Photograph by Jerry Gonzalez
Civic Leaders | Government & Politics | Transportation | Utilities | Legends
CIVIC LEADERS
Leona Barr-Davenport
President and CEO
Atlanta Business League
Leona Barr-Davenport is president and CEO of the Atlanta Business League, Atlanta’s oldest minority business development and advocacy organization. As president, she works with the board of directors to increase access to business opportunities for minorities, with specific emphasis on the development of businesses owned or operated by African Americans. In 2024, the Atlanta Business League began the first phase of its renovation of the historic Ashby Theater, which opened in 1934 and was one of the first theaters to serve African Americans in the city. The project is supported by the Historic Preservation Fund’s African American Civil Rights grant program of the National Park Service. Barr-Davenport has more than 25 years of experience in customer service, program development, organizational management, and fundraising for associations and youth-oriented programs.
EDUCATION Benedict College, Clark Atlanta University School of Business (MBA)
HOMETOWN Johnsonville, South Carolina
NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENTS Atlanta Hospitality Hall of Fame (2019), Carver College honorary doctor of divinity (2014)
LESSON LEARNED The first step is showing up.
BUCKET LIST Tour of Africa and becoming an adjunct professor
Chris Clark
President and CEO
Georgia Chamber of Commerce
Chris Clark is the longest-serving president and CEO in the century-plus history of the Georgia Chamber of Commerce. Previously he served as commissioner of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources and as deputy commissioner for the Georgia Department of Economic Development. In 2024, Clark received the GACCE (Georgia Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives) Legacy Award, the most prestigious prize awarded by the organization. Additionally, the Leadership Georgia graduate has frequently been named one of Georgia Trend’s 100 most influential Georgians and one of the Atlanta Business Chronicle’s most influential Atlantans.
EDUCATION Georgia Southern University, Georgia College & State University (MA)
FEW PEOPLE KNOW I’m a huge, massive Parrothead. I’ve seen Jimmy Buffett over 25 times.
FAVORITE BOOK The Old Man and the Boy by Robert Ruark
FAVORITE ATLANTA PLACE TO VISIT Fly-fishing below the Lake Lanier dam!
Jim Durrett
President and CEO
Buckhead Coalition
Executive Director
Buckhead Community Improvement District
Jim Durrett, who is president and CEO of Buckhead Coalition and executive director of Buckhead Community Improvement District, has announced his retirement effective early 2026. Buckhead Coalition is an invitation-only membership organization while Buckhead CID is a local government entity. Buckhead Coalition’s mission is to advocate on behalf of the community within the city of Atlanta and the metropolitan region. The mission of Buckhead CID is to create and maintain a safe, accessible, and livable urban environment in the heart of the Buckhead commercial area. In 2024, Buckhead CID received $10 million from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Safe Streets and Roads for All grant program to help construct an elevated pedestrian and bicycle bridge across Lenox Road where it intersects GA 400. This work is part of the Lenox Road Complete Safe Street project, which is expected to be complete by January 2028.
EDUCATION University of Virginia, University of Georgia (MS)
HOMETOWN Atlanta
REASON FOR CHOOSING THIS WORK Believing I can contribute to making a meaningful difference
TOUGHEST CHALLENGE Effectively navigating opposition to the Buckhead Cityhood effort
Photograph courtesy of individual
Jerry E. Gonzalez
CEO
GALEO
Jerry Gonzalez is the founder and CEO of GALEO, formerly known as the Georgia Association of Latino Elected Officials, a statewide nonprofit and nonpartisan organization with a mission to increase civic engagement and leadership development in the Latino community across Georgia. A native of Laredo, Texas, Gonzalez also leads the GALEO Latino Community Development Fund, which promotes voter registration and education, community education, and leadership development, and the GALEO Impact Fund, which was established in 2019 to organize the growing political power of the Latino community in Georgia.
EDUCATION Texas A&M University, Georgia State University Andrew Young School of Policy Studies (MPA)
FIRST JOB Closer at Wendy’s
LESSON LEARNED Social justice and racial equity work is a marathon and not a sprint. Pace yourself accordingly while striving for quicker results.
HOBBIES Travel the world with my husband
BUCKET LIST Travel to the Northern Arctic to see polar bears
WHO’D PLAY ME IN A BIOPIC Matthew McConaughey because I wish I had his hair
Photograph by David Kidd
Ryan Gravel
Founder
Sixpitch
Chamblee native Ryan Gravel is best known for his Georgia Tech master’s thesis, which presented a vision for what would become the Atlanta BeltLine. But he’s also a planner, designer, and author whose work centers on the cultural aspects of urban design, exploring how its intimate relationship with our way of life can illuminate a brighter path forward for cities. The founder of the urban design consultancy Sixpitch, Gravel was the lead author of the Atlanta City Design and is the author of the forthcoming book American Land: Exploring the Landscapes of a New Social Contract.
EDUCATION Georgia Tech (MA)
FIRST JOB Typing bar codes into a computer in the back room of a music store at Ansley Mall. I guess it was Turtle’s, but I’m not sure.
FAVORITE MOVIE Blade Runner 2049
LESSON LEARNED The ideas we need are often unpopular, unwanted, and underfunded.
BUCKET LIST Skydiving
Photograph courtesy of individual
Kevin Green
President and CEO
Midtown Alliance
Kevin Green joined the Midtown Alliance as president and CEO in 2011. Previously, he was executive director of the Clean Air Campaign, a Georgia nonprofit working in partnership with transportation management associations and public and private institutions to improve air quality and reduce traffic. Green was formerly vice president of environmental affairs for the Metro Atlanta Chamber and practiced law for a decade; his litigation experience includes state and federal trial and appellate courts across the Southeast.
EDUCATION James Madison University, Emory University School of Law (JD)
NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENT I am the drummer in my daughter Mia’s band.
FIRST JOB Delivering Sheetrock off a flatbed truck
FAVORITE TRAVEL DESTINATION Vietnam (so far)
WHAT I’D TELL A RECENT GRADUATE When the alarm clock rings and you aren’t excited to go to work, it’s time to do something different.
FAVORITE ATLANTA PLACE TO VISIT Oakland Cemetery (it’s strangely affirming)
Shannon W. James Sr.
President and CEO
Aerotropolis Atlanta Alliance
Shannon James Sr. is president and CEO of the Aerotropolis Atlanta Alliance, a public-private partnership working to improve the regional economic competitiveness of the area around Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. A native of Albany, Georgia, James accepted the top job at AeroATL in 2018 following a successful 15-year career in banking. Beginning his career as a part-time teller and customer service representative, James later became the first African American accepted into the management trainee program at the Park Avenue Bank, then went on to serve as vice president of commercial banking for both SunTrust and BB&T.
