Johnson C. Smith University has hired Sherrill A. Hampton as its new Special Assistant to the President and Director of the Center for Applied Leadership and Community Development.

Hampton has 24 years experience in affordable housing development, community economic development, non-profit management, and program and resource development, as well as strategic planning. She previously served as the Senior Vice President for Residential Development at the North Carolina Community Development Initiative in Raleigh, North Carolina. Through her work, she has had the opportunity to work with a number of diverse populations, including Latinos and Native Americans.

"I am excited about the strategic opportunities that exist in Charlotte and the Mecklenburg region, as well as at Johnson C. Smith University, under the leadership of Dr. Ronald L. Carter," Hampton said. "The rich history of Charlotte's neighborhoods provides a springboard for enhanced civic engagement and community economic development. I am grateful to be a part of these transformative times!"

Hampton's professional experiences have provided her with a clear sense of the elements necessary for successful community and economic development initiatives, including grassroots leadership. Ms. Hampton looks forward to bringing this wealth of knowledge and passion for the field of work to Johnson C. Smith University, the City of Charlotte, and the greater Mecklenburg region.

The new center serves as a community-based educational highway connecting Charlotte's historic neighborhoods, the greater Mecklenburg region, the nonprofit sector, local government, faith-based institutions and the business community with the faculty and student body of the University. The center also provides a platform to bring together indigenous community leadership with the research and academic capacities of the University to develop constructive approaches to resolve the human, economic and social crisis that decades of under investments and/or disinvestments have created throughout the City and region, as a whole.

Hampton received her Bachelor of Science degree from Claflin College and a Juris Doctorate from the University of South Carolina School of Law.