2025 Agenda

Millions of women, pregnant mothers, and young girls are forced to live in unsafe communities with little to no access to quality health services. How can you help us solve this? What new solutions can you help create?

Topics to discuss:

-Maternal Health

-Gender Violence

-Equal Access to Care & Education

-Women’s Health Challenges from Preconception through Menopause

-Chronic & Infectious Diseases that disproportionately impact women and girls

The shortage of skilled professionals across STEM fields threatens innovation and economic growth for many nations. How can you help us solve this? What new solutions can you help create?

Topics to discuss:

-Healthcare Workforce Shortage

-STEM Education Challenges

-Setting Students Up for Success

-Undergraduate Education Challenges

-Health Workforce placements in underserved communities

-Career Advancement Challenges

Climate change and environmental toxins continue to threaten the health and wellbeing of many communities. How can you help us solve this? What new solutions can you help us create?

Topics to discuss:

-Youth & Child Cannabis Use

-Youth Engagement & Criminal Justice

-Tobacco & Vaping Use

-Firearm Prevention Among Youth & Adults

-Mental Health Stigma

-Community & Peer Supports for Suicide Prevention

-Behavioral Health Support in School Systems & Higher Education

Economic challenges continue to hinder communities from achieving stability and prosperity. How can you help us solve this? What new solutions can you help create?

Topics to discuss:

-Access to Digital Resources including advanced AI & Ecommerce tools

-Access to Broadband & Infrastructure

-Accessing State, National & Global Markets

-Increasing technology education and resources in schools

-Technological resources for small businesses, entrepreneurs and veterans

-Increasing Resources/Employment for Military/Veterans Families & Spouses

Without proper engagement, mistrust, and lack of access to clinical trials worsen health disparities, limiting the impact of advancements. How can you help us solve this? What new solutions can you help create?

Topics to discuss:

-Engaging All Communities

-Clinical Research Education

-Healthcare Mistrust

-Access to Innovations Across All Communities

-Expanding Testing Sites Through Community Based Organizations

The critical challenges facing aging populations and individuals with disabilities includes declining health outcomes to limited access to resources. How can you help solve this? What new solutions can your help create?

Topics to discuss:

-Adequate Resources At Home (Health at Home Model)

-Adequate Nutritional Products in Food Deserts

-Chronic Diseases for Aging & Disabled Populations

STATE OF MARYLAND COMPTROLLER

Brooke Lierman is the 34th Comptroller of the state of Maryland and the first woman to be independently elected to one of our state's constitutional offices. After running a strong, policy-focused and grassroots-led two-year campaign, she was elected with over 60% of the vote in November 2022. She is an attorney by training, practicing as a civil rights and disability rights lawyer for many years, and prior to her election as Comptroller, she served for 8 years a member of the House of Delegates representing part of Baltimore City.

While in the House, she spent time in leadership roles on both the Appropriations Committee and the Environment and Transportation Committee and chaired the Joint Committee on Pensions. Brooke successfully passed landmark legislation on a range of issues from transit and broadband to criminal justice reform and public education.

As Comptroller, she is leading an agency of 1,200 dedicated Maryland public servants in 12 offices around the state. Together and under her leadership, the office is working to create a Maryland that is more equitable, more resilient, and more prosperous so that all Marylanders can reach their full potential.

CHIEF OF STAFF, MARYLAND GOVERNOR’S OFFICE OF COMMUINTY INITIATIVES

Gregory D. Yancey, Esq., is an attorney, minister, author, and community warrior.  He has practiced law as: an associate; in-house counsel; and principal owner of a law firm. Mr. Yancey founded “The Fighting Lawyer, LLC” law firm to give voice to the voiceless and the marginalized. He is known by many from the quote “It came down to either going to law school or becoming a superhero, so I decided to do both!”

Largely inspired by his father’s involvement in the integration of Georgia Tech University, Gregory Yancey engaged in a lifelong pursuit of advancing equal justice for all. Mr. Yancey’s practice ventured into a wide foray of areas such as: Civil Litigation; Criminal Defense; Family Law; Commercial Transactions; Business Support/Employment Law; and other practice areas. 

Mr. Yancey is also an avid mentor who helps non-lawyers to become lawyers and lawyers to become super lawyers. 

Mr. Yancey is the past president of The Waring Mitchell Law Society of Howard County, past Chair of the Social Justice Committee for The African American Community Roundtable, and past Chair of the Political Action Committee for the Howard Co. NAACP. He is also the 2015 recipient of the UMCP Black Male Initiative “Community Warrior” Award.

Mr. Yancey also engages the community through ministry, moderating town hall discussions, motivational speaking, and public testimony.

PRINCE GEORGES COUNTY STATE’S ATTORNEY

Aisha Braveboy is an American politician and attorney who has served as the state's attorney of Prince George's County, Maryland since 2018. She was previously a member of the Maryland House of Delegates, representing the 25th district from 2007 to 2015. As a Delegate, Ms. Braveboy was appointed by the Speaker of the House to serve as Chair of the Consumer Protection Subcommittee.

