Behind the Buildings:
Meet The Women Constructing Coweta
“Being amazing at what you do is the best deterrent for workplace bias.”
Written by EMILY RAY
Headley Construction was co-founded by the late Anita Headley in 1971. Along with her husband, Bill, Anita grew the business into an award-winning general contracting company serving state and municipal governments, local school and university systems, ownership groups and private corporations. The company has successfully completed more than $300 million in commercial construction projects since it was founded 50 years ago.
Andrea Reese - Engineer, Headley Construction
“I worked as a structural engineer for seven years. Now I’m on the construction side instead of the design side. My typical week includes reviewing drawings and construction documents, talking to subcontractors, putting together bids, and visiting job sites. I’m proud of the work we just completed at Auburn University and look forward to being part of a renovation at UWG Newnan in 2022.”
Although they represent nearly half of the total U.S. workforce, women make up just 10% of construction industry workers. Only 17% of registered architects are women. Underrepresentation looms even larger for female engineers. Meanwhile, with women earning 99.1% compared to men, the pay gap in construction is actually the lowest of any U.S. industry.
“My mom built a strong foundation for women in our community,” says President Mitch Headley. “Watching her help launch our business while raising us four boys left no doubt in my mind that women can do absolutely anything.”
Project Manager Luke Headley agrees. “Headley Construction would not exist without our mom’s vision. There are countless contributions of women who have supported our projects, from our longtime employees to the architects, engineers and owners we collaborate with on complex buildings today.”
Alice Myers - Controller, Headley Construction
“I have been working at Headley Construction for 15 years. I love working with numbers and finding and fixing posting errors. Women in the industry still face misconceptions from men but are able to obtain higher positions than in the past. There are resources available to women who want to pursue architecture, engineering and construction as a career. Visit agc.org/learn for more information.”
Anita wasn’t the only woman in the Headley family who married into the construction business. Mitch’s wife, Margaret, is extremely handy herself. You could say construction runs in her blood.
When she was 11 years old, Margaret watched her dad rebuild after her family home burned to the ground. Before marriage, she bought and updated a 1930s home in Newnan, adding air conditioning and blown-in insulation by herself. Later, after she and Mitch were wed, Margaret acted as project superintendent on their own major renovation, removing the roof of their 1960s ranch style house, adding a second story, and modernizing the entire home.
“We initially hired a home plan designer to translate our ideas into buildable plans, but the time it took him to complete revisions frustrated me, so I just did it myself,” Margaret laughs. “I measured, calculated and drew hundreds of variations to review with Mitch for feasibility.”
The mother of three children, Margaret spent time driving through local neighborhoods in the area to look for ideas she could translate into the design for her young family.
“One of my major goals was to make the renovation look seamless with the original home,” she says. “It was important that there be no distinction between the original and new addition. Everything is a balancing act, whether
it’s architecture, work or family.”
Women represent many of Headley Construction’s current full-time employees, as well as several of the project managers they collaborate with on job sites across the area.
“At one time, the challenge for women was getting to the table. Now that women are better represented, the challenge has evolved into making our mark in an already established field. In my experience, the industry is lacking in female mentors. There is a lot of finding your own way,” says Andrea Reese. She is one of two professional engineers on staff at Headley Construction.
The other? Her boss, Mitch.
“I think there is a lot of opportunity for women in construction,” adds Reese. “The women I know with strong technical skills are also good communicators, and that’s a valuable combination.”
Molly Giddens - Project Manager, Coweta County Development Authority
“My team and I work on strategically identifying industrial prospects for our community. The Coweta County Development Authority looks to eliminate inefficient tax abatements, incentivizing those industries that pay above average wages. In the world of economic development, huge incentive packages are glorified. We challenge that rhetoric by working for industry while being fiscally responsible for our community.”
Her coworker, Alice Myers, suggests that young women who want to pursue a career in architecture, engineering or construction should check out the Association of General Contractors, which offers training, educational and management programs. Companies who consistently support women in architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) perform
better financially and in the field.
“Being amazing at what you do is the best deterrent for workplace bias,” says Molly Giddens, project manager at the Coweta County Development Authority.
She encourages interested locals to take advantage of the Central Education Center and West Georgia Technical College, which both provide innovative technical education through their dual enrollment and certificate, diploma and associate degree programs. They range from engineering technology to electrical construction and maintenance to drafting.
“Women are underrepresented in AEC industries,” says Giddens. “To me, being a woman in this specific field of work gives you an automatic spotlight. You can either shy away from it or use it to your advantage. There are an array of degrees available for those wanting to pursue architecture, engineering and construction within a 50-mile radius of Coweta County.”
