Staff

Georgia is the Executive Director of South Carolina First Steps. Prior to leading South Carolina First Steps, Georgia served for 12 years as the Executive Director of Our House, a nationally-recognized social services agency for homeless and near-homeless families and individuals in Arkansas.

Georgia is a graduate of the Harvard John F. Kennedy School of Government’s Senior Executives in State and Local Government program.  Georgia was one of 12 Americans awarded the George Mitchell Scholarship for graduate study on the island of Ireland. As a Mitchell Scholar, she completed a Master’s Degree in Public Affairs and Political Communications at the University of Ulster (United Kingdom). Georgia holds undergraduate degrees from the University of Arkansas in Little Rock, where as an adjunct faculty member she taught nonprofit management at the undergraduate and graduate level for five years.

Georgia is an Aspen Institute Ascend Fellow, a member of the Riley Diversity Fellows program, and a commissioner for the Columbia Housing Authority, a position appointed by the Columbia City Council. Previously, she was appointed by the Governor of Arkansas to serve as a member of the Housing Trust Fund Advisory Committee.  Georgia has served on numerous nonprofit boards including the founding boards of City Year Little Rock and Harmony Health Clinic, a free clinic for the uninsured.

Georgia is married to Dominik Mjartan, who is the President and CEO of Optus Bank. They are foster, adoptive and birth parents, and together they have three children ages 3, 4 and 5.