At the annual Equal Opportunity Day breakfast on Tuesday, October 29 at 7:30 a.m. at the Chattanooga Convention Center, the Urban League of Greater Chattanooga will honor local corporate and individual leaders who have championed the principles of equal opportunity and social justice. The keynote speaker is Gale King, executive vice president and chief administrative officer for Nationwide Insurance, a Fortune 100 company.
“For this year’s EOD event, we are celebrating ‘a community for all,’ recognizing the critical role we all play in creating an inclusive community,” said Warren E. Logan, Jr., president and CEO of the Urban League of Greater Chattanooga. “The Urban League continues to work toward making every individual in our community feel vested, accepted and empowered to reach their personal and professional goals. Together, we can make Chattanooga a city of inclusion, a city of opportunity, a city of choice.”
Under King’s leadership, Nationwide has been recognized by multiple organizations for its commitment to diversity and inclusion and leadership development, including Black Enterprise, Savoy, Latina Style, and Uptown Professional. King serves on the board of directors of the Columbus Museum of Art, the National Urban League, the University of Florida Foundation, and the Executive Leadership Council. She has received numerous recognitions, including being named one of the 100 Most Powerful Executives in Corporate America by Black Enterprise in 2012.
The annual Equal Opportunity Day event is a fundraiser to support the Urban League’s programs. During the 2013 fiscal year, the Urban League served over 9,000 people in the region, including more than 800 youth in grades K-12 through its afterschool programs, STEM Academy, Digital Connectors, and National Achievers Society.
The Urban League’s economic empowerment programs placed nearly 350 individuals in new jobs in the Chattanooga area and provided volunteer income tax assistance, homeownership counseling, job training, contract compliance, and support to startup and existing minority and women-owned businesses. To further the organization’s health and wellness initiative, the Urban League offered the Fit for Life program, Community Health Navigator, and a Health Symposia series addressing urgent public health issues throughout the region.
“Equal Opportunity Day is a celebration to acknowledge the successful programs the Urban League has pioneered to help individuals and families achieve better education, better jobs, better job training and better health,” said Dana Perry, president and managing shareholder for Chambliss, Bahner & Stophel, EOD event chair and Urban League board member. “I’m proud to be a part of an organization that continues to impact the community and empower its people by helping them realize their full potential.”
To recognize corporate and individual leadership in the region, the Urban League will give out three awards at the event: Inclusion by Design Award, Community Impact Award, and the Whitney M. Young, Jr. Award.
The Urban League is offering several sponsorship levels for the event, with corporate tables starting at $1,000 and non-profit tables available for $800. Individual tickets are also available for $100. Each sponsorship level offers additional recognition opportunities, and all proceeds from the event will support the Urban League’s empowerment programs. For more information, visit www.ulchatt.net or call Keesha Marshall at (423) 756-1762.
Source: Urban League of Greater Chattanooga