Meet the Kiwanis International President-Elect
Katrina Baranko
Albany, Georgia, USA
Katrina Baranko of Albany, Georgia, U.S., is currently serving a one-year term as president-elect of Kiwanis International. She was elected as a trustee of Kiwanis International in 2018 and as vice president of Kiwanis International at a June special meeting held in lieu of the 2021 Kiwanis International Convention. Baranko will serve as president of Kiwanis in 2023-24.
Baranko has served on the Membership and the Service and Partnership Committees, as vice chair of the Audit and Finance Committee and as chair of the Leadership Development and Education Committee.
Baranko has been a member of Kiwanis for 29 years and served the Kiwanis Club of Albany as distinguished president and secretary. She also served as membership chair and as a member of the board of directors. At the district level, Baranko was a distinguished governor, lieutenant governor and member of the finance committee, and she has been parliamentarian. She is also a Certified Club Leadership Trainer and has presented at three international conventions. She has received the district Leadership Medallion and has served as chair of the Past District Governor's Association, as well as chair of the District Convention, the Training and Education Committee and the Youth Services Committee.
Baranko is a George F. Hixson Fellow, a Walter Zeller Fellow and a Dr. Wil Blechman Fellow. She was The Formula chair for the Southeast Area and the Georgia District and is a member of the Kiwanis Leadership Society.
In her community, Baranko has been a member of the boards of directors of the Albany Area Chamber of Commerce, Liberty House, March of Dimes and the Albany Technical College Foundation. She has served as past chair of Lee County Heart Association and past president of Lee County Association of Educators and Women in Network. She is past district director of the Georgia Association of Educators. She was a finalist for Small Business of the Year and was named Junior Women's Club Family of the Year, Georgia Business Teacher of the Year and Future Business Leaders of America Advisor of the Year. She is the owner of Merle Norman Cosmetics and Gifts in Albany, Georgia.
Baranko holds a bachelor's degree in education from the University of Georgia and a master's degree in education from Georgia State University.
She and her husband, David, have a son, a daughter-in-law and one grandson.