Category: Past Speakers

Anitra Belle Henderson joined SCHOOLS, an ed tech test prep company, in August 2022 as CEO. Henderson also collaborated with the founder of SCHOOLS to form Lyvve Strategies, a firm focusing on marketing and community mobilization initiatives using digital strategies.

Prior to her new roles, Henderson served as the Executive Director of Communications and External Affairs for the City of Mobile. She served in three terms of Mayor Sandy Stimpson’s administration focusing on community affairs, federal and state government affairs, economic development and communications. She has provided workforce opportunities for more than 4,000 youth and led the formation of Alabama Big 10 Mayors Association. She received her B.A. from the University of South Alabama. Henderson is committed to her community by serving on various boards and committees including Distinguished Young Women, Junior League, Jack and Jill of America, Girl Scouts, Ascension Providence Foundation, the Social Justice Committee at USA and the Alabama Committee on Credentialing and Career Pathways by Governor Kay Ivey. Henderson is a graduate of Leadership Mobile and the Alabama Leadership Initiative.

 

William T. Ratliff, III
Biography
Will Ratliff recently stepped down after serving 34 years as CEO of Collateral
Holdings, a company founded by his grandfather. He passed the CEO role to his nephew,
Jonathan Ratliff. Collateral’s businesses are in employee benefits, insurance services, and
commercial real estate.
Will attended Amherst College, earned a doctorate in Applied Behavioral Science at
UMass Amherst, and worked as a teacher, counselor, and school director before joining
Collateral. He has been active in many community organizations, including YouthServe,
which he helped found; Rotary Club of Birmingham; the National Conference for Community
and Justice; St. Mary’s Sewanee; Good News Children Education Mission in Kolkata, India;
the Society of International Business Fellows; and A+ Education Partnership. Civic activities
take up an ever-increasing share of his time. He is chair of an International Peace
Conference taking place in Birmingham in 2023 initiated by Rotary.
Will and his wife, Carolyn, are members of St. Luke’s Episcopal Church and have
three grown children. His son Tom is married to the former Melody Gillezeau of Trinidad,
whom he met while they were both working in Costa Rica. Tom also works at Collateral. His
daughter Cassie lives and works in Atlanta. His daughter Lillie lives and works in New York
and recently married Sam Breslow.

Gia Wiggins is a career Human Resources Professional. A native of Mobile AL, she received a BA in Psychology and Sociology from Grambling State University. After working as a Human Resources Manager for 16 years, she completed her MBA from California State University. She received a Ph.D of Business Administration at the University of South Alabama with a concentration in Management. She currently serves as an Adjunct Instructor with the University of South Alabama and the University of Mobile teaching Human Resources Management, Intro to Business, and Business Communications. She also holds (SPHR) Senior Professional Human Resources and (SHRM-SCP) Society of Human Resources Management – Senior Certified Professional certifications.

Gia has held executive human resource management roles in companies such as AT&T (formerly Southwestern Bell), Sears, Target Corp, Cintas Corp, and BAE Systems Southeast Shipyards. Gia serves on the Board of Directors and Leaders Council with the Eastern Shore Chamber and Board of Advisors with the Mobile Area Chamber of Commerce. She considers her biggest accomplishment to be a happy and healthy family, (husband Bart and three kids Mallorie, Trey, and Kenley).

In 2015, Gia founded Morale Resource LLC, a human resources consulting firm that places special emphasis on developing employee engagement programs and activities. One customer at a time, Morale Resource LLC helps businesses take care of their most important asset, its people.

Kane Wommack was named the head football coach at the University of South Alabama on Dec. 12, 2020. At 34 years old, he became the third head coach since the inception of South’s program and the youngest of any head coach at the FBS level. Kane and his wife Melissa returned to Mobile after his first stint as the Jaguars’ defensive coordinator in 2016 and ’17. He came back to South after spending three years as linebackers coach at Indiana including serving as the Hoosiers’ defensive coordinator his final two seasons, where he was named a finalist for the award given to the top NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision assistant coach last season: the Broyles Award.

 

In just his second season as the Head Coach at South Alabama, Wommack has led the Jaguars to their winningest season as an FBS program and their 3rd bowl game berth in program history, with two regular season games left to play!

 

Kane and his wife Melissa have three sons, Asher, Tatum, and Jones and they are all thrilled to be back in Mobile, the city they call home!

 

Please welcome the Head Football Coach of your South Alabama Jaguars, Kane Wommack!

With two decades of on-the-ground work in a wide variety of organizations, Todd Greer joined the Innovation Portal team with a background as an experienced startup advisor, educator, community builder, facilitator, and leadership development consultant.

 

Prior to serving as the Executive Director of Innovation Portal, Greer served in multiple capacities at the University of Mobile, first as Dean of the School of Business, then Vice Provost, and finally as Vice President for Academic Affairs.

 

Todd holds a Ph.D. in organizational leadership with a major in human resource development from Regent University.

 

A passionate community servant, Todd has served as an instructor, volunteer, or board member for many Mobile-area organizations including the Minority Business Accelerator, I-Corps, the Mobile Area Chamber of Commerce’s Young Entrepreneurs Academy, the United Way of Southwest Alabama, Innovation Portal, and Mobile United and currently serves on the boards of Real Advice Mentoring Program (RAMP), Springboard to Success Inc., Melton Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation at USA, and ForMidtown.

 

A native of Southeast Michigan, Todd and his family have called Mobile home since 2014.

Stephanie Dragotta, P.E. , Project Manager

Alabama Department of Transportation

 

Stephanie Dragotta is a professional civil engineer for the Alabama Department of Transportation (ALDOT). She has been with ALDOT for 13 years during which time she has held a variety of positions in the Pre-Construction section such as project estimating, environmental review, plan review, and local transportation coordination. For the past 4 years she has been serving as a project manager for the Mobile River Bridge and Bayway Project.

 

A graduate of Mary G. Montgomery High School, Stephanie attended the University of South Alabama where she obtained her bachelor’s degree in civil engineering in 2009. In 2013 she obtained her license for professional engineering in the State of Alabama. During her time as a student she was awarded with the National Association of Women in Construction Scholarship. She is married to Phillip Dragotta who also graduated from the University of South Alabama with his bachelor’s in radiologic science. Stephanie resides in Grandbay, AL and is the proud mother of a 7 year old daughter, Abigail, and a 5 year old son, Asher, and enjoys her time practicing T-ball and gymnastics with them.