NewTown Macon appoints ‘mission-driven leader’ as president, CEO after Josh Rogers’ death

A new president and CEO of NewTown Macon was appointed Wednesday after the former head died unexpectedly weeks prior.

The NewTown Macon Board of Directors unanimously voted James L. Fritze to succeed Josh Rogers, who died Nov. 24.

Fritze had worked alongside Rogers as the nonprofit’s chief financial officer since 2018.

“Fritze is an experienced, competent and mission-driven leader who is perfectly suited to preserve the phenomenal momentum that NewTown has experienced under Rogers’ great leadership,” Board Chair and Mercer University President William D. Underwood said in a news release.

As CFO, Fritze managed an annual budget of $4 million and over $45 million in assets, including NewTown’s business loan program, according to the news release.

He mentored local businesses and helped structure projects downtown including Hotel Forty Five and Neel’s Lofts, which is not yet fully built.

He also has 25 years of experience in accounting and leadership including previous positions as a “hospital chief executive and owner/operator of several independent companies prior to joining NewTown Macon,” the news release said.

Fritze is a certified public accountant with an undergraduate degree in accounting and a master’s degree from the University of Georgia’s Terry College of Business.

“James will bring continuity and a deep understanding of the progress of NewTown as he and his colleagues step up and move forward to achieve the full promise of NewTown,” said R. Kirby Godsey, a founder of NewTown Macon and chair of the Peyton Anderson Foundation Board of Trustees.