Seven University of Georgia faculty and staff members are being honored for their commitment to public service and outreach.
Walter Barnard Hill Fellow
The Walter Barnard Hill Fellow Award for Distinguished Achievement in Public Service and Outreach is named for Chancellor Walter B. Hill, who led the University of Georgia from 1899 to 1905. Hill was a pioneer who helped define the university’s modern public service and outreach mission. The Hill Fellow recognizes faculty for long-term achievements and special projects that have extraordinary impact, and collaborative efforts that improve quality of life in Georgia. Only past UGA Hill Award winners are eligible to become a Hill Fellow. Each Hill Fellow receives a medallion, a permanent salary increase and $2,000 in discretionary funds per fiscal year for three consecutive years to advance his or her public service work.
Leigh Elkins is a senior public service associate and nationally recognized leader in community engagement, natural resource planning and asset-based development at UGA’s Carl Vinson Institute of Government. Since joining the institute’s Environmental Policy Program in 2012, she has helped Georgia communities integrate sustainability with economic progress using participatory planning, strategic visioning and public facilitation.
With a background that includes creating Georgia’s WaterFirst Community Program at the Department of Community Affairs and a key role in the statewide Water Management Plan through the Fanning Institute, Elkins bridges state-level policy with grassroots collaboration. Her expertise positions residents as the true experts in their communities, ensuring that development reflects local history, identity and values.
Elkins’ leadership in community-driven projects spans Georgia and beyond. Following the 2022 fire at Tennessee’s Ocoee Whitewater Center, she led UGA’s effort to collect and synthesize over 7,000 public comments across 38 states, crafting a thorough redevelopment blueprint with cultural resonance based on stakeholder input. In Gainesville, Elkins spearheaded the “A Vision for the Athens Street and 129 South Corridors” plan and led the public input efforts for the Downtown Renaissance and Strategic Vision. Those combined efforts have secured $4.4 million in state funding and leveraged nearly $300 million in private investment to revitalize neighborhoods and bolster connectivity and green space. She brought deep local understanding and collaborative processes to ensure neighborhood voices shaped growth.
Beyond her project work, Elkins is deeply committed to mentorship. She engages UGA students in real-world planning and community-focused initiatives, providing hands-on experience in stakeholder facilitation, resilience planning and environmental policy. Through internships, applied research opportunities and leadership development programs, Elkins cultivates the next generation of public service professionals. Her mentorship extends to colleagues and emerging leaders across Georgia, where she shares best practices in collaborative planning and inclusive decision-making.
Walter Barnard Hill Award
The Walter Barnard Hill Award also is named for Chancellor Walter B. Hill. The Hill Awards recognize distinguished achievements by public service faculty who have contributed to a better quality of life for the people of Georgia. Each award recipient receives a medallion, a permanent salary increase and a framed certificate in honor of his or her achievement.
Tammy Cheely has dedicated more than 30 years to advancing the University of Georgia’s land-grant mission through exceptional public service, innovative agricultural programming and community leadership.
She began her career at UGA in 1994 and serves as the County Extension Coordinator and Agriculture and Natural Resources Agent for Warren and Glascock counties, providing additional interim leadership in Hancock and Washington counties. Her ability to guide operations across multiple counties reflects her commitment to relationship building, problem solving and delivering impact in diverse rural communities.
Cheely has transformed beef cattle production through programs that strengthen local economies and enhance producer sustainability. Her Warren County Calf Network has facilitated the sale of more than 30,000 calves and generated over $991,000 in additional profits since it began 25 years ago, while her producer cooperative has saved members more than $1.8 million. Her program innovations, including genetic improvements that increased calf value by more than $649,000, have been replicated nationally and internationally.
Cheely’s Young Beef Producers Program has prepared the next generation of agricultural leaders. Through the program, Cheely has mentored 31 young producers.
Karen DeMeester is a faculty member in the Survey Research and Evaluation Support division at the Carl Vinson Institute of Government, where she collaborates with internal and external partners to improve program outcomes through impact-driven evaluation and research.
DeMeester writes evaluation plans for competitive grants and research projects, leads interdisciplinary teams and provides technical assistance and training.
She has partnered with more than 30 UGA academic and public service faculty on projects securing more than $20 million in grants. These initiatives address critical needs, such as natural disasters’ impacts, access to quality child care and workforce readiness.
DeMeester served as co-Principal Investigator and lead evaluator for UGA’s Project F.R.E.E. (Fostering Relationship and Economic Enrichment) and Elevate Couples Georgia, federally-funded research and service initiatives housed at the College of Family and Consumer Sciences and Cooperative Extension. Since 2015, these programs have had an impact on thousands of Georgia couples and families through research-based relationship and financial education.
Some of her other partners include Georgia Department of Transportation, the city of Decatur, and Marine Extension and Georgia Sea Grant.
