Title: Base Building Specialist
Company: Organizer Zero
Location: Nashville, Tennessee, United States
John H. Little III, Base Building Specialist at Organizer Zero, has been recognized by Marquis Who’s Who Top Executives for dedication, achievements, and leadership in Education and Nonprofit Leadership.
Mr. Little has established a distinguished career at the intersection of education and nonprofit service. As a base-building specialist with Organizer Zero, a parent power-building organization in the Nashville metropolitan area, since 2015, he has dedicated over five years to advancing grassroots engagement and strengthening community networks. In this capacity, Mr. Little has demonstrated expertise in relationship-building, a skill that has earned him recognition as an authority in his field.
Apart from his work here, Mr. Little served as the director of organizing and outreach for Nashville PROPEL from 2018 to 2021. During this period, he led initiatives to empower families and communities, particularly parent leaders, fostering greater participation in educational advocacy throughout Nashville. Mr. Little’s leadership was instrumental in expanding outreach efforts and building sustainable partnerships in public education.
From 2015 to 2019, Mr. Little gained experience as the organizing director at Memphis Lift in Memphis, Tennessee, where he championed racial change within the public school system, fighting for equitable access to quality education for all students. Between 2007 and 2018, Mr. Little worked as a managing partner at Little-Smith Strategies LLC, a political strategies firm. In this entrepreneurial role, he spent over a decade providing strategic guidance to clients and providing impactful solutions.
Earlier, Mr. Little was the director of school partnerships at Tennessee Charter School Center, the state’s primary charter school support organization, in Nashville, from 2012 to 2015. He also served as a lead recruiter in the office of Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen between 2007 and 2009. This formative experience introduced Mr. Little to public service and policy work, laying the foundation for his subsequent roles in education and advocacy.
Mr. Little studied at Tennessee State University, where he acquired a Bachelor of Business Administration in marketing management in 2006. Further enhancing his credentials, he completed executive leadership coursework through Harvard University’s division of continuing education.
Mr. Little’s professional journey is complemented by active membership in several industry-related and civic organizations, including the Pahara Institute, the Resnick Center for Herbert Bayer Studies at the Aspen Institute and the NAACP. He is also engaged as a volunteer with Touchstone Ministries and the Afro-Academic, Cultural, Technological, and Scientific Olympics, a youth initiative of the NAACP. Furthermore, Mr. Little supports the Happy Gappy Program at a local elementary school and serves on the boards of Invictus Charter School and Smithson Craighead.
Among Mr. Little’s most notable achievements, he won a school board election in 2020. This victory not only allowed him to teach and perform but also to directly influence educational policy and serve his community more deeply.
In recognition of his accomplishments, Mr. Little received several honors, including a Service Award from Tennessee State University, recognition as Public Charter Advocate of the Year, inclusion on the City of Nashville’s Top Politicos list, and selection as one of the Top 40 Under 40. He attributes his achievements to a combination of strategic thinking, generosity in relationships and heartfelt commitment to meaningful work, even when faced with adversity. He also credits his faith for guiding him through challenges, as well as mentorship from those who have invested in his leadership.
Mr. Little’s career reflects an unwavering dedication to empowering communities through education, advocacy and strategic leadership. Looking ahead, he envisions developing an affordable community called Teacher Town, designed not only for educators but also for public service professionals in Nashville, to address critical housing needs amid rising living costs nationwide.
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