Education in Learning, Leadership, and Organization Development from the University of Georgia. McCoy-Wilson was also educated at the University of California Riverside and Georgia State University, where she received an M.A. in Literary Studies and a B.A. in English, with a concentration in Creative Writing.

Greg Creech is a certified Microsoft Office Application Specialist–Instructor and has written over 15 books on the Microsoft Office Suite, including Office 2010/2013, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access, OneNote, and Outlook. Greg has presented for the UGA Center for Continuing Education’s Administrative Professionals Day conference as a keynote and workshop speaker and has conducted Microsoft Office and soft skills training for several UGA departments.

Laura Finney, a seasoned speaker, author, and entrepreneur, boasts a rich professional journey that spans 35 years in the corporate realm and over two decades as a successful business owner. Throughout her career, Laura has lent her expertise to Fortune 500 companies, small business owners, non-profits, and state agencies, specializing in the development of effective processes that elevate company productivity. With a wealth of experience, Laura's mentorship and coaching have been honed under the guidance of some of the most accomplished entrepreneurs and business leaders in America. Recognizing the profound impact of good work, Laura is dedicated to extending her influence globally while focusing on local efforts. She firmly believes in the transformative power of combining professional strategies, innate talent, and hard work to yield tangible and desired results. A trailblazing entrepreneur, Laura Finney has consistently demonstrated a sharp business acumen and an unwavering passion for bringing ideas to fruition. Her innovative ventures exemplify a commitment to driving positive change in the business landscape, solidifying her as a beacon of success in the entrepreneurial world.

Leslie Gordon, PhD, is a speech, voice, and accent coach who helps people speak from a place of authenticity and effectiveness. Leslie is an applied linguist and former faculty with almost twenty years of experience in teaching, research, and academic program direction. Leslie founded Leslie Gordon Speech Coaching, LLC and provides coaching, workshop training, and virtual courses on speech, voice, and accent. Leslie is also a certified teacher of Knight-Thompson Speechwork and provides accent modification services for clients and dialect coaching for actors.

Sayge Medlin, M.S.W., As part of the nonprofit leadership development practice group, Sayge works to develop and implement meaningful, productive capacity-building strategies for regional and statewide nonprofit organizations and associations. Employing consensus-building techniques, she specializes in facilitating groups of all sizes through results-based decision-making processes in areas such as strategic planning, organizational change, and board development. In addition, she is also highly skilled in developing and delivering research-based, interactive training material with an emphasis on community engagement, managing change, collaboration practices, and the changing roles of leaders in the organizational life cycle. Sayge has over 20 years of experience working with nonprofits. Prior to joining the Fanning Institute, she served as director of strategy integration for the Georgia Family Connection Partnership (GaFCP) — a state-level nonprofit that provides data, research, training, and technical assistance to a network of 159 collaborative organizations in Georgia.

Greg Creech is a certified Microsoft Office Application Specialist–Instructor and has written over 15 books on the Microsoft Office Suite, including Office 2010/2013, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access, OneNote, and Outlook. Greg has presented for the UGA Center for Continuing Education’s Administrative Professionals Day conference as a keynote and workshop speaker and has conducted Microsoft Office and soft skills training for several UGA departments.

Brendan S. Leahy, Ed.D., focuses much of his efforts on community leadership programs while also working heavily in subject areas such as instructional design, applied research, and leadership assessments. He has expertise with a variety of leadership, social, and communication style assessments, including Emergenetics©. In addition to his work in community leadership, Leahy also works on a variety of Fanning Institute programs and initiatives, including those focused on leadership development in a wide array of contexts, youth leadership development, general facilitation and organizational and community strategic planning. Before joining the Fanning Institute, Brendan served as President for Leadership Plus and Associates in Athens and the UGA coordinator for the SciTrain University initiative, a project of the U.S. Department of Education and a partnership between the Georgia Institute of Technology and UGA. He has also worked with the Georgia Department of Education, Northeast Georgia Learning Resource System and Anderson and Ward Educational Services.

Elizabeth Lutz is a public service faculty member at the J.W. Fanning Institute for Leadership Development with a focus on community leadership, collaboration, team building, innovative solutions, and multigenerational issues. She exercises her skills in program evaluation, strategic planning, and group facilitation. As a faculty member, Elizabeth works with a variety of nonprofit and community-based organizations building their leadership capacity, group dynamics, and volunteer management skills. She joined Fanning in 2022 after seven years with UGA academic departments during which time she worked with corporate partners, alumni, underrepresented student populations, and student organizations. Prior to her arrival at UGA, she taught high school Spanish and ESOL courses.

Laura Finney, a seasoned speaker, author, and entrepreneur, boasts a rich professional journey that spans 35 years in the corporate realm and over two decades as a successful business owner. Throughout her career, Laura has lent her expertise to Fortune 500 companies, small business owners, non-profits, and state agencies, specializing in the development of effective processes that elevate company productivity. With a wealth of experience, Laura's mentorship and coaching have been honed under the guidance of some of the most accomplished entrepreneurs and business leaders in America. Recognizing the profound impact of good work, Laura is dedicated to extending her influence globally while focusing on local efforts. She firmly believes in the transformative power of combining professional strategies, innate talent, and hard work to yield tangible and desired results. A trailblazing entrepreneur, Laura Finney has consistently demonstrated a sharp business acumen and an unwavering passion for bringing ideas to fruition. Her innovative ventures exemplify a commitment to driving positive change in the business landscape, solidifying her as a beacon of success in the entrepreneurial world.

John Salazar, PhD, CHE is the Coordinator of the University of Georgia Hospitality and Food Industry Management Major and an Associate Professor. Prior to this appointment, he was a Professor in the Department of Hospitality Management at the University of South Carolina Beaufort and Director of the University’s Lowcountry and Resort Islands Tourism Institute. He has also been a hospitality management faculty member and tourism research director for the University of Tennessee and held faculty positions at Southern Illinois University and the University of South Alabama. He earned his Ph.D. from Auburn University, his M.S. from the University of South Alabama, and his B.S. from Northeastern University.

Angel Jackson, Ed.D. joined the Archway Partnership in January of 2010. She has served in various capacities and has been responsible for communications, budget and finance, human resources, and project management across all of the Archway communities. She currently serves as an operations coordinator and oversees Archway operations in Burke, Hart, and Spalding counties, working closely with public service units, colleges, and schools at UGA and other higher education institutions. She previously oversaw operations in Candler and Whitfield counties, which have graduated from the Archway program. Before joining the Archway Partnership, Angel worked for the UGA vice president for student affairs, focusing on communications, data management, and event planning. Before that, she taught English in Verona, Italy, and worked as an on-site coordinator for the Verona International Program, a private study abroad and touring company. Angel is a proud triple dawg who earned her B.A. in speech communication, her master's in public administration, and her doctorate in workforce education, all from the University of Georgia. She was a member of the 2020-2021 class of Leadership Georgia.