StraightTalk 2025

Melanie Barton ’84 serves as deputy chief of staff and senior education advisor for Governor Henry McMaster. She assists Governor McMaster with policies related to early childhood education, public education, and higher education and oversees development of the Governor’s annual executive budget. She joined the staff in 2019. Prior to her current position, Barton worked for nineteen years for the Education Oversight Committee, where she served as executive director for eight years.

David Trone ’77 is the founder and owner of Total Wine & More and served three terms in the United States House of Representatives, representing Maryland’s Sixth Congressional District from 2019-2025. In Congress, Trone served on the House Appropriations Committee, Budget Committee, and the Joint Economic Committee. Trone’s commitment to education has been a career-long priority during his time in public service and corporate leadership. Total Wine & More employees can take advantage of cost-free education benefits, including earning a college degree.

Julie Dunson Meredith ’01 (moderator) is the director of the Center for Critical Issues at The Riley Institute at Furman University. In this role, she sets strategic direction for events and programs that elevate understanding, dialogue, and change-making on issues critical to social progress.

Chandra Childers, Ph.D., (keynote speaker) is a senior policy and economic analyst with the Economic Analysis and Research Network (EARN) at the Economic Policy Institute in Washington, D.C. Her work is primarily focused on supporting EARN’s state and local policy research and advocacy network in the Southern United States.

Ray Lattimore is the founder of Marketplace Staffing and a native of Greenville. Prior to founding the company, Lattimore worked for 15 years at Metropolitan Life Insurance Company. A Liberty Fellow and graduate of both Leadership South Carolina and Leadership Greenville, Lattimore has earned the Senior Professional of Human Resources credential and is active on numerous boards and in multiple organizations across the Southeast.

David Lominack is commercial market president of South Carolina for TD Bank, where he is responsible for commercial banking throughout the state. Lominack serves on numerous community boards. He currently serves on the executive committee and board of directors for United Way of Greenville County, as well as the board of directors for the South Carolina Chamber of Commerce and Greenville Chamber of Commerce. David also serves as board member and former co-chair for Greenville County’s Racial Equity and Economic Mobility Commission (REEM).

Julie Dunson Meredith ’01 (moderator) is the director of the Center for Critical Issues at The Riley Institute at Furman University. In this role, she sets strategic direction for events and programs that elevate understanding, dialogue, and change-making on issues critical to social progress.

Raj Chetty, Ph.D., (keynote speaker) is the William A. Ackman Professor of Economics at Harvard University and the director of Opportunity Insights, which uses big data to study the science of economic opportunity: how we can give children from all backgrounds better chances of succeeding? Chetty has been awarded many accolades, including a MacArthur “Genius” Fellowship.

Terril Bates serves as the current CEO of the Greenville Housing Authority, where she leverages partnerships and the strength of HUD programs to offer opportunities for participants to seek improved living situations. Bates joined the affordable housing community in 1989 at the Beaufort Housing Authority, in Beaufort, SC. Her career has allowed her to serve in numerous cities across the United States, including Greensboro, NC; Detroit, MI; Las Vegas, NV; Memphis, TN; Daytona Beach, FL; and many cities in South Carolina.

Tiffane Thompson Davis serves as the chief diversity, equity & inclusion officer at Michelin North America, leading efforts to create inclusive, opportunity-rich environments across the company’s U.S. and Canadian operations. With a background in marketing, entrepreneurship, and community engagement, she champions initiatives that build career pathways and economic mobility, particularly through education-to-employment programs.

Shannon Lavrin serves as the city manager for the City of Greenville, South Carolina. In this role, Lavrin serves as the City’s chief executive officer and is responsible for executing City Council priorities and overseeing day-to-day operations. Lavrin played a central role in shaping GVL2040, Greenville’s comprehensive plan, which guides growth through a shared vision that prioritizes affordable housing, open space preservation and increased mobility.

Gage Weekes (moderator) is president and CEO of Hollingsworth Funds, a Greenville-based philanthropic organization whose mission is to collectively remove systemic barriers that hold people back and to strengthen pathways that propel all people forward. He is responsible for aligning all of Hollingsworth Funds assets in pursuit of a Greenville where equitable opportunities exist for all to advance and thrive. He is a Liberty Fellow and currently serves on the board of OnTrack Greenville and the Greenville Chamber.