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	Joe A. Sumners, Ph.D. Director
		Joe A. Sumners was appointed as Director of ECDI on June 1, 2006.  Prior to this appoint-ment, Dr. Sumners served as Director of the Economic Development Institute for four years and as Associate Director of EDI for two years. Before joining EDI, he served as Training and Research Coordinator for AU's Center for Governmental Services.  He has also served on the political science faculties of the University of Alabama at Birmingham and Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, Texas and worked as a county health inspector and a high school teacher and coach. As a widely-published scholar and speaker, Dr. Sumners' research interests include Alabama government, leadership, rural development, and strategic planning.
	He has also conducted over 200 workshops and courses for Alabama county and municipal officials. He is an experienced consultant with 20 years of experience providing technical assistance in strategic planning and community and economic development to Alabama cities and counties. Dr. Sumners is serving as a technical advisor to Governor Bob Riley’s Black Belt Action Commission and Alabama Rural Action Commission.  He is also a member of “Rural Alabama’s Committee of 100”, an advisory council to The Center for Rural Alabama (a division of the Alabama Department of Agriculture and Industries).  He serves on the Alabama Development Office (ADO) Community and Rural Development Advisory Board.  He is a member of the Board of Directors of Alabama Communities of Excellence (ACE), currently serving as president.  In addition, he is a member of the International Economic Development Council, the Southern Growth Policies Board, the Southern Economic Development Council, the Economic Development Association of Alabama, and the Society for the Advancement of Management. Dr. Sumners is a native of Harpersville, Alabama. He received his BS and MA degrees from Auburn University and his Ph.D. from the University of Georgia. He is married to Lynn Sumners and has two children, Lacey Updegraff (age 27) and Tucker Sumners (age 14), and one granddaughter, Ella Clare Updegraff (age 2). CLICK HERE for a one-page biographical sketch of Dr. Sumners.
	J. Thomas ("Tom") Chesnutt, Ed.D. Tourism Specialist
		Since 1990, Tom Chesnutt has served on the faculty of Auburn University and in Extension's Community Resource Development section. When Extension CRD merged with EDI in June 2006, Tom became part of the new ECDI staff. Tom has thirty years of teaching and practical experience in tourism and leisure services.  As a Tourism Specialist, a few of his programs include the Alabama Agri-Tourism Trail, Alabama-Mississippi Rural Tourism Conference, Alabama Retiree Relocation Conference, and Outdoor Alabama Partnership. In his current role, Tom provides community and state decision-makers with information and
	direction on tourism as an economic development strategy. He serves on the Advisory Board of the Alabama Bureau of Tourism and Travel, on the board of the Alabama Tourism Partnership, on the board of the North Alabama Agri-Plex, on the Alabama Scenic Byways Advisory Council, and on the Tourism and Marketing Committee of the Governor’s Black Belt Action Commission. In addition, Tom chairs Extension’s Rural Economic and Community Development Program Priority Team and serves as Editor of Extension’s quarterly ACTION Newsletter.
	R. Michael ("Mike") Easterwood Senior Outreach Associate
		Mike Easterwood serves in the capacity of project management specialist at ECDI, where he has worked since 1994. In this position, he administers the Rural Alabama Initiative and Extension Resource Conservation and Develop-ment grant programs and is responsible for securing extramural funding for ECDI. Mike has held numerous responsibilities during his tenure at ECDI, including: working with communities to develop strategic plans for economic development, leading community training sessions in writing and developing grant proposals, conducting economic development research, and coordinating the graduate minor in Economic Development. He has also played
	an active role in supporting the Alabama Communities of Excellence program, which awarded him with the Outstanding Volunteer Award in 2009. Prior to working for ECDI, Mike served as Development Director with AU's Center for Governmental Services from 1985 to 1994. He served as a Research Specialist with the Bureau of Governmental Research and Service at the University of South Carolina from 1981 to 1985. In addition, he was Development Director with the East Alabama Regional Planning and Development Commission in Anniston from 1971 to 1981. Mike was born in Tallapoosa County. He received his BA degree from Auburn University in 1971 and earned graduate degrees from Jacksonville State University (MPA) and the University of Alabama in Birmingham (MA/Urban Studies). He and his wife, the former Patsy Wilbanks from Goodwater, Alabama have two daughters, Casey and Kristen.
