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Leigh byford wallace

Leigh monitors the budgets of general fund, support services, and major enterprise departments for the Budget Office of the City of Austin. In the past, she had responsibility for coordinating all public engagement budget efforts, including the award-winning Budget Basics Video and Budget in a Box.  Her work in local government also included policy projects for the City of San Antonio and the Austin Water Utility Department promoting water conservation programs. She is a member of the International City/County Managers Association.  Leigh is a 2008 graduate of the LBJ School of Public Affairs. 

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kelly stewart nichols

Kelly is a Principal with Woollard Nichols & Associates, an Austin-based consulting firm that provides strategy, development, and support services for coalitions, associations, organizations and initiatives.  She has served as Planning and Policy Manager for the City of Austin's Neighborhood Housing and Community Development Office, where the oversaw the City's annual application for entitlement funding from the US Department of Urban Development; implemented the Imagine Austin Comprehensive Plan Household Affordability priority program; a worked with a wide array of community stakeholders on issues related to affordable housing and community development. 

Jesus garza

Jesus is President and Chief Executive Officer of Seton Healthcare Family and Ascension Health Ministry Market Leader, Texas and Arkansas.  He joined the Seton Family of Hospitals in 2002 following a distinguished career in private- and public-sector leadership.  Prior to coming to Seton, he served as deputy general manager of the Lower Colorado River Authority, following his eight-year service as city manager for the City of Austin, Texas.  He also served as assistant city manager and deputy city manager in Corpus Christi before returning to Austin to become executive director of the Texas Water Commission.  He is a graduate of the LBJ School of Public Affairs. 

john coleman

John is a graduate of the University of Arkansas' College of Engineering and is a licensed professional engineer in the state of Arkansas.  He spent five years as an engineer in the Chesapeake Bay and Mississippi River watersheds before moving to Austin, Texas, to attend the LBJ School of Public Affairs.  While in Austin, John worked in the city manager's office developing Austin's Climate Protection Plan and the city's CarShare program.  He subsequently served as Sustainability Director for the City of Fayetteville, Arkansas.  He currently serves as the Regional Office Director for Viridian, a sustainable building consulting firm based in Little Rock.  Viridian provides commissioning, LEED consulting, and energy-related services to assist in the optimization of commercial buildings around the United States. 

Biographical information for LBJ graduates with careers in urban management and related fields 

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suzanne barnard 

Suzanne is State Director of the Texas Community Development Block Grant Program. She administers a $60 million program assisting rural communities across Texas by providing grant funds for infrastructure, housing improvements, and comprehensive planning opportunities.  She also held positions in several local governments, including the cities of Hope, Arkansas; Clayton, Missouri; and Buda,Texas.  She is an alumna of Washington University in St. Louis, where she graduated as a Danforth Scholar, and a graduate of the LBJ School of Public Affairs. 

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rosie truelove

Rosie is the Director of the City of Austin's Contract Management Department (CMD).  CMD has the delegated authority and responsibility for procurement and contracting services related to the city's Capital Improvement Program.  She began her career at the City of Austin in 1999.  She has worked in information technology, in the city manager's office where she served as an Executive Assistant to the deputy city manager and to the city manager, and in the area of capital projects before assuming her current responsibilities.  Rosie is a founding member of Woman-to-Woman, an employee organization at the City of Austin and has served on numerous cross departmental groups focused on technology governance and human resources.  She is a graduate of the LBJ School of Public Affairs.  

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