Trial Lawyers name Welborn to state committee

Friday, November 1, 2019, Vol. 43, No. 44

Butler Snow attorney Joseph F. Welborn III has been named to the American College of Trial Lawyers’ Tennessee State Committee.

Welborn has more than 28 years of trial experience in business and commercial litigation including shareholder, corporate merger and acquisition, banking, contractual, real estate, intellectual property and business tort disputes. He also is experienced in representing individuals and businesses in civil rights litigation, as well as catastrophic personal injury and wrongful death cases.

Welborn was named a fellow of the ACTL earlier this year. He is also a fellow of the American and Nashville Bar Foundations and a member of the American, Tennessee and Nashville Bar Associations, the American Board of Trial Advocates and the American and Tennessee Associations for Justice.

He is a graduate of Rhodes College and earned his juris doctor from the University of Tennessee.

Allen takes seat on Chairman’s Council

Wealth Strategies Partners founder, Paul Allen has been named a member of the Raymond James Financial Services’ 2020 Chairman’s Council, a distinction given only to those financial advisers who have demonstrated commitment to personal service and lead the largest revenue-producing branches.

Allen founded Wealth Strategies Partners in 2014 to provide financial planning services to retirees, entrepreneurs, business owners and executives.

Allen was named a 2018 Best-in-State Wealth Advisor by Forbes.

Local Realtors appointed to national committees

Eleven Greater Nashville Realtors and three staff members have been appointed to National Association of Realtors committees for the 2020 year. These 14 individuals will serve a one-year term starting Dec. 1.

NAR appointments are:

• Neal Clayton, Engel & Volkers Nashville: Multiple Listing Issues and Policies Committee

• Brad Copeland, Doorbell Real Estate LLC: Professional Development Committee. Immediate past chair; NAR board of directors, state allocated director; Consumer Advocacy Outreach Advisory Board; State and Local Issues Mobilization Support Committee

• Tara DeSelms, DeSelms Real Estate: Research Committee, Member: At-Large

• Kristy Hairston, Parks: Meeting and Conference Committee, immediate past chair; NAR board of directors, large board representative

• Steve Jolly, Benchmark Realty LLC: Business Issues Policy Committee; Federal Technology Policy Committee; NAR board of directors

• Sher Powers, Urbane Residential Specialists: Local Leadership Idea Exchange Council; NAR board of directors, state allocated director

• Jarron Springer, Greater Nashville Realtors: Association Executives Committee

• Hagan Stone, Parks: NAR board of directors, state president; Commitment to Excellence Committee, immediate past chair; Professional Standards Committee

• Emily Ting, Greater Nashville Realtors: Membership Communications Committee

• Scott Troxel, Keller Williams Realty: Land Use Property Rights and Environment Committee

• Mitch Turner, Greater Nashville Realtors: Consumer Communication Committee

• Kevin Wilson, Pilkerton Realtors: Risk Management Issues Committee

• Waddell Wright, W. Wright Companies: Diversity Committee

Keel is new dean of MTSU media, entertainment

Beverly Keel, chair of MTSU’s top-ranked Department of Recording Industry, has been selected as the College of Media and Entertainment’s new dean.

Keel, who earned her bachelor’s degree from MTSU in 1988, joined the recording industry faculty in 1995 and was named chair of the department in 2013.

She succeeds former USA Today editor-in-chief Ken Paulson, who returned to the faculty earlier this year to serve as director of MTSU’s newly created Free Speech Center.

Keel, who will be the first female dean in the college’s history, joined forces with Tracy Gershon and Leslie Fram in 2014 to create Change the Conversation, a coalition designed to help fight gender inequality in country music.

During her tenure at MTSU, she also served as director of the John Seigenthaler Chair of Excellence in First Amendment Studies and as president of the International Association for the Study of Popular Music-US.

In 2010, Keel took a leave of absence from MTSU to serve as senior vice president of media and artist relations for Universal Music Group Nashville.

A graduate of Leadership Music, Leadership Nashville and Leadership Middle Tennessee, she serves as a board member of The Recording Academy, which stages the Grammys; Music Makes Us; Owl’s Hill Nature Sanctuary; the W.O. Smith Music School; and The Women’s Fund.

She is a past member of the Nashville Mayor’s Music Council, a past board member of the Tennessee Performing Arts Center, an editorial board member of the Journal of Popular Music Studies and a member of the International Women’s Forum.

A Nashville native, she earned her master’s degree from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

Southwestern hires chief business development officer

Bill Hampton has joined Southwestern Family of Companies as chief business development officer. He will work alongside the leaders of the company’s new and developing businesses to create and deploy growth and profitability strategies.

The Southwestern Family of Companies added 11 businesses last year.

Before joining Southwestern, Hampton was president and CEO of Woodtex and Riverwood Cabins, a manufacturer of portable storage buildings and modular log cabins. He also was the owner of Hampton Strategies, a business consulting firm.

During a 13-year tenure, Hampton held various leadership roles with the Dave Ramsey organization, including executive vice president and chief marketing officer. He is a graduate of Liberty University.

Gwin gets second term on Consumer Advisory Board

Pathway Lending President & CEO Clint Gwin will serve a second one-year term as a member of the Consumer Advisory Board for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

During Gwin’s 16-year tenure, Pathway has dramatically expanded its footprint, impact and capacity, growing total assets to $155 million and loans originated to $44.7 million from $3 million in total assets and $3.4 million in loans originated in 2003.

Gwin serves on the U.S. Treasury Department’s Community Development Advisory Board, chairs the Board of Appalachian Community Capital and has served on the Federal Reserve Board’s Consumer Advisory Council. He began his career with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

Harpeth Search hires senior executive search consultant

Harpeth Search LLC recently hired Chris Dawson as senior executive search consultant. Dawson joins the boutique professional recruitment firm bringing more than 10 years of experience in executive professional search in the greater Nashville area.

Dawson was named Agency Recruiter of the Year in 2013 by the Nashville Talent Acquisition Networking Source. Dawson graduated from the University of Mississippi with a degree in finance.

FBMM promotes two to senior account assistant

FBMM, an entertainment business management firm, has promoted Tripp King and Rhea Santos to senior account assistants.

King joined FBMM in February 2018 with nearly four years of experience in project management. Before joining FBMM, King worked as the community development manager for Pilgrimage Music & Cultural Festival, where he served as a direct contact for key Williamson County stakeholders, implemented an enhanced VIP festival experience and oversaw various on-site activations.

King graduated from Louisiana Tech University in May 2013 with a degree in sustainable supply chain management.

Santos began working for FBMM in August 2016 after working as a music intern for Creative Artists Agency in Nashville. She also interned for Degy Entertainment and Santander Arena and Performing Arts Center in Reading, Pennsylvania.

Santos graduated from Albright College in 2016 with a degree in music industry studies.