Rep. Drenner, Sen. Jackson Announce New DeKalb Ethics Board Members

            ATLANTA – State Representative Karla Drenner (D-Avondale Estates) and State Senator Kim Jackson (D-Stone Mountain), co-chairs of the DeKalb County Legislative Delegation, today announced the newly appointed members of the DeKalb Ethics Board.

            “I am excited that we have finalized a group of dynamic leaders to ensure that our county remains accountable to its citizens,” said Rep. Drenner. “We would like to thank Interim Chair Rosa Waymon, board member Nadine Ali and the alternates who stepped in to form a quorum in the past few months, William Clark and Carthea Simelton-Treminio, for their service.”

            “I am grateful for all of the amazing citizens of DeKalb County who volunteered to serve on the board,” said Sen. Jackson. “Our county is bursting with great talent, and I am confident that we will have strong leadership on the board for many more years to come. With all of the vacancies now filled, I trust that the DeKalb Ethics Board will now move forward in an efficient and effective manner.”

Following resignations earlier this year, five local residents have been appointed to fill these vacant positions. The Senate members of the legislative delegation nominated George Ference, Tammy Greer, Ph.D, and Scott Mathews. The delegation’s House members selected Bob Dallas and Bryan Ramos. The appointments are effective immediately. The new board will convene its next meeting on July 20. 

George Ference practiced law for several decades in both state and federal courts. He is a graduate of Emory College and Emory Law School. Ference specialized in public affairs, operations management, government relations, logistics and more. He has worked in the corporate, non-profit and government sectors.

Dr. Tammy Greer is currently a professor at Clark Atlanta University, where she earned her bachelor’s degree, master’s degree and Ph.D. Her work focuses on American government, urban politics, comparative politics and international politics. She also specializes in community and civic involvement to improve policy that shape historically underserved communities. She is a board member of several organizations.

Scott Mathews holds management and leadership experience in the military, corporate, government and non-profit sectors. Mathews served four years on active duty as a logistics officer in the USAF and 17 years in the USAF Reserves. He has been deployed numerous times and retired as a Lt. Col. Following his military service, he worked in external affairs for BellSouth and in public health with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. He serves on the leadership teams of several Georgia-based organizations. He attended The Citadel and holds a master’s degree from the University of Utah. He also graduated from the USAF’s Air Command and Staff College.

Bob Dallas is a civil lawyer who specializes in public health and safety behavioral programs. Dallas served more than 20 years in public health, 16 years as a planning commissioner and eight years as a highway safety director. He is interested in aligning disparate interests in transportation, public safety, public health and land use to achieve public behavior changes that improve health outcomes.

Bryan Ramos represents injured workers around the state. He is a fellow of the College of Workers’ Compensation Lawyers and carries an “AV Preeminent Rating” by Martindale-Hubbell. He is a registered mediator with the Georgia Commission on Dispute Resolution. Most recently, he was named to the list of the “Top 100” lawyers by Super Lawyers magazine for the third consecutive year. Ramos currently serves on the Georgia Advisory to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights and on the Georgia Council for Recovery’s Board of Directors. He also served on the City of Brookhaven Charter Review Commission. Ramos hold a juris doctorate degree from Mercer University.

Representative Karla Drenner represents the citizens of District 85, which includes portions of DeKalb County. She was elected to the House of Representatives in 2000 and currently serves as Secretary of the Small Business Development Committee. She also serves on the Energy, Utilities & Telecommunications, Natural Resources & Environment, Public Health, Rules and Urban Affairs committees.

Sen. Kim Jackson represents the 41st Senate District which includes portions of DeKalb and a small portion of Gwinnett County. She may be reached at her office at 404.656.6882 or by email at kim.jackson@senate.ga.gov.

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