I’ve split these references into two groups. The first are the people closest to my work at Rocky Mount: two board members who oversaw it and a staff member who reported to me. They can tell you how I run a historic site. The second are colleagues from across Tennessee, in heritage, state government, higher education, and county government. Each knows a different part of what I do, and I’ve noted what each can tell you about.
Operational & Institutional References
People who oversaw or worked under my leadership at Rocky Mount.
Don Davis
Past President and Current Treasurer, Rocky Mount Board of Directors · Retired IBM Executive (40+ years)
423-943-2392 · donfdavis@aol.com
Professional relationship: Mr. Davis spent more than 40 years at IBM before retiring. He has been the longest-serving board president during my time as Executive Director, and he’s still on the board as Treasurer. He knows how I plan, how I build programs, and how I handle problems. He brings a corporate executive’s eye to the question of whether the organization actually got stronger on my watch.
Can speak to: Strategic planning, executive performance under real board governance, financial management, and whether the organization grew under my leadership.
Barbara Brown Street
Commissioner, Douglas Henry State Museum Commission · Board Member, Rocky Mount Historical Association · VP of Community Relations, JA Street & Associates
423-418-3375 · barbstreet@jastreet.com
Professional relationship: Mrs. Street sits on both the Douglas Henry State Museum Commission and the Rocky Mount board. One gives her the state governance view, the other gives her the day-to-day view. She has also worked alongside me on fundraising events, most recently a Betsy Ross Sip & Sew Tea Party that put over 90 paying guests in the auditorium at $40 a seat. She has seen me do the creative work, do the logistics, and show up as a worker, not just a director.
Can speak to: Running a site under board oversight, state museum commission governance, my creativity and ability to produce revenue-generating programs, and whether I’m willing to roll up my sleeves and do the work myself.
Kiefer Parker
Special Education Teacher, Sullivan County Schools · B.S. and M.A. in Teaching, ETSU · Former Caretaker, Rocky Mount State Historic Site
423-494-3659 · [Email]
Professional relationship: Mr. Parker reported to me as the site’s caretaker. He worked the front lines of daily operations, so he can tell you what I’m like as a manager and what kind of workplace I run, from the staff side rather than the board side.
Can speak to: What I’m like to work for: how I manage, how I treat staff, and how the site runs on an ordinary day.
Professional & Statewide References
Colleagues across Tennessee heritage, state government, higher education, and county government.
Ashley Howell
Executive Director, Tennessee State Museum (2017–present) · Former Deputy Director, Frist Center for the Visual Arts · MBA, Boston University
615-741-2460 · Ashley.Howell@tn.gov
Professional relationship: Ms. Howell has known me since I started at Rocky Mount. She made a site visit early on to help me with our educational programming and connected me with the State Museum’s education coordinator so we could build that side of our operation. We hosted the Douglas Henry State Museum Commission board meeting at the site, and during that visit I gave tours to commission members including Bo Watson and other legislative figures. I recently visited Nashville for the opening of the State Museum’s America 250 exhibit. She knows how I work, how I’ve grown into the role, and what a THC partnership with the State Museum could look like.
Can speak to: Whether I’m ready for a state-level role, how I’ve developed as an executive since day one, how I work with partner agencies, and where the THC and the State Museum could coordinate on America 250.
Nancy Baker DeFriece
Commissioner, Douglas Henry State Museum Commission · Former Chair, Tennessee Arts Commission · President, The Landmark Realty (Bristol, TN) · Massengill-DeFriece Foundation
423-360-8719 · ndefriece@btes.tv
Professional relationship: Mrs. DeFriece knows Rocky Mount through the Massengill-DeFriece Foundation, which has supported the site for years. She also chaired the Tennessee Arts Commission, so she has run a state cultural agency from the chair and knows what the job demands of an executive.
Can speak to: What leading a state cultural agency actually takes, how foundations and sites work together, and cultural leadership in East Tennessee.
Sen. Jon Lundberg (fmr.)
Former Tennessee State Senator, District 4 (2016–2024) · Former Deputy Speaker of the Senate · Former Vice President, Rocky Mount Board of Directors · Retired Captain, U.S. Navy Reserve
423-677-7988 · jon@corporatepr.com
Professional relationship: Senator Lundberg was vice president of the Rocky Mount board while I was Executive Director. He helped us win a grant increase and additional appropriations, and he backed the Tennessee specialty license plate for the site. He has watched me carry a funding request through the General Assembly.
Can speak to: Working the legislature for heritage funding, moving things through state government, and what the site gained while he served on the board.
Dr. Carroll Van West
Tennessee State Historian (Governor-appointed, 2013–present) · Director, MTSU Center for Historic Preservation · Ex Officio Member, Tennessee Historical Commission · Editor-in-Chief, Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture
615-210-0953 · carroll.west@mtsu.edu
Professional relationship: Dr. Van West and his graduate students prepared a cultural heritage report for Rocky Mount that strengthened how we interpret the site. He’s seen how I work with scholars and how I bring community input into interpretation at a National Historic Landmark.
Can speak to: Preservation scholarship and interpretive standards, the statewide heritage landscape he’s documented for 40 years, and how the “95 to 1” county project builds on the fieldwork his Center already does.
Randall Blevins
Former Dean and President, Virginia Business College · Former Academic Supervisor
423-335-4046 · rcblevins46@hotmail.com
Professional relationship: Dr. Blevins was my dean and direct supervisor. He watched me grow as a teacher and a marketing professional, and as someone who has led a college himself, he can judge whether I’m ready to lead an institution.
Can speak to: How I’ve grown over the years, how I teach, and my character and work ethic, from someone who supervised me directly and has run an institution himself.
Joyce Crosswhite
Chairman, Sullivan County America 250 Celebration Committee · Sullivan County Commissioner, District 4 (2018–present) · Seven years, Budget Committee
423-502-9071 · joyce.crosswhite@sullivancountytn.gov
Professional relationship: Commissioner Crosswhite and I put together the Sullivan 250 kickoff weekend at Rocky Mount in April 2026. That event brought four county mayors to the same table and launched the “Common Ground” initiative. She chairs the county’s America 250 committee, so she has watched me pull a commemoration together and get officials to show up.
Can speak to: America 250 at the county level, getting elected officials and civic leaders to the table, and running events that actually come off.
These nine cover the full range, from the people who oversaw my work at Rocky Mount day to day to colleagues across Tennessee’s heritage, government, academic, and civic circles. I’m glad to provide more if it would help.