George Foresman has over three decades of leadership experience in government and business. While serving as Virginia’s homeland security secretary, Foresman was confirmed by the U.S. Senate to serve as undersecretary at the Department of Homeland Security.

Melissa Thomas-Hunt is a professor of public policy at the Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy and the John Forbes Distinguished Professor of Business Administration at the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia. Thomas-Hunt focuses on leadership, team dynamics, and negotiations and her research studies the factors that unleash, leverage, and amplify the contributions made by individuals, particularly women, underrepresented individuals, and numerical minorities. 

Lyangela Gutierrez is a postdoctoral research associate at the Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy. Gutierrez researches diversity, equity, and inclusion in organizations by identifying and addressing factors that impact racial and gender equity in organizations.

As of Fall 2023, Gerald Higginbotham is an assistant professor of public policy at the Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy at the University of Virginia. Utilizing social and cultural psychological insights, Higginbotham researches the imprint of history on people’s modern social perceptions and policy attitudes, and the psychological underpinnings of how people perceive history and its consequences. 

Malcolm Stewart is a 2018 graduate of the Batten BA program, a current MBA student UVA’s Darden School of Business, and a former Product Manager for Makena Capital Management in Menlo Park, California.

Michele Claibourn is an assistant professor of public policy at the Batten School and Director of Equitable Analysis for The Equity Center at UVA.  Claibourn leads the Center’s community-engaged data science work in support of a more equitable and just region. She has directed or supervised multiple community-based research projects in the Charlottesville community, including racial equity studies for the City of Charlottesville, Albemarle County, and the Thomas Jefferson Area Coalition for the Homeless.

Emily Barksdale is a 2021 MPP graduate, justice advocate, and former educator who currently resides in Richmond, Virginia. A native West Virginian, Barksdale spent 7 years teaching middle school in Dallas, TX after graduating with high honors from Furman University in 2012. She began working as a Budget and Policy Analyst for the Virginia Department of Planning and Budget in fall 2021. In her free time, she enjoys reading, traveling, karaoke, and spending time outside.

Brendan Boler is an assistant professor of public policy at the Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy. Boler specializes in management consulting, high-performance coaching, and talent assessment and selection. He has extensive experience within the fields of management consulting and banking, having worked at Accenture, Goldman Sachs, and Morgan Stanley. 

Kimberly Jenkins Robinson is a professor of law, education and public policy at the Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy. Robinson is a national expert who speaks domestically and internationally about educational equity, equal educational opportunity, civil rights and the federal role in education. Her work proposes innovative legal and policy solutions to ensure that all children receive equal access to an excellent education.

Sarah Alexander is the Energy and Coastal Policy Advisor to Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D. of Louisiana. Previously, Sarah served as a Professional Staff Member for the House Energy and Commerce Committee supporting the Environment, Manufacturing, and Critical Materials Subcommittee and the Energy, Climate, and Grid Security Subcommittee. Prior to the Hill, Sarah worked as a Director at Mindset, a bipartisan advocacy and advisory firm in Washington, DC. Sarah joined the BAAB in 2021 to reengage with the Batten School and strengthen the connection between Batten alumni and current Batten students. She strongly believes in the importance of career support, alumni networking, and philanthropic endeavors and is thrilled to serve as Vice Chair this year. Sarah graduated from UVA in 2019 with a BA in Public Policy and Leadership from Batten and a minor in French. While at UVA, Sarah danced as a professional trainee with the Charlottesville Ballet, and she still takes ballet classes several days per week with the Washington Ballet.