Who's Who Diversity in Color 2018

WHO'S WHO

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Who’s Who Diversity in Color wonderfully captures, honors, and memorializes some of the St. Louis region’s brightest diverse men and women. Inclusion in Who’s Who Diversity in Color’s publication is a special recognition that speaks to the remarkable and unique impact each honoree has made to the growth of St. Louis.

Such recognition is important because diversity adds to the depth of intellectual and experiential thinking in every industry, in every profession. As St. Louis continues to weave diversity into its blueprint, Who’s Who Diversity in Color will hopefully be there to continue highlighting the excellence found in some of the region’s best people.

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T H E P E O P L E O F S T. LO U I S C O N T R I B U T E I M M E N S E LY T O T H E O V E R A L L S U B S T A N C E AND SOUL OF THE REGION.

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Although my undergraduate studies brought me to St. Louis, it was an Asian American St. Louis mentor, Johnny Wang, whom I met in law school that helped connect me to the city. From this mentorship, a desire to plant roots in St. Louis took hold and I now am proud to call St. Louis my home.

Foreword

BY RICHARD JUANG

Arriving in St. Louis for college, I never imagined that the Gateway City would be my home so many years later. Yet fifteen years later, I continue to enjoy this beautiful city with its breathtaking greenspaces, architectural delights, and unforgettable character. More importantly, every day I get to see the city’s splendor enhanced by the cultural and ethnic diversification of St. Louis’s population, something that should make all of us proud to call this city our home.

Corporate leaders, engineers, entrepreneurs, not-for-profit professionals, innovators, community advocates, physicians, lawyers, and those in countless other areas of expertise – who are of color – are adding an undeniable burst of intellectual, social, and business vibrancy to the city with their unique perspectives and viewpoints. Their daily contributions help make St. Louis a growing cosmopolitan city welcoming people from all walks of life.

The same mentorship has also led me to join the St. Louis office of Polsinelli, which is one of the largest leading national law firms in the country, where I work on intellectual property litigation with a focus on patents for generic drugs and pharmaceuticals. Through the firm, I have also had the opportunity to meet several great mentors, including Keith J. Grady, an amazing mentor that has helped shaped my career. And importantly, Polsinelli embraces diversity and inclusion firm-wide and promotes the value of the same in every community it serves. The firm supports the community involvement of its people and I am pleased to have had, and to continue to have that support.

Living in St. Louis allowed me to serve as president of the Missouri Asian American Bar Association. While in office, I wanted to use the organization as a tool to increase the number of diverse attorneys practicing in St. Louis. I knew first-hand that law students of color attending schools in the St. Louis region would benefit from having a mentor and that the St. Louis region would benefit from having them remain.

My love for the region continues to grow and I have been afforded many opportunities to serve my community. I know and trust that there is room in the St. Louis region for diverse men and women of every age to serve, contribute, and enhance this great region.

It is a pleasure to congratulate the 2018 Who’s Who Diversity in Color honorees and to celebrate the vibrancy they add to the tapestry of beauty that is St. Louis.

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4TH EDITION

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2018

Table of Contents PG. 3

Foreword

by Richard Juang

PG. 6

Criteria for Inclusion PG. 7

Meet the Team PG. 8

Letters of Greeting PG 15

Introduction

by Ann Marr

PG. 17

Publisher’s Remarks

by Ericca Willis PG. 21

Host Committee

PG. 27

Diversity & Higher Education

Thirteen area university chancellors and presidents speak to diversity

PG. 24

Regional Business Council Celebrating 10 Years

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PG. 57

Organizational Highlights

Urban League of Metropolitan Saint Louis, Inc. Celebrating a Century of Service

PG. 69

PG. 137

Most Intriguing

Best, Boldest & Brightest

PG. 99

Corporate Highlights

WHO'S WHO

PG. 131

Executive Profile

Metropolitan Sewer District & St. Louis Children’s Hospital

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Criteria For Inclusion Who’s Who Diversity in Color® is an opportunity for us to afford a measure of recognition to men and women of color who have made their mark in their specific occupations, professions, or in service to others in the Greater St. Louis region A sincere effort was made to include those whose positions or accomplishments in their chosen fields are significant and whose contributions to community affairs, whether citywide or on the neighborhood level, have improved the quality of life for all of us.

The names of those brief biographies included in this edition were compiled from customary sources of information. Lists of a wide variety were consulted and every effort was made to reach all whose stature or civic activities merited their inclusion.

In today’s mobile society, no such publication could ever claim to be complete; some who should be included could not be reached or chose not to respond, and for that we offer our apologies. Constraints of time, space and awareness are thus responsible for other omissions, and not a lack of good intentions on the part of the publisher. Our goal was to document the accomplishments of many woman of color from various occupational disciplines.

An invitation to participate in this event was extended at the discretion of the Publisher and a committee of Human Resource professionals. Biographies were invited to contribute personal and professional data, with only the information freely submitted to be included. The editors have made a sincere effort to present an accurate distillation of the data, and to catch errors whenever possible. However, Who’s Who Diversity in Color® cannot assume any responsibility for the accuracy of the information submitted.

There was no charge for consideration of this recognition, also inclusion was not guaranteed; this will be an annual publication. Comments and other concerns should be addressed to: Ericca Willis, Publisher Who’s Who Diversity in Color® 7274 South Winchester, Suite 200 Saint Louis, Missouri 63121 Phone: (314) 473-5257

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Meet the Team

Ericca Willis Publisher

Keith A. Willis Sr.

Brittany P. Davison

Senior Vp Of Sales & Marketing

Contributing Editor

Robin Boyce

Danny Boyd

Writer

Writer

Inquiries for bulk book orders for schools or commemorative plaques should be directed to: info@whoswhodiversityincolor.com and (314) 473-5257 Who’s Who Diversity in Color, LLC 7274 South Winchester, Suite 200 Saint Louis, Missouri 63121 Ericca@wwdicstlouis.com www.whoswhodiversityincolor.com

Brad Glotfelty

Erica M. Brooks

Marie Burns

Creative Director / Designer

Photojournalist

Intern Editort

All books are $39.95 Each

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FROM THE

M AYO R

OF

S T. LO U I S

Lyda Krewson

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FROM THE

COUNTY EXECUTIVE

Steven V. Stenger

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PRESIDENT ALDERMAN

FROM THE OF

Lewis E. Reed

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FROM THE

COLLECTOR

OF

REVENUE

Gregory F. X. Daly

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P R E S I D E N T & C E O OF THE REGIONAL BUSINESS COUNCIL

FROM THE

Kathy T. Osborn

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P R E S I D E N T OF S T. LO U I S C O N V E N T I O N AND V I S I TO R S COMMISSION

FROM THE

Kathleen M. Ratcliffe

Greetings!

We’d like to congratulate all the awardees who have been recognized by the Who’s Who Diversity in Color for 2018. This recognition not only honors your accomplishments but those of people from across our region whose contributions continue to highlight St. Louis as a welcoming and diverse community.

Travel and tourism remain one of the top industries in St. Louis City and County, helping to provide jobs for 88,000 area residents. Those workers earn $3.17 billion in wages that help fuel the economic growth and vitality of our region. There’s no question tourism is big business, but it means so much more when we have the unique opportunity to educate everyone who visits us about our innovative, culturally-rich and dynamic offerings for visitors that re-enforce our storied history and promising future.

We recently launched a series of TV spots featuring award-winning actor and star of NBC’s “This is Us,” Sterling K. Brown. This new campaign sets out to highlight St. Louis’ lesser-known aspects that make the city special. In the spots, Brown shares what he loves about St. Louis, the city he calls home. We are excited to partner with Sterling as just like this year’s honorees, he represents everything good about our city.

We hope will join us and our hospitality partners across the region as we open our arms to the more than 25 million people who will visit us this year alone. With our world-class hotels, restaurants, and attractions, there is truly something for everyone to enjoy and explore in St. Louis.

Again, congratulations to all the winners. You are all a testament to what it truly means to be a St. Louis ambassador!

Sincerely,

Kathleen M. “Kitty” Ratcliffe President

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CONGRATULATIONS

Ann Marr Vice President of Global Human Resources As Vice President of Global Human Resources, Ann Marr oversees all human resources functions, which include talent management, policy development, benefits administration, training, leadership development and employee relations as well as managing the company’s supplier diversity program. Ann has over 20 years of human resources experience and has held positions with Enterprise Rent-A-Car and Anheuser-Busch Companies. Ann is also chair of the WWT Charitable Foundation and is very active in the St. Louis community. Ann serves on the board of the St. Louis Regional Chamber Association, Maryville University Board of Trustees, St. Louis Police Foundation and the United Way of Greater St. Louis. Ann holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in human resources management from Webster University.

everyone.

enterprise.com Enterprise Rent-A-Car is a socially responsible corporation. For more information please visit enterprise.com. Enterprise and the ‘e’ logo are registered trademarks of Enterprise Rent-A-Car. ©2017 Enterprise Rent-A-Car.

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homogeneous teams and outperform their peers every time.

Diversity also sparks innovation and creativity among teams.

The effects of diversity on process and performance are highly connected to positive outcomes. We champion this culture and have developed a Diversity & Inclusion program focused on leadership and workplace cultures that are inclusive as well as relevant to our overall business objectives.

WWT is on a journey to showcase our commitment to corporate and social responsibility. With rapid growth and expanding markets, we have taken great measures to not only be on the leading edge of innovation, but to also be responsible and protective of our environment. For us, it means implementing a corporate-wide policy demonstrating our commitment to CSR. Making a positive social and business impact on the world requires a combination of corporate social responsibility and a desire to embrace diversity in people and ideas.

Our award-winning Supplier Diversity Program provides support for minorities, women, and small, disadvantaged businesses as we strive to ensure these organizations are given opportunities to showcase their value in support of our customers. Our program actively seeks new opportunities for diverse supplier engagements through our overall procurement strategy, launches internal advocacy campaigns, and develops networking events with external resources to foster the exploration of new diverse suppliers.

Introduction BY: ANN MARR

At World Wide Technology, innovation is at the forefront of everything we do. We strive to provide the next generation of cutting-edge technology to our customers and partners through innovation and creativity. Our employees play an important role at WWT and through their efforts we have created an amazing culture that will stand the test of time. This culture is based on our company’s core values – Trust, Humility, Embrace Change, Passion, Attitude, Team Player, and Honesty & Integrity (THE PATH). With these efforts, our focus has been on creating a Profitable, Growth company that is also a Great Place to Work!

Through recruitment, workforce inclusion, and education we provide our employees with the needed resources for success; our Great Place to Work atmosphere is maintained by always putting our employees first. Employees are not only encouraged to advance their competencies in the workplace, but are also offered training and other resources to succeed.

Workforce diversity is positively associated with higher business performance outcomes. Diverse teams are more creative than

WWT works closely with the National Minority Supplier Development Council (NMSDC) and its affiliate regional councils located throughout the country to ensure the certification process and other corporate support. Also, we want to acknowledge and award top WWT suppliers for their commitment to our goals.

Our Global Community Impact program supports non-profit organizations and community outreach initiatives throughout the country. These programs focus on impacting the lives of individuals and families while providing resources and skills to create a better life. We encourage all employees to participate in community outreach programs by sponsoring team building activities with an emphasis on volunteering and a spirit of giving throughout the community. Our goal is to create positive change for communities around the globe.

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I AM SO PROUD TO BE A PART OF THE WWT T E A M A N D T H E G LO B A L I M PACT W E H AV E TO CHANGE THE LANDSCAPE OF TECHNOLOGY A N D D I G I TA L T R A N S F O R M AT I O N .

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We are also dedicated and focused on creating a Profitable, Growth company that is also a Great Place to Work. I am honored to support Who’s Who Diversity in Color and congratulate them on their continued efforts to impact communities across the country!

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Publisher’s Remarks BY: ERICCA WILLIS

Diversity, what does that word really mean? It has different meanings for different people. Upon googling its definition, it stated, “it’s a range of different things.” We could have gone in so many directions utilizing that word. In this special edition, we focused on its importance on university and college campuses. Turns out the participating presidents believe as we do, of the necessity of having a diverse community, enhances the education of young minds.

I shutter to think how bland and uninteresting this world would be without the diversity of it’s citizens. Imagining days of eating the same type of food and wearing the same type of clothing and yes, only allowed to think in one spectrum of thought would be a nightmare. Luckily, for us, we are free to allow ourselves to expand beyond all boundaries, ones that are set and the ones we set for our own lives. We are free to enjoy cuisine from across the globe, possibly without ever leaving the confines of the United States. And for the fashionista’s in the house, where would we be without the latest new and different fashion trend we look forward to season after season? I for one, am glad we don’t have to find out. As history has proven time and time again, some of the greatest discoveries and developments have happen in our great nation, because some one was bold enough to have a diverse thought of mind and had the courage to act upon that thought for the greater good!

In this climate, we are constantly reminded that we should keep

watch on things and people that do not look or think like we do and why?

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DIVERSITY IS SOMETHING TO BE C E L E B R AT E D A N D D A R E I S AY, L E A R N E D .

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When you open your mind to acceptance and if not acceptance, at the very least tolerance, you open yourself up to a brighter new world. Everyday there is something that can be taught, as learning is a lifelong process. My hope is that we focus on learning from and celebrating one another, no matter, how we look, think or move through the universe. The old adage of “never judge a book by it’s cover”, is true and people prove it everyday by actions and deeds.

Let’s allow love and openness to win, as we increasingly learn to live in this vastly diverse nation and world of ours. I am encouraged, by the statements of diversity from the college presidents, as they are in charge of shaping the young minds that are passing through and embarking on creating our next generation of policy makers, clergy, entrepreneurs, scientists, engineers etcetera. May we forever embrace, celebrate and cherish, that which is diverse in our world! who’s who diversity in color

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Great strength. More heart.

At Midland States Bank, our Great strength. More heart. brand of banking is made possible through the ideas, perspectives and collaboration of our 700+ associates. We join Who’s Who Diversity in Color in proudly supporting diversity and inclusion in our workforce and communities.

Cynthia Carr

Director Information Security

Patricia Fong

Senior Trust Officer

Abraham Rezex President Mortgage

Aaron Rios Director Operations

Crystal Morris

Regional Sales Manager

David Noble

Community Development / CRA Officer

Frank Smith

Banking Center Manager

1-855-MY-MIDLAND | midlandsb.com Equal Housing Lender. Member FDIC.

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Emerson Salutes the 2018 Who’s Who Diversity in Color Honorees Emerson is proud to support the work of Who’s Who Diversity in Color in recognizing the achievements of people of color in the St. Louis community. At Emerson, we believe in the power and benefits of diversity and inclusion as an employee motivator and a business differentiator.

Facebook.com/ EmersonCorporate

@Emerson_News

Youtube.com/ Emerson

LinkedIn.com/ Company/Emerson

HOST COMMITTEE

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HOST

CO M M I T T E E

Helen Lee Helen Lee is a founding principal of TAO + LEE Associates, Inc. With over twenty eight years of diverse experience, Ms. Lee’s project experiences are extensive, including corporate/commercial developments, educational, cultural/institutional, hospitality, fitness/recreational, retail, multifamily and single family residential.

Formerly resident in New York City and London, England her business experiences include working in Europe.

At TAO + LEE, Helen Lee focuses on a wide variety of project tasks, including client guidance, project supervision, concept design development, design leadership, technical overview and interior design, including decorative finishes, furnishings and artwork specification, selection and purchasing.

Ms. Lee received her Masters of Architecture degree from Columbia University (New York) in 1985 and her Bachelor of Arts degree with honors from University of Southern California (Los Angeles) in 1981.

Ms. Lee was nominated for the SOM Traveling Fellowship at Columbia University and received an Architectural Guild Traveling Fellowship and Max Starkwell Scholarship at USC. Ms. Lee is involved with the community, serving on a variety of boards and committees. This has included the following: COCA / Center for Contemporary Arts, past member Advisory Committee; Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis, past member Advisory Committee; Forest Park Forever Women’s Committee, past Member; Laumeier Sculpture

Park, Board Member; Metro Theater, past Board Member; Metro Theater, past New Facilities committee; OCA / Organization of Chinese-American, Board Member; OCA / Organization of Chinese-Americans, Advisory Committee; OCA MAAP (Mentoring Asian American Professionals), Mentor.; Special Friends Extended Mentor Program, Mentor; University of Southern California Alumni Association, past St. Louis Chapter Volunteer; USSC / University City Swim Club, past Committee Member & Volunteer; Washington University Women’s Society, Member & Volunteer Ms. Lee regularly participates with the Asian American Chamber of Commerce of St. Louis (AACC) and OCA St. Louis (Organization of Chinese-Americans).

Ms. Lee is registered architect in the state of Missouri.

Betsy Heller Cohen Betsy Cohen is Executive Director for the regional Immigration & Innovation Initiative, the St. Louis Mosaic Project. This initiative is a joint collaboration of the St. Louis Economic Development Partnership, the Regional Chamber and leaders of 27 organizations on the Steering Committee. The goal is that by 2020 our region will have the fastest growth rate of foreign-born people, reversing our current declines on our regional population of 2.8 million. We will involve business, government, education, faith, safety, health, culture, diverse local chambers and agencies plus the people of our region. The St. Louis Mosaic Project is part of the World Trade Center-St. Louis within the St. Louis Economic Development Partnership.

Betsy is on Welcoming America Leadership Advisory Group for national immigration integration.

She is on the Advisory Board of the St. Louis University Cook School of Business, the St. Louis Crisis Nursery Advisory Board and the Washington University Council for Sustainability. She has been recognized by the St. Louis Business Journal and the YWCA. Betsy received her BA from Wellesley College and MBA from the Harvard Business School. She worked with international colleagues in her previous role as a vice president at Nestle Purina. At Purina, she also launched and led a St. Louis regional coalition.

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HOST

CO M M I T T E E

Antonio Lozano D I R E C T O R , C O N T I N U O U S I M P R O V E M E N T I N T E G R AT I O N AMEREN SERVICES

Since 2006, Antonio Lozano has evolved at Ameren in progressive leadership roles, growing in overall responsibility and impact realized. He has specifically focused on Shared Services, Continuous Improvement, Financial Analysis and Energy Markets. He has a history of aligning and engaging disparate groups into strong teams, delivering value. This is only possible due to co-workers in those teams recognizing the opportunity to improve each day, seeing the value in each other and moving forward together.

Additionally, Tony is involved in several mentoring and philanthropic groups within Ameren, including Ameren’s Group of Integrated Latino Employees (AGILE), Ameren’s United Way Leadership Giving Group, Competency-Based Mentoring and Transitional Mentoring.

Tony and his wife, Jennifer, have been married for 12 years and reside in Des Peres, Missouri, with their three children. The family is quite involved with St. Clement of Rome Catholic Church and School, with Tony serving as a coach, and supporting faith-based and school events.

Tony holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Marketing with a minor in Computer Science from Millikin University in Decatur, Illinois, and a Master’s degree in Business Administration from Webster University in Saint Louis, Missouri.

Michael T. Whitley Michael Whitley is development director for the St. Louis Public Schools Foundation. He’s also a business professional and transformative leader with experience excelling in Development/ Fundraising, Financial Services, Human Resources, Leadership Development and Sales & Marketing skills. Previously, Michael was Director of Development at College Bound, where he provided leadership, strategic direction, management and stewardship of all fundraising efforts to increase the organization’s funding options among individuals, corporations, charitable foundations and government entities.

With over twenty-two years of diverse experience, Michael’s accomplished success at various top Fortune 100 companies including; CitiGroup, Target Corporation and Wells Fargo. He has additional fundraising and nonprofit experience in higher education at his alma mater, Missouri State University (MSU), and at the National Black MBA Association, Inc. headquarters office.

Michael enjoyed a successful baseball career as a pitcher; he was drafted by the Boston Red Sox. He has been a member of the St. Louis BlueJays baseball organization since 2009 to give back to our youth. Michael’s an inspirational speaker to various organizations, youth groups and churches. He’s a 2012 St. Louis American Foundation Young Leader award recipient, a 2013 Inaugural Consortium for Leadership Development (CLD) Anheuser Busch School of Business graduate, and he holds memberships in several other professional organizations in the region.

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Young Professionals Network #YPNMakes10

Celebrating 10 years of connecting young professionals to the business, cultural and social pulse of St. Louis The Regional Business Council, founded in 2000 is a consortium of 100 CEOs representing some of the region’s largest employers who employ over 120,000 associates and generate over $65 billion in revenue annually. With a mission to unite and engage members to act on high-impact business, civic and philanthropic affairs for the betterment of the St. Louis region, the RBC included diversity and inclusion in their agenda for action. They started an outreach to area colleges and universities and today

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RBC members mentor 150 juniors and seniors in the top engineering and business schools in the bistate region annually. Several African American students who came into the St. Louis marketplace after the program and secured excellent career positions came back and said they needed help developing their professional and social networks.

In addition, they were looking for a vehicle to give back to the community. Today YPN is more than 4,200 diverse young professionals ages 21-45 from over 750 companies.

The vision of RBC’s talent development initiative is to attract, retain, and develop talented young, diverse professionals in the St. Louis region by providing them with valuable opportunities for networking, professional development, and community involvement.

YPN member Kewana Regans is a testament to the RBC’s vision, having joined only 2 years after its inception and continues to serve on the Steering Committee, Strategic Initiative Committee and Leadership 100-member teams.

Kewana was able to recall pivotal moments that were life changing in her career path and life expanding experiences in her personal time: 1. Cultural Events: Watching a person of color perform at Opera Theatre St. Louis 2. Professional Development: Participating in St. Louis Business Diversity Initiative fellows program was life changing and led to a leadership award at work 3. Community Involvement: Mentoring university business students and helping connect them to other professionals 4. Greatest Take-away: Seeing fellow YPN members evolve within the group from trainings and events and being motivated by their success 5. Thoughts on future of YPN: Let’s push for 5,000 members!

The network hosts over 20 events annually focusing on professional development, networking at cultural and business institutions and social meetups. The RBC collaborates with a number of prominent organizations in the St. Louis Region to provide top notch programming and workshops.

At these events, like the Annual YPN Networking Event, RBC members, civic and community leaders mix and mingle with 500 young professionals. At the Annual Dinner and Induction Ceremony, the RBC recognizes its Leadership 100, a group recognized for their demonstrated leadership and service to the community and become ambassadors for YPN. Every year YPN grows and becomes a prestigious group of familiar faces for transplants, replants and St. Louis natives looking to connect with a group of young leaders who are impacting St. Louis in their careers and their communities. Join the network’s events this year and celebrate 10 years with Regional Business Council’s Young Professionals Network.

Erica King | Manager, Talent Development and Diversity & Inclusion Join the RBC's Young Professional's Network! @youngprofessionalsnetworkSTL @Young Professionals Network (RBC) @RBCStLouis who’s who diversity in color

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DIVERSITY & HIGHER EDUCATION

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HIGHER E D U C AT I O N

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HIGHER E D U C AT I O N

Why Diversity Matters at Washington University MARK S. WRIGHTON C H A N C E L LO R , WA S H I N GTO N U N I V E R S I T Y I N S T. LO U I S

Mission statements are easy to write and more difficult to live out. Washington University’s includes a statement that says we will “welcome students, faculty, and staff from all backgrounds to create an inclusive community that is welcoming, nurturing, and intellectually rigorous.” Those are powerful words that hold the promise of equity and justice, but unless they become an integral part of everything we do, they remain just that…words.

But those words do, in fact, hold hope and promise, and they are what drive us forward everyday in working to improve Washington University. We have hope that our efforts today will improve the world tomorrow, and we have made a promise to future generations that we are doing everything within our power to make those changes possible.

What often gets lost in the myriad conversations around words like diversity and inclusion is that, properly lived and embraced, diversity and inclusion benefit everyone, whether minority or majority, immigrant, visitor, or native born. At Washington University, diversity strengthens our sense of community, and it is vital to all that we do and are. It is not an “add-on or a good thing to do” but, rather, it is essential to the proper and best carrying out of our mission as a world-class university to create knowledge, solve problems, and prepare all of our students to live creative, productive, rewarding lives in an ever-evolving and evermorediverse world.

At Washington University, we have been listening to the voices calling for change. Following a semester of campus activism and dialogue, we established a Steering Committee for Diversity and Inclusion to create a university-wide plan for diversity. The committee worked effectively and defined a two-year, 12-point action plan to move us forward and keep us accountable to one another as we do. The plan includes: •

increased financial resources to ensure that we recruit, admit,

and support a diverse population of undergraduate, graduate, and professional students; •

increased resources to ensure that we recruit, hire, and support diverse faculty;

•

a commitment to review and assess hiring, promotion, and retention practices for the purpose of promoting greater staff diversity and inclusion;

•

the consideration and evaluation of establishing a race/ identity/social justice institute;

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the creation of a repository for the integration and analysis of diversity-related data and resources;

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the institutionalization of diversity and inclusion training across the campuses for students, staff, and faculty;

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the creation of ongoing university-wide diversity and inclusion events (already now in year 3);

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devising strategic plans for promoting diversity and inclusion within each school and unit of the University;

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the identification and elimination of technology-based barriers to diversity and inclusion in both the employment and academic contexts;

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ongoing recognition and honoring of individuals and groups who have advanced diversity and inclusion;

•

issuing annual diversity and inclusion scorecards; and

•

the creation of a Commission on Diversity and Inclusion, which will help to implement the action items outlined above.

Enhancing our diversity, while making Washington University a more inclusive place, is not an option. It is an imperative, and it is one of our deepest values and highest priorities. There is much work to do, we know, and it is not easy. Real, important work seldom is. who’s who diversity in color

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HIGHER E D U C AT I O N

A Steadfast Belief In The Importance Of Diversity TO M G E O R G E , C H A N C E L LO R , U N I V E R S I T Y O F M I S S O U R I – S T. LO U I S & DEBORAH BURRIS, CHIEF DIVERSITY OFFICER

At the University of Missouri–St. Louis, a steadfast belief in the importance of diversity has always been at the heart of our story.

UMSL was founded in 1963 out of a desire to make education more accessible to all members of the St. Louis community. By the mid1980s, our former chancellor, the late Marguerite Ross Barnett, built upon that foundation and led us forward with her declaration that “public, urban universities have a mandate to provide educational opportunity and access to diverse populations.” Barnett turned her inspiring words into actions. Her policies and programs positioned UMSL to more than double its number of diverse students in the years after her tenure – to shape the university into a true reflection of the communities it serves.

Today, we believe Barnett would be thrilled to know that UMSL has become a three-time recipient of the Higher Education Excellence in Diversity Award from INSIGHTS into Diversity magazine – the oldest publication specializing in this area. We believe she would be elated to know that each year more than 17,000 students from 44 states and 100 countries choose UMSL, making ours one of the most culturally and ethnically diverse campuses in Missouri. We hope she would be honored to know that, in part because of her legacy, diversity isn’t just a core value at UMSL. It’s who we are.

As we look toward the future, we believe that continuing to embrace our diversity – in all of its many forms – is vitally important.

Today’s teenagers – Generation Z – will be part of the most diverse and global workforce the world has ever seen. Empowering them to learn in an environment that aptly mirrors the one in which they will soon become our teachers, nurses, business leaders and entrepreneurs is not only wise, it is absolutely our duty.

And yet, embracing diversity is larger than excellence in career prep. It is also, quite simply, the right thing to do. A diverse place is a place where ideas are brought to light, challenged and pushed to new limits, and where research thrives and creativity takes flight.

A diverse place – where differing opinions, beliefs and cultures meet, shake hands, and greet each other with civil respect and kind curiosity – is the place where progress lives and hope thrives.

The Chancellor’s Diversity Council and the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, along with many of our colleagues and partners across campus and throughout the community, are committed to fostering and growing just such a diverse place at UMSL. Through our collective efforts we aim to maintain a climate where all students, faculty, staff and visitors can explore their interests, refine their talents and flourish. who’s who diversity in color

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Creating An Environment That Embraces Diversity And Inclusion Is Ongoing J E F F L . P I T T M A N P H . D , C H A N C E L LO R , S T. LO U I S C O M M U N I T Y C O L L E G E

For more than 50 years, St. Louis Community College has been a leader in the St. Louis region and a driving force for positive change. To fulfill our mission of expanding minds and changing lives, we focus our efforts on creating accessible, dynamic learning environments that meet the needs of our diverse communities. Our commitment to diversity and inclusion is at the center of this work.

I am proud to report that the college is currently engaged in more than 20 diversity impact initiatives, 30 diversity-related student groups and a number of partnerships with leading community advocacy organizations. Among these, we have established collaborative efforts with the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Bosnian Chamber of Commerce, PrideSTL, International Institute of St. Louis, Urban League of St. Louis, Paraquad and St. Louis Association of Community Organizations.

Despite our strong track record of diversity, we recognize that the mission of creating an environment that embraces diversity and inclusion is ongoing. Therefore, we have taken deliberate steps in recent years to reaffirm our commitment and transform the way we engage in the business of diversity and inclusion.

To guide this important work, we developed a diversity and inclusion action plan. This plan focuses on four areas: institutional transformation, the student experience, community partnerships and marketing and communications. From our hiring practices and communication with students, to our community advocacy, branding and more, each of the actions within our plan are clear, time-sensitive, measurable and achievable.

We also established a diversity statement for the college. This statement asserts that we will foster an atmosphere of appreciation for all people, regardless of race, color, creed, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, national origin, ancestry, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status or class. To us, these are more than words. They reflect our collective promise to meet the needs of the communities we serve.

Our commitment to diversity and inclusion is also evident in our recent capital project to construct the Center for Nursing and Health Sciences at the Forest Park campus. Slated to open in fall 2019, this state-of-the-art learning center will play a critical role in training the next generation of students for careers in nursing and health sciences. Moreover, the educational facility will be led by a project team comprised of 85 percent minority business and woman business enterprises employed through KAI Design & Build and Tarlton Corporation, who estimate that 30% of the construction contractors will be comprised of minority and woman business enterprises. We are proud of our decision to support and maximize the inclusion of woman and minority-owned contractors in this project and others.

