Frederick Spight is the Program Manager of the Alabama Entrepreneurship Institute (“AEI”), based at The Edge. Prior to joining AEI he was the Interim Director of the Entrepreneurship & Nonprofit Clinic (“E-Clinic”), and Assistant Professor of Clinical Legal Instruction. He oversaw the successful legal representation of startups, small businesses, nonprofits and other forms of enterprise. Forming relationships with local and national organizations, including the United States Copyright Office. He is a native of Marietta, GA and received his Bachelors in History from Morehouse College. He also received his Juris Doctorate from Wake Forest University School of Law. Prior to Joining the University of Alabama School of Law he was the Policy Director at Alabama Appleseed where he oversaw the passage of legislation that provides relief to low-income Alabamians by enabling many to retain their driver’s licenses that would otherwise be suspended due to traffic tickets.
He came to Alabama to join Legal Services of Alabama as a part of its first cohort of John Lewis Fellows. While primarily practicing in public benefits law he also created the JLF Community Growth Project which aimed to focus on the legal needs of small businesses, nonprofits and other community centered organizations within Legal Services’ client demographic. After this, he transitioned roles to take over the Court Debt Project which focused on liberating indigent clients from fines and fees that were assessed as a result of criminal convictions throughout the state of Alabama. This led him to practice state-wide in Municipal, District and Circuit Courts.
He was a former social studies teacher and Mock Trial coach at Carter G. Woodson School in Winston-Salem, NC.
