Dr. Nelson Baker, dean of Georgia Tech Professional Education, is one of 23 distinguished business and education leaders in the Savannah community to be appointed to The Savannah Economic Development Authority (SEDA) Advisory Council. The council will assist in advising SEDA on its strategic direction and planning as well as serving as an advocate for the organization.

“Nelson brings a wealth of unique experiences and knowledge to the SEDA advisory council,” said Steve Weathers, SEDA President and CEO. “We look forward to the continued guidance and contributions Nelson has made to SEDA and to coastal Georgia to improve and broaden the region’s educational capabilities.”

Baker is a nationally recognized leader in award-winning educational technologies designed for and applied to engineering and technical environments. As the dean of Professional Education, Baker is responsible for all professional education programs at Georgia Tech, which serves more than 23,000 students on an annual basis. This includes oversight of the Georgia Tech Global Learning Center in Atlanta and the Georgia Tech-Savannah campus.

Recently appointed to serve on the University System of Georgia's (USG) Distance Education Task Force, Baker and members of the Task Force are working to create a framework to guide the future use of distance education for the 35 colleges and universities within the USG system. He currently serves as the President of the International Association of Continuing Engineering Education, and is past-chair of the Georgia Board of Regents Administrative Committee on Public Service and Continuing Education. Baker has a master’s and Ph.D. in Civil Engineering from Carnegie Mellon and bachelor’s degree from Georgia Tech.

“SEDA has a tremendous impact on the economy of Savannah, the coastal region and the State of Georgia,” said Baker. “I look forward to advising and assisting them in developing and sustaining programs that will help Savannah industry stay competitive in our global economy.”

The advisory council, which serves a two year term consistent with the term of the current chairman of the board of directors, is responsible for regularly attending and actively participating in SEDA board meetings, events and activities; staying informed of relevant issues; providing support as may be requested and advocating on SEDA’s behalf in the local community, throughout the state and across the country as opportunities allow.

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About Georgia Tech Professional Education

Georgia Tech Professional Education is an academic division of the Georgia Institute of Technology, which consistently ranks as one of the nation’s top 10 public universities by U.S. News & World Report. Professional Education offers professional master's programs, short courses, and certificate programs to meet the needs of working professionals and industry partners. Programs are available worldwide through a variety of face-to-face, blended learning, online and/or distance learning modalities. In addition to professional course offerings, the division administers K-12 outreach and English proficiency programs, and manages a meeting and learning facility. On an annual basis, Professional Education serves and educates more than 13,000 individuals and 3,100 companies, with an overall enrollment of 23,000 students from around the world. The division is located at the Georgia Tech Global Learning Center in Atlanta and at the Georgia Tech-Savannah campus.