While these initiatives are only a snapshot of our work, they demonstrate our ongoing efforts to foster an atmosphere of appreciation for all. As chancellor, I personally invite all of our 1.2 million alums to join our effort to promote diversity and inclusion.

Together, we can enhance the St. Louis region and make it a great place to live and work. who’s who diversity in color

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A Statement on Diversity DR. BARBARA KAVALIER, PRESIDENT S T. C H A R L E S C O M M U N I T Y C O L L E G E

My experience as a college president, staff member, adjunct faculty and student, has taught me that the strength of the community college mission is its focus on open access for all. It is a mission that dares to offer the hope of equity and social justice. At St. Charles Community College (SCC), diversity is an essential part of our mission statement. “We celebrate diversity and we enrich the economic and cultural vitality of the region by providing an accessible, comprehensive, and supportive environment for teaching and learning.”

Diversity brings the incredible and complex world to our students, here, where they are, so that they complete their higher education while learning from vastly different perspectives and real personal experiences of their faculty, staff, and peers. When they leave SCC, whether they remain in Missouri or venture out to the other side of the world, the education and experiences gained as students at SCC will contribute to their success.

Much progress has been made within the past two years to bring diversity and inclusion into focus by cultivating a student-centered environment where new initiatives and resources help support the success of a diverse student body. SCC’s new Diversity and Inclusion Action Plan was approved by our Board of Trustees in 2017 and focuses on five key areas:

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Diversity 1.0-4.0 Training for a significant number faculty and staff

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Diversity component incorporated into College 101 for new students

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Development of SCC’s Diversity Website and Calendar

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Implementation of Safe Zone program

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Implementation of Diversity Dialogue Series: Learn

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Improved hiring practices focused on recruitment of diverse candidates

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Membership in organizations supporting diversity efforts

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The development, implementation, and assessment of a working diversity plan has strengthened SCC’s commitment to its stakeholders and has continued to provide a blueprint for further strengthening the college’s commitment to diversity and inclusion.

As I reflect on all we have accomplished at SCC, I remember my own struggles as a low-income, first-generation, female community college student; I understand the challenges of navigating a college environment and have great compassion and empathy for students who have had to find their own way. As educators, community members, business leaders, etc., we must be champions of the open door mission and recognize that our students bring a wealth of diverse experiences to our campuses. If we meet them where they are and recognize and cultivate their talents and abilities, we will fulfill the promise of our mission and inspire success for our students.

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Increasing Student Success and Persistence

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Attracting, Supporting and Outstanding Faculty Staff

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Providing a Welcoming, Inclusive, Multicultural Campus Experience

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Strengthening Community Connections

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Promoting Education, Training and Resources Related to Diversity, Inclusion and Global Education.

Almost 30 years ago, Gallagher (Celebrations, 1990) stated in an article about community college leadership challenges a belief that exists still today:

This ongoing and evolving plan demonstrates a responsiveness to our entire campus community through articulated goals and objectives. Initiatives embedded in the plan are led by the campuswide Diversity and Inclusion Council, comprised of students, faculty, and staff. Much success has already been achieved as a result of the implementation of the Diversity and Inclusion Action Plan, including the following:

In our own institutions and in our own communities, we have made remarkable differences. We can and should continue to make remarkable differences. We can and should shape our immediate surroundings. We can and should create the climate that will encourage our students and fellow citizens to function well in the less certain world of tomorrow rather than cling to the security of the past

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Promoting Cultural Competence And Inclusion DR. CARLOS VARGAS, PRESIDENT S O U T H E A S T M I S S O U R I S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y

My experiences growing up as an international student and working at a minority-serving institution has been a valuable part of my life that has influenced my appreciation of and support for diversity. I believe today’s students, more than ever before, need to be able to function effectively in a society that includes people with distinctly different characteristics. Diversity, in all its manifestations, enriches students’ educational experiences, enhances their personal lives, and prepares them for successful careers in the domestic and global economy. My inaugural theme at Southeast Missouri State University was and continues to be “We Are One!” – a place where everyone is welcome, appreciated, and respected.

It is critical that our campus community promotes cultural competence and inclusion in all aspects of our work, while also embracing the variety of perspectives and cultures our students, faculty, staff, and alumni offer. Every individual is a valued member of our community, regardless of race, color, creed, or religion.

Diversity enriches the educational experience and brings local, national, and global dimensions to our campus, while building lifelong friendships and networks that enhance relationships between our cultures. Mutual understanding comes when we personally share our cultures, values, opinions, and insights.

In the spring of 2016, the final report of the President’s Task Force on Diversity Education were presented to the Board of Regents and the campus community. The report emphasizes the need to continue identifying, addressing, and engaging the campus community in practices which support diversity, inclusion, and equity. It also emphasizes the importance of the University to continue recruiting, and retaining a compositionally diverse student body, faculty, and staff; as well as promoting cultural competence and inclusion in

all aspects of the educational experience. As a part of that effort, Southeast is participating in the 14th cohort of the American Council on Education (ACE) Internationalization Laboratory Program, an organization guiding us towards comprehensive internationalization efforts in teaching and learning. I am pleased that we are developing a strategic plan in our international education efforts to position us as a more globally-oriented and internationally-connected institution, and we look forward to building more strategic international partnerships. We continue to make strides in engaging our international community and promoting inclusion in all aspects of campus life. The commitment to diversity and inclusion must be embedded throughout all aspects of the University community, from administrative leadership and staffing, curriculum, co-curriculum, and learning outcomes; faculty policies and practices; to student access and engagement programs.

It is critical that we encourage discussions on perceptions, differences, and stereotypes to promote dialogue. That’s why the “Talking Booth Video” (https://www.facebook.com/ SEMissouriState/videos/10153898433553679/), recently produced at Southeast, is so important. It shows videotaped clips of conversations that resulted when booths were placed on campus inviting passersby to ask questions of members of ethnic and cultural groups. What resulted was an honest conversation about race, religion, identity, diversity, stereotypes, and the uniqueness of everyone’s personal experience.

I am extremely proud that the project ignited productive, meaningful dialogue, spread knowledge, and created a space to both discuss and celebrate diversity at Southeast. I am even prouder that the conversations are continuing as we work to strengthen a diverse and welcoming campus climate. who’s who diversity in color

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Fostering An Inclusive Community ELIZABETH (BETH) J. STROBLE, PHD PRESIDENT OF WEBSTER UNIVERSITY

Embracing diversity and inclusion has never been more important, and Webster University is concentrating on making a difference in this critical arena. We have proactively addressed diversity and inclusion in its many forms for decades. We have long had a Chief Diversity Officer and have intentionally strengthened the diversity of our community including our students, University leadership and board members.

Our record is strong: Diverse Issues in Higher Education ranked us #1 for the number of African-Americans graduating with master’s degrees among all private and public non-profit universities in the country and also ranked us #1 for the number of graduate degrees conferred for African American, Native American, Hispanic/Latino and Asian American students for all higher-education institutions in Missouri. We know that putting programs that make a difference into place is the first step.

Three years ago, we initiated our annual Diversity and Inclusion summit where we have facilitated discussions about complex and critical issues. Our commitment to thought leadership in our community, the region and globally has helped move ideas into action. The benefits of this conference have been immeasurable but most importantly it provides us with a way to come together, not only for those of us at Webster University, but also for people across the community. We need events like this to find common purpose, to put the focus outside ourselves and to gain valuable perspective on our shared humanity We must recognize that in the face of hate and discrimination, silence is not an option. Education is of key importance. We gain knowledge and understanding when we engage with people whose ideas, ambitions, and pursuits differ from our own. That is why at Webster University we seek input beyond our own individual

disciplines. When we remember who we are as an institution, and why we are here as a community, we make strides towards being a truly inclusive university, and we are better prepared to face the challenges posed by current events.

This approach is of particular importance in the current global climate, as news headlines reflect people turning to violence or hateful speech and actions to provoke and disrespect others, belittle their identity, and shut down discussion. As humans, we have our own emotional reactions to these events. As academics, we have our own theories about what they reflect about society. But as educators, as members of a global University community, we also see in them an obligation: We must make sure – and reassure through words and actions – that our students feel welcome.

We must continue to foster an inclusive community where such hatred can find no home.

We must continue to both teach and practice our core value of diversity and inclusion: by embracing all human differences while building on our shared humanity, eliminating discrimination and exclusion in our community.

At Webster University, talking about diversity and inclusion is both necessary and organic, as the Webster community truly spans the world. Due to our complex, multicultural, and geography-spanning campus network, Webster’s very nature creates awkward moments.

It creates logistical hurdles and virtually guarantees occasional cultural misunderstandings. Yet it also creates wonderful learning opportunities and outcomes that make Webster one of a kind. It is worth those awkward moments and uncomfortable conversations if we can learn from them and better ourselves and improve upon the place we call home. who’s who diversity in color

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Building A More Diverse Campus Community JAMES DENNIS, PH.D. P R E S I D E N T, M C K E N D R E E U N I V E R S I T Y, L E B A N O N , I L L I N O I S

In 24 years, President Jim Dennis has led McKendree University through a period of unprecedented growth and change in its 190year history. The Lebanon, Illinois, institution has experienced dramatic growth in the academic strength of its faculty and students, programs, enrollment, on-campus residence, fundraising, construction, athletics and co-curricular activities. Its growing reputation for high-quality education has garnered national attention from prestigious publications and organizations such as U.S. News & World Report and The Chronicle of Higher Education, which has recognized the university as a “Great College to Work For” every year since 2010.

in its membership, provides “meaningful activities to promote positive and sustained relationships among all persons inclusive of race/ethnicity, gender, religion, social class, sexuality, and all other aspects of the human experience,” according to its mission.

Since Dr. Dennis’ arrival in 1994, academic course offerings have expanded to 53 undergraduate majors, six graduate degree programs, two doctoral programs, and an external and online program. The number of faculty and staff has almost tripled; enrollment is up 86 percent; and the campus has more than doubled in size. In recent years, the university has made a concerted effort to attract professors with multicultural or international experience to better reflect the racial and ethnic makeup of its student body.

“My hope is that by getting to know each other on a personal level and building trust, we will be able to have dialogue about these important topics, and thereby strengthen our sense of community,” said Dr. Dennis. “The McKendree Connection Groups provide an avenue to learn about diversity and social justice, not from a textbook or the media but directly from each other.”

Weekly “Conversations on Social Justice in America and Abroad” offer opportunities for healthy dialogue and thoughtful reflection on topics such as Black Lives Matter, DACA, the #MeToo movement, and white privilege. Students, faculty, and staff members voluntarily train to become Change Ambassadors and to lead Connection Group discussions of issues related to race, diversity, social justice, inclusion, and equity.

Dr. Dennis is proud to have built a more diverse campus community and to promote initiatives that encourage greater understanding, sensitivity, inclusion, and mutual respect. “Unless and until we commit to learning about each other, befriending each other, sharing conversations with each other, and living in community with each other, real change on a campus and more global level cannot occur,” said the president, who leads by example.

The president is a California native with lifelong ties to higher education. He grew up across the street from Occidental College in Los Angeles, where his father was a highly regarded faculty member. He graduated from Occidental in 1966 and earned a Ph.D. at the University of Southern California. In addition, he attended the Claremont Graduate School Institute on Higher Education and the Harvard Institute for New Presidents. In 1993, he was awarded a J. William Fulbright Fellowship to study in Germany and examine its higher education system.

In 2015, he directed a task force to explore issues of social justice and equity on campus, to develop strategies to support communities of difference, and to expand the understanding of differences in all its forms. The resulting Social Justice and Equity Committee, diverse

He serves on the boards of the Higher Education Consortium of Metropolitan St. Louis, Memorial Hospital-East, Leadership Council of Southwestern Illinois, St. Louis Regional Chamber and several other professional organizations. who’s who diversity in color

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Transforming Higher Education at an Entrepreneurial Pace DR. MARK LOMBARDI

We live amidst the greatest democratization of knowledge in human history. Everyone now has the ability to carry a library in their pocket. This fact, combined with the enormous potential of connectivity, can be a force for empowering millions with an awesome education regardless of race, socioeconomic background, ethnicity or faith. At Maryville University, we have embraced that reality and are harnessing it through a series of innovative and personalized approaches to student learning that are reshaping higher education with one overarching aim: provide access and opportunity to as many students as possible. This commitment demands partnerships with community and civic organizations focused on the same goals.

We are proud to partner with organizations such as Boys and Girls Clubs, Mathews-Dickey, Girls Inc. and College Bound. These programs provide opportunities for young people to spend a portion of their summer visiting our campus and exploring their talents with peers, faculty and staff. Many students learn skills like robotics and coding and gain insight through personal, professional and leadership development opportunities. Combined with our advanced life coaching model, students obtain personalized learning diagnostics that empower them with a rich understanding of their strengths and abilities far more advanced than antiquated tools such as standardized tests.

We also provide hundreds of experiential learning partnerships with school districts serving underserved youth, including St. Louis Public Schools, Ritenour, Riverview Gardens and FergusonFlorissant. While students gain vital pre-teaching experiences in their classrooms, we’re also committed to building stronger programs and resources. Our Center for Access and Achievement

is forging new programs in areas such as coding, early childhood analysis, gifted programming and robotics toward one overarching goal: expanding access and opportunity for those students to a higher education and ultimately a career that can change their lives.

Our investment in the St. Louis community also recognizes the importance of shining a light on the fundamental American struggle for equality and justice. We are a major sponsor of the Missouri History Museum’s exhibit, #1 in Civil Rights: The African American Freedom Struggle in St. Louis, honoring St. Louis’s pivotal role in the fight for racial equality. The prominence of our city in the ongoing fight for civil rights is a legacy to be remembered, honored and celebrated, and we are proud to play a part in bringing this important story forward.

Over the past decade, Maryville has instituted a recruitment culture designed to bring diversity and inclusion to our senior staff, faculty and entire student body. This has resulted in 40 percent of all new hires and over 25 percent of our entering class being people of color. In addition, we’ve committed to tuition stability (frozen three of the last four years) and increased multicultural scholarships, which now amount to some $2 million per year in private and institutional support for students of need.

Maryville is transforming higher education at a pace more common in the entrepreneurial world than in academia. The fundamental dynamic of that transformation is building pathways of access and inclusion. Maryville University is fully committed to ensuring all students who wish to achieve higher education are given the opportunity to pursue their dreams and realize their full potential — and that no barriers to that goal remain.

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Why Diversity is Important to Institutions of Higher Learning MICHAEL A. MIDDLETON, INTERIM PRESIDENT OF LINCOLN UNIVERSITY

Diversity. Merriam-Webster defines it as “the condition of having or being composed of differing elements; the inclusion of different types of people in a group or organization.” More applicably, one could say that diversity is people who look, think and live differently than one another coming together. It is this coming together that is so vital in every arena, but most importantly in higher education.

Today what we read in the headlines and see on our televisions and in the media outlets available can be quite troubling. There is conflict everywhere stemming from racism, sexism, ageism, xenophobia and the like. The world has been turned upside down by intolerance and hate, and we must take action in a spirit of cooperation to bring balance. There is no one solution, but I feel confident in saying that some of those solutions can begin within our institutions of higher learning. When we promote and put into practice diversity and inclusion, we learn to interact with one another through common threads of respect and civility. A person does not have to subscribe to your viewpoint to respect it. This is how healthy discourse occurs and what better place to nurture that than on a college campus. If we say we are educating tomorrow’s leaders, to completely provide this service we must educate them to lead in a multifarious society.

We are but a small sampling of the world that awaits our students

on the other side of their degree. If we have done our jobs, our graduates will leave our campuses with a broader view of the world because of the diversity we have welcomed within the confines of our properties. A diverse collegiate experience is a living laboratory for some of life’s most valuable lessons. The lessons do not always come from someone who knows more than us, but from those who know differently than us. With that concept in mind, the student can very quickly become the teacher in interacting with their peers, faculty and staff.

Our administrators, faculty, staff and governing bodies, should never be so “well-educated” that we have become immune to the lessons of diversity that happen in our offices, classrooms and other spaces. Diversity is a picture we all see differently, but whose beauty we should all appreciate. Diversity shows a faculty member who went to a prestigious school how to reach students at an open admissions institution. Through diversity a student from the inner city learns how to communicate with a staff member from a rural background. On a diverse campus, we are not separated by gender, race, religion or lifestyle. These things that make us different are also the things that bind us to create a better world. In this process of binding together with our diverse backgrounds and experiences, we can cultivate a generation of leaders who will approach their future with a mindset of inclusion. who’s who diversity in color

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Creating Cultural Harmony Where Differences Are Celebrated DR. DWAUN J. WARMACK, PRESIDENT H A R R I S - S TO W E S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y

Diversity is important to institutions of higher learning at all levels, including students, faculty, board members and staff because full institutional support is paramount when creating strategies to address the dynamics of what it takes to earn a college degree – especially under the umbrella of equality and opportunity.

However, before we can learn from one another, we must first have a level of understanding about each other. Harris-Stowe State University is built on the very foundation of diversity and inclusion In 1857, Harris Teachers College was founded for the preparation of teachers for white students only. A second predecessor institution, Stowe Teachers College, began in 1890 as a normal school for future black teachers of elementary schools in the city of St. Louis.

In 1954, as the first of several steps to integrate the public schools of St. Louis, the two institutions merged and retained the name Harris Teachers College. Later, in response to many requests from members of the greater St. Louis community, the name “Stowe” was restored, “Teachers” was dropped, and in 1979, state legislation established Harris-Stowe State College as the newest member of the State system of public higher education. Then, in 2005, again under state legislative mandate, Harris-Stowe State College obtained university status, and expanded its mission.

Today, Harris-Stowe offers over 30 majors and degree programs and is one of the top producers in conferring degrees to AfricanAmericans. In fact, many of our degrees are ranked #1 in the state of Missouri in graduating African-Americans. Several Harris-Stowe students are the first in their family to attend and graduate from college, thus reinforcing Harris-Stowe’s renown as an institution of

higher education where lives are transformed.

Students who are globally aware are not only knowledgeable about the nations of the world historically, culturally, politically, economically, technologically, socially, linguistically, and ecologically – but how these nations connect. At Harris-Stowe State University, the higher education experience provided to students at all levels, not only transforms their lives but squarely prepares them to become contributing members of a global society. According to a recent study by UNCF, Harris-Stowe State University is a valuable economic engine in its community, generating substantial economic returns year after year. Harris-Stowe State University generates $65 million in total economic impact for its local and regional economies. This estimate includes direct spending by Harris-Stowe State University on faculty, employees, academic programs and operations—and by students attending the institution.

Institutions of higher education have the opportunity and responsibility of developing and creating a platform for intellectual and extracurricular measures that create cultural harmony where differences are celebrated. Thankfully, Harris-Stowe serves as a conduit for socioeconomic diversity by creating an even playing field at all levels and is now evolving into a dynamic and powerful center of scholarship, research and education. Our differences and uniqueness make us who we are, and the diverse presence of students, faculty, board members and staff of Harris-Stowe State University, is nothing less than great, because these are the innovators who are helping to ignite and inspire change in our world. who’s who diversity in color

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Saint Louis University’s Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion F R E D P. P E S T E L LO , P H . D . - P R E S I D E N T, S A I N T LO U I S U N I V E R S I T Y

At Saint Louis University, we are committed to diversity, equity and inclusion as values rooted in Ignatian spirituality. Because of this commitment, our students aspire to build communities that are unburdened by discrimination and oppression, while advancing the Ignatian concepts of educating the whole person, and forming men and women for and with others.

Nearly everyone agrees that diversity and inclusion bring fuller insights and benefits to the University, by strengthening study groups, research teams, clinical practice, classrooms, and social interaction. Our Jesuit and University missions are not only enriched by diversity and inclusion, they depend on it. “The pursuit of truth” rests on hearing from all voices.

We’re proud to be the first historically white institution of higher education in a former slave state to formally admit AfricanAmerican students. We’re also proud that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered a civil rights speech on our campus just one week before he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

It is fundamental to SLU’s Jesuit mission and values that we be coworkers with God on issues of poverty, education, economic empowerment, and equity. Our mission has guided our faculty, students, clinicians, and staff to pursue hundreds of programs in the region, work with neighborhood partners in some of the most disadvantaged communities to improve health care, education, and child nutrition.

In our more recent history, student and community activists held a demonstration on campus to protest racial injustices locally and nationally. The 2014 protest ended peacefully with the Clock Tower Accords, a 13-point agreement that aligns with our mission and will further our goal to become a national model for diversity and community engagement.

The advancement of diversity and inclusion at SLU — and our actions to address each item in the Accords — is not the responsibility of one person, not solely the students and faculty in African-American studies, not any one school or division. Each of us has to play a role in changing an institution, which like our society was built upon a system of inequality. It is easier to support diversity and inclusion in thought and then let others worry about the hard work. It is easier to be distracted by other tasks one has to do.

Our commitment to diversity must also include those from other countries who seek a better life in America. On behalf of Saint Louis University, I have joined the ranks of international religious leaders and my fellow college and university presidents signing letters and endorsing statements urging Congress to protect the Dreamers, who are among the most vulnerable in our society.

While these efforts have not yet yielded the results we had hoped, I refuse to believe they were fruitless. I will continue to advocate to lawmakers so that our collective voice is heard. I invite all of our campus community to do the same — to be informed, to be engaged in the political process, and to implore Congress to act in the best interests of all who call the United States home, now and in the future. who’s who diversity in color

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Helping To Integrate Diversity And Quality Efforts MUN CHOI P R E S I D E N T, U N I V E R S I T Y O F M I S S O U R I S Y S T E M

The University of Missouri System is on a journey toward inclusive excellence. UM System President Mun Choi is challenging students, faculty and staff at member institutions to shift the lens through which they examine practices, processes and people to seek new opportunities for change where diversity, equity and inclusion is a part of excellence.

Since the joining the UM System in spring 2017, Choi has championed inclusive, living, learning and working environments where everyone is valued, respected and supported. He has ensured that all UM-System campuses are equipped with the resources and tools needed to do impactful work in the areas of diversity, equity and inclusion by: Helping to integrate diversity and quality efforts, the Inclusive Excellence Framework was adopted during the 2016-17 academic year. The framework outlines strategies to increase student enrollment of historically underrepresented/underserved populations, recruit and retain a more diverse faculty and staff, and to create climates that are supportive and respectful and that value

differing perspectives.

Enhancing pipeline efforts aimed at increasing the compositional diversity of UM System campuses, broadly defined in ways that support rural and urban constituencies.

Recruiting diverse faculty and retaining them by providing supportive pillars aimed at supporting their teaching, research and professional development.

Identifying grants that support historically underrepresented populations, and that leverage higher education partners including community colleges, school districts and doctoral degreegranting institutions worldwide.

Choi’s approach to transformational leadership has proven highly effective in supporting vibrant and inclusive learning communities on UM System campuses.

To obtain more information about President Choi and the UM System, visit https://www.umsystem.edu/ums/dei/.

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A Champion for Diversity CLIFTON “CLIF” SMART M I S S O U R I S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y P R E S I D E N T

Missouri State University President Clifton “Clif” Smart is a champion for diversity not only on campus but also in the community and the southwest region of the state -- positively impacting Missouri State University’s educational and socioeconomic footprint. Under Smart’s six-year leadership, the university has increased its percentage of underrepresented and international students and increased the number of faculty, staff and administrators of color. Inclusive excellence is not only an institutional value but it has also become an integral part of Missouri State’s framework for operations.

President Smart included diversity and inclusion as one of six areas of emphasis in the university’s 2016-2021 Long Range Plan. The Long Range Plan is implemented with annual actions plans, and each year’s action plan contains numerous initiatives and action items to continue the university’s progress toward achieving diversity goals. The action plans not only chronicle access, success and equity, they also hold administrative and academic leadership accountable for implementing strategies that are beneficial to the university and its students.

public and private organizations in the community. His leadership began by increasing awareness and knowledge of the value of diversity and inclusion and was reinforced by his commitment to the university’s public affairs mission that emphasizes community engagement, cultural competence (and consciousness) and ethical leadership.

President Smart leads by example and stands on his personal convictions and principles while inspiring academic and career success of all students, faculty and staff. Regardless of who they are or where they come from, President Smart strives for excellence by including all university stakeholders in university decisions.

In an era of apparent divisiveness and intolerance, President Smart’s professionalism and leadership are bearing fruit at a predominantly white institution nestled in a predominantly white region of the state. As the state of Missouri experiences increasing racial/ethnic demographic and cultural change, President Smart and Missouri State have achieved significant gains in terms of valuing the inclusion of diversity.

President Smart also initiated an inclusive excellence diversity implementation framework that identifies four principal areas of achievement for university leadership in promoting the inclusion of diversity: (1) access, success, and equity; (2) campus climate; (3) learning development; and (4) institutional commitment that advises and supports university efforts. An inclusive excellence scorecard will further encourage collaboration and monitor accountability on agreed-upon initiatives and programming.

Missouri State University and the Springfield community are becoming models for leadership in dealing with historic institutional cultural change, academic growth, as well as workforce and career development. President Smart has set an example by embracing diverse experiences and cultural backgrounds. He views changes and challenges as opportunities. This mindset has allowed all members of the Missouri State community to enhance their appreciation for what every student, faculty member, administrator and staff member brings in the pursuit of higher education.

It is often stated that when it comes to valuing diversity and inclusion, “So goes Missouri State, so goes the rest of the community!” President Smart’s exemplary leadership on campus and in the community is the impetus for diversity efforts by other

Due in large measure to the efforts and leadership of President Clif Smart, Missouri State and the Springfield community are making historic progress in becoming more inclusive. who’s who diversity in color

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Supporting great causes: a commitment that’s as much a part of UPS as our brown trucks.

UPS is proud to support Who’s Who Diversity in Color © 2016 United Parcel Service of America, Inc. UPS, the UPS logo, and the color brown are trademarks of United Parcel Service of America, Inc. All rights reserved.

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PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

by Michael P. McMillan

H

appy 100th birthday to the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis’ board, staff, supporters and friends! Since 1918, the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis has worked hard to serve 100,000 local residents each year with programs of community empowerment, economic opportunity, educational excellence, civil rights and advocacy.

Formed to address racial issues following the devastating East St. Louis race riots, the Urban League has been a stabilizing force and a catalyst for change in the St. Louis community for a century.

In 2017, the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis accomplished a number of milestones to complete our Century of Service to the St. Louis Community.

Last summer, we officially opened the Ferguson Community Empowerment Center, the Urban League’s first constructed building, on the site of the QuikTrip that was burned down during the height of the civil unrest in partnership with the Salvation Army.

The center now offers the Save Our Sons program, Pathways of Hope, youth services, entrepreneurship assistance and many other activities from our co-owners the Salvation Army, the University of Missouri Extension, the Lutheran Hope Center and through our community service partners. We are especially proud of the fact that the Ferguson CEC was built with 80% minority contractor participation and thankful to our donors for helping us to achieve this historic goal.

The grand opening of the Ferguson building also served as the kickoff event and press conference for the National Urban League Conference in St. Louis which was held on July 26 – 29, 2017. The NUL Conference theme was “Save Our Cities: Education, Jobs and Justice” with three major plenary sessions focusing on the State of Black America, the Main

Street Marshall Plan, a comprehensive outline for combating poverty and eliminating disparities, and the Ferguson Crisis. In addition, the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis hosted a Back to School Fest and Community Day which distributed backpacks and school supplies to over 10,000 students. Last year’s conference in St. Louis was the largest and most successful National Urban League Conference in its 107-year history with 25,000 in attendance.

For 100 years, the Urban League has worked steadily in this community to empower communities and change the lives of African Americans and others in St. Louis City, St. Louis County and St. Clair County, Illinois. Since the very beginning it has been our mission to help our constituents to build better livelihoods for their families.

The Urban League began with core programs of education, employment, housing and civil rights.

Currently, the Urban League is one of the largest affiliates of the National Urban League movement with an $21.9 million budget, 200 employees and a five-star rating. I would like to thank our Board Chair Keith H. Williamson and the Board of Directors for their support and leadership throughout a busy and successful year. I’d also like to thank our sponsors, supporters, friends, volunteers and members of the Whitney M. Young Society, the Urban League Guild, the Urban League Young Professionals, the NULITES and the Federation of Block Units who greatly contributed to the success of the 2017 National Urban League Conference in St. Louis and for their continuous support of the Urban League movement.

Michael P. McMillan President & CEO Urban League of Metropolitan Saint Louis, Inc. who’s who diversity in color

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MILESTONES 1910 National Urban League is founded in New York City, NY.

U R B A N L E A G U E H I S TO R Y The Urban League of St. Louis was founded in 1918, during a time of domestic and foreign conflict, with the purpose of defusing racial tensions, stabilizing communities, and improving the living conditions for African Americans in St. Louis.

To meet this challenge, the Urban League, under the leadership of George W. Buckner, began the serious work of providing community services and solutions to African Americans and others in need.

1917 An infamous deadly race riot occurs in East St. Louis, Illinois. Black workers and migrants are attacked resulting in 48 deaths, hundreds wounded, and thousands left homeless. The U.S. Department of War quickly creates the Urban League of East St. Louis to help calm the situation. St. Louis voters approve a segregation ordinance.

1918 The Urban League of St. Louis was founded under the leadership of Rev. John A, Day, the agency’s first Board President and George W. Buckner served as the first Executive Secretary.

Although the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis began as a social services organization, it has evolved to include Educational Excellence, Economic Opportunity, Community Empowerment, Civil Rights & Advocacy.

Today, the Urban League provides a Roadmap To Equality for African Americans and others through partnerships with corporations, community leaders, governmental and civic institutions.

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1922 Urban League operates Turner Branch School, a school for disabled black children and a free dental clinic. Gordon H. Simpson becomes Executive Secretary. The Urban League takes a comprehensive approach to community service and problem solving. Urban League becomes a member of the Community Fund (known today as the United Way).

