Birmingham Mayor Randall L. Woodfin named to Accelerator for America Advisory Council

Birmingham, AL – Accelerator for America today announced that Birmingham Mayor Randall L. Woodfin will join the organization’s Advisory Council.

The Accelerator was founded in 2017 by Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti amidst federal inaction and retrenchment from cities. Now, under the leadership of Advisory Council Co-Chairs Mayor Kate Gallego of Phoenix and Mayor Quintin Lucas of Kansas City, MO, the non-profit organization is helping mayors and their teams adjust from a scarcity mindset to one of abundance, as the federal government makes unprecedented new investment into our cities.

The Accelerator is currently developing and sharing tools to help local governments best invest the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to build long lasting community wealth.

“This is an especially acute moment for the nation’s mayors, and I’m honored to join the Accelerator Advisory Council to help cities across the country respond to and recover from COVID-19 and make investments in a way that will create lasting change for families and communities,” Mayor Woodfin said. “Working more closely with the Accelerator will also help us go further in our work to ‘Put People First’ in Birmingham.”

“Mayor Woodfin is a tremendous leader in Birmingham and for our entire country,” said Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas. “A natural problem-solver and exceptional communicator, Randall has led in crisis and placed Birmingham in a position to lead in equitable infrastructure development. I am thrilled to welcome him to Accelerator for America as we rebuild America’s infrastructure in cities large and small.”

“Mayor Woodfin is a tremendous leader for his city and is a leader among his peers across the country,” said Mayor Quintin Lucas (Kansas City, MO), Co-Chair of the Accelerator Advisory Council. “He will be a tremendous asset to Accelerator for America.”

“Our mission is to scale and replicate the best solutions found in communities across the country, and now, in Mayor Woodfin, we have one of America’s best mayors to push our work even farther,” said Mayor Kate Gallego (Phoenix, AZ), Co-Chair of the Accelerator Advisory Council.

“I am absolutely thrilled to see Mayor Woodfin join the Accelerator’s Advisory Council. I know his work, I know his mind and I know his heart, and the combination of his leadership and the Accelerator’s coalition will create a powerful agent of change for America’s cities,” said the Accelerator’s founder, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti.

“Mayor Woodfin is no stranger to the Accelerator, having hosted one of our major convenings in 2019 and working with us on COVID-19 relief and piloting their guaranteed basic income initiative,” said Accelerator President & CEO Mary Ellen Wiederwohl. “We are excited to formalize our relationship and are honored to have his counsel to guide us and his energy to inspire us.”

To date, the Accelerator’s economic development tools have been used by more than 75 cities nationwide and the organization has helped localities generate $40 billion in infrastructure funding independent of federal investment. It also quickly pivoted to help cities respond to COVID-19, including the development of a rapid cash assistance model implemented by cities and state governments nationwide.

Mayor Woodfin was sworn as the 30th mayor of Birmingham in 2017. Through his “Putting People First” strategy, Mayor Woodfin is focused on revitalizing the city’s 99 neighborhoods, enhancing education and career opportunities for students, and creating an innovative economic climate to grow, attract and retain talent, startups and small businesses.

A native of Birmingham and graduate of Cumberland School of Law, Mayor Woodfin is an attorney and former president of the Birmingham Board of Education.

Accelerator for America’s Advisory Council comprises mayors, labor leaders, corporate CEOs and non-profit executives from across the country. For more information visit: https://www.acceleratorforamerica.org/who-we-are.