Announcement: Engaging with an Organization Developing A New Generation of Diverse Leaders

One of my passions and core areas of my consulting practice is diversity strategy and execution within organizations. I firmly believe that any organization as well as any city, state, province or country can be stronger and healthier if it truly leverages its complete diversity and brings out the best in every single participant.

In that vain, I am pleased to announce that I have accepted the invitation to be a trustee of a recently formed new nonprofit called “Collegiate Bridges”. The goal of Collegiate Bridges is to execute a crucial component of the Generational Plan of America of the Diversity Place by creating a paradigm shift in the way students from underrepresented populations are recruited by colleges in the US.

Students, such as Nkiruka Emeagwali, a medical student at Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tennessee who was featured in an America - The Diversity Place online story, can be trained to provide health care to under-served populations

Students, such as Nkiruka Emeagwali, a medical student at Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tennessee who was featured in an America – The Diversity Place online story, can be trained to provide health care to under-served populations


The Collegiate Bridges will examine ways to increase high school graduation rates among constituencies that are traditionally lower than the national average. If more students can be given the tools and assistance to graduate and later become innovative problem solvers, we can build a stronger nation and economy.

Some of the strategies of Collegiate Bridges will include innovative use of technology to build a unique “Super Internet Portal” and bridging with individuals, families, communities, faith-based organizations and more.

There are many reasons that inhibit our youth from achieving their full potential. I have blogged about one of these reasons, which is bullying. (link to my most recent blog on bullying which includes links to an earlier blog and several resources.)

The founder of Collegiate Bridges is Albert C. Jones, whose other current endeavors include www.americadiversityplace.com which documented “Stories of America” and “Multicultural Voices Across the Nation” in each of the 48 states in the continental US.

Other confirmed trustees in addition to founder Albert C. Jones and myself include:
• John E. Pierce, Associate VP for Affirmative Action and Diversity Outreach, Creighton University
• Dr. Marcia R. Robinson, Cultural Coordinator, West Las Vegas Art Center
• Dr. Elena Izquierdo, Associate Professor of Teacher Education, University of Texas El Paso
• Dr. Kimberly Fountain, Internal Medicine Physician from Memphis, Tn.

I look forward to working with Albert and this team of trustees to help raise a fully inclusive diverse set of future leaders.

Anti-Bullying Awareness Month – Addressing Bullying in our Schools and Businesses

Did you know that October was National Anti-Bullying Awareness Month? Bullying is a serious national issue which sadly has a negative impact from youth in the schools all the way up into the business world. This post will briefly share a little information and provide some resources.

Webster’s defines bullying or a bully as someone who uses browbeating language or behavior to be habitually cruel to someone weaker than himself. This can particularly apply to someone who has physical strength, power by position, or as a member of a majority group, uses this strength to belittle and harm a person. Instead of using their strength to bully others, people should have a positive impact by using their strengths to assist and mentor others.

Starting with our youth, bullying can be particularly harmful if unaddressed, and can lead to destructive behavior on the part of our children. The victims of bullying can turn inward, turn to alcohol and drugs, and in the worst cases get involved in gangs or attempt suicide. I wrote a blog two years ago in terms of how especially gay bullying can even grow from an individual issue into a serious drain on our national economy and well-being. (Link to “The Macroeconomics of Gay Bullying”).

An anti-bullying billboard I saw when I went to Atlanta for my college homecoming last weekend.


Here are some resources for school environments:
• The boys of Robert Land Academy in Vancouver, Canada have taken a pledge to not bully nor be a bystander when they see bullying happening, and you and your school can also take the pledge (link).
Anti-bullying resources from GLSEN (Gay,Lesbian and Straight Education Network)
• “Bully Free – It Starts with Me” resources from the US National Education Association.
• Check out a new cool book for children on anti-bullying by leading diversity, inclusion and anti-bullying consultants AK Consulting.

And now the discussion is turning beyond bullying in the schoolyards; business leaders are now more openly discussing the issue of bullying in the workplace. Last year I wrote a blog (link) about how schoolyard bullies can grow up to become workplace harassers. Even last week at my local Triangle Society of Human Resource Management (TSHRM) monthly luncheon meeting, we had an excellent speaker (Jennifer Alfonso of AngerManagement.org). She taught us the difference between bullying and harassment, the different styles of bullying and how to identify them, the tremendous costs to a business when bullying is present, and the importance of having corporate policies to address bullying.

Bullying is bad for our schools, our country, our economy and our business and together we need to be vigilant to continually battle against it. Let us use our talents and strengths to build up each other and our world!