She was elected by her peers to serve as Chair of the Legislative Black Caucus of Maryland, where she guided the 44-member organization on a wide range of policy issues including parity for Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), reducing mass incarceration, enhancing tools to prosecute rapists, increasing opportunities for women and minority-owned businesses and reducing health disparities in our State.

FORMER FEDERAL PROCUREMENT ADMINISTRATOR AT THE WHITE HOUSE

Dr. Michael Eric Wooten was appointed by the President of the United States to serve as the Administrator for Federal Procurement Policy. Previously while serving as Acting Assistant Secretary for Career, Technical, and Adult Education at the U.S. Department of Education, he participated in the President's national apprenticeship initiative, criminal justice reform, and other domestic policy initiatives. He also served as the deputy chief procurement officer for the District of Columbia government.

PRESIDENT & CEO, UNITED WAY NATIONAL CAPITAL AREA

Rosie Allen-Herring is an international expert on public and private partnerships, philanthropy and business strategy. She currently serves as the President and Chief Executive Officer of United Way of the National Capital Area (United Way NCA). Rosie is recognized as a thought leader who demonstrates the ability to convene public private entities, to leverage talent and resources, and create collective impact in communities across the region and beyond.

Rosie has more than 30 years of experience in the areas of corporate finance, strategic leadership, public and private partnerships, corporate philanthropy and community investment.

Rosie holds key leadership roles with several business and civic organizations, including serving on the Board of Directors for MedStar Health, Inc., Greater Washington Partnership, Greater Washington Board of Trade, WesBanco Mid Atlantic Advisory Board, Board of Trustees at A.T. Still University, Prince George’s Community College Foundation and several additional organizations. She also served as a board member for Washington’s exploratory Olympic committee, Washington 2024.

She has received numerous awards and honors including: Washingtonian of the Year (2020), HBCU Alumni of the Year Award for Community Involvement (2019), Howard University Charter Day Distinguished Alumni Awardee (2019), The Network Journal’s Top 25 Most Influential Business Leaders (2019), Jack & Jill of America Community Innovator Award (2019), Prince George’s Community College Commencement Speaker (2019), Leadership Greater Washington’s Inaugural Leader of the Years (2018), Washington Business Journal’s Power 100 Leaders (2021, 2019, 2017, 2015, 2014 and 2013), Washington Business Journal CEO of the Year (2017), Prince George’s Community College Foundation’s Partnership Award (2016), Washington Business Journal Minority Business Leader (2015) etc.

PRESIDENT & CEO, UNITED WAY CENTRAL MD

Franklyn is a cross-functional senior executive with nearly 30 years of diverse expertise in primarily non profit organizations. Since 2016, he has been serving as President and CEO of United Way of Central Maryland, a $92 million non-profit serving 130,000+ lives annually, including support to 100,000+ callers of the 211 MD Helpline, with 240 staff [FY24]. Under his leadership, the organization has experienced measurable shifts in culture, championing Equity Diversity and Inclusion, and growth in multiple forms: overall revenue, lives served, innovative best practice programs in place, donors/volunteers engaged, non-profits supported, and more. Sentinel work is neighborhood-centered, resident-led community engagement and scaled impact in his service region. Key reports have been created and socialized with partners during Franklyn’s tenure as President and CEO: ALICE Report, Benefits Cliff Report, CLIFF Dashboard, COVID-19 Survey and others. Franklyn launched a Social Impact Accelerator within United Way of Central Maryland to serve as a hub of data/reports/consultancy for internal/external stakeholders.

Prior to this role, Franklyn served as Principal Deputy and Chief Operating Officer at Greenpeace USA (a $55 million national non-profit with 1200 staff). Before that role, he served as Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer with Volunteers of America Chesapeake (a $42 million non-profit in the Maryland/DC/Virginia region with 750 staff)

PRESIDENT & CEO, PRINCE GEORGES CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

Alexander Austin, the President and CEO of the Prince George’s Chamber of Commerce, leads one of the largest chambers in the state of Maryland and the broader Washington Metropolitan region. He is widely recognized as an intrapreneurial and entrepreneurial leader, boasting over two decades of expertise across various fields such as Workforce Development, Business Acquisitions/Advisory Services, Business-to-Consumer Solutions, and Entrepreneurship.

Alexander has cultivated a unique and diverse portfolio of skills and accomplishments. His achievements span from innovating new products and services for the local market to owning and operating a professional sports franchise. He’s also authored a book and provided advisory services for mid-market company acquisitions and capital raising strategies. His remarkable journey has garnered media recognition, with features in the Washington Business Journal, Baltimore Sun, and PG Suite magazine.

A native of Prince George’s County, Alexander is deeply dedicated to the continued growth and advancement of the county. He is not only a devoted husband to Candice but also a loving father to Jordan, Savannah, and Xavier.

