Dr. Drake has 23 years of experience in higher education with ten years in both public and private educational settings.She received her Doctorate of Education from the University of Georgia in 1999. She also holds an Education Specialist degree, a Master of Science degree, and a Bachelor of Science degree in Elementary Education from Florida State University. Prior to joining GSW as interim provost, Drake served as the associate vice president for Academic Affairs at the University of West Georgia (UWG) in Carrollton.

Dr. Davis received his Ph.D in Medieval British Literature from Ohio State University in 1997, and came to GSW as an assistant professor in August 1998. He was promoted to associate professor in 2003 and professor in 2008. While at GSW, he has been Chair of the Department of English and Modern Languages, Assistant Dean of Arts and Sciences, and most recently, Director of Institutional Effectiveness and Planning. He has also been GSW’s SACSCOC Accreditation Liaison since 2009. Dr. Davis believes in challenging students to exceed their own expectations for themselves, but only while providing support to insure their success.

Cheri Paradise joined GSW in 2000 as an Accounting Assistant in the Business and Finance department. She was promoted to Executive Assistant to the Provost and MFE Coordinator in 2010. Cheri is a fourth generation Sumter County citizen. She graduated from Americus High School and attended Georgia Southwestern State University, majoring in English. While at GSW, she has served on the University Wide Grievance Panel, the GSW Human Relations Council, and the GSW Staff Senate as the Academic Affairs representative. She is a member of the American Society of Administrative Professionals. Cheri is dedicated to serving the faculty, staff, and student body of the campus and loves the challenges and the rewards of working in higher education.

Brian Mallett is the Director of Institutional Research, responsible for collecting, analyzing, and reporting data that supports students and the university.  His role involves stewardship for metrics that advance continuous improvement, strategic planning, and communication with external agencies.  He joined GSW in 2022, following a career at Pfizer where he led supply chains and operational excellence for a global manufacturing network.  He is a six-sigma black belt with broad experience driving innovation and growth through evidence-based decision making.  He has a doctorate in management from the University of Maryland, an MBA from Indiana Wesleyan, an MS in biochemistry from the University of Dayton, and BS degrees in biology and chemistry from Wright State University.

George Banketas is the Reporting and Data Management Specialist for Institutional Research at Georgia Southwestern State University. He joined GSW in 2019 following roles in data management and analysis at Warner Robbins AFB and in financial services. His current role includes stewardship for metrics that support planning, reporting, and continuous improvement for the organization. He has broad experience developing programs and configuring data extraction tools (e.g. Crystal, Tableau) and applying these to the management of the enterprise. He has a BS Degree in Computer Science, and is pursuing a Master's Degree in Computer Science at GSW.