West Tennessee Leaders Featured in WestStar Leadership Interviews

Community leaders and local citizens contribute in many ways to West Tennessee life. Learning their ideas about effective leadership is now possible through video interviews conducted by WestStar Leadership Program class members. The ongoing initiative is called the WestStar Legacy Project, and videos are archived for viewing at www.utm.edu/weststarlegacyproject on the University of Tennessee at Martin’s website. Interviewees include current and past elected officials along with business, education and health-care leaders from 19 counties.

Sam Hutson of Crove Media in Paris and a 2023 WestStar graduate produced a WestStar Legacy Project overview video that is linked in the menu and further explains the project’s purpose. All interviews were part of WestStar class projects involving class members from 2011-2013 and 2023-2024.

Among the 125 archived interviews are videos featuring Becky Fly of Jackson, retired Madison County teacher and actress; Bill Latimer of Union City, businessman and philanthropist; General Sessions Judge Tommy Moore of Dresden; Capt. Wendell Wainwright of Somerville, Fayette County Public Schools chairperson; and the late Don Ridgeway of Paris, longtime member of the Tennessee General Assembly.      

Learn more about WestStar at www.utm.edu/weststar or call 731-881-7298.