Myra Blackmon '72, APR

Myra Blackmon, APR, recently retired as founder and president of M. Blackmon Public Relations, which she started in 1993. Since 1994, she has also served as CEO (and majority shareholder) of Holland, Blackmon Associates, Inc., a firm providing governance, planning and organizational development services to nonprofit organizations in the U.S. and abroad. She is now a full-time graduate student in UGA's College of Education, majoring in Instructional Design and Development. She holds a journalism degree from the University of Georgia. Her background includes sales, investments, management, fundraising and business development.

Ms. Blackmon's expertise has been recognized throughout the Southeast where she has served as a guest lecturer at major universities and held an adjunct faculty position at the University of South Carolina. She serves as a part-time instructor in the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communications at UGA. She was selected as a speaker at the 2002 National Association of Small Business Development Centers, the Georgia Women's Entrepreneurs Network Conference and twice for the "Building Better Boards" Conference of the Nonprofit Governance and Management Centre in Sydney, Australia. She has provided numerous other workshops, seminars and hands-on learning experiences for a wide range of nonprofits in the U.S.

Community activities have long been a part of her life. Ms. Blackmon served a four-year term as President of Girl Scouts of Northeast Georgia. During her tenure the Council began its first leadership giving group, completed a $300,000 renovation to the Athens office and program center, and for the first time, included girls in its delegation to the Girl Scouts of the U.S.A. national council meeting. She organized and led the first ceremony recognizing all of Georgia's Girl Scout Gold Award winners, an event hosted by Secretary of State Cathy Cox at the State Capitol. She was the first chair of the board of CampuSource, a new national organization developed to help campus ministries improve their development efforts. She has been board and finance committee member of Family Counseling Services and has chaired several major fund-raising efforts for other organizations. Ms. Blackmon is currently the president of the Holly Hills Homeowners Association and she was one of two businesswomen to serve on the first advisory board of the Georgia Women's Entrepreneurs Network. She also managed the successful campaign to elect Jane Kidd to the Georgia House of Representatives in 2004.

Ms. Blackmon served as an officer of both the Georgia and South Carolina Chapters of the Public Relations Society of America. She was the professional advisor for the University of Georgia's Public Relations Student Society of America for 12 years. From a nomination made by students, Ms. Blackmon was presented the national Dr. Frederick Teahan Award for Outstanding Professional Advisor.

Ms. Blackmon is actively involved with her alma mater and served on the inaugural advisory board for the University's Alumni magazine. With her husband, Dr. Thomas P. Holland, Ms. Blackmon does organizational development consulting with a variety of nonprofit organizations around the nation and internationally. Their book, Measuring Board Effectiveness is published by the National Center for Nonprofit Boards (now BoardSource.)

Dr. Holland and Ms. Blackmon have two grown children and two brilliant, beautiful grandchildren.