Agnes Scott Names Five New Members to Its Board of Trustees

The Agnes Scott Board of Trustees welcomed five new members, whose four-year terms began July 1, 2022.

Tapaswee Chandele is global vice president of talent and development at The Coca-Cola Company in Atlanta, where she is responsible for the company’s worldwide talent management strategy. A 20-year employee at Coca-Cola, Chandele has worked in various human resources and talent development roles. After joining the company in India, Chandele quickly rose to positions of increasing responsibility in Türkiye and South Africa before relocating to the United States. A trusted leadership coach and business adviser, Chandele actively represents the company at external forums and events on topics ranging from strategic workforce planning to leadership development. She holds an MBA in human resources and industrial relations from Symbiosis International University, and a postgraduate degree in biochemistry and clinical nutrition.

Katie Fahs is a seasoned marketing professional and the intern, fellowships and volunteer coordinator at CARE, a global organization dedicated to alleviating poverty by empowering women and girls. Fahs has also worked with Procter & Gamble, Johnson & Johnson, Intuit and Children’s Healthcare of

Atlanta. She serves on the board of the National Center for Civil and Human Rights and is a former board member of the Harvard Alumni Association and Wilberforce University. She has a bachelor’s degree in economics and history from Harvard University.

Ellen Parker Gaffney ’87 serves as president of the Agnes Scott College Alumnae Association and as vice chair of the Ridgecrest Foundation board of directors. An active alumna, community volunteer and philanthropist, Gaffney has served on the Rally Foundation for Childhood Cancer Research advisory board, on the boards of Path to Shine and the Darlington School, as a Girl Scout leader, and as Service Committee chair of the Atlanta Smocking Guild. She has been on the summer central staff at Camp Crest ridge for Girls in Ridgecrest, N.C., for more than 15 years. Previously, Gaffney served as managing editor of Quilt magazine and as director, then board member, of Wonderful Days Preschool. Gaffney graduated from Agnes Scott with a bachelor’s degree in biology and psychology and did graduate work at Georgia State University in school psychometry.

Sandy Gordon is vice president, human resources for Amazon’s Global Transportation and Delivery Services. In this role, Gordon collaborates across the middle and last mile portfolios of businesses to create a more inclusive and engaging workplace for Amazon employees. Beginning her professional career as a flight attendant, Gordon rose to senior vice president of domestic airport operations at Delta Air Lines before joining Amazon. Gordon is an active member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc., and has served on several boards in Atlanta, including the YMCA of Metro Atlanta and Big Brothers Big Sisters. She holds a bachelor’s degree in finance from Hampton University.

Elizabeth A. Stephenson ’84 retired following a career in the not-for-profit sector as a fundraiser and grantmaker. Stephenson specializes in relationship building between internal and external stake-holders for organizations and often assists advisory boards with restructuring policies and procedures centered on their grantmaking and fundraising functions. Stephenson has worked for The Imlay Foundation Inc., The Zeist Foundation Inc., Pace Academy, The Westminster Schools and The Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta. She currently serves on the boards of Mercy Care Inc. in Atlanta and Seedco Inc. in New York, and as an adviser to L’Arche Atlanta. Stephenson graduated from Agnes Scott with a bachelor’s degree in French.

Trustees ending active service on the board as of June 30 were Ronald E. Alston, Ann Glendinning ’68, Sarah W. Guthrie ’69, Douglas A. Hicks, Giselle F. Martin ’98 and Portia O. Morrison ’66. The board named Glendinning, Guthrie and Morrison trustees emerita during its meeting in May.

Agnes Scott College Welcomes Kimberly J. Reeves ’12 as Executive Director of the Center for Sustainability

It is not often that one gets the opportunity to follow in the footsteps of their mentor.

But for Kimberly Reeves ’12, that is exactly what happened when she was named the college’s new executive director of the Center for Sustainability in April, succeeding Susan Kidd ’78, MAT ’07.

“To say that I am grateful and excited for the opportunity to return to Agnes Scott is only scratching the surface,” said Reeves, who began her job on July 1, 2022. “I will stand on the shoulders of an amazing and successful leader, mentor and innovator.”

A Lilburn, Ga., native, Reeves felt the strong pull back to Agnes Scott when Kidd announced her intention to retire in 2021, despite holding a prominent role leading the sustainability efforts at the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs.

“Returning to Agnes was an opportunity to re-engage in the community that solidified my foundational values while continuing to encourage me to grow,” beamed Reeves. “It is truly surreal to work for the institution that helped shape so much of who I am.”

Following graduation, Reeves served as a sustainability fellow in the center under Kidd before enrolling in graduate school at the University of Georgia, earning a master’s degree in environmental planning and design. She eventually turned her experience with some of the most recognizable sustainability organizations — including the Environmental Protection Agency, Georgia Recycling Coalition and the Fernbank Museum — into a sustainability and climate action career at Colorado Springs in 2014.

At Agnes Scott, Reeves is tasked with furthering the mission of a center whose efforts have consistently vaulted the institution into a place recognized for its sustainable practices and climate action. Agnes Scott has been named one of the “Best Green Colleges” by The Princeton Review in the past few iterations of its Best College Rankings, including a school-best No. 16 ranking in May.

Agnes Scott’s Climate Resilience Plan (CRP) and the Green Revolving Fund, which serve as “game changers” for the college’s goal of carbon neutrality by 2037, reside atop the to-do list for Reeves. The CRP, an innovative partnership between Agnes Scott and the city of Decatur, aligns the goals and strategic initiatives for the two entities to prepare for and respond to the impacts of climate change through action and justice.

These initiatives reinforce the college’s ranking of No. 1 “Most Innovative” among liberal arts colleges for the fifth year in a row by U.S. News & World Report

“This type of resource sharing will allow for more innovative and collaborative solutions to create a more resilient community,” says Reeves.

— By Josh Cornwall