Leadership West Kentucky has announced its fourth class, bringing together 36 participants from across the 15 counties represented by the West Kentucky Regional Chamber Alliance.
The regional leadership development program is designed to strengthen collaboration across county lines by building a network of informed, engaged leaders with a deeper understanding of west Kentucky’s shared challenges and opportunities.
The program focuses on leadership development, regional education, and relationship-building, with the goal of empowering participants to create lasting, positive change throughout the region.
Class members represent a wide range of industries, including banking, healthcare, education, agriculture, utilities, economic development, and local government.
Counties represented in Class 4 include Ballard, Caldwell, Calloway, Carlisle, Christian, Crittenden, Fulton, Graves, Hickman, Hopkins, Livingston, Lyon, Marshall, McCracken, and Trigg.
Leadership West Kentucky Class 4 will take part in six sessions running from January through June 2026.
The program kicked off with an overnight orientation held January 21 and 22 in Paducah.
From February through June, participants will travel to different communities for day-long sessions that spotlight a host county while also addressing regional topics such as transportation, education, economic development, quality of life, advocacy, agriculture, and tourism. Sessions will feature expert speakers, panel discussions, tours, interactive exercises, and group discussions.
Participants will graduate during the final session, scheduled for June 25 in Hopkinsville. TVA serves as the presenting sponsor of Leadership West Kentucky. The program is administered by the Paducah Area Chamber of Commerce on behalf of the West Kentucky Regional Chamber Alliance, in coordination with the Chamber’s Leadership Center.
2026 Leadership West Kentucky Class 4 by County
Representing Multiple Counties
• Sara-Elizabeth Bush, UK HealthCare
• Adam May, TVA • Mattea Mitchell, Purchase Area Development District
• Katie Walker, Kentucky Chamber Foundation Ballard County
• Samantha Hargrove, First Community Bank of the Heartland
• Brock Kirk, Ballard Telephone Cooperative
Caldwell County
• Chloe King, Caldwell County Chamber of Commerce
• Jake Pepper, Planters Bank
Calloway County
• Shannon Waltmon, Kentucky Farm Bureau
• Jeremy York, Syngenta Digital
Carlisle County
• Katina Todd, Kentucky Farm Bureau
Christian County
• Michael Felts, Hopkinsville Police Department
• Kristen Middlebrooks, Elevance Health
• Melissa Spurr, Hopkinsville Water Environment Authority
• Eric White, Atmos Energy
Crittenden County
• Layten Croft, City of Marion
• Whitney Williams, Siemens
Fulton County
• Adam Prehoda, Hickman Electric System
Graves County
• Kacie Daugherty, West Kentucky Community & Technical College
• Kane McCord, Community Financial Services Bank
• Elizabeth Riley, Riley Architect Services, PLLC
Hickman County
• Chuck Murphy, The Citizens Bank
Hopkins County
• Hannah Mallett, Kentucky Center for Agriculture and Rural Development
• Mandy Todd, City of Madisonville
Livingston County
• Garrett Clark, Lake Barkley Partnership
• Braden Locke, Cumberland River Homes
Lyon County
• Zach Thomas, Lyon County High School
Marshall County
• Sean Jones, Atmos Energy
• Bailey Myers, Baptist Health Paducah
• Crystal Price, Community Financial Services Bank
• Travis Spiceland, Jackson Purchase Energy Corporation
McCracken County
• Michelle Campbell, Paducah McCracken County Convention Center
• Nikki Gregory, Bacon Farmer Workman Engineering & Testing, Inc
• Marra McMillan, Paducah Bank
• Ike Nichols, FNB Bank Inc.
Trigg County
• Ryan Milauskas, United Community Bank
