George Penick
Head of School
St. Andrew's Episcopal School
Jackson, MS
George Penick assumed the leadership of St. Andrew's Episcopal School in Jackson, Mississippi, beginning in the 2008-09 school year. St. Andrew's is a co-educational, college preparatory day school that serves 1,200 students from pre-kindergarten through grade twelve.
For almost 27 years, Dr. Penick worked in philanthropy, serving as the first president of the Foundation for the Mid South (1990-2006), the first executive director of the Jessie Ball DuPont Fund (1985-1990), and the associate director of the Mary Reynolds Babcock Foundation (1979-1985). Immediately prior to assuming the headship of St. Andrew's, Dr. Penick served for two years as the first director of the RAND Gulf States Policy Institute which was formed by RAND to address the public policy issues caused by the extensive damage from Hurricane Katrina in Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana.
A graduate of Davidson College, Dr. Penick received both a master's and doctorate in educational administration from the Harvard Graduate School of Education, focusing primarily on educational management, child development, and public policy. He also received a master's in public administration from Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government.
Dr. Penick has served a variety of professional and volunteer organizations, including the Board of Trustees of the Foundation Center, the Council on Foundations, the Southeastern Council of Foundations, Women and Philanthropy, BBB Wise Giving Alliance, Episcopal Relief and Development, the National Cathedral Association, the Community Foundation of Greater Jackson, the Carpathian Foundation, and Davidson College.
Dr. Penick and his family have been a part of the St. Andrew's community for almost 20 years. He and his wife Carol have two children, Holladay and Robert, who are both graduates of St. Andrew's. George and Carol have led the Annual Fund Campaign, and Carol was president of the Parents' Association, served on the Corporation board for many years, and worked in the school's admissions office. The Penicks are communicants of the Cathedral Church of St. Andrew, where Dr. Penick serves on the Vestry.