AJ Byrd completed his BA Degree at William Jewell College and in 1986 completed a Master’s Degree at the UMKC Bloch School of Business.

After completing studies at William Jewell, he served in the US Peace Corps as a teacher in Kenya, Africa. His professional experience includes more than 25 years with Jackson County, paralleled with 15 of those years as a scout and agent for the Denver Broncos.

Since 2006, AJ has served as the MoDOT Community Liaison Officer for the KC District. His efforts include consensus building with key stakeholders, unions, pre-apprentice trainers, contractors, and community leaders that resulted in Kansas City Area contractors and Community Leaders making a commitment that a percentage of Federal Highway funds allocated locally be spent on training of minorities and females for highway construction.

He has served on the Liberty Housing Authority Board and the Street Improvement Committee. He is also a member of the Kansas City NAACP Chapter; he completed two (2) terms as President of the KC Chapter of the Conference of Minority Transportation Officials (COMTO) and currently serves as President of the Clay County African American Legacy (CCAAL).

He is a member of First Baptist Church of Liberty, where he is currently serving as Chairman of the Deacon board. He serves as President of the Mt. Zion District Laymen Auxiliary and has served as Missouri Baptist Jr. Laymen Director for 20+ years.

Mr. Byrd is the father of two, the grandfather of five, and the great-grandfather of one. He and his wife, Theresa, have two daughters who graduated from Liberty High School.  AJ and Theresa are also both graduates of Liberty High School.   

His primary reason for seeking a Board position is to insure that all students have the opportunity to receive the best education the Liberty Community can offer them. Deeply rooted in the American value system is universal education being the great equalizer and the foundation why so many people in the U.S have succeeded in so many areas and a key reason upward mobility has been achieved by so many of our citizens, including himself.

AJ’s personal motto is, "The best way to build great programs or great projects is to first build great relationships.”