HT Welcomes New Board Members
This January, HT welcomed seven new board members to its all-volunteer leadership team. With these additions, the HT board now has representatives from every planning and economic development district in Tennessee.
“We have worked hard to ensure that the Humanities Tennessee board fully represents all areas of the state. With this new class of board members, we have achieved that goal for 2024. This is an evergreen effort, of course, and we’ll continue to seek community leaders interested in serving Tennesseans through public humanities programming,” said Tim Henderson, executive director.
Board members provide governance and fiscal oversight, and strategic guidance for HT, while also serving as community ambassadors for the mission to foster community and civility in Tennessee through public programs that examine and reflect upon ideas, stories, history, arts, and culture. We welcome these leaders and look forward to sharing their involvement in HT’s work over the coming months and years.
Barry Allen has dedicated his non-work, public service life to land conservation, historic preservation, and economic development of Southeastern Tennessee and the South Cumberland Plateau. He has also found himself active in animal rescue. Barry has most recently finished an 8-year stint on the board of the Tennessee River Gorge Trust, finishing his tenure as President in 2019 and 2020. Barry also serves on the board of The Battle of Franklin Trust. Barry is the President & CEO of Tower Community Bank in Jasper, TN where he lives along with his wife, Laura and their two daughters, Gracie and Sophie. He graduated from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville in 1995 and has spent 26 years in the banking industry.
Caroline L. H. Bradshaw joined the Cumberland Trust team in 2007. As Senior Vice President and Managing Director of Trust Administration, Caroline is responsible for relationship management and account administration, with a focus on high-net-worth families and their needs. Additionally, she mentors trust officers and their teams, building connections between Cumberland Trust’s relationship managers, external advisors, and clients. Caroline holds a B.A. in Economics from Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts and serves as a board member of the YWCA of Nashville and Middle Tennessee. She is also an active supporter of Cheekwood and the annual Swan Ball.
Elaine Christian is a native West Tennessean currently residing in Jackson. She grew up in Obion County and has a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Business Administration and an MBA, both from the University of Tennessee at Martin. After graduation, Elaine began her career as an accountant at Porter Cable Corporation in Jackson, now Black & Decker. Her work there led her to a position as Senior Vice President and Director of Finance for the Jackson Area Chamber of Commerce, and later the President and CEO of the Dyersburg Chamber of Commerce. Prior to her retirement in 2004, she was President and CEO of The Work Place, a workforce development and training organization in Memphis. Elaine is also a Certified Public Accountant. Her community leaders includes service to the following organizations: Boy Scouts of American West Tennessee, Jackson Madison Bicentennial Commission, Jackson Madison County Library Foundation and Board of Trustees, among many other.
Angie Jones is the owner of One Woman Show Design in Columbia, TN. Detailed bio coming soon…
Mark Dudney is Public Historian at the Upper Cumberland Development District and coordinates the Cumberland National Scenic Byway. A former adjunct instructor of American History at Tennessee Tech University, Dudney is a frequent speaker at libraries, conferences, and state parks. He presented his lecture “Public History in a Rural Region” to a graduate level Public Humanities class at Georgetown University. Dudney wrote and co-produced the WCTE-PBS tourism special Discover the Upper Cumberland in 2012. That same year he published his book Sons of the Cumberland: The Early Years of Cordell Hull and John Jordan Gore. An abbreviated version of that work appears in People of the Upper Cumberland: Achievements and Contradictions (UT Press), named the Tennessee History Book of the Year for 2015. He earned a dual major in History and Political Science from TTU and a law degree from the Nashville School of Law.
Bonnie Grzeszczak has spent five years working for HCA Healthcare, where she currently serves as the Communications Manager for the diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) department. In her current role, she oversees a broad range of content and communication efforts designed to integrate and tell the HCA Healthcare DEI story. Prior to HCA Healthcare, Bonnie spent 14 years in entertainment communications and publicity, where she honed her talent for curating and sharing inspirational stories working for organizations such as Howard Books/Simon & Schuster and the Miss America Organization. Bonnie earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communication, with a minor in Political Science from Fairleigh Dickinson University. Originally from New Jersey, she has lived in the Nashville area since 2012 and currently resides in Spring Hill with her husband, Ryan, and two children, Lucy and Carson.
Pablo Mazariegos is a Marriage Family Therapist and narrative filmmaker in Chattanooga, TN, producing heartfelt stories that drive meaningful change for Latino and underrepresented communities. When he is not producing films, he is facilitating counseling groups in the schools, and motivating children to reflect on their own story and engage in empathy. His philosophy is that “healing begins when our experience is felt and understood.” He is originally from Guatemala and grew up in Raleigh, NC. Mazariegos is the Founder/Executive Producer of Resilient Story and has previously held the positions of Youth Interventionist for the City of Chattanooga and Director of Family Resource Center for Hamilton County Schools. His board service has included Unidos en Compasion fund at The Generosity Trust, Reflection Riding, Dynamo Studios, and Leadership Hamilton County Schools. He is the recipient of numerous awards, including: 2021 Winner of the Southeastern Film category award at the Lookout Wild Film Festival; 2020 Heroes – La Paz; 2019 Footprint Foundation Award; 2017 Latino Leadership Award Honoree – La Paz; and 2017 Equity In The Arts Grant Winner – ArtsBuild.
Learn More about Humanities Tennessee
Click the images below to learn about HT’s newest initiative, the Shared Futures Lab, and the Chapter16.org featured series “50 Years | 50 Books” in celebration of HT’s 50th anniversary.
