Emory Welcomes New VP for Government Affairs

Charles Harman

Kay Hinton

Charles “Charlie” Harman, former chief of staff for Senator Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.), has assumed the role of Emory’s vice president for government and community affairs, the chief government affairs officer for the university, including Emory Healthcare.

“Charlie Harman is an experienced leader with a deep understanding of government at the state and federal levels as well as extensive knowledge of the health care field. He is just what Emory needs,” says President James Wagner.

Harman, who has served Georgia senators from both political parties, became Chambliss’s chief of staff in 2007. For the past four years he also has served as cochair of the Senate Bi-Partisan Chiefs of Staff group, which aims to foster mutual trust and friendship among the chiefs from both parties.

“Having worked side by side with Charlie for years in the Senate, I am delighted that he is joining the Emory family,” says former Senator Sam Nunn (D-Ga.) 61L 62L 81H. “In the more than thirty years that I have known Charlie, I’ve observed up close his incredible energy, enthusiasm, good judgment, and unquestionable integrity. With Emory’s solid foundation of academic excellence and leadership, as an alumnus I am confident that the Emory-Harman team will be a winning combination.”

“I grew up in Atlanta hearing about this distinguished university, its health services, and what Emory meant to Atlanta and the South,” Harman says. “I am both humbled and honored to now have the opportunity to serve this leading academic institution and prestigious health center for care and research.”

An Atlanta native and graduate of the University of Georgia, Harman first worked in the US Senate as a summer intern in the office of Senator Richard B. Russell. He returned to Washington in the 1980s as a staff member for Nunn, serving as his chief of staff from 1987 to 1992.

From 1992 to 1996, Harman served as president of the Georgia Chamber of Commerce, representing the state’s businesses in government affairs and economic development. In 1996, he became vice president of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Georgia and led the organization’s public affairs effort for its merger with WellPoint Health Networks in 2001, and its merger in 2004 with Anthem to become WellPoint.