2021 Election for Open Positions on the Board of Directors

• Vice President
• Secretary
• Director at Large - Position 1

To learn more about the open positions, please click here. 

Only Plan Sponsor and Emeritus members may vote for open Board positions. The election process concluded at 5:00pm on March 5, 2021. Results will be posted to the GAPPT website on March 12, 2021. New Board members will begin their term on March 25, 2021 with their formal installation taking place at the Twelfth Annual Conference.

The following members have accepted nominations for the open positions:

 Vice President

Term: March 2021 - March 2023

Kevin Hurley, CRPF™

Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA)
Current Board Position: Director at Large

Mr. Hurley joined the Authority in 1999 and has held various positions with increasing levels of responsibility and is currently the Authority’s Deputy Chief Financial Officer.  Mr. Hurley is responsible for providing the Authority support in the areas of business and financial analysis, ensuring maximum yield for investments, oversees the Authority’s debt program, as well as, cash and investment management, energy hedging, and financial modeling functions.  He currently chairs the Non-Represented Defined Contribution pension committee and has chaired and/or served on MARTA’s Represented and Non-Represented Defined Benefit pension committees and is a Board Member at Large for the Georgia Association of Public Pension Trustees.  Immediately prior to joining the Authority, Mr. Hurley held a senior analyst position with The Boeing Company and was selected for The Boeing Company Leadership Development Program.  Preceding The Boeing Company, he served eight years in the United States Air Force where Mr. Hurley was a Comptroller, Flight Commander, and Financial Analysis Branch Chief.  Mr. Hurley holds a BBA degree in Finance from the University of Georgia, an MBA from University of Phoenix, and is a Certified Retirement Plan Fiduciary™.

Term: March 2021 - March 2023

Brandt Barlow
Chief Financial Officer

Peace Officers' Annuity and Benefit Fund of Georgia

Brandt Barlow is the CFO for the Peace Officers’ Annuity and Benefit Fund of Georgia, Magistrate Judges Retirement Fund and Probate Judges Retirement Fund of Georgia, and Superior Court Clerks’ Retirement Fund of Georgia. He has held this position since 2018 where he oversees finance, accounting, and budget. Brandt has over 8 years of experience in budgeting, internal controls, audits, and federal compliance.
Before taking this role, he worked as a State Auditor and in private accounting. Brandt is a native of Georgia and earned an accounting degree from Kennesaw State University. He previously worked as a Police Officer for six years in Georgia. Brandt is married and has three children. He is currently seeking his Certified Retirement Plan Fiduciary™ designation.

Virgil Moon, CPA
Support Services Agency Director
Cobb County

As Support Services Agency Director, Virgil performs administrative and technical management work assisting the County Manager in carrying out organizational staff functions. He manages and supervises the activities of those operational departments of Economic Development, Government Service Center/Mail Services, Fleet Management, Information Services, Property Management and Purchasing, Records Management, Tax Assessor, and serves as liaison to Cobb’s state and federal legislative delegation and other governmental agencies. Click here to read his entire resume.

Karen Rojas, CRPF™ (Incumbent)
Retirement Manager
City of Gainesville
Current Board Position: Secretary

Karen has been part of the City of Gainesville Human Resources team for nine years. As the Retirement Manager, she directs and coordinates the City of Gainesville's retirement programs and assists retirees to make a smooth transition into a new phase of their life.
Since 2018, Karen has served as Secretary to the City of Gainesville Retirement Plan A Board. She has also served as Secretary on the GAPPT Board of Directors since 2019. Karen is a Certified Retirement Plan Fiduciary™ designee.

Term: March 2021 - March 2024

Frederick Bailey, CRPF™

City of Savannah Employees Retirement Plan

Frederick J. Bailey currently serves as an appointed citizen Board Trustee and Chairman of the Investment Committee for the City of Savannah Employees Retirement Plan. In this capacity he and his fellow Trustees manage and administer the Cities $470MM defined benefit pension assets. The Plan covers the 4K+ active and retired uniformed and general employees of the City of Savannah.    
In addition to his Board role Frederick also serves as Head of Institutional Investor Relations for Glancy, Prongay & Murray, LLP an LA based law firm specializing in securities, class action and anti-trust litigation. 
Frederick has earned his GAPPT Certified Retirement Plan Fiduciary™ designation and currently serves on the GAPPT Rules Committee. Click here to read his entire biography.

Ramona Bivins, CRPF™
Chief Financial Officer
Clayton County Board of Commissioners

Ms. Ramona Bivins serves as the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) for Clayton County Board of Commissioners. As CFO, Ms. Bivins is responsible for the Internal Audits and Finance Departments. In her role of CFO, she provides leadership in the development and the continuous evaluation of short and long-term strategic objectives for the Finance Department. Additionally, she serves as a member of the Clayton County Public Employees’ Pension Board, holding the office of Secretary of the Board.
A native of Texas, Ms. Bivins has over twenty years of experience in the areas of governmental accounting, budgeting and finance.  Prior to her tenure with Clayton County Board of Commissioners, she worked for two of the largest school districts in Georgia, serving as the Budget Director and Interim Chief Financial Officer with Clayton County Board of Education and as Director of Budget for the Atlanta Public Schools System.
Ms. Bivins is a member of the Clayton County Employees Retirement System Board, where she serves as Secretary.  She is also a member of the Government Finance Officers Association, NIGP-The Institute for Public Procurement, Government Procurement Association of Georgia, Council of Development Finance Agencies, and the Association of Government Accountants. Click here to read her entire biography.

Davy Godfrey, CRPF™
Director of Human Resources and Risk Management
City of Marietta

Davy Godfrey is the Director of Human Resources and Risk Management for the City of Marietta, Georgia, a position he has held since 2015. In his role at the City of Marietta, Davy also serves as the Pension Board Secretary, created and maintains an exhaustive city pension website where none previously existed, is responsible for multiple positive pension plan amendments, served on the selection committee for a new 401a Supplemental Pension provider, serves on the 457b Staff Committee, and negotiated lower administration and recordkeeping fees on the 457 plans while simultaneously lifting the restriction on moving funds into and out of fixed income accounts. Davy is a CRPF™ designee and has served on the GAPPT Program Committee, providing crucial feedback regarding which courses to offer attendees at both the Annual Conference and the Trustee School.
Before joining the City of Marietta, Davy served in the Army for a total of 20 years in both the active and reserve components, ultimately retiring at the rank of Major after serving as a human resources officer and logistics officer. He has a Master’s Degree in Human Resources Management from Webster University. Originally from Alabama with an undergraduate degree from Jacksonville State University, Davy loves the Atlanta Braves and the Alabama Crimson Tide.

Romeo Stockett, Jr., MPA, Ph.D.
Board Member
Fulton-Dekalb County Hospital Authority

The Board of Directors would like to thank the membership for their participation in the election process. Questions can be directed to Tracy Ransom, Vice President and Rules Committee Chair, at [email protected] or Sue Reynolds at [email protected].