Ponder Named Executive Director Of Restore Mobile

Dr. Kelley Ponder has been named executive director of Restore Mobile. Ponder comes to the nonprofit after working 25 years in nonprofits in New Orleans. There, she worked on several research projects throughout the city that addressed poverty and public health issues in low-income communities, particularly the Lower Ninth Ward. A native of Fairhope, Ponder began her career as a Peace Corps volunteer in Benin, West Africa, working in the prevention and control of infectious diseases and community development. She went on to earn a master’s of public health and then a doctorate in international development from Tulane University. Her experience ranges from researching food deserts in New Orleans to writing up land tenure reports in Burundi, post-1990s genocide, as well as work on policy and program development with the Ministries of Health in several sub-Saharan nations. She has also worked with the U.S. Department of State on international exchange programs.