Kirsten Ert Acuff

Kirsten Ert Acuff, city manager of Lakesite, has been selected to join the 32 members of the Leadership Tennessee NEXT program. Leadership Tennessee NEXT is an opportunity for early to mid-career young leaders to create cross-state, cross-sector networks, learn about Tennessee’s strengths and challenges, and prepare to serve their local and professional communities as they become the next generation of Tennessee leaders. Acuff has been Lakesite’s first, full-time city manager since 2022. She is a native of Halle, Germany, where she studied political science at Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg. She completed her bachelor’s degree at the University of Hawai’i in 20214 and worked as a senate research coordinator under the late Hawai’i State Sen. Sam Slom. She then moved to Chattanooga to earn a master’s in public administration at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. She then served as senior community planner for the city of Collegedale.