Macon Magazine

30 maconmagazine.com | February/March 2026 Keep up with President Elkins and other Mercerians by following @merceryou on social media. "I am overjoyed for Mercer." Praising Elkins in a news release, he said, "She will be an amazing president, given her exceptional and demonstrated leadership, relational and problem- solving talents." Elkins takes the helm at a moment of growth and momentum for Mercer. Among the university's most visible initiatives is a planned 150,000-square- foot medical school building in Downtown Macon, expanding Mercer's long-standing role in health sciences education. The project underscores the university's commitment to addressing health care workforce needs across Georgia, as well as their devotion to Downtown Macon's vitality. Mercer is also positioned as a key academic partner in the Georgia Aerospace & Defense Alliance, a public- private collaboration involving major industry leaders such as Gulfstream Aerospace, Lockheed Martin, Rolls- M ercer University elected Dr. Penny L. Elkins as its 19th president in November 2025, marking a historic milestone for the institution as she became the first woman to lead the university in its 192-year history on January 1, 2026. The Mercer Board of Trustees voted unanimously to confirm her appointment, a decision met with visible emotion and enthusiasm during the public announcement on the Macon campus. Elkins took a path to the presidency that students and faculty say reflects her skill, charisma, and loyalty. Elkins is a "Double Bear," having earned both an undergraduate and graduate degree from Mercer, as well as an education specialist degree from Georgia College and State University and a Ph.D. from Georgia State University. Her professional path began in the classroom as a third-grade teacher and elementary school administrator before shifting toward higher education leadership. Most recently, she served as Mercer's executive vice president and interim provost and led as the senior vice president for enrollment management for a dozen years prior. During this time, she played a key role in driving remarkable enrollment growth across the university. In an interview with the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer, Elkins described the appointment in personal terms. "I'm not accepting a position," she said. "I am fulfilling a call. This is a calling I've had for a long time, and only God could have written this story." William D. Underwood, who stepped down as president at the end of this year after almost 20 years to return to teaching full-time at Mercer University School of Law, said of the appointment, Royce, and RTX. Headquartered on Mercer's Macon campus, the alliance aims to strengthen Georgia's aerospace and defense sectors—industries that collectively employ nearly 200,000 Georgians and generate close to $58 billion in annual economic impact. These efforts are unfolding as Elkins takes the helm and Mercer looks ahead to its milestone bicentennial in 2033. Her election signals both continuity and change: a leader shaped by decades of service to Mercer, and a historic first. As Elkins begins her presidency, she does so not as a newcomer, but as someone who has grown alongside the institution she now leads anchored in decades of service to the institution and primed for its future. STORY BY KAILEY RHODES D R . P E N N Y L . E L K I N S N A M E D M E R C E R U N I V E R S I T Y ' S 1 9 T H P R E S I D E N T Mercer University President Penny L. Elkins. Photo by Leah Yetter courtesy of Mercer University.

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