Chattanooga, Tenn. (Jan. 20, 2026) – The Tennessee Aquarium has added four new members to its Board of Trustees, bringing prominent figures from education, finance, hospitality, and food manufacturing into the leadership of one of the region’s most visible nonprofit institutions. The appointments took effect Jan. 15, 2026, expanding the board to 16 members at a moment the organization describes as pivotal.
The new trustees join as the aquarium’s leadership begins shaping a long-term strategic plan aimed at broadening its reach and influence across the Southeast. Andy Wood, the aquarium’s president and chief executive, said the additions reflect a deliberate effort to strengthen the board with leaders whose experience spans both the public and private sectors.
“These are respected voices in the community,” Mr. Wood said, “and they bring perspectives that will help guide the aquarium into its next chapter.”
Among the new trustees is Dr. Rebecca Ashford, president of Chattanooga State Community College, who has led the institution since 2017. Dr. Ashford is a longtime civic leader, serving on the boards of the Austin Hatcher Foundation, Blood Assurance, the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce, the Enterprise Center, and serves as the chair of the McNabb Center Board. In 2022, she was named a Greater Chattanooga Woman of Distinction and completed the Aspen New President’s Fellowship.
Jay Dale, the market president of First Horizon Bank, also joins the board. A banking executive with more than three decades of experience, Mr. Dale has been with First Horizon for 15 years. He is a graduate of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, where he earned both undergraduate and M.B.A. degrees, and has held leadership roles with the United Way, the Chattanooga Chamber of Commerce, and the Erlanger Foundation Council.
The board’s new members also include O’Mally Foster, chief people officer of Vision Hospitality Group. Mr. Foster oversees workforce and culture initiatives at the growing hotel company and has nearly 30 years of experience in hospitality and human resources. He is active in regional nonprofit efforts, including work with United Way, the American Heart Association and Chattanooga Cares.
Rounding out the group is Brittany McKee East, vice president of quality and research & development at McKee Foods Corporation. A fourth-generation member of the family-owned company, Ms. East began working at the bakery as a teenager and later earned a degree in health science from Southern Adventist University, followed by an M.B.A. from the Crummer Graduate School of Business. After working in food manufacturing roles outside Tennessee, she returned to McKee Foods in 2019 and has since taken on increasing leadership responsibilities.
Together, the four new trustees bring a mix of institutional knowledge, corporate leadership and civic engagement as the Tennessee Aquarium looks ahead to its next phase of growth.