THE SIXTEEN professionals ages 21-40 who won this year's Nashville Emerging Leader Awards (NELAs) are capable of actively and significantly shaping the future of the Nashville region.

That's according to both NELA host Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce and Young Professionals (YP) Nashville, who supported the latest round of NELAs.

The Nashville Emerging Leader Awards program began 18 years ago, in 2007. No details are yet available regarding a 2026 round of NELAs. 

2025 WINNERS -- Below are the NELA industry winners🥇followed by their fellow finalists. The industries are defined in this undated NELA document.

Advertising + Public Relations

🥇Bri Carlesimo, Vice President of Client Experience, Pierce Public Relations

• Kathryn Swanton, CEO, Metkat Marketing
• Joe Tjosvold, Founder, Chezy Video
  
• LaConteau Williams, Exec. Dir., Mt. Zion Baptist Church

Architecture + Engineering

🥇Amira Ahmetovic, Mgr., Business Dev./Marketing, ESa

• Adebisi Bashorun, Industrial Design Engineer, Amazon
• Krista Cashion, Sr. Business Dev. Mgr., Messer Construction
  
• Michael Gallagher, Project Executive, Turner Construction

Arts, Entertainment, and Media

🥇Bruce Ayers, Founder-CEO, Musical Dir., Nashville African American Wind Symphony Inc.

• Margaret Eggers, Controller, The MLC
• Karen Schillinger, Music Agent, Creative Artists Agency 
• Isabel Tipton-Krispin, Exec. Dir., Nashville Shakespeare Festival

Business Services

🥇Allison "Allie" Williamson, CEO, Southern Domestic Diva

• Ryan Parr, Owner and President, Nashville Painting Professionals
• Amanda Smith, Managing Director, Ankura Consulting
  
• Craig Vanbury, Service Delivery Leader, The Precisionists Inc.

Community Service and Nonprofit

🥇Allison Quintanilla Plattsmier, CEO, Edgehill Neighborhood Partnership & AQP Consulting

• Adnan Karim, VP Community Impact, The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee 
• Jared Miller, CEO, Freedom Aviation Network
• Em Wilder, Twendé Program Manager, Nashville Entrepreneur Center

Education

🥇Robert Wallace, Chief of Staff, Metro Nashville Public Schools

• Jonathan Brocco, Principal, LEAD Public Schools
  
• Katelyn Catalfamo, Teacher, Metro Nashville Public Schools
  
• Deborah Osborne, School Counselor, Metro Nashville Public Schools

Entrepreneurship

🥇Channing Moreland, Co-Founder, EVA Entertainment, Inc. 

• Christina Griffin, Owner, Head Coach (GCCG); Griffin Coaching and Consulting Group
• Mark Hilton, Program Manager, Entrepreneurship, Vanderbilt University
• Thomas Kelly, Owner, Creative Soulz Printing

Environment and Sustainability

🥇Jon D. Bumpus, Director of Communications, TennGreen Land Conservancy

• Zach Andreasen, Environmental Manager, LaBella Associates 
• Brooke Ellis, Solar Project Development, Silicon Ranch

Financial Services

🥇Kandace Harris, Client Service Advisor, Pinnacle Financial Partners

• Matt Gentzow, Investment Strategist, Waddell & Associates
  
• Katherine Horne, SVP-Relationship Manager, Studio Bank
  
• Joshua Ireland, Chief Executive Officer, Jefferson Bridge Capital

Government and Public Affairs

🥇Terry Vo,District 17 Metro Councilmember, Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County

• Sarah Elliott, State Health Plan Director, Tennessee Department of Health
  
• Janyl Igadna, Manager of The Women's Fund, Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee
  
• Rebecca Nofi, Manager of Volunteer & Community Engagement, Greater Nashville Regional Council

Hospitality and Tourism

🥇Morgan Rehnberg, VP Exhibits & Experiences,Adventure Science Center

• Olivia Bane, Owner, Waldo's Chicken + Beer
  
• Cynthia Florez, Managing Partner, LIMO EATERY
• Chelsa Lourie, Director of Workforce Development, TN Hospitality and Tourism Assn.

Human Resources

🥇Gabrielle Rodman, Global Senior Talent Projects & Programs Lead, Dell Technologies

• Christopher Keenan, Operations and Admin. Analyst, Lotus Asset Management
• Ausha Miles, Human Resource Manager, Parking Management Co
  
• Robert Strobel, Human Resources Mgr. - Commercial & HSP Div., Parking Management Co

Legal Services

🥇Hannah Webber, Associate Attorney, Bass, Berry & Sims

• Garrah Carter, Attorney, Bass, Berry & Sims PLC 
• Brittany Macon, Attorney, Polsinelli PC
  
• Dalton Thompson, Associate, Baker Donelson Bearman Caldwell & Berkowitz

Medical and Health Care Services

🥇 Ashley Danner, CEO, BrightQuest Treatment Centers

• Nicole L. Boyer, Director, Visiting Angels Nashville
  
• Rahul Iyengar, Founder/CEO & Physician, Members Health Co
  
• Evelyn Anjali Mukherji (Doria), Exec. Dir., Dava Foundation [and President, Coffee Cares Inc.]

Technology

🥇Shoira Shamsieva, Software Development Manager, WEX Inc

• Autumn 'Ace' Copeland, CEO | Website Architect, Quartz and Clay
• Alexis Jones, Co-Founder and CEO, SnapBack Returns 
• Katherine 'Katy' Phillips, VP, President of Technology Opns, Parking Management Co

Wellness

🥇Reggie Ford, Wellness-Resilience Architect, RoseCrete Wellness 

• Victoria 'Tori' Fillmore, Owner, Operator, Cedar Hill Homestead LLC  

Here are the Chamber/YP NELA 2023 + 2024 winners.

YP Nashville conducts the NELA program with support of the Chamber's Young Professionals (YP) Council and that Council's partners. At the time of the YP Council's formation in 2023, it had 18 members, all of them 21 to 49 years of age. 

Update on the Nashville Area Chamber, which operates in the 10-county Middle Tennessee area: Of the total 1,800-plus Nashville Chamber area members, more than 60 percent of the total have 0-25 employees and three-fourths of the total members have fewer than 50 employees each. Roughly one in every six Nashville Chamber member organizations has a workforce of 100 or more employees.