Echoing this sentiment is Megan Kocikowski. She’s the vice president of Comprehensive Program Services (CPS), a construction management partner that helps owners, like the City of Newnan, and contractors, like Headley Construction, reduce operational costs on significant projects like Newnan Fire Station No. 4 and the C. Jay Smith Park upgrades.
Kocikowski suggests that getting an advanced degree in building construction or pursuing continuing education courses is a great option for those who, like her, have a nontraditional degree but desire to work in the industry.
She adds, “We need K-12 teachers to educate young women on these opportunities. The perception for many youths is that construction is focused on manual labor. While there are a lot of jobs that require this, women can be architects, engineers, construction managers, program or project managers, or work in various trades.”
Ronda Helton - Program Manager, City of Newnan
“I’ve had strong support from the City of Newnan, delivering more than $116 million in capital projects. Construction industry opportunities are unlimited if you have confidence in yourself and you have a will to succeed. Earning respect is probably the most difficult aspect of working in the industry as a woman. You must believe in yourself. All it takes is putting forth your best effort.”
Kocikowski highly encourages women to look into the professional organizations available to them, such as CREW Atlanta or the National Association of Women in Construction. Many offer discounted or free student membership rates.
“The challenges that women face from being underrepresented also present an opportunity,” says Kocikowski. “It’s difficult being judged based on gender rather than experience or work ethic. There is a tendency for women to have to repeat themselves to be heard. We are more likely to be interrupted or have credit taken for our ideas. But because the industry is changing and companies are recognizing the need for diversity, women have endless opportunities to work hard and climb the ladder by recognizing our value and being willing to speak up.”
Ronda Helton, program manager for the City
of Newnan, works closely with CPS as she assists in the delivery of millions of dollars in capital projects for the community.
“Currently, the City is completing the connection of the LINC from downtown to Ashley Park, the demolition of the former Caldwell Tanks facility, Sprayberry Road and Jackson Street Sidewalk projects, renovations of the existing Fire Training facility and several integral transportation improvement projects,” Helton reports. “In 2022 and beyond, the City will intentionally focus more on transportation projects and the redevelopment of the Caldwell Tanks facility.”
Helton also works as the City’s project manager on the LINC, Newnan’s transportation-oriented recreation project that provides citizens an opportunity to enjoy the outdoors. She works with the PATH Foundation to make sure the LINC is built to the standards to which it was planned and to ensure that it’s delivered on schedule and within budget.
Helton agrees with many Headley Construction employees who name the Newnan Hospital Project (now the UWG-Newnan Campus) as a local favorite. The program manager found that being part of the successful transformation of a blighted structure into a beautiful, valuable community asset was “very rewarding.”
Like its longest-serving general contractor, the City of Newnan champions, supports and encourages women in construction. City Councilwoman and Southern Crescent Habitat for Humanity CEO Cynthia Jenkins started her career as a drafter at Headley Construction when she was still in high school.
“Back then, we worked on blueprints by hand,” she recalls. “I remember working on various commercial buildings, doing minor changes to drawings, and taking in bids from various subcontractors. The first time I heard the term ‘historic tax credits’ was as the Newnan Lofts project was getting underway.”
Jenkins credits the Headleys with investing in her success: “Mr. Headley took me along on college tours to Auburn University with his son, Luke, and our friend, Drew Cronic. He showed me as much of the industry as he could and encouraged my interest. Cathy Pitts and Mary Ellen Kirk were great, too, helping me build the confidence I needed to succeed in a male dominated industry. If more companies did that for girls, you’d have more women in construction. And we need them.”
Cynthia Jenkins - CEO, Southern Crescent Habitat for Humanity
“My goal for 2022 is to build a Habitat home exclusively constructed by women. We have a female general contractor on staff and a strong network of experienced subcontractors to help us. What we need today are more women ‘grey ghosts’ – retired volunteers who are handy and come out two to three times a week to volunteer on a regular basis. They are the ones who really keep our programs going forward.”
The Georgia Tech grad says people often ask how her architectural degree and career path play into managing Habitat for Humanity. She says, “It plays a lot. You have to understand development to manage a nonprofit that does building. Women Build is one of our most popular programs. Our goal is to empower women and to help families build strength, stability and independence.”
Women are the blueprint for the future. With the right tools, they can succeed in changing their communities.
For additional resources, local volunteer opportunities, and to learn more about the amazing women behind Coweta’s most beautiful buildings, please visit HeadleyConstruction.com.