Our Team
New Hanover Scholars is composed of diverse board members from various backgrounds. What unites them is the resilience and determination to achieve success while facing challenges on their personal journeys. As a team, they are committed to supporting students in our community.
Reggie Shuford
Reggie is an award-winning civil rights lawyer, activist and leader. Born and raised in Wilmington, NC, he attended New Hanover High School before transferring to Cape Fear Academy, where he became the school's first Black graduate in 1984. Reggie became executive director of the ACLU of Pennsylvania in September 2011. From 1995-2010, Reggie served as senior staff counsel in the national ACLU's Racial Justice Program. During his tenure there, he helped to pioneer legal challenges to racial profiling practices nationwide.
Among his many honors, he is the recipient of the Philadelphia Tribune’s Most Influential African American Leader Award and the Philadelphia Bar Association’s Justice Sonia Sotomayor Diversity Award. In 2018, Reggie was named as one of The Advocate Magazine’s Icons, Innovators, and Disruptors. Reggie attended both undergraduate and law school at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he served as president of his law school's graduating class and won the Distinguished Alumnus Award in 2009. He has been a Wasserstein Public Interest Fellow at Harvard Law School and is a member of the Board of Directors of the Atlantic Center for Capital Representation, Claneil Foundation, and Free Speech TV, where he serves as vice chair.
Deborah Maxwell
Deborah Dicks Maxwell is a native Wilmingtonian. A retired public health social worker she received her B.A in Administration and Management from LaRoche University and her Master's in Social Work from East Carolina University. She is also an Army veteran and served in Operation Desert Storm.
Currently she is the President of the New Hanover County NAACP and serves on the boards of NC CHILD, Cape Fear River Watch and North Carolina League of Conservation Voters Foundation. She is also a member of FRE-NC which was formerly named the Just Florence Recovery Coalition that assisted marginalized communities with recovery efforts.
Her passion is to make the world better for her daughter, two grandsons and thereby better for all. In her down time she enjoys gardening, reading and traveling.
Evelyn Bryant
Evelyn was born and raised in Wilmington, NC she is the youngest of 1 brother and 3 sisters. Led by faith, Evelyn believes in family first and that “All things are possible through Christ Jesus”. She has been a legal assistant/office manager for over 25 years. In 2017, she was selected as a Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen of the Lower Cape Fear honoree and recipient of the Phenomenal Woman Award, featured in Wilmington Biz among 100 Connectors, and 2019 Women to Watch.
She is a community activist, bringing people and resources together, and is passionate about creating social change within her community. She has worked as a community organizer and resident with Voyage Community Council on gentrification and displacement. She has worked with NHRMC on the Northside Health Assessment. Evelyn created Northside Bridge Builders, a grassroots organization dedicated to educate and uplift individuals and families who are/have experienced hardships do to unforeseen circumstances. She also serves as the President of the YWCA Lower Cape Fear, Past Chair of the Community Relations Advisory Committee; Secretary for the New Hanover County Board of Elections; Chair of City of Wilmington Commission on African American History, she serves as a board member for L.I.N.C, Inc., the Blue Ribbon Commission, City of Wilmington Civil Service Commission, and the SENC Martin Luther King Committee.
Evelyn has two beautiful daughters, one a 2017 graduate of UNCG and the other is a student at Isaac Bear Early College High School.
Russell E. Martin, Jr.
Russell is an IT Professional, a consultant and partner with Diversified Technology Group and owner of REM Technology LLC. Diversified Technology is one of only a few black-owned entities that have access to a nationwide network of IT solutions for companies of all sizes. Russell is a history buff, is known for rendering thought-provoking conversations, while at the same time can be the life of the party. This makes him relevant and well received by the youth in the community, where he recently was awarded a mentorship award by the Youth In Action Youth Group.
He is an NHHS Class of 81 Member and "Aggie" (N.C. A&T University, Greensboro, NC) and also serves on the Steering Council and Black Commission for the Catholic Church. He is active with politics and volunteers for his precinct in the Mecklenburg County Democratic Party.
Russell has been a resident of Charlotte, NC for the last 29 years, and is a Father of 4. He still enjoys playing competitive Basketball and Singing with his Church Choir at Our Lady of Consolation Catholic Church.
Anthony Martin
Anthony Martin has always had a desire to help others and make a positive difference for all in the community. From his years as Class President and JROTC Battalion Commander, Anthony has always been a leader and a voice.
As a 1983 graduate of New Hanover High School, it has always been his intention to come back and inspire and assist of this community in a positive way. Anthony’s past experience as a college tutor and Upward Bound instructor will be beneficial. He is a 1987 Graduate of UNC-Chapel Hill and a proud member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Inc., with his introduction as a youth coming from the Wilmington Alumni Chapter.
Anthony provides services for the elderly and veterans in the Triangle area through a non-profit I formed called RunTellit Inc. He appreciates the opportunity to be a positive force in the lives of our youth and in the community!
Haywood Newkirk
Haywood is a native of Wilmington, North Carolina and a New Hanover High School Graduate (1982). After receiving his undergraduate degree from UNC in 1986, he worked for the US Congress in Washington, DC. for a short time. He then attended the University of Florida where he received an MBA in Real Estate Finance. After graduation he worked for KPMG and Arthur Anderson as a Real Estate Consultant and Appraiser in Atlanta, GA. His client list included the Carolina Panthers, Trump Properties, the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games and the International Olympic Committee.
In 1995 he returned to Wilmington, NC and started the Clontz Newkirk Real Estate Group with his stepfather, Jim Clontz. Haywood is a Certified General Appraiser in North Carolina, South Carolina, Maryland and Florida, as well as a Licensed Real Estate Broker in North Carolina. Haywood is an avid surfer and waterman enjoying his free time with two lovely daughters.