EDUCATION Valdosta State University
INSPIRING PERSON My mother
TOUGHEST CHALLENGE Becoming a father, because I’ve never met my father
FAVORITE ATLANTA PLACE TO VISIT Center for Civil and Human Rights
FAVORITE SONG ABOUT GEORGIA “Georgia” by Field Mob and Ludacris ft. Jamie Foxx
WHO’D PLAY ME IN A BIOPIC Michael B. Jordan
Kali Kirkham Boatright
President and CEO
Greater North Fulton Chamber of Commerce
Kali Kirkham Boatright is the president and CEO of the Greater North Fulton Chamber where she has served since 2018. The chamber has seen many changes during that time including the creation of The North Fulton Economic Alliance as a public-private collaborative in 2025. The focus of the alliance is regional branding and marketing, expanding the talent pipeline and elevating regional economic development. The chamber also created the Alpharetta Business Council this year, in addition to its Milton Business Council, which is celebrating five years of success. The chamber has new offices at 10000 Avalon in Alpharetta and is 5-Star Accredited. Prior to coming to North Fulton, Kirkham Boatright served as CEO of the Douglas County Chamber.
EDUCATION University of Missouri
REASON FOR CHOOSING THIS WORK I was never an athlete, but I was that kid who joined every organization. I loved student government, service clubs, and anything leadership based. The addiction to join, then lead, started early and continued into college, so it just made sense that my entire professional career has been in the nonprofit organization world.
BEST ADVICE RECEIVED It was actually some advice I read late in life: If it isn’t a hell yes, it’s a no.
Katie Kirkpatrick
President and CEO
Metro Atlanta Chamber
Katie Kirkpatrick is president and CEO of the 166-year-old Metro Atlanta Chamber, which represents businesses, colleges and universities, and nonprofits across the 29-county metro Atlanta region. A seasoned public policy leader, she led the adoption of a new framework for the chamber, focusing on the three strategic imperatives of economy, talent, and community. Before joining the chamber in 2007 as vice president of environmental affairs, she worked as director of environmental engineering for the poultry producer Gold Kist.
EDUCATION Auburn University
REASON FOR CHOOSING THIS WORK To make a difference where I live. In a previous job, I was working in 14 states, traveling most of the time – I was always working somewhere else. When I had children I felt this little tug: how can I make the place where we live better? That’s what ultimately drew me to the chamber: I felt like I could make an impact in the community where I was raising my family.
BEST ADVICE RECEIVED One piece of advice I return to often is simple but powerful: give yourself grace. As a working professional and a mom, I’ve learned it’s impossible to be at 100 percent in both roles all the time. The goal isn’t perfect balance: it’s high-level execution over time.
Veronica Maldonado-Torres
President and CEO
Georgia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce
Veronica Maldonado-Torres is president and CEO of the Georgia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. With over a decade of experience as a small business champion and supplier diversity advocate, Maldonado-Torres is a catalyst of growth for both small businesses and large corporations, bringing thought-leadership and innovation to the supplier development space. Prior to joining the GHCC, she successfully guided the development and growth of more than 150 firms across multiple industries ranging from $1 million to $100 million in annual revenue in her role as program director for the Georgia Mentor Protégé Connection. In 2025, Maldonado-Torres was named to the board of directors of the National Center for Civil and Human Rights.
FIRST JOB My first official job at 15 was as a hostess in a restaurant. That experience served me well. I love making people feel welcome and valued.
FAVORITE TRAVEL DESTINATION Cartagena, Colombia. My family hometown!
Rohit Malhotra
Founder and Executive Director
Center for Civic Innovation
Rohit Malhotra is the founder and executive director of the Center for Civic Innovation, which seeks to eliminate inequality by empowering people to design public policy from the ground up. With a background in social entrepreneurship, digital communication, open data, and community organizing, Malhotra was an Ash Innovation Fellow in the Obama White House’s Office of Management and Budget, working on social impact bonds and pay for performance, and in 2015 was awarded the prestigious Echoing Green Global Fellowship. In 2020, Malhotra was named to the Emory Alumni Association’s annual class of 40 Under 40.
EDUCATION Emory University, Harvard University Kennedy School of Government (MA)
HOMETOWN Atlanta
BEST ADVICE RECEIVED Call your mom.
Nick Masino
President and CEO
Gwinnett Chamber and Partnership Gwinnett
Nick Masino is the first Gen X president and CEO of the Gwinnett Chamber and Partnership Gwinnett. He has shepherded in the most diverse board of directors in Chamber history, reinvigorated its public policy focus, implemented a new strategic plan, and is currently overseeing a massive renovation to Georgia’s largest chamber of commerce facility. He also led the Chamber to receive its first-ever five-star accreditation from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce (2022) and its first-ever global title for the Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives Chamber of the Year (2023). Appointed by Governor Brian Kemp in 2024, Masino is a member of the Lake Lanier Islands Development Authority. Before joining the Chamber as chief economic development officer, he was an executive in the staffing industry, while serving as Georgia’s youngest mayor in the City of Suwanee.
EDUCATION Ohio State University
FIRST JOB Dishwasher
HIDDEN TALENT I can sleep anywhere: planes, trains, boats, etc.
FAVORITE GEORGIA TEAMS Atlanta Vibe, Georgia Swarm, Gwinnett Gladiators, the Stripers, the Georgia Gwinnett Grizzlies
Sharon Mason
President and CEO
Cobb Chamber of Commerce
Sharon Mason has held six different leadership positions with the Cobb Chamber of Commerce since 2005; she climbed to president and CEO in January 2018, bringing more than 18 years of chamber and nonprofit leadership experience to the position. In 2025, the chamber received a 5-Star Accreditation from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce for its sound policies, effective procedures, and positive community impact. In addition to sitting on multiple boards, Mason serves on the Regional Business Coalition executive committee, the Council for Quality Growth board of directors, and was named by Governor Nathan Deal to the Georgia Regional Transportation Authority Board (GRTA) in 2018 and continues to serve on this board.
EDUCATION Samford University
FIRST JOB Special Times Gift Shop in Snellville
GREATEST ACCOMPLISHMENT I’m so proud of what we accomplished through starting our economic development partnership strategy SelectCobb 13 years ago that has now led to more than 48,000 high quality jobs, $6.3 billion in private new investment, establishing major strategies such as Cobb Workforce Partnership and Team Dobbins, and leading economic recovery during each stage of the economy following the pandemic.
William Pate
President and CEO
Atlanta Convention & Visitors Bureau
As president and CEO of the Atlanta Convention & Visitors Bureau, William Pate promotes one of the city’s top economic drivers: tourism. He was vice president of the host committee that managed the 2018 College Football Playoff National Championship and a board member of the host committee for Super Bowl LIII in 2019. In 2020, the American Marketing Association’s Atlanta chapter awarded Pate its Lifetime Achievement Award, and in 2019 he was honored as the Herman J. Russell CEO of the Year by the Atlanta Business League. In 2023, through a gift from Pate, the William C. Pate Chair in Strategic Communication in the College of Arts & Sciences at Georgia State University was established. Pate, an Atlanta Business Chronicle Most Admired CEO for multiple years, is a member of Leadership Atlanta’s class of 2024.
EDUCATION Georgia State University (MA)
HOMETOWN Decatur
FIRST JOB When I was 12 years old, I raked leaves for Mrs. Brumbeloe at $2 an hour.
Anna Roach
Executive Director and CEO
Atlanta Regional Commission
Anna Roach is executive director and CEO of the Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC), which facilitates community and development strategies to enhance the metro region’s growth and quality of life. Prior to joining ARC in 2022, she served as the chief operating officer for Fulton County, where she oversaw 4,500 employees in 38 departments with a budget of $1.2 billion. Roach also served as Fulton County’s chief strategy officer and assistant county manager. A lawyer by training, Roach has held several key legal leadership positions during her career, including assistant deputy general counsel for the government of the District of Columbia and administrative law judge in the City of New York. She is a current member of the Rotary Club of Atlanta and the American Bar Association and serves as an advisory board member at Tyler Technologies and Avenu Insights and Analytics. Roach, the first female CEO in ARC’s history, is also a member of Leadership Atlanta’s class of 2024.
