On Tuesday, April 19, 2022, Chairman Cardin and Madame Guzman, Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA), celebrated the partnership of the SBA's Community Navigator Pilot Program as it came to fruition with the partnership of The National Urban League (NUL), Greater Baltimore Urban League (GBUL), and eight small minority businesses of the greater Baltimore region.
Chairman Cardin and Administrator Guzman highlighted the work on the ground in Baltimore through exploring The Raymond V. Haysbert Center for Entrepreneurship's program services, thriving businesses, and raising awareness to the coaching and tailored services and congratulated GBUL for their award and participation of the Community Navigator Pilot Program. "Today, Associate Administrator Mark Madrid and I are in Baltimore with Senator Cardin to highlight the Community Navigator Program, which helps organizations with deep community roots like National Urban League and Greater Baltimore Urban League to connect small businesses with critical resources they need to start and grow," stated Administrator Guzman. Greater Baltimore Urban League is grateful to Chairman Cardin for his leadership in bringing the Community Navigator Pilot Program to life, "nationally" and in his hometown of Maryland. If not for Administrator Guzman's experience, dedication, and leadership, the CNPP would not be possible for small minority businesses. GBUL thanks Marc Morial, President & CEO of NUL and Stephanie DeVane, VP of Entrepreneurship & Business Development NUL, for spearheading the Navigators Program at NUL. We celebrate Tiffany Majors, President & CEO of the Greater Baltimore Urban League for her work in the Navigators Program and long-standing support to entrepreneurs. Harford Business Center, Legacy Creators, HND Consultancy, Courted, casa de colores designs, Rice and Son's, Esteem Experience, and The Trend Lab for their consultant work on the ground to counseling and coaching small business owners to succeed and sustain their businesses. GBUL's Raymond V. Haysbert Center for Entrepreneurship provides technical assistance, including helping entrepreneurs prepare for capital and contract opportunities, back-office management (accounting, legal, & marketing), financing (loan readiness, completing grant/loan applications) and procurement, as well as elements needed for winning contracts (contractor requirements & resources, bidding, certifications, bonding). Some of our customized workshops specifically for the CNPP are:
Our spoke targets specific underserved populations in our service area, such as women, Black, Latinx, lower-income, and immigrant individuals, and individuals living in rural areas. Unsurprisingly, the predominant client was a low to moderate income, African American women in line with traditional UL constituents. Spokes primarily serve African Americans (82%), with average percentages of white (11%), Hispanic (5%), and Asian-American (2%) entrepreneurs, noting actual percentages varied by region. Modest veteran and disabled populations were served.
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It is with our deepest sorrow that we inform you of the untimely passing of Greater Baltimore Urban League's (GBUL) Guild President, Madam Kim Glover-Spencer on Thursday, March 17, 2022.
Graduating Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Arts: Early Childhood Education from Coppin State University, she retired as an educator after 32 years of service. Mrs. Glover-Spencer possessed excellent communication and leadership skills, networking with teachers, parents, school and district administration and community organizations to advance teaching practices and the development of 21st Century skills. She has conducted staff development and trained teachers in the Baltimore City Public School System Systemic Gifted and Talented School Wide Enrichment Program. To enhance the quality of education, she collaborated with agencies such as CHAI, Irvine Nature Center and Parks and People, and developed and scribed grants to fund activities, projects and instructional programs at Cross Country Elementary-Middle School. Elected as the President of the Greater Baltimore Urban League's Guild in 2019, she had the amazing propensity to more than double the Guild's membership, year after year. Mrs. Spencer recruited and joined nine of her immediate and extended family and friends as new members. She served on the fundraising committee and the Executive Board of Directors for GBUL for the past four years as secretary. She was unambiguously selected by the president to aid her in many internal and external projects including the second phase of assessments, selections and the interviewing of potential executive administrative employees of GBUL. Given Mrs. Glover-Spencer's keen wisdom, empathy, character, and experience, GBUL's President and CEO bade for her support as one of her personal advisors. In addition to serving on the BOD and as President of the Guild, she was the co-lead in securing a $300k state funded bond bill to support the preservation of the historic Orchard Street Church (OSC) build by free and enslaved Black people. She organized and chaired the Save Orchard Street (SOS) committee which focuses on raising funds for renovation, repairs and the preservation of the historic Orchard Street Church. Mrs. Glover-Spencer continued to utilize her communication and leadership skills to enhance the programmatic needs and significantly enhance the lives of our participants and everyone she'd serve. During her tenure as an educator and in her later years as president, she collaborated with public and private agencies to provide health related and educational events to the community on behalf of the Urban League and was recognized receiving many honorable awards:
It is with great pleasure that we announce the selection and appointment of Greater Baltimore Urban League's new Chairman of the Board of Directors, 2021.
