posted June 30, 2003
Nashville - Governor Phil Bredesen on Monday named seven Tennesseans from across the state - all he said with strong business and management credentials - to serve on the board of Tennessee's newly created lottery corporation. They include Chattanooga's Jim Hill.
"Our goal was to find Tennesseans from across the state who represent the highest standards of integrity and have a strong track record in business and management," Bredesen said.
"I'm confident this group has the skills and commitment it will take to launch a fiscally responsible and ethically strong lottery. I'm pleased they've agreed to serve."
The board appointees will hold their first meeting in July where they will select a chairman and begin establishing a process for launching the lottery - among other things. Legislation creating the lottery corporation was signed into law by Bredesen on June 11. Lottery tickets are expected to go on sale in early 2004, with the first lottery scholarships to be awarded in spring 2004.
Appointees, who must be confirmed by the General Assembly when it reconvenes in January, include:
Denny Bottorff
Bottorff is chairman of Council Capital Management LLC, a Nashville venture-capital firm. Before joining Council Capital Management, he served as chairman of Birmingham-based AmSouth Bancorporation, from 1999 to 2001 and was chairman and CEO of Nashville-based First American National Bank from 1991 to 1999. He currently serves as vice chairman of the Vanderbilt University Board of Trust and, from 1995 to 1996, was chairman of the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce. Bottorff, 58, is a Clarksville, Ind. native who has lived in Nashville for approximately 30 years. He holds a bachelor’s degree in engineering from Vanderbilt University and a master's degree in business administration (MBA) from Northwestern University, Evanston, Ill.
Morris Fair
Fair is currently employed as a public finance consultant by Duncan Williams, Inc., an investment banking company based in Memphis. He is a founding member of the investment firm UMIC, Inc., Memphis. He served as chairman and CEO of the firm when it was sold to Union Planters Bank in 1988, where he worked until 1996. The company served as financial advisers to the City of Memphis, as well as a host of cities and jurisdictions surrounding Memphis. He is currently serving as chairman of the Memphis Cook Convention Center. Fair served on the Shelby County Board of Commissioners from 1996 to 2002, including a term as chairman from 2001 to 2002. Fair, 73, is a native of Tyronza, Ark., who has lived in Memphis for more than 40 years. He holds a bachelor's degree in accounting from the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville.
Jim Hill
Hill is a retired CEO of the Lupton Company LLC in Chattanooga. Before joining the Lupton Company, he served as president of the Tennessee Aquarium from 1992 to 1994. Before that, he worked 13 years - from 1977 to 1991 - in manufacturing management for DuPont Industries. Hill served 20 years in the U.S. Army, retiring in 1977 with the rank of lieutenant colonel. Widely recognized in the community as a philanthropist, he currently serves on the board of Chattanooga's Public Education Foundation, is a past chairman of the Tennessee Arts Commission, and has served on the local and regional boards of a number of civic and business organizations. Hill, 67, is a native of East Gulf, W. Va., who has lived in Chattanooga for 16 years. He holds a bachelor's degree in chemistry from West Virginia State College, a master's degree in chemistry from Pennsylvania State University and a master's degree in business administration (MBA) from Central Michigan University.
Marvell Mitchell
Mitchell is the managing partner of Mitchell Technology Group LLC, a Memphis firm that installs computer networks for businesses and distributes computer hardware and software. Before establishing Mitchell Technology Group, he served as district sales manager for Digital Equipment Corporation in Memphis from 1986 to 1995. Prior to that time, Mitchell worked at IBM Corporation, where his most recent position was marketing manager. Mitchell is chairman of the Black Business Association of Memphis, and a board member of the Memphis Chamber of Commerce, where he chairs the Minority Business Development Committee. He also serves on the board of the Southwest Tennessee Community College Foundation. Mitchell, 48, is a Memphis native. He holds a bachelor's degree in marketing from Memphis State University.
Jim Ripley
Ripley is a partner and general practice attorney with Sharp and Ripley PLLC, a Sevierville law firm. Before joining Sharp and Ripley, he was an associate with Hailey, Waters, Sykes and Sharp, Sevierville, from 1983 to 1987. Ripley, 46, is a Radford, Va., native, who has lived in East Tennessee for 34 years. He is a member of the Tennessee and American Bar Associations, as well as the American Board of Trial Advocates and the Tennessee and American Trial Lawyers Associations. He holds a bachelor's degree in English and a law degree from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.
Deborah Story
Story is president of ESS Group Inc., a Nashville executive search in human resources consulting firm. Before joining ESS, she worked as senior vice president and director of employment services for AmSouth Bancorporation, formerly First American National Bank, from 1997 to 2000. Before that, she was group vice president and director of employment and recruiting at SunTrust Bank in Nashville. She sits on the board of the Center for Nonprofit Management, a Frist Foundation initiative to help nonprofit organizations improve their results, is a board member of the Nashville City Club, and has served on the board of the YWCA in Nashville for the past six years. Story, 51, is a Chicago native who has lived in Nashville for 25 years. She holds a bachelor's degree in human relations from Trevecca Nazarene University, Nashville.
Claire Tucker
Tucker is the Nashville city president of FirstBank, a Lexington, Tenn.-based banking company. Before joining FirstBank, she was senior executive vice president of commercial banking at AmSouth Bancorporation from 1999 to 2000. From 1975 to 1999, Tucker worked at First American National Bank in Nashville, where she served in numerous specialized management positions with the corporation before becoming president of corporate banking in 1997. She serves on the board of Ingram Entertainment and Tennessee Wesleyan College. Tucker, 50, was born in Meridian, Miss., and has lived in Tenn. since 1969. She holds a bachelor's degree in accounting from Tennessee Wesleyan College, Athens, and a master's degree in business administration (MBA) from the University of Tennessee, Nashville (now Tennessee State University). She is also a graduate of the Stonier Graduate School of Banking at Rutgers University and is a certified management accountant (CMA).
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