1964 William E. Douthit becomes the fifth president of the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis.

1932 John T. Clark establishes the Federation of Block Units, an auxiliary to the Urban League, to unify neighborhoods and stabilize housing values. In addition, the Federation provides services to accommodate the growing migration of African Americans to St. Louis City.

1937 Homer G. Phillips Hospital, a hospital built to serve African Americans, opens with the support of the Urban League of St. Louis.

1950 M. Leo Bohanon succeeds John T. Clark as Executive Secretary of Urban League of St. Louis. In the postwar years, St. Louis goes through a changing period. During this time, the Urban League of St. Louis shifts its focus from preparing clients for jobs in domestic service to jobs in business and industry.

1951 The city of St. Louis experiences an unprecedented increase in the African American population – 109,000 in 1940 to 154,000 in 1950. As a result, The Urban League advocates a community-wide program to meet the overwhelming problems (substandard housing, unemployment, inadequate health and welfare services) facing the black community.

1964 The Beatrice T. Hurt Scholarship Fund was established by the Federation of Block Units and offers financial assistance to students who are seeking an undergraduate degree. The scholarship is named after Beatrice T. Hurt, who was a pioneer in the early stages of the Urban League movement as one of the first community organization specialists.

1968 Laws passed in 1963, 1964 and 1968 change the way the Urban League works with the corporate community and its clients. Douthit reorganizes the Urban League of St. Louis to meet challenges and opportunities coming from the social and economic climate.

1968 The Urban League co-sponsors the Ebony Fashion Fair to raise funds for the B.T. Hurt Scholarship until 2008.

1971 The Urban League opens an office in the all-black St. Louis County municipality of Kinloch.

1972 The Urban League moves its headquarters to 3701 Grandel Square.

1977 The Urban League and Sears, Roebuck and Company pioneered a new concept in community planning with the transformation of the old Sears Department store at 1408 N. Kingshighway into a Community Services Center.

1977 The Urban League establishes the Vaughn Cultural Center. Mrs. Ermalene Vaughn contributed funds for its establishment in memory of Dr. Arthur Vaughn, a Saint Louis University Medical School faculty member.

1979 The Urban League of St. Louis and St. Clair County (Illinois) merge, becoming the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis, Inc.

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1985 James H. Buford becomes the sixth president. With this change in leadership, the Urban League undergoes reorganization to meet change.

1986 The Urban League receives a charter to establish the Urban League Guild.

1987 The Board of Directors creates the first youth auxiliary, the Progressive Young Adults (ProYA).

1992 Urban League becomes Weatherization Assistance Program operator for the Missouri Department of Natural Resources.

2000 The Urban League joins the St. Louis County Government and the Missouri Career Center to provide Workforce Investment Act youth services to at-risk high school students.

2001 The Urban League partners with YWCA to deliver Head Start Services in St. Louis City.

The League creates a Vice President of Communications position to direct its public relations and marketing needs. Urban League relocates its St. Louis County Operations to the newly renovated Schnucks Building on 8960 Jennings Station Road.

1994 Urban League begins its Annual Thanksgiving Dinner Giveaway in partnership with Schnuck Markets and the St. Louis RAMS. 1998 The Urban League reorganizes service areas into three service regions, (St. Louis County Region, St. Louis City Region and St. Clair County Region). The League creates a Chief Operating Officer position to oversee the team of vice presidents who manage the service regions.

2002 The Urban League opens its fourth Head Start Center located in Jennings. The center completes the Schnucks Building renovation and connects to St. Louis County Operations.

2003 The Urban League expands its St. Clair County Division, opening a 14,000 square foot facility as part of the East St. Louis Housing Authority Services Complex. The larger location allows this division to expand its basic needs and training services.

2000 The Urban League reinstitutes its link with young professionals by introducing the Urban League Young Professionals, (ULYP) formerly ProYa. 62

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2004 The Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis, Inc. receives a five-star rating from the National Urban League, becoming the top-ranked affiliate.

2005 The Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis, Inc. shifts its main focus to Economic Empowerment and Equality.

2006 The Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis establishes its NULITES chapter.

2015 The Urban League breaks ground on the Community Empowerment Center of Ferguson on the site of the former QuikTrip (Ground Zero) on 9420 West Florissant.

2007 The Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis, Inc. hosts more than 10,000 attendees at the 2007 National Urban League Conference in St. Louis. The Urban League receives Better Business Bureau accreditation.

2009 The Urban League receives a three-year, $19.4 million federal contract to weatherize 3,000 homes in the St. Louis area.

2012 The Urban League opens a new City Community Outreach Center on 935 N. Vandeventer and a new Community Outreach Center on 10220 Lincoln Trails in St. Clair County, Illinois.

2013 The Urban League Board of Directors appoints Michael P. McMillan as the seventh president of the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis, Inc.

2016 The Urban League receives a $7.7 million contract from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services provided to Head Start/Early Head Start.

2016 The Urban League partners with TIAA in hosting Annual Thanksgiving Dinner Giveaway.

2017 The Urban League hosts the National Urban League Conference - Save Our Cities.

The 2017 NUL Conference was the largest conference in National Urban League history with the highest amount of revenue raised, most volunteers and almost 25,000 in attendance.

2013 The Urban League establishes the Whitney M. Young Society, a giving society for leadership donors.

2014 The Urban League launches its historic Save Our Sons program in Ferguson and North St. Louis County to address issues surrounding the civil unrest.

2017 More than 600 residents, community and civic leaders joined together to celebrate the ribbon cutting of the Ferguson Community

Empowerment Center on the site of the QuikTrip that was burned down during the civil unrest that followed the death of Michael Brown at the hands of a police officer in 2014.

The building is the 1st building to be built in ULSTL history with 80% of Minority participation in St. Louis.

2018 Urban League President Michael P. McMillan is inducted into the International Civil Rights Walk of Fame. First Urban League affiliate president and youngest to be inducted to date.

2018 The Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis, Inc. celebrates a Century of Service through Empowering Communities and Changing Lives.

URBAN LEAGUE HEADQUARTERS

CENTENNIAL OVERVIEW The Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis will

celebrate 100 years of continuous service to the community in 2018. Started as a result of the East St. Louis Race Riots during a time of domestic and foreign conflict in 1918, the Urban League was established with the purpose of diffusing racial tensions, stabilizing communities and improving conditions for African Americans in St. Louis.

Since then, the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis has remained committed to its mission and has grown to become the #1 Ranked 5-Star Urban League Affiliate in the United States.

As we celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis, we are embarking upon an effort to ensure that the Agency will continue to thrive in the community.

1918 -1937

1937 -1966

1966 - 1972

1972 - Present

The anniversary is an opportunity to recognize, honor and carry on the legacy of our forefathers who established this agency for us 100 years ago and to pave the way for future generations of the community.

“I love helping people in our community buy homes.”

“Whether it’s teaching home ownership classes, finding down payment assistance or resolving credit issues, I do everything I can to help people buy homes. Because when they get those keys, the joy on their faces makes it all worthwhile.”

– Terrence Rogers Home Loan Officer

(314) 480-0096 carrolltonbanking.com

©2017, Carrollton Bank

NMLS #6107736

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Senada Grbic E X E C U T I V E C H E F, L E M M O N S R E S TAU R A N T

Senada Grbic, the executive chef at Lemmons restaurant, grew up in a family of food connoisseurs that consisted of her mother, who is a chef, and her father, who is a butcher. As someone who learned basic cooking skills as a child, she was prepared to master culinary school and grow to expand on her family’s rich history of gourmet dishes.

After arriving in the United States in 1972, Grbic’s father returned to Bosnia for a visit where he met her mother, who would later move to the U.S. in 1981. Together, her parents started a family that would grow to love food. Growing up in South City, St. Louis, she didn’t eat the normal Americanized versions of childhood staples, such as hamburgers, pizza, and tacos. Instead, her mother would make gourmet versions of American classics inspired by her Bosnian heritage. “She would do vegeta seasoned ground veal instead of taco meat,” said Grbic when describing what her and her family would eat when she requested tacos for dinner. Many of the recipes at Lemmons were inspired by her mother’s unique take on American staples.

Grbic’s first lessons in the kitchen came at the age of eight when she learned to mix ingredients and help her mother write down recipes.

“If I wanted to spend time with mom, I had to do it in the kitchen,” she said. By the time Grbic attended culinary school at Le Cordon Bleu in Chicago in 2009, she already possessed a vast amount of culinary skills. Her experience was compounded by the fact that her family also owned their first restaurant, Grbic’s, which she would

work at during the weekends while in school. “I would go to school during the weekdays in Chicago and I would come home every weekend to help my mom work in the kitchen,” Grbic explained.

She continued to work in the family restaurant full-time until after she graduated from culinary school.

Grbic has led a unique career as a chef, which has included cooking for the president of Bosnia on multiple occasions, and many other achievements. In 2014 Grbic, along with her brother and sister, had the opportunity to participate on the Food Network’s game show Guy’s Grocery Games. Together, they competed in a sibling rivalry episode and won a prize of $10,000. Most recently in her career, Grbic has received Feast Magazine’s 2018 Rising Star in St. Louis award and St. Louis Magazine’s Best New Restaurant 2017 for Lemmons. Grbic is also a sponsor to the local non-profit Ruka Nade, which translates to Hands of Hope in English. Every month she provides meat for their lunch at the Gateway 180 homeless shelter.

Grbic believes that “family is everything” and that “anywhere that life takes you, take your family with you.” Her family joins her at her Dutchtown home every Monday for meals as a part of regularly scheduled family time outside of the two restaurants they operate, Grbic’s and Lemmons. Grbic plans to continue her family’s legacy by adding her own Balkan touch to traditional recipes. According to Grbic, “the only thing I want to focus on is doing what we’re doing right now, but getting better at it each and every day.” who’s who diversity in color

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Nicole Hudson D E P U T Y M AYO R F O R T H E C I T Y O F S T. L O U I S

It’s a common held belief that people in the political arena began their careers with ambitions to be in politics, but the story of Nicole Hudson, Deputy Mayor for racial equity and priority initiatives for the City of St. Louis, is far from that narrative. The St. Louis native has a wide range of experiences that include working for Disney and pursuing opportunities in the performing arts outside of the city.

Hudson was born with grand ambitions and a great sense of knowing how she wanted her career to happen. “I am told that when I was five and asked what I wanted to be when I grew up, I replied that I wanted to wear a suit and work for Disney,” she said when speaking of her childhood. In high-school, Hudson was an athlete, yet drifted away from sports after falling in love with the theatre.

After years of dedication, Hudson found herself at the doorstep of Disney with a college internship working on the Broadway version of Beauty and the Beast and later, upon graduation, the Lion King.

Hudson grew up in a family of black professionals, who had great faith in her potential. Her father was an eye surgeon and her mother worked as an Executive Director for the Urban League of Madison County, IL. One would say their faith was tested when Hudson decided to pursue a non-traditional career path in the arts, which didn’t provide as clear of a trajectory when compared to the paths of the medical and law fields. “If my parents would have tried to fight me about that first year at Boston Conservatory, I would have dug in my heels and tried to stick it out. Because they let me figure it out on my own, I ended up taking the better path for myself,” said

Hudson when speaking of her decision to transfer to Northwestern for more opportunities; despite receiving a scholarship to attend the Boston Conservatory of Music as a musical theatre major.

After almost a decade of working in digital marketing and media in New York City, Hudson returned to St. Louis, armed with the experience that gave her a new perspective on her career, enabled her to encourage meaningful change within the community. Her first opening to connect her digital experience and the community she wanted to serve, came with an opportunity to be the general manager of an online nonprofit news organization, the St. Louis Beacon.

When the Ferguson Commission was being assembled, Hudson’s name was mentioned because of her unique experience with understanding “what messages are most important and what voices need to be heard.” After a discussion with the managing director, she chose to accept the role of Communications Director, knowing that she would be working towards an effective solution and not “window dressing.” The reputation Hudson built over the years led her to her current position of Deputy Mayor for racial equity and priority initiatives in the cabinet of Mayor Lyda Krewson.

Hudson plans to continue investigating “what stories are being told, and how they’re being told”, because she believes that fully understanding what stands in the way of progress, will help determine the best path forward. Her preference is to work behind the scenes, “building the machine” that will deliver St. Louis into a new era of equity. who’s who diversity in color

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Marti Cortez D I R E C TO R O F B U S I N E S S A N D C O M M U N I T Y R E L AT I O N S AT A M E R E N

Growing up in Mexico with two devoted parents, Marti Cortez learned at an early age that a good education, hard work, and passion were key to succeeding at anything you really wanted. This is amongst one of the many reasons she has excelled in customer service and within community relations during her career. Her professional experience has given her the ability to integrate diverse perspectives, specifically from the customer’s point of view, in creating innovative solutions to various challenges.

community involvement, she was recruited for an executive role with Bank of America. Later, this led to an opportunity with the St. Louis Science Center, followed by a leadership role at Charter/ Spectrum. Her range of experience and affinity for developing relationships helped her tackle some significant challenges and forge productive partnerships in the community.

After starting their family in Chicago, Cortez’s parents moved their family back to Mexico, in Matamoros, on the Texas border. “We lived in Matamoros and would commute daily to the United States to go to school,” said Cortez. Each morning, she and her three siblings would walk across the international bridge to get to school.

Her parents believed in continuing their children’s education in the United States at a faith-based school. “It was a financial burden, but education was the ‘key to a solid future,’ my mom would say.”

She began working at Ameren Missouri in 2013 as the director of customer care, a position she held for three and a half years, before taking on the role of Director of Business and Community Relations.

“My team is responsible for Ameren Missouri’s relationships with key community stakeholders and large commercial and industrial customers,” said Cortez. “We regularly interact with local elected officials and community leaders. I am excited because we are working on ways to enhance our support to become their trusted energy advisor. Our mission is to power the quality of life and to help our business customers and communities succeed.”

Cortez returned to the Midwest in the early 1980s and began working at McDonnell Douglas (now Boeing) as a bilingual business representative supporting international sales of planes to foreign countries. She later transitioned to Maritz, as an incentive travel account executive, where she was promoted into roles such as, project manager and director of brand marketing and public relations. During her time with the company, Cortez attended night school to complete a degree in marketing management at Webster University, which allowed her to compound invaluable on-the-job training.

Cortez has been involved in the St. Louis community for more than 15 years. She was a founding board member of St. Louis Language Immersion School (six years) and Focus St. Louis (seven years).

She served as commissioner for the Missouri State Lottery and is currently on the development committee for Focus St. Louis and the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Greater St. Louis’ Foundation board. Cortez is also an active member of Eisenhower Fellowships – an international organization led by Retired General Colin L. Powell. She is among 2,000 Eisenhower Fellows in the world - 23 of whom reside in St. Louis.

I was working with one of the most creative teams in the area and we were putting together exciting product launches, rules structures for sales competitions, continuous improvement programs, incentive travel award programs, and advising leaders at Fortune 500 companies on ways to improve their people’s engagement. I thrived on working 70-hour work weeks with a bunch of highly talented professionals,” said Cortez. Given her experience and

Looking to the future, Cortez intends to expand Ameren Missouri’s relationships in the community, while gaining a deeper level of understanding of their valued commercial and industrial client needs. According to Cortez, “We are leading the way to a secure energy future, and we are proud to serve the communities in which we live.”

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Mark Sanford P E O P L E ’ S H E A LT H C E N T E R

Mark Sanford has made extraordinary contributions to the advancement of African-Americans in the St. Louis area and areas with low-income populations throughout his life. Beginning at Washington University, Sanford served as president of the Association of Black Students, where he was awarded for his efforts to improve campus life. Professionally, he has continued to make life better for others in his current role as the Executive Vice President of People’s Health Centers. Sanford has also hosted 10 exchange students in his home, all of which have graduated college and returned to their home nations as exceptional leaders.Sanford grew up in North St. Louis with his parents and five siblings. His father was a labor negotiator for the Teamsters Local 688 and his mother a stay-at-home mom. When Sanford was 10, a fire destroyed his family home leaving them temporarily homeless. Despite this setback, Sanford graduated near the top of his class at Beaumont High School ranking fourth in a class of over 600 students. I was known as “the studious one,” he said.

He was the first in his family to earn a college degree, having received a full scholarship to Washington University as a biology/ black studies major, and later graduated Magna Cum Laude.

Sanford continued his education to earn his master’s degree in hospital administration from St. Louis University and a registered nurse license from St. Louis Community College. “College was very interesting for me. I came into my own in college,” said Sanford.

He served as president of the Association of Black Students in the 1970’s while at Wash U. As president of the ABS, Sanford helped to form a coalition of black student organizations, which secured a more equitable share of campus funding by electing students to key roles in Student Government. “We fought for what we wanted,”

he said. Sanford was awarded the W.E.B. DuBois award, Frederick Douglass award, as well as many other awards for his efforts on campus.

After completing his education, Sanford spent time working at Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital before transitioning to St. Mary’s Hospital, where he served as Vice President. It was at St. Mary’s he learned “a better appreciation for the human soul” when it came to providing hospital care for patients. This, coupled with his college experience, made him the professional he is today.

Sanford acknowledges the fact that there were people that came before him who “cut the bushes”, allowing him to have a path to success. He intends to do the same for the following generation.

Sanford wants the path that he creates to be “more intentional” by providing opportunities and resources that will form a finely crafted runway.

At People’s Health Center, Sanford’s community engagement has included a HireSmart initiative that’s provided employment training for over 200 people in the St. Louis City & County, as well as an IDA program, which has supported 500 residents in either buying their first home, pursuing post-secondary education, or starting a small business. He has spent 29 years working to grow People’s into a campus that includes a variety of services that help families financially and in many other ways.

Sanford believes that the two most important things people should remember about their community are “not to be afraid of it,” and to “invest in it.” According to Sanford, it’s vital that people are not fearful of the community around them and are open to understanding all of the people that live in it regardless of their status, appearance and/or background. who’s who diversity in color

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Gilberto Pinela CORTEX

Gilberto Pinela is a man of many talents, all of which have led him into a unique blend of experiences that include hosting the first foreign language television show in the state of Missouri. Over the years, Pinela has served as host for a TV show, acted, and much more on his path to be the current communications manager at Cortex.

Pinela left his birthplace of San Juan, Puerto Rico in 1981 to attend a technical college in New York, where he lived with family. He originally planned to study travel and tourism management at Niagara University and then return to Puerto Rico, but his parents insisted on him attending school near family. “They didn’t know much about university life and were afraid that I was going to a place where nobody knows me,” said Pinela. He also noted that him being an only child contributed towards their preference. Prior to finishing his program, Pinela chose to enlist in the Air Force before setting off on his career path.

After leaving the military, Pinela began working in the accounting department of Marriott Hotels and was eventually transferred to St. Louis in 1991. Shortly after he moved to St. Louis, he joined a friend in co-owning a plant care and landscaping business. Pinela and his partner operated the Greenery Plant Company together for more than 13 years. He described it as “a small outfit, just like a store,” before they expanded it to offer commercial interior plant maintenance, landscaping, and a garden center.

At the tender age of seven years old is when Pinela knew that a broadcast career would be in his future, after appearing on a game show in Puerto Rico. “They picked me for one of the games and I won, then an instant celebrity in my hometown,” he said.

His passion to be on television resurfaced when he enrolled in the mass communications broadcasting program at St. Louis Community College at Forest Park in 2001. After he completed the program, Pinela landed a host position on the television show, Ahora San Luis, which was the first television program dedicated to the Hispanic community in Missouri. He later returned to school at Webster University, after gaining 10 years of industry experience to complete his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in media communications. After graduating in 2017, he was proud to be the first member of his family to complete a college education and earn a master’s degree. Pinela was also inducted into Webster University’s chapter of the Omicron Delta Kappa honor circle.

In addition to his work in media, Pinela has also been active in the St. Louis community as the previous president and executive director of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and currently with Cortex. His interest in community development has extended into his work at Cortex, where he serves as communications manager.

In his role he believes that his work helps the greater St. Louis community by spreading awareness of the opportunities through Cortex. “We are innovating, not just for Cortex, but for the entire region, said Pinela. Having come from a humble family he believes that everyone is entitled to an equitable amount of opportunity.

“I’ve always been the one to say let’s go,” said Pinela. He believes that being raised as an only child contributed to his sense of independence and eagerness to take on new challenges. He enjoys being a part of an innovative and creative environment of Cortex, which he believes is a perfect fit for him. In the future, Pinela sees himself retiring and going back to his initial passion of being a tour guide believing that this would bring his life “full circle.” who’s who diversity in color

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Facundo Oyenard C U S T O M E R S T R A T E G Y & S A L E S F I N A N C I A L A N A LY S T A T M O N S A N T O

At the age of three, Facundo Oyenard experienced golf for the first time, in Argentina, which would eventually lead him towards a path of helping others here in St. Louis. Mastering this sport opened the door for opportunities, which led Facundo to be in charge of Monsanto’s scholarship program and to work within the hispanic community to advance the lives of students and business owners.

Facundo first arrived in the United States at the age of 19 in 1999, after receiving a golf scholarship to attend McKendree University.

He first became interested in golf as a child when his father would take him golfing in the afternoons, when most businesses in Argentina would be closed. Facundo’s father would spend his free time playing golf and after tagging along, Facundo inherited his father’s love of the game.

In 2003, after finishing obtaining his bachelor’s degree in Business, Facundo moved to St. Louis and found his first post-college job at a small construction company. It was this company who sponsored his visa, which eventually allowed him to become a U.S. citizen.

He was fortunate enough to have spent three years working with the company and the people that would help him further transition into the American culture. “I was able to learn about different lifestyles,” said Facundo when speaking about his coworkers. He was also able to connect with them through the shared interest of golf and other sports. The year 2003, was also the year Facundo met his wife, Aimee. They have two daughters, nine and seven, who love to travel and play sports.

After receiving his green card, Facundo pursued other career

opportunities that led him to Monsanto, where he has worked for 10 years. Currently, his title is Customer Strategy & Sales Financial Analyst. Outside of his primary role, he has been given the opportunity to lead Monsanto’s scholarship program, where he mentors students and recently assisted four of them in reaching their goal to attend college. In his experience, Facundo has learned that mentoring students can go further than simply giving them scholarship money. He also appreciates that Monsanto “never asks for a return on their investment,” as he feels they are genuinely interested in the success of students and the community in which they live.

In addition to his work at Monsanto, Facundo serves as the Chair of the Board of Directors for the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Metro St. Louis, and is involved with the World Trade Center and Sister Cities of the World. Facundo uses his experience as a Financial Analyst to assist the Chamber of Commerce in keeping their financial affairs in order. His professional experience is also beneficial to Sister Cities when it comes to connecting businesses in St. Louis and Argentina and exposing them to new international opportunities.

Looking forward, Facundo plans to continue his work with Monsanto and possibly venture out into doing work on the commercial side of the business, as well as working on international assignments. On the subject of Sister Cities of the World and their trade mission, the question he asks is, “how do we grow the international community that St. Louis hosts?”. This question still stands and Facundo is currently working to find the answer. who’s who diversity in color

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Aisha Sultan H O M E A N D F A M I LY E D I T O R F O R T H E S T . L O U I S P O S T D I S P A T C H

Aisha Sultan is one of the first Muslim American writers in the United States to have a syndicated features column with a daily news publication. She also serves as the home and family editor for the St. Louis Post Dispatch. She reached this position unexpectedly.

After studying to become a sociologist, she found her passion in the craft of journalism and storytelling.

Sultan’s parents, who migrated from Pakistan, wanted her to become a doctor so that she would have a stable career and make a difference in the lives of other people. “For immigrant parents, it can be scary when your child wants to embark on a non-traditional path,” Sultan said, about breaking the news to her parents.

She was exposed to life as a journalist during her internship with the St. Louis Post Dispatch and the Wall Street Journal, while studying social sciences in graduate school at the University of Chicago. “I never intended to become a journalist...but for my entire career, for the past 20-plus years, I’ve only ever worked in newsrooms,” Sultan said.

Looking back on her childhood in Texas, Sultan “grew up in a house full of newspapers.” Being a child who loved reading newspaper columns, it’s possible that her childhood habits planted seeds for a future career. Since her time at the Post-Dispatch, she has grown to become a nationally syndicated columnist, whose work has appeared in more than one hundred publications.

One of Sultan’s most memorable stories was about an Imam, a

Muslim religious leader, who had been detained in an immigration detention center after the September 11th terrorist attacks.

After several weeks of interviews with the Imam, government officials, and local citizens; she published a story about the misunderstandings that led to his detention. The next day he was released from detention and allowed to return to Senegal. “I try to present a view that humanizes people who have been portrayed as the enemy in our country,” Sultan said.

Her focus in journalism began to shift towards the subject of families and home after having children of her own. “After I had children, my interests became focused on how to raise thoughtful and engaged kids who reach their full potential; and how to create a more just society for them,” Sultan said. She is the mother of two teens who inspire her with their varied perspectives on life.

Sultan plans to pursue filmmaking and other platforms to expand on her methods of telling stories around the subject of identity, families, and social change, as it relates to contemporary American society. She recently completed her first short film and is working on publishing a book of essays. “One thing that’s really defined me over the past decade of writing a column has been my relationship with readers in the community,” Sultan said. She looks forward to continuing to build those relationships with her new projects. Her work can be found online at: www.aishasultan.com. who’s who diversity in color

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Sumit Verma C H I E F O P E R AT I N G O F F I C E R , N O R T H A M E R I C A AT C U R I U M

While getting settled in his new corporate office located in Westport Plaza, Sumit Verma says he’s very excited about all the new opportunities that are being presented to him in St. Louis. “It is a very dynamic role, whereby our teams are getting to develop new drugs, partner with top pharma companies in our space and help set a strong foundation for the company’s future state,” says Verma.

Curium, a global health care company, focused on radiopharmaceuticals with its North American headquarters in Maryland Heights, recognizes itself as a new company that has over 100 years of combined experience in the nuclear medicine industry. Sumit serves as the COO in North America; it holds core responsibilities for key growth initiatives and runs their Maryland Heights Operations that employs over 325 workers. “I wake up every morning excited about the patient care piece – we produce life-saving drugs that help oncologists, cardiologists and other medical professionals to determine the appropriate diagnosis for millions of patients that need our vital products”.Sumit was born to Indian parents who migrated to Kenya in the early 1970s to pursue careers in Education. Living in Nairobi, Kenya, he has had a unique opportunity to learn about various cultures and the importance of diversity all through his education. “Growing up in Kenya really made me who I am today. Most of us learned a minimum of three languages and spoke a fourth language at home and we celebrated multi-religious holidays ranging from Easter, Diwali to Nawroz and Christmas”. He credits St. Mary’s school, Nairobi, that was run by the Holy Ghost Fathers in the early 1990s, for his early educational development. “We are extremely proud of the famous alumni who have graduated from our alma mater including the current president of Kenya, many star Kenyan athletes and Hollywood actress of Black Panther fame, Lupita Nyongo,” Verma said proudly.

“When you think of diversity, you can’t beat the school I attended”.

He stated that he didn’t feel any type of prejudice or discrimination during his time in Kenya, even though Indians were a minority race in the country.

Verma came to the U.S. to study chemical engineering at Lafayette College in Easton, PA, and spent a significant amount of time with international students who came from various parts of the world including Denmark, Turkey, Nepal, Nigeria, Spain, and Oman; many of which remain as close friends to this date. His initial intentions were to work in the oil industry. However, he landed a job with Merck Pharmaceuticals in Philadelphia, PA, and got the opportunity to produce viral vaccines. At the age of twenty-two, he was supervising twenty-six bio-technicians in the manufacturing of a Chickenpox vaccine. He was fortunate to go through the Merck’s Manufacturing Division Leadership program and have supervisors who were deeply invested in his personal success.

Verma was encouraged by his then boss, to apply for a position with Mallinckrodt to allow him to be closer to his wife who was living in St. Louis at that time. In late 2004, Sumit accepted a position as a Senior Process Engineer with Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals, which initiated an impressive corporate lifecycle, where he got to work in many functions including engineering, manufacturing, program management, research & development, quality & environmental health & safety, while progressively developing his leadership skills. During his career development, he is particularly proud of installing a new FDA approved sterile drug manufacturing facility in St. Louis and directly overseeing Mallinckrodt’s investments of over $150 million in the St. Louis region.Verma points out what is most important is working with a good team and having their support while driving business objectives. “It’s always been about working with the right folks, empowering them and getting extraordinary results as a team. You have to find what works for them and fully support their needs.” In his current role, Sumit is grateful to have very strong high performing direct reports that are well-respected, as well as a true passion to serve as one of the leaders of the Curium organization.

After living in St. Louis for the past 14 years, Verma finds the time to engage in the local and international communities outside of his work and hectic travel schedule. “It’s not about work-life balance anymore. You have to find a way to integrate work-life and community.”

Verma serves as a mentor to a few biomedical engineering students at Washington University, sits on 3 local non-profit boards, volunteers with the St. Louis Mosaic Project, and is deeply involved with his children’s activities around the city. He had the opportunity to participate in the St. Louis Business Diversity Initiative – Cohort 9, where he met many leaders across the St Louis region. Currently, he has been working with his Kenyan childhood friend with a UK based non-profit agency, “Healing Little Hearts”. To date, the team which includes renowned British pediatric cardiologists, have performed pro bono surgeries for over a thousand infants from Kenya, Romania, Malaysia and India who suffer from congenital heart disease.He wants to contribute to the St. Louis community by growing Curium’s portfolio of products in the nuclear medicine market and by making this region the hub of pharmaceutical development excellence for this rare industry.

“My teams and I are actively working to provide future diagnostic and therapeutic products that can one day cure various forms of cancer and improve the lives for the over 12 million patients we serve on an annual basis”. He has a passion around the people who live here and works hard for the pursuit of excellence in health care and pharmaceutical manufacturing.

