Victoria Thomas, CTAE Director
Victoria Thomas began her career in education in 2004 after a career in journalism, during which her accomplishments included internships at Time, Fortune, and Essence magazines in New York City, reporting positions at the Tallahassee Democrat, and marketing positions at the Lexington Herald-Leader and Columbus Ledger-Enquirer.
After one year at the Academic Success Center, Mrs. Thomas joined the faculty at Hardaway High School. Within two years, she was appointed to serve on the School Improvement Committee, where she served as secretary for three consecutive years, led sub-committees on 9th grade transition and school promotion, and established the annual teacher retirement and awards celebration to boost staff morale and comradery, which has become a Hardaway tradition. Mrs. Thomas was named the Page One Teacher of the Year for Hardaway in 2009. Two years later, she was named the Teacher of the Year for Hardaway and went on to be named a Top Ten Finalist for the district-wide award.
In 2011, Mrs. Thomas was promoted to become the CTAE Supervisor at Hardaway High School. In that position, she successfully launched the National Technical Honor Society for the recognition of students who excelled in the career education program. She collaborated on school-wide goals, including leading the implementation of the school’s attendance software and serving as the International Baccalaureate Career-Related Certificate Coordinator when Hardaway became one of only 14 school in the world to pilot the program. In that role, she created a student handbook and training materials for teachers that were presented at regional IB meetings.
Mrs. Thomas was named the school district’s CTAE Director in August 2015. Under her tenure, the number of CTAE programs has grown through the expansion of computer science, public safety, and agriculture. Through Mrs. Thomas’ stewardship over a five-year period, the district successfully added a college and career academy at Jordan Vocational High School in 2020. Given the responsibility for district-wide robotics, Mrs. Thomas grew the number of active teams from only six to 60 in just two years and planned several regional FIRST Robotics competitions at Columbus State University. The Muscogee County School District was named one of five Economic Development Partnership Districts in 2017, a recognition of the many partnerships Mrs. Thomas has fostered, including TSYS/Global Payments, WC Bradley, Pratt & Whitney, and the Columbus Consolidated Government, which has included the Mayor’s Office and Columbus Fire Department & EMS. For these and other efforts, Mrs. Thomas was recognized as the Georgia CTAE Director of the Year in 2018.
Mrs. Thomas serves on the Greater Columbus Chamber of Commerce’s Partnership in Education Board and the Georgia Department of Education CTAE Advisory Council. She is a member of the Georgia Association of Career & Technical Educators, Professional Association of Georgia Educators, and Delta Kappa Gamma.
Mrs. Thomas received her Bachelor of Science Degree in Journalism from Florida A&M University, Master of Business Administration from the University of Maryland, and Specialist in Educational Administration from Columbus State University.
A daughter of two educators, Mrs. Thomas is married to Kennis Thomas, a graphic design teacher at Harris County High School. She has three children, Michael, Mason, and Mackenzie, as well as a beloved niece, Olivia Hamilton, and nephews, Logan Hardman and Oshea Thomas.
Gene Avery, Regional CTAE Supervisor
Gene Avery has been an educator for more than 20 years. He began his career in education as a Business Education teacher, and he was soon promoted to CTAE Supervisor. Mr. Avery received his Educational Specialist degree in 2015.
Dr. Willie Matthews, Regional CTAE Supervisor
Dr. Willie Matthews is a native of Columbus, Georgia. He began his career in education as a Business Education teacher at Spencer High School, and he was soon promoted to CTAE Supervisor. Dr. Matthews received his doctorate in education from Columbus State University in 2015.
Sheree’ Tovey, Regional CTAE Supervisor
Sheree’ Tovey began her career in education after serving the community as a law enforcement officer. Mrs. Tovey began her career in education as a Public Safety teacher at Shaw High School. During her time in the classroom, she was a SkillsUSA advisor and served on its state board. Mrs. Tovey was promoted to CTAE Supervisor in 2011.