EDUCATION State University of New York, College at Cortland; St. John’s University (JD)
A.J. Robinson
President
Central Atlanta Progress and Atlanta Downtown Improvement District
Since 2003, Knoxville, Tennessee native A.J. Robinson has been president of Central Atlanta Progress—a private business association and advocacy organization started in 1941—and the Atlanta Downtown Improvement District. Both groups are committed to making the Atlanta community, specifically downtown, more livable, vital, and diverse. Previously Robinson was president of the real estate company Portman Holdings for 22 years, where he managed all aspects of the firm’s real estate development operations.
EDUCATION Emory University, Harvard Business School (MBA)
NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENT Being a founder of the Center for Civil and Human Rights
FIRST JOB Forklift driver for my father’s company
FAVORITE ATLANTA PLACE TO VISIT My favorite place to visit in Atlanta are the streets of downtown, which I traverse every day. It is only here that one can feel the real beginnings of our city’s history and origin. They are the most visible part of our city, the metro area, and the state of Georgia, and thus requires our attention and care.
Melinda C. Sylvester
President and CEO
Greater Georgia Black Chamber of Commerce/Melinda the Bridge Builder
Melinda C. Sylvester is the president and CEO of the Greater Georgia Black Chamber of Commerce, which she founded in 2016. She also established the chamber’s Bridge Builders Accelerator Academy, which fosters economic growth with equity, diversity, and inclusion. Under Sylvester’s leadership, the Greater Georgia Black Chamber of Commerce was named National Black Chamber of the Year 2025 by the National Black Chamber of Commerce for its Bridge Builders initiatives. Sylvester’s chamber career started when she led the Greater Southwest Louisiana Black Chamber of Commerce in the early 2000s. The St. Martinville, Louisiana, native is also the founder and publisher of Tel-Mel Media & Publishing Co. LLC and publishes Faith & Soul News Magazine. She also does public relations and branding.
FAVORITE ATLANTA PLACE TO VISIT The King Center
FAVORITE GEORGIA PRO SPORTS TEAM Atlanta Dream
FAVORITE POWER LUNCH RESTAURANT This Is It! Southern Kitchen & BBQ
WHO SHOULD PLAY YOU IN A BIOPIC Kerry Washington
Kathy N. Waller
Executive Director
Atlanta Committee for Progress
Kathy N. Waller is the executive director of the Atlanta Committee for Progress (ACP). ACP, founded in 2003, provides leadership on key issues important to economic growth and inclusion for all Atlantans and includes more than 40 chief executives, university presidents, and civic leaders. Waller retired in March 2019 after 32 years with The Coca-Cola Company where she was the executive vice president, chief financial officer, and president of Enabling Services. As CFO, she led many sectors of the business including mergers and acquisitions, investor relations, and account and controls. In addition to her C-suite role, Waller, a CPA, was the founding chair of The Coca-Cola Company’s Women’s Leadership Council.
EDUCATION University of Rochester (MBA)
FIRST JOB At 16, I worked at the Georgia Department of Revenue in the Tag and Title Office.
NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENTS Induction into the Junior Achievement Atlanta Business Hall of Fame established by the Atlanta Business Chronicle and Junior Achievement of Georgia (2023), Savoy’s Most Influential Black Corporate Directors (2016, 2017, and 2021), Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta Changing the World Award (2015)
Kyle Wingfield
President and CEO
Georgia Public Policy Foundation
As an opinion columnist for nine years at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Kyle Wingfield wrote often about state politics and policy, focusing especially on education and school choice, transportation, healthcare, and state and local taxation. In April 2018, he joined the Georgia Public Policy Foundation as president and CEO, gaining a hands-on role in helping shape public policy at the state level after having written about it for many years.
EDUCATION University of Georgia
NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENT GPPF has received State Policy Network’s Bob Williams Award for Outstanding Policy Achievement in consecutive years: 2023 for work on housing affordability, and 2024 for healthcare reform.
BEST ADVICE RECEIVED Everyone needs an editor!
REASON FOR CHOOSING THIS WORK I’ve been working in some capacity to promote economic freedom for 21 years. The reason is simple: Of all the ways to help others, empowering them to succeed as others have done – instead of treating them as if they can’t succeed – gives them the best opportunity and treats them with the most dignity.
GOVERNMENT & POLITICS
Liliana Bakhtiari
Council Member
City of Atlanta
Liliana Bakhtiari is serving their first term as a member of the Atlanta City Council, representing the citizens of District 5. Bakhtiari identifies as gender fluid and uses “she/her” and “they/them” pronouns. Bakhtiari is the first queer Muslim person to be elected in the state of Georgia, and the first nonbinary person elected in the city of Atlanta. Bakhtiari served as the public affairs manager of Planned Parenthood Southeast and lobbied for voting rights with ProGeorgia. Additionally, Bakhtiari served as a consultant for Echo Market Research as it built out its Social Justice Division. Bakhtiari also collaborated with Partners for Home to establish a hotel program housing Atlanta’s at-risk unsheltered population during the pandemic. In 2023, Bakhtiari was named a David Bohnett Leader Fellow by LGBTQ+ Victory Institute and, in 2022, was named Next Gen Leader of the Year by OUT Georgia Business Alliance.
EDUCATION Georgia State University
HOMETOWN Lilburn, Georgia
FAVORITE ATLANTA PLACE TO VISIT Back deck at Dr. Bombay’s Tea Room
Sherry Boston
District Attorney
DeKalb Judicial Circuit
District attorney for the Stone Mountain Judicial Circuit since 2017, Sherry Boston oversees the prosecution of felony offenses filed in the Superior Court of DeKalb County. She’s the second female district attorney in the history of the office. Previously, she served as DeKalb County solicitor general—the elected official overseeing the prosecution of misdemeanor crimes—and was the first woman appointed as municipal court judge for the City of Dunwoody. Boston has also worked in private practice handling thousands of misdemeanor and felony criminal cases in metro Atlanta.
EDUCATION Villanova University, Emory University School of Law (JD)
FEW PEOPLE KNOW I have a twin sister. Yes, really!
FAVORITE TRAVEL DESTINATION Mexico
Jon Burns
Speaker
Georgia House of Representatives
Burns is the 75th speaker of the state House, replacing long-time speaker David Ralston, who died shortly after stepping down in 2022. Elected majority leader in 2015, Burns has served in the state House since 2005 and represents the 159th legislative district of Georgia that includes Screven County and portions of Effingham and Bulloch Counties. He has sat on the Agriculture and Consumer Affairs; Appropriations; Economic Development and Tourism; Ethics; Game, Fish & Parks; Rules; and Transportation Committees and has been an ex officio member of all other House committees. He lives on his family farm in Effingham County.
