New Staff Appointments Announced at MSM

Bahati Banks has assumed the position of special assistant to the president for Communications. Banks moves to this new role after serving since 2005 as program manager for the Center for Community Health and Service-Learning of MSM, where she managed strategic communications, program evaluation, training and grants-making. Banks also has served as technical assistant provider for the Community Foundation of Greater Atlanta and as a multicultural education fellow at The San Francisco Foundation in California.

Banks has a Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Marketing from the Keller Graduate School of Management and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from the University of California, Davis.

Lori J. Collins, J.D., is the new chief compliance officer for MSM, and is responsible for developing and implementing a compliance program that supports the institution's mission. Prior to joining MSM, Lori was senior vice president, senior risk and administrative officer, Human Resources, at SunTrust Banks Inc. She also held the position of chief ethics and compliance officer at both The Coca-Cola Company in Atlanta and NCR Corporation in Dayton, Ohio, and successfully led teams that developed and reinforced proper standards of business conduct across all business operations. Collins also spent more than 10 years as a senior labor and employment attorney with NCR, and has been a prosecutor and police officer.

Collins earned her Juris Doctor degree from SUNY at Buffalo School of Law, and a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice from Buffalo State College.

She currently serves on the board of the American Red Cross, Southeast Region, in Atlanta.

Juan A. McGruder, Ph.D., now serves as associate vice president of Major Gifts in the Office of Institutional Advancement. McGruder will be responsible for enhancing a robust program for philanthropic support of major gifts from corporations and individuals.

McGruder comes to MSM after serving as the director of development, School of Computer Science, at Georgia Institute of Technology. He also has served as the school's associate director of development for the College of Computing. Previously, McGruder was special assistant to the president, director of development and an assistant professor of education at Clark Atlanta University.

The Houston, Texas, native also served on a national level as assistant director of the Consortium for the Advancement of Private Higher Education (CAPHE) in Washington, D.C., which directs national grant programs for private liberal arts colleges and universities.

McGruder holds a doctor of philosophy (Ph.D.) in education and human development from Vanderbilt University and obtained a Master's degree in education from Harvard University. He also received a Master of Arts degree in counseling and human development from Clark Atlanta University; an education specialist degree in student affairs from Western Kentucky University; and a baccalaureate degree in political science and pre-law from Clark College, now Clark Atlanta University.

Nicole A. Miller, J.D., assumed the post of MSM's new associate general counsel. In this capacity, she will provide legal counseling, auditing and litigation avoidance strategy; advise on the development and implementation of employment policies; counsel on the administrative process for any disciplinary issues; and advise on complying with state and federal employment laws. She also will supervise litigation handled by outside counsel retained to assist with matters requiring specialized legal expertise; review subpoenas and other requests for records submitted to MSM; and advise on the development of policies governing students.

Prior to joining MSM, Miller worked for five years at Holland & Knight LLP, where she served as employment counsel to MSM and was the firm's national labor and employment trainer. Previously, she was an Equal Employment Opportunity specialist with Goldman Sachs & Co. in New York and an associate with Elarbee, Thompson & Trapnell, LLP and Minkin & Snyder, P.C. in Atlanta. She also served as a law clerk for the Honorable Alice D. Bonner.

Miller earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in English and Juris Doctor from Georgetown University in Washington, D.C.

Sondra Rhoades Johnson has been appointed as chief of staff for MSM President Dr. John E. Maupin Jr. Johnson earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Political Science from Spelman College and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Decision Science from Atlanta University - now Clark Atlanta University.

Prior to joining MSM, Rhoades Johnson served as chief planning officer, director of External Affairs and Business Development and director of External Affairs and Strategic Alliances for the Georgia Technology Authority. She previously served as chief executive officer of the St. Croix Valley Girl Scout Council in St. Paul, Minn., where she launched an $11 million capital campaign to fund long-range property and program improvements and developed and marketed a product line around the "For All the Girls" capital campaign. While in Minnesota, she was a member of the board of directors of the Children's Museum of Minnesota and co-chaired the Agency Campaign of the St. Paul Area United Way.

Rhoades Johnson also served as chief deputy tax commissioner from 1990-92 and tax commissioner for Fulton County Government in Atlanta, Ga., from 1992-97.

She presently serves on the board of directors of Inner Harbour, a residential treatment facility that helps troubled teens and children by nurturing intellectual development, academic achievement and emotional healing.

Among her many awards, Rhoades Johnson was named as one of America's Best and Brightest Business and Professional Women by Dollars and Sense magazine in 1996 and, in 1994 as a Woman of Style and Substance by Revlon Corp. In 1988, she was recognized as one of 10 Outstanding Young Atlantans. She was inducted into the YWCA of Greater Atlanta Academy of Women Achievers. Her community involvement includes membership in Jack and Jill of America Inc., Girl Scouts of the U.S.A. (lifetime member), Junior League of Atlanta and the Magnolia Chapter of The Links Inc. In addition, she is a graduate of Leadership Atlanta, Regional Leadership Institute, Leadership Georgia and Leadership America.