Joel H. Cowan Joel Cowan was born and raised in Cartersville, Georgia. As a student at Georgia Tech, he began his career in real estate development and investment under the tutelage of Peter Knox Jr. In 1958, he graduated from Georgia Tech with a degree in industrial management. He is credited with founding the City of Peachtree City in 1959, serving as its first mayor from 1959-1963. He also served as CEO and Chairman of the Board for two of Peachtree City's early development and investment companies, Peachtree Corporation of Georgia and Garden Cities Corporation. He is also credited with developing the first upscale shopping center in the South—Phipps Plaza.

Cowan holds a bachelor's degree in industrial management (1958) from Georgia Tech and has served on both the College of Business and Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts advisory boards. He is a trustee emeritus of the Georgia Tech Foundation and served as a member of the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia from 1990-1995.

In recent years, Cowan's focus has turned to nonprofit activities in Central Asia related to education and leadership training.