Alfred is a native of Memphis, Tennessee. Prior to Leadership Tennessee, Alfred served as the Associate Vice Chancellor for Local Government Relations and Community Partnerships at Vanderbilt University, where he worked closely with campus leaders on institutional priorities and with local policymakers on issues pertaining to zoning and land-use matters.

Alfred is a former public administrator with senior leadership experience on the local, state, and federal levels of government. He served as the chief administrative officer and chief deputy clerk in the Office of the Davidson County Criminal Court Clerk. Prior to working for Metro-Nashville government, he was counsel to a member of the U.S. House of Representatives and coordinated community outreach for Davidson, Dickson, and Cheatham counties. His state legislative experience includes working for the Speaker Pro Tempore of the Tennessee House of Representatives and as a legislative assistant to a Tennessee State Senator. Degrafinreid holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Tennessee State University, a Doctor of Jurisprudence from Indiana University’s Robert H. McKinney School of Law, and is pursuing a Doctor of Education from Peabody College at Vanderbilt University.

Degrafinreid has served on dozens of boards in the past. He is currently an officer and board member of Nashville’s Convention Center Authority, the Rotary Club of Nashville, and the Nashville St. Jude Executive Leadership Council. Of note, Degrafinreid is a Class VII graduate of Leadership Tennessee.