Leslie Smith candidly shares her journey from an abusive childhood to college and to a professional career, currently as the leader of the Omaha Municipal Land Bank, a quasi-public nonprofit organization that transforms vacant and abandoned properties into community assets, manifesting Smith’s passion for improving the quality of life for all people.

Leslie Smith, a native Mississippian, serves as the Executive Director for the Omaha Municipal Land Bank, where she leads the organization’s efforts helping to stimulate the local economy by addressing systemic vacancy issues at its core. Before coming to Omaha, Smith worked for Truist Bank developing inclusive lending mortgage strategies. As one of the foundational programs of the Blight Authority Memphis, a quasi-governmental nonprofit, Smith helped launch and lead what became a full-scale operational land bank serving the city of Memphis, energizing her passion for improving all residents’ quality of life regardless of their zip code.