Goodwill Industries of Middle Georgia and the CSRA is pleased to introduce Leah Pontani as vice president of career development. In her new role, Pontani will create training programs to benefit job seekers as well as employers seeking a skilled workforce.

“Leah brings to our Goodwill and to the local business community more than a decade of community college/university career education executive leadership experience,” noted James Stiff, President and CEO of the local Goodwill. “Leah will build teams in both Middle Georgia and the CSRA to serve business and industry with customized training and professional development programming. She has plans to energize our nine Job Connection career centers with career counseling and industry certification ‘up-skilling’ services for a new wave of people who find themselves unemployed because of the pandemic.”

Pontani joined Goodwill in March. Previously, she was the associate vice president of professional studies and business development at Georgia Court University in New Jersey. Prior to that, she was the dean for the division of lifelong learning at Mercer County Community College.

She has spent her career working to close the gap between education and industry through the creation of business partnerships that drive career pathways for those seeking opportunities for career advancement.

She earned her master’s in business administration and bachelor of science from Rider University.

“I am thrilled to bring my experience in higher education and business development here to further our mission of helping people develop their God-given gifts through work, education and career services.”

For more information on Goodwill of Middle Georgia and the CSRA, visit www.GoodwillWorks.org.