MILLEDGEVILLE, Ga. — Earlier this year, there were no black members on the Navicent Health Baldwin Board of Directors in Milledgeville.

Now there are three new board members, all of whom are African-American.

Former Baldwin County manager and pastor Ralph McMullen, former Georgia College professor Dr. Lucretia Coleman and local dentist Dr. Janet Harrison were recently named to the board. 

All three recently attended their first board of directors meeting at the local hospital.

Members of the local chapter of the NAACP recently expressed concern about the lack of African-American representation on the local hospital board. At the time, all six members that had been selected for the board were white. 

Floyd L. Griffin Jr., a former state senator and former mayor of Milledgeville, was among those expressing concern. Griffin said during a recent NAACP meeting that he had reached out to someone he knows with connections to Navicent Health in Macon.

“I did that before I ever talked with members of the NAACP branch of Baldwin County,” Griffin told The Union-Recorder. “And I continued to follow up with that individual even after the NAACP meeting.”

When Griffin was informed that new members recently had been added to the board and that all three were African-American, he was pleased, however, he said he felt that there needs to be additional black residents, as well as other minorities, named to the board.

Cynthia Ward-Edwards, president of the local NAACP chapter, shares that belief as well.

“I’d like to see more African-Americans and other minorities from our community on the hospital board, too,” Ward-Edwards said.

Both said they believe adding minorities would make the board more reflective of the makeup of the Baldwin County community.

“The racial makeup in Baldwin County is about a 50-50 right now,” Griffin said. “And I think it’s important to remember several of our surrounding counties use this hospital, too.”