FOUNDER

Rev. Dr. Vincent Howell is the founder of CLASS (formerly Interfaith Alliance of Clemmons and Lewisville). At the time of the organization's founding, he served as the pastor of the Centenary United Methodist Church, Clemmons. Previously, he has served churches in North Carolina, Kentucky, and New York. Vincent is a 2022 graduate of Leadership Lewisville Clemmons.

A native of Shelby, NC, Vincent has been a bi-vocational pastor for over 35+ years, and over that time, has developed a strong interest in church leadership development. (He retired from Corning Incorporated as Manager of Intellectual Asset Protection in 2015.) He is the author of MBA Quick Book for Ministers, and Managing Projects in Ministry. Serving community boards is important to him, something he has done over the years.

Vincent and his wife Carolyn met while students at North Carolina A&T State University. They are parents of two adult children, and have two grandchildren. He currently serves as the Director of the Doctor of Ministry Program at Hood Theological Seminary, Salisbury.

Leader

Kathy Giff began the leadership role of CLASS in January 2023. She has been an active member of the group from its beginning as one of the faith community representatives. She brings 20 years of experience working with her church as ministry leader for discipleship and missions and community outreach. Having started her career as children’s minister, she brings a passion for helping children grow to their full potential. Serving as the new Clemmons Lewisville Action for Student Success volunteer leader gives her the opportunity to share her experience and passion in the community where she has lived since 1994.

Kathy and her husband, Brian raised their sons, Patrick and Kevin in the Clemmons community, where they both attended public schools. She and her husband enjoy being active in the community

Community Engagement Facilitator

Since 2019 when she moved to Winston-Salem, Lexi has served as the Community Engagement Facilitator for CLASS. Prior to this role, Lexi has worked in a variety of fields connecting schools, health and community. She worked for Communities in Schools with after-school and school-based mentoring programs, did community organizing in an urban Pittsburgh neighborhood, and then became a hospital chaplain in Raleigh. In Charlotte, Lexi worked for LifeShare, with families whose loved one was a candidate for organ donation, doing family support and organ donation education. Originally from northeast OH and western PA, she has a B.A. from Miami University of Ohio (2004) and a M.Div. from Pittsburgh Theological Seminary (2009).

Lexi and her husband Matt live in Lewisville and have three young children, Selik, Sedona and Jett. When not chasing one of them, Lexi enjoys exercising, gardening and connecting people.