KENNESAW, Ga. | May 14, 2017

Arlethia Perry-Johnson will chair the American Association of State Colleges and Universities Advisory Council for Communications and Public Affairs

Arlethia Perry-Johnson, Kennesaw State University’s vice president for marketing, was recently elected chair of the American Association of State Colleges and Universities Advisory Council for Communications and Public Affairs. The advisory council is composed of chief communications officers representing AASCU member institutions from throughout the United States.

According to Susan Chilcott, AASCU’s vice president for communications, “One of AASCU’s purposes is ‘to promote broad public understanding of the essential role of public higher education in our society and of the specific responsibilities and contributions of AASCU institutions.’ A key strategic initiative in support of these purposes,” she said, “is to increase public awareness and understanding of the distinctive and diverse missions of AASCU institutions. The council provides advice in these areas. They also support our annual communications conference and the council chair is instrumental in selecting the conference chair and working with the planning group.”

Perry-Johnson’s term in office is one year, and she may be re-elected for an additional year.

“It’s very humbling and an honor to be selected to serve in this role,” Perry-Johnson said. “My fellow Council members are an extremely talented, dedicated and hardworking group, and we all tremendously enjoy working with Susan Chilcott and her communications team at AASCU -- which does phenomenal work to enhance awareness of the benefits of public higher education.  I look forward to continuing our work together to further AASCU’s mission.”

Since joining Kennesaw State in 2006, Perry-Johnson has served in a variety of roles during her more than 10-year tenure, including as the chief external affairs officer, the chief communications officer, and now as the chief marketing officer. Currently serving as vice president of marketing, Perry-Johnson leads the university’s branding, marketing, and advertising initiatives which position the University in the higher education marketplace.

Before joining Kennesaw State, Perry-Johnson served for 11 years as the chief communications officer for the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia. She headed the board’s communications operation as associate vice chancellor for Media and Publications from February 1995 to October 2006.

In 2002, Perry-Johnson assumed a leadership role as the founding project director for the University System of Georgia’s African-American Male Initiative (AAMI). The initiative has become a national model for its work to increase the numbers of African-American males who enroll in and graduate from college within the USG. She continues to head the AAMI project for the University System, and has raised millions of dollars in external funding to support the program.

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A leader in innovative teaching and learning, Kennesaw State University offers undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degrees to its more than 45,000 students. Kennesaw State is a member of the University System of Georgia with 11 academic colleges. The university’s vibrant campus culture, diverse population, strong global ties and entrepreneurial spirit draw students from throughout the country and the world. Kennesaw State is a Carnegie-designated doctoral research institution (R2), placing it among an elite group of only 7 percent of U.S. colleges and universities with an R1 or R2 status. For more information, visit kennesaw.edu.