After deciding last month not to seek another term as Senate Majority Leader, Sen. Chip Rogers (R-Woodstock) is leaving politics altogether to take a managerial position with Georgia Public Broadcasting.

In an exclusive interview with WSB’s Sandra Parrish, Rogers says he’ll head up a new program that looks to merging the needs of businesses in Georgia with public education.

“A lot of the things we’ve focused on in the last few years legislatively have been on how do we grow jobs… yet, when you get out and talk to a lot of employers, many of them will say ‘Look, my biggest challenge is that I need a workforce that can adapt to what we’re doing’,” he says.

Rogers says the new initiative will be part of GPB’s television, radio, and online programming.

The former broadcaster says he will feel right at home with his position.

“I always loved doing broadcasting and to this day still do some broadcasting.  It’s just a real joy of mine,” says Rogers.

He says the position also came at an opportune time in his life when he was looking to devote more of his time to his family, including four kids.

“I found myself realizing that the greatest joys in life… I was missing some of them… and recognizing that reprioritizing was a smart thing to do,” says Rogers.

He says his greatest accomplishments while in the Senate have been reforming Georgia’s property tax system, as well as getting rid of income tax for seniors and the sales tax on energy.  He also says strengthening Georgia’s laws against dogfighting was another accomplishment. 

More recently, Rogers championed the charter schools amendment in the Senate and was elated by its overwhelming passage last month.

“I felt more happy (sic) about winning that election on charter schools than I did winning any election for myself,” he says.

Rogers was instrumental in leadership changes in the Senate a few years ago that led to Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle being stripped of his authority to appoint committees.  Despite an ensuing power struggle that divided Republicans in the chamber, Rogers says he has no regrets.

“I think it’s the right this to do for the foreseeable future regardless of who’s in what position… we have problems when we look at these things as one individual against the another, and I think that’s unfortunately how this thing got played out,” he says.

Rogers has been busy packing up his office this week.  He begins his new position in January.