Jason Harper
Governmental Affairs & Business Development
Goodwyn Mills Cawood, LLC

Q: Tell us about yourself. Are you from Huntsville, or did you move here from somewhere else?

I grew up in DeKalb County about 40 miles to the east of Huntsville and have always resided in north Alabama apart from two short stints in Montgomery and Washington, D.C. I earned my undergraduate and Masters degrees at Jacksonville State and my Ed.S. in Leadership from Berry College. My wife Juliana, our children, Silas, Lillian and Fiorella, and I live in Guntersville. And while we don’t technically live in Huntsville, like most communities in north Alabama, we feel like we are certainly in Huntsville’s orbit. Huntsville is where we come to shop, eat, enjoy a Trash Pandas game, and take our kiddos to Dave and Busters.

Q: Tell us about Goodwyn Mills Cawood and the type of work do you do.

GMC is a comprehensive architectural and engineering firm. We do extensive work in both the public and private sectors, all over the Southeast. In my role in Governmental Affairs, I focus more on the public sector, acting as a liaison between our clients and our professionals across all of our disciplines. So, I spend a lot of time on the road traveling all over north Alabama and southern Tennessee working with cities, county commissions, and school boards to make sure the end product is exactly what they have in mind. For example, many may not know GMC’s projects include the new Huntsville City Hall, Buffalo Rock, FBI assets on Redstone, Blue Origin, and NASA buildings, to name a few.

Q: What would you like others to know about your business?

Part of our mission statement is that we help people build communities. While that might sound like just a slogan, we really do take the time and effort to make sure that new buildings and new growth feel organic to that community, all while advancing the local economy. We want the structures we engineer and design to reflect the character, personality and interests of the people in the community who will be using them. We are local, locally engaged, and committed to the successes of the Huntsville/Madison County region.

Q: What does Goodwyn Mills Cawood get from its membership in the Huntsville/Madison County Chamber?

The Chamber acts as a link that keeps us all connected and deeply engaged. Connection is so important both personally and professionally. When a commu- nity is connected, everyone can grow together. And while we certainly always hope and pray for good times, that connection can also help us all weather any storm that may come our way.

Q: Why do you support HREGI, the Huntsville Regional Economic Growth Initiative?

As I noted earlier, while I don’t live in Huntsville, it is the economic heart of this region. So, places like Guntersville, Athens, or Fayetteville depend on the health of the business climate in Huntsville. HREGI is not just a plan for Huntsville, it’s regional – that’s why I think it’s so important for Huntsville and this area to become even more of a technology/advancement hub. It’s a plan to make sure our region never gets complacent, and we continue to build and thrive.

This article appears in the June 2024 issue of Initiatives magazine, a publication of the Huntsville/Madison County Chamber.