Release date: Dec. 22, 2005
Contact: Beverly Cox Clark at 404-712-8780 or beverly.clark@emory.edu

Emory Appoints Ray to Lead Transportation Initiatives

As part of its commitment to increase the quality of life in and around the Clifton Corridor area, Emory University has appointed former MARTA executive Laura Ray as associate vice president for transportation and parking services. She will lead the university's initiatives in transportation planning and infrastructure, including Emory's ongoing work with the Clifton Corridor Transportation Management Association.

"Quality of life, including transportation, walkability and access to venues, is one of the most important issues facing our region, and we welcome Laura Ray in this new leadership role. She brings skills and experience that will be vital as Emory continues to collaborate with community organizations and government agencies to develop and implement a regional approach to improving mobility around campus and within the Clifton Corridor. It is one of our highest priorities and critical to our future," says Michael J. Mandl, executive vice president for finance and administration.

Emory has a longstanding commitment to alternative transportation. Emory, the CDC, the Clifton Corridor Transportation Management Association and Children's Healthcare of Atlanta recently completed a comprehensive study to identify transportation needs and improvement priorities within the Clifton Corridor area. The university continues to work in close partnership with other Clifton Corridor organizations to find ways to improve the transportation system and, thus, the overall land use and urban design in an area that accommodates more than 23,000 employees, nearly 12,000 students and 8,000 patients and visitors each weekday. The corridor is the largest activity center in the Atlanta region without direct access to the interstate system or a MARTA rail station.

Ray has 21 years of experience in the public transportation arena. Most recently she was MARTA's assistant general manger for operations, and oversaw all bus, rail and paratransit service with approximately 3,000 employees. Prior to that post, Ray was assistant general manager of infrastructure and capital program management with MARTA, where she managed a division of 600 and a $56 million budget, had direct authority for operations and maintenance of MARTA's physical assets, oversight of short and long-range transit planning initiatives, and coordinated infrastructure security with federal, state and local authorities. During her tenure, MARTA completed $362 million in transportation enhancements and launched a 10-year capital improvement program.

Previously, Ray served as a senior director of capital planning and administration for Amtrak. She joined Amtrak after working with the New York State Metropolitan Transit Authority for New York City as the assistant director of transit projects, and subsequently as the chief of financial reports.

Ray holds a master's degree in public management and policy from Carnegie-Mellon University where she graduated with distinction. She also has a bachelor's degree in speech from the University of Pittsburgh.

Emory University is known for its demanding academics, outstanding undergraduate college of arts and sciences, highly ranked professional schools and state-of-the-art research facilities. For nearly two decades Emory has been named one of the country's top 25 national universities by U.S. News & World Report. In addition to its nine schools, the university encompasses The Carter Center, Yerkes National Primate Research Center and Emory Healthcare, the state's largest and most comprehensive health care system.

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