Leadership DeKalb names members of Class of 2023

A crowd gathered before a public meeting of the DeKalb County Board of Education meeting at the DeKalb County School District headquarters in Stone Mountain. Education is one of the sectors Leadership DeKalb draws its members from. (Miguel Martinez/For the AJC)

A crowd gathered before a public meeting of the DeKalb County Board of Education meeting at the DeKalb County School District headquarters in Stone Mountain. Education is one of the sectors Leadership DeKalb draws its members from. (Miguel Martinez/For the AJC)

Leadership DeKalb announced the selection of members for its Class of 2023, a group of people drawn from sectors including education, government, healthcare, legal, nonprofit, public safety and private industry.

Founded in 1986, Leadership DeKalb is a nonprofit that aims to enhance leadership skills in the community. The organization says through its program, members learn about history, diversity, government, justice, arts and culture, education, health, and economic development in DeKalb County — and the issues leaders face in those areas.

In the program, members also use their professional skills to help nonprofits.

The new class of 29 members includes people ranging from Grady Health System chief health policy officer Ryan Loke to Peachtree Creek Greenway executive director Lauren Kiefer.

“The relationships created and the knowledge gained during the Leadership DeKalb Program will benefit our class members, their employers, DeKalb County and Metro Atlanta,” said Leadership DeKalb Chair Marquetta J. Bryan in a written statement.

Leadership DeKalb and similar programs around metro Atlanta are among more than 1,000 leadership development programs around the country.


Leadership DeKalb Class of 2023

  • · Shawn Adams, Vice President of Student Affairs, Georgia Piedmont Technical College
  • · Sunny Anderson, Sr. Business Attraction Manager, Decide DeKalb
  • · Charles Bailey, Judge, DeKalb County State Court
  • · Terry Buttrill, Public Affairs Director, Georgia Transmission Corporation
  • · Francoise Carroll, Interim Executive Director, International Community School
  • · Ashley Coleman, Civic Engagement Manager, New American Pathways
  • · Letitia Delan, Chief Assistant and Director of Professional Development, DeKalb County Public Defender’s Office
  • · Nick Fernandez, Director of Government Affairs, Metro Atlanta Chamber
  • · Heather M. Gaylord, Owner, Hey Heather Mae, LLC
  • · H. Eric Hilton, Partner, Hall Booth Smith, P.C.
  • · Shannon Hodder, Deputy Chief Assistant District Attorney, DeKalb County District Attorney’s Office
  • · Daniel Johnson, Manager, Metropolitan North Georgia Water Planning District, Atlanta Regional Commission
  • · Lauren Kiefer, Co-founder & Chief Operating Officer, DocAuto, Inc. and Executive Director, Peachtree Creek Greenway
  • · Brian Lake, Attorney, Robbins Alloy Belinfante Littlefield LLC
  • · Tania Lamothe, IT Security Manager, KPMG
  • · Ryan Loke, Senior Vice President & Chief Health Policy Officer, Grady Health System
  • · Emanuel McCown III, Commander, Internal Affairs Unit, DeKalb County Police Department
  • · Jackie Moffo, Economic Development Manager, City of Tucker
  • · Scott Myers, Deputy Chief Assistant Solicitor General, DeKalb County Solicitor General’s Office
  • · Sheena Parks, Chief Deputy Clerk, DeKalb County State Court
  • · Garfield Peart, President, Syntony Design Collaborative, LLC
  • · Tanika Perry – Vincent, Educational Technology Specialist & Spanish Teacher, Atlanta Public Schools
  • · Earl Porter III, Associate Attorney, Alston & Bird LLP
  • · Jacquelyn Reasor, Vice President, Clinical Ancillary Services, Grady Health System
  • · Angel Riley, Deputy Chief Assistant District Attorney, DeKalb County District Attorney’s Office
  • · Miriam Smith, Director of Corporate Relations, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra
  • · Connie D. Stevenson, Director of School Choice and Student Assignment, DeKalb County School District
  • · Shelley Sweazey, Executive Director, Regional Strategy & Execution, Kaiser Permanente
  • · Rondah Thomas, Area Manager, Georgia Power Company

Source: Leadership DeKalb