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Ava Greene Bedden is an accomplished leader, high-energy attorney, college instructor, and certified senior professional in human resources with over 20 years of experience in various leadership positions in the areas of educational management, human resources, labor and employment law, and organizational development. She currently serves as General Counsel for Paine College in Augusta, Georgia, providing advice and counsel to the president and administration of the college. She also taught Business Law as a member of the Paine College faculty, prior to relocating to Irving, Texas in June 2010.
Ms. Bedden began her professional career as a lawyer, working in various legal positions and government. She then broadened her career path into human resources and organizational development.
In 1994, Ms. Bedden moved to Seattle, Washington, and began her career in education law. After first serving as the Employee Relations Administrator, she was promoted to the position of Acting Executive Director of Human Resources for the Seattle School District. After relocating back to Washington D.C., she was appointed to serve as the Director of Labor Management and Employee Relations for the District of Columbia Public Schools. She continued her public service in the Executive Office of the Mayor of the District of Columbia, serving as Chief of Staff in the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Public Safety and Justice, and later as the senior bioterrorism advisor for the D.C. Department of Health.
After relocating to Philadelphia, PA in 2004, her outstanding work for an educational management organization led to her appointment as the Executive Director of Delaware Valley Charter High School (DVCHS). In 2007, under her leadership, DVCHS achieved “Adequate Yearly Progress” (AYP) for the first time in the school’s history.
Ms. Bedden obtained her certification as a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) in 1997. In addition to her regular job responsibilities, she has also worked as a consultant, providing training in the areas of human resource management, employee terminations and “Just Cause,” strategic planning, organizational development, performance management, dispute resolution, and education law and compliance. Prior to joining Paine College, she served as an assistant professor at Augusta State University in the College of Education, providing instruction in School Law, Sports Law, Personnel Administration, and Business Administration.
Upon graduation from of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she received her Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology and the Administration of Criminal Justice, Ms. Bedden attended the Howard University School of Law, where she was a member of the Howard Law Journal. She has been featured in Ebony Magazine as “100 of the Most Promising Black Women in Corporate America.” She has served as General Counsel for the Black Human Resources Network, and has served on various boards including the National Bar Association Board of Governors, Vice President of the Washington Bar Association, and the Metropolitan Community Development Corporation. Ms. Bedden currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Boys & Girls Club, and the Lynndale Corporation, providing leadership and service to the Augusta community. She is a proud member of the Theta Pi Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.
