Mikayla Beck, Marketing Account Director at BREAD, has graduated from the Area Development Partnership’s Leadership Pinebelt Class of 2026. The ADP’s Leadership Pinebelt program has spent more than three decades preparing emerging and established leaders to shape the future of Greater Hattiesburg. Over the program year, class members step inside the businesses, institutions, and civic bodies that drive the Pine Belt, including an Economic Development session at the Jones Co. corporate offices, and leave with a working understanding of how the region actually runs.
Additionally, each class is asked to complete self-driven service initiatives to test their leadership capabilities while positively impacting the Greater Hattiesburg area. Mikayla’s project–”Oh Baby, Buckle Up!”–focused on child car seat access and education to decrease the number of car safety citations given in the area. Partnering with local first responders and law enforcement, Mikayla and her group led fundraising and distributed 125 new car seats to local enforcement agencies. BREAD is immensely proud of Mikayla and the rest of the 2026 class for their commitment to our community.
Mikayla joins a growing line of BREAD team members and Leadership Pinebelt alumni: Abigail Slocum (2025); Haley Ford Harrison (2024), recipient of the Susan Walker Community Leadership Award; and Wes Brooks (2013). Mikayla leads marketing accounts for BREAD, bringing her previous experience in national logistics and local business operations at Jones Companies, along with a psychology degree from William Carey University, to the work of keeping client relationships organized, honest, and moving forward. Her graduation reflects BREAD’s continued investment in its people and the old adage Mikayla brings to every account: “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”