Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal, Tupelo

ARC chooses three local professionals for leadership institute

By Michaela Gibson Morris 

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Three Northeast Mississippians have been chosen to join the first Appalachian Leadership Institute. 

The Appalachian Regional Commission selected 40 people from 13 states as leadership institute fellows through a competitive application process. The fellows from Mississippi are: 

  • Gregory Alston of Oxford, who serves as field representative and general counsel for U.S. Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith.
  • Albine Bennett of Tupelo, communications director for the CREATE Foundation.
  • GT McCullough of Corinth, project manager for The Alliance. 

The leadership institute was developed in partnership with the University of Tennessee, Knoxville; The Howard H. Baker Center for Public Policy; Tuskegee University; and Collective Impact. The participants include public policy, community development, education, investment and other professionals who live and work in the region. They were chose from 180 applicants.

The 2019-2020 fellows will go through an extensive nine-month program focusing on skill-building seminars, best practice reviews, field visits, mentoring and networking.