Jeffrey Howard
Jeffrey is the Information Technology Manager for International Paper Mill Riegelwood Operations, supporting the mill Information Technology infrastructure for 22 years. Jeffrey also serves on the International Paper Diversity and Inclusion Council and holds a BS degree in Business Administration, Management and Organizational Development from the University of Mount Olive.
President (Polemarch) of the Wilmington (NC) Alumni Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Inc. His strong leadership efforts include supporting the Wilmington (NC) Alumni Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi Reading /Mentoring program for the Community Boys and Girls Club. Jeffrey has also served as a board member for Men and Women United for Youth and families and has contributed in helping the organization support youth and families in Columbus, Bladen, Brunswick and New Hanover counties.
Dave Spetrino
Dave is the Founder of PBC Design+Build, a full-service home builder / developer based in Wilmington, N.C. With attention to quality design and construction, an eye to local history and a sincere commitment to customer service, he utilizes more than twenty-five years of experience in the construction, real estate and development industries to build better homes and better communities.
Spetrino’s community involvement has included the Board of Directors for the Wilmington Chamber of Commerce as well as Board Chairman for Wilmington Downtown Inc (WDI), the public/private entity tasked with supporting economic development for Downtown Wilmington. More recently he served as the President of the Wilmington-Cape Fear Home Builders Association (HBA), Member of the City of Wilmington / New Hanover County Joint Ad-Hoc Affordable/Workforce Housing Committee and the current Board Chair for the New Hanover County/ City ofWilmington Workforce Housing Advisory Committee (WFAH). Spetrino received his BA in business administration from Radford University and earned his North Carolina General Contractors Unlimited License in 1997.
He resides in Wrightsville Beach with his wife, Kathy, and two sons, Nic and Lane. As a private pilot, he enjoys flying and traveling with his family.
Renee Smith
Committed to the success of students, educators, and institutions of learning, Renee Smith is a professional educator with first-hand experience teaching children through adults while forging opportunities between schools and their surrounding communities. Her current role with NHS includes working with applicants, recipients, and school partners to support students along their personal educational journeys. Along with a master’s degree in Education, she has accumulated decades of teaching, consulting, and advising experience. Renee has developed a deep appreciation of learning processes, innovative strategies, and differentiated instruction, which enhances curriculum development and assessments. She is passionate about empowering and inspiring students through STEM education which directly impacts upward mobility and economic opportunity. In addition to PK-12 experience, she has taught at the community college, and university levels, where she was recognized with an award for her dedication to student success.
Kevin Spears
Born and raised in Wilmington, Kevin is serving his first term on City Council. He has an Associate's Degree in Computer Engineering Technology from Cape Fear Community College and a Bachelor's Degree in Information Technology with a Minor in Africana Studies from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington.
Kevin has long been a community advocate and volunteer. Prior to his election, he was a member of the city’s Parks and Recreation Advisory Board and has served as the president of Peace For the Port, a non-profit organization focusing on community violence, as well as chairman of the MLK Jr. Recreation Association, which is a non-profit focusing on recreational and educational programs for inner city youth.
Currently working as a legal assistant, Kevin is a member of the New Hanover County NAACP and spends most of his time at community functions and with his family.
Philip Brown
Philip Brown is a vascular surgeon who since 2016 has served as the Chief Physician Executive at New Hanover Regional Medical Center in Wilmington. Prior to that he was president at Wilmington Health, where he worked for more than a decade. Dr. Brown received his MD from the Brody School of Medicine at ECU and completed his residency at Pitt Memorial Hospital in Greenville, then a fellowship at Johns Hopkins Hospital. He then served for two years as Assistant Professor of Vascular Surgery at Brody School of Medicine before returning to private practice in his hometown of Wilmington in 2004. Long involved in organized medicine, Dr. Brown is former president of the New Hanover-Pender County Medical Society.
A North Carolina Medical Society member since 1991, Dr. Brown is an alumnus of the NCMS Foundation’s Kanof Institute for Physician Leadership. He has been involved in many aspects of the society’s governance through his service on a variety of committees and task forces over the years, including his current roles as co-chair of the Kanof Institute and Chief Strategy Officer for NCMS. He has served on the NCMS Board of Directors since 2015 and the NCMS Foundation Board of Trustees since 2019, ultimately becoming President of the society in October, 2020. Dr. Brown’s current passion is to help lead the health care transformation from its current focus on healing the sick to a relentless dedication to create the conditions for comprehensive wellness, such that every person has the opportunity to reach their highest level of health. He believes that Wilmington and Southeastern NC are poised to become the nucleus of Destination Health, a North Carolina collection of the healthiest communities in the nation.
Laura Glantz
Laura is the owner/founder of Laura Glantz Photo & Design, LLC based in Wilmington, NC. providing graphic design, web design and photography services. She was raised in Fort Mill, SC and also spent 18 years in Texas. While in Texas she served in the US Air Force as a B1 Bomber hydraulic mechanic, graduated from Abilene Christian University earning her BFA in Graphic Design and winning 8 American Advertising ADDY Awards for her design work. Laura has provided/provides her graphic design and photography services for nonprofit organizations who work with the at risk and challenged youth, cancer and disabled surf charities and also pet rescue and adoption centers. She has a desire with her photography and design talents to bring awareness of the beauty and struggle written in the faces of those who have a story to tell. Telling these stories through visuals is a vital role in how changes are made.
When she isn’t working, Laura spends most of her time on the water as an avid surf paddle boarder, behind the lens shooting photos or at home working out, cooking new recipes, relaxing and reading on a wide range of topics. Laura resides in Wilmington, NC and loves having the ocean just down the road to always find an adventure on.