Dynamic keynote speakers to headline 4th Annual Community Resource Development Conference
Dynamic keynote speakers to headline 4th Annual Community Resource Development Conference
The Alcorn State University Extension Program (ASUEP) 4th annual Community Resource Development (CRD) Conference will feature the speakers that represent all pillars of community leadership from a retired lieutenant general, to a university president, regional director of a national public service organization, and a foundation program director.
Slated for October 23-25, 2013, at the Hilton Hotel, 1001 E. County Line Rd, Jackson, Mississippi, this year’s conference is specifically designed to educate those interested in community development about the important challenges and opportunities facing such efforts, said Katrina McLin, conference chair and area community resources development (CRD) educator at Alcorn.
“Enhancing Community Leadership” is this year’s theme, and according to McLin, a focal point of the conference will be the cultivation of community leaders by building a strong model for success.
The opening keynote speaker is retired Lt. Gen. Russel L. Honore’, 33rd Commanding Gen. of the United States, First Army, Fort Gilliem, Georgia. Alcorn State University President, Dr. M. Christopher Brown II and Southern Regional Director of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. Cheryl W. Turner, will serve as luncheon keynote speakers.
Gladys Krigger Washington, program director of the Mary Reynolds Babcock Foundation will facilitate an Early Bird Session “Embracing Community Leadership”.
The opening keynote speaker, author and CNN contributor Lt. Gen. Honore’, was touted by the former New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin as “one John Wayne dude.” In the desperate and chaotic aftermath of Hurricane Katrina he displayed exemplary character and leadership taking charge to restore order and hope to the city and its citizens. He is chair of the Louisiana Bicentennial Commission and a board member of the Louisiana Disaster Recovery Foundation. Honore’ is the author of a book “Survival: How a Culture of Preparedness Can Save You and Your Family from Disasters”, and his new book, “Leadership in the New Normal”, that explains how to be an effective leader in the 21st Century.
Dr. M. Christopher Brown II, the 18th president of the nation’s oldest public historically black land-grant institution – Alcorn State University – is, also, the youngest HBCU president in the nation. Since being named president in 2010, Brown has led the university to be distinguished in many ways, including recognized as the 2012 HBCU of the Year by the Center for HBCU Media Advocacy. Serving approximately 4,000 students on the main campus in Lorman, Mississippi, along with satellite campuses in Vicksburg and Natchez, Brown provides a student-centered approach to decision-making. Under his leadership, the University prepares Alcorn students to succeed in the global marketplace while fostering in each, leadership qualities that will prove valuable to both the students themselves and the communities in which they live. Dr. Brown is leading the charge to increase funding for agricultural research and to expand global programs and activities at Alcorn. During Dr. Brown’s tenure, Alcorn has increased awareness of the institutional brand and enhanced its recognition. In 2013, Dr. Brown was name President of the Year by the Center for HBCU Media Advocacy.
Cheryl W. Turner is the southern regional director of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. She is the first Mississippian elected to lead the Sorority’s Southern Region since the inception of Regional Conferences in 1926. She is a member of the Sorority’s National Executive Board, and a recent retiree of the State of Mississippi, having previously served as director of special programs for the Mississippi Department of Finance and Administration, Office of Insurance. In that role she was a key member of the management team that admini
