Faculty Profile: Kyonzte Hughes-Toombs

Kyonzte Toombs is a “Double Dore” having completed her undergraduate studies in 2001 at Vanderbilt University as well as graduating from Vanderbilt’s law school in 2004. Kyonzte also holds an MBA from Emory University and a Tax LLM from the University of Alabama. Kyonzte is also in her first term as the Councilwoman for District 2 on Nashville’s Metro Council. Since her election in September 2019, Kyonzte has held multiple leadership positions. She has served as the Vice Chair and Chair of the Council’s Budget and Finance Committee. Last year, while serving as Budget Chair, her substitute budget passed the Council unanimously becoming the city’s budget for Fiscal Year 2022. Kyonzte has also spearheaded millions of dollars in much needed investment in her district.

Kyonzte has spent the majority of her career in public service with nearly 14 years of experience working as an attorney for the State of Tennessee. Kyonzte has spent 12 of those years with the Tennessee Department of Health (TDH) serving in the Office of General Counsel as Associate General Counsel, Senior Associate General Counsel, and Deputy General Counsel over the Facilities and Entities Team. Kyonzte was recently promoted to Deputy Director of TDH’s Division of Health Licensure and Regulation.

Kyonzte is actively been involved in the community. Selected by her peers as one of the 2021 Best of the Bar and by the Nashville Business Journal for its 2021 Women of Excellence Award in the Trailblazer category, Kyonzte served on the board of the Lawyers Association for Women – Marion Griffin Chapter for several years. She is also a past president of the Napier-Looby Bar Association, past secretary of the Nashville Bar Association, and past board member of the Tennessee Lawyers Association for Women. She also served on the PTA board of her kids’ school for 4 years, two of which she served as president.

Kyonzte lives with her husband, DeAngelo, of over 11 years, and has four children.