Posted: September 21, 2026
NORTHWEST, Fla. – Florida’s Great Northwest (FGNW) Foundation has announced the incoming cohort for Class V of Leadership Northwest Florida. The program is designed to foster regional collaboration and focus on three key pillars of community, content, and connection.
Over seven immersive months, Class V will bring together leaders from across the region to analyze Northwest Florida’s shared opportunities and challenges. The curriculum focuses on five vital growth areas: Business Vitality, Entrepreneurship & Innovation, Infrastructure, Talent, and Quality of Place.
“Leadership Northwest Florida is dedicated to building a pipeline of engaged, empowered leaders,” said Jennifer Conoley, President and CEO of Florida’s Great Northwest & FGNW Foundation. “By driving regional collaboration, we empower these leaders to create long-term positive change across Northwest Florida.”
The following individuals have been selected for Class V of Leadership Northwest Florida:
• Jason Albano, Wharton-Smith, Inc.
• Christie Austin, Community Bank
• Kevin Brown, Northwest Florida State College
• Brian Bullock, Bay District Schools
• Jeff Crigler, Holley Navarre Water System
• Virginia Dailey, Shumaker
• Darrin Gilmore, DSI Security Services
• Kevin Hall, Navy Federal Credit Union
• Allison Hill, LifeView Group, Inc.
• Christopher Huskey, CBRE
• Amanda Marsh, Florida Public Service Commission
• Robert McDaniel, SmartBank
• Clint Mizell, Capital City Bank
• Leslie Moland, Florida Blue
• Benjamin Moorman, Bay Economic Development Alliance
• Stephen Perkins, Warren Averett LLC
• Dr. Joy Powell, Baptist Health Care
• Suzanne Remedies, Florida State University, Panama City
• Melanie Rhodes, Landrum
• Blake Russell, Florida Power & Light
• John Trombetta, Terracon, Inc.
• Lindsey Walk, University of West Florida
• Daniel Williams, Panhandle Area Education Consortium
• Shannon Williams, Leonardo Helicopters US Corp.
• Silvia Williams, Gulf County Board of County Commissioners
• Kevin Yoder, Chipola Area Habitat for Humanity
For Northwest Florida to continue to compete, diversify, and thrive, it will take informed, dedicated leaders who understand the complex and competitive environment of economic transformation. Leadership Northwest Florida is designed to be an educational program offered for professionals in all industry sectors desiring to grow their knowledge base, network, and skill set in the 13-county region of Florida’s Great Northwest footprint. This experience will ultimately result in long-term influence of the leadership graduates for the betterment of Northwest Florida.
The Florida’s Great Northwest Foundation was established to improve the business growth and economic competitiveness of Northwest Florida. In addition to the Leadership Northwest Florida program, the Foundation also supports Northwest Florida FORWARD, a regional strategy for economic transformation. The Foundation operates as a support organization of Florida’s Great Northwest, the regional economic development organization for the 13-county region of Florida’s panhandle. The organization's purpose is to promote Northwest Florida for economic growth and diversification, to advocate for economic development issues that affect the region, and to collaborate to improve regional competitiveness. For more information, visit FloridasGreatNorthwest.com
