Media Contact
Jennifer French Giarratano
Public Relations Manager
Andrew Young School of Policy Studies
jgiarratano@gsu.edu
ATLANTA – The Board of Regents has approved the appointment of Professor John C. Thomas to hold the new Andrew Young School of Policy Studies’ Michael and Enid Mescon Endowed Chair at Georgia State University.
The Michael and Enid Mescon Endowed Chair was created in 2019 in recognition of Dr. Michael Mescon’s career in management (private, public and nonprofit sectors) and leadership development, along with his gifts in teaching the next generation of public service leaders. Enid endowed the chair, with additional gifts from many friends and family, to honor her husband and the extraordinary legacy he has left Georgia State.
“Mrs. Mescon’s generosity, and that of her family and friends, has provided us with a unique opportunity to highlight the work of Dr. Mescon,” Dean Sally Wallace said.
Dr. Thomas, the inaugural Chair, is a professor and senior member of the faculty of the Department of Public Management & Policy. He taught with Dr. Mescon and has an impressive record of teaching, research and leadership in public management.
“Dr. Thomas is exceptionally suited to develop programming to honor the Mescon legacy,” Wallace said.
The Chair was endowed to, among other things, help build the college’s capacity to recruit and retain exceptional faculty. Dr. Thomas will spend the first year developing a series of annual activities, developing opportunities for students, and furthering research and practice in management and leadership. He will reach out to other departments and colleges at Georgia State to increase interdisciplinary collaborations in leadership, management and other areas that epitomize the Mescon legacy. And he will assist in maintaining a supportive relationship with the Mescon family.
“I’m honored to hold the chair that carries the names of Mike and Enid Mescon,” Thomas said. “I always enjoyed my visits with Mike and the stimulating conversations he had with my students. The challenge now is to shape programming that will further our shared interests in developing better leaders for our community.”
Featured Researcher
John C. Thomas
Professor & Michael and Enid Mescon Endowed Chair
Public Management & Policy
With five books and more than seventy articles in print, John Thomas is known internationally for his research on public management and public policy. His most recent book, Leading as a Public-Minded Manager: People, Politics, Purpose (Irvine, CA: Melvin & Leigh Publishers, 2020), details a skill-based approach to being an effective managerial leader in the public realm—someone who leads and manages with a sense of stewardship for those with whom they work and the larger societal purposes they seek. The book has drawn praise for “combining real-life examples and an encyclopedic knowledge of research to offer practical and insightful advice relevant for public managers at any level” (Donald Moynihan, McCourt Chair of Public Policy, Georgetown University). He holds the Michael and Enid Mescon Endowed Chair.