Brenau University President David L. Barnett was affirmed to serve as chair of the 77-member Board of Trustees for the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges at the commission’s annual meeting on Dec. 9 in Nashville, Tennessee.
Barnett succeeds Blaine Hanson, executive vice president and chief operating officer of Lees-McRae College in North Carolina. Barnett has served on the SACSCOC board for five years in multiple capacities; before becoming chair, he previously was a member of the board’s Executive Council.
Barnett, who began working at Brenau in 2005, has been president of the university since 2024. During his career, Barnett has worked in various administrative, academic and student-focused roles at six different schools in Georgia and Kentucky.
“I am humbled to have been selected to lead the Board of Trustees for SACSCOC in a continuation of my service to the commission. My career in higher education, which includes having served at Level IV, Level V and Level VI schools, has helped me to become well-versed in the principles of accreditation and has provided the expertise necessary to provide leadership for this organization,” Barnett said. “I look forward to working with SACSCOC President Stephen Pruitt for the betterment of higher education.”
“I am humbled to have been selected to lead the Board of Trustees for SACSCOC in a continuation of my service to the commission. My career in higher education, which includes having served at Level IV, Level V and Level VI schools, has helped me to become well-versed in the principles of accreditation and has provided the expertise necessary to provide leadership for this organization,” Barnett said. “I look forward to working with SACSCOC President Stephen Pruitt for the betterment of higher education.”
At Brenau, Barnett previously served as executive vice president and chief financial officer, overseeing the university’s day-to-day operations and its strategic financial planning. He teaches graduate-level courses in the College of Education.
Before coming to Brenau, Barnett previously worked at Spalding University in Louisville, Kentucky, the University of Louisville School of Medicine in Louisville, Union Commonwealth University in Barbourville, Kentucky, Truett-McConnell College in Cleveland, Georgia, and Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky.
Barnett earned both a Ph.D. in educational leadership and organizational development and a Specialist in Education from the University of Louisville. He also earned a Master of Divinity from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and a Bachelor of Arts from Mercer University.
Barnett is on the board of the Lake Lanier Olympic Park Foundation, Quinlan Visual Arts Center and the Atlanta Regional Council for Higher Education. Barnett and his wife, Kimberly, have two children and a grandson. He is an active member of a local church and participates in many civic organizations and activities.
