Alabama State University News April 21, 2011 Bridge Builders Series Features Former Ala. Speaker of the House Alabama State University's Center for Leadership and Public Policy is gearing up for its next Bridge Builders Breakfast, which will feature guest speaker Seth Hammett, former speaker of the Alabama House of Representatives and current director of the Alabama Development Office. The event, which is free and open to the public, will take place May 4, at 7:30 a.m. at the RSA Activity Center, 201 Dexter Ave. Hammett, a native of Andalusia, served 32 years in the Alabama House of Representatives, the last 12 years as Speaker, elected by members of the House. He recently was named director of the Alabama Development Office (ADO) by Gov. Robert J. Bentley. Hammett also is vice president of business development for PowerSouth Energy Cooperative, headquartered in Andalusia. Hammett was a founder and served as the first president of the First National Bank of Andalusia, now Wells Fargo, and was president of Lurleen B. Wallace Community College in Andalusia. In 2004, he joined PowerSouth Energy, an energy cooperative providing wholesale electricity in central and south Alabama and northwest Florida, as director of economic development. Hammett will serve as a loaned executive during his tenure at ADO. He holds a bachelor's degree and a master's degree from Auburn University. During his legislative career, Hammett received numerous awards, including Legislator of the Year, Visionary Leadership Award, Meritorious Service Award and Guardian of Small Business Award. He is past chair of the 16-state Southern Legislative Conference, past president of the National Speakers Conference and is a member of the Coastal Recovery Commission of Alabama. Previous Bridge Builders Breakfast speakers have included former U.S. Congressman Bobby Bright, former Birmingham Mayor Richard Arrington, RSA Director David Bronner, former U.S. Rep. Artur Davis (D-Ala.), urban development expert James Johnson, UMBC President Freeman A. Hrabowski, III and retired federal judge Vanzetta Penn McPherson. For more information, contact ASU's Center for Leadership and Public Policy at 334- 229-6019. SANDRA M. PHOENIX Program Director HBCU Library Alliance sphoenix@hbculibraries.org<mailto:sphoenix@hbculibraries.org> www.hbculibraries.org<http://www.hbculibraries.org/> 404.592.4820 Skype:sandra.phoenix1 1438 West Peachtree Street NW Suite 200 Atlanta, GA 30309 Toll Free: 1.800.999.8558 (Lyrasis) Fax: 404.892.7879 www.lyrasis.org<http://www.lyrasis.org/> Honor the ancestors, honor the children.