Governor Perdue Announces Charley English as Director of Homeland Security

ATLANTA – Governor Sonny Perdue announced today the appointment of Charley English as director of Homeland Security.  He will also continue to serve as head of the Georgia Emergency Management Agency (GEMA) and will oversee all homeland security issues in the state of Georgia.

“Charley has the leadership skills, real-world experience and academic accomplishments to guide this important agency through critical times,” said Governor Sonny Perdue.  “He also has a successful track record of working closely with local governments and public safety officials.”

English joined GEMA in February 1996 as a member of the Olympic planning team and has served in progressive leadership positions in the agency since then.  He was appointed director of GEMA on February 22, 2006 by Governor Perdue.

“I am humbled by this appointment and grateful to Governor Perdue for this opportunity,” said English.  “I look forward to meeting this new challenge.”

English will continue to serve as GEMA director and oversee all state governmental actions designed to ensure mitigation and preparedness, appropriate response and timely recovery from natural and man-made hazards which may impact the state of Georgia.  During his tenure with GEMA, he coordinated the state’s response to 15 presidentially declared disasters and numerous states of emergency declared by the Governor, and was a member of the G8 Summit security planning team.

English currently serves as a regional vice president of the National Emergency Management Association and is a member of Georgia’s Homeland Security Task Force.

He earned his associate’s degree in criminal justice from Clayton Junior College and his bachelor's degree in public and urban affairs from Georgia State University.  He graduated  in the first class nationally to be conferred the degree of Master of Arts in Homeland Security and Defense from the Naval Postgraduate School, where he earned the Professor Phillip Zimbardo Award for academic achievement.

Prior to joining GEMA, English was responsible for the management of Georgia’s ten regional police academies while director of training for the Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) Council.  Before joining POST, he worked with the Clayton County Police Department for eight years serving his last assignment as the regional police academy director.

A Fayette County resident, he is married to Ronda English and they have three children, Chandler 14, Hunter 12, and Savannah Grace 10.

English follows Major General Terry Nesbitt as director of OHS. Nesbitt was appointed as Adjutant General of the Georgia National Guard on September 4, 2007 when Lieutenant General David B. Poythress announced his retirement.