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE HBCU INSTITUTE AT CLARK ATLANTA UNIVERSITY

Dr. Phyllis Worthy Dawkins, is a woman with extensive higher education experience who is adept at the inner workings of HBCUs, having worked at six (South Carolina State, Johnson C. Smith University, Dillard University, Cheyney University, Bennett College, and Clark Atlanta University). Dawkins was a tenured and full professor and worked as the Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs at Bennett College, Cheyney University and at Dillard University.

Currently, she is the Executive Program Director of the HBCU Executive Leadership Institute at Clark Atlanta University (HBCU ELI at CAU). In terms of other professional development activities, Dawkins is a Co-founder of the HBCU Faculty Development Network, and a former past President of the Professional and Organizational Development Network (POD).

Dawkins currently serves on the Boards of Goddard College in Vermont, the George Floyd Memorial Center and was a thought partner with the Minority Broadband Initiative of NTI NTIA (National Telecommunications and Information Administration). She consults with or presents at several HBCUs (81/101), organizations, professional meetings, summer institutes, conferences, etc. on fundraising, grant writing, assessment, academic program evaluation/reviews, education technology, accreditation, learning communities, faculty development, etc.

In her career, she has fundraised more than $19 million and acquired over $54 million in state and federal grants. In terms of federal grants, she wrote/co-wrote and secured funds with colleagues from the National Institute of Health on Minority Health Disparities, NSF HBCU-UP Grant: Interdisciplinary Approach to Increasing Minorities in SMET Disciplines and Title III. She has also secured several private foundation grants.

PHYSICIAN, PUBLIC HEALTH LEADER, FOUNDER AND CEO OF SAGE MONARCH

Dr. Letitia Dzirasa is a distinguished physician and public health leader, and the founder and CEO of Sage Monarch, a comprehensive health consultancy. Dr. Dzirasa served as the Health Commissioner for the Baltimore City Health Department from 2019 to 2023, and later as Deputy Mayor for Equity, Health, and Human Services from 2023 to 2024 in Baltimore, Maryland.

With a background in pediatric medicine and a passion for serving the underserved, Dr. Dzirasa has dedicated her career to improving community health outcomes and addressing health disparities. As Health Commissioner, she led Baltimore City through the global COVID-19 pandemic with compassion and poise. She led the creation of community-informed, data-driven public health initiatives thereby preventing further catastrophic health outcomes in underserved and marginalized communities throughout Baltimore City.

A champion for innovative public health strategies, Dr. Dzirasa is recognized for her collaborative approach and leveraging partnerships across sectors to create sustainable change. Her leadership has left a lasting impact on Baltimore’s public health landscape, inspiring a vision of a healthier, more equitable future for all.

Sage Monarch partners with leaders and organizations to transform communities through empathy, developing innovative, pragmatic solutions that address the social determinants of health. They assist in the development of data-driven, community-informed public health and population health strategies. Sage Monarch also provides C-suite executive coaching for teams addressing the social determinants of health, and facilitates health and wellness webinars and training.

FORMER DIRECTOR OF STRATEGIC CONTRACTING DEPT OF VA

Currently, Mr. Elegear J. Primus joined Impact Diversity Solutions Corporation. He recently served ten years at the Department of Veterans Affairs as the Deputy Associate Executive Director of the Department of Veteran Affairs Strategic Acquisition Center (SAC). In this role, he was directly responsible for building and leading a fee-for-service organization providing comprehensive acquisition and program management support expertise to the Department of Veteran Affairs, highly complex strategic medical systems, and devices.

Before joining the VA, Mr. Primus was president of a Veteran Owned Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned small business.

THE DIGITAL DIPLOMAT ® | AWARD-WINNING INTR'L CONSULTANT SPECIALIZING IN DIGITALIZATION, DIGITAL TRADE (EXPORTS), AND PLANT-BASED CPG FOOD MANUFACTURER IN U.S. & AFRICA

Widely recognized as The Digital Diplomat™, Wendy Ekua (W.E.) Da’Cruz promotes the adoption of digitalization to help drive economic development. She co-founded the Virtual Global Consultant (VGC) Group, an IT firm helping businesses leverage technology for new revenue opportunities. Recognized as the 2021 Minority eCommerce Firm of the Year by the U.S. Department of Commerce MBDA, she has generated millions in donations and sales for U.S. and African-based clients.

A sought-after speaker, she has addressed global forums, including the US-Africa Business Summit, Africa Fintech Summit, and led masterclasses for the U.S. Embassy’s Academy for Women Entrepreneurs in multiple countries. She serves on advisory committees for USGLC, the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, and the District Export Council in Michigan.

As an International Consultant, she developed an online training for African businesses through the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa. During the pandemic, she and her husband launched The Mushroom Angel Company, producing Cruz Burgers, now in 120+ Midwest locations.

A Ghanaian-American, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority member, and mother of three, she resides in Detroit, Michigan.