EDUCATION Georgia Southern University, John Marshall Law School (JD)
Lorraine Cochran-Johnson
CEO
DeKalb County
The first Black woman to be elected CEO of DeKalb County, Lorraine Cochran-Johnson was sworn into office in January 2025. Previously, she served as a DeKalb County commissioner. In this role, Cochran-Johnson spearheaded the big box store ordinance requiring mandatory distance requirements to stop the proliferation of Family Dollar, Dollar Tree, and Dollar General in DeKalb County – now used in nine states. Additionally, she authorized the DeKalb video surveillance system ordinance requiring mandatory video surveillance at gas and service stations. As the chair of the public works and infrastructure committee, she successfully allocated over $1.4 billion in revenue – the highest dollar amount overseen in the history of DeKalb County through any standing committee leader. She has required a mandatory audit of all contracts above $3 million resulting in over $92 million in revenue savings to DeKalb County taxpayers and was named the 2023 Elected Official of the Year by the American Public Works Association.
EDUCATION Troy University (MS), Auburn University (MPA)
HOMETOWN Greenville, Alabama
Lisa Cupid
Commission Chairwoman
Cobb County
Lisa Cupid has served on the Cobb Board of Commissioners since 2013. Some of her accomplishments include expanding transit service, improving citizen education and engagement, and advocating for enhanced public safety measures. Cupid is an attorney and former mediator, policy analyst, and manufacturing process engineer. On the Atlanta Regional Commission board, she is also a member of the Transportation & Air Quality Committee, the Ethics Subcomittee, and the Senior Policy Group of the Urban Area Security Initiative. She is the first Black and first female chairwoman of Cobb County.
EDUCATION Georgia Tech, Georgia State College of Law (JD)
Andre Dickens
Mayor
City of Atlanta
Andre Dickens is the 61st mayor of Atlanta. Since being sworn in as mayor in 2022, his accomplishments include the establishment of the Nightlife Division to address bars and clubs with a high history of crime, the reestablishment of the Pothole Posse to rapidly respond to residents’ reports, and leading the successful coalition to keep Atlanta whole in opposition to a de-annexation effort. He has been a member of the Atlanta City Council and is also a businessman, nonprofit executive, engineer, speaker, deacon, and father. An Atlanta native, Dickens is the former chief development officer for TechBridge, a nonprofit that drives community impact by bringing affordable technology and business expertise to other nonprofit organizations. In 2018, he cofounded TechBridge’s Technology Career Program, which prepares unemployed and underemployed people for careers in technology by teaching high-demand skills while helping participants land jobs in IT departments across Atlanta. In 2023, the Atlanta Regional Commission board elected Dickens to serve as chair of its board of directors. He is the first Atlanta mayor to serve as ARC board chair.
EDUCATION Georgia Tech, Georgia State University (MPA)
NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENTS Coauthored and passed resolutions establishing a $15 per hour minimum wage for Atlanta and affordable housing requirements around the BeltLine
Carmalitha L. Gumbs
Councilwoman
City of South Fulton
Carmalitha Gumbs is a member of the South Fulton City Council. Throughout the pandemic, Gumbs worked to make sure seniors had access to food and other supplies while sheltering in place. The winner of multiple awards and a frequent featured guest speaker, Gumbs was recognized by State Rep. Sharon Beasley-Teague for her outstanding public service and her role in ensuring the welfare of the citizens of Georgia.
EDUCATION Norfolk State University, Strayer University (MBA, MPH)
FIRST JOB In the country working at a potato grader
WHY I CHOSE THIS WORK I love people. I love being a resource, and I am passionate about my community.
LESSON LEARNED Everyone and everything is not for you, and you cannot force it.
FAVORITE MOVIES Grease, Grease 2
Eloisa Klementich
President and CEO
Invest Atlanta
Eloisa Klementich is president and CEO of Invest Atlanta, Atlanta’s economic development authority. As CEO, she is leading an economic mobility strategy which has generated 2,900 new jobs and $774.4 million in total capital investment, supported 445 small businesses, and created 525 affordable housing units across the city at press time in 2025. Previously, she worked as special assistant for economic development at the U.S. Economic Development Administration and served as California’s assistant deputy secretary for economic development and commerce. She also worked as a consultant for Mexican president Vicente Fox.
EDUCATION Pitzer College, Instituto Tecnológico de Monterrey (MBA), University
of California, Los Angeles (MA), University of La Verne (DPA)
HIDDEN TALENT I enjoy speaking three languages.
INSPIRING PERSON Sister Stanislaus
TOUGHEST CHALLENGE The demands of being a mom and a CEO
FAVORITE ATLANTA PLACE TO VISIT Pullman Yards
FAVORITE POWER LUNCH RESTAURANT Republic Social House (burger)
Nicole Love Hendrickson
Commission Chairwoman
Gwinnett County
Nicole Love Hendrickson was elected chairwoman of the Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners in 2020, making her the first African American to hold this position. In her role, she leads the board in setting the direction and formulating policies for county government, overseeing the creation and adoption of the county’s more than $2 billion budget, and ensuring Gwinnett’s services reach all its nearly 1 million residents. Hendrickson is active on several local and statewide boards including the Atlanta Regional Commission, leading the launch of its Local Leaders Housing Action Committee, now known as the Housing Leadership Assembly, which is responsible for developing a region-wide plan to address the Atlanta region’s housing affordability challenges.
EDUCATION University of Rhode Island, University of Georgia (MSW)
HOMETOWN Providence, Rhode Island
FEW PEOPLE KNOW I have an identical twin sister and younger identical twin brothers.
FAVORITE MOVIE The Color Purple
WHO’D PLAY ME IN A BIOPIC Viola Davis or Taraji P. Henson
Dawn Luke Arnold
Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer
Invest Atlanta
As executive vice president and chief operating officer of the city’s official economic development agency, Dawn Luke Arnold oversees Invest Atlanta’s community development, finance, information technology, human resources, operations, and investment services departments. Previously, she served as the organization’s senior vice president of community development, responsible for providing leadership and strategic direction in the successful execution of a shared vision of comprehensive community development, quality affordable housing, and economic growth in Atlanta’s 10 tax allocation districts. Arnold also managed and operated Invest Atlanta’s multifamily and single-family housing bond portfolio of approximately $1.8 billion and more than 20,000 units of housing.
EDUCATION Spelman College, Georgia State University (MBA)
HOMETOWN LaGrange, Georgia
WHY I CHOSE THIS WORK After having been homeless for a short period of time, then living in substandard housing, I made it my life’s mission to ensure that people are able to have decent, safe, sanitary, and affordable housing.
Scott McAfee
Judge
Superior Court of Fulton County
Scott McAfee is a judge for the Superior Court of Fulton County. McAfee was first appointed to his position by Governor Brian Kemp in 2023 after Chief Judge Christopher Brasher retired in December 2022. McAfee won an election to serve a full four-year term in 2024. Prior to this position, McAfee served as Georgia’s inspector general. Additionally, McAfee worked for eight years as an assistant United States attorney for the Department of Justice in the Northern District of Georgia and as an assistant district attorney in Fulton County. As an assistant United States attorney, McAfee investigated and prosecuted major drug trafficking organizations, fraud, and illegal firearms possession. In the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office, McAfee handled hundreds of felony cases ranging from armed robbery to murder.
