Michele Coley
is the only African American female Allstate agent in the state of Alabama. She has agencies in Tuscaloosa and Hoover with seven employees. A Stillman College graduate, she serves on the West Alabama Chamber Executive Board, the city of Tuscaloosa Elevate Advisory Council and the University of Alabama College of Continuing Studies board of visitors. Recently she was appointed to the city of Tuscaloosa Zoning Board of Adjustments as a supernumerary and the Mayor’s Project Unity Economic & Workforce Committee. She mentors and sponsors reading and positive behavior initiatives at several local schools.
Norman Crow Jr.
is president of DT Freight LLC, a long-haul flat-bed trucking company. A native of Tuscaloosa, Crow is a University of Alabama graduate and a CPA. A former chairman of the Chamber of Commerce of West Alabama and United Way, today he is a member of the Tuscaloosa City Council, chair-elect of the Tuscaloosa County Economic Development Authority, on the Business Council of Alabama board and on the Alabama Commission on Higher Education. He is a member of West Alabama Works Steering Committee for Region 3.
Heather Dill
is regional director of sales and marketing for Embassy Suites Tuscaloosa-Valor Hospitality Partners. Dill serves on the Chamber of Commerce of West Alabama board, the Tuscaloosa’s Mayor’s Advisory Council for Cultural Arts and Tourism and the city of Northport Community Engagement Committee. She is a 2016 recipient of the Jack Davis Professional Achievement Award from the University of Alabama and was inducted into the Golden Key International Honor Society in 2018. She earned the award for New Hotel of the Year from Embassy Suites and the Connie Pride Merit Award for being ranked among the top 3 Embassy Suites by Hilton Worldwide five years in a row.
Donny Jones
is COO for the Chamber of Commerce of West Alabama and executive director for West Alabama Works. He is a member of Governor’s Career Technical Education Task Force to enhance CTE curriculum, an officer for the Alabama Committee on Credentialing and Career Pathways and a member of the Committee for Grade-Level Reading. The Governor’s Committee on Employment of People with Disabilities awarded him the Public Service Award for West Alabama in 2019. He serves on the boards of the Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama and Tuscaloosa Education Foundation.
Eric McCalpine
is the major account manager for the company managing Cintas Government Accounts in Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana and Mississippi. A native of Tuscaloosa, he is a graduate of Central High School in Tuscaloosa and Stillman College, with a master’s from Birmingham-Southern College. McCalpine started his career with Cintas in 2005. He is active with the Salvation Army, Tuscaloosa Economic Development Authority, Tuscaloosa Mayor’s Alliance and Stillman College Alumni Association.
John Merkle
is director of the Tuscaloosa Veterans Affairs Medical Center. Merkle is a retired U.S. Army lieutenant colonel who served on active duty for more than 24 years. He held a variety of health care leadership positions ranging from air ambulance pilot to deputy commander of the health care facility at Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe. A John Carroll University graduate, he holds a master’s from St. Martin’s College and a master of health administration from Baylor University. He is a Fellow in the American College of Healthcare Executives and a Lean Six Sigma Certified Black Belt.
Russell Mumper
is vice president for research and economic development at the University of Alabama. After nearly a decade in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries, Mumper spent the next 20 years in academia. He has received nearly $30 million in research grants and contracts is a named inventor on 20 U.S. patents and 9 foreign patents, many of which have been licensed to companies. He has founded five companies. Mumper serves on the Alabama Innovation Commission, Tuscaloosa County Economic Development Authority and Elevate Tuscaloosa.
Brad Newman
was recently appointed president of Shelton State Community College. Prior to his appointment, he served as plant manager for ZF Chassis Systems in Tuscaloosa. He is chairman of West Alabama Works, vice chair for Education and Workforce Development for the Chamber of Commerce of West Alabama, ex-officio board member for the Tuscaloosa County Economic Development Authority and a member of the West Alabama Regional Workforce Council. He is also a German Business Council founding member and a member of the Alabama Germany Partnership. He has two degrees from UA.
Jared Phillips
is director of business operations for Parker Towing Co. A native of Huntsville and a graduate of the University of Alabama, he has worked in the manufacturing and transportation industries since 2008. He is responsible for all Parker driver logistics and the Tuscaloosa office dispatch department, as well as Parker’s information technology initiatives. He is the namesake of Parker Towing’s newly built vessel, the M/V Jared Phillips, a 4200HP boat built by FMT Shipyard.
Jordan Plaster
is a private wealth adviser and managing director for Plaster, Scarvey & Shumaker, a financial advisory practice of Ameriprise Financial Services in Tuscaloosa. He has been named to Forbes’ Best-in-State Wealth Advisors and Barron’s Top 1200 Financial Advisors in America. He is chairman of Tuscaloosa Rotary Honor Flight and a past board chair of United Way and the Chamber of Commerce of West Alabama. A graduate of Leadership Alabama, he serves on the board for IDA, Business Council of Alabama, Community Corrections, Salvation Army and Black Warrior Council/BSA. The UA graduate is on the board of visitors for Culverhouse College of Business.
Samory Pruitt
is vice president for community affairs at the University of Alabama. The division sponsors the UA Council on Community-Based Partnerships to provide seed funding, graduate student assistant support and recognition, and training for students, staff, faculty and community partners. A three-time UA graduate, Pruitt is president of the board of the national Engagement Scholarship Consortium and serves on the boards of Stillman College and the Tuscaloosa County Economic Development Authority. He is publisher of the international Journal of Community Engagement and Scholarship and serves as a visiting professor of community-engaged scholarship at the University of Central Florida-Downtown.
Kelsey Rush
is vice president of marketing and communications for Tuscaloosa Tourism and Sports. Rush is an executive board member for the West Alabama Chamber of Commerce and was recently named the Charles H. Land Member of the Year. She is on the Tuscaloosa County Parks and Recreation Foundation Board and active in Tuscaloosa’s One Place and Junior Achievement.
Glenda Webb
is city administrator for the city of Northport. She works to develop and implement policies guiding the city. She coordinates daily operations and long-range planning, budget preparation, development and implementation of personnel regulations, financial and administrative policies and more. She is a graduate of the University of Montevallo and the University of Alabama School of Law.
Cynthia Warrick
is president of Stillman College. She is a pharmacist and health services researcher. She is a life member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. and serves on the board of United Way of West Alabama, the West Alabama Chamber, the Tuscaloosa County Industrial Development Authority, the Tuscaloosa County Preservation Society and the Tuscaloosa Rotary Club.
Tracy White
is associate director of Tuscaloosa Veterans Affairs Medical Center. A University of Alabama graduate with a UA master’s in nursing, White was a recipient of the 2011 Alabama Hospital Hero’s award. She currently serves on various VISN 7 committees.
Danielle Winningham
is executive director of the Tuscaloosa County Economic Development Authority. She is a graduate of Mississippi College with additional economic development credentials. She is a member of the Tuscaloosa County Road Improvement Commission, Chamber of Commerce of West Alabama, Southern Economic Development Council, National Organization of Workforce Development Professionals and International Economic Development Council.