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These two medical professionals have embarked upon a mission across the region to expose, educate, and prepare minority youth for future careers in healthcare.

Dr. Steven Player and Dr. Isaac Butler hope to inspire the next generation of healthcare leaders to realize their full potential and pay it forward by serving the community in a meaningful way.

Dr. Player humbly shares that after earning his Doctorate of Pharmacy from the Xavier University College of Pharmacy in New Orleans, Louisiana, he went into his prayer closet to ask for guidance on whether he should return to St. Louis or begin his professional career in a new, more progressive city. Witnessing all of the exciting

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opportunities many of his classmates were offered across the country, Player wasn’t quite convinced that he would be able to see that same kind of opportunity and support in his own hometown.

A St. Louis city kid growing up, Player attended both magnet schools in his early elementary years and later, Clayton High School as part of the inter-district voluntary transfer program. Player attributes his diverse school experiences with putting him in positions where he learned to navigate different environments and advocate for himself to ensure that he received the education required to pursue a career in healthcare.

He is also quick to recognize how those same skills

MOST INTRIGUING PEOPLE

Dr. Steven Player & Dr. Isaac Butler BEST PHARMACY SUMMER INSTITUTE are transferable in the work that he does today, as the Director for the Center for Diversity and Cultural Competence at Barnes-Jewish Hospital. Thinking back on his pharmacy internship experiences at Barnes-Jewish Hospital (BJH), Player recounts how he envisioned a day when he might be able to create an initiative or innovative approach to increasing the number of minority healthcare professionals, as he was the first African American Pharmacy Intern for BJH. He went on to become the first African American Pharmacy Manager for BJH.“I recall vividly talking with my Mom about how diverse, progressive, and supportive other cities were at the time, and how St. Louis seemed to be on the opposite end of that spectrum. Without hesitation, she told me, ‘Son, for all of the reasons that make you want to run away from St. Louis, those are the exact reasons why you need to return. Folks need to see you. Our youth need to see you. They need to see firsthand how you have set your goals and held yourself accountable. Through you, they need to see that anything is possible for themselves’,” said Player.

Player credits God, along with those wise words from his mom, guiding him to come back home. He looked at what services and opportunities were being afforded to individuals that were not diverse. Some needed to be broadcast more intentionally, some required additional financial support, and all presented an opportunity for him to learn how to craft a business case to align his passions. He decided to bring all his experiences and skills together in an effort to leverage the health system he worked for and bring a diverse group of medical professionals into the field.The BESt Pharmacy Summer Institute was created to expose minority high school students to medicine in a meaningful way, to learn about opportunities in the industry, and to place them on a trajectory towards health care. Player wanted to provide a free precollege educational experience to high school students, prepare them for the ACT, and knowing that he’d have to compete with traditional summer jobs, pay the students to attend. He wrote grants to support the program and ultimately got the opportunity to pitch his proposal to BJH. They liked the idea, but asked him to find a partnering group. Player secured a very gracious commitment in the form of inkind support from the St. Louis College of Pharmacy to utilize their campus and resources to immerse the students in an authentic college experience. His wife, Dr. Celeste Player, worked for Express Scripts and orchestrated a meeting between him and their Corporate Giving leadership.“I got an opportunity to get in front of Express Scripts and this is how God works. Express Scripts found themselves in a similar situation at the time, searching for an opportunity to give back to the community through their corporate citizenship efforts and my proposal seemed to be a perfect match,” said Player. He quickly recognized that the sky would be the limit when Express Scripts shared that they had assigned a co-director who worked for them at the time.” That person was Dr. Isaac Butler.

Dr. Isaac Butler, a first-generation Bachelors, Masters’, and Doctorate, speaks passionately about his mission at St. Louis College of Pharmacy as Vice President of Diversity and Inclusion as well as adjunct professor of Pharmacy.

“I’m most proud of growing up in the city of St. Louis. I’m from a singlefamily parent home, and a very good one, where my Mom was big on, no excuses only adjustments. She was big on education with me and my sister. She really pushed my sister and I to achieve whatever goals we wanted to get. There was no excuse for overcoming a challenge,” says Butler.

Taking those things he learned from his mother, Butler feels that faith, family and community are important to have an impact. He says all those buckets must be full to make a difference. He works hard to design programs for students on the campus to help them understand what a diverse community looks like, in hopes of understanding some of the disparities they will encounter as they work in their chosen professions.“After 10 years, we created one of the best summer pharmacy institutes to open the doors to gifted minority youth to pursue a path toward being health care providers,” said Butler. “With Steven having the vision and working for the hospital for the past 20 years, Express Scripts knew how I felt about the community and giving back. So they linked both of us together.”

The BESt program started in 2008. Today they have a 100% college acceptance rate, 87% of their students are pursuing careers in healthcare and 39% are working in pharmacy. The goal for Player and Butler was to ensure that there were increases in diversity in the field of health care. Also, they wanted to make sure leaders are continuing to be developed in the St. Louis region.

“I’m a servant,” says Butler. “I’m someone who is willing to do whatever it takes to accomplish whatever goal.” He says his gifts are in strategic planning and administration, but says he doesn’t mind rolling up his sleeves and getting it done.Both Player and Butler were in prepprograms similar to BESt as youths; they were a part of programs that gave them the opportunities to see the possibilities of all the careers they could pursue. They were exposed to professionalism and business acumens, but most importantly they were supported by family, friends and their communities to possess great self-esteem.

Charged with reaching out to minorities who need a clear path, these African American men have teamed up to continue to make an impact in St. Louis. The duo consistently work to ensure confidence and success in the minds of those they touch. Both Player and Butler seek to provide students a level playing field despite the odds. They both want to empower students to embraces their gifts, believe in themselves, and see the possibilities of making great careers as healthcare professionals. who’s who diversity in color

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Dr. James Paine C H I E F O P E R A T I N G O F F I C E R F O R C A R E S T L H E A LT H

A proud St. Louis native, an ordained minister, and product of the St. Louis County School Desegregation program, Dr. James Paine currently serves as the Chief Operating Officer for CareSTL Health, formerly known as Myrtle Hilliard Comprehensive Health Centers, Inc. He readily credits his family and early support systems for his noted successes.“My parents played a huge role in my development and in helping me to frame and interpret the world around me.

My Mom and Dad had a great work ethic. Seeing how hard they worked inspired me, and in many ways became the benchmark that I patterned my work ethic after. They would constantly remind me that working hard and bringing your best self to the environment(s) you serve was not an option, but a requirement.

They taught me many valuable life lessons, like the importance of being at least 10-15 minutes early for work and meetings. For my parents, being on time was considered being late,” said Paine. “My parents encouraged me to stand out, not blend in.”

Paine and his wife, Marissa, will celebrate 23 years of marriage in September 2018 and are the proud parents of three college age children. The couple married young, and had to grow up very quickly; managing their marriage, young family and their grades in the process.

“Being a young father, I had to become very serious, very quickly,” says Paine. “By the time I was 22 years old, I had a 1 year old. That influenced my drive, and sharpened my focus. I definitely wanted to provide the best for my wife and children.” Paine says his family has been his anchor, especially his wife Marissa. “She’s an amazing wife and partner, an avid encourager and supporter, and my best friend in the world. I married well”.Dr. Paine’s formal education includes an undergraduate degree from Lindenwood University, a master’s from the University of Missouri, and a doctorate (PhD) from Saint Louis University.Over the course of his 18-year professional career, Paine has leveraged his education, work ethic, and vast professional skill set to successfully ascend to the C-Suite in two distinct industries - higher education and healthcare. Paine

says that in his previous role as Vice President for Student Affairs & Dean of Students at Logan University in Chesterfield, MO, one of his greatest joys and accomplishments was shaping policies and co-curricular programs, that meaningfully increased student diversity, retention, as well as student persistence to graduation among under-represented populations on the predominantly white campus.As Chief Operating Officer for CareSTL Health since 2015, Paine says he has been most pleased and excited to support the health care needs of individuals and families housed in some of the most distressed zip codes in the greater St. Louis region.“When I joined CareSTL Health in 2015, I was pleased to join an organization that had a focused interest in growing and finding new and creative ways to more fully live its mission. To that end, we’ve been very intentional about expanding our footprint in several school districts within our region to address the emerging need of efficient, comprehensive, pediatric health care services for students in their native school environment, thereby reducing absenteeism, and the need for parents to miss work to take their kids to the doctor,” says Paine. At present, the CareSTL Health School Based Health Center program supports students in the St. Louis Public Schools, the Jennings School District, and will launch two new School Based Health Centers in districts in St. Louis County later this fall.In addition to the impact that Paine has made as an educator and health care executive, he has also taken the philosophies and principles acquired from the many lessons of his parents, his professional experiences, and the bible, and packaged them in a book titled, “Workplace Worship: How To Practice Your Faith Without Preaching A Word And Growing Your Career In The Process.”Being able to add value to other people’s lives is really important to Paine. “I want to always honor the sacrifices my parents made to keep me safe, to provide for my education, and to model hard work and commitment in front of me. I do not want to view my work as a job, instead, I want others to use it as a platform to demonstrate how to develop strong values and beliefs in the marketplace.” who’s who diversity in color

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Gene Dobbs Bradford P R E S I D E N T A N D C E O O F J A Z Z S T. LO U I S

Growing up in Columbia, Maryland, an experimental eclectically planned community, Gene Dobbs Bradford says gave him an appreciation of different kinds of people and cultures, but also showed how music fits into the landscape of life.A student of the Orchestra, Bradford started out having an interest in playing the bass in high school and soon started his own band to play some of the great jazz music he was exposed to in school and in the community.

As President and CEO of Jazz St. Louis, Dobbs continues with those traditions he learned to expose the community to quality music, education, and entertainment.“The neighborhoods in my town were arranged in villages and they were all made up of all different kinds of races and cultures. We all went to the same school. I played in the wind ensemble, because I thought the jazz band was cool,” says Bradford, “I listened to everything from pop to jazz to classical music with my friends.”Auditioning for the Eastman School of music where he was accepted, Bradford began to learn and understand the business of entertainment by creating concerts.

“People asked us when they were going to be able to see us play, so I set up a series of concerts. I started a blues band because the grad students got paying gigs. I started playing the harmonica,” says Dobbs. His Dad was a collector of the instrument; he tried one, read the instructions and gave it a go.Dobbs decided by the end of college that he really enjoyed and had as much fun putting music concerts together as he did performing. “I found instead of sitting in the bass section of the orchestra playing, I’d rather be the person putting these gigs together. Being the impresario, you really get a chance to be creative in that position,” says Bradford.After college, Bradford got into the American Symphony Orchestra League’s Orchestra Management Fellowship Program, where he got a chance to intern for the Cleveland, New Mexico, and Baltimore Symphony Orchestras. He soon landed a job as a production manager with the Honolulu Symphony for three years. Later returning to the mainland to find work, Bradford landed a position with the St. Louis Symphony as Director of Operations for five years.

During his time at the symphony, Bradford got a chance to come

and enjoy some of the sounds of Jazz at the Bistro. He was also afforded the opportunity to work with Jazz St. Louis and jazz presenter Barbara Rose on events from time to time. When Rose past away, Bradford was asked by one of the board members of Jazz St. Louis to take on directorship of the nonprofit.“I had a bright career in orchestra management, but I saw this was something to kick off and build from the ground up.” Coming from a family of entrepreneurs, his father owned a floral shop, his grandfather was a pastor, and Bradford literally sold tickets, helped seat guests in the audience, booked local and national acts to oversee a major renovation to Jazz at the Bistro. This venue is now one of the premier entertainment spots to see both national and international performing acts in St. Louis.

“I felt like this was something to build from the ground up. We sold tickets. We did the marketing. This is something I really knew I could do. One of the reason for leaving orchestra management was because of that entrepreneurial spirit”, said Bradford.

Making a positive difference with what he is doing is how he wants to be remembered. Doing something positive for the community, Bradford continues to pass the music along, by working with what he is most proud of, the Jazz Youth and the Jazz Academy that focuses on middle school students. Young people have the opportunity to learn about a form of art that continues to grow in its reach.

“Music has the power to change things. Jazz is a great tradition.

Every culture has musical traditions. It is a part of who we are as human beings. We’ve been mentored by some of the greatest musicians. The younger guys like myself are now taking over what the older guys used to do,” says Bradford. “We feel the charge to help the next generation; we want to see this music past along.”A champion of the arts, Bradford says he wants to continue to grow Jazz St. Louis. He says now that they have all the new tools in the newly renovated space at the Bistro, he hopes that he is making the world a better place. who’s who diversity in color

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Qiaoni Linda Jing C H I E F O F S TA F F, S E N I O R D I R E C TO R O F G LO B A L C O R P O R AT E AT M O N S A N TO

Growing up in a farming community of Xi’an China, Qiaoni Linda Jing now lives in St. Louis for the third time.Following her father’s belief that “smart kids go STEM” and with a given name such as Qiaoni, which literally means “smart girl” in Chinese, Jing majored in Industrial Engineering at college. She graduated with honors and was the student speaker at the Commencement. Interestingly enough, she has never worked a single day in the field. She landed her first job as a consultant at PricewaterhouseCoopers in Shanghai. After obtaining her Master of Arts of Economics from Fudan University in China and a MBA from the Kellogg School of Management, at Northwestern University in the US, Jing has held different roles in two companies, namely, General Motors (GM) and Monsanto. Both positions allowed her to connect the dots on all aspects of multi-national business. She has held several positions in commercial, supply chain, and R&D and is now in corporate affairs.“I fulfilled my father’s wish as a dutiful daughter by studying engineering, but then I just ran away,” said Jing, warmly laughing.

Her father was the first to go to college from their hometown. But he worked as a coal miner for many years, before his career advanced, and receiving an appointed by the former Chinese Premier to lead one of the largest state-owned enterprises in China. Her father is a life-long inspiration for Jing, who changed the life trajectory of her family. Jing did not want to rest comfortably in the shade of the family tree. Instead, she wanted to go see the world and trail blaze on her own general management career path. “In retrospect, the training as an engineer was invaluable. I learned how to solve problems. More importantly, I forged this mind-set that, “if there is a problem, there is a solution”. I found the most important move to make is to rally the right people together around the problem and the best solution will follow. Such skills and mind-set helped me tremendously on every job”.

I was from Japan. When I shared I was from China, they had lots of questions,” said Jing, “It was the first time I realized the world needed a better understanding of China”.

Through extracurricular activities, Jing got opportunities to see other countries earlier on in her life. Being a naturally curious person, while in school, Jing entered an essay contest that had to be written in either English or German. She shared her perspectives of state owned enterprises in China, something she says was a part of her childhood. Upon winning the contest, she was the first from China, to be sent to Switzerland.“That experience further nurtured my interest in the world. While I was in Switzerland, people thought

“I have come a long way from where I started and I will keep on walking”, said Jing. She runs a 1.5 mile full marathon every month.

She also enjoys the soothing activity of knitting. Her best hobby over the past few years has been spending time with her now 5-year old son, who has also taught her a lot. She likes writing, with a focus on helping others understand the Chinese culture, through topics such as harmony, crisis, change, energy, and giving.

Jing did make it to Japan one year later, as one of the nationally selected youth leaders to speak at the Sino-Japanese Student Conference sponsored by the governments of China and Japan.

Jing first moved to St. Louis in 2005 to work at GM’s Wentzville Assembly Plant after her corporate strategy role in Detroit ended.

The plant had never seen an Asian female with an MBA degree. Her colleagues initially wondered how long she would last supervising UAW teams along the assembly line during night shifts. Jing not only survived, but thrived in production, before she was made Quality Audit Manager of the plant. Afterwards, she helped GM secure a JD Power & Associates best quality award. “It was the toughest working environment, but a once in a lifetime learning experience”, said Jing, “I learned that people are people. When you keep doing the right things, people will follow and good things will happen”. In 2007, Jing moved back to Michigan to take a Business Development Manager position for GM. Jing came back to St. Louis in 2009 to join Monsanto as the Strategic Planning Lead and led a customer operations team who turned orders into revenue. In 2011, Jing was expatriated to Buenos Aires, Argentina, to lead the development and execution of a new distribution strategy for Monsanto’s business. When she returned to St. Louis, she became the Global Operations Manager of the supply chain. Later she joined R&D as Director of Global Strategy & Operations for Plant Breeding. Now as Chief of Staff, Senior Director of Global Corporate Affairs, Jing is passionate about telling the stories of Monsanto and modern agriculture, as well as engaging with stakeholders.

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Adewale’ Soluade DIVERSITY PROFESSIONAL

While growing up in Nigeria, Adewale’ Soluade learned the importance of being intentional about building authentic relationships, especially with people different from those that looked like him. As the Director of Diversity and Inclusion for the Centene Corporation, Soluade holds on to those roots knowing nothing can be taken for granted.Moving to the United States when he was 16 years old, Soluade chose Missouri because he has family residing here. Upon enrolling in the University of Central Missouri, his original plan was to become an airline pilot. “Shortly after starting school, I realized that while I loved flying, my passion lied in how businesses ran and became successful.” He received his undergraduate degree in business administration and a MBA from Fontbonne University. Later, as he focused on the role that talent plays in the success of an organization, he switched career tracks and entered the human resources field, obtaining a certification as a Diversity Professional.

“My siblings and I were fortunate enough to experience the world outside of the one we grew up. My parents are now both retired as a lawyer and an accountant,” says Soluade. “They instilled in us an acute appreciation of the value of an education, both formal and informal.”

Soluade shared how he cultivated his brand, by benefiting from individuals willing to advocate for him to take advantage of opportunities, he says he may not have gotten otherwise. “I don’t think the power of relationships can be understated. Quite often, opportunities arise as a result of who knows your story, in a way that words on a sheet of paper cannot express.” It is one thing to tell people what to do and how to do it, but “it’s entirely different to inspire people to join you on a journey in a way that allows them to feel and know that they have ownership in how things turn out. That’s when you see the drive and innovation happen,” states Soluade.

Soluade’s parents made it clear to him while growing up, that to whom much is given, much is expected. “They didn’t just mean it in the sense of demonstrating a return on one’s own investment,

but also in how we show up with our families and the communities we live ”. Diversity, Soluade feels, intersects career, family and community. It’s about creating a society where people celebrate each other fully.

“Diversity and inclusion isn’t simply about guarding differences in the interest of everyone getting along. It’s also about leveraging the perspective we gain through our lived experiences for the greater good.” As a result of the initiatives Soluade spearheaded in his previous position prior to joining Centene, the company was recognized by the St. Louis Business Journal for its commitment to diversity and inclusion in 2017.

Soluade serves on the steering committee of the Regional Business Council’s Young Professional Network, which works to support companies in the St. Louis region striving to attract, retain, and develop a highly-skilled diverse workforce.

“I always look to surround myself with people who exhibit three qualities that I value deeply,” says Soluade. “They are passion, purpose, and drive. While one may possess these qualities individually, I’ve found that the people who truly make a difference tend to possess all three. These virtues cannot be taught. People with these particular attributes, inspire and push me to be better every day.”

This authentic leader with a passion for people, feels that nothing happens without having the right people, doing the right things at the right time. Calling himself a menswear enthusiast, Soluade delights in dressing well. As he matured in his career, he made it a priority to learn all about men’s tailored clothing. He has been featured five times in GQ magazine as “Best Dressed Reader” between 2014 and 2016. He was also featured by ALIVE magazine in their “Man of Style” issue in 2015.

Soluade says he is looking forward to building a world-class diversity and inclusion office for the Centene Corporation, that will help drive the mission of world change for its employees as well as the communities they serve.

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Promoting diversity & inclusion is our common goal.

We’re the Regional Business Council. We’re 100 of the area’s leading businesses, with over $65 billion in revenue, staffed by over 120,000 professional associates. And we’re targeting those resources and that expertise directly at the St.Louis Region.

Improving the St.Louis Region is a big job. But that’s our Business.

The Regional Business Council congratulates the

Who's Who Diversity in Color 2018 Honorees

on your continued commitment to making St.Louis a more productive and inclusive place to live and work.

F O C U S + C O L L A B O R AT I O N + I N V E S T M E N T + A C T I O N + R E S U LT S

THE CEO S OF ST. LOUIS’ LEADING COMPANIES John P. Stupp, Jr., Chairman Greg Twardowski, Chair-Elect Tony Thompson, Vice Chair Sue McCollum, Vice Chair Richard Mark, Co-Chair, Diversity and Inclusion Mike Zambrana, Co-Chair, Diversity and Inclusion Jimmy Williams, Co-Chair, Young Professionals Network Kevin McDaniel, Co-Chair, Young Professionals Network Kathy Osborn, President and CEO

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7701 FORSYTH, SUITE 205 ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI 63105 314.225.2100 KOSBORN@STLRBC.ORG WWW.STLRBC.ORG

EDUCATION GOVERNANCE QUALITY OF LIFE BUSINESS DIVERSITY TALENT DEVELOPMENT

Congratulations

Marti Cortez Director Business & Community Relations, Ameren Missouri From all of us at Ameren, we would like to congratulate Marti Cortez and all of the deserving 2018 Who’s Who Diversity in Color Honorees.

Top Utility in the Nation 2017. For the third consecutive year, DiversityInc has ranked Ameren first in the United States on its list of the nation’s Top 5 Utilities.

Choose diversity

Over 98,500 alumni made the right choice – more than 72 percent still live and work in St. Louis.

CHOOSE

UMSL

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Corporate Highlights

CORPORATE HIGHLIGHTS

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Our success is driven by diverse ideas, perspectives, and people

For Wells Fargo Advisors, diversity is more than a strategic goal and a core value for our firm — it’s the driving force behind our commitment and appreciation for different ideas, perspectives, and people. Wells Fargo Advisors is committed to building a diverse work force that mirrors the communitites in which we live and work.

To learn more about our firm or career opportunities, visit wellsfargoadvisors.com

Wells Fargo recognizes and values the diversity of its employees, customers, and business partners. Wells Fargo is an Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity Employer, Minority/Female/Disabled/Veteran/Gender Identity/Sexual Orientation. Wells Fargo Advisors is a trade name used by Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC, Member SIPC. © 2016 – 2018 Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC. All rights reserved. 1217-02049 [98202-v1] IHA-5683701 who’s who diversity in color

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Back row (left to right): Vince Hill and David Dawkins Front row (left to right): Angela Ruffin-Stacker, Mary Zimmer

Diversity and Inclusion a Key Value Diversity and Inclusion is a key Wells Fargo value and is part of our annual Vision and Values statement. We value and promote diversity and inclusion in all aspects of business and at all levels. Diversity, in and of itself, brings new ideas and new perspectives that can help us innovate and find new ways to serve and advise our clients on their terms. Inclusiveness involves sharing those ideas and collaboration to 102

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make those ideas a reality, bringing them to life to achieve our vision of helping our clients succeed financially.

In order to enhance our Diversity and Inclusion efforts at Wells Fargo Advisors, (WFA) the company is investing in new ways to attract and develop diverse financial advisors and leaders through its Diverse Client Segments and Next Generation

Talent groups, which were newly created in 2017. Each group is designed to foster an inclusive environment. These groups, alongside Wells Fargo’s Enterprise-wide Team Member Networks (TMNs), are designed to help everyone feel valued and to support and enrich the communities where our clients and team members live and work.

C O R P O R AT E HIGHLIGHTS

Left to Right: Beth Csengody, Desiree Coleman, Les Borzy, Jose Espaillat , Mary Zimmer and Angela Ruffin-Stacker

Turning Mission into Action: DIVERSE CLIENT SEGMENTS

In 2017, Mary Zimmer was named director of Diverse Client Segments. Mary is responsible for increasing diverse representation and retention in the field by focusing on a Clients.

First.Always. mindset.

Through partnership, Mary is creating robust offerings across all diverse client segments to ensure WFA is seen as a destination for both clients and diverse team members. The WFA Diverse Client Segments team aspires to position Wells Fargo Advisors as the firm of choice for diverse clients, advisors and team members. The team executes on this vision by:

Empowering advisors to engage and grow their business with diverse clients Attracting, developing and retaining diverse advisors Creating an inclusive, thriving environment for diverse team members “We want to position Wells Fargo Advisors as the best place for all clients, and by extension, the best place for all advisors, and all team members. It is time to make a change and activate the many opportunities within diverse segments.” who’s who diversity in color

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Dave Dawkins F I N A N C I A L A D V I S O R A D V O C AT E C O A C H

Dave Dawkins is an FA advocate coach, and is responsible for coaching, advising, and advocating for WFA Black African American (BAA) Financial Advisors and trainees in an effort to enhance productivity by expanding and retaining current client assets, gaining new clients and increasing engagement within the firm.

Dave has been a complex manager at WFA since 2011 and most recently managed a complex in Orlando, Florida. Previously, Dave was a director at UBS Financial Services where he was successful in the execution of business development coaching programs built around using best practices to grow advisors’ businesses.

“We exist in a business where African Americans make up a small minority of the FA population. As a result, existing training may overlook the unique experiences of minorities. These FAs may have to pursue business differently, relying on self-taught best practices to do so. If we can shorten that learning curve, we can help accelerate and expand growth for our diverse FAs.”

Vince Hill F I N A N C I A L A D V I S O R A D V O C AT E C O A C H

Alongside Dave Dawkins, Vince Hill serves as the second FA advocate coach and is also responsible for coaching, advising, and advocating for WFA BAA Financial Advisors and trainees in an effort to enhance productivity by expanding, and retaining current client assets, gaining new clients and increasing engagement within the firm.

Since 2012, Vince has served as a WFA complex manager in Yardley, Pennsylvania. As part of this role, he helped financial advisors establish strong networks and develop business plans to accomplish individual team goals. Vince’s experience prior to WFA includes leadership roles at Waddell & Reed Financial Advisors and Morgan Stanley Smith Barney.

“I know firsthand the difficulties that minority FAs sometimes face. I’ve been in their shoes and have experienced their challenges. I understand the struggles that uniquely impact this segment and can help serve as an advocate to catalyze change.”

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C O R P O R AT E HIGHLIGHTS

Angela Ruffin Stacker DIVERSE RECRUITING LEADER

Angela Ruffin-Stacker, is serving as the Diverse Recruiting Leader for WFA. Her primary responsibility is targeted toward the development and execution of a broad, cross-channel strategy focused on attracting and hiring a more diverse and inclusive sales force for both experienced advisors and Next Generation Talent.

Angela has been with WFA since 1994 and most recently served as a senior vice president in FA Integration & Growth. In that role she was responsible for the development and execution of a broad, cross-channel strategy focused on attracting and hiring a more diverse and inclusive sales force for both experienced and inexperienced advisors.

“I’m extremely excited to be a part of this effort as we continue to recruit talent. There has never been a better time in our industry than we are currently experiencing to attract the next generation of advisors. The question is, if not now, when? Our future looks bright, and Wells Fargo Advisors is well-positioned to be the firm of choice among an increasingly diverse audience of advisors.”

Desiree Coleman D I V E R S E C L I E N T S E G M E N T I N I T I AT I V E L E A D E R

Desiree Coleman is First Vice President of Diverse Client Segment Initiatives at Wells Fargo Advisors. In this role, she leads diversity & inclusion strategy development for Wells Fargo Advisors, leveraging internal and external relationships to drive team member and marketplace outcomes and diversity & inclusion advocacy.

In her previous Community Relations role, Desiree was responsible for Wells Fargo’s $4.1 M Missouri charitable budget and for setting the market’s philanthropy and outreach strategies.

Coleman joined Wells Fargo Advisors from the United Way of Greater St. Louis, where she led major gifts fundraising and volunteer engagement for the African-American affinity group.

Desiree earned a Masters of Public Administration from Syracuse University. In addition, she attained dual degrees in International Relations and Business Marketing from the University of Missouri-Columbia. She also earned a Certificate of Nonprofit Management from Georgetown University.

She currently serves on the Board of Directors of Wyman Center and the Gateway Center for Giving.

“I’m excited to join a diversity & inclusion team that is embedded in our business and is positioned to impact our team members & business priorities.” who’s who diversity in color

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Laraine Davis COMMUNITY CHAMPION PROGRAM MANAGER

Laraine has 20+ years of experience in mortgage, government and industry relations, and community relations. Laraine has focused much of her work on building strategic partnerships across Wells Fargo.

Laraine joined the Wells Fargo Government and Industry Relations team in 2006.

As a director she had responsibility for managing relationships, mitigating risk and influencing policy with some of Wells Fargo’s most important partners including Hispanic, African American and Asian Real Estate Associations, National Council of La Raza, 100 Black Men of America and others.

As a Community Champion Program Leader, Laraine works to increase the pool of diverse candidates for Next Gen Talent programs.

Laraine holds a BA in Psychology from Maryville University. She sits on the Board of Directors for The Girl Scouts of Eastern Missouri, RISE Community Development Organization and St. Patrick Center.

“I’m so fortunate to be part of the team committed to bringing equity to a career as a Financial Advisor. Wells Fargo Advisors’ Next Generation Talent Programs have eliminated many of the barriers that for years minimized the opportunity for success in traditional advisor roles. I’m amazed to see the changes this program has already brought to our company.”

Larry Smith TA L E N T A C Q U I S I T I O N M A N A G E R

Since 1991, Larry has worked with national organizations to improve race relations, starting as a Counselor and Camp Director for NCCJ Camp Anytown.

Larry attended Washington University, earning his BA in Economics. He went on to work for nearly 13 years with May Company before joining Wells Fargo Advisors in 2008.

Five years ago, Larry assumed the leadership role of Wells Fargo Advisors’ Black/ African-American Initiative, part of the organization’s mission to increase the representation of African-Americans in financial services. He recently joined the newlyformed Next Generation Talent group, working to attract diverse, talented individuals to the financial services industry.

“I remember my mother telling me of her experiences living across the street from one of the Little Rock Nine students, and how she was one of the first to desegregate Little Rock’s junior high schools,” Larry recounts. “She always impressed upon me the importance of speaking up when others did not have a voice.” Larry has had many opportunities to do that, including serving as Executive Producer of “Service To Man”, starring Keith David and Lamman Rucker (winner of Best Film award at both the American Black Film Festival and the International Black Film Festival).

