Wendy Howell, former Albany Technical College public relations director, takes Dougherty County public information job

ALBANY — In the 1939 movie classic The Wizard of Oz, Dorothy, who had been whisked from her home by a tornado in Kansas, clicked her ruby slippers together three times and repeated the phrase “there’s no place like home.”

And just like that, she was back in the Jayhawk State. Wendy Howell, however, has no ruby slippers.

Howell is the former public relations director for Albany Technical College. She had been with Albany Tech for 12 years before resigning in March to take a similar position with the Georgia Department of Corrections, in part to be closer to her aging parents in Forsyth.

Howell’s mother died in early November. A short time later, she succeeded Melissa Hodges when she accepted the public information officer position for Dougherty County.

While Howell’s journey back home to Albany was not as easy as Dorothy’s, she is not complaining.

“My husband (Van) and I never sold our house in Lee County. He stayed here while I traveled back and forth between Albany and Forsyth,” Howell said. “I got to spend a lot of time with my mom, but it seemed like I was always on the road. The doorway opened when my mother died, and I did not feel like my work here in Dougherty County was done.”

“The DOC experience was good, but it wasn’t me. I was never really able to use the talent and skills that I have. I like working with people a lot more. But it was a great experience, and a great agency with a lot of really nice people.”

Howell said she feels like working with people is her calling, and that is what led her home.

“I’m already working on an analysis of everything — from planning to how we deal with the public and our citizens. How can we make that better and let Dougherty County stand out,” Howell said. “I think the biggest challenge will be in getting everyone more consistent with how we are putting Dougherty County out there in our messaging. Everybody has a Facebook page, everybody has a Twitter page. We need to try and get everyone umbrellaed. I mean they can still have their own page, but we need to work together and be consistent with our messaging.

“We’ll not only have better messaging, we’ll also have more communication. I’ll also be looking at helping the commissioners in their districts. How can I help them communicate?”

When asked how she feels to be home again, a bright smile lights up Howell’s face.

“I’m really excited. While Albany is not my hometown, I’ve been here for more than a decade,” Howell said. “But it’s where I am meant to be right now because I feel like I’ve been led back here to hopefully make Dougherty County stand out.”

Howell holds an associate’s degree in journalism and mass communications from Macon State College, now Middle Georgia State University, and a bachelor’s degree in mass communications with a concentration in advertising and public relations from Georgia College and State University. She is a 2012 graduate of Leadership Albany and Leadership Lee.

Howell and her husband, Van, reside in Leesburg and have one daughter, who graduated earlier this year from Lee County High School and is now a freshman at Georgia Institute of Technology.