Our March Guests
March 6 & 20, 2022
Difference Makers... HERstory Out Loud!
(Parts 1 & 2)
Iranetta Wright
Superintendent
Cincinnati Public Schools
Wright currently serves as deputy superintendent for Detroit Public Schools Community District (DPSCD), the largest district in Michigan, with approximately 50,000 students and 7,100 employees. In her role as deputy superintendent, she leads turnaround initiatives for the district’s lowest-performing schools and previously oversaw the district’s leadership academies, which helped to develop future principals and assistant principals.
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Prior to joining DPSCD, Wright worked in Duval County Public Schools in Florida. During her almost 25-year tenure, she was a teacher; assistant principal; principal; regional superintendent; and chief of schools. Wright helped 36 of the lowest-performing campuses in the district improve to be removed from state sanctions and avoid school closure. She also played a role in turning around the state’s lowest-performing high school, which improved from an F to a B.
Barbara Darby, Ed.D.
Retired
Campus President, FSCJ
A member of Woodlawn Presbyterian Church since relocating to Jacksonville from New York in 1972, Dr. Barbara Ann Darby retired as president of the North Campus and the Nassau Center of Florida State College at Jacksonville in July 2015. She held this position since 1998. Dr. Darby received her Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing from Hunter College in New York, a Master of Education degree from Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University and a Master of Science in Nursing from the University of Florida. She received her Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership from the University of North Florida. She gives God, the Center of her life, all praise and glory for whatever she has accomplished
Ingrid Green Jones
Senior Corporate Counsel
Pfizer, Inc.
2021 CEO Action for Racial Equity Fellow
HBCU Solutions
Ingrid is an experienced transactional attorney with a diverse professional background. She has had increasing rolls of responsibility in corporate, non-profit and government organizations. She has held the positions of Head of Compliance and Assistant General Counsel at The College Board and Deputy Agency Chief Contracting Officer for the City of NY. Ingrid is currently the Sr. Counsel and a racial equity fellow representing Pfizer with CEO Action for Racial Equity. CEO Action for Racial Equity is a business-led initiative that mobilizes signatory organizations to advance policy change at the federal, state, and local levels. Ingrid’s focus has been advancing and supporting Historically Black Colleges and University partnerships with corporations.
Melissa Fulmore-Hardwick
CIO
CSI Companies
Regarded as one of the First Coast’s most prolific technology leaders, Melissa Fulmore-Hardwick has dedicated her more than 20-year career to merging innovative technology solutions with collaboration-based leadership. Her initiatives have skyrocketed operational efficiency, reduced the IT footprint and bridged exciting technologies with operational objectives.
Melissa credits much of her success to the teams she has recruited and cultivated over the years. Powered by knowledge and ideas, these teams have been integral in the projects upon which Melissa has built her career from complex cloud strategies to groundbreaking Agile-based development initiatives.
Dawn Johnson
Agency Owner
Dawn Johnson State Farm, LLC
Dr. Kimberly Allen is a Jacksonville native along with her husband and three children. She attended Sallye B. Mathis Elementary, James Weldon Johnson College Preparatory Middle and Stanton College Preparatory School where she graduated with an International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma. She attended Florida State University and earned her undergraduate and graduate degrees: two bachelor’s degrees in Psychology and Family and Child Sciences; a master’s degree in Family and Child Sciences; and a Ph.D. in Human Sciences—Family Relations, which she started at the University of Georgia. During that time, she was the professor of several courses focused on stress and resilience, families in crisis, adolescent and human development and assisted with many other courses. Dr. Allen also worked at the University of Georgia’s Center for Family Research where she examined the relationship patterns of rural, African American men.
Nancy Flake Johnson
President/CEO
Urban League of Greater Atlanta
Nancy Flake Johnson is an advocate, educator, coach, collaborator, strategist, and champion for closing the racial wealth gap, civic engagement, and the advancement of the Black community. She is also an advocate for unity, race relations and equity for all people.
Nancy became president and CEO of the Urban League of Greater Atlanta in 2008. She has served as Vice President of Programs for the Detroit Urban League, led Howard University’s Small Business Development Center, operated an accounting and tax practice serving small businesses and non-profits and began her career as CPA with Arthur Andersen & Co. and Coopers & Lybrand, Big 8 CPA firms.