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Board of Trustees welcomes new members
Board of Trustees welcomes new members
For Immediate Release
Nov. 25, 2019
BIRMINGHAM, Ala.—The Board of Trustees at Birmingham-Southern College has gained five new members, including four graduates of BSC. Their term of service began Nov. 1.
The new members of the board are:
Joab Mauldin Lesesne III ’87, senior vice president of public policy and government affairs for Cox Enterprises, Washington, D.C.;
Elizabeth Featheringill Pharo ’00, president of Featheringill Capital, Birmingham;
Joelle James Phillips ’89, president of AT&T Tennessee, Nashville;
Bryson Stephens, chairman of the board, EBSCO, Birmingham;
Thomas Waters ’86, owner/agent, State Farm Insurance, Birmingham.
“We are pleased to welcome the newest members of the Board of Trustees, and appreciate their commitment to Birmingham-Southern,” says BSC President Daniel B. Coleman. “Their energy, expertise, and experience are invaluable assets to the College and its future.”
At Cox Enterprises, Lesesne is responsible for developing and implementing public policy strategies for all Cox businesses and representing the company before Congress and federal government agencies, while leading the public policy office in Washington, D.C. After graduating with a history degree from BSC, Lesesne attended the University of South Carolina Law School, whose alumni association awarded him the Compleat Lawyer Award in 2003. He earned his juris doctor from the University of South Carolina and is a member of the Bars of South Carolina and the District of Columbia. His wife, Audrey Balkcom Lesesne, is a 1989 BSC graduate.
Pharo is president of the Featheringill Capital investment firm, a company founded by her father, the late William W. Featheringill. She continues his legacy in this role, as well as in taking over Momentum Telecom, a broadband services and communications provider, where she now serves as chair. Pharo is also Chair of SuccessEHS, a full electronic health record and practice management system. She contributed to the organization early on in her career by writing revolutionary training software, which pushed her onto a management track. In 2017, the Birmingham Venture Club awarded Pharo with the Jemison Award for Momentum, which recognizes high quality, fast-growth companies based in Birmingham.
Phillips graduated from BSC with a degree in theatre, with skills that she would later apply at the Washington and Lee University School of Law. She has served as president of AT&T Tennessee since 2013, with more than a decade of experience in the telecommunications industry and two decades of experience in the legal profession. Phillips works closely with community and business leaders, elected officials, and others to bring advanced communications technologies to consumers and businesses. She serves on the board of Nashville Repertory Theater. Her philanthropic efforts include the AT&T Aspire program, promoting high school success, and the AT&T IT Can Wait campaign to end texting while driving. Her husband, Brant Phillips, is a 1991 BSC graduate.
Stephens has a long history with EBSCO. As the grandson of founder Elton B. Stephens ’32 and Alys Robinson Stephens ’32, and the son of former BSC Trustee James T. Stephens, he grew up surrounded with examples of entrepreneurial success and a deep love for Birmingham. Currently serving as chairman of EBSCO’s board of directors, he works alongside other members to guide the strategic direction of the company. He oversees EBSCO Realty Investments, and is a member of the EBSCO Savings and Profit Sharing Trust Administrative Committee. Previously, he was vice-chairman and group president over EBSCO Sign Group and Vulcan Industries. He received his bachelor’s degree in economics and history from Hampden-Sydney College, and earned his master’s degree in business from the Wake Forest University School of Business.
Waters, who serves on the Board in his role as chair of the BSC Alumni Board for 2019-2020, is a second-generation State Farm insurance agent. He has been recognized by State Farm as a Chairman’s Circle Qualifier, a Silver Scroll Qualifier, and an Ambassador Travel Qualifier. He is a member of the Million Dollar Club, and founder of the Southern Harmony Quartet, a men’s quartet at BSC. Since 2014, his business has provided more than 7,000 meals through Changed Lives Christian Center. He also took his passion for cycling and created a team to ride in the MS 150, an annual cycling race fundraiser to benefit Multiple Sclerosis. In 2018, Waters was named the Bike MS Volunteer of the Year. Waters and his wife, Jennifer Howard Waters ’86, have two children, Mary Kate Waters-Wright ’15 and Martha Louise Waters, a BSC student. His parents Leon and Kathryn Voight Waters, are members of the BSC class of 1958, and his sister, Valerie Waters, graduated from the College in 1990.
Birmingham-Southern College is a four-year, private liberal arts institution affiliated with the United Methodist Church and accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. The institution is the result of a 1918 merger of Southern University, founded in Greensboro, Alabama, in 1856, with Birmingham College, founded in Birmingham, Alabama, in 1898. Birmingham-Southern has students from 34 states and 13 countries and a student/faculty ratio of 12:1.