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C O R P O R AT E HIGHLIGHTS

LaTonya Williams A N A LY T I C M A N A G E R

With the company since 2007, LaTonya Williams began her career as a Database Developer and Analytics Consultant, and was recently promoted to Analytic Manager.

LaTonya is chair of the St. Louis Chapter of Black/African-American Connection (BAAC). In September of 2017, there was anticipated unrest after a former St. Louis police officer was acquitted in the shooting death of a black driver. LaTonya and the BAAC leadership team hosted members in a conversation on the importance of BAAC allies and frank discussion.

“The attendees weren’t looking for one simple solution to a complex problem. They were looking for a safe space to have a candid and transparent conversation about a tough topic. Providing such opportunities is a great example of the company’s commitment to diversity and inclusion.”

LaTonya has been recognized as a Diversity and Inclusion Champion of the year and honored as a YWCA Leader in the Workplace. She holds a BS degree in Computer Information Systems and an MBA degree with a concentration in Management Information Systems. Active in church and community, LaTonya has been a member of the Operation Food Search Friends Board and serves as a mentor with Big Brothers Big Sisters.

Byron Caskey FINANCIAL ADVISOR

Byron Caskey is a Financial Advisor and has been with Wells Fargo Advisors since 2013.

As a Financial Advisor, Byron has the chance to learn from other experienced advisors and Wells Fargo leaders to make his client’s experiences valuable.

Since starting his career, Byron has made it his mission to educate those often overlooked by other advisors about the importance of creating a sound financial plan.

He’s presented to St. Louis City Hall employees, the Jennings School District and St. Louis Public schools to promote financial literacy.

“Financial literacy is not a topic taught in schools at any level. It’s something that is learned through observation, socialization, and being in the right place at the right time.

My mother didn’t have a Financial Advisor, so inevitably I didn’t have the exposure to one. My mom wasn’t exposed to markets or benefiting from investing in it, despite being a nurse with a master’s degree from St. Louis University. In many of our communities, my mom’s story is far too common. Wells Fargo has given me the platform to change that narrative. “

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Joel Coleman REGIONAL MANAGER

Joel Coleman is the Gateway Regional Manager, with primary responsibility to help recruit, retain and develop Next Generation Talent in Missouri, Kansas, Colorado, and Southern IL. Joel started in the industry in 1989 and attained his first leadership position in 1996 where he was tasked with turning around a struggling branch. Joel learned from his mentors the importance of recruiting and how the quality of the people hired affects every aspect of the organization.

Joel also served as Branch Manager in Downtown Denver. Previously, Joel ran the Denver Tech Center office for Morgan Stanley in Colorado.

“I became a manager in 1996 and at the time thought I could single handedly change the way the industry looked. I soon realized the biggest adversaries to diversity among retail financial advisors were rooted in the structure of the position. By creating a variety of new roles that address those issues, Wells Fargo Advisors has been able to attract and retain diverse team members, changing the odds of success dramatically.

We are very fortunate to have our Next Generation Talent Team who are absolutely committed to having our advisor population reflect the communities we serve. “

Jasmine Davis A S S O C I AT E M A N A G E R

Jasmine Davis is an Associate Manager, participating in Wells Fargo Advisors’ highly selective Branch Manager Leadership Development Program (BMLP).

Associate Managers in the BMLP learn the key activities that our best managers perform and can help make a difference between a good manager and a great leader.

Jasmine has been in the financial services industry for 13 years, and spent most of her career with Wells Fargo Advisors and its predecessors. Registrations include series 3/7/66/9/10/24. Jasmine graduated from the University of Virginia with a BA and Webster University with an MBA. She enjoys traveling with her friends and family, painting and mentoring young adults. She lives with her partner, Jason, son Alondo, 16, and 2 amazing Rottweiler-pit mix dogs, Lady and Prince. Jasmine served as a Board of Director for Great Circle Inc., and a mentor to teenage girls through the Sophia Project.

“BMLP has given me the opportunity to coach financial advisors to increased success and be a bridge to understanding the “why” in many policies. I am excited every day when I go into work because I know I am making a difference. “

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C O R P O R AT E HIGHLIGHTS

Front row: David Pruessner Second row (left to right): Andrea Beyer, Li-ming Yin, Kathleen Young, Larry Smith, Charles Milton, Laraine Davis, Anne Larson, Brandi Henri, Lauren Campbell, and Diane P. Gabriel Back Row (left to right): Steve Wyatt, Alan Schreiner, Matt Sebenoler, John Wright, Bob Sutter, Devin Destefano, and Matt Luca Not shown: Lynette Scott, Debbie Stewart, Anna Palermo

Engaging the Next Generation of Talent D I A N E G A B R I E L , D I R E C TO R , N E X T G E N . TA L E N T- F I E L D

In 2017, Diane Gabriel was named Director of Next Generation – Field and is responsible for driving the expansion of WFA’s next generation financial advisor programs to include Financial Relationship Advisor (FRA), Associate Financial Advisor (AFA), Financial Advisor in Training (FAIT), Digital FRA as well as the Branch Manager Leadership Program (BMLP). These programs were created specifically to change the face of the advisor workforce by completely reinventing its approach to next generation talent.

WFA has shifted its focus away from the traditional, cold-calling/ commission-only model, and has pioneered the creation of five

distinct mentoring, salary-based programs, designed to open the financial industry to a much more diverse advisor workforce ensuring our company make-up is representative of today’s America.

“I’ve been in the industry for 35 years, and one of my true passions has been to attract new advisors to it. Wells Fargo Advisors is investing heavily in new ways to attract and develop advisors and leaders. Our goal is to source talent for our new Financial Advisor and Branch Manager programs that truly reflect the communities in which we serve. “ –Diane P. Gabriel, who’s who diversity in color

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Success through a spectrum of talented individuals Success through a spectrum of talented individuals

Diverse business perspectives and working with a variety of people wherever we conduct business are vital to living our mission of transforming the health of our communities, one person at a time. Learn more at www.centene.com.

Diverse business perspectives and working w we conduct business are vital to living our mi who’s who diversity in color

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Jâlie Cohen HUMAN RESOURCE VICE PRESIDENT

Jâlie Cohen is a seasoned human resources executive with an extensive background in leading teams in matrixed environments. Jalie is a Vice President of Human Resources with Centene Corporation.

Prior to joining Centene, Jalie held various human resources executive roles throughout the US, EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa), Latin America and the Caribbean.

She specializes in executive coaching, change management, conflict resolution, talent management, employee relations and reorganizations. She believes that Human Resources is both employee advocate and business partner and leads under the premise that the two can successfully coexist while fostering a productive and engaged workforce.

Jâlie attained a Bachelor of Arts in International Studies and a Juris Doctor from the University of South Carolina.

Keith H. Williamson E X E C U T I V E V I C E P R E S I D E N T, S E C R E TA R Y AND GENERAL COUNSEL

An experienced business executive and corporate attorney, Keith joined Centene Corporation in November 2006 and currently serves as EVP, Secretary and General Counsel. Keith is also on the board of PPL Corporation, a Fortune 500 utility operating in Kentucky, Pennsylvania and the United Kingdom.

Prior to Centene, Keith spent 18 years with Pitney Bowes, serving his last seven years as President of its Capital Services Division. Keith began his career as a tax lawyer with Covington & Burling. Keith received his B.A. from Brown University, his J.D. and M.B.A. from Harvard University, and his LL.M. in taxation from NYU School of Law. Keith’s nonprofit board service includes the St. Louis Art Museum, the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis, the United Way of Greater St. Louis, the Clayton Chamber of Commerce, KIPP (Knowledge is Power Program)-St. Louis, and the Mathew-Dickeys Boys’ & Girls’ Club.

Keith is active with the National Bar Association; the Consortium for Leadership Development; Mound City Bar Association; Executive Leadership Council; 100 Black Men; Sigma Pi Phi; and the National Association of Guardsmen.

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C O R P O R AT E HIGHLIGHTS

Ken Yamaguchi, MD, MBA E X E C U T I V E V I C E P R E S I D E N T, C H I E F M E D I C A L O F F I C E R

Ken Yamaguchi, MD, MBA, joined Centene in April of 2015 as Executive Vice President, Chief Medical Officer. Prior to this position, he was a full-time academic surgeon at Washington University. He continues to maintain the position of the Sam and Marilyn Fox Distinguished Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery as part-time faculty.

Yamaguchi’s medical training incudes: George Washington University, Columbia University, and then the Mayo Clinic. He followed this later with an MBA at the Olin School of Business at Washington University.

Yamaguchi is an author of more than 200 publications and has given more than 150 presentations nationally and internationally. Invited professorships have included Johns Hopkins, Harvard, Brown, Dartmouth, Peking University and Oxford.

Dr Yamaguchi has also been active in medical device innovation. He helped develop highly successful joint replacement systems for both the shoulder and elbow.

As Chief Medical Officer at Centene, his primary responsibilities in the area of Medical Affairs include oversight of: Clinical Policies, Pharmacy and Therapeutic Committee, Clinical Programs, Clinical Analytics, Medical Management Operations, Medical Management Systems, and Data Governance.

Wade Rakes CHIEF DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION OFFICER

Wade Rakes serves as Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer for Centene Corporation. He is responsible for global diversity and inclusion programs, supplier diversity, provider initiatives, and community engagement. He also plays a leadership role with respect to the company’s healthcare provider partnerships.

Prior to joining Centene in 2010, Wade served in the administration of Ohio Governor Ted Strickland. Concurrently, he advised the 2008 presidential primary campaign of Senator Hillary Clinton and the 2008 Ohio presidential general election campaign of Senator Barack Obama. He began his career at Showtime Networks.

Wade received his B.A. in Economics from Princeton University with a Certificate in Political Economy and his M.B.A. from the University of Michigan with a concentration in Strategy. Wade serves on the Alumni Board of the Westminster Schools of Atlanta, the National Annual Giving Committee of Princeton University, the Board of Directors of Beyond Differences, the Board of Directors of Homeworks, the Executive Committee of the Michigan Democratic Party and as a member of the Health Policy Forum and Emerging Leaders Roundtable at Rice University. Wade was elected a delegate to the 2016 Democratic National convention in Philadelphia.

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Michael Rashid PLAN PRESIDENT AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

Joined IlliniCare Health in August 2017. Michael is a pioneer in the Medicaid managed care landscape helping to ensure there is access to quality and affordable health care to the “people most in need.” With his vision, passion, and leadership, Michael will work with the leadership team to develop innovative healthcare solutions -- advancing IlliniCare Health’s mission of transforming the health of the community, one person at a time. Before joining IlliniCare Health, Michael spent nearly 20 years with AmeriHealth Caritas holding multiple leadership positions, including CEO. As CEO of AmeriHealth Caritas, Michael was instrumental in growing the company from a 500,000-member organization serving Medicaid recipients in the Philadelphia region into a 5 millionmember organization serving people in 15 states and Washington D.C. During his four decades in health care, Michael led federally qualified health centers, health plans and other entities dedicated to making quality health care accessible for all.

Michael holds a Bachelor of Science in Marketing from the University of Southern California and a Master of Business Administration from Harvard Business School.

He serves on numerous boards, including Drexel University and Independence Mission Schools.

Carmen Fontanez EVP SALES & ACCOUNT MANAGEMENT

Carmen is Executive Vice President, Sales & Account Management of Envolve Pharmacy Solutions, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Centene Corporation. In this role, she oversees the business development and client management efforts for the pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) and specialty pharmacy lines of business.

As a strong advocate for diversity and inclusion in the workplace, Carmen not only mentors men and women throughout the organization, but she also serves on Centene’s Diversity & Inclusion Council. She is also a proud member of the National Women’s Health Network and National Organization for Women.

Carmen is also passionate about community engagement. With deep roots in Puerto Rico, she was determined to help those in need after the Island was devastated

by Hurricane Irma. Not only did she assist with facilitating the delivery of critical prescriptions to evacuees, she also organized a Hurricane Relief Effort, to include collecting donations, securing transportation and delivering more than 36,000 pounds of medical supplies to over 3,000 people in need.

She holds a bachelor’s degree in nursing from the University of Illinois, Chicago, and a Masters in Science from University of Illinois.

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Building a Healthier Community Together.

Building a He StLouisChildrens.org

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“I’m very proud to be awarded the Dr. Donald M. Suggs Scholarship. It truly shows that Maryville saw me as a leader and an advocate in diversity and inclusion.”

— Destinie Jones, biology major

LEAD I NG T H E RE VOLUT I O N I N HI G HER EDU CATION ACCESS & AFFORDABILITY Tuition Freeze Maryville University has announced a 2018–2019 tuition freeze for undergraduate and most graduate programs at current rates.

Scholarships Our Multicultural Scholars Program continues to grow, and we are committed to creating new scholarships for academically strong African American students.

SUPPORT Life Coach All undergraduate students work with a life coach to ensure they find their own path to academic and personal success.

Go Digital Maryville provides iPads to all undergraduate students and continues to expand technology-rich learning spaces.

SUCCESS Be Competitive Industry leaders work in our classrooms—and students work in top industry offices—so students explore meaningful work experiences before they graduate.

What to Expect 97% of Maryville graduates have a job or enroll in advanced education programs within six months of graduation.

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Felix Kwan, PhD P R O F E S S O R O F E C O N O M I C S A N D F I N A N C E AT M A R Y V I L L E UNIVERSITY

Through real-world applications and tangible connections to his students’ daily lives, Felix Kwan, PhD, strives to make economics come alive in appreciable ways. As a longtime professor of economics and finance at Maryville University, Kwan illuminates for students the subjects of money and banking, macroeconomics, microeconomics and corporate finance, as well as international trade and finance.

Throughout his 22 years at Maryville, Kwan has sought to enforce principles of learning through regular assessment and testing, taking a page from the neuroscience playbook on the foundations of learning. Kwan’s current research focuses on student engagement and learning — applying abstract advances in neuroscience and the brain’s inner workings — to the learning process, improving student engagement, comprehension and retention. Kwan sees the success of his theories daily in his students’ achievements and performance.

With a Master’s and doctorate from Washington University in St. Louis, Kwan has served as AP reader for the College Board, as well as on the Education Advisory Board for the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. As a reviewer for McGraw-Hill’s Economics: Principles, Problems, and Policies by McConnell, Brue and Flynn, Kwan has contributed valuable assessment materials in his field.

Nina Caldwell, EdD V I C E P R E S I D E N T F O R S T U D E N T L I F E AT M A R Y V I L L E U N I V E R S I T Y.

Nina Caldwell, EdD, serves as vice president for student life at Maryville University.

With a career in education that spans more than 25 years, she’s long been dedicated to student achievement and the advancement of women in higher education.

In her Maryville role, Caldwell leads campus divisions dedicated to student success, including student involvement, multicultural programs, personal counseling, athletics, health and wellness, campus ministry and residential life.

The embodiment of mentorship, Caldwell created Maryville’s Women in Leadership program, a campus initiative that provides mentoring, support and personal development.

Caldwell believes in continuous learning to bring her best to each new generation of students. She holds a bachelor’s from Dillard University, a master’s in counseling from Illinois State and an MBA from Maryville. She earned her EdD in organization and leadership from the University of San Francisco and has received a certificate in educational leadership from Harvard.

In recognition of her ongoing dedication to the professional development of students, Caldwell received the prestigious Zenobia Hikes Memorial Award presented by NASPA, the leading national association for student affairs professionals. She is also a 2017 Distinguished Leader in Delux magazine’s Power 100 Awards.

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C O R P O R AT E HIGHLIGHTS

Pradip Ghosh, PT, PhD, DMS P R O F E S S O R O F P H Y S I C A L T H E R A P Y AT M A R Y V I L L E U N I V E R S I T Y

As a professor of physical therapy at Maryville University, Pradip Ghosh, PT, PhD, DMS, certainly practices what he teaches. His recent practical research projects in physical therapy have proven to be groundbreaking, and his instruction helps improve the quality of life for countless individuals.

Ghosh has more than 30 years of teaching experience and now instructs graduate courses related to neuroanatomy, neurophysiology, neurological diseases and their treatment and pharmacology. His ongoing involvement in the American Physical Therapy Association and other international organizations further add to his expertise.

In addition, he has published 54 abstracts and 48 articles in peer-reviewed journals.

Along with teaching, Ghosh currently serves as a physical therapist for the nursing home industry, treating patients with various neurological conditions. He taught several neurological disease courses as continuing education and guided more than 15,000 professional physical therapists throughout the world. He’s delivered numerous presentations before state, national and international meetings.

Ghosh earned his MS and PhD in physiology and doctorate in homeopathic medical science from the University of Calcutta and his BSPT from Ohio State University. His research interests include stroke rehabilitation, yoga and meditation, Parkinson’s disease and cancer research.

Rasheen Coleman A lifelong champion of community betterment, this onetime recipient of the Boys & Girls Clubs of America National Youth of the Year Award has been a force for change throughout his career. Rasheen Coleman, a major gifts officer at Maryville, spent eight years working in Washington D.C. government roles before transitioning to local government and non-profit concerns.

Coleman has always felt a higher calling to give back to the community, selflessly serving local chapters of Big Brothers Big Sisters, Boys & Girls Clubs, the Urban League and the United Way, along with the Center of Creative Arts (COCA), Cahokia Connections Church Alliance and more. In the wake of the 2014 Ferguson, Missouri, unrest, Coleman founded the leadership group Young Men Inspired at City Garden Montessori School, acting as an agent of change for young men to improve conditions in their schools, families and communities.

From a traumatic childhood, Coleman transformed his life and earned his BA in urban studies from Morehouse College before attending the Bush School at Texas A&M University. Coleman believes it’s his duty and desire to inspire young AfricanAmericans to tap into the potential within to affect positive change.

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Stacy Hollins, PhD A S S O C I AT E P R O F E S S O R O F I N F O R M AT I O N S Y S T E M S

Known around campus for her love of technology as much her infectious laugh, Stacy Hollins, PhD, associate professor of information systems at Maryville University, is dedicated to the success of students in her highly collaborative and interactive classes in the Simon School of Business.

When Delux magazine recently recognized Hollins as a Power 100 honoree, she was described as being among “those who lead, inspire, innovate and demonstrate through individual talents.” Her love of technology, education and helping others has been a driving force throughout her life.

Hollins wrote a dissertation for her doctorate in educational technology at the University of Missouri-St. Louis exploring the adversity students face without access to technology.

The research gave her the opportunity to explore technology and social justice.

From her early career as the first person in the University City School District to offer GED prep courses online until now, Hollins has embraced teaching. Her students gain knowledge and insight from her own examples as a professional in the business world, and her passion for technology provides them with in-demand skills and critical thinking that leads to their academic achievement and future professional success.

Turan Mullins A constant voice for equity and inclusiveness, Turan Mullins focuses his superpowers on Maryville University, where he serves as assistant dean and director of the Office of Diversity and Inclusion.

Among many campus diversity programs and initiatives, Mullins’s primary mission is to help Maryville students become more culturally competent and industry-prepared by developing key partnerships with local nonprofits and creating scholarship opportunities that provide structured mentorship and professional development.

Mullins was recently named a 2018 Young Leader by the St. Louis American Foundation.

He’s been recognized as a Leadership Fellow with the National Association for Campus Activities, earned a 2016 Focus St. Louis Fellow award and is an alumnus of the St. Louis Business Diversity Initiative leadership program.

In support of important local diversity programs, Mullins serves on the board for the Diversity Awareness Partnership of St. Louis and on the executive committee of Friends of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater St. Louis. He was honored with the 2016 Outstanding Alumni Award from Mathews-Dickey Boys’ & Girls’ Club.

Mullins earned his bachelor’s in corporate communications from Southeast Missouri State University and his master’s in strategic communication from Maryville University.

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Curium Congratulates Sumit Verma, 2018 Who’s Who Diversity in Color Honoree

Curium is a world-class nuclear medicine solutions provider with more than a century of industry experience. Formed by the merger of IBA Molecular and Mallinckrodt Nuclear Medicine LLC, Curium is the largest vertically integrated radiopharmaceutical product manufacturer in the industry. With manufacturing facilities across Europe and the United States, Curium supports over 14 million patients around the world with SPECT, PET and therapeutic radiopharmaceuticals to provide potentially life-saving diagnostic solutions.

The Curium brand name is inspired by the work of radiation researchers Marie and Pierre Curie and emphasizes our focus on nuclear medicine. To learn more, visit curiumpharma.com.

A-1 PRIVATE INVESTIGATIONS & SECURITY LLC 8008 CARONDELET SUITE #107 CLAYTON, MO 63150 314.726.1717 ‧ WWW.A-1PI.COM 122

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THANKS FOR ALL YOU DO. With commitment, determination, and effort, great things happen.

We at Anheuser-Busch salute all honorees of the Who's Who Diversity in Color 2018.

© 2018 ANHEUSER-BUSCH, BUDWEISER® LAGER BEER, ST. LOUIS, MO who’s who diversity in color

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Our differences make the difference.

C O R P O R AT E HIGHLIGHTS

Alejandra Berra PORTFOLIO MANAGER FOR COMMERCE TRUST COMPANY

Alejandra Berra is a Portfolio Manager for Commerce Trust Company, the wealth management division of Commerce Bank. Originally from Honduras, she came to the U.S. when she was awarded a scholarship to attend University of the Ozarks where she earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, with an emphasis in Economics and a minor in Political Science. She also holds an MBA from Webster University.

A dynamic member of Commerce Bank’s Inclusion & Diversity Council, Alejandra focuses on community engagement efforts and employee involvement. She is a founding member of Commerce’s Women’s Employee Resource Group—RISE—which has quickly grown to over 845 members across the bank. Seeing the need, she led the development of a mentoring program for women.

Her passion for mentoring led her to Marian Middle School, where she mentors Hispanic girls and shines a light on opportunities for Latinas in the investment industry. She is a graduate of the Hispanic Leadership Institute and the bank’s liaison to the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce where she is heavily involved.

Alejandra serves as Vice President of Friends of Operation Food Search, where she oversees planning for fundraising events and is also a Mosaic Ambassador.

Derrick Nelson C O R P O R AT E I N C LU S I O N & D I V E R S I T Y M A N A G E R FOR COMMERCE BANK

Derrick Nelson is the Corporate Inclusion & Diversity Manager for Commerce Bank.

His responsibilities include providing guidance and leadership to improve diversity representation outcomes, while advancing the inclusion education and celebration objectives. He also manages and maintains relationships with strategic community partners, which further enhances the Commence Bank brand in its community.

Derrick serves on the board of Center for Developmentally Disabled. His proven leadership style promotes an inclusive culture where employees are encouraged, recognized, supported and proud to be part of an outstanding organization. As a leader, he works tirelessly to develop talent, maximize colleague engagement and effectiveness, and minimize potential risk to the organization, all while maintaining operational alignment.

Derrick earned his undergraduate degree from Fontbonne University and holds a Master of Arts in Human Resources and MBA from Webster University. He also holds two human resources certifications: Senior Professional Human Resources (SPHR) and Society of Human Resource Management Senior Certified Professional (SHRM-SCP).

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Mark French Mark French is a native St. Louisan who grew up in the heart of the city. He is a passionate and dedicated alumnus of Christian Brothers College High School (CBC) and earned his Bachelor of Arts from Columbia College and MBA from Fontbonne University.

Mark has over 20 years of banking experience and has held a variety of positions within the industry. In his role, he leads a diverse team of telephone financial services representatives. He is known within the department for his creative abilities and is considered a key resource within the leadership team. He participates on the Diversity & Inclusion Council and Health Council.

Mark is an alumnus of the St. Louis Business Diversity Initiative Fellows. He is as a dedicated instructor with Junior Achievement and has conducted University Missouri— St. Louis Career Workshops. Mark serves on the Soldan Advisory - Business Acumen board and is a member of the nonprofit, Real Men Wear Pink - Breast Cancer Awareness board. He’s also a proud member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated.

Mark has been married for 21 years. He and his wife Kim have two sons, Kirkland (CBC ’14) and Miles (CBC ’21).

Niaz Khan A S S I S TA N T V I C E P R E S I D E N T O V E R S E E I N G T H E TA L E N T M A N A G E M E N T T E C H N O L O G Y C O N S U LT A T I O N A N D D E V E LO P M E N T G R O U P AT C O M M E R C E B A N K

Niaz Khan is an Assistant Vice President overseeing the Talent Management Technology Consultation and Development group at Commerce Bank. The award-winning bank has most recently been named a “Corporate Champion for Diversity and Inclusion” by the St. Louis Business Journal. The bank has also been recognized by Forbes as one of “America’s Best Mid-Size Employers.” Commerce Bank has also earned an “Outstanding Employer” award by Korn Ferry.

Upon graduating from the University of Missouri-St. Louis with a Bachelor of Science in Management Information Systems, Khan joined MasterCard in O’Fallon, Missouri, as a Business Analyst focusing on HR Technology. He then joined IBM as a Senior Consultant focusing on HR Technology Transformations. Recognizing his professional experiences and knack for leading teams, he was tasked by Commerce Bank to lead a team of talented Systems Consultants within their Talent Management Technology group.

He also serves as co-chair for EMERGE, a young professional resource group within Commerce Bank. The group supports and promotes a workplace culture that attracts, develops, engages and ultimately retains young professionals.

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CEA-10006 © 2016 EDWARD D. JONES & CO., L.P. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Many Faces; One Goal At Edward Jones, we continuously work to create an inclusive work environment. By welcoming different perspectives, we can better understand our clients’ needs and consistently deliver an ideal client experience.

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C O R P O R AT E HIGHLIGHTS

Emily Pitts Emily Pitts began her Edward Jones career in 1995 as a financial advisor in Atlanta, was named a principal in 2004, and moved to the firm’s headquarters to implement marketing of credit cards and mortgage services. Today, she leads the firm’s comprehensive inclusion and diversity efforts, which helps foster an inclusive environment and delivers results.

Pitts has a bachelor’s in business administration and an EMBA from Washington University. She serves on the boards of the Boys and Girls Club of Greater St. Louis, the St. Louis Urban League, and is board chair for the Diversity Awareness Partnership.

She serves on the diversity committee of SIFMA and the Executive Leadership Council of corporate leaders.

Pitts received the Diversity Woman’s Magazine named her one of 50 Diversity Champions in 2013, Savoy Magazine named her one of the 2014 Top Influential Women in Corporate America, the St. Louis Business Journal named her to its 25 Most Influential Business Women. Pitts received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Urban League and the St. Louis Public School signed by Former President Obama. In 2018, she received the YWCA Women’s Corporate Leadership Award

Alyssa Harper Alyssa Harper is the Principal responsible for Branch Development - Centralized Support, which includes business planning, project management, systems and data, technology strategy and operational excellence across Branch Development.

Harper joined Edward Jones in October 2014 as the director of BOA Talent Acquisition, where she led a team responsible for hiring more than 4,000 branch office administrators annually. She also spearheaded the firm’s efforts to develop branch workflow, providing a framework to help branches implement necessary changes that improve client convenience and branch and home-office efficiency.

She graduated from the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., with a bachelor’s degree in political science and served as a logistics officer in the United States Marine Corps before returning to civilian life. She still serves as a reservist with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. Harper also earned an MBA from Boston University.

Prior to joining Edward Jones, Harper served as a business leader at Wells Fargo Advisors and held a variety of leadership positions at Citi.

She serves on the board of directors for Unleashing Potential.

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Anthony McBride PRINCIPAL,HUMAN RESOURCES Anthony McBride joined Edward Jones in 2011 as a principaland the firm’s chief human resources officer, responsible forsuccessfully identifying and delivering talent and organizationalsolutions that meet the firm’s Five-year Plan and 2020 vision. McBride serves on the firm’s Management Committee. Before joining Edward Jones, McBride worked for Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS) for 15 years, where he served as the firm’s chief human resources officer.

Before joining Bristol-Myers Squibb, he served as a human resources consultant at Personnel Decisions Inc., where he worked with numerous public and private companies to select and develop top talent. A native of Houston, Texas, McBride earned a doctorate in industrial/organizational psychology from Texas A&M University. He has also completed the three-year program at the Wharton School’s Securities Industry Institute. McBride serves on the boards of Grand Center Inc. and Mercy Hospital.

Demetrius Grooms DIRECTOR IN RETIREMENT SERVICES

Demetrius Grooms joined Edward Jones in June of 1998 as a Rotational Development Program Associate. During his leadership tenure he has been responsible for functions in the US, UK, and Canada.

He is currently a Director in Retirement Services and the former chair of the firm’s Black/African American Business Resource Group. He graduated from Saint Louis University with degrees in Mathematics, Education, and received his MBA from Webster University. He is also an alumnus of the 2006-2007 inaugural class of the St. Louis Business Diversity Initiative Fellows Program.

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C O R P O R AT E HIGHLIGHTS

Chris Lewis GENERAL COUNSEL Chris Lewis is General Counsel and a member of the Edward Jones Management Committee. He is responsible for leading all associates who provide legal support to the firm as well as responsibility for Compliance and Government Relations.

Lewis joined Edward Jones in 2007 as a principal and deputy general counsel in the Legal division. In 2015, he was named general counsel.

He is a graduate of Columbia University School of Law as a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar.

He is a member of the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) General Counsel Committee.

Lewis serves as a member of the board of directors of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Eastern Missouri, St. Louis Children’s Hospital Foundation, Missouri Botanical Garden and is a member of the Board of Trustees at Manhattanville College in Purchase, N.Y.

Vanessa Okwuraiwe Vanessa Okwuraiwe leads the new Financial Adviser career training, development and onboarding program for the firm. She is responsible for the firm’s strategy that is focused on the development of the next generation of financial advisers.

She joined the Edward Jones’ former United Kingdom affiliate, Edward Jones Limited, in 2001 after a banking career at the Halifax Bank of Scotland.

