20th Anniversary Celebration

Celebrate, Unite, Ignite!

April 25 – 27, 2025

Greenville, SC

Registration is now closed.

We look forward to seeing you in Greenville!

Agenda At-A-Glance

Stay tuned for speaker announcements and more details!

7:30 a.m. Breakfast and Check-In Opens

9 a.m. Fellow-led tours and activities

Tour Feed & Seed Food Hub. Join Liberty Fellow Mary Hipp (’12) for a tour of her Liberty Fellowship venture. Location: Feed & Seed, 701 Easley Bridge Rd Suite 6010, Greenville, SC 29611

Tour the largest collection by American painter Benjamin West commissioned by King George III with Erin Jones (’10). Location: War Memorial Chapel, Bob Jones University campus, 1700 Wade Hampton Blvd, Greenville, SC 29614

Tour the South Carolina Empowerment and History Museum. Join James Jordon (’23) for a private tour of his Liberty Fellowship Venture currently under construction! Location: 700 Arlington St, Greenville, SC 29601

11:30 a.m. Lunch and Keynote Panel: State of the State

Keynote and Panelist: Tom Barkin, president and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond

Moderator: Betsy Fleming (’06), Aspen Institute Trustee, Liberty Fellowship Board Member, and Founder of Cressence

Panelists:

Will Huss Jr. (’11), CEO, Trehel
Barbara Melvin (’14), CEO, SC Ports
Tommy Preston Jr. (’23), global chief talent officer, Boeing

1:30 p.m. Concurrent Sessions

Seminars: Pre-readings and moderated dialogue with an esteemed group of moderators from The Aspen Institute. Liberty Fellows will join other Fellows around the seminar table. Guests may also opt-in to a seminar session with other guests.

Keynote and Panel Discussion: Arts and Society

Keynote and Panelist: Dr. Tonya Matthews, president and CEO, International African American Museum

Moderator: Bill Medich (’07), South Carolina group president at SouthState Bank and Chair Emeritus of Spoleto USA

Panelists:

Vernon Burton, professor and historian, Clemson University
Sharon Graci (’11), co-founder and artistic director, PURE Theatre
David Smalls (’06), executive director, South Carolina Artisans Center

4 p.m. Class Connections

Join members of your Class for an informal check-in.

6:30 p.m. Welcome Dinner and Keynote

Keynote Speaker: Kevin Sack, veteran journalist and author of upcoming book Mother Emanuel: Two Centuries of Race, Resistance, and Forgiveness in One Charleston Church

7:30 a.m. Health and Wellness Activity

Mat Class with Gillian Zettler (’25), founder of The Drop-In

8 a.m. Breakfast and Check-In Opens

9:30 a.m. Concurrent Sessions

Considering the Future of Liberty Fellowship and “The Danger of a Single Story.“ In this participatory session for Liberty Fellows, we will engage in a discussion regarding the values and power of Liberty Fellowship for ourselves and the state of South Carolina. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s TED Talk, The Danger of a Single Story will serve as a foundation for the discussion regarding how we ensure that the Fellowship and Fellows operate in a way that allows us to move beyond single stories and lean into our best selves — individually and collectively. This session will inform the Fellowship’s strategic planning work currently underway and help to shape our values and our priorities for our next 20 years.
Volunteer Service Activity for Fellows and Guests | Annie’s House by Sustaining Way

12:30 p.m. Lunch & Keynote

Keynote Speaker: Tracey Abbott, Risk Traverse Leadership

2:30 p.m. Concurrent Sessions

Seminars

Panel Discussion: The Power and Potential of Philanthropy in SC

Moderator: Rochelle Williams (’23), chief strategy officer, Mary Black Foundation

Panelists: