Cassandra Caldwell ’93- Fort Lauderdale, FL |
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Dr. Cassandra Caldwell is an internationally renowned diversity and inclusion thought leader, author, faculty member, consultant, philanthropist, entrepreneur, and scholar. Numerous publications featured her, including Black Enterprise Magazine, Profiles in Diversity Journal, HBCU Connect Magazine, INSIGHT Into Diversity Magazine, and The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education.
She has over 24 years of experience in several leadership roles with Visa, General Electric, Sodexo, the International Society of Diversity and Inclusion Professionals, GlaxoSmithKline, North Carolina State University, and the US Department of Agriculture.
In addition to being a leader in the corporate world, Dr. Caldwell was an instructor in the Cornell University Diversity and Inclusion Certification Program. She served as an appointed advisor to the US Census on the National Advisory Committee on Racial, Ethnic, and Other Populations. She has also held academic appointments as an adjunct faculty member at the University of Maryland, Nova Southeastern University, Walden University, North Carolina Central University, Duke University, Seton Hall University, and the University of Houston.
Dr. Caldwell earned a B.A. in Speech Communication from UNC in 1993, a M.P.A.in Public Administration from North Carolina Central University, and a Ph.D. from The Ohio State University in Human and Community Resource Development. Her international education includes being a visiting scholar in Ghana, South Africa, and Swaziland. Her latest international academic appointment was as a visiting scholar at The Oxford Round Table for Women’s Leadership at the University of Oxford in England. In addition to these international academic appointments, Dr. Caldwell has presented on leadership and diversity topics in Japan, Morocco, South Africa, Taiwan, Hong Kong, England, Canada, Austria, and France.
Dr. Caldwell has received numerous honors including: the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Harvey E. Beech Outstanding Alumni Award, Profiles in Diversity Journal CEO Leadership in Action Award, Profiles in Diversity Journal Excellence in Innovation Award, Profiles in Diversity Journal Diversity Leader Award, Wake County Chapter of the National Congress of Black Women 21st Century African-American Trailblazer /Sojourner Truth Legacy Award, Sodexo Champion of Diversity Award, The North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics Keeper of the Dream Award, North Carolina Central University College of Arts and Sciences Outstanding Faculty Teaching Award, Marquis Who’s Who of American Women Executives, Empire Who’s Who of Women in Education, Leadership America North Carolina, The American Association for Higher Education Patricia K. Cross Future Leader Award, and The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Award.
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Virginia L. Cardenas, ’98, ’06 – Raleigh, NC |
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Dr. Virginia Cárdenas was a public school educator for over 30 years. Her bachelor’s degree is in political science and economics. She received her master’s degree in school administration, and educational doctorate in school leadership from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Virginia grew up in Quito, Ecuador and taught Spanish (Pre-K – 5th grade) in rural and urban schools in North Carolina and was Teacher of the Year for her school and for Chatham County. Her administrative experience is mostly working with magnet schools, including serving as the magnet recruiter, principal, and director. In addition, she has extensive experience working with school board policy. Virginia’s areas of focus are systemic and sustainable school transformation through the strategic design and implementation of systems and structures that result in a culture of differentiated instruction. She has worked with principals to assist in the development and implementation of school practices that facilitate the infusion of rigor and twenty first century relevance. Virginia served as a School Transformation Coach with the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction. She is also a children’s book author writing bilingual books about daily life of Latino families. She has served in numerous boards and education Task Forces.
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Maribel Carrion ’77, ’86 – Chapel Hill, NC |
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Maribel Carrion is the Executive Director of Student Administration and Enterprise Reporting in the Information Technology Services (ITS) organization at UNC Chapel Hill. She has more than 30 years of experience working in technology, including roles based in Mexico and Singapore, as well as managing teams in Europe, South America and Southeast Asia. She returned to the Chapel Hill area in 2000 and joined UNC-Chapel Hill in 2009. Maribel holds a BS in Mathematics and an MBA, both from UNC-Chapel Hill. Born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Maribel began her travels as an “Army brat” when she was less than a year old. Her family would go on to live in North Carolina, Germany, Florida, Panama, Puerto Rico and then back to North Carolina. She credits this background for creating a lasting curiosity for the cultures, languages and arts in different parts of the world. In today’s environment, she feels it is important for all young people to have some type of experience that exposes them to the global environment – especially those under-represented students that can least afford it. As a result, she has worked with the Center for Global Initiatives to create opportunities through the Global Take Off: Puerto Rico program. She also supports the Carolina Performing Arts’ Student Angel Fund, which ensures that students have access to artists and performances from around the world here at UNC, regardless of their ability to pay. In addition to serving on ACRED for the past 9 years, Maribel currently serves on the Carolina Performing Arts International Advisory Board and the Chancellor’s Global Leadership Council.
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Warren J. Carson ’74, – Tryon, NC |
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Dr. Warren J. Carson is Distinguished Professor Emeritus at the University of South Carolina Upstate in Spartanburg, SC. In addition to teaching classes in English and African American Studies, he served USC Upstate in a number of capacities for 34 years, including Chair of the Department of Languages, Literature, and Composition; Interim Dean for the College of Arts and Sciences; Vice-Chancellor for the Greenville Campus; Chief Diversity Officer; and Senior Associate Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs. Nationally, he served as Chief Reader for the College Board’s Advanced Placement English Literature and Composition exams. He is a past president of the College Language Association and Managing Editor of the CLA Journal, a scholarly journal devoted to the study language and literature.
Carson is an award-winning teacher, having been awarded the University’s highest teaching awards, including being named the Carolina Trustees Professor of English in 2017. Likewise, he has been cited numerous times for his service contributions locally, regionally, and nationally. In 2014, he was awarded USC Upstate’s Distinguished Service Award that recognized his numerous contributions. In 2015, he was named “Outstanding Black Alumnus” by UNC Chapel Hill. He holds life memberships in the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill Alumni Association, the College Language Association, Pi Kappa Phi Honor Society, and Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc.
He has served on a number of boards and commissions, including the Polk County Board of County Commissioners, the Tryon Town Council, the Board of Trustees of St. Luke’s Hospital, the Polk County Board of Social Services, the Roseland Community Center Board of Directors, the Polk County Board of Elections, the Thermal Belt Outreach Ministries Board of Directors, Tryon Fine Arts Center, the Isothermal Community College Board of Trustees, the Polk County NAACP, the Eastside Citizens Advisory Committee. He is a member of the Garrison Chapel Baptist Church in Tryon, NC, where he currently serves as the Chairman of the Board of Deacons.
Carson received the bachelor’s degree in English from UNC Chapel Hill, the M.A. in Afro-American Studies from Atlanta University, and the Ph.D. in English from the University of South Carolina Columbia. He is a native of Tryon, NC, where since his retirement in 2017 he has continued to be active in a number of church and civic affairs, many of them devoted to his beloved Eastside Community.
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Pamela Brewington Cashwell ’89, ’92 – Raleigh, NC |
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Pamela Cashwell is the chief deputy secretary of Professional Standards, Policy and Planning for the N.C. Department of Public Safety. In this role, Pamela oversees the Office of Special Investigations, Internal Audit, Private Protective Services, Policy and Strategic Planning. Pamela had been at the State Ethics Commission since 2008 before moving to Public Safety in April 2017. She most recently served as assistant director supervising staff attorneys and administrative staff; providing legal representation; strategic and budget planning; legislative outreach; handling policy and legal questions; and many other duties. The North Carolina native also has held many legal positions to include senior staff attorney, NC Institute for Constitutional Law; trial attorney and attorney advisor in the Civil Rights Division, U.S. Department of Justice; and special assistant United States attorney for the Eastern District, Virginia. Pamela holds a juris doctor from UNC-Chapel Hill School of Law and a bachelor’s in economics also from UNC-Chapel Hill. She has long been an advocate for American Indian and women’s issues and currently serves on the university’s Alumni Committee on Racial and Ethnic Diversity and Women’s Leadership Council.
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Alexander Chu ’07, ’13- Chapel Hill, NC |
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Alex Chu is counsel with K&L Gates in its Research Triangle Park office. He is a member of the Health Care and FDA practice group. Prior to joining K&L Gates, Alex served in various legal and compliance roles for regional health system and a North Carolina health insurer.
He received both his JD and MBA from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and a Mathematical Economics degree from Wake Forest University.
Alex and his family reside in Chapel Hill, NC and are proud supporters of UNC’s Asian American Center. They also have an endowed scholarship at Kentucky Christian University.
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Veronica Clemons ’92 -Charlotte, NC |
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Veronica Clemons is a communications senior advisor in Public Affairs at Wells Fargo.
Veronica leads media relations, manages issues, and has been a campaign manager for numerous initiatives and product launches. She has managed communications for a senior executive focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion and has been a consultant for the African American and LGBTQ segments. Veronica led a campaign to launch Wells Fargo’s $60 billion commitment to increasing African American homeownership, which won a Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) Silver Anvil Award of Excellence.
A communicator with more than 25 years of experience, Veronica has held leadership roles at several companies including Walt Disney World and Hill and Knowlton, which was one of the largest PR firms in the country. She also served as a communications consultant for the National Urban League, supporting its CEO and key programs. A former journalist, she was an editor for Jet magazine in Chicago where she covered sports and entertainment.
She earned a BA from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and earned a master’s degree in Communications from the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University. Veronica is a member of PRSA Charlotte and its Diversity and Inclusion Committee. She is on the board of Mosaic Development Group, which focuses on the development of affordable housing in North Carolina, and is the immediate past president of the Charlotte Chapter of Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) Amateurs.
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Monica Cloud ’96 – Washington, D.C. |
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Monica Cloud was raised in Raleigh, N.C., and devoted her life to public service. Her first foray into politics was as Speaker of Congress at UNC. She earned a bachelor’s degree at UNC-Chapel Hill, then worked in public policy in Washington, D.C, before heading to law school at Washburn University School of Law in Topeka, Kan. She returned to North Carolina to accept a position with Womble, Carlyle, Sandridge and Rice, LLP. She has served as deputy executive director of the N.C. Democratic Party. During the 2008 primaries, Monica served as deputy political director for the Hillary for President campaign in North Carolina. During the 2008 general election, she served as chief financial officer for the Hagan Senate Committee. Monica served as the chief financial officer for Kendrick Meek for Florida senate campaign in Miami, Fla. Currently, she is Director of Federal Government Relations at GSK Pharmaceuticals.
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Anthony Cummings ’84 ,’87 – Centreville, VA |
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Mr. Anthony W. Cummings is the Deputy Assistant Administrator, Office of Civil Rights. As Deputy Assistant Administrator, Mr. Cummings is responsible for assuring full, affirmative implementation of equity, inclusion, diversity, civil rights, equal employment opportunity and equal opportunity by recipients of FAA sponsored federal assistance. He manages and directs the diversity and civil rights programs consistent with Department of Transportation policy and functions and within the framework of civil rights laws and regulations.
Prior to coming to the FAA, Mr. Cummings was a career Senior Executive Service (SES) member at the U.S. Department of Education where he served as the Director and Chief Administrative Judge in the Office of Hearings and Appeals (OHA) overseeing all OHA operations and internal controls. He also served in several senior leadership positions with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). At HUD, he served as the Associate General Counsel for the Office of Ethics, Appeals and Personnel Law where he managed and directed the agency’s ethics and employment law operations for nearly two years. From 2016 – 2018, he served as the Assistant General Counsel for Personnel Law, HUD’s top labor and employment lawyer. His specialty, federal sector employment law was honed, however, via his service as an Administrative Judge with the U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board, where he served for nearly 25 years (1992 – 2016), receiving the Chairman’s Award of Excellence in 2015. From 1991 – 1992, he served as an Attorney-Advisor for the Social Security Administration’s Office of Hearings and Appeals, and from 1988-1991, he served in the U.S. Navy’s Judge Advocate General Corps as a Defense Counsel, Staff Judge Advocate and Special Assistant United States Attorney.
Mr. Cummings holds a B.A. in Political Science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a J.D. from the University of North Carolina School of Law. He and his wife, Terri, are the parents of two wonderful young adults.
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