State of Georgia names new Tourism Commissioner

ATLANTA, May 28, 2007 – The Georgia Department of Economic Development (GDEcD) announced today that Charlie Gatlin will assume leadership of the state's Tourism Division as Deputy Commissioner for Tourism and Marketing. The appointment is effective immediately.

'Charlie is the right person to lead our mission to establish Georgia as the finest travel destination in the country, and I am very pleased he has accepted this new responsibility,' said GDEcD Commissioner Ken Stewart. 'His leadership skills and solid track record in relationship-building have served the state well, and are among the qualities we value most highly in our continued collaboration with our tourism partners around Georgia. I look forward to working with him as we explore new ways to promote Georgia by implementing the synergies between marketing and tourism.'

Gatlin will remain as executive director of the Georgia Allies, a public-private marketing partnership of 15 statewide economic development organizations that markets Georgia to select target industry sectors.

Charlie Gatlin joined the department in 1990. His previous positions with GDEcD have included deputy commissioner for external affairs, chief of staff, deputy commissioner for business recruitment and retention, and director of marketing. As an economic developer, he has been a part of the tourism world both at GDEcD and in previous positions with the communities of Albany, Athens, Rome and Macon. Before entering the field of economic development, Gatlin was an administration and training officer in the U.S. Air Force and a mortgage banker.

Gatlin is a Certified Economic Developer (CED) and is a past president and board member of the Georgia Economic Developers Association (GEDA), which recognized him in 2002 with a Rip Wiley Award for Professional Excellence. He is an active member of several national, regional and state economic development organizations.

A native of Albany, Georgia, Gatlin holds a bachelor's degree in political science and a master's degree in public administration from the University of Georgia. He has completed both the six-year and three-year graduate programs of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Institutes for Organization Management, and he is a licensed realtor. He is married to the former Cathy Tidwell of Macon and has two daughters and two grandchildren.

The Georgia Department of Economic Development (GDEcD) is the state's sales and marketing arm, the lead agency for attracting new business investment, encouraging the expansion of existing industry and small businesses, locating new markets for Georgia products, attracting tourists to Georgia, and promoting the state as a location for film, video and music projects, as well as planning and mobilizing state resources for economic development. For more information, visit www.georgia.org.