Shirley Franklin was elected the first African American woman mayor of a major southern city in 2002 and served two terms until 2009. During her eight years as mayor of Atlanta, she is best known for advocating for and tackling major government operations and ethics reform, launching the Atlanta Beltline, and planning and executing over $5 billion in airport and water infrastructure improvements.

She is currently the Barbara Jordan Visiting Professor in Ethics and Political Values at the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas in Austin, a position she has held since 2013. She also serves as the Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chief Executive Officer of Purpose Built Communities and is President of Clarke-Franklin and Associates, Inc. Additionally, she co-chairs the United Way of Metropolitan Atlanta’s Regional Commission on Homelessness and serves on the boards of the United Nations Institute For Training and Research (UNITAR), Mueller Water Products, Delta Air Lines, The Volcker Alliance, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Neighborhood Community Stabilization Fund.