A British born Nigerian, Okwuraiwe was educated in both countries and has a degree in Economics and Master’s degree in Development Economics. She also holds the Series 7, 66 and 24 licenses.

Okwuraiwe serves on the board of the St Louis Community College Foundation.

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C O R P O R AT E HIGHLIGHTS

Michael Williams GENERAL COUNSEL Michael Williams began his Edward Jones career in 2003 in the firm’s Internal Audit department, with responsibility for performing audits of the Information Systems division.

Williams was named Information Systems audit manager in 2005 and a principal with the firm in 2011. He subsequently assumed the role of IS Audit Director. In that position, he has responsibility for the overall planning and execution of the IS annual audit plan and for identifying risk mitigation strategies through audits and consulting services. Williams is also responsible for developing future leaders through the variety of experiences and learning they derive from performing audit work.

Prior to joining Edward Jones, Williams worked for Southwestern Bell Communications in an internal audit capacity. He also worked for Monsanto, initially as an intern, and remained with the company for 10 years, working on various domestic and international efforts in both IS and internal audit.

Williams earned an undergraduate degree in management information systems and computer science from Fontbonne University and an MBA and a master’s in cybersecurity management from Washington University. He is a certified information systems auditor (CISA) and holds Series 7 and 63 licenses.

Williams serves on the board of Jazz St. Louis and the Sheldon Arts Foundation and Beyond Housing, a not-for-profit agency helping families achieve stability and strength through home ownership, financial literacy and community improvement.

Larry Thomas After completing his bachelor’s degree in business administration in 1977 from Washington University in St. Louis, Thomas joined the Corporate Bond Trading department at Edward Jones. Since becoming a partner in 1983, he has developed, led and coordinated many areas of the firm. Today, he leads the university channel for Financial Advisor Talent Acquisition.

In addition to his undergraduate degree, he earned MBAs from Lindenwood University in St. Charles, Mo., and Northwestern University’s J.L. Kellogg School of Management. He also is a graduate of the Securities Industry Institute at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business.

Thomas serves on the Executive Committee of Washington University’s Board of Trustees and is a member of the Alumni Board of Governors. He sits on the National Advisory Council of the John M. Olin School of Business at Washington University and is a member of its Steering Committee. Thomas serves on the Executive Committees of the United Way of Greater St. Louis, the St. Louis Zoo and Forest Park Forever (St. Louis).

He also sits on the boards of the Barnes-Jewish Hospital Foundation, Provident, Inc., and the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) Foundation.

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C O R P O R AT E HIGHLIGHTS

Everett Johnson Everett Johnson is the senior director of Business Solutions Development for Edward Jones. He joined the firm in April 2007 and assumed responsibility for firm wide applications development. He was named a principal with the firm in 2008.

Prior to joining Edward Jones, Johnson was a senior vice president at Citigroup Inc. in New York City. There he was charged with developing and implementing various business- critical systems at the Smith Barney retail brokerage, Asset Management and Global Transaction Services business units.

Johnson, a native of New York City, attended Wagner College in New York, earning dual bachelor’s degrees in computer science and business administration. He also holds an MBA from the University of Pennsylvania Wharton School of business and a master’s degree in technology management from the university’s engineering school.

Johnson has served on the SIFMA Technology Management Committee and the AT&T Financial Services Advisory Board. He currently serves as a board member of the St. Louis Application Development Board, Boys Hope Girls Hope of St. Louis and the Grace Hill Settlement House, a non-profit organization focused on helping the underprivileged communities of St. Louis.

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owned businesses received over $34M in payments on active construction projects and exceeded $32M in project commitments for new work in construction. Additionally, minority- and women-owned design firms were paid nearly $10M, accounting for close to 30 percent of MSD’s total spend in design services.

Minorities and women represented 34 percent of the total construction workforce hours, which equates to more than 250 fulltime jobs on MSD construction projects.

Shonnah Paredes MANAGER OF DIVERSITY PROGRAMS M E T R O P O L I TA N S T. LO U I S S E W E R D I S T R I C T ( M S D)

Shonnah Paredes is Manager of Diversi-ty Programs for the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District (MSD) and has been leading the development and implementation of diver-sity and inclusion initiatives for over 20 years. In her role, Shonnah provides senior management oversight of MSD’s Minority and Women Business Utilization Programs; including supplier and workforce diversity for MSD Project Clear, MSD’s $4.7 billion, 23-year program to improve water quality and address wastewater issues 138

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through the St. Louis area.

In addressing challenges to bridge the gaps identified by a 2012 Disparity Study commissioned by MSD, Shonnah is credited with developing new diversity programs that are yielding excellent results to promote opportunities for the expansion and growth of minority- and women-owned businesses within the communities served by the District.

For MSD’s most recent fiscal year ending June 30, 2017, minority- and women-

Shonnah has been a force in fostering diversity throughout the St. Louis region and is constantly helping create participation opportunities for minorities and women.

She developed training programs for mi-norities and women in the tunneling industry and implemented MSD’s Building Union Diversity (BUD) pre-apprenticeship program. Additionally, Shonnah created a scholarship program for wastewater treatment plant operators in partnership with Southern Illinois University Edwardsville’s Environmental Resource Training Center Certification Program. She also hosts paid summer internships at MSD for disadvantaged high school students.

A graduate of Webster University, Shonnah earned a Masters of Business Administration and Masters in Human Resource Management. She received a Bachelor of Business Administration from Fontbonne University. Shonnah is a licensed Missouri Real Estate Broker and has served on the Board of Commissioners for the City of St. Louis Housing Authority since her appointment in 2007.

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Corey Harris MANAGER OF CENTRAL STERILE PROCESSING A N D A N E S T H E S I A AT S T. LO U I S C H I L D R E N ’ S H O S P I TA L

Corey Shamon Harris is a proud native of the city of East St. Louis, IL. Corey received his high school education at Cahokia High School in Cahokia, IL and completed his undergraduate degree (Business) at Eastern Illinois University in Charleston, IL. The product of a single parent home, determination, generosity, integrity, and thoughtfulness were values instilled in him at an early age that have helped to shape his career.

Corey’s professional accomplishments span over the past 15 years,

including diverse opportunities in business management and leadership roles. It has been a tremendous honor and privilege to serve in healthcare roles for the past 6 years. Currently, Corey serves as the Manager of Central Sterile Processing and Anesthesia at St. Louis Children’s Hospital. He is married to Alia Denise Harris and have four children (Brooke 17, Corey Jr 11, Chloe 2, and Baby Bella 2 months). Faith, family, and career have all been significant in shaping him as an individual.

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HELP PUT OUR LEADERS IN THE HANDS OF OUR YOUTH! Who’s Who Diversit y in Color ’s BUSINESS & BOOKS program is your company or organization’s way to provide this publication for the region’s youth.

Call 314.473.5257 today to make your contr ibution.

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LaToya Daughrity RN, BSN, MHA N E O N ATA L N U R S E M A N A G E R AT S T. LO U I S C H I L D R E N ’ S H O S P I TA L

LaToya Daughrity is a Neonatal Nurse Manager at St. Louis Children’s Hospital.

The NICU is a 125 bed unit with over 300 staff members. My job responsibilities include; hiring new nurses, performance evaluations, coaching, mentoring, cultural transformation, campus renewal, employee engagement, ensuring patient satisfaction scores and community involvement.

She recently received her Master’s degree in Health Care Administration in an effort to increase her knowledge in the health care field from a global perspective.

LaToya is currently in the St. Louis Business Diversity Leaders Fellowship, where she is able to network with other diverse leaders in the St. Louis area.

Lisa Glover-Jones B U S I N E S S M A N A G E R W I T H T H E H E A LT H Y K I D S E X P R E S S P R O G R A M O F S T LO U I S C H I L D R E N ’ S H O S P I TA L

As a Business Manager with the Healthy Kids Express Program of St Louis Children’s Hospital Lisa Glover-Jones believes it is imperative that they improve health outcomes for the community they serve. Possessing a natural enthusiasm to bridge the gap, working in healthcare as a liaison for patients has always been a passion for her. She transitioned into the role of Business Manager after working as the Supervisor for the Child Health Advocacy and Outreach Department. In her day to day role, she manages Asthma Coaches, Mobile Health Drivers, Community Health Educators, Community Health Workers, Social Workers, dental clinicians, perform budgetary reviews, coordinate with community partners, train student healthcare clinicians, and educate children in grades PreK – 5th on asthma self-management strategies.

Her eagerness to serve in the community led to being appointed and elected to the Board of Education in the Ritenour School District, where she serves as a Director. Her most important role is being a wife and mother to 13 and 15 year old, who keep her grounded and active in the athletic realm with soccer. She enjoys family time, volunteering in the community, laughing and just working for the greater good of others.

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Kel Ward M A N A G E R O F C O M M U N I T Y R E L AT I O N S F O R S T. LO U I S C H I L D R E N ’ S H O S P I TA L

Kel is Manager of Community Relations for St. Louis Children’s Hospital where he promotes the presence and visibility of the hospital along with building community partnerships across Missouri and Illinois. He oversees the Community and Faith Advisory Boards and has assumed additional responsibilities as a Steering Committee member for Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity at St. Louis Children’s Hospital, providing guidance and making recommendations for effective interventions to reduce health disparities, increase patient and employee satisfaction, and improve recruitment and retention of a diverse workforce.

He also helped create the hospital’s new program, Raising St. Louis, working with families to navigate the healthcare system and access social services resources.

He received a Bachelor of Science degree in Criminology and Criminal Justice and a certificate in Conflict Mediations/Resolution from the University of Missouri-St. Louis.

Kel worships at Pleasant Green and Liberty Community Bible Churches and is a member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. Kel and his wife have three children.

Adella D. Jones Adella D. Jones is the Director of Marketing and Community Outreach for Home State Health, the Missouri subsidiary of Centene Corporation based in Clayton, Missouri.

Home State is a managed care provider serving Missouri families enrolled in MO HealthNet Managed Care. Jones is responsible for increasing brand awareness and knowledge of the health plan among medical providers, plan members and healthcare advocates throughout the state of Missouri.

Since Home State began operations on July 1, 2012, Jones launched a number of successful community partnerships and initiatives. Prior to joining Home State, Jones served as the Vice President of Government & Community Affairs for Metro, the agency that operates public transit in the St. Louis region. She was responsible for oversight of the agency’s internal and external communications program, as well as directing the agency’s legislative agenda. Jones is a graduate of Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville. She previously served as St. Louis press secretary for Missouri’s Third District Congressman Richard Gephardt. She has also served as director of communications and chief spokesperson for the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department.

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Leslie Holloway EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR INSTITUTIONAL ADVANCEMENT AT H A R R I S - S TO W E S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y

Leslie Holloway currently serves as Executive Director for Institutional Advancement at Harris-Stowe State University. In this role, Ms. Holloway is responsible for management and coordination of events held at the university; reconnection and engagement of alumni; and development and implementation of comprehensive fundraising campaigns.

Ms. Holloway’s passion for educating the next generation of leaders has led her to assist thousands of students on their path to fulfill their dreams of a college degree for more than 30 years. Prior to joining Harris-Stowe, Ms. Holloway held leadership roles at United Negro College Fund (UNCF) INROADS, University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School and Tulane University.

Ms. Holloway, a native of St. Louis, is an avid tennis player who enjoys all sports and spending time with family. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and Master of Business Administration in Marketing and Management from Tulane University.

In 2016, Ms. Holloway received the Exemplary Leadership Award from the National Coalition of 100 Black Women. She is a member of several professional associations including the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP), Council for the Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) and National Black MBA Association, Inc.

Dr. Quincy Rose D E A N O F T H E C O L L E G E O F E D U C AT I O N Dr. Quincy A. Rose is the Dean of the College of Education at Harris-Stowe State University. A graduate of Delaware State University, she earned her Bachelor Science degree in Elementary Education and a Master of Arts degree in Curriculum and Instruction. Dr. Rose received her Doctorate of Education Degree in Innovation and Leadership with a concentration in Organizational Leadership from Wilmington University. In addition, she completed the Women in Education Leadership Program at the Harvard University Graduate School of Education.

A native of Baltimore, Maryland, Dr. Rose came to HSSU from Grambling State University where she served as Department Head and Associate Professor of Curriculum and Instruction. Additionally, she served as Director of Teacher Education and Department Chair of the Bachelor of Science Interdisciplinary Studies Program and Master of Arts in Teaching program at Tusculum College in Greenville, Tennessee.

Dr. Rose. has served on numerous committees related to education and creating healthy and safe communities. In 2001, she was appointed by the Governor of Delaware to serve as a board member of the Children’s Trust Fund and was also presented the esteemed Jefferson Award for outstanding service.

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Dr. Sudarsan Kant H A R R I S - S TO W E S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y

As a student and teacher of global politics, Dr. Kant is often confronted with the task of helping Harris-Stowe State University (HSSU) students think beyond the limits of geography and circumstance amidst the profound challenges we face in our communities. As Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences and Assistant Professor of Political Science at HSSU, Dr. Kant provides leadership together with his department chairs over the largest academic unit in the university. Together, they oversee new degree programs, grants, teaching, research and faculty growth.

Dr. Kant earned his Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Missouri-St. Louis in 2011. His research focuses on the political economy of microstates in Oceania and the process of social and political development in institutionally fragile societies. He feels privileged to be at Harris-Stowe because it allows him the opportunity to mentor students and engage with them on the most important questions that we face as they prepare to go out and make their mark in the world.

Dr. Joyce Eisel H A R R I S - S TO W E S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y Dr. Joyce Eisel holds the position of Faculty and Chair, Health Care Management, Harris-Stowe State University, Anheuser-Busch School of Business, and previously held administrative and teaching positions at Central State University and the University of Oklahoma Schools of Business. She holds degrees from the University of Oklahoma and Mississippi State University.

Dr. Eisel has held executive positions with global healthcare organizations such as Haemonetics Corporation, Switzerland; Alpha Therapeutics, Japan and The American Red Cross National Office of Tissue Transplantation. She was honored as Woman of the Year in Wichita Falls, Texas for her work in genetics with the University of North Texas.

Dr. Eisel initiated the HCM online degree program, serves on numerous University committees including Accreditation and Assessment. She volunteers with the Regional Health Equity Council, is a Board member of the American College of Healthcare Executives-MOHEG. Also, Dr. Eisel presented at the Euro Asia Economic Forum and at Jiaotong University, Xi’an, China at the invitation of the Chinese government.

In addition to numerous university healthcare and business grants, contracts, presentations and publications, Dr. Eisel enjoys her time as a journal editor and writing poetry.

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Dr. Fatemeh “Fara” Zackery Dr. Fatemeh “Fara” Zackery has held various positions with Harris-Stowe since 1996.

She is currently the Dean of the Anheuser-Busch School of Business that offers several degree programs in Accounting, Business Administration, Professional Interdisciplinary Studies, Information Sciences and Computer Technology. Dr. Zakery has championed Harris-Stowe’s partnership with the China Education Association for International Exchange to afford students in the School of Business the opportunity to study abroad.

Her instrumental leadership led to implementing this program, which happens to be the first at Harris-Stowe. In 2016, two students attended Ningbo University’s Business School in the spring and nine additional students are to follow during the summer and fall terms.

Zakery holds a doctoral degree from the University of Missouri, Columbia. Her academic background is in Education, Health Care and Business Administration. She has taught several levels of courses, including online courses. The university is planning to add even more courses and entire programs online to make higher education more assessable for the busy professional. Dr. Zakery takes pride in relating to each of her students as unique professionals. She enjoys outdoor activities and crossword puzzles.

James Gillespie DELMAR FINANCIAL

James Gillespie, a native St. Louisan, has been in the mortgaging business for over 25 years. Currently a Senior Mortgage Banker with Creve Coeur based Delmar Financial since 2014, James has worked for some of the St. Louis metropolitan area’s major financial institutions and nationally known institutions including Citibank and USBank.

A graduate of Lindenwood University with a Bachelors in Business Administration with an emphasis in Financing, James also attended Truman State University where he pledged to his beloved fraternity Omega Psi Phi to which he remains an active member to this day. James is also very active in the community and volunteers for a myriad of area youth and young adult oriented mentoring programs.

When he’s not working or volunteering, James can be found enjoying time with his wife Edith of 30 years and their two adult children. Also, when time permits, James enjoys reading, particularly his Bible, and swimming.

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James & Kristy Jackson James and Kristy Jackson, ED. S. , are serial entrepreneurs, and co-founders Social Synergy Project which facilitates training programs and offers incubator space for underrepresented entrepreneurs. Social Synergy has provided support to 200+ youth and adult entrepreneurs in an effort to close the diversity gap in the STL Startup ecosystem. Social Synergy services and partnerships allow them to fulfill their social mission of service and giving to build a better community powered by economic growth.

Delux Magazine recognized Kristy as one of STL’s 50 Most Intriguing women and one of their Top 100 influencers and advocates in the STL business community. Both were recognized in St. Louis Small Business Monthly Magazine as one 2017’s most admired CEO’s.

James Jackson, II, CEO of JAJ2 Music, is a professional jazz musician using his 20 year career experience to promote, manage and develop creative entrepreneurs through the incubator and Gator MediaSTL. Kristy Jackson, ED.S., serves as CEO of DK Solutions,LLC creative consulting and the DK Annex private event space. She is also the founder of GLAMM-Girls Lead And Make Moves youth entrepreneurship and leadership program.

Jessica Mendez Recognized as one of the top Intellectual Property attorneys in Missouri and Kansas

by Super Lawyers®, Jessica Mendez represents clients in management, protection, and enforcement of intellectual property. Jessica works for businesses of all sizes, from startup companies to Fortune 100 companies.

Jessica is the recipient of the Best Patent Attorneys, St. Louis Small Business Monthly (2018), Hispanic Emerging Leader, Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Adelante Awards (2017), Top Lawyer Under 40, Hispanic National Bar Association (2017) and numerous other awards and achievements.

Aside from her job, Jessica was a founding members of the Hispanic Bar Association of St. Louis, and served as this organization’s President in 2016. She serves as General Counsel to the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and also volunteers with the Hispanic Educational, Cultural, and Scholarship Fund to help raise money for college scholarships for Hispanic high school students. Jessica also serves on the AT Inclusion Committee and chairs the Diversity Committee for the Missouri Bar Association. Through these efforts, Jessica has built a reputation as a champion for diversity both within the firm and the community as a whole.

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Jose Ponce RE/MAX GOLD

Jose Ponce has been a successful real estate agent with RE/MAX Gold for over 13 years, and has always been a top earning agent for RE/MAX Gold and RE/MAX International.

His success was documented by the St. Louis Business Journal’s “30 under 30” award and Diverse Business Leaders in 2017. He has sold over 150 million dollars in homes since he started in the business, and has received the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award from RE/MAX International for earning over a million dollars in commissions.

Not only has Jose found a way to assist the community through his business, but he continues to give back to the community through additional outlets. Ponce sits on the Board of Directors for the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce advocating for Hispanic business owners and offer valuable insight to how the HCC can better direct their efforts.

Aside from his great work with the Hispanic Chamber, Jose also dedicates his time to training young adults in boxing, supporting families who have lost a loved one in the line of duty through the Backstopppers program and through the Gary Sinise Foundation.

Karlos Ramirez PRESIDENT & CEO OF THE HISPANIC CHAMBER OF COMMERCE O F M E T R O P O L I TA N S T. LO U I S

Karlos Ramirez is the President & CEO of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan St. Louis. In his role, Ramirez is responsible for overseeing all aspects of the Hispanic Chamber’s operations, including donor cultivation, member relations, event management and solidifying partnerships with outside organizations. Under his leadership, the Hispanic Chamber has grown its membership by 79% and increased corporate sponsorships by 654%.

As a community leader, Ramirez is the chairman of the St. Louis Economic Development Partnership Board, and he participates in the Deaconess Foundation, St. Louis Sports Commission, United Way, BJC Children’s Hospital Board, Minority Business Growth Accelerator Advisory Committee, Contractor Loan Fund Executive Committee, St. Louis Convention & Visitors Commission Multi-Cultural Committee and Washington University Student Entrepreneurial Program.

Karlos Ramirez has been named to Ingram Magazine’s ‘50 Missourians You Should Know’ in 2018, Gazelle Magazine ‘St. Louis Influence List’ in 2016 and Small Business Monthly’s 100 People to Know to be Successful in Business’ List in 2015. Additionally, Ramirez has participated in FOCUS St. Louis’ Leadership St. Louis and is the recipient of the Diverse Business Leaders Award in 2011.

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Kiara Bryant E X P LO R E S T. LO U I S

Kiara Bryant has been a public relations coordinator for Explore St. Louis for 3 years. As PR coordinator, she is responsible for promoting St. Louis as a destination for meetings, conventions and leisure travel. Bryant hosts journalists and influencers during St. Louis press trips. She is a contributor for explorestlouis.com content, press releases and other communications, including local and national publications. Prior to joining Explore St. Louis, she worked for Wisconsin Public Radio in Madison, Wisconsin as a corporate development specialist.

Born and raised in St. Louis, she is a graduate of the University of Missouri in Columbia and received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communication in 2011. She is a member of the St. Louis Metropolitan Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta, Inc. where she’s been involved as a mentor for the Rights of Passage program for young African American women planning to attend college.

Kristi Franklin E X P LO R E S T. LO U I S

Kristi Franklin began her career in the hospitality industry in 2004 at the Hyatt Regency St. Louis Union Station Hotel. After the hospitality market began to face a downfall in 2009, she began working for the St. Louis County Health Department – Food and Environmental Program for the following 6 years. She joined the Explore St. Louis team in April 2015. As an Executive Meeting Sales Manager, Kristi works daily to bring meetings and conventions to St. Louis and thus creating a positive economic impact on her hometown.

Born and raised in St. Louis, Kristi graduated from Parkway West High and studied at SIU- Carbondale, Forest Park Community College where she received an Associates of Applied Science Hospitality Management, and University of Phoenix where she received her Bachelors of Science in Management. Kristi and her husband, Antonio, reside in St. Louis County while raising their beautiful daughters Alana and Kennedy. Their favorite family activities are spending time with each other while watching movies and going to their favorite restaurant, Chili’s for dinner.

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Leah Spinks E X P LO R E S T. LO U I S

Leah Spinks, prior to becoming Event Manager for Explore St. Louis, received her Bachelor of Science in Business and Hospitality Management from the University of Missouri, Columbia. After graduation Leah accepted a job working for Explore St. Louis; Explore St. Louis directly contributes more than $5 billion to the local economy on an annual basis. In her role of Event Manager she maintains a fast pace, detail oriented environment, allowing her to connect and align herself with some of the most diverse events.

Passionate about serving others (in her community) the decision to plant herself in her hometown of St. Louis was a natural fit. In her free time, Leah loves (honing her crafts) in her minor degree in viticulture, playing the piano and tennis. She also plans special events while pursuing her MBA at Webster University. Between managing events and her hobbies, Leah often retreats in California where her mother and father reside.

Santiago Beltrán LOGISTICS MANAGER - BUILD-A-BEAR WORKSHOP

Santiago is a native of Manizales, Colombia and moved to St. Louis, Missouri where he received his MBA from the University of Missouri-St. Louis. Over the past 15 years, he has held several roles at Build-A-Bear Workshop including Bear Builder Associate, Inventory Allocator, Logistics Planner, Financial Analyst and Logistics Manager.

Currently, he is a Logistics Manager, responsible for the transportation of product to Build-A-Bear’s warehouses and stores.

Santiago volunteers with the United Way of Greater Saint Louis as the Multicultural Leadership Society Co-Chair, ALPFA (Association of Latino Professionals), the English Tutoring Project and the Hispanic Educational Cultural and Cultural Scholarship fund, where he and his wife are donors for one of the scholarships. He is a member of the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals and the Regional Business Council’s Young Professionals Network Leadership 100. Santiago is also a member of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and graduated from the Hispanic Leadership Institute in 2013.

Aside from his community involvement, Santiago is a recipient of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce’s Hispanic Emerging Leader Award in 2016 and the St. Louis Business Journal’s 40 Under 40 Award in 2015.

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Segun Babalola Segun Babalola is a Project Manager & North Sector Specialist with the St. Louis Economic Development Partnership’s Real Estate & Community Investment team.

Segun has been tasked with managing construction and non-construction projects in North Saint Louis County. He also works on community engagement and redevelopment efforts in the county. Prior to SLEDP Segun was employed with the Missouri Higher Education Loan Authority as a Loan Consultant. Segun has spent several years in various managerial roles within the retail industry. He is an Immigrant, business owner and self-proclaimed “wantrepreneur” Segun’s academic credentials include a BS, Marketing, from Southeast Missouri State University as well as International/Global Studies, Ecole Superieure de Commerce de Rennes, France. Segun is currently working to complete his MBA through Webster University. He is involved in other organizations such as the Regional Business Council Young Professionals Network, Mosaic Project, BRAND St. Louis, and the National Black MBA Association. In addition, he serves on the St. Louis Clean Energy Development Board. For fun Segun loves soccer, chess, traveling and the Arts.

Angelia D. Bills Angelia D. Bills is Vice President of Communications of the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis, Inc. Since 2003, she has been responsible for all marketing, advertising and communications for the Urban League. She previously served as Senior Public Information Specialist at Lambert-St. Louis International Airport.

During her career, she has received the Phenomenal Woman Award from Center for Racial Harmony, St. Louis Sentinel’s Yes I Can Award, the St. Louis Mayor’s Certificate of Appreciation and an Excellence in Communications Award from the Greater St. Louis Association of Black Journalists.

Mrs. Bills is a member of the IHeartMedia Community Advisory Board, St. Louis County Board of Zoning Adjustment, United Way Charmaine Chapman Society, Top Ladies of Distinction, Urban League Guild, and the St. Louis Press Club. She received a B.A. in Communications from Howard University and a Master of Social Work Degree from Washington University in St. Louis. She also earned a Leadership Certificate from the Consortium for Leadership Development at Harris-Stowe State University.

Angelia is married to Rev. Bryan C. Bills, pastor of New Life Ministries, and is a proud mother of two daughters: Brittany and Kristyn

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Rebeccah Bennett Rebeccah Bennett is Founder and Principal of Emerging Wisdom LLC – an innovative social enterprise that helps individuals, groups and organizations manifest the best within themselves and create communities that sustain the best in us all. At Emerging Wisdom, Rebeccah designs and facilitates personal and professional growth programs, organizational improvement efforts and social transformation initiatives. Her principal offerings include consulting, training, facilitation and planning, coaching and professional speaking.

Rebeccah’s competencies are born from nearly 20 years of research and practice discerning what it takes to help her clients advance large and small-scale systems change while achieving high levels of function and impact. She supports her clients in aligning their decision-making and resources with their purpose, vision and values. Among Rebeccah’s clients are Anheuser-Busch InBev, Wells Fargo Advisors, MasterCard Worldwide, the St. Louis Regional Chamber, the MO Department of Mental Health, the Deaconess Foundation, Focus St. Louis, the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District, the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis, the Ferguson Commission, and Hazelwood School District.

In addition to her professional activities, Rebeccah sits on the boards of the St. Louis Maternal Child & Family Health Coalition and Jamaa Learning Center.

Barbara Bowman Barbara Bowman currently serves as the Vice President of Development for the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis. In this role, Ms. Bowman is responsible for all aspects of fund raising including special events, individual giving, major gifts and foundation and corporate funding.

Bowman serves as Vice Chairperson of the Board of CHIPS Health and Wellness Center and Chairs the Board of East Central Missouri Area Health Education Center. She also serves on the boards of Provident Inc, the Emerson YMCA Advisory Board, the St. Louis Children’s Hospital Community Advisory Board and the United Way Charmaine Chapman Leadership Society Cabinet. She is a member of the St. Louis Chapter (MO) Links, Inc. and a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority.

Bowman is a graduate of Saint Louis University and the Leadership St. Louis Class of 2001/2002. Ms. Bowman has presented at regional and national conferences on topics to include: Outcomes Based Funding, Creating a Legislative Strategy and Fundraising on a Shoe String Budget. She has received the Monsanto YMCA Community Zealot Award and the Unsung Heroine Award from the St. Louis Chapter of the Top Ladies of Distinction.

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Dr. Lakesha M. Butler A S S O C I AT E P R O F E S S O R O F P H A R M A C Y P R A C T I C E AT SOUTHERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY EDWARDSVILLE BOARD CERTIFIED PHARMACOTHERAPY SPECIALIST

Dr. Lakesha Butler is an Associate Professor of Pharmacy Practice at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville and Board Certified Pharmacotherapy Specialist. She earned a Doctor of Pharmacy degree from Mercer University in Atlanta, GA and completed a postgraduate residency at University of Illinois- Chicago.

Dr. Butler is a strong advocate for increasing cultural competency among healthcare professionals and improving diversity and inclusion in and outside of the classroom. She serves as the Chair of the SIUE School of Pharmacy Diversity and Inclusion committee and the director of the SIUE Healthcare Diversity Summer Camp exposing minority students to careers in healthcare. Dr. Butler is the President-Elect of the National Pharmaceutical Association and the national chair-elect of the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy, Pharmacy Practice Section with over 2000 members. She is the creator of the first Health Literacy instructional DVD for students and pharmacists across the nation and co-author of the pharmacy textbook Patient Communication for Pharmacy.

Dr. Butler has received numerous awards including SIUE’s Champion for Diversity Award, Teaching Distinction Award and Community Leadership Award, St. Louis Salute to Young Leaders Award and the Urban League Distinguished Young Professional Award.

Larry H. Blue, Jr. Over the past 20 years Larry H. Blue Jr. has been a force in the sales industry both locally and nationally. Larry is perhaps most notably recognized as visionary for the St, Louis Chapter of National Sales Network (NSN). The St. Louis Chapter has twice been named national Chapter of the Year. NSN is a not-for-profit organization whose objective is to meet the professional and developmental needs of sales professionals.

