Ashley D. Bell is an American attorney, political advisor, and government official serving as Regional Administrator of the

Small Business Administration The United States Small Business Administration (SBA) is an independent agency of the United States government that provides support to entrepreneurs and small businesses. The mission of the Small Business Administration is "to maintain and stren ...

for Region IV, which is in the

Southeastern United States The Southeastern United States, also referred to as the American Southeast or simply the Southeast, is a geographical region of the United States. It is located broadly on the eastern portion of the southern United States and the southern por ...

. In October 2019, it was announced that Bell would serve as a White House Policy Advisor for Entrepreneurship and Innovation in the

Office of American Innovation The Office of American Innovation (OAI) was an office within the White House Office created by the Trump administration on March 27, 2017. History The purpose of the office was to "make recommendations to the President on policies and plans th ...

Early life and education

Bell was born and raised in Gainesville,

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

. In 2001, Bell earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from

Valdosta State University Valdosta State University (VSU or Valdosta State) is a public university in Valdosta, Georgia. It is one of the four comprehensive universities in the University System of Georgia. , VSU had over 12,000 undergraduate and graduate students. VSU a ...

, where he served as president of the Student Government Association and founded the local chapter of the

Iota Phi Theta Iota Phi Theta Fraternity, Inc. () is a historically African American fraternity. It was founded on September 19, 1963, at Morgan State University (then Morgan State College) in Baltimore, Maryland, and is currently the 5th largest Black Greek Le ...

fraternity. He earned a

Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...

from

Louisiana State University Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 nea ...

. He also attended

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

John F. Kennedy School of Government The Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), officially the John F. Kennedy School of Government, is the school of public policy and government of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school offers master's degrees in public policy, public ...

where he was a 21st Century Leadership Fellow. He also has an honorary doctorate in Intercultural & Urban Studies from Lighthouse College.

Career

Legal career

Bell began his career as a public defender, later co-founding the law firm of Bell & Washington LLP based in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

. Bell initially focused on general civil litigation, later going on to concentrate on public finance and government litigation. Bell was named a 2017 Georgia "Super Lawyer Rising Star", one of the 2016 "Top 40 Young Lawyers" by the

American Bar Association The American Bar Association (ABA) is a voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students, which is not specific to any jurisdiction in the United States. Founded in 1878, the ABA's most important stated activities are the setting of acad ...

, a 2016 “Lawyer on the Rise” by Georgia's leading legal journal. After leaving the Trump Administration in 2020, Bell became a partner in

Dentons Dentons is the largest multinational law firm in the world. Dentons was ranked as the world's 4th- largest law firm by revenue, with $2.9B gross revenue by Global 200 ranking in the fiscal year 2021. The firm is called Dentons in all languages o ...

' policy practice.

Political

Bell was elected to the Hall County, Georgia County Commission at the age of 27. Previously a Democrat, Bell left the party to become a Republican in 2010. From 2011 to 2012, he was the senior surrogate for the

Newt Gingrich 2012 presidential campaign The 2012 presidential campaign of Newt Gingrich, former U.S. Representative from Georgia and Speaker of the House, began shortly following the 2010 midterm elections. He was politically active during the midterm elections, and helped several T ...

. In 2012, he was appointed as a special advisor to

Mitt Romney Willard Mitt Romney (born March 12, 1947) is an American politician, businessman, and lawyer serving as the junior United States senator from Utah since January 2019, succeeding Orrin Hatch. He served as the 70th governor of Massachusetts f ...

during the general election and co-chaired Blacks for Romney with U.S. Senator

Tim Scott Timothy Eugene Scott (born September 19, 1965) is an American businessman and politician serving as the junior United States senator from South Carolina since 2013. A member of the Republican Party, Scott was appointed to the U.S. Senate by Go ...

. In 2014, Bell was the senior surrogate for

Jack Kingston John Heddens Kingston (born April 24, 1955) is an American politician who served as U.S. representative for in southeast Georgia, serving from 1993 to 2015. He is a member of the Republican Party and was part of the House leadership (2002–06) ...

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

campaign. He was also the national co-chair for the

Rand Paul 2016 presidential campaign The 2016 presidential campaign of Rand Paul, the junior United States senator from Kentucky, was announced on April 7, 2015 at an event at the Galt House in Louisville, Kentucky. First elected to the U.S. Senate in the 2010 election, Paul's can ...

. In 2016, Bell was appointed Senior Strategist and National Director of African-American Political Engagement for the

Republican National Committee The Republican National Committee (RNC) is a U.S. political committee that assists the Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican brand and political platform, as well as assisting in fu ...

. in 2017, he joined the Trump Pence Presidential Transition Team, later serving as a Special Assistant in the

Bureau of Public Affairs The Bureau of Public Affairs (PA) was the part of the United States Department of State that carries out the Secretary of State's mandate to help Americans understand the importance of foreign policy. The Bureau was led by the Assistant Secreta ...

. On July 7, 2017, the United States

Peace Corps The Peace Corps is an independent agency and program of the United States government that trains and deploys volunteers to provide international development assistance. It was established in March 1961 by an executive order of President John F. ...

announced Bell as the new Associate Director for External Affairs, overseeing

’ Offices of Communications, Congressional Relations, Gifts and Grants Management, and Strategic Partnerships and Intergovernmental Affairs. Bell was appointed on February 21, 2018 by President

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...

to serve as Regional Administrator for the

U.S. Small Business Administration The United States Small Business Administration (SBA) is an independent agency of the United States government that provides support to entrepreneurs and small businesses. The mission of the Small Business Administration is "to maintain and stre ...

for Region IV; serving nine districts located in

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

, and

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

. Bell has oversight of over $5 billion in SBA-backed lending, the counseling arm of the SBA, which counseled over 225,000 entrepreneurs last year in Region IV, and the contracting programs for small business, which account for over 23% of all federal contracts awarded.

Non-profit and volunteer service

Bell is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of the 20/20 Bipartisan Justice Center, which purports to be the only nationwide coalition of Black Republicans, Democrats and Independents focused on criminal justice reform. He is also the Founder of Generation Inspiration, which describes its mission as being to teach life skills not taught in the classroom to at-risk students of color in Bell's hometown of Gainesville, Georgia, setting them on a trajectory for success.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bell, Ashley African-American people in Georgia (U.S. state) politics Valdosta State University alumni Louisiana State University alumni Small Business Administration personnel African-American lawyers People from Hall County, Georgia Georgia (U.S. state) lawyers Trump administration personnel 21st-century American lawyers 21st-century African-American women 21st-century African-American people African-American women lawyers Public defenders Black conservatism in the United States