Dr. Georgianna Laws is an online education expert and award-winning innovator, teacher, trainer, instructional designer, project manager, speaker, researcher, and leader with mastery in strategic thinking and leadership development. Her expertise in stakeholder management is evident from her 24 years of global experience in the education sector and her extensive work with diverse organizations—public and private, corporate, non-profit, and academic—in Europe, Asia, and the United States. She excels in managing both lean, resource-constrained projects and directing expansive, global initiatives with sizable budgets.

A 7th-generation educator, Dr. Laws’ roles range from teaching to training trainers, showcasing her adaptability and continuous evolution in the dynamic higher education field. She has designed learning experiences, led teams of learning-experience designers and trainers, and served as chief online education officer, overseeing all aspects of strategy and operations for online and hybrid education programs, particularly in college and university settings. She specializes in assisting institutions in developing and hiring for their inaugural chief online education officer role.

PROJECT EXPERIENCE:

• Texas Lutheran University
• Augusta University
• Life University
• Japanese – American Language Institute
• United States Distance Learning Association
• National Library of Medicine Georgia
• National Security Agency
• UNESCO Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Education for Peace and Sustainable Development

EXPERTISE:

• Strategic Planning
• Stakeholder Management
• Change Management and Communication
• Data-driven Decision-making
• Relationship Building
• Leadership Development Insight
• Financial Acumen
• Project Management
• Adaptability in Higher Education Trends

SAMPLE PROJECTS:

Dr. Laws was part of the inaugural strategic planning effort at the United States Distance Learning Association (USDLA). As Chair of the Marketing and Communications committee, Dr. Laws led the committee in a SWOT analysis and environmental scan. She facilitated the creation of the mission and vision statements, aligning them with strategic goals and objectives, a strategic action plan, and plans for resource allocation, communication, implementation, and performance management.

At Life University, the world’s largest single-campus chiropractic university, Dr. Laws helped build and operate a college of online education. She facilitated creation of the college business strategy, created all the policies, manuals, and processes needed to operate the online college, hired and trained all faculty and staff, designed the initial academic programs, and tested implementation by teaching selected online courses herself. She negotiated all vendor contracts and contributed to the SACS-COC regional accreditation of the college. She also helped the in-person campus transition to online operations at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Life University college of online education attained $3M in profit in its first year and tripled its enrollments for its second year, and is now recognized for excellence in its online master’s in psychology and online bachelor’s degrees.

EDUCATION AND CERTIFICATES:

Dr. Laws earned a Doctor of Education degree in Higher Education Leadership (Maryville University of St. Louis) with published research on the role of chief online education officer in the U.S. (Online Learning Journal); a Master’s in Adult Education and Distance Learning (University of Phoenix, Tokyo, Japan); and a bachelor’s in Teaching English and French language and literature (University of Ploiesti, Romania). She has completed doctoral work in Instructional Systems Design (Florida State University) and served as the inaugural President of the professional program’s student association.

She is also a graduate of the Institute for Emerging Leadership in Online Learning (Online Learning Consortium & the University of Central Florida) and holds professional certificates in the Administration of Online Programs (Online Learning Consortium); At-Risk Student Education and Professional Standards (CASEPS); Corporate Sustainability, Social Innovation, and Ethics (Imperial College of London, Business School); Executive Leadership (Oxford University, Saïd Business School); Leading in a Remote Environment (Harvard University, Business School); Next Generation Learning with Generative A.I. Tools (UNC Charlotte); Project Management (Google); Quality Matters Institutional Coordinator (Quality Matters); and Online Teaching & Course Design (Online Learning Consortium).