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	Budget Justification Home / Delta Regional Authority Graduates 2023 Class from Leadership Development Program


Delta Regional Authority Graduates 2023 Class from Leadership Development Program September 15, 2023
				Thirty-seven fellows from the public, private, and nonprofit sectors across the eight-state region graduate from the DLI Executive AcademyView this email in your browserLogo**FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE**
September 15, 2023

**FOR MORE INFORMATION:**
Jessica Shappley
662-683-8670
jshappley@dra.gov**Delta Regional Authority Graduates 2023 Class from Leadership Development Program**

*Thirty-seven fellows from the public, private, and nonprofit sectors across the eight-state region graduate from the Delta Leadership Institute Executive Academy***Clarksdale, MS** – Delta Regional Authority (DRA) graduated 37 regional leaders from the Delta Leadership Institute (DLI) Executive Academy, an extensive, nine-month leadership development program that brings together public, private, and nonprofit sector leaders from the Mississippi River Delta and Alabama Black Belt regions. The 2023 DLI Executive Academy Class was selected through a competitive application process led by DRA’s eight state governors and DRA’s federal co-chairman.

“The Delta Leadership Institute Executive Academy is an essential instrument for nurturing community placemaking and capacity building in the Delta region,” said Federal Co-Chairman, Dr. Corey Wiggins. “This program equips a dedicated and diverse group of leaders to drive change within and outside of their communities and accelerate prosperity across the region.”

Since 2005, the DLI Executive Academy has provided leadership development to more than 700 community leaders from diverse backgrounds, sectors, and industries to improve economic competitiveness and social viability throughout the Delta region. DRA created the program to empower a corps of leaders with the tools, experiences, and networks to address local and regional economic development challenges.

The graduates participated in six in-person sessions led by local, regional, and national experts and covered policy areas and skills related to public infrastructure, regional transportation systems, workforce development, coalition-building, and other fields necessary to facilitate economic development in the Delta. As a result, DLI Executive Academy fellows graduate with enhanced decision-making skills, policy development know-how, strengthened leadership capacity, and a mutual understanding of regional, state, and local culture and issues.

The 2023 DLI Executive Academy graduates are:

**Alabama**
Megan Blackwell, Development Assistant, Alabama Tombigbee Regional Commission
Mandy Guin, Special Projects Coordinator, Delta Regional Authority
Collins Pettaway, III, Senior Consultant, The Pettapull Firm**Arkansas**
Joshua Agee, Mayor, City of Paragould
Kristi Hopper, Executive Director, Main Street Osceola
Ronald Hunt, Attorney, Arkansas Fair Housing Commission
Kendra Phillips, Consultant, Phillips Consulting Firm
Aaron Pilkington, Vice President of Strategic Communications, ARcare
Brendan Spaulding, Field Representative, U.S. Representative Bruce Westerman**Illinois**
Dori Bigler, City Administrator, City of Anna
Terri Bryant, Illinois State Senator, Illinois General Assembly
Josh Downs, Mayor, City of Du Quoin, Deputy Director of Outreach & Community Affairs, Illinois Comptroller’s Office
Quianya Enge, Research Assistant/Small Business Advisor, Illinois Small Business Development Center at Southern Illinois University Carbondale
Terance Henry, IT Director, City of Marion**Kentucky**
Corey Elder, Field Representative, U.S. Representative James Comer
Ruthann Padgett, Vice President, Madisonville Hopkins County Economic Development Corporation**Louisiana**
Ben Armstrong, Director of Strategic Partnerships & Outreach, NextOp
Lindora Baxter, CEO, Xtreme Measures Women Business Center
Bryan Creekmore, Attorney, Guerriero and Guerriero
April Hawthorne, Executive Director, Baton Rouge North Economic Development District
Mark Herbert, Government & Community Relations, Louisiana Department of Public Safety
Derrick Johnson, Mayor, Town of Cheneyville**Mississippi**
Otis Anthony, II, Mississippi State Representative, Mississippi House of Representatives
Edmund Buckner, Dean & Director of Land-Grant Programs, Alcorn State University
Whitney S. French, Director of Healthcare & Community Engagement, Teen Health Mississippi
Keandre Haywood, Financial Management Coordinator, Delta Regional Authority
Shelley Ritter, Executive Director, Delta Blues Museum
Tracey Rosebud, Mississippi State Representative, Mississippi House of Representatives
Alfonzo White, Director of Television Studio/Instructor, Mississippi Valley State University
Mary Williams, CEO, Urgent & Primary Care of Clarksdale**Missouri**
Kelly Brueggen, Director of Grants & Marketing, Washington County Memorial Hospital
Sara Ezell, Project Director, SEMO Health Network
Morgan McIntosh, Executive Director of Downtown Poplar Bluff, Inc., City of Poplar Bluff
Jeremy Tanz, Executive Director, Southeast Missouri Regional Planning & Economic Development Commission**Tennessee**
R. Chad Davis, Owner, Davis Wealth Services
Amity Schuyler, Senior Vice President Workforce Development, Greater Memphis Chamber
Waletha Wasson, Program Director, A 21st Century Initiative: Oral-Systemic and Population-Based Health for All, University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Dentistry
Additional information about DRA’s DLI Executive Academy is available at Delta Leadership Institute – Delta Regional Authority (dra.gov).


###**About the Delta Regional Authority**

The DRA was established in 2000 as a formal framework for joint federal-state collaboration to promote and encourage the economic development of the lower Mississippi River and Alabama Black Belt regions. To fulfill this purpose, DRA invests in projects supporting transportation infrastructure, basic public infrastructure, workforce training, and business development. DRA’s region encompasses 252 counties and parishes in parts of Alabama, Arkansas, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, and Tennessee.Learn MoreFacebook icon
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								Federal PartnersThe DRA was established in 2000 as a formal framework for joint Federal-State collaboration to promote and encourage the economic development of the lower Mississippi River and Alabama Black Belt regions. To fulfill this purpose, DRA invests in projects supporting transportation infrastructure, basic public infrastructure, workforce training, and business development. DRA works to create jobs, build communities, and improve the lives of those that reside in the region. DRA’s region encompasses 252 counties and parishes in parts of Alabama, Arkansas, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, and Tennessee.DRA’s enabling legislation dictates that at least 75% of DRA’s funds must be invested in economically distressed counties and parishes and isolated areas within non-distressed counties and parishes. In addition, half of DRA’s funds must support transportation infrastructure and basic public infrastructure.
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