Hollie C. Cost, Ph.D., is the Assistant Vice President for University Outreach and Public Service at Auburn University. She was the mayor of Montevallo, Alabama, from 2012 until 2020, beginning her civic service as a Montevallo city council member in 2004. She served as a professor of special education at the University of Montevallo from 2000-2020 where she also led their outreach and engagement efforts. She is a graduate of Leadership Alabama, is certified by Alabama League of Municipalities as an Advanced Municipal Official, serves on the boards of directors for the National Issues Forum Institute and the David Mathews Center for Civic Life, and is a founding partner of Keys to the City, a community coaching firm.