Create Birmingham Board Appoints Valerie Collins Thomas as Interim Chief Executive Officer Birmingham, Alabama – January 13, 2026 – Create Birmingham announced today that its Board of Directors appointed its dedicated board member Valerie Collins Thomas as the company’s Interim Chief Executive Officer replacing Quang Do. In 2010, Valerie moved to Birmingham from San Antonio, and immediately threw herself into getting to know the city. She fell in love with the historic neighborhoods, the incredible

Viola Ratcliffe is on a mission to empower Birmingham’s creative economy to become a means of sustainable growth for the city and beyond. Meet this month’s inspiring FACE of Birmingham! Image: Create Birmingham by Katie Leigh Matthews, Style Blueprint Viola Ratcliffe has loved the arts for as long as she can remember — from elementary school art classes to earning her master’s in Art History. Now, as Director of Community Engagement at Create Birmingham, she

It’s AMD Creative’s  favorite time of the year – we’re celebrating our Women Making Waves Award winners! This is our 6th year highlighting inspiring women throughout Birmingham who are positively impacting, changing and uplifting their communities through their dedication, passion and selflessness. Whether their contributions are in business, wellness, media and more, each of these ladies showcase their own unique qualities, and we’re honored to recognize them! In honor of International Women’s Day, we’re happy

By Mayor Randall Woodfin Office of Public Information As the City of Birmingham’s first poet laureate, Salaam Green is performing a role she now believes she was born to play. But a year ago? Green was not so sure. Green submitted her application on the edge of the deadline. “When I first became poet laureate, I was reminded that I grew up with very little exposure to poetry or poets,” she said. “I did not