Mayor Dorothy Hubbard recipient of Leadership Albany Ed Freeman Award

ALBANY — Mayor Dorothy Hubbard was the recipient of the Ed Freeman Leadership Award, which was presented Thursday night at Leadership Albany’s annual graduation ceremony.

The class of 2015-16 included 21 members, who were recognized at the ceremony conducted at the Kirkland Conference Center at Albany Technical College.

The Freeman Award is presented annually to recognize a program graduate who has made significant contributions to the betterment of the community.

Established in 1984, Leadership Albany was created to identify and develop leaders in the Albany area by exposing them to community issues confronting the community, informing them about institutions in the community and providing a forum for the class participants to get acquainted with each other. Now in its 31st year, hundreds of graduates of the program have gone on to serve the community in capacities including government, business and volunteering.

The 2015-16 graduating class included:

— Tina Battle, Georgia Legal Services;

— Karen Baynes-Dunning, attorney/consultant;

— Jeff Cooley, Marine Corps Logistics Command;

— Michele Coney, Mars Chocolate;

— Tonya Curles, Darton State College;

— Hal Gobin, Marine Corps Logistics Command;

— Dominique Hall, Dougherty County Board of Commissioners;

— Reedi Hawkins, Albany Dougherty Economic Development Commission;

— Jay Montgomery, Prime Tech International;

— Charlice Noble-Jones, Dougherty County School System;

— Damali Orozco, Procter & Gamble;

— Jeretha Peters, SunTrust Bank;

— William Peterson, Phoebe Putney;

— Matt Reed, Georgia CEO;

— Steven Ramey, Albany Area Primary Healthcare;

— Heidi Roe, Marine Corps Logistics Command;

— Izzie Sadler, SOWEGA Council on Aging;

— Daniel Stone, SB&T/Synovus;

— Geoffrey Sudderth, Deerfield Windsor School;

— Jacquelyn Teemer, city of Albany;

— Nicole Williams, Albany Area Arts Council.

Thursday night’s program also focused on three programs that were outgrowths of Leadership Albany and its program graduates.

Generations Success, which was active 1996-2005, was designed to mirror the Leadership Albany program and expose high school students in metro Albany and Mitchell and Calhoun counties to regional leaders. This year marks the 20th anniversary of the creation of Generations, which featured well-organized activities that exposed the participants to the inner workings of government, industry, the education systems and the criminal justice system. According to its bylaws, Generation Success’s goal is “to invest in the future of our communities by providing opportunities for area youth to enhance their personal leadership skills, foster interactive group participation and facilitate the creation of viable solutions to community problems.”

Thursday’s event also celebrated two other Leadership Albany alumni-inspired programs – Keep Albany-Dougherty Beautiful, which was founded in 1987, and the Dougherty Leadership Development Institute, started in 1991.