DeLaney Center to Host Second Annual Race and Southern-ness Symposium The Dec. 5 event will feature panelists from the higher education, business and health care industries discussing the theme “Black Female Leadership in the 21st-century South.”

By Brian Laubscher
November 20, 2024

The DeLaney Center at Washington and Lee University will host its second annual Race and Southern-ness Symposium at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 5 in Stackhouse Theater, Elrod Commons. The event, featuring the theme “Black Female Leadership in the 21st-century South,” is free and open to the public.

The symposium features a group of distinguished panelists from the higher education, business and healthcare industries. They include Mary Dana Hinton, President of Hollins University, Lutheria Smith, Chief Human Resources Officer of American National Bank and Trust Company and Ruby Kirby, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Boliver General and Camden General Hospitals, both affiliates of West Tennessee Healthcare.

“The DeLaney Center Race and Southern-ness Symposium provides firsthand access to accomplished individuals with unique insights about the region’s racial realities,” said Michael Hill, Director of the DeLaney Center and Professor of Africana Studies. “Focusing on our theme, this year’s program unites Mary Dana Hinton, a university president, Ruby Kirby, a hospital executive, and Lutheria Smith, a human resource leader, offering an expansive view of how African American woman strengthen their communities, and by extension, their nation. Hinton, Kirby, and Smith each boast singular distinction. By bringing them to the same stage, we aim to clarify their individual excellence and their collective importance. This program delivers rare treasures both to Washington and Lee and the Lexington and Rockbridge communities.”

Hinton, Smith and Kirby will discuss their career odysseys, trends in their respective fields and the South’s place in 21st-century conversations about American identity. Following the discussion, Adrienne Jones, DeLaney Center postdoctoral fellow, will lead the participants in a discussion centered on issues raised during their remarks. The symposium will conclude with an interactive Q&A session involving the panelists and the audience.

Hinton officially became the 13th president of Hollins University in 2020. Her extensive experience in higher education includes serving as president of the College of Saint Benedict, vice president of academic affairs at Mount Saint Mary College and associate vice president for academic affairs and chief planning and diversity officer at Misericordia University. In addition to her work at Hollins, Hinton serves as chair of the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities board of directors, and she is a member of the board of directors for InterFaith America and The Teagle Foundation. She is also a member of the board of trustees at Mount Saint Mary’s University Los Angeles.

Hinton is the author of two books, “Leading from the Margins: College Leadership from Unexpected Places” and “The Commercial Church: Black Churches and the New Religious Marketplace in America.” She holds a Bachelor of Arts in psychology from Williams College, a Master of Arts in clinical child psychology from the University of Kansas and a Ph.D. in religion and religious studies from Fordham University. She is the recipient of the Bicentennial Medal from Williams and holds honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degrees from Misericordia University, the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts and Mount Saint Mary’s University. In 2021, Hinton was elected to the American Academy of Arts & Sciences, an organization established more than 240 years ago by the nation’s founders to honor exceptionally accomplished individuals and engage them in advancing the public good.

Smith led the human resources efforts for American National Bank and Trust Company through its acquisition by Atlantic Union Bank last spring. She also serves as the managing partner at Elevatus Consulting, LLC, an HR consulting and executive coaching firm that guides organizations to strengthen and grow by elevating their most important asset, their people. Before joining American National in 2020, Smith was vice president & director of human resources for the consulting and engineering firm Draper Aden Associates. Her professional experience also includes serving as senior vice president of human resources and risk management for PixelOptics, Inc., and vice president of shared support services at AZDEL, inc.

Smith currently serves as vice chair for the board of governors of the Community Foundation serving Western Virginia where she also chairs the Investment Committee as a member of the board of directors for the National Bank of Blacksburg and as a member of the board of trustees for the Taubman Museum of Art. She previously served as chair of the board of trustees for Roanoke City Public Schools and is the first Black president of the Junior League of Roanoke Valley. Smith holds a Bachelor of Arts in political economy from Randolph College and has also studied at the University of Oxford (U.K.) and Cornell University.

Kirby has served as the CEO of Boliver General Hospital since 2003 and added responsibilities as CEO of Camden General Hospital in 2021. Both are subsidiaries of West Tennessee Healthcare, an organization she has worked with since 1979. Her career there began as a nursing assistant and advanced quickly through the ranks, serving as a staff registered nurse (R.N.) with the General Surgery Unit and nursing director of the General Surgery Unit and Surgical Intensive Care. In 2000, she was promoted to director of nursing at Boliver General, before being promoted to CEO three years later.

Kirby has received numerous awards for her work, including the West Tennessee Healthcare President’s Award, the Rural Health Association of Tennessee’s Rural Health Professional of the Year Award, the Rural Health Association of Tennessee’s Eloise Hatmaker Distinguished Service Award and the American Hospital Association’s Rural Hospital Leadership Team Award. She earned an Associate of Science in nursing from Union University and also holds an MBA from Bethel University.

The DeLaney Center is an interdisciplinary academic forum that promotes teaching and research on race and Southern identity. Visit the DeLaney Center website at https://my.wlu.edu/delaney-center for updates on additional programming such as the Screen to Square film series, DeLaney Dialogues.