Introducing the Ignite Louisville Class of 2025
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The Leadership Louisville Center has selected the Ignite Louisville Class of 2025, presented by Norton Healthcare. The class, which runs from October 2024 through April 2025, marks the 30th class of this award-winning program. For over 20 years, Ignite Louisville has graduated nearly 1,300 up-and-coming leaders, preparing the region’s next-gen talent to be part of high-performance teams and help our community grow. This year’s class consists of 52 talented professionals from a diverse range of industries and organizations.
“We are thrilled to welcome this exceptional group of individuals to Ignite Louisville,” said Cynthia Knapek, President and CEO of Leadership Louisville Center. “Their passion, dedication, and potential are inspiring, and I’m happy to celebrate the over 45 companies who are investing in their talent today – to support their emerging leaders with tools needed to prepare them for the tough challenges ahead.”
“These leaders are paving the way for an even brighter future for Louisville,” said Russ F. Cox, President and CEO of Norton Healthcare. “We’re excited to support the Leadership Louisville Center’s Ignite Louisville program as Norton Healthcare believes in investing in new leaders to create highly networked, creative, and energized community stakeholders for tomorrow.”
Throughout the 6-month program, participants will develop their leadership skills through exclusive content from the Leadership Louisville Center, LeadingBetter™, and many of the region’s top corporations’ executive teams and internal universities. Ignite Louisville covers a variety of topics including team dynamics, innovation, collaboration, project management, effective communication, personal branding, and more.
Through experiential learning, participants put their knowledge into practice with the Ignite Louisville Leadership Challenge. The class is divided into Community Acceleration Teams that work with local nonprofits to develop and implement solutions for their needs. Since the first class, Ignite Louisville participants have worked on over 170 projects for area nonprofits to plan, execute, and sustain new strategies for success. Additionally, the 30th Ignite Louisville cohort will incorporate the Tommy Elliott Fund Storytelling Program as a component for the nonprofits of the Ignite Louisville Leadership Challenge.
Members of the Ignite Louisville Class of 2025 are:
Jason Antony, Director of Digital Marketing | Long John Silver’s
Alexis Belcher, Director of Treasury Management | South Central Bank
Gregory Butorin, Senior Innovation Engineer | Midea America Research Center
Jon Byrd, Sarbanes-Oxley Compliance Manager | PPL Corporation
Candise Caylao, Of Counsel | Dentons Bingham Greenebaum LLP
Elizabeth Chun, HR Business Partner | Baptist Health
Chase Coleman, Sr. Corporate Development and Investor Relations Analyst | Valvoline Instant Oil Change
Helen Cooper, Staff/Assistant | Dentons Bingham Greenebaum LLP
Nikki Corbett, Associate Director | Dean Dorton
Quinones Corniel, Assistant Regional Director | Cure Violence Global
Kayla Deyer, Wealth Advisor | Bartlett Wealth Management
De’Andra Dooley, Financial Empowerment Counselor | Louisville Urban League
Elizabeth Ethington, Managing Associate | Frost Brown Todd
Kylie Faust, Finance Manager | Schneider Electric
Will Ford, Senior Analyst | Yum! Brands, Inc.
Heather Fountaine, Manager of Media Relations | UofL Health
McKenzie Gary, Owner | TeriGrowth
Tia Gibbs, Manager of Supplier Diversity | Beam Suntory
Ellen Grimshaw, Attorney | DBL Law | Dressman Benzinger LaVelle PSC
Allison Heidrich, Community Engagement Coordinator | Goodwill Industries of Kentucky
Katrina Helmer, Director of Communications | Kentucky Derby Museum
Zach Hudson, System Director, Emergency Dept Operations | Norton Healthcare
Alexander Hunn, Senior Project Manager | Messer Construction Co.
Tamar Israel, Prevention Education Coordinator | Catholic Charities of Louisville, Inc.
Jennifer Jackson, Attorney | Stites & Harbison PLLC
Casie Kichler, Sys Dir Clinical and Advanced Practice, Practice Administration | Norton Healthcare
Crystal King, Associate Attorney | Dinsmore & Shohl LLP
Lance Lucas, Director, Clinical Product Management | Humana Inc.
Nicole McGill, Director of Young Adult Services | Goodwill Industries of Kentucky
Chris Miller, Branch Manager | Malone Workforce Solutions | Malone Staffing
Jamee Murphy, Marketing & Communications Specialist | Park DuValle Community Health Center
Joel Mwambayi, Senior Security Analyst | Edward Jones
Miriam Nally, Senior Director, Events | Greater Louisville Inc. | GLI
Courtney Neumann, Payroll Specialist | Confluent Health
LaDaya Owens, Human Resources Business Partner | Home of the Innocents
Brittany Pape, Director of Child Crisis Services | Seven Counties Services Inc.
Alex Parrish, Operations Administrator | Facilities Management Services, PBC | FMS
Rayshawn Payton-Kilgore, Process/Data Specialist | Brown-Forman Corporation
Margaret Phillips, Grants Manager | Louisville Free Public Library Foundation
Greg Rakers, Program Manager for Sports Medicine and Athletic Training | Baptist Health
Stephen Rossetti, Teacher | Jefferson County Teachers Association
Laura Schaaf, Executive Assistant | Muhammad Ali Center
Dulce Solorio, Senior Manager of Corporate Volunteer Engagement | Metro United Way
Emily Taylor, Foundation Program Manager | Trilogy Health Services LLC
Harsh Upadhyay, Educator/Board Member | Jefferson County Teachers Association
Chelsea Watson, Project Manager | Louisville Metro Government
Dawson West, Content Production Manager | Confluent Health
Hannah Williamson, Internal Communications Specialist | Heaven Hill Brands
Hannah Wilson, Attorney | Stoll Keenon Ogden PLLC
Heather Wright, Executive Assistant to the Mayor | Louisville Metro Government
Aaron Yocum, Manager, IT Audit Services | PPL Corporation
Gus Young, Service Supervisor | Advanced Business Solutions | ABS