EDUCATION Emory University, University of Georgia (JD)
Lauren “Bubba” McDonald
Commissioner
Georgia Public Service Commission
Following 20 years as a state representative, Lauren “Bubba” McDonald was appointed to the Georgia Public Service Commission in 1998 by Governor Zell Miller, and then reelected in a special election later that year. He held the seat until 2002. McDonald returned to the commission in 2008 and served as chairman. He was reelected to the commission in 2014 and 2020. He is also a member of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners’ Committee on Electricity and an executive member of the Nuclear Waste Strategy Coalition.
EDUCATION University of Georgia
NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENT Started funeral home business with son in 1997 and now own three funeral homes.
WHY I CHOSE THIS WORK Zell Miller talked me into it.
FIRST JOB Soda jerk in Commerce Drug Company
FEW PEOPLE KNOW Won first place in Georgia boys choir solo at age 12
FAVORITE ATLANTA PLACE TO VISIT The Varsity
Bee Nguyen
State Director
Office of U.S. Senator Raphael Warnock
The Democratic nominee for Georgia’s Secretary of State in 2022, Bee Nguyen was named state director for U.S. Senator Raphael Warnock in 2023. In this role, she is responsible for advising the senator and managing his Georgia-based team. She had been the first Asian American Democratic woman elected to the Georgia General Assembly, serving House District 89, the seat formerly held by Stacey Abrams. She’s also served as a national policy adviser for New American Leaders, which promotes the political participation of first- and second-generation Americans. Prior to being elected in 2017, Nguyen served as chief of staff for Georgia Representative Sam Park. She’s also worked for the resettlement agency Boat People SOS, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and the Georgia Budget & Policy Institute. Nguyen is the founder of Athena’s Warehouse, which supports high school girls in Atlanta.
EDUCATION Georgia State University (MA, MPA)
FIRST JOB I bagged groceries and pushed carts at Winn Dixie in Augusta when I was 15. The summer heat was suffocating, and I weighed about 90 pounds soaking wet. I now always push my grocery carts back into the store, or into the parking lot drop-off area. I also learned to thank the labor movement for my 15-minute mandatory break!
Photograph courtesy of individual
Russell K. Paul
Mayor
Sandy Springs
Elected mayor of Sandy Springs in 2013, Russell K. “Rusty” Paul brings more than 40 years of government experience to the job. A former state senator, he was elected to Sandy Springs’ founding city council in 2005 and has served on the city’s charter review commission and development authority. Paul also worked for the first Bush administration’s Department of Housing and Urban Development as assistant secretary for congressional and intergovernmental relations.
EDUCATION Samford University
FEW PEOPLE KNOW I’m a chick-flick aficionado; I’m addicted to the Hallmark Channel.
FIRST JOB Picking cotton at age six
LESSON LEARNED Politics is a team sport, and you have to build relationships, looking for common ground with people who disagree or have a different set of solutions than yours.
FAVORITE TRAVEL DESTINATION My cabin at the farm on which I grew up [near Birmingham]—land that has been in my family since 1880
Photograph courtesy of individual
Robb Pitts
Chairman
Fulton County Board of Commissioners
Robb Pitts was elected in 2017 as chairman of the Fulton County Board of Commissioners, having previously served on the board from 2002 to 2014. Pitts also served two decades on the Atlanta City Council, including a stint as president from 1997 to 2001. As a Fulton commissioner, he advocated for diversification of revenue sources to relieve tax burdens on property owners. Pitts is also a former college professor and registered real estate broker.
EDUCATION Ohio University, Academia Hispano Americana, Kent State University, La Universidad Interamericana, Emory University (MA)
HOMETOWN Haddock, Georgia
WHY I CHOSE THIS WORK I wanted to effect positive change and ensure that taxpayers receive the services they pay for in a more cost-effective and efficient manner.
Sheikh Rahman
State Senator
Georgia State Senate
Senator Sheikh Rahman, a Democrat, is the first immigrant and first Asian American to serve in the Georgia State Senate. He is also the first Muslim Georgia legislator. Elected in 2018, he represents the 5th Senate District in the heart of Gwinnett. Rahman is the former chairman of the Gwinnett Senate Delegation. In the Georgia State Senate, he serves as a member of the Senate Committees on Appropriations, Economic Development and Tourism, Government Oversight, Natural Resources and the Environment, and Urban Affairs. In 2025, led by Rahman, the Georgia State Senate adopted a resolution recognizing Bangladesh, specifically highlighting a 2024 student-led movement advocating for civil service quota reforms and a call for a more democratic government. Rahman grew up in Bangladesh, where his country was devastated by the Bangladesh Liberation War of Independence in 1971. At 13, Rahman was kidnapped at gunpoint as a prisoner of war. He came to America in 1981, becoming a citizen in 1995.
EDUCATION University of Georgia
NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENTS Islamic Speakers Bureau of Atlanta 100 Most Influential Georgia Muslims (2022), National Caucus of Environmental Legislators Rising Environmental Leader Award (2021), Georgia Asia Times 25 Most Influential Asian Americans in Georgia (2019)
Doug Shipman
Atlanta City Council President
City of Atlanta
Elected president of the Atlanta City Council in November 2021, Doug Shipman comes to public office after a long history of demonstrated leadership in Atlanta for Atlantans. Completing his term in 2026, Shipman’s work has been recognized by many civic, civil-rights, and human-rights organizations, including the Atlanta Business League, the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, the Atlanta Urban League, the Junior League of Greater Atlanta, and the Buckhead Rotary Club. His civic appointments have included the Atlanta Cyclorama Task Force and the Xernona Clayton Street renaming commission. Shipman joined the council after serving three years as the CEO of the Woodruff Arts Center. Prior to the Woodruff, Shipman served eight years as the founding CEO of the National Center for Civil and Human Rights. Before being named its CEO, Shipman led the center’s $100 million fundraising campaign, and efforts to design, build, and launch the center. He also supported the effort to secure and pay for the Martin Luther King Jr. Papers Collection at Morehouse College.
EDUCATION Emory University, Harvard Divinity School (MTS), Harvard Kennedy School (MPP)
HOMETOWN Bull Shoals, Arkansas
FAVORITE EVERYDAY RESTAURANT Bomb Biscuit Co.
BEST ADVICE RECEIVED From Mayor Shirley Franklin: “Work on something that matters 50 years from now.”
Lee Thomas
Deputy Commissioner, Film, Music & Digital Entertainment
Georgia Department of Economic Development
Lee Thomas is a deputy commissioner at the Georgia Department of Economic Development and division director of the Georgia Film Office. She’s helped Georgia become one of the top filming locations in the world, with $4.4 billion in direct spending during the fiscal year 2022, a record for the state. A native Atlantan, Thomas pursued doctoral studies in New York before returning to the city in 1996 to work for the Georgia Film and Videotape Office as a project manager, becoming a location specialist for the office in 1998 and director of the film division in 2010.
EDUCATION University of Georgia, Georgia State University (MA), New York University
NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENT Georgia Trend Georgian of the Year (2019)
INSPIRING PERSON Jimmy Carter
FEW PEOPLE KNOW We owned a restaurant and campground in Rabun County from 2010 until January 2020. It was initially an adventure renovating and running it, but it became way too much to handle!
