TN First Lady Crissy Haslam special guest for Ingram conversation series
Kim Chaudoin |
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The Nelson and Sue Andrews Institute for Civic Leadership presented Tennessee's First Lady Crissy Haslam in the second of a Conversation Series hosted by Tom Ingram, an influential adviser to corporate and government officials for four decades, on Tuesday, April 17.
The conversation began at 6:30 p.m. in Lipscomb's Shamblin Theatre, and the event was free and open to the public.
As First Lady of Tennessee, Haslam has introduced a three-part initiative that focuses on the interplay between family engagement and literacy improvement in Tennessee. She has been traveling the state to stress the importance of parents as first teachers, parents as education partners, and also to raise awareness for the exponential value of reading at grade level by the third grade.
Born in Houston, Texas, Haslam moved with her family to Memphis, when she was eight-years-old. She graduated from Emory University in 1980 with a double major in finance and marketing in the College of Business. Crissy married Bill Haslam and moved to Knoxville in 1981. While working as the assistant director of admissions for the University of Tennessee-Knoxville, she received a Master of Science degree in education in the college student personnel program. She has served on numerous civic and community boards, and currently serves as chair of the Tennessee Executive Residence Foundation and Commission.
The “now that you ask…” conversation series is hosted by Tom Ingram, the man called the “most influential person in Tennessee politics who does not hold elected office.” The series brings Ingram’s bipartisan, common sense approach to government and politics straight to the table with discussions and debates featuring guests from across the business and political worlds. The debut edition of “now that you ask…” in March featured a one-on-one with Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam.
Ingram, founder of The FIRST Group in Washington, D.C. and The Ingram Group in Nashville, was appointed a leader-in-residence at the Andrews Institute for Civic Leadership in September. While serving in Washington, Ingram was regularly named by Roll Call as one of its “Fabulous Fifty” most influential people on the Hill.