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Keynote Speaker

Wayne Clough

Wayne Clough was born in the rural town of Douglas Georgia, the seat of Coffee County, in 1941.  His family has deep roots in South Georgia having lived there for five generations.  Growing up in Douglas as a boy he developed a love of nature and reading, and learned to build things using his hands.   He attended Georgia Tech earning two degrees in civil engineering, and obtained a PhD in civil engineering at the University of California at Berkeley.  Clough served on the faculties of Stanford University, Duke University, Virginia Tech and the University of Washington.  He became the first alumnus to serve as president of Georgia Tech 1994.   Upon retirement from Georgia Tech in 2008, he served as secretary of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington DC until 2014.  

During his career he was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 1990, and in 2010, he was elected to the National Academy of Arts and Sciences.  He received honorary doctorates from twelve universities and served on the National Science Board and the President’s Council on Science and Technology.

Today, he lectures on climate change, and works in support of financially disadvantaged students through the Georgia Tech Promise Program that has provided over 1300 students with a debt free education. He has written four books, one of which, Things New and Strange: A Southerner’s Journey Through the Smithsonian Collections, won the Georgia Writer’s Association award for best history in 2020.    

Venue Information 

Jekyll Island Convention Center 

75 Beachview Dr N, Jekyll Island, GA 31527

Opened in May 2021, the 125,000 square foot Jekyll Island oceanfront Convention Center boasts 78K square feet of flexible meeting space. Their 45K square foot ballroom and ten breakout rooms are perfect for small meetings to large conferences for up to 2,000 attendees. 350 hotel rooms and their Beach Village are right outside within walking distance, with another 1,000 Island hotel rooms within a 2-minute ride.

The Jekyll Island Convention Center welcome our group to the Island and look forward to showcasing why Jekyll Island is the perfect location to host our conference.