Texas State alumna receives Austin Under 40 Award

SAN MARCOS, Texas — For Angel Leverett, the path to becoming an award-winning marketing and communications professional began with lessons she learned long before she entered the workforce.

Raised by a single mother in El Paso, Leverett watched firsthand what determination and sacrifice could accomplish. Those experiences continue to influence her work as vice president of marketing and communications for Austin Habitat for Humanity, where she helps tell stories that connect people to the organization's mission of expanding affordable homeownership across Central Texas.

That work recently earned Leverett, a BBA marketing alumna of Texas State University's McCoy College of Business, the Austin Under 40 Award in Advertising, Marketing & Public Relations.

"It was a huge pinch-me moment," Leverett said. "It was amazing to be a finalist with people I admire."

When her name was announced as the winner, she was caught completely off guard.

"I cried all the way [to the stage]," she said. "It was shock, tears of joy, gratitude, and a mix of emotions."

The Austin Under 40 Awards, presented annually by the Young Men's Business League, recognize emerging professionals for their career achievements, community involvement, and leadership.

Looking back, Leverett says many of the experiences and relationships that influenced her career began at McCoy College.

She points to mentors such as professor and assistant chair of the Marketing Department, Dr. Gail Zank, whose guidance through Leverett’s time as an officer for the American Marketing Association helped shape her career, and retired professor and former director of the college’s Center for Professional Sales, Vicki West, who connected her with the opportunity that launched her first role at Nestlé.  

Leverett's career spans both the corporate and nonprofit sectors, including roles with Nestlé, Target, and CDW. At Austin Habitat for Humanity, Leverett leads the organization's brand strategy, integrated marketing campaigns, media relations, digital marketing, content strategy, and public engagement efforts across a five-county service area. Her work supports fundraising, volunteer recruitment, homebuyer outreach, advocacy, and retail operations, helping expand awareness of affordable homeownership while driving measurable organizational growth.

Among the accomplishments Leverett is most proud of is helping secure Austin as the host city for the 2025 Jimmy & Rosalynn Carter Work Project. In addition to supporting the bid effort, she helped lead the marketing, communications, media relations, and community engagement strategy for the internationally recognized event, which brought together more than 1,700 volunteers to build 25 homes in a single week.

“We're building affordable homes… for all different walks of life,” Leverett said. “It's such a rewarding thing to do — to help a family or an individual achieve the American dream.”