Mandy was raised in Pleasant Grove, Alabama by a single-working mother. Early exposure to domestic violence led her to develop strong convictions about justice, child protection, and gender equality. Additionally, the combination of living through the April 27th tornado that struck Pleasant Grove and her mom being diagnosed with stage 3 colon cancer shortly after cultivated her deep commitment to community, environmental justice, and accessible healthcare.

Mandy is an active member of her community. She is the founder and board president of Transparency Alabama. Previously, she has served as the Community Science & Research Coordinator for the Greater-Birmingham Alliance to Stop Pollution (GASP), a policy & communications fellow and community builder for People’s Budget Birmingham (PBB), an afterschool program coordinator for Central Park and Ensley Parks & Recreation, and a substitute teacher and ex ed paraeducator in multiple school districts.

Mandy is a proud 2021 graduate of JCIB high school, where she was the founder and president of the Sustainability Club. Mandy has a degree in Geography with a minor in Philosophy. She graduated sumna cum laude from the University of Alabama in December 2022. During her time at UA, Mandy received the Iredell Jenkins award for the best student of philosophy. Mandy is currently attending law school. She hopes to become an advocate for Alabama’s waterways, environmental justice, domestic violence prevention and child protection, accessible education, and transparency in local government.

During her spare time, Mandy enjoys hiking, learning muay thai, finding cool rocks, headbanging to obnoxious music, and playing with her dog, Thor, and cats, Scrump and Maui.

Watch her story in the 2024 Southern Exposure Film, FORCES OF NATURE.