	Allyson Hahn Martin Economic and Community Development Training Specialist
		Allyson Hahn Martin joined the ECDI staff in March 2008, where she is responsible for the Intensive Economic Development Training Course, Alabama Prosperity Forum, and other education and training activities. In addition, Allyson facilitates the I-85 Corridor Alliance on behalf of ECDI. Prior to joining ECDI, Allyson was responsible for providing economic and community development assistance to communities across the state on behalf of Georgia EMC's 42 Electric Membership Corporations. Allyson, who joined the Community and Economic Development group in July 2003, served as the regional contact for Georgia's 59 northern counties. Her responsi-
	bilities included leading and facilitating: adult and youth leadership programs, team building, motivational training, economic development board retreats, and community strategic planning sessions. She began her career with TEKsystems, an information technology and telecom-munications recruitment company, in 2000. She joined the Economic Development field in 2002, when she became a community development specialist for the City of Auburn. Allyson has served as: a member of the Georgia Academy for Economic Development Curriculum Committee; Chair of the Community Developers Forum of the Georgia Economic Development Association (GEDA); and Membership Committee Chair for GEDA, National Rural Economic Development Association, Georgia Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives, and Southern Economic Development Council . A native of Auburn, Allyson is a graduate of Auburn University, where she received a Bachelor of Arts in International Trade and German.  She also received her Masters of Public Administration with a graduate minor in Economic Development from Auburn University in May 2003. Allyson and her husband, Tim, have a son, Wynnton (age 3), and a daughter, Tammyn (8 mos. old).
	Arturo S. ("Artie") Menefee, Ph.D. Leadership Development Specialist
		Artie Menefee has served as ECDI's Leadership Development Specialist since January 2007 and has worked with Extension since June 2002. In 2008, he authored ECDI's leadership curriculum, Engaged Leaders: Better Communities. He is former Chair of the Alabama Communities of Excellence Associates Council and won the 2008 ACE Outstanding Volunteer Award. Artie is former President of the Greater Peace Community Development Corporation and a board member of the Alabama Rural Health Association. In addition, he has served on Governor Riley's Task Force to Strengthen Alabama Families and has worked with Congressman Artur Davis and his staff to help develop Alabama’s Black Belt communities.
	Artie has worked closely with state and local administrators to coordinate a variety of community programs, including: the Alabama Southern Rural Access Program, the Medical Reserve Corps, the East Alabama Regional Solid Waste Disposal Authority, the State Data Center Affiliate Program, the Lee County Public Transit System, as well as other regional projects.  He played an integral role in the establishment of an entrepreneurship-training program to assist non-custodial fathers in Lee County, and he continues to empower local citizens by conducting capacity building programs for the betterment of community residents. He received his Masters of Public Administration with a graduate minor in Economic Development (2002) and his Ph.D. in Public Policy and Administration (2009) from Auburn University.
	Markie Gardner Southerland Administrative Associate
		Markie Gardner Southerland is responsible for overseeing ECDI's administrative and financial activities. In this position, she provides support for the ECDI staff, making their jobs possible. She began working at Auburn University in 1982 and has worked in Liberal Arts, Engineering, Education and Outreach. By working in a variety of disciplines and units across campus, Markie has gained a greater understanding and appreciation of the three purposes for which AU was founded: Instruction, Research and Extension. She has also worked at Columbus State University, the Hughston Orthopedic Clinic and Synovus Financial Corporation, giving her experience in education, medical and corporate settings.
	Markie attended Columbus State University, majoring in English. She is married to Bobby Southerland.
	Amelia Hall Stehouwer Research and Communications Specialist
		Amelia Hall Stehouwer is responsible for ECDI's research and communication activities and its graduate minor in Economic Development. She also serves as Assistant to the Director. Since joining the ECDI staff in August 2004, she has served as Graduate Research Assistant, Outreach Assistant, Training and Research Coordinator, and Research and Communications Specialist. In these positions, Amelia has: coordinated and acquired funding for community outreach projects (2004-2007); revised and managed the Intensive Economic Development Training Course (2005-2007); designed and managed the Alabama Prosperity Forum (2006-2008); conducted economic and community development research (2004-present); written
	and designed ECDI publications and articles (2004-present); administered the first 47 Rural Alabama Initiative grants (2007); facilitated roundtables and deliberative forums; managed ECDI's communications and marketing efforts; and supported the creation and development of strategic partnerships between ECDI and members of the economic and community development and AU communities. Before working with ECDI, she worked as volunteer coordinator, grantwriter and office manager for Lee County Alabama Habitat for Humanity, where she currently serves on the Board of Directors, from February 2003 to August 2004 and completed undergrad-uate internships with the Alabama Poverty Project and Greater Birmingham Ministries. She is a member of numerous professional associations and seven academic honor societies. Her ongoing research interests include poverty, development, and prosperity in Alabama and the US South - and the economy, politics, and development of the Southern Black Belt. Amelia graduated with high honors from Samford University in 2002 with a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology (and a minor in Christianity, Women and Leadership Studies) and Auburn University in 2006 with a Masters of Public Administration (and graduate minor in Economic Development). She and her husband, Seth, live in Opelika, her hometown.