Board Member
A Birmingham native, Connor Samples is the Program Director at The Red Barn, a nonprofit agency in Leeds that provides educational, therapeutic, and equine-assisted programs to individuals with disabilities and other special circumstances, especially those living in lowincome households. Connor began his time at The Red Barn as an intern in 2014, and has previously held roles as an Operations/Program Assistant, Operations Manager, Administrative Assistant, and Program Manager. Having grown alongside the organization and seen the opportunities and challenges that arise in different stages of a nonprofit’s lifecycle, Connor is excited to have the opportunity to give back to MPA students and alumni by serving on the MPA Board of Directors Mentorship Committee.
Connor graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in History (with a minor in Film Studies!) from Furman University in 2014 and a Master of Public Administration from the University of Alabama at Birmingham in 2022.