Larry has served on many boards including NSN, the Minority Professional Associations Collaborative, and the Back Pack to Briefcase Scholarship Board. Larry also volunteers for many organizations including the Kappa League Guide Right program.

Larry has received various awards including the Johnson & Johnson President’s Circle, NSN’s National Award for Individual Commitment, Gateway Classic Sports Foundation’s Citizen of the Year, as well as being recognized as one of the 100 most influential St. Louisans’ by Delux magazine.

Larry currently serves as a District Sales Manager for a pharmaceutical company and is responsible for delivering over 11 million dollars in annual sales. Larry is married to Becky Blue and has four children; Taylor, Caleb, Rebekah, and Christian.

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Danielle Carr Danielle Carr is the director of diversity and inclusion for Polsinelli, P.C. which is one of the largest and most reputable law firms in the country. Danielle attended the University of Michigan Law School where she served as President of the law school student senate from 1988-89 and received her undergraduate degree, magna cum laude, from the University of Northern Iowa.

Danielle’s professional and community affiliations include being a lifetime member of the Mound City Bar Association (Executive Board, 2014- present); National Bar Association; Bar Association of Metropolitan St Louis (Minorities in the Legal Profession section member); Black Women Lawyer’s Association of Chicago; St Louis Diversity Job Fair (Steering Committee, 2008 – present); Hearing Board member for the Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission; Missouri Minority Counsel Program (Steering Committee 2012 - present); Association of Law Firm Diversity Professionals; Jack & Jill of America (St Louis Chapter Treasurer); Association of Legal Administrators; as well as, multiple affinity group bar associations.

For her efforts, Danielle has been honored with the St. Louis American Foundation, Excellence in Business Performance Award (2015) ; the St. Louis Business Journal, Diverse Business Leaders Award (2013); Mound City Bar Association, Legal Services Award (2013); Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis, Community Awareness Award (2010); and, the Washington University Black Law Students Association, Professional Mentorship Award (2010).

Marquita C. Chapman Marquita C. Chapman is first and foremost a loving wife of 8 years to Darius Chapman, “Tee-Tee” to a host of nieces and nephews, and loving daughter to Mr and Mrs. Clinton Jones. She is a recent 2014 honors graduate of Webster University with a M.A. in Management & Leadership. She’s also a proud honors graduate from Harris-Stowe State University where she earned her B.S. in Business Administration in 2005.

Marquita began her career with the Department of Defense in 2004 as a Contracts intern and is now a Lead Program Manager over software. She has been responsible for a variety of projects totaling $50 million annually.

Marquita is the CEO of Intended Images, which brings out the very best in people in regards to image and self-presentation. Marquita is also an Independent Distributer for a leading global health and wellness company, the social media manager for DeMay Furs, Ltd., and a freelance columnist for the Sparkman Magazine.

Marquita is a worship leader and Education Coordinator at the Mind of Christ Church.

Marquita aspires to be an author and return to her alma mater to teach entrepreneurship courses.

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Allie Chang Ray Allie Chang Ray joined Deaconess Foundation in February 2014 as Vice President, Programs. In this role, Ms. Ray leads the community investment strategy of the organization. She is responsible for implementing and evaluating the foundation’s organizational and community capacity building programs, specifically, the Deaconess Impact Partnership.

Prior to joining the staff at Deaconess, Ms. Ray served as principal for Mutare Network, a consulting practice specializing in capacity building for nonprofit organizations. In this position, she advised and acted in roles that helped agencies create and manage change at the internal, external and systemic levels. Prior to Allie’s consultative career, she worked in the field of foster care for more than 13 years as Director of Development and Executive Director for CASA of St. Louis County, a Deaconess Impact Partner in Round 2. She first learned about fund development at Children’s Miracle Network of Greater St. Louis, where she helped raise more than $2 million annually for Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital and St. Louis Children’s Hospital. Before stepping into fundraising, she was a children and families legislative aide for Governor Roger B. Wilson. As part of the Governor’s staff, she assisted in the founding of the Missouri Community Service Commission and introduced the AmeriCorps program to Missouri.

Outside of her Deaconess work, Ms. Ray is serving as President of the Junior League of St. Louis. Allie also volunteers as a Boy Scout Adult Leader and Merit Badge Counselor. Beginning in the spring semester of 2016, Allie will become a member of the adjunct faculty at the Brown School of Social Work at Washington University in St. Louis. On the weekends, she can frequently be found at a youth soccer game as the team manager.

Ms. Ray received her Bachelor’s degree in Child Life Therapy and Master’s degree in Human Services Administration from the University of Missouri – Columbia. She is an alumna of Kappa Alpha Theta Sorority and resides in West County with her husband, two sons and Havanese rescue dog.

Ruben Chuquimia Ruben Chuquimia practices law as a Shareholder at Polsinelli, P.C., in the Securities and Corporate Finance Group. He received his J.D. from Washington University, St. Louis School of Law in 1995 and his undergraduate degree from Duke University. Ruben has represented a variety of corporate clients, including large publicly traded corporations, privately held entities, private equity funds, start-up companies, and entrepreneurs.

His practice includes a broad range of corporate, securities and transactional work, with extensive experience in counseling boards of directors and audit committees, technology licensing agreements, technology joint venture agreements, internet-related agreements, and general commercial agreements, mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, takeovers (negotiated and contested), and cross-border transactions, public and private equity and debt offerings, among other matters. His recent engagements have included representing an aerospace manufacturer with a $37 million IPO and listing on the NASDAQ; and representing a NYSE listed company in its $72 million follow on public offering.

Ruben has been included in Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business, Corporate/M&A (St Louis & Surrounds) from 2011-2015 and named a “Client Service All-Star” by BTI Consulting Group in 2009. Additionally, Ruben was selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers In America® from 2012-2016.

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Khalia Collier A pioneer and trailblazer Khalia Collier, is the owner & general manager of St. Louis’ own women’s professional basketball team, the St. Louis Surge. Khalia has taken on the challenge of building the first sustainable women’s franchise in St. Louis. Her team is now in its fifth season; finishing as National Champions in 2014 and second in the nation this past season. Khalia Collier is a recent recipient of 30 under 30, Glamor Missouri Woman of the year awardee and as a prestigious Jack Buck Awardee for her community impact.

Through this journey, she has maximized corporate and organizational relationships, developed supporter and donor programs, as well as positioned the organization for eminent growth. A St. Louis native with a deep commitment to the city, Collier is an entrepreneur dedicated to her new franchise. She is a strong believer that St. Louis can support a women’s franchise, and is working hard to see her vision through.

She finished her basketball career at Missouri Baptist University. Collier obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in Communications from Missouri Baptist University and currently works for the St. Louis Surge full-time as the Surge Owner and General Manager as well leading the Saint Louis University Institute for Private Business.

Akif Cogo Akif Cogo, founder and president of the St. Louis Bosnians, Inc., a St. Louis based non profit that fosters relationship between Bosnian and other communities in St. Louis.

In addition, he is a community adviser to the Bosnia Memory Project at Fontbonne University, and works as an Assistant Director of Facility Services at Saint Louis University. A native of Bosnia-Herzegovina, Akif immigrated to the U.S. in 2001. He completed his high school, bachelor, and master studies in St. Louis.

For over a decade, he has worked extensively with the Bosnian refugee populations in St. Louis and other parts of the U.S. In addition to founding St. Louis Bosnians Inc., he cofounded Sehara, a magazine for Muslim Bosnians living in the U.S. He has also served on the Citizen’s Advisory Committee to the St. Louis Treasurer’s Office, as a presiding officer of general assembly at the St. Louis Islamic Center, and as an ambassador for St. Louis Mosaic Project, which promotes increasing immigration to St. Louis.

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Peter Corsale Peter Corsale is a Shareholder at Polsinelli, P.C. in the Commercial Litigation Group.

He received his J.D. from the University of Illinois College of law where he received cum laude honors. He earned his bachelor of arts degree, with cum laude honors, in History and Legal Studies from Washington University in St. Louis.

Peter has successfully worked both sides of the courtroom, representing his clients in a broad range of complex disputes from commercial contracts to shareholder disputes.

Recognizing that a courtroom win is not the only path to a best outcome, Peter enjoys partnering with his clients to develop a sound strategy that not only makes legal sense but business sense too. Peter endeavors to find business solutions that not only resolve a conflict, but also contribute to the client’s larger business goals. Peter has assisted clients in a variety of industries and in courtrooms across the country, with significant experience in defending officers and companies against claims of securities fraud, representing large manufacturers in the interpretation of requirements contracts, and representing minority shareholders in shareholder disputes and claims of malfeasance.

Peter serves as a Board Member of the Hispanic Bar Association of St. Louis and also as a member of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan St. Louis.

Danyal Davis-Hurd Danyal Davis-Hurd is a Sr. Project Manager in Supply Chain at Express Scripts, and manages large size strategic planning projects and corporate initiatives in over $5M gross margin. She has over 15 years of leadership, budgeting, financial analysis, strategic planning, and process improvement experience. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Biology and Mathematics from Webster University. After graduation, Danyal worked as a Microbiologist, testing antibiotics for common illnesses, such as ear infections, flu, strep, and pink eye.

It was her time as a Cardiologist Analyst; conducting research on hearts, Danyal enrolled in graduate school and pursued a Master’s degree in Health Service Management at Webster University.

Danyal has been engaged with medical economic analysis, strategic cost reductions, initiatives, mergers and acquisitions for large corporations, such as BJC, Whirlpool, Reynolds, Tenet, WellPoint, Centene, and Medco. Danyal is the Vice President of an Employee Resource Group at Express Scripts called Cultural Connection. Danyal currently holds a position on the Volunteer Committee for HBA (Healthcare Business Women’s Association) and Finance Committee for Almost Home, a St. Louis Business Diversity Initiative Alum, and volunteers for the Boys and Girls Club and Habitat for Humanity.

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Latosha Davis, MSW Latosha Davis, MSW, has joined Guardian Angel Settlement Association as the Director of Social Services and will oversee the operations of programs and resources for thousands of individuals and families living in the 63104 and 63118 zip codes. The Community Services Davis will oversee include self-sufficiency programs including skills training, financial literacy education and employment referrals and support; emergency support programs that provide short-term assistance ranging from a food pantry to financial assistance; and, oversight of Guardian Angel’s Angel Boutique, a social enterprise that offers gently used clothing and household goods and work experience for youth and adults. Last year, over 3,000 households were served by the food pantry; hundreds of households received assistance for rent, utilities and medications and participated in self-sufficiency workshops.

Davis earned her Master’s Degree in Social Work from Illinois State University and has an extensive background in mental health, HIV, and housing. Davis often shares her expertise with several Universities in Illinois and Missouri as she serves as a preceptor for interns for the School of Social Work. Davis is also currently a member of the St Louis Business Diversity Initiative, class of 2016.

Elton “Trey” Dean, III Elton Dean, III is an Associate at Polsinelli, P.C. where he is a member of the Science and Technology Group. He received his J.D. in 2008 from Washington University in St. Louis School of Law. He received his Bachelor of Science degree the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Prior to entering law school, Elton was a Platform Engineer for Harvard Medical School.

As an attorney, Elton’s natural curiosity and desire to figure out how things work make him invaluable to clients who develop inventions. He enjoys the opportunity to work with a variety of clients ranging from garage inventors and technology startups to universities and Fortune 500 companies. He works on all aspects of the inventive process from patentability searches to prosecuting international patent applications.

Elton helps clients assess the risks of patent infringement and provides invaluable technical insight to investigate and prepare legal opinions regarding a client’s freedom to operate in crowded technology areas.

In addition, he and his colleagues develop effective solutions to address the risks, including responding to demand letters, designing around patents, assessing the validity of patents, and obtaining patent licenses. Besides patent prosecution, Elton works with to enforce and defend patent rights through re-examination and litigation.

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Vickie M. Denson Vickie Denson, President and CEO of St. Louis Black Pages Business Directory and The Transformational Agenda Magazine leads all aspects of its operations. They have published their 25th Anniversary Edition. They have a state-of-the-art interactive website and a multi-platform mobile edition. St Louis Black Pages is the annual directory and magazine for the African American community.

Vickie has been president of the Deaconess Board of Washington Metropolitan AME Zion Church for over 11 years. She leads the COPE ministry which aids ex-offenders returning to society. Vickie is president of the Blackberry Hill Neighborhood Association.

Denson has received numerous awards such as the Salute To Excellence In EducationStellar Performer Award from the St. Louis American Foundation with her husband Howard. They also received the North American Council on Adoptable Children National Child Advocate Award. Vickie received the Top Ladies Of Distinction Unsung Heroine Community Service Award, Professional Organization Of Women (POW) Women of Distinction Award and more.

Vickie is a graduate of Herbert H. Lehman College in Bronx, New York. She and Howard are the proud parents of three Ivy-League daughters and grandparents to six.

Howard D. Denson For almost three decades, Howard has done two things. One is to publish, with his wife, the St. Louis Black Pages. He loves African American entrepreneurs and upset that so many have given up on doing business with their own people; even when the product and its cost are exactly the same. Yes, slavery was a mental institution, created and maintained by terror and horror. The terror and horror are over, yet the mental damage remains.

The other? Owning the Black Pages allowed him to pretend to be a one man self-directed think tank, spending 50,000 unpaid hours focused on but two things. Why we African Americans do the wacky self-destructive things which we do, and exactly how can the African American community heal its self.

His wife, Vickie, calls him the only Harvard Business School MBA who chose to be poor— and she’s right. He says he was put on planet Earth to seek, receive, and communicate a body of knowledge which is taught in a workshop entitled The Transformational Agenda—so that African Americans can finally heal!

Almost a thousand have been transformed via this two-day workshop experience. He expects that 10,000,000 will experience the transformation within a decade; so that the African American community can heal and completely transform itself, in but 20 years.

If you desire to become a better you, to aid a loved one, to help transform your community, or simply to finally understand the madness, then visit TheTransformationalAgenda. com—and be Transformed! who’s who diversity in color

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Lilian Doan Davis Lilian Doan Davis is an Associate at Polsinelli, P.C. As a labor and employment law attorney, she focuses on helping private and public corporations, individuals, and municipalities identify and address potential workplace liabilities. Lilian counsels clients on management, compliance, and regulatory issues and investigates and responds to charges of employment discrimination. Her practice includes litigation of whistleblower claims, wage and hour disputes, workplace discrimination, and wrongful termination. She is committed to aggressively representing clients’ needs from case inception through resolution and strategically approaches every step of the litigation process to ensure a cohesive defense.

Lilian received her law degree in 2010 from the St. Louis University School of Law where she was a Dean’s Scholar from 2007-2010, She received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from the University of Notre Dame.

Lilian was honored by the St. Louis Business Journal for its 2013 Class of “30 Under 30”. She currently serves as Vice President of the Missouri Asian-American Bar Association, in addition to serving as a Member on the Board of Directors of Girls on the Run, St. Louis.

Shay L. Gillespie As Corporate Supplier Diversity Manager for World Wide Technology, Inc., a multibillion dollar corporation, Shay is responsible for their global supplier diversity program which includes managing millions of dollars in procurement activity and advocating and mentoring small and diverse businesses. In addition, Shay is vice chair of the St. Louis Minority Business Council’s board as well as on the board of directors for the Down Syndrome Association of Greater St. Louis.

Shay has received the Phenomenal Woman Award presented by Old School 95.5 and First Bank and St. Louis American’s Salute to Young Leaders Award. She is also an active member of her sorority Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated serving as Delta GEMS co-chair.

Shay received her Bachelor of Arts in Organizational Studies from Saint Louis University and her Master of Arts in Communications Management from Webster University. She is also a graduate of Eureka Senior High School, class of 1995.

A native of St. Louis, Shay is an avid reader and loves to run. She lives in St. Louis County, with her husband James and two boys, Grant and Dylan (Diggy).

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Rolanda Robinson-Finch Rolanda Robinson-Finch is the founder of It’s Your Birthday, Inc. Their mission is to create fun and memorable birthday experiences for children ages 5-12 that reside in homeless and domestic violence shelters. Rolanda was featured as a character profile in the St. Louis Business Journal and received the Reaching Out Award from Town & Style Magazine; in addition to the back cover of St. Louis Jewish Parents Magazine and interviews on Fox2Now, ShowMe St. Louis, and KEZK Radio.

In addition, she is currently employed as a Leadership Development Business Leader with Boeing, where she is responsible for the development of 300 Vice Presidents, globally. Prior to this role, she was a Global Manager, Leadership Development with Anheuser-Busch InBev where she developed various leadership programs for leaders in the Americas, Europe, and Asia.

Rolanda has a BS in Textiles and Clothing in Business from the University of Central Missouri and an MA in Marketing from Webster University. She is also an alumni of the St. Louis Business Diversity Initiative Fellows and the Consortium for Leadership Development Programs.

When she is not giving smiles to children and developing leaders, Rolanda enjoys traveling with her husband.

Ed Gallegos Ed Gallegos has worked in the healthcare industry for over 25 years, with 15 of those years leading and managing large scale claims and call center operations. He joined Centene Corporations in 2010 and currently serves as the Senior Vice President of Business Operations, leading the operational functions in Farmington, MO, Tyler, TX, Great Falls, MT and the new claims center in Ferguson, MO. Ed has held various key executive positions that include Vice President National Accounts, Vice President of Human Resources and Vice President of Diversity and Cultural Competence at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Florida (BCBSF). His efforts lead to BCBSF being ranked nationally among the top 50 companies leveraging diversity as a business strategy.

His experience in leading national accounts such as General Motors, Ford, Federal Employee Program (FEP) and others resulted in strong rankings in operational performance. He successfully led BCBSF to national recognition in customer service as measured by J.D. Powers for three consecutive years and has made significant improvement in driving results at Centene.

Ed holds a Master of Public Administration from the University of North Florida.

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Angela Grady Angela Grady is Director of Diversity and Inclusion for Mercy, serving 45 hospitals and 40,000 co-workers. She is a dynamic leader with responsibilities including development and implementation of a system-wide strategy to educate, engage and stimulate a diverse and inclusive workforce. Angela is the organization’s pioneer, occupying her newly-created position for 18 months. As a result of her leadership, Mercy earned a prestigious $460,000 grant to expand disability and inclusion services. Angela thrives in networking community partnerships, supporting co-worker engagement, inclusion and leadership development for minorities and women.

Angela is a proud “Dance Mom” of a 14-year-old daughter. To her credit, she is an alumni of the St. Louis Business Diversity Initiative, has progressive professional experience within Human Resources and a master’s degree in Human Resources from Webster University. She currently serves on the advisory board for the National Association of Health Service Executives (NAHSE) local chapter and is a Corporate Diversity Roundtable member for the Diversity Awareness Partnership (DAP). Angela is passionate about youth education, serving on a parent committee within the Ladue school district and is a member of Jack and Jill of America, Inc.

Naretha Hopson Naretha Hopson is the Founder and Executive Director of Ever-Appropriate Etiquette Institute, which offers Leadership, Dining/Business Etiquette, and Impression Management programming for youth and professionals. Since 2011, Ms. Hopson has helped thousands with professional soft skills refinement. She is the author of, “Ever-Appropriate Etiquette: 5 Steps to the Professional Presence that Pays”. Ms. Hopson’s dynamic client track record includes K-12 schools, universities, non-profit organizations, and corporate executives.

Ms. Hopson remains active in civic and business leadership development programs.

Naretha is a proud 2010 graduate of the Focus St. Louis Leadership St. Louis program.

In 2012, she was selected for the inaugural cohort of the Consortium for Leadership Development, led by former Fortune 500 CEO’s, high-profile corporate executives.

Naretha’s board involvement includes the United Way, Urban League – St. Louis, the National Coalition of 100 Black Women, St. Louis Regional Business Council Young Professional Network, the St. Louis Crisis Nursery Young Professional Board, and Mayor Slay’s Vanguard Cabinet. Her most recent appointments are to the Board of Directors of Vernare Learning (schools incorporating STEM curriculum and sustainability, slated to open in 2016) Special Friends Mentoring, and the Missouri Ethics Commission.

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Dr. Brandon D. Haynes Dr. Brandon D. Haynes joined Deaconess Foundation as the new Director, Community Engagement in January 2014. Prior to moving to the St. Louis region, Dr. Haynes resided in New Orleans, LA where he completed his doctoral degree in urban studies at the University of New Orleans. Dr. Haynes conducted his doctoral research by studying the role of collective identity and football played in New Orleans’ return from Hurricane Katrina. He has Master’s degrees in both public and business administration from the University of Missouri and Kennesaw State University respectively, a Bachelor’s degree in mass communications from Louisiana State University, and has served as a performance auditor for both the Cities of Kansas City, MO and Atlanta, GA. In his time in St. Louis, Dr. Haynes has joined several organizations including the St. Louis Sports Commission Associates, the Urban League Young Professionals, and is on the board of the St. Louis Metropolitan Research Exchange. Dr. Haynes believes in the value of service and is committed to the creation of an environment of collective action in the St. Louis region.

Amir Hotich Amir specializes in the sale and purchase of homes and estates in Saint Louis City and Saint Louis County. With a reputation for placing clients’ needs, goals and objectives at the forefront of every transaction, Amir Hotich provides communication, negotiation and management skills in combination with indepth knowledge of the Saint Louis area’s neighborhoods and real estate market.

Amir is known for his patience, listening skills, caring and understanding. He is esteemed by his clients and colleagues alike for his attention to others’ needs in even the most challenging property purchase or sale . Amir is praised for client satisfaction and effectiveness as counselor, facilitator and liaison – from property search or listing, through market analysis, to negotiations, escrow and closing.

Amir earned a bachelor of science in marketing from Maryville University -St. Louis Amir is a founding member of the Bosnian American Professional Network, BAPN (www.bapnstl.org) In his spare time, Amir enjoys the time with his family, wife Melisa and twin daughters Aila and Selma. He loves to swim, read, play various sports, coaches girls soccer team, but most of all he loves his two boxer dogs, Pasha & Lela.

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Carmen Jacob Carmen Jacob is the CEO and Owner of NextGen, Information Services, Inc., a national staffing, recruiting and consulting firm headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri with satellite offices throughout the US. NextGen is a Certified Minority-Owned Enterprise and Certified Woman-Owned Enterprise and has been awarded by DiversityInc. com and DiversityBusiness.com, the City of St. Louis and the St. Louis Minority Business Council. NextGen was named Hispanic Company of the Year 2013 and Carmen was named Hispanic Businessperson of the Year 2014 by the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan St. Louis.

Carmen was named one of Enterprising Women Magazine’s Women of the Year 2014, and an Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year Finalist in 2014. Next-Gen was most recently awarded by Governor Nixon as the Minority Business of the Year. A community activist, Carmen is involved in numerous professional groups and organizations.

Ailey Pope Ailey Pope serves as the Community Liaison for U.S. Senator Roy Blunt (Mo.). A native of Kansas City, Missouri, Ailey graduated from Wiley College with a Bachelor’s of Arts in Religion and Philosophy and a Master’s from Southern Methodist University Perkins School of Theology in Theological Studies. Ailey previously worked on Capitol Hill for Senator Blunt before moving back to Missouri to begin a new path working with communities in each region of the state. While working on Capitol Hill, she was a member of the Senate Black Legislative Staff Caucus and the Women’s Congressional Staffer Association.

While at Wiley College, Ailey was the Captain of the Wiley College Speech and Debate team and also acted as the Student Body Vice President. While at Perkins, she served as the president of the Black Seminarians Association.

Ailey has traveled to over 20 countries, speaks fluent French and has studied in Dubai.

As a member of People to People Student Ambassadors, Ailey traveled on behalf of the United States to China and Europe and has also taught American Speech and Debate at the United States Embassy in the Republic of the Congo.

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Dr. Shawni Jackson-Triggs Dr. Jackson leads the Community Program Team for Faith Initiatives, Education & Support, and Early Initiatives programs and is leading the initiative for Diversity & Inclusion Outreach for the Association. She serves on the Washington University School of Medicine Knight Alzheimer Disease Research Center African American Advisory Board (ADRC). Shawni is a Diamond Life Member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. and is currently a member of St. Louis Metropolitan Alumnae Chapter. She is also a member of the St. Louis Chapter of Kappa Silhouettes and the St. Louis Chapter of Top Ladies of Distinction, Inc. Dr. Jackson is a Parent Asthma Advocate serving on the Washington University School of Medicine Asthma Symptom Based Adjustment of Inhaled Steroid Therapy (ASIST) in African American Children Advisory Board and Asthma Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) out of Washington, DC as a parent and patient participant.

Dr. Jackson received a BA in Sociology & Anthropology from Truman State University in 1996, a MBA from Webster University in 1999 and a PhD in Organizational Management from Capella University in 2007.

Shawni is a native of St. Louis and is happily married to Kevin and have one son Charlton.

Lt. Col. (Ret) Jaime Torres Lt. Col (Ret) Jaime Torres was born in Playa-Ponce, Puerto Rico and graduated from the College of Agriculture and Mechanics Arts, University of Puerto Rico with a Bachelor’s Degree in Science. After 26 years of active duty, he retired. A year later, was employed

by Harris-Stowe State University to manage and implement a new US Department of Education program, Educational Talent Search. He also coordinated the REACH Program with Missouri’s Division of Youth Services and later was appointed HarrisStowe’s first Director of International Programs. After eight years, he was appointed by St. Louis Community College, as Director of International Education.

Col. Torres is active in the community and has led or served on many boards; Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Hispanic Leaders Group, Hispanic Scholarship Alliance, World Affairs Council, Sister Cities, Association of the US Army, National Kidney Foundation and the Puerto Rican Society. Awards he has received from his civic endeavors; Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Lifetime Achievement Award, Anthony B. Ramirez Premio Esperanza from the Hispanic Leaders Group, Hispanic Chamber’s Civic Person of the Year and National Hispanic of the Year 2011 from the Rams Organization.

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Debra Parran MSN, RN, CPN, CPEN, TNS

Debra Parran MSN, RN, CPN, CPEN, TNS has been a BJC Healthcare System employee for 21 years – 18 of those years were spent in the Saint Louis Children’s Hospital emergency room. She currently works as the Assistant Nurse Manager of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Outpatient Clinic and serves on the Professional Nurses Development Program and Trauma Nurses Specialist Committees. Her certifications include certified pediatric nurse, certified emergency room nurse, and trauma nurse specialist. Parran received her BSN from Saint Louis University in 1984 and her MSN from Webster University in 2016.

She received the 2013 March of Dimes Pediatric Nurse of the Year Award and was inducted into the Sigma Theta Tau International Honors Society of Nursing in 2016.

Parran has been featured in the SLCH documentary series “The Frontline for Hope” and, most recently, the new Guardians for Childhood campaign.

She believes nursing is a science in its own right requiring critical thinking skills to analyze the global picture administering safe, effective, and efficient care while providing love and support not only for the patient, but the family unit as a whole.

Nursing is not just a career – it’s a vocation.

Nedim Ramic Nedim Ramic is a people person, a husband, a community activist, and on top of that a lawyer who cares about people. He is an avid soccer fan and (long time ago) a player himself. Born in Bosnia and Herzegovina, he came to St. Louis after living as a child refugee in Germany for 7 years. He has called the St. Louis area his home since 1999. He is fluent in German, Bosnian, Serbian, and Croatian.

Professional: He received his law degree from St. Louis University-School of Law, after receiving his undergraduate degree at the University of Missouri-St. Louis. He was a member of various student groups, most notably the President of the International Law Society at St. Louis University School of Law. Since obtaining his law degree, he has practiced in the areas of personal injury, workers compensation, and medical negligence. He has spent his career in the courtrooms of Missouri fighting for the injured. Nedim also helps individuals charged with serious traffic offenses as well as criminal charges in the St. Louis region. Since the start of his career, Nedim has recovered millions of dollars for the injured.

Clients tend to refer to Nedim as a lawyer who is tireless and compassionate, who cares not just about the case, but about the clients and their individual needs. He shows this compassion through numerous activities in the community as well as pro bono work for community organizations. He works for various Bosnian-American organizations in the St. Louis region. He was recently appointed by Mayor Slay to the St. Louis City Crime Commission.

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Theron Morgan Theron Morgan currently serves as the Director of Business Development at Ballpark Village in St. Louis. His role and responsibilities are spread among several areas that include: operations, community relations, sponsorships and sales.

Theron has spent over 20 years as an account manager and director in sales and sponsorships in a variety of industries including dining and entertainment, sports and consumer goods. He understands how the relationship between sports and entertainment ties-in with the relationship to corporate branding and consumer goods.

Among his previous positions, Theron served as Sr. Account Executive with the St. Louis Cardinals. He was a Retail Account Manager and Geographic Marketing Manager for Anheuser-Busch, and Director of Sales and Sponsorships at Saint Louis University.

He is currently involved with several organizations including a member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc., and National Sales Network-St. Louis. He also serves as a board member for Connection to Success and on the Workforce Development board.

Theron is a member of Victory Church-St. Louis, located in Cahokia, IL. He resides in O’Fallon, IL with his wife Sheila (formerly Billups) and three children, Theron Jr., Sydney and Myla.

Theron holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration degree from Southeast Missouri State University and a Master of Business Admission degree from the University of Phoenix.

Mary E. Nelson A St. Louis native and Missouri attorney, Mary E. Nelson received her B.A. from Princeton University and J.D. from University of Missouri School of Law. With extensive experience in real estate, construction, and business law, Nelson has enjoyed a number of private and public sector positions. Before joining St. Louis Community College in 2014 as its General Counsel and Chief Legal Officer, Nelson was the first African American woman to serve on the state’s Administrative Hearing Commission. She served two mayoral administrations, most recently as General Counsel for St. Louis Development Corporation; as General Counsel and Legislative Director to Speaker of the Missouri House Steve Gaw; as Governor Bob Holden’s appointee to the Missouri House Reapportionment Commission; and as Governor Jay Nixon’s Director of Boards and Commissions.