Long Tran
Representative, District 80
Georgia House of Representatives
In 2022, Long Tran was elected to represent District 80 in the Georgia House of Representatives. Additionally, he chairs the AAPI caucus, which was created in 2022, and is the secretary of the DeKalb House Legislative Delegation. In 2025, he hosted the AAPI LEAD conference, the largest conference of AAPI elected officials in the nation, and Tran is a member of the host committee bringing the NCSL (National Conference of State Legislatures) Legislative Summit to Atlanta in 2027. A small business owner, Tran opened Peachy Corners Cafe weeks before Covid hit. Aside from his political and business pursuits, Tran’s journey from being an extra on the set of Ant-Man to becoming a SAG-AFTRA actor and stunt driver showcases his adaptability, determination, and deep ties to Georgia’s vibrant film industry.
EDUCATION The Ohio State University
HOMETOWN Kettering, Ohio
NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENTS Georgia Asian Times 25 Most Influential Asian Americans in Georgia (2023, 2024,2025), AJC Best Dressed Georgia Lawmakers of 2024
REASON FOR CHOOSING THIS WORK As Asian hate continued to rise because of Covid-19, the Atlanta Spa shootings made me realize I needed to step into the public forum and engage on a policy level to create a safer state for everyone to live in.
Fani T. Willis
District Attorney
Fulton County District Attorney’s Office
Fani T. Willis is the district attorney for Fulton County. She is the first woman to serve in the position. As a career trial lawyer with deep and broad prosecutorial experience, she has led over 100 jury trials and has prosecuted hundreds of murder cases. Willis has prosecuted many other serious crimes, including crimes against women and children. Her 19 years of experience as a prosecutor have given her a deep commitment to focusing her office’s prosecutorial efforts on the most dangerous offenders and removing them from society. She has also served as chief judge of the city of South Fulton.
EDUCATION Howard University, Emory University School of Law (JD)
FIRST JOB Cashier at Bradley’s department store in Laurel, Maryland
MOST INSPIRING PERSON My dad, who was a Black Panther, civil rights activist, and criminal defense attorney.
FAVORITE BOOK AND MOVIE The Godfather
Photograph courtesy of individual
Pat Wilson
Commissioner
Georgia Department of Economic Development
As commissioner of the Georgia Department of Economic Development, Pat Wilson leads the agency responsible for creating jobs and investment opportunities in Georgia through business recruitment and expansion, workforce development, and international trade and tourism, as well as the arts, film, and music industries. Before being appointed to the position in 2016 by Governor Nathan Deal, Wilson served as the organization’s chief operating officer, and was previously director of government affairs in the administration of Governor Sonny Perdue.
EDUCATION University of Georgia
NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENT Georgia has been named the number one state in the nation for business for ten consecutive years by Area Development magazine.
FIRST JOB Picking peaches
FEW PEOPLE KNOW I love karaoke.
HOBBIES Baseball, football, softball, and my kids’ sports at Northside Youth Organization
FAVORITE BOOK In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler’s Berlin by Erik Larson
TRANSPORTATION
Allison Ausband
Executive Vice President, Chief Customer Experience Officer
Delta Air Lines
Allison Ausband is executive vice president and chief people officer for Delta Air Lines. She leads the company’s global talent management, total rewards, and HR service delivery functions in support of the 100,000 employees who fuel Delta’s success. In her most recent role as chief customer experience officer, Ausband oversaw the end-to-end customer experience and the team of 70,000 who deliver those experiences. Previously, as senior vice president of in-flight service, Ausband led a global team of more than 20,000 flight attendants and supervisory and support personnel, as well as Delta’s onboard global food and beverage operations. Ausband began her career at Delta in 1985 as a flight attendant. She is also the immediate past chair of the University of Georgia Foundation board of trustees.
EDUCATION University of Georgia
FAVORITE TRAVEL DESTINATION Saint Barthélemy
NONPROFIT I lead Delta’s efforts in the fight against human trafficking.
WHO’D PLAY ME IN A BIOPIC Diane Lane
Ed Bastian
CEO
Delta Air Lines
As CEO of Delta Air Lines since 2016, Ed Bastian helms a team of 100,000 global professionals. Under his leadership, Delta, which celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2025, has become the world’s most awarded airline, named top U.S. airline by the Wall Street Journal, most admired airline worldwide by Fortune, and most on-time global airline by FlightGlobal. In 2018, Fortune named Bastian among the World’s 50 Greatest Leaders. In 2019, he was elected to the membership of the Council on Foreign Relations. Bastian was named among the Top 10 CEOs of 2021 in Glassdoor’s Employees’ Choice Awards as a leader who excelled at supporting their people throughout a global pandemic. Finally, in 2025, he was named among the TIME100 and was a recipient of the Tony Jannus Award, which is given to individuals who have made major and lasting contributions to commercial aviation.
EDUCATION Saint Bonaventure University
HOMETOWN Poughkeepsie, New York
FEW PEOPLE KNOW I was 25 before I first stepped foot on an airplane.
NONPROFITS Rally Foundation for Childhood Cancer Research, Polaris Project
Ed Elkins
Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer
Norfolk Southern Corporation
With over 35 years of service at Norfolk Southern, Ed Elkins serves as executive vice president and chief marketing officer of the freight transportation company that has been in operation since 1827. Elkins leads Intermodal, Automotive, and Industrial Products business divisions while overseeing Real Estate, Field Sales, and Customer Logistics business groups. Appointed CMO in 2021, Elkins’ journey with Norfolk Southern began in 1988 as a road brakeman after serving in the United States Marine Corps. He then progressed as a conductor, locomotive engineer, and relief yardmaster before taking on roles in operations and intermodal marketing, vast experience across the organization that gives him a unique perspective on the complexities of rail logistics. Beyond his corporate roles, Elkins serves as vice chair of the Georgia Chamber of Commerce and sits on the board of the East Lake Foundation.
EDUCATION University of Virginia, Old Dominion University Strome College of Business (MBA)
Mark George
President and CEO
Norfolk Southern Corporation
As president and CEO of Norfolk Southern Corporation, one of the nation’s largest freight transportation companies, Mark George oversees all business areas, building a customer-centric and operations-driven organization where everything starts with safety. Since joining Norfolk Southern in 2019 as chief financial officer, George has played a crucial role in guiding the company through significant strategic shifts. His leadership has strengthened the company’s focus on productivity, cost management, and safety by leveraging over 30 years of experience in financial management and business development across industries. Prior to joining Norfolk Southern, he served as the global CFO for the Otis Elevator Company and, from 2008 to 2019, the Carrier Corporation. George also serves on the board of directors for Junior Achievement of Georgia.
EDUCATION Central Connecticut State University, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (MBA)
Roderick McLean
Vice President and General Manager, Air Mobility & Maritime Missions
Lockheed Martin
Roderick McLean is vice president and general manager of the Air Mobility & Maritime Missions line of business at Lockheed Martin Aeronautics in Marietta, responsible for the C-130 Hercules transport, which was commemorated for the 70th anniversary of its first flight with a resolution by the Georgia Senate in 2024; the C-5 strategic airlifter, and other aircraft. McLean is also site general manager for the more than 5,000-employee Marietta facility. Since joining in 1994 as a radar systems engineer, McLean has held a variety of roles in the company, most recently as vice president and general manager of Lockheed Martin’s F-16/F-22 Integrated Fighter Group programs in Fort Worth, Texas. He serves on the board of directors for the Metro Atlanta Chamber.
