About

Mission

Leadership Birmingham educates and inspires leaders to drive positive change.

Since 1982, Leadership Birmingham has united diverse cohorts of the region’s most engaged leaders to explore critical community issues and forge lasting relationships that shape Birmingham’s future. Through immersive monthly programs, small group sessions, and two overnight retreats, our annual class of 50 leaders gains deep insight into challenges and opportunities across education, healthcare, economic development, social services, and more – equipping them with the knowledge, networks, and shared experiences needed to build a better Birmingham.

Libba Vaughan

Executive Director
(205) 252-4496 ext. 3
libba@leadershipbirmingham.org

Libba Vaughan joined Leadership Birmingham in August of 2018.

Prior to Leadership Birmingham, Libba served as executive director of the Freshwater Land Trust in Birmingham. There, she was instrumental in increasing the acreage of land under conservation protection and growing critical connections within Jefferson County’s 750-mile Red Rock Trail System, including the 2.2-mile Kiwanis-Vulcan Trail along the crest of Red Mountain and linking the High Ore Line to Red Mountain Park.

Prior to serving at the Freshwater Land Trust, Libba directed service learning and undergraduate research at UAB and launched the division’s successful community engagement faculty training program and a community outreach and engagement collaboration with AmeriCorps VISTA.

She currently serves on the boards of the Friends of the Birmingham Botanical Gardens and the Jefferson State Community College Foundation. She is a member of the Rotary Club of Birmingham and is a graduate of the Leadership Birmingham Class of 2018 and Leadership Alabama Class 32.

Libba grew up on the Tennessee River in Guntersville and is a graduate of Sewanee (B.S.) and the University of Minnesota (M.S.). She and her husband, Brooks, have two sons.

Susan Shields Cash

Operations Director
(205) 252-4496 ext. 1
susan@leadershipbirmingham.org

Susan was born and raised in Mobile and received her bachelor’s in public administration from Auburn University. After college, she moved to Birmingham where she earned a master’s in public administration with a concentration in Nonprofit Management from UAB. In her role with Leadership Birmingham Susan manages organizational operations to ensure programming, fundraising, and communications goals are met.

She has been heavily involved in the community for the past 15 years and previously served as a volunteer and junior board member for Better Basics, the Literacy Council, and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Birmingham. She was an active member of the Junior League of Birmingham for 11 years where she served on the executive board as community VP and training VP. She is a former member of the PARCA Roundtable and the Rotaract Club of Birmingham and is a graduate of Alabama Leadership Initiative.

Susan and her husband Andy have two daughters.

Katherine Berdy

Director, Youth Leadership Forum
(205) 252-4496 ext. 2
katherine@ylfbham.org

Katherine Berdy is the director of Youth Leadership Birmingham (YLB). She is also a faculty member and the podcast host for The Gardner Carney Leadership Institute (gcLi), a national non-profit dedicated to teaching teachers how to teach leadership. Katherine is the former director of The C. Kyser Miree Ethical Leadership Center at The Altamont School in Birmingham, AL, where she created community partnerships and experiential educational opportunities for Altamont’s students.

Katherine’s career and pedagogical foundations began in the mid 1990’s while working as an outdoor educator in the Rockies and Pacific Northwest. Since then, she has worked as a teacher, photographer, leadership and academic coach, mentor, and facilitator. Katherine has presented at SAIS (Southern Association of Independent Schools) and NNSP (National Network of Independent Schools) with gcLi.

She holds a B.A. in Communication Studies from Vanderbilt University and a M.Ed. from the University of Montevallo. Her teaching portfolio includes classes in English, theater, creative writing, leadership studies, public speaking, and debate. In her spare time, Katherine enjoys traveling, hiking, reading, knitting, photography, and spending time with friends and her husband and two children.

History

A Legacy of Connecting Birmingham's Changemakers

What began as a Birmingham Chamber of Commerce initiative in 1981 has grown into one of the region’s most influential leadership development organizations. After extensive research into similar programs nationwide, a steering committee led by Neal Berte established Leadership Birmingham as an independent nonprofit in 1982, with William J. Rushton III serving as its first chairman and Sheila Blair as executive director. With initial funding from major corporations and the Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham, the organization welcomed its first class in 1983. Under the guidance of subsequent board chairs Drayton Nabers and Mike Warren, and executive directors Elise Penfield (1994-2004), Ann Florie (2004-2018), and current leader Libba Vaughan, Leadership Birmingham has educated and inspired over 1,500 community leaders committed to driving positive change in our region.

Board of Directors

The Board of Directors has general responsibility for funding and direction of Leadership Birmingham. They serve staggered three-year terms without compensation. The Executive Committee provides general supervision and guidance to the Members Council and Youth Leadership Forum. Bill Ritter is currently Chair of the Board of Directors.

