James_September-October_2026_web - Flipbook - Page 45
ainesville is
mostly known
for two things,
being a gateway
to the Georgia
mountains and
chickens. So
many chickens. Thanks to Gainesville businessman Jesse Jewell,
Gainesville became the “Poultry
Capital of the World” in the 1950s.
The history of Gainesville goes
back to its days as “Mule Camp
Springs” in the early 1800s. Renamed in 1821 in honor of a hero
of the War of 1812 Gen. Edmund
P. Gaines, Gainesville began to
really grow thanks to the gold rush
in next door Lumpkin County in
the 1830s. Cotton production and
textile mills helped the area grow
after the Civil War and the city was
the first south of Baltimore to install
street lamps in 1902.
Around that same time, in 1900
a psychologist named H.J. Pearce
purchased what was then known
as the Georgia Baptist Female
Seminary and renamed it Brenau—
a portmanteau of sorts combining
the German word “brennen,” meaning to burn and the Latin word
“aurum,” meaning gold— thus the
motto “As Gold Refined by Fire.”
Pearce would serve the institution
for 50 years, more than one-third
of its history, helping to mold the
institution into what is has become.
It evolved into a private university
with more than 3,500 students,
four separate colleges and offering
doctoral, master’s, specialist, bachelor’s and associate degrees, as
well as professional certifications,
in more than 50 areas of study.
Dr. David Barnett became the
11th president in the university’s
history in 2024, taking over after
nearly 20 years serving in a wide
variety of Brenau roles, most
recently serving as executive vice
president and chief financial officer.
DR. DAVID BARNETT
He started as the director of the
North Atlanta Campus, located
just off Peachtree Industrial Boulevard in Norcross. Its now home to
several programs within the Ivester
College of Health Science, including nursing, occupational therapy
and clinical counseling psychology.
“I began working at Brenau in
2005, just as it was launching an
expansion of its breadth of impact
and identity in the community.
The university initiated intentional
expansion efforts by offering new
professional healthcare degrees to
meet the emerging needs in the
Northeast Georgia region,” said Barnett. “Over the next decade, Brenau
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