EDUCATION North Carolina A&T State University, Georgia Tech (MA), University of Maryland Robert H. Smith School of Business (MBA)
HOMETOWN Jacksonville, North Carolina
FIRST JOB Drove a school bus in high school at 16 and a half years old
HIDDEN TALENT I enjoy playing classical music on the piano.
Russell R. McMurry
Commissioner
Georgia Department of Transportation
In 2015, Russell R. McMurry was appointed by the State Transportation Board as commissioner of the Georgia Department of Transportation—the over $3.5 billion, almost 4,000-employee state agency responsible for building, maintaining, and operating the 10th-largest transportation system in the country. The Georgia DOT launched its podcast in November 2022 and McMurry talked about his life and career in the inaugural episode. McMurry began his career with the department in 1990 as an engineering trainee and has served in a variety of roles including construction project manager, district engineer, director of engineering, and chief engineer. The American Road and Transportation Builders Association named McMurry its Trailblazer of the Year in 2024.
EDUCATION Georgia Southern University
NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENT Georgia Trend Georgian of the Year (2018)
FIRST JOB At 13, stocking shelves and taking inventory for a building-supply company
FEW PEOPLE KNOW I race motocross. I began riding at the age of 10 and still ride today.
Jeremy Rainwater
Chief Executive Officer, Americas
TK Elevator
As CEO Americas for TK Elevator, Jeremy Rainwater leads the development and implementation of TK Elevator’s overall strategy and operations in the company’s $4 billion North and South American businesses, with over 16,000 employees in 17 countries and across multiple lines of business, including manufacturing and new installation, modernization, as well as service and repair. Rainwater, who also serves on the Global Senior Leadership Team, joined TK Elevator in November 2022. A graduate of Harvard University’s Advanced Management Program, Rainwater also serves on the board of directors of the Metro Atlanta Chamber.
EDUCATION Cardinal Stritch University, Rutgers University (MBA)
FIRST JOB Umpire for Little League Baseball
WHY I CHOSE THIS WORK I grew up in a family of hard-working elevator mechanics and played competitive sports up through college. I see a lot of similarities in sports and business, so I knew fairly early that I wanted to be in business and lead teams to success.
FAVORITE GEORGIA PRO SPORTS TEAM Atlanta Braves
NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENTS My two incredible daughters
Ricky D. Smith
Airport General Manager
Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport
As the airport general manager of Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport—the world’s busiest and most efficient airport—Ricky D. Smith is responsible for the overall governance, strategic direction, and operational oversight of an airport that serves more than 108 million passengers annually, facilitates over 2,700 daily aircraft operations, and generates more than $750 million in annual operating revenue, reinforcing ATL’s status as an economic powerhouse. With more than 30 years of aviation management experience, Smith most recently served as executive director and CEO of Maryland Aviation Administration (MAA), where he was responsible for the management and operations of Baltimore Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, Martin State Airport, and regional aviation activities throughout the state of Maryland.
EDUCATION Howard University, Loyola University Maryland (EMBA)
TOUGHEST CHALLENGE The toughest challenge I faced was losing my mother a few years ago. Heading a major airport sometimes comes with very complicated and difficult situations and decisions. My mother was a common sense confidant.
UTILITIES
Annalisa M. Bloodworth
President and CEO
Oglethorpe Power Corporation
In 2025, Annalisa M. Bloodworth became president and CEO of Oglethorpe Power, which is among the nation’s largest power supply cooperatives and is one of the largest energy producers in Georgia. She succeeded Michael L. Smith, who retired after a distinguished career of 40 years in the energy industry and more than a decade leading the company. Bloodworth transitioned from the role of senior vice president and general counsel, which she had held since 2017. Bloodworth joined Oglethorpe Power in 2010 and served in various roles prior to her current position. Before joining Oglethorpe, Bloodworth was in private practice at Eversheds Sutherland (US) LLP.
EDUCATION Trinity University, Emory University School of Law (JD)
Riley Blount
President
AT&T Georgia
As president of AT&T Georgia, Riley Blount is responsible for leading AT&T’s economic development, public policy, philanthropic, and community engagement objectives across Georgia. Blount works closely with state and local policymakers and business and community leaders to foster an environment that welcomes investment and innovation and creates opportunities to improve the quality of life for all. In Georgia, Blount helps drive nearly $3.4 billion in annual network spend. This financial investment has expanded AT&T’s fiber footprint, providing broadband access to more than 1.8 million customer locations in more than 150 Georgia communities. It has also propelled the expansion of AT&T’s 5G wireless network to more than 90 percent of Georgians. Under Blount’s leadership, AT&T’s investments in network infrastructure are enhancing connectivity and helping drive economic development opportunities across the state. Blount is also the proud mother of two sons.
EDUCATION Auburn University
BOARD MEMBERSHIPS Metro Atlanta Chamber, Atlanta Convention and Visitors Bureau, Grady Health Foundation, Atlanta Police Foundation, Georgia Chamber of Commerce, Leadership Atlanta, Council for Quality Growth
Michael Braswell
President, Retail Energy
Southern Company Gas
Michael Braswell is president of retail energy for Southern Company Gas, responsible for ensuring the expansion and continued success of the company’s retail energy operations in multiple states. Braswell is also CEO of SouthStar Energy Services, which serves nearly 650,000 customers; in Georgia it conducts business as Georgia Natural Gas. A Dunwoody native, he has more than 30 years of experience in the natural gas industry and has worked in both regulated and nonutility environments.
EDUCATION Georgia Tech, Georgia State University (MBA)
FIRST JOB At the Georgia Tech Research Institute while I was a student at Georgia Tech
HOBBIES I’m a bicycling and exercise enthusiast.
FAVORITE MOVIE The Shawshank Redemption
FAVORITE TRAVEL DESTINATION Antigua
Michael Chanin
Founder and CEO
Cherry Street Energy
Michael Chanin is one of Georgia’s leading experts on solar energy. His company, Cherry Street Energy, is the largest non-utility provider of renewable energy in Georgia, powering operations for customers such as Delta Air Lines, Porsche Cars North America, Synovus, Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation, and the City of Atlanta. Chanin created Cherry Street Energy in 2015, after the Georgia General Assembly passed a law allowing third-party providers to sell power. He started his career at Goldman Sachs, ran finance and operations for a San Francisco-based technology company, and has invested in renewable energy markets since 2013. Chanin is also a member of Leadership Atlanta’s class of 2025.
EDUCATION Northwestern University, University of Cambridge (MPhil)
REASON FOR CHOOSING THIS WORK My parents instilled a belief in me that we should leave things better than we found them. I saw that lived out in my grandparents’ store on Cherry Street in Macon, a place built on reliability, service, and community. That legacy inspired me. Energy offered a way to carry that forward.
GREATEST ACCOMPLISHMENT Being a husband, father, son, brother, and friend has shaped every part of my life. Those relationships give meaning to my work and keep me grounded in what matters most.
Bentina Chisolm Terry
President and CEO
Southern Linc and Southern Telecom, Inc.
