CHIEF CHANGE AGENT & FOUNDER

Philip Cooper is a Western North Carolina Native, an accomplished reentry expert, criminal justice reform advocate, and statewide change agent. He is the founder and Chief Change Agent of Operation Gateway Inc., whose mission is to decrease recidivism by addressing the social determinants of health of returning citizens. He is the founder and Leader of Voices of Affrilachia, which is a state funded initiative that is addressing the mental health stigma in the Marginalized Communities of Western North Carolina. He is an MLK Service Award Recipient, the Attorney General’s Dogwood Award Recipient, Appalachian Leadership Fellow, and Leading with Conviction Fellow with Just Leadership USA. He serves on the Board of Directors of Just Economics of WNC and is a Celebrate Recovery Leader at Revol Church. Philip believes that those closest to the problem are the closest to the solution and this is why he is fully committed to teaching people how to leverage their lived experience to change the world.