Home › Biography
Biography
Dr. Cecil P. Staton
Chancellor Emeritus, East Carolina University · Former President & CEO, AAHOA · Former Georgia State Senator
Full biography
Dr. Cecil P. Staton is a board director, advisor and former chief executive whose career spans higher education, association leadership, public policy and entrepreneurship.
As the 11th Chancellor of East Carolina University (2016–2019), he led a public research university with 29,000 students and an annual budget of approximately $1 billion. He launched a $500 million capital campaign, the largest in ECU's history, and the Rural Prosperity Initiative in partnership with SAS. ECU's Board of Trustees elected him Chancellor Emeritus. Earlier, as Interim President of Valdosta State University, he balanced the budget, raised more than $17 million and saw applications rise 60 percent. As Vice Chancellor for Extended Education of the University System of Georgia, he served as Chief International Officer and led the creation of the Georgia Film Academy.
From 2019 to 2021, Dr. Staton was President and CEO of AAHOA, the world's largest hotel owners association, whose 20,000 members own 60 percent of U.S. hotels. He led a new strategic plan with the Board of Directors, realigned the budget to deliver positive financial results through the pandemic, and advocated before Congress on the CARES Act and PPP. He then returned to Smyth & Helwys Publishing as President and CEO, guiding the company through a period of transition.
Elected to the Georgia State Senate in 2004, he served from 2005 to 2014, including two terms as Majority Whip. He chaired the Appropriations Subcommittee on Higher Education, which oversees about $2 billion in annual funding, and the Science and Technology Committee. He sponsored legislation creating the Georgia Trauma Care Network Commission and secured more than $200 million for enrollment expansion at the Mercer University School of Medicine.
An entrepreneur, he founded Smyth & Helwys Publishing, Stroud & Hall Publishers and Georgia Eagle Media, which grew to 16 radio stations, a newspaper and a television station. He also served Mercer University as Associate Provost and University Publisher.
His board service includes the Georgia Public Telecommunications Commission, the Georgia Trauma Foundation, U.S. Travel, the American Athletic Conference and NAFSA. He holds a D.Phil. from the University of Oxford, two graduate degrees from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary and a B.A. from Furman University.
Short biography
For event programs, board materials and introductions.
Dr. Cecil P. Staton is a board director and advisor with more than 30 years of experience leading universities, associations, public bodies and private companies. He served as the 11th Chancellor of East Carolina University from 2016 to 2019, leading a public research university of 29,000 students with an annual budget of approximately $1 billion, and was elected Chancellor Emeritus by its Board of Trustees. From 2019 to 2021 he was President and CEO of AAHOA, the world's largest hotel owners association, guiding its members through the pandemic. He later returned as President and CEO of Smyth & Helwys Publishing, the company he founded in 1990. During nearly a decade in the Georgia State Senate (2005 to 2014), he served two terms as Majority Whip and chaired the Appropriations Subcommittee on Higher Education. His board service includes the Georgia Public Telecommunications Commission, the American Athletic Conference and U.S. Travel. He holds a D.Phil. from the University of Oxford.
Contact Dr. Staton
For board opportunities, consulting, interim leadership or speaking invitations, please get in touch.