Thomas A. Fanning, chairman, president, and chief executive officer of Southern Company, was recently presented with the Dean’s Appreciation Award during the College of Engineering’s Alumni Awards Induction Ceremony. The award is intended to honor those special individuals who have made extraordinary contributions to the advancement of the College of Engineering.

“Under Tom Fanning’s leadership, Southern Company and its subsidiary Georgia Power have a long track record of supporting the College of Engineering (CoE) and Georgia Tech,” said Gary S. May, dean of the College.  “Each year they provide funding for Georgia Power Professors; support research in the Carbon-Neutral Energy Solutions Lab and the Strategic Energy Institute; and provide for student scholarships.”

Fanning earned bachelors and master’s degrees in industrial management from Georgia Tech, which later awarded him an honorary Ph.D. His executive education includes programs at the International Institute for Management Development in Lausanne, Switzerland, the Harvard Business School and the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business

Elected by the board of directors in July 2010, Fanning became president of Southern Company in August 2010 and assumed the additional responsibilities of CEO and chairman in December 2010. He has worked for Southern Company for more than 30 years and has held 15 different positions in eight different business units, including numerous officer positions with a variety of Southern Company subsidiaries in the areas of finance, strategy, international business development and technology.

Fanning serves as chair of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, and is on the Georgia Tech College of Management advisory Board, the board of trustees for the Georgia Tech Foundation, the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations board of directors and the World Association of Nuclear Operators - Atlanta Centre governing board. He serves on the board of directors for Vulcan Materials Company, and is also vice chairman of the Edison Electric Institute and a member of the Business Roundtable.