11 ALIVE – Walking the halls of KIPP Atlanta Collegiate, senior Zemirah Skinner realizes she’s making history. She is considered one of the school’s scholars of distinction and has plans to go to Vanderbilt University to study medicine on a full-ride scholarship.
“I’m a first-generation student,” Skinner said. “My parents didn’t go to college and don’t have any doctors or surgeons in the family. Hopefully, I’ll be the first of many. It feels good to be a representation for my younger siblings and let them know they have a chance and opportunity to be something bigger and go to college and be a representative for my school and other students or scholars in my community.”
For Skinner and many other students, the budding start to a promising future is rooted in the building that has a historical past. The school, located on Atlanta’s Westside, first opened in 1951 as Henry McNeal Turner High School, a segregated school named after an African Methodist Episcopal bishop.
As design director at Cookerly, Tim serves as the creative lead in the development of branding campaigns, print collateral and digital media for clients across a broad range of industries, including consumer, professional services, healthcare and technology.
As a senior vice president at Cookerly, Mike Rieman is a strategic communications leader specializing in media relations and reputation management. With a proven track record of securing high-profile placements in top-tier outlets such as The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, CNN and USA Today, he excels at crafting compelling narratives that resonate across print, broadcast and digital platforms.
Mike Touhill is vice president at Cookerly Public Relations, where he helps lead traditional, social and digital media programs for B2B and B2C clients in packaging, telecommunications and technology, among other industries. As a communication leader, he develops and executes public relations strategy, provides proactive and reactive counsel to C-level executives and secures earned media coverage for client initiatives and product.
Andrew Agan is a vice president at Cookerly Public Relations, overseeing the agency’s internship program and leading media relations, content strategy and social media initiatives. He provides counsel and executes campaigns for clients across various sectors, including finance, healthcare, hospitality, technology, automotive and many others. Andrew excels at crafting compelling stories and building media relationships, resulting in clients being featured in notable outlets such as CNBC, Associated Press, Business Insider, Fox Business, HBO, Inc. Magazine, Sirius XM, The Wall Street Journal and USA Today, among others.
As vice president of Cookerly, Sheryl Sellaway uses her extensive corporate communications background to lead consumer PR efforts, deliver strategy for marketing programs and share expertise about community initiatives.