Betty Willis

As Senior Advisor of Community & Local Government Affairs, Betty Willis works closely with metro Atlanta government officials and with business, community, and nonprofit leaders on a variety of issues impacting Emory University and Emory Healthcare. She also serves as executive director of the Clifton Community Partnership and president of the Clifton Corridor Transportation Management Association. Prior to coming to Emory, Willis worked in governmental affairs for 15 years in Washington, D.C., where she was a lobbyist for scientific research organizations, served as director of the Washington office for the state of Georgia, and was a legislative assistant to a Georgia congressman.

Willis has been deeply engaged in the metro Atlanta community for more than two decades and currently serves on the boards of Advance DeKalb, Central Atlanta Progress, DeKalb Chamber of Commerce, DeKalb History Center, Regional Business Coalition of Metropolitan Atlanta, Tucker-Northlake Community Improvement District, and Villa International. She also serves on the Atlanta Regional Commission's Strategic Relations Committee and the Metro Atlanta Chamber's Business Advocacy Roundtable, and the DeKalb County School Superintendent's Principal Advisory Council. Willis is a member of the Decatur Rotary Club and the Commerce Club and is an alumna of Leadership Atlanta, Leadership DeKalb, and the Atlanta Regional Commission's Regional Leadership Institute. Honors include the Emory Community Builder Award, Omicron Delta Kappa National Leadership Honor Society, and Georgia Trend magazine's 100 Most Influential: Notable Georgians (2004–2014).

A native of Bainbridge, Georgia, Willis received a BS from Radford University.