Our Team

Dr. John Banter

Associate Director

Dr. John Banter is the Associate Director of the Office of Leadership and Community Engagement. He directs the Southern Leaders Program and LEAD courses, where he also teaches leadership.  John earned his doctorate in Educational Leadership from Georgia Southern and his research endeavors focus on leadership behavior development, the gamification of leadership, and the use of student-centered design for programmatic development.  His other graduate degrees are in the fields of Leadership and Homeland Security Management.

John is a Gallup Certified Strengths Coach, a certified EQ-i 2.0/EQ-i 360 facilitator for emotional intelligence development with MHS, a certified Enneagram facilitator through Cloverleaf. and a certified facilitator of the Student Leadership Practices Inventory.  In his spare time, John is an active in the local community with the Statesboro Kiwanis Club, the Statesboro/Bulloch Chamber of Commerce, and other area nonprofits.  He has been at Georgia Southern since June of 2011

Contact: jbanter@georgiasouthern.edu

Kira Jatoft

Assistant Director of Sustainability & Leadership

Kira Jatoft is the Assistant Director of Sustainability & Leadership in the Office of Leadership and Community Engagement. She develops, implements and assesses sustainability and leadership programming and teaches LEAD courses.  She earned her B.A. in Sociology and Spanish at Loyola Marymount University before completing her M.Ed. in Postsecondary Administration and Student Affairs at the University of Southern California. Kira is currently pursuing her Ed.D. in Higher Education Leadership and Practice at the University of North Georgia.

Kira is a Gallup Certified Strengths Coach and certified Enneagram facilitator. She enjoys running and reading in her spare time. Kira joined the OLCE team in September of 2021.

Contact: kjatoft@georgiasouthern.edu

Lexi Booth

Leadership Educator

Lexi Booth is the Leadership Educator in the Office of Leadership and Community Engagement. She develops and assesses leadership development experiences for current and incoming students through the Southern Leaders and BUILD programs; she also teaches LEAD courses. Lexi is a Double Eagle (’17, ’19) from Georgia Southern University; she earned a B.S. in Psychology and an M.S. in Experimental Psychology.

Lexi is a certified Enneagram facilitator through Cloverleaf. Her favorite spot at Georgia Southern is Sweetheart Circle. Lexi joined the OLCE team in January 2023.

Contact: abooth@georgiasouthern.edu

Megan Przybysz

Leadership Teaching Assistant

Megan Przybysz joined the team in 2021 and is a graduate of Georgia Southern University. She works with the Southern Leaders Coaching program and has served in numerous leadership roles across campus (Vice President of the Student Athlete Advisory Committee and Team Captain for the Women’s Soccer Team). Megan is currently pursuing a masters degree in Applied Public Health. Her goal is to attend physician assistant school after her masters with a focus on surgical or pediatric practices.

Contact: mp19508-sw@georgiasouthern.edu

Alyssa Leeder

Leadership Teaching Assistant

Alyssa Leeder joined the team in 2022 and is a graduate of Georgia Southern University. She works with the Southern Leaders program and was a member of the program herself. Alyssa is currently pursuing her specialist degree in School Psychology.

Contact: al08606-sw@georgiasouthern.edu