Our Board of Directors and Friend's of the League will receive our new chair in a small reception held in July (tba). We thank you in advance for welcoming our new Chairman, Mr. Ricky D. Smith~ Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer Baltimore/ Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport. We'd like to "Humbly" Thank our current Interim Chairman, Mr. Gavin Watson who has served at great lengths for the past 11 years in any capacity requested. Gavin will remain as our Vice Chair until he retires from our Board of Directors. "The Urban League has been a source of inspiration for me since childhood. It is one of my greatest honors to serve an organization that I have revered for so long while serving the community most dear to my heart. I am humbled and inspired to serve as the new chair of the Greater Baltimore Urban League and hope to meet the leadership expectations of the board, Tiffany Majors and her team, and most importantly, the public that this great organization serves." Ricky Dorell Smith has been serving as the Executive Director/CEO of the Maryland Aviation Administration (MAA) since July 10, 2015. Ricky is responsible for the management and operations of Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI Marshall), Martin State Airport, and regional aviation activities throughout the State of Maryland. Ricky is an over 30-year aviation and transportation professional. He returned to Maryland after serving as Chief Executive Officer of the Cleveland Airport System, which includes Cleveland Hopkins International Airport and Burke Lakefront Airport. In addition, he was responsible for overseeing the development and management of the City’s lakefront properties. Since returning to BWI Marshall, Mr. Smith has led the airport to five (5) consecutive record-setting years for passengers including restoring BWI Marshall as the busiest airport in the Washington-Baltimore region and being recognized as the Airport Council International’s Best Airport in North America for customer service. Establishing a culture of performance, customer service, safety, and innovation, the airports have received several national and regional awards for customer service, capital development, and marketing including two Emmy Awards. Overseeing major facilities expansions of the airports, enhanced the terminal concessions program, and expanded domestic air service. In 2017, the LaunchPad program was started to enable minority-owned micro-businesses the opportunity to participate in BWI Marshall's thriving food and retail program without barriers to entry. In 2015, he launched the BWI Marshall Summer Youth Initiative aimed at introducing youth in Baltimore City to careers in aviation and transportation. To date, over 100 youth have participated in this program. These efforts led to BWI Marshall recently receiving the Airports Council International-North America Diversity Inclusion Award for Large Hub Airports. Prior to his service in Cleveland, Mr. Smith served as the Chief Operating Officer for the MAA, where he helped lead BWI Marshall Airport through a $2 billion expansion program, increased air service throughout the world, and the creation of a new food and retail program. Prior to returning to the MAA, after a two-year departure, Ricky served as the Deputy Administrator for the Maryland State Highway Administration. In addition, he served in the private sector for several years with International Business Machines, H&R Block Business Services, The May Company, and others. Ricky holds an Accounting degree from Howard University and an Executive MBA from Loyola University in Maryland. He is a graduate of several leadership programs, including the Greater Baltimore Committee and Leadership Cleveland. He is active on several national and local boards and industry associations including the Airport Minority Advisory Council, American Association of Airport Executives, the Washington Board of Trade, the BWI Business Partnership, World Trade Center Institute, Greater Baltimore Urban League, the Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History & Culture, and the Morgan State University School of Communications Board of Advisors. He has been recognized as the Leon C. Watkins Guardian Award recipient by Airports Council International/ North America (2020), ‘The Honorable Ray LaHood Man of the Year’ by Women Transportation Seminar (2019), ‘Power 10 CEO’ by the Baltimore Business Journal (2018), ‘People Who Move America’ by the Boys Scouts of America (2018), ‘Thomas G. Newsome Founder’s Leadership Award’ by the Conference of Minority Transportation Officials (2018), ‘Influential Marylander’ by The Daily Record (2017), the Maryland Washington Minority Companies Association ‘Black History Hero’ award (2017), ‘Most Influential CEO in Northeast Ohio’ by Crain’s Magazine (2014, 2013), ‘National Executive of the Year’ by the Conference of Minority Transportation Officials (2010), and ‘Congressional Achievement Award’ from Congressman Elijah Cummings (2006). Greater Baltimore Urban League (GBUL) is honored to announce our legendary innovative pilot, "Returning Citizen Work-Ready Employment Program (RCE)" in partnership with TRUIST Bank.
Our mission is to enable African Americans and other minorities to secure economic self-reliance, parity, power, and civil rights. Founded in Baltimore in 1924, GBUL is an affiliate of the National Urban League, which was founded in 1910. Our three-pronged approach for pursuing the mission is:
Through our RCE, GBUL is committed to ensuring safe and successful transition from incarceration to the community since we firmly believe that despite being challenging and complex, re-entry is more than staying out of jail or prison, in that it involves reuniting families, eliminating barriers to employment by providing essential skills, and facilitating the support of locating stable housing. Baltimore, MD, May 21, 2019 --The Greater Baltimore Urban League has selected and appointed Ms. Shymaine Davis as its new innovative Director of the Greater Baltimore Urban League’s Raymond V. Haysbert Center for Entrepreneurship. The Director is responsible for curating and conducting workshops, seminars, and individual counseling and mentoring for the development of entrepreneurs in Baltimore City.
Davis, a native Baltimorean, brings extensive experience in financial management and community development to this exciting role. For the past 15 years, Davis has committed her career and volunteer services to working with organizations to fulfill their mission. Some of Davis’ most distinguished projects were assisting with the building acquisition of Langston Hughes Business Community Resource Center serving the Park Heights community, as well as the opening of the Dr. Angela Y. Davis Leadership Academy for over-aged middle school students in Baltimore City. She works with a host of organizations in assisting with financial management, establishing systems/policies, and strategizing growth through microlending and small business loans, grants and contracts. Plans for GBUL’s Haysbert Center for Entrepreneurship under Director Davis include the new and improved, Innovative Business Summit to occur in the fourth quarter. Our Business Summit will showcase the release of the Greater Baltimore Urban League’s annual report, “The State of Black Baltimore 2019.” Remain up to date with GBUL’s events, workshops and seminars by visiting our website www.haysbertcenter.gbul.org. Last week our President completed a Fellowship Certificate program in Nonprofit Leadership at Boston College through Wells Fargo. She participated in three competitions with 18 other participants and placed 2nd in all three, earning an additional financial reward for the agency.
Congratulations on your graduation and winnings for GBUL! |
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