Randy Hicks is the President and CEO of the Georgia Center for Opportunity (GCO), an independent, nonpartisan organization advancing state-based solutions that expand opportunity and help families achieve a durable path out of poverty. He is also a Co-Founder of the Alliance for Opportunity, a multi-state coalition promoting effective federal and state reforms to refocus the safety net on work and lift more people out of poverty.

Under Randy’s leadership, GCO has spearheaded successful efforts to improve access to quality education, strengthen families, boost adoption safety, and expand employment opportunities. GCO is also recognized for its safety net policy expertise, with work featured in major state and national media and policy outlets. In addition to its policy efforts, GCO partners with businesses, nonprofits, and Title I schools across Georgia communities to coordinate workforce development initiatives and workshops for parents of at-risk youth.

Previously, Randy served on the Georgia Supreme Court Commission on Children, Marriage and Family Law, as well as in leadership roles for organizations promoting family well-being in California, Colorado, and Washington. Early in his career, he served as the Principal Speechwriter and Community Liaison for former California Secretary of Education Marian Bergeson.  

Randy serves on the boards of the Mothers Advocacy Project, which works to break the intergenerational cycle of maltreatment and trauma in women-led families, and Corners Outreach, a nonprofit promoting educational development and economic opportunities among some of Atlanta’s most under-served communities. 

Randy holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Southern California and a master’s degree from the Talbot School of Theology. He and his wife, Marilyn, have six children and three grandchildren.

Randy believes that every person possesses inherent dignity and ought to have an opportunity to flourish—in ways that are not simply measured by material well-being, but by the sense of purpose and belonging that we all crave and for which we are all wired. 

Recent publications

• Randy Hicks, “Welfare stands in the way of the American dream,” Washington Examiner, July 3, 2025.
• Randy Hicks, “How to get welfare recipients back into the labor force,” City Journal, July 1, 2025. 
• Randy Hicks and Eric Cochling, “A path from welfare to self-sufficiency,” Governing, February 19, 2025.
• Randy Hicks, “How to ease the labor shortage by fixing the social safety net,” The Hill, March 14, 2024.