A past president of the St. Louis Board of Police Commissioners, Nelson has been recognized by Missouri Lawyer’s Weekly with a 2010 Women’s Justice Award, named an Honorary Initiate of the Order of the Coif by her law school, and was listed among St. Louis Business Journal’s Twenty-five Most Influential Business Women.

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Luis Rivero Luis Rivero is the co-founder and CEO of Huga Foods. A native of Venezuela, Luis moved to the US in 2003 to pursue a masters degree in business at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill. After a 10 year career with DuPont in marketing and business development, Luis left the organization to start Huga Foods in 2015. Huga Foods is a new line of nutrition bars inspired by international recipes and flavors. A believer in the Lean Startup approach and developing brands that connect emotionally with consumers, Luis oversees all operations at Huga Foods, including innovation, operations and sales & marketing.

Luis is passionate about traveling, cooking, politics and golf. Luis is a supporter of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation local chapter in St. Louis through the Great Strides Walk.

Luis and his wife, and their five children have made St. Louis their home since 2009.

Dr. Dwyane Smith Dr. Dwyane Smith is Provost at Harris-Stowe. He is a product of the St. Louis Public School system. He has a B.S. in Psychology and an MA in Education Administration from Truman State University. Dr. Smith received his doctorate from the University Missouri-Columbia.

Since he arrived at Harris-Stowe in the 2006-2007 academic year, he has helped to develop academic programs along with the university’s exceptional faculty and staff.

When asked about the Harris-Stowe administrative team, Dr. Smith called them “not only the best in the metropolitan area, but the entire state.”

He takes pride in furthering the University’s mission to provide high-quality education and opportunity to students who are currently underrepresented in higher education institutions. Harris-Stowe realized record enrollment and exceeded its fundraising goals last year. The University has recently expanded degree offerings by 108 percent and is one step away from offering graduate degrees.

Dr. Smith has conducted research across the United States on issues of race, diversity and multiculturalism. He cites this research as a “necessity for growth.”

Dr. Smith is an avid listener of jazz and uses the music as a muse for his “Words of Wisdom,” which he uses to begin faculty and staff meetings.

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Terrence Rogers Terrence Rogers is a St. Louis born and based banking professional. Over the past eighteen years, he has worked in a wide variety of financial capacites with both consumers and businesses. He earned his degree in 1996 from the University of Missouri St. Louis.

Terrence is a partner at Carrollton Bank, a $1 billion privately held, employee owned bank that has been led by the same family for five generations. His role is Vice President of Mortgage Lending which includes leading the origination of consumer home loan programs including Conventional, FHA, VA, and Jumbo Loans.

Prior to joining Carrollton Bank in 2012 Terrence worked at Wells Fargo for thirteen years as a Sales Manager in St. Louis and Illinois, and District Manager in Colorado.

In addtion, he worked at Regions bank in Chesterfield as Vice President and Samll Business Banker from 2010 to 2012.

Terrence is a member of National Sales Network and along with their Backpacks to Breifcase Programs sponsors an annual internship program. He is also a board member for Little Urban Smiles, LLC as well as member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. Terrence is a financial educator, teaching home buying class and finanical education classes in the St. Louis community. He believes that knowledge is power and is committed to paying if forward whenever he can.

Angela M. Tate Angela M. Tate is the Vice President of Operations at Behavioral Health Response (BHR). BHR, the community’s behavioral health safety net, ensures compassionate and immediate barrier free access to behavioral health services. BHR does this by providing 24/7 crisis intervention services for the Eastern Region of Missouri. Angela has been with BHR since 2007. Angela is responsible for several departments including Clinical Operations, Client Services, Community Relations and Organizational Development.

She conducts multiple trainings around the topics of mental health, suicide intervention and is a Master Trainer in Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST) through LivingWorks.

Angela is a member of Paraquad’s Board of Directors as well as a member of Great Circle’s Regional Council. She has a Bachelor’s degree from Maryville University in St. Louis Missouri and a Master’s of Education in counseling from University of MissouriSt. Louis and is a licensed professional counselor. She is a past participant of St. Louis Business Diversity Fellows program as well as a current participant of Leadership St. Louis. She is happily married to Stephen Tate and they are the proud parents of 2 daughters, Ashley and Amber.

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Cecilia Velazquez Cecilia Velazquez is the definition of a strong working Hispanic woman. The media mogul was born in Mexico City, Mexico where she received her Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and received her Master’s degree in Mass Communications and Journalism.

“I noticed the lack of informational paperwork in our language” Velazquez said and decided to launch Red Latina in July 2000. Latin Network has many informational articles, from local businesses as well as job opportunities for Hispanics in the region.

Fresh Bilingual news daily online & The biweekly print newspaper; its distribution extends all the way from Jefferson City into Illinois.

She has ventured into other media sources, as co-host of “Ahora St. Louis” and Radio Cucui (WEW-AM 770). In 2009, she received The Hispanic Business Person of the year by the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. Furthermore, Velazquez has been part of a music promotions team, which was recognized with a star on Las Vegas strip in 2010.

In 2013, St. Louis Business Journal recognized Velazquez as a Diverse Business Leader.

Her most recent project is in progress as Red Latina will be affiliated locally with Mundo Fox and Estrella TV.

Reverend Starsky D. Wilson Reverend Starsky D. Wilson is a pastor, philanthropist and activist pursuing God’s vision of community marked by justice, peace and love. He is president & CEO of Deaconess Foundation, pastor of Saint John’s Church (The Beloved Community) and co-chair of the Ferguson Commission. Through Saint John’s, Wilson has led congregational activism on myriad issues, including youth violence prevention, Medicaid expansion, public school accreditation, voter mobilization, capping payday lending and raising the minimum wage.

In 2014, Missouri Governor Jay Nixon appointed Rev. Wilson co-chair of the Ferguson Commission, a group of sixteen citizens empowered to study the underlying conditions and make public policy recommendations to help the region progress through issues exposed by the tragic death of Michael Brown, Jr. On September 14, 2015 they released the ground-breaking ‘Forward Through Ferguson: A Path Toward Racial Equity” Report, calling for sweeping changes in policing, the courts, child well-being and economic mobility.

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Kira Van Neil Kira Van Niel is a self-starting project engineer with a diverse technical background in engineering, infrastructure design, and construction. Kira currently works for The Boeing Company, and her current responsibilities include defining requirements and writing design specifications, working collaboratively with international customers, and managing the health and progress of each project. In addition, Kira serves as the Operations Leader to the Division Director.

Kira attended Elon University and North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, earning a dual degree in Engineering Physics and Civil Engineering. Kira served as President of the Urban League Young Professionals from 2010-2012. She is the recipient of the St Louis Business Journal’s 30 Under 30, National Urban League Young Professionals Young Professional’s Central Region Young Professional of the Year, St Louis American Foundations Salute to Young Leaders Award, and many more.

Her board experience includes the National Urban League Young Professionals Executive Board, Urban League of Metropolitan St Louis Board of Directors, Regional Business Council Young Professional Network Steering Committee, Women’s Society of Washington University and The Sophia Project.

Born and raised in the Washington DC area, Kira now lives in St Louis, Missouri. Kira enjoys music, travel and yoga.

Mr. James Fogt James Fogt has worked in higher education for 22 years, 18 of which have been with Harris-Stowe State University. He has held the position of Vice President for IT Services since 2013 and been in executive leadership roles at HSSU since 2009.

James is deeply committed to the success of first-generation and minority college students and is a passionate advocate for the mission of HBCUs and Minority Serving Institutions. Over the past three years, he has been a co-author for grant proposals totaling $700,000, chaired the institution’s strategic planning committee and, along with the IT Services team, received the 2017 Jenzabar Innovation Award for new technology developed on HSSU campus.

Prior to working at HSSU, James has held positions as the Director of the University of Cincinnati Writing Center and adjunct instructor in the UC Department of English.

James holds a master’s degree in information technology management and a bachelor’s degree in education. He currently resides in St. Louis with his wife, Elizabeth, and two children, Emma and Ian.

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Dan Cranshaw Dan Cranshaw is a Shareholder at Polsinelli, P.C. in the Commercial Litigation Practice Group. He has been involved in class actions in state and federal courts throughout the United States and has successfully dealt with all aspects of class action litigation, including pre-certification dismissals and summary judgments, class discovery, class certification and de-certification, and claims administration.

Whether through litigation, alternative dispute resolution, strategic consultation, or a simple assessment of an insurance policy, Dan works collaboratively with corporate clients and/or their boards to ensure companies can successfully defend claims, secure coverage, and grow their businesses.

Dan received his J.D. from the University of Kansas School of Law in 2003 and his undergraduate degree from Princeton University. Ranked in Benchmark Litigation and recognized by the American Board of Trial Advocates Award for Outstanding Performance in Trial Advocacy, Dan also places a high importance on giving back to his community. Additionally, Dan has recently been selected as a member of the 2016 Class of Fellows, participating in a landmark program created by the Leadership Council on Legal Diversity (LCLD). Dan also plays a key leadership role at his law firm as Chair of the Diversity and Inclusion Committee.

Angel Recci-Gonzalez Angel Recci-Gonzalez was born and raised in Bayamon, Puerto Rico. He moved to St. Louis in 2009 with a baseball scholarship at the University of Missouri – St. Louis where he obtained a Bachelor’s Degree in Management Information Systems in 2013 and completed his baseball career. Currently, Angel is working at Emerson, as a Security Application Engineer for Threat and Vulnerability Management. He joined Emerson in 2011 with a Co-Op opportunity which led him to be a full time employee as an IT Security Analyst and since then he has worked very hard to get to the position where he is today.

Angel Recci-Gonzalez is very passionate about helping others and is very involved, especially with the Hispanic community. Angel has been actively serving the Puerto Rican Society for St. Louis as the Vice President and now, as the President of the organization. Additionally, Angel dedicates his time to a Spanish sports broadcasting show, where he is able to make local sports more accessible to the Spanish-speaking community.

This is exactly what motivates Angel to continue growing as a professional and as a leader, so he can truly serve the community.

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Patricia Fong S E N I O R T R U S T O F F I C E R – W E A LT H M A N A G E M E N T

Pat Fong serves as the Senior Trust Officer for Midland States Bank Wealth Management.

She has provided Wealth Management guidance and expertise to clients nationwide and has more than 30 years of experience in trust and estate administration. She is knowledgeable and skilled in assisting clients with fiduciary matters, as well as the administration of trust and investment services, and is recognized as an expert in charitable gifting strategies.

Prior to joining Midland States Bank in 2010, Pat was Senior Vice President and Senior Trust Relationship Officer for a major Midwestern regional bank holding company.

She received her J.D. from the University of Iowa and her Bachelor of Science Degree in Mathematics from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and holds a Certified Trust and Financial Advisor (CTFA) designation from Cannon Trust School Association.

Frank Smith BANKING CENTER MANAGER II

Frank Smith serves as a Banking Center Manager II for Midland States Bank and has been a part of Midland since 2015. With over 30 years of experience with branch management, Frank provides a vast knowledge of finance, regulatory requirements and general bank operations.

In his current role with Midland, he is responsible for individual business development goals, as well as leading, managing and coaching a team of sales and service professionals to meet and exceed performance targets, ensure the operational excellence of the banking center and create an excellent customer experience. Frank received his Bachelor of Science in Business Adminstration from Washington University.

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Emelyn dela Peña, EdD WA S H I N GTO N U N I V E R S I T Y I N S T. LO U I S A S S O C I AT E V I C E C H A N C E L LO R A N D D E A N O F T H E C E N T E R FOR DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION

Dr. dela Peña leads the work of Washington University’s Center for Diversity and Inclusion, which provides support and advocacy for students from traditionally underrepresented or marginalized populations and creates collaborative partnerships with campus and community members to promote dialogue and social change.

An experienced leader in higher education, Dr. dela Peña has spent more than two decades as an administrator and teacher. She served as Assistant Dean of Student Life for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion at Harvard College.

She graduated from the University of California – San Diego with a bachelor’s degree in ethnic studies, earned her master’s degree in education from San Diego State University and her doctor of education through a joint program of UC San Diego, San Diego State and California State University – San Marcos. She received the Harvard University Faculty of Arts & Sciences Dean’s Distinction Award, and was recognized by UC San Diego three times – in 2001, 2006 and 2010 – with its Diversity Champion Award.

Kimberly Norwood, JD PROFESSOR OF LAW WA S H I N GTO N U N I V E R S I T Y I N S T. LO U I S

After earning her law degree from University of Missouri, Professor Norwood clerked for the Honorable Clifford Scott Green, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. She then joined the law firm of Bryan, Cave LLP in St. Louis as a litigation associate. Since joining Washington University in 1990, Professor Norwood has focused her research on black identity issues, colorism within the black community, and the intersection of race, class, and public education in America. She has also created and developed a unique service learning program for which she has won several awards (both local and national) that allows law students to receive law school credit and high school students to receive mentoring and guidance for a possible future career in the law.

Her most recent book, “Ferguson’s Fault Lines: The Race Quake That Rocked a Nation,” explores the underlying fault lines that cracked and gave rise to the eruption in Ferguson.

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William F. Tate, PhD WA S H I N GTO N U N I V E R S I T Y I N S T. LO U I S D E A N O F T H E G R A D UAT E S C H O O L O F A R T S & S C I E N C E S V I C E P R O V O S T F O R G R A D UAT E E D U C AT I O N EDWARD MALLINCKRODT DISTINGUISHED UNIVERSITY PROFESSOR IN ARTS & SCIENCES

Dr. Tate is an urbanist and social scientist, interested in the application of epidemiological and geospatial models to explain the social determinants of health, education and developmental outcomes. He is particularly interested in the role of racial and economic segregation on developmental outcomes. He is trained in psychiatric epidemiology and applied statistics. He is a member of the For The Sake of All research team, a multidisciplinary group that is studying the health and well-being of African Americans in St. Louis.

In his administrative capacity as Vice Provost and Dean, he works with faculty, graduate program directors, department chairs, student organizations, other deans and executive officers to ensure sustained high quality and to support the positive trajectory of the programs that lead to all PhD’s awarded by the university, as well as all non-professional Master’s degrees. He serves as Chair of the governing bodies of the Graduate School, including the Graduate Council and the Professional and Graduate Student Coordinating Committee.

Tamara Lackland SENIOR BRANCH MANAGER FOR COMMERCE BANK

Tamara Lackland is Senior Branch Manager for Commerce Bank in University City.

She began her career with Commerce as a part-time teller at the Natural Bridge branch over 12 years ago.

Working her way up from an entry-level position allowed Tamara to develop as a coach and mentor to others. This is where she learned to be an effective leader by holding several positions in the branch.

Tamara graduated from the Jennings School District, and attended University of Missouri—St. Louis and Columbia College. She is the mother of three teenage boys. She was one of the founding members of the Kiwanis Club of University City, which caters to children in their community and serves as their treasurer. Tamara is also a mentor for St. Louis Public Schools through the Urban Futures Program.

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Chris Tabourne A S S I S TA N T V I C E P R E S I D E N T DIVERSITY & INCLUSION - ENTERPRISE HOLDINGS

Chris Tabourne is Assistant Vice President of Diversity & Inclusion at Enterprise Holdings. With a 100,000 employees in more than 7,500 locations, he leads and implements Diversity & Inclusion initiatives for the company in North America.

Tabourne also heads-up Enterprise Holding’s North American Diversity/Career and Family Focus Team and its Executive Diversity and Inclusion Council.

Tabourne joined Enterprise in 1989 as a Management Trainee in Atlanta and quickly earned promotions up the corporate ladder until he became the company’s first Group Diversity Manager. In this role, he developed multicultural leadership initiatives and diversity strategies for the company’s New York Operating Group. Because of his success in New York and Atlanta, Tabourne was promoted to Corporate Diversity Manager in St. Louis, and became Assistant Vice President in 2008.

Chris holds a political science degree from Howard University in Washington, D.C., and currently serves on the Board of Directors for MERS/Goodwill Missouri. Awards & recognition: 2012 World Diversity Leadership Summit “WDLS” - Diversity Champion Award and St Louis American Newspaper – 2012 Business Excellence Award.

Rob Wilson C O R P O R AT E V I C E P R E S I D E N T O F E N T E R P R I S E H O L D I N G S

As Corporate Vice President of Enterprise Holdings, Rob Wilson oversees the company’s Northeastern Operations, including the major metropolitan areas of New York, Boston, Washington, D.C. and Philadelphia. Before his promotion to St. Louis in 2017, Wilson was Vice President and General Manager of the company’s Southwest Florida Group, based in Jacksonville.

During his 28-year career at Enterprise, Wilson, as a Regional Vice President, also managed operations in Miami-Dade and Monroe counties, one of the company’s largest business markets.

Wilson joined Enterprise in 1990 as a Management Trainee in Southern California following his graduation from Duke University with a bachelor’s degree in economics.

As a pioneer at the company, Wilson later moved to Toronto, Ontario, Canada to help launch Enterprise’s Canadian operations. He was promoted in 1996 as a City Rental Manager in Jackson, Miss., before moving to Florida to serve as a Group Rental Manager.

Throughout his career, Wilson has been active in numerous community endeavors, serving as the Campaign Chair of the Jacksonville United Way, including one term as Board Chair. He also served on the SKY Family YMCA Board and volunteered for many other charitable organizations.

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BOLDEST & BRIGHTEST

Alonzo Byrd A S S I S TA N T V I C E P R E S I D E N T, P U B L I C A F FA I R S ENTERPRISE HOLDINGS INC.

Alonzo Byrd is assistant vice president of government and public affairs for Enterprise Holdings. He is responsible for the development and execution of corporate citizenship initiatives nationwide. He joined Enterprise in May 2002.

Prior to joining Enterprise, Byrd was a vice president at Fleishman-Hillard Inc., an international public relations agency. He managed a wide range of media relations, corporate relations and diversity related initiatives for Fortune 500 companies.

A native of East St. Louis, Ill., Byrd has worked for more than 30 years in public affairs and communications, including director of public relations for the St. Louis Chapter of the American Red Cross, where he served as principal spokesman for the agency’s health, safety, and disaster awareness programs. As a journalist, Byrd has worked for the Kansas City Times, the Oakland Press in Pontiac, Mich., and the Belleville (Ill.) News Democrat. He began his career in journalism as a stringer with The Associated Press in St. Louis.

Byrd is married and has one child. He is a 1981 graduate of Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism.

Errin Braddock A S S I S TA N T V I C E P R E S I D E N T, E M P LOY M E N T ENTERPRISE HOLDINGS, INC.

Errin Braddock is an Assistant Vice President at Enterprise Holdings, Inc. In that role, he supports the company and its subsidiaries on all aspects of labor and employment law.

Braddock joined Enterprise in 2008. He has broad experience in labor and employment issues, having worked for more than 16 years as an in-house counsel and practicing attorney. He began his career as an associate at the law firm of Blackwell Sanders Peper Martin (now Husch Blackwell).

Braddock also has served as an adjunct professor at the Washington University School of Law in St. Louis Missouri. He has been recognized as the St. Louis Business Journal “30 under 30” Young Leaders Award, Washington University Black Law Students Association Alumni Award and the Blackwell Sanders LLP Top Flight Award for Excellence in Lawyering.

Braddock earned his J.D. degree from Washington University and his B.A. in political science from Hampton University. He is a member of the board of directors for the First Tee of Greater St. Louis and Girls, Inc., which inspires all girls to be strong, smart, and bold through direct service and advocacy.

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B E S T, BOLDEST & BRIGHTEST

Aaron Rios D I R E C TO R O F O P E R AT I O N S

Aaron Rios, Director of Operations, has a proven history of driving results in a positive manner with a varied background in finance and servicing, including mortgage, retail, mortgage servicing and consumer product distribution. He joined Midland States Bank in September 2015 and brings past experience as a senior operational leader where he provided strategic thinking and operational excellence for a large U.S. financial organization.

Aaron’s responsibilities as Director of Operations include leadership and coaching to ensure that all Operational departments are adequately staffed by well-trained professionals who efficiently manage their work while providing exceptional customer service. He also is responsible for overseeing the development of new operational policies, procedures and systems, and enhancing existing processes to achieve optimal efficiency.

Abraham Rezex PRESIDENT OF MORTGAGE BANKING

Abraham Rezex, President of Mortgage Banking, brings over two decades of management experience in the St. Louis financial services industry to the role, including retail banking, residential and commercial lending, and international business development.

He joined Midland States Bank in March 2016 as a Regional Mortgage Sales Manager and was promoted to the President of Mortgage Banking in 2017.

With his current role, he leads the bank’s growing mortgage business and oversees the mortgage sales team throughout the bank’s footprint. Abraham is a current member of the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.

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B E S T, BOLDEST & BRIGHTEST

Crystal Morris REGIONAL MORTGAGE SALES MANAGER

Crystal Morris, Regional Mortgage Sales Manager, has over 20 years of experience in the mortgage and banking industry. Prior to her position with Midland in 2018, she served as a Community Lending Mortgage Banker with another financial institution. Her responsibilities with Midland include managing the sales initiatives and performance of the community development residential mortgage team throughout the bank’s footprint. Crystal is a licensed mortgage loan originator and is also a chairman for Money Smart Month County Programming hosted by United Way of Greater St. Louis.

David Noble COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT AND CRA OFFICER

David is the Community Development & CRA Officer for Midland States Bank overseeing their Community Development and Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) activities, executing their Corporate Community Development Plan. He is an astute Senior Banking Leader with a triumvirate combination of experience in application of the CRA Regulation and Equitable Community Economic Development Strategies.

His “Value Proposition” is his innate ability to facilitate cooperation from various interests to create opportunities assisting in problem solving and achieving objectives both within his employer’s organization and the communities he serves. He permeated the banking industry as a trailblazer through cultivating what would otherwise be considered atypical and unrelated alliances.

David attended Saint Louis University receiving a B.A. in Organizational Studies, a Minor in Real Estate Planning & Community Development and is currently pursuing a M.S. in Urban Planning & Development. He was a pioneer in co-founding the Metropolitan Saint Louis CRA Association and serving as the first Board Chair. He has served on a numerous boards and committees.

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B E S T, BOLDEST & BRIGHTEST

Daniela Velázquez D I R E C TO R O F C O M M U N I C AT I O N S AT T H E A M E R I C A N C I V I L LIBERTIES UNION (ACLU OF MISSOURI)

Daniela Velázquez is the director of communications at the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU of Missouri), a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that preserves and expands the constitutional rights and civil liberties of all Missourians.

Prior to the ACLU of Missouri, she worked as a consultant for the Ferguson Commission, Mosaic Project and Missouri Immigrant and Refugee Advocates. In 2015, she was also part of a team that evaluated the National Minority Consortia for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

Daniela currently co-hosts a Latino-focused news show on STL.TV called, “En Breve.”

She is also a member of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan St. Louis and the Asian American Chamber of Commerce of St. Louis.

She has a Bachelor of Journalism in News Editorial and a Bachelor of Arts in History, both from the University of Missouri-Columbia. When she’s not coming up with her latest big idea, you can find her indulging her love for health and fitness.

WHO'S WHO

V I S I T U S O N L I N E AT WWW.WHOSWHODIVERSITYINCOLOR.COM

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We proudly support Who’s Who Diversity in Color!

Learn more about the UM System at umsystem.edu.

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DIVERSITY

Let’s make the dream a reality.

Ever since a small group of German nuns arrived in St. Louis in 1872 to “do God’s work,” diversity has played an important role in the history and leadership of SSM Health. And diversity is not only a big part of our past, it is also the key to our success in the future.

We continue to provide and improve an inclusive work environment that retains the best people regardless of sex, race, religion or disability. This can only enhance our ability to meet the ever-changing needs of diverse patients and customers.

®

To learn more, visit ssmhealth.com.

©2016 SSM Health. All rights reserved. HR-STL-15-147774 5/16

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Biographical Index Segun Babalola.....................151

James Gillespie ................. 46

Wade Rakes .......................... 12

Angela M. Tate ..................... 69

Santiago Beltran..................150

Shay Gillespie ...................... 60

Nadim Ramic ....................... 66

Willam F. Tate ......................75

Rebecca Bennett.................. 152

Lisa Glover-Jones ................ 42

Karlos Ramirez .................... 48

Larry Thomas ........................33

Alejandra Berra...................126

Angela Grady ....................... 62

Michael Rashid ..................... 14

Jaime Torres .........................65

Angelia Bills..........................151

Senada Grbic..........................70

Angel Recci-Gonzalez ...........72

Kira Van Neil ........................ 71

Larry ”Blue Jr.”................... 153

Demetrius Grooms ............... 31

Abraham Rezex .....................78

Cecilia Velazquez ..................70

Barbara Bowman................. 152

Alyssa Harper ...................... 30

Aaron Rios ............................78

Daniela Vel√°zquez ............. 80

Errin Braddock.................... 177

Corey Harris ..........................39

Luis Rivero .......................... 68

Sumit Verma......................... 84

Kiara Bryant.........................149

Dr. Brandon Haynes .............63

Rolanda F. Robinson Finch .61

Sumit Verma......................... 84

Lakesha Butler..................... 153

Vince Hill ............................. 04

Terrence Rogers ................... 69

Dr. Lelia Vickers ................... 71

Dr. Issac Butler..................... 86

Stacy Hollins ........................ 20

Dr. Quincy Rose ................... 44

Kel Ward ...............................43

Alonzo Byrd......................... 177

Leslie Holloway .................... 44

Angela Ruffin-Stacker .......... 05

Michael Whitley.....................23

Nina Caldwell....................... 118

Naretha Hopson .................. 62

Mark Sanford.........................76

Michael Williams ..................33

Danielle Carr........................ 154

Amir Hotich ..........................63

Dr. Dewayne Smith .............. 68

LaTonya Williams ................07

Byron Caskey.......................107

Nicole Hudson.......................72

Frank Smith .........................73

Keith Williamson .................. 12

Allie Chang Ray................... 155

James & Kristy Jackson ........47

Larry Smith .......................... 06

Rob Wilson ...........................76

Marquita Chapman............. 154

Shawni Jackson Triggs .........65

Adewale Soluade................... 94

Rev. Starsky D. Wilson .........70

Ruben Chuquimia................ 155

Carmen Jacob ...................... 64

Leah Spinks .......................... 50

Ken Yamaguchi ..................... 12

Akif Cogo.............................. 156

Everett Johnson ....................34

Aisha Sultan.......................... 82

Dr. Fatemeh Zachary ........... 46

Chris Tabourne .....................76

Jalie Cohen.......................... 112

Adella Jones ..........................43

Betsy Cohen...........................22

Dr. Sudarsan Kant ................45

Desiree Coleman..................105

Niaz Khan .............................27

Joel Coleman.......................108

Felix Kwan ............................18

Rasheen Coleman................ 119

Tamara Lackland ..................75

Khalia Collier....................... 156

Helen Lee...............................22

Peter Corsale........................ 157

Chris Lewis ...........................32

Marti Cortez...........................74

Qiaoni Linda Jing................. 92

Dan Cranshaw..................... 172

Anthony Lozano.....................23

LaToya Daugherity..............142

Anthony McBride ................. 31

Jasmine Davis......................108

Jessica Mendez .....................47

Laraine Davis.......................106

Theron Morgan .....................67

LaTosha Davis.....................158

Crystal Morris .......................79

Lilian Doan Davis ................ 60

Turan Mullins ...................... 20

Danyal Davis-Hyrd ...............57

Derrick Nelson ..................... 26

Dave Dawkins ...................... 04

Mary E. Nelson .....................67

Elton Dean ........................... 58

David Noble ..........................79

Emelyn dela Pena .................74

Kimberly Norwood ...............74

Howard Denson ....................59

Vanessa Okwuraiwe ..............32

Vickie Denson .......................59

Facundo Oyenard................. 80

Gene Dobbs Bradford........... 90

James Paine.......................... 88

Dr. Joyce Eisel ......................45

Shonnah Paredes ................. 38

Patricia Fong .........................73

Debra Parran ....................... 66

Carmen Fontanez ................. 14

Gilberto Pinela.......................78

Kristi Franklin ..................... 49

Emily Pitts ............................ 30

Mark French .........................27

Dr. Steve Player.................... 86

Ed Gallegos .......................... 61

Jose Ponce ........................... 48

Pradip Ghosh ........................ 19

Ailey Pope ............................ 64

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Community. It’s what brings us together. Family.

Friends. Neighbors. Living in a place we call home. We strengthen our communities by supporting our many civic, educational and charitable organizations ... because it’s the right thing to do. It’s been our tradition since 1868. Stability. Service. And most importantly, giving back.

Advertisers’ Index A1 Security.................................................122

St. Louis American.................................... 181

Ameren........................................................97

St. Louis Cardinals...................................... 98

Anheuser Busch.........................................123

St. Louis Children’s Hospital..................... 115

Ballpark Village...........................................18

St. Louis Surge................................ 182 & 185

Bank of Edwardsville.................................184

St. Louis University ..................................187

Black Pages................................................186

STL TV.......................................................160

Carrollton Bank.......................................... 65

The Muny.................................................... 26

Centene.......................................................111

UMSL...........................................................97

Commerce Bank........................................125

University of Missouri System..................182

Convention Center.......................................12

UPS..............................................................55

Curium.......................................................122

Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis...164

Edward Jones............................................129

Washington University.....Inside Front Cover

Emerson...................................................... 20

Wells Fargo Advisors................................. 101

Enterprise Holdings, Inc.............................14

Worldwide Technology................................14

Explore St. Louis.......................................135 Harris-Stowe State University.................. 121 iHeart Media............................................... 56 Loose Cannon Marketing & Design..........140 Maryville.................................................... 117 Midland States Bank...................................19 Missouri History Society............................ 66 Missouri State University..........................134 Monsanto...................................... Back Cover Posh Limousine Service..............................67 Praise 95.1FM & 1260AM........................... 68 Regional Business Council......................... 96 SSM............................................................183

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The Transformational Agenda MAGAZINE DOWNLOAD

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