View Board

*executive committee

  • Chair: Mr. William D. Ritter* SEVP, Wealth Management, Regions Financial Corporation
  • Vice-Chair: Ms. Emily Hess Levine* Foundation Executive, Ronne & Donald Hess Foundation
  • Dr. Cynthia Anthony President, Lawson State Community College
  • Hon. Richard Arrington, Jr. Former Mayor, City of Birmingham
  • Mr. Jeffrey Bayer* President, Bayer Ventures
  • Mr. Nelson S. Bean Division CEO, Synovus Bank
  • Dr. Neal R. Berte* President Emeritus, Birmingham-Southern College
  • Mr. Richard J. Bielen President & CEO, Protective Life Corporation
  • Hon. Sharon Blackburn U.S. District Judge, U.S. District Court
  • Melanie Bridgeforth President & CEO, Women’s Foundation of Alabama
  • Dawn Bulgarella CEO, UAB Health System
  • Hon. U. W. Clemon Retired, District Judge, United State District Court
  • Mr. Daniel Coleman President, Birmingham-Southern College
  • Ms. Leigh Collier Business Execution Executive, Wells Fargo
  • Dr. Robert G. Corley* Retired, Department of History, UAB
  • Ms. Judy Crittenden* Attorney, Crittenden Partners
  • Mr. J. Mason Davis Partner, Dentons Sirote
  • Dr. Natalie Davis* Retired, Professor, Birmingham-Southern College
  • Ed Fields Senior Advisor & Chief Strategist, City of Birmingham
  • Ms. Ann D. Florie Retired, Executive Director, Leadership Birmingham
  • Ms. Cathy Friedman Retired, City Paper Company
  • Mr. James Gorrie President & CEO, Brasfield & Gorrie, LLC
  • Mr. Herschell Hamilton* CEO, Bloc Global Group
  • Mr. Joe Hampton President , Spire Alabama
  • Ms. Myeisha D. Hutchinson Chief of Staff, City Council District 5, City of Birmingham
  • Mr. John D. Johns Retired, Chairman, Protective Life Corporation
  • Ms. Cathy Sloss Jones* President, Sloss Real Estate Company, Inc.
  • Mr. Anthony Joseph* Shareholder, Maynard Nexsen
  • Mr. Robert Earl Kelly* President, Kelly Road Builders
  • Ms. Bobbie Knight President, Miles College
  • Mr. Drew Langloh President & CEO, United Way of Central Alabama
  • Mr. Philippe W. Lathrop* VP of Investments, Merrill Lynch
  • Mr. Don Logan Retired, Time Warner;, Owner, B.A.S.S., LLC
  • Mr. Edgar Marx* President, Marx Brothers, Inc.
  • Mr. John J. McMahon, Jr. Chairman, Ligon Industries
  • Mr. Christopher Nanni President & CEO, Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham
  • Mr. Claude Nielsen Retired, President & CEO, Coca-Cola Bottling Co. United
  • Mr. Craft O’Neal Chairman & CEO, O’Neal Industries
  • Mr. Ruffner Page President & COO, O’Neal Industries
  • Mr. Richard Pizitz President, Pizitz Management Group
  • Mr. James M. Proctor, II SVP, Legal & External Affairs, McWane, Inc.
  • Mr. Guin Robinson Dean of Economic Development, Jefferson State Community College
  • Mr. R. Lee Smith, Jr. Alabama Chairman, Smart Bank
  • Mr. William E. Smith, Jr. Chairman, Royal Cup, Inc.
  • Mr. Jim Sokol Chairman of Board, Take-a-Jew-to-Lunch-Foundation
  • Ms. Joyce Shevin* Director of Community Relations, Birmingham Jewish Federation
  • Mr. Tom Shufflebarger President & CEO, Children’s of Alabama
  • Mr. Larry D. Thornton President, Thornton Enterprises
  • Mr. John Turner CEO, Regions Financial Corporation
  • Mr. Tim Vines President & CEO, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Alabama
  • Mr. Wm. Michael Warren, Jr. Retired, President & CEO, Children’s of Alabama
  • Ray L. Watts, M.D. President, University of Alabama at Birmingham
  • Ralph Williams, Jr. Vice President, Birmingham Division, Alabama Power Company
  • Mr. Nick Willis* Regional President, PNC Bank
  • Hon. Randall Woodfin Mayor, City of Birmingham
  • Ms. Odessa Woolfolk* Retired, UAB;, Founder, Birmingham Civil Rights Institute
  • Ms. Cathy S. Wright* Retired, Founding Partner, The Clarus Consulting Group
  • Mr. Alan Zeigler* Retired, Partner, Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP

EMERITUS

  • Mr. Drayton Nabers, Jr. Retired, Director, Center for Ethics and Leadership, Samford University
  • Mr. William J. Rushton, III Chairman Emeritus, Protective Life Corporation