Bryan Fluech is the associate director of extension at Marine Extension and Georgia Sea Grant, where he coordinates programs that address the needs of Georgia’s coastal communities. Based in Brunswick, he manages a multidisciplinary team focused on building community resilience, improving water quality, supporting sustainable fisheries and enhancing coastal ecosystem health. Since joining the unit in 2015, Fluech has emphasized faculty mentorship and fostering a collaborative, service-driven work environment.
As fisheries program lead, Fluech addresses challenges facing Georgia’s commercial fishing industry, including competition from imported seafood, loss of working waterfronts and workforce shortages.
Despite these pressures, the industry remains vital, generating $51.4 million in sales in 2024. Collaborating with researchers, managers and commercial fishers, he has advanced the use of on-demand fishing gear to reduce entanglement risks for the endangered North Atlantic right whale, fostered workforce development initiatives and preserved Georgia’s fishing heritage through oral histories and waterfront assessments. His strong relationships with fishers have positioned UGA as a trusted and valued partner.
Lauren Healey has dedicated her career to advancing youth leadership and civic engagement, exemplifying the University of Georgia’s mission of service, outreach and scholarship. As a faculty member at the J.W. Fanning Institute for Leadership Development, she has transformed youth development through innovative programs that combine research-based principles with practical application.
A cornerstone of her work is the Youth Leadership in Action curriculum, which equips young people with leadership skills and fosters civic involvement. Since joining the Fanning Institute in 2014, Healey has led major updates to YLIA, expanded it to include a K-5 curriculum and trained more than 50 schools and organizations, reaching more than 22,000 individuals and generating more than 108,000 contact hours. Her efforts have positioned the Fanning Institute as a trusted resource for youth leadership development statewide.
Healey’s school-based enrichment programs have earned national recognition, including the 2019 Judges’ National Award of Excellence from the University Economic Development Association, for their impact on student success. In 2015 at Walnut Grove High School, she led a leadership initiative that contributed to a nearly 20% increase in graduation rates — from 78.3% to 93.6% — over a five-year period and inspired similar programs across Georgia.
Kyle Hensel, senior public service associate and director of continuing education for the Small Business Development Center, provides statewide leadership for the strategy, development and delivery of continuing education programs that serve thousands of entrepreneurs annually.
Hensel oversees more than 300 programs delivered through SBDC’s 18 offices, supporting small business growth that fuels local economies, job creation and long-term community vitality.
A nationally recognized speaker and trainer, Hensel is frequently invited to present at conferences on strategic marketing, program development and external funding procurement for outreach organizations. He has delivered more than 40 presentations, training professionals on how to design high-impact education programs and attract private, corporate and federal funding. He has secured more than $3.7 million in private funding and over $6.8 million in federal funding for UGA SBDC’s initiatives.
Hensel is known for developing scalable education models that respond to real world business needs. Programs like the Maximum Marketing series, Digital Marketing Bootcamp, StartSmart and GrowSmart have generated over $5 million in grant funding, sponsorships and program income. Several have been replicated by SBDC programs in other states, extending UGA’s outreach impact well beyond Georgia.
Engaged Scholar
The Engaged Scholar Award recognizes a tenured associate or full professor who has made significant career-spanning contributions to the University of Georgia’s public service mission through scholarship, service-learning opportunities for students and campus leadership. The awardee receives a $5,000 faculty development grant to sustain current engaged scholar endeavors or to develop new ones.
Jon Calabria is a professor in the College of Environment and Design, specializing in ecological restoration, green infrastructure and the improvement of water quality across Georgia and the Southeast. He has built a distinguished career rooted in public service and community-engaged scholarship, consistently bridging academic expertise with community needs while advancing environmental resilience and enriching student learning.
Since joining UGA in 2010, Calabria has forged an impactful partnership with Public Service and Outreach. He has served as a design expert for faculty working with communities on downtown planning and regularly engages his studio students in PSO-supported site design projects. He also participated in the 2022 Rural Engagement Workshop for Academic Faculty and was a Service-Learning Fellow in 2011-12.
Calabria’s work with the Institute of Government and Marine Extension and Georgia Sea Grant on the redesign of Bradwell Park in Hinesville exemplifies his community engagement. Calabria brought his studio class into the field, where students assessed site conditions, met with stakeholders and developed innovative design concepts. The designs also incorporated stormwater needs and became the foundation for the community securing more than $1 million in funding to implement the park’s redesign. The park reopened in 2022.
Calabria has delivered millions of dollars in built projects and secured over $4.7 million in grants. His sustained, community-focused scholarship has advanced landscape architecture and expanded its impact across Georgia, facilitating over $4 million in community improvements from rural downtown revitalizations to coastal resilience planning. His scholarly portfolio includes 15 published works and 70 conference presentations, underscoring his sustained engagement in advancing the field.
Calabria’s commitment to public service has been recognized through multiple honors, including the 2023 Service-Learning Research Excellence Award from the Office of Service-Learning and the 2022 Team Impact Award from the Office of Research.