Bentina C. Terry is president and CEO of Southern Linc and Southern Telecom, Inc., Southern Company subsidiaries that provide mission critical LTE network wireless and dark fiber networks and services to Southern Company electric utilities and public sector customers. Terry has held senior executive positions at Georgia Power and other Southern Company subsidiaries and began her career practicing law with Troutman Sanders in Atlanta. Past chair of the board of directors for Leadership Atlanta and The Beltline Partnership, she serves on the board of the International Women’s Forum—Georgia, and is a member of several organizations including The Links, Incorporated and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated. Additionally, Terry was named one of Atlanta Business Chronicle’s Women of Influence for 2024.
EDUCATION North Carolina State University, University of Michigan Law School (JD)
HOMETOWN Fayetteville, North Carolina
FIRST JOB Selling women’s clothes in the mall
FAVORITE ATLANTA PLACE TO VISIT The neighborhoods on the east side of Atlanta
Kimberly S. Greene
Chair, President, and CEO
Georgia Power
Kim Greene was named chair, president, and CEO of Georgia Power in 2023. She leads Georgia Power in serving its 2.8 million customers across the state. The company is the largest subsidiary of Southern Company, one of the nation’s leading energy providers. Prior to her current position, Greene served for five years as chair, president, and CEO of Southern Company Gas. In this role, she ensured the delivery of clean, safe, reliable, and affordable natural gas to more than 4.3 million utility customers in Georgia, Illinois, Tennessee, and Virginia, and to over 600,000 retail gas customers served by SouthStar Energy Services in 10 states. Greene serves on numerous boards including boards for the Atlanta Committee for Progress, the Metro Atlanta Chamber, the Georgia Research Alliance, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, Woodruff Arts Center, and the Georgia Historical Society. Additionally, Greene is a member of the Alabama Engineering Hall of Fame.
EDUCATION University of Tennessee, University of Alabama at Birmingham (MS), Samford University (MBA), Harvard Business School (AMP)
NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENT In 2022, Greene was awarded the Edison Electric Institute’s inaugural Thomas F. Farrell II Safety Leadership and Innovation Award by her industry peers for her significant contributions to improving safety in the utility industry.
Photograph courtesy of individual
Kevin Greiner
President and CEO
Gas South
Kevin Greiner has served as Gas South’s president and CEO since the company’s founding in 2006. Gas South is one of the Southeast’s largest energy marketers, providing natural gas to nearly 500,000 residential, commercial, and industrial customers in competitive markets in 13 states. Gas South also operates a growing wholesale energy marketing operation and is an owner/investor in several solar energy projects. Since its founding, Gas South has doubled its customer base, while growing its sales volumes and workforce by over 400 percent. Additionally, in 2025, Greiner was the recipient of the Bransby Christian Leadership Award, the YMCA of Metro Atlanta’s highest recognition. Gas South has been a steadfast supporter of the YMCA, contributing over $1.3 million in lifetime giving along with numerous hours of volunteer time and projects.
EDUCATION Wesleyan University, University of Michigan (MBA, MS)
NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENT YMCA of Metro Atlanta Volunteer of the Year (2017); board chair there in 2021 and 2022
FIRST JOB Working in a bagel shop on Long Island
Christine Whitaker
President, Central Division
Comcast
Christine Whitaker is president of Comcast’s Central Division, headquartered in Atlanta. The division is home to approximately 16,000 Comcast employees with more than 21 million combined video, high-speed internet, voice, home security, and mobile customers throughout the 12 states that comprise the Central Division. A more than 25-year veteran of the cable industry, Whitaker most recently served as senior vice president of finance and administration for Comcast’s Northeast Division. Whitaker has been repeatedly named one of the Most Powerful Women in Cable by Cablefax: The Magazine and recognized as a Wonder Woman by Multichannel News. Whitaker was named one of Atlanta Business Chronicle’s Women of Influence for 2023. Whitaker has completed executive education programs for telecommunications through Harvard Business School and Stanford Graduate School of Business.
EDUCATION George Mason University
REASON FOR CHOOSING THIS WORK The opportunity to lead with purpose and make a lasting impact in the communities we serve. At Comcast, we’re fortunate to be involved in many initiatives that uplift and empower—especially in underserved areas where connectivity can be life-changing.
Christopher C. Womack
Chairman, President, and CEO
Southern Company
Chris Womack is chairman, president, and chief executive officer of Southern Company, one of the nation’s leading energy providers serving 9 million customers nationwide. Prior to his current role, he served as chairman, president, and CEO of Georgia Power, leading Southern Company’s largest subsidiary. A native of Greenville, Alabama, Womack joined Southern Company in 1988 and has held several leadership positions within Southern Company and its subsidiaries. Prior to joining Southern Company, Womack worked on Capitol Hill for the U.S. House of Representatives in Washington, D.C. He is past chair of the Metro Atlanta Chamber, past chair of the board of the East Lake Foundation and is on the national board of the First Tee. In 2022, Atlanta Business Chronicle named Womack one of its Most Admired CEOs.
EDUCATION Western Michigan University, American University (MPA)
FIRST JOB Capitol Hill legislative aide
HOBBIES Fishing, hunting, gardening
LEGENDS
Nathan Deal
Deal served as a prosecutor, judge, state senator, and U.S. congressman for Georgia’s 9th District before being elected Georgia’s 82nd governor in 2010 and reelected in 2014. Under his leadership, Georgia was recognized as the top state for business five years in a row. Deal’s tenure was marked by efforts in transportation, criminal justice reform, and
education reform.
Pat Epps
In 1965, Epps bought a small fixed-base operation at DeKalb Peachtree Airport and launched Epps Air Service. He grew the original facility into a hub serving local and international businesses. His many honors include the National Business Aviation Association’s American Spirit Award and Lifetime Achievement award. Epps has also been inducted into the Georgia Aviation Hall of Fame.
Shirley Franklin
Inaugurated in 2002, Franklin became Atlanta’s 58th mayor. She was not only the city’s first female mayor, but also the first African American woman to helm any major Southern city. A former protégé of mayors Maynard Jackson and Andrew Young, she helped bring the Olympic Games to Atlanta. She received the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award in 2005.
Keisha Lance Bottoms
In 2018, Bottoms took office as Atlanta’s 60th mayor—only the second woman to hold the city’s highest municipal government seat. She’s also the only mayor in city history to have been elected to all three branches of government, serving previously as a judge and city councilmember. She served as an advisor on international trade to President Biden.
Patrise Perkins-Hooker
Formerly the county attorney for Fulton County, Perkins-Hooker is now an administrative partner with Johnson & Freeman, LLC. In 2014, she became the 52nd president of the State Bar of Georgia—the first African American and third woman to fill that role.
Kasim Reed
Reed served two terms as Atlanta’s 59th mayor, beginning in 2010. Prior to that, he spent 11 years as a member of the Georgia General Assembly, first elected in 1998 as a state representative, then serving from 2002 to 2009 in the state Senate. He is now a partner with the McDermott Will & Emery law firm.
Andrew J. Young
A protégé of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Young was a leader of the SCLC. He helped draft the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. He was Georgia’s first Black congressman since Reconstruction. President Carter tapped him to be the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. He served two terms as mayor of Atlanta and helped bring the 1996 Olympics here. His accolades have included the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Morehouse College’s Andrew Young Center for Global Leadership is named for him, as is Georgia State University’s Andrew Young School of Policy Studies.
