Heather Carter to Join GPL October 1, 2020
Greater Phoenix Leadership President and CEO Neil Giuliano today announced creation of an Executive Vice President role for the organization, citing its strengthened commitment to serving as the region’s premier CEO business leader organization engaged on critically-important public policy issues.
Heather Carter will serve as GPL’s Executive Vice President, focusing on issues related to education, healthcare, and the further implementation of GPL’s strategic plan adopted in May 2020.
For decades, GPL has been proud to lead on key education reform and investment efforts, including:
- The passage of Proposition 301, increasing the state’s sales tax rate .6%, of which 85% went to K-12 education, 12% went to University research funding, and 3% went toward community college workforce development efforts (2000)
- Support of state bonding packages passed by the Arizona legislature geared toward major University capital projects (2003 and 2017)
- Support of the SPEED (Stimulus Plan for Economic and Educational Development) initiative which expanded the use of lottery games to pay the debt services of significant investments in higher education infrastructure, totaling more than $800M (2007)
- Support for Proposition 100 – a three-year temporary sales tax increase of 1%, generating approximately $1B per year, to help avoid massive reductions to Arizona’s General Fund in the areas serving K-12 education, Medicaid coverage, and Universities (2010)
- The passage of Proposition 123, a ten-year increase in the revenue generated from the income earned on state trust lands, generating approximately $250M annually for the benefit of the state’s K-12 and University systems (2016)
- Efforts to extend Proposition 301 and maintain essential education revenues, led specifically by Past GPL Chair & Emeritus Member Phil Francis (2018)
- Support of the 20×2020 legislation to increase teacher pay, restore recession-era cuts, and make additional investments in the Arizona’s public education system (2019)
GPL Chairman Michael Bidwill said “In sports, sometimes the phrase ‘game changer’ is overused, but it is quite appropriate today as we announce Heather’s addition to GPL’s executive team. Heather is a dedicated leader with a track record of great accomplishments, and a reputation of being a consensus builder, working with all parties to find compromise in advancing education and healthcare issues in Arizona.”
“Greater Phoenix Leadership has a time-tested record of success, working to improve the quality of life for all Arizonans,” Carter said. “I am honored to join their visionary team and organization to further strengthen our great state. This was my motivation and focus as a policy maker, especially in the critical areas of education and healthcare, and I am excited to continue serving with Arizona’s CEOs and the entire team at GPL to advance their mission.”
“GPL is proud to have led this dialogue in the past and, with Heather on our team, we will continue to aggressively lead on these issues while advocating for sustainable, comprehensive and inclusive policies now and into the future,” said Giuliano.
“As we face the profound and unprecedented challenges related to the global pandemic, GPL remains committed to continuing our work to convene public- and private-sector stakeholders to achieve meaningful results for our communities and the region’s education and healthcare ecosystems.”
