The Rotary Club of Akron had the privilege of listening to Teresa R. LeGrair, President and CEO of the Akron Urban League during our Tuesday, August 11, 2020 Club meeting. It was a very engaging presentation with multiple follow-up questions about the organization, its challenges, and successes. To view the video of her presentation click here or view it below.  Ms. LeGrair is no stranger to the Akron community. She previously served the Akron Community Foundation and the President & CEO of the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Western Reserve. Ms. LeGrair has served the Akron community in many capacities over the course of her career. Prior to joining the Akron Urban League and the Boys & Girls Clubs, she served as Vice President of Programs and Member Services for the Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank and Executive Director, Human Resources at the National Inventors Hall of Fame. Prior to working for the past 25 years in the non-profit arena, she spent 16 years with Aetna Health Plans in various and progressive roles of responsibility. Her current board and committee involvement include, Greater Akron Chamber Board of Directors and Opportunity & Inclusion Committee, Fund for Our Economic Future Board of Directors, ATHENA Akron Fierce Advocate member, and member of the Summa Cancer Institute Leadership Advisory Council and the Summa Healing Arts Leadership Advisory Council. She has been the recipient of the Dr. Martin L. King Jr. Drum Majors Roll Call Award, Akron Black Women’s Leadership Caucus Award, Akron Urban League’s Woman of Power Award, finalist for the ATHENA International Leadership Award and 2020 Summit County Historical Society Woman of the Year for Integrity. Ms. LeGrair provided the Club with some historical information about the Urban League. The National Urban League was founded in 1910. The Akron Urban League was established in 1925. Discussions about forming the Akron Urban League began in 1918. For additional information on the history of the Akron Urban League, I encourage you to visit their website www.akronurbanleague.org. For many years the organization was located on East Market Street. Currently the organization is located at 440 Vernon Odom Blvd. The mission of the Akron Urban League is to improve the quality of life of the citizens of Summit County, particularly African Americans, by advocating and facilitating programs that are economically and educationally transformational, impacting their lives and the lives of future generations. Annually, the Akron Urban League serves nearly 13,000 individuals through job placement assistance, business education, computer training, GED preparation, emergency food distribution, scholarships, and other services to those in need. Ms. LeGrair discussed several of their programs and are highlighted below. Education Initiative With a team of highly skilled and qualified educators, coaches and counselors, The Akron Urban League has developed programming that aligns with the Akron Public School’s curriculum preparing students to take the necessary steps to become contributing citizens. Many of the participants are returning students who look forward to being a part of their urban community summer camp. Young people who are referred or come on their own to the Urban League seeking employment know they will gain job skills and work experience in the Youth Employment Program. Both parents and students want to be a part of our STEAM Academy, where children are exposed to a new way of learning. Students who enter the Urban Youth Academy can count on learning, having fun and growing to the next level towards adulthood. From the summer camp, to the Youth Employment Program, to the afterschool STEAM Academy, individuals from ages 5 to 24 are engaged mentally, emotionally and physically in activities that close the education gaps during the summer months, groom them for long-term employment, and generate higher levels of interest in science and math. Work force development The Akron Urban League believes that combining job readiness and emotional intelligence training (life coping and critical thinking skills + exercising good judgment training) will address the turnover challenges and improve job retention and satisfaction. Their goal, therefore is to develop a curriculum that is individually-directed to assist individuals seeking employment to become not only employment ready, but emotionally able to address the stress of work/life balance and improve the quality of life for themselves and families. The Urban League staff expect that individuals completing the program will be employed and retain employment for no less than 3 years. They expect individuals will meet, if not exceed the expectations of their employment role with no work-related relational incidences and will be positioned for future promotional opportunities. WORKFORCE ENTREPRENEURSHIP EMPOWERMENT CENTER The Akron Minority Business Development Center (MBAC) is supported by the Ohio Development Services Agency (ODSA) Minority Business Development Division (MBDD) who all support the growth and sustainability of small, minority-owned, and disadvantaged businesses in the State of Ohio. The MBAC works with entrepreneurs, and emerging business enterprises to help them achieve, scale, and market success. The overarching goal is to help small, minority-owned, and disadvantaged businesses contribute to job creation and economic growth in Ohio. Supporting businesses means providing them with resources that include technical and professional assistance, access to capital, surety bonding, and connection to business opportunities. The Division leverages these resources to support the achievement of the state's 15% Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) set-aside goal, which is overseen by the Department of Administrative Services. The programs presented above are just a few of the programs and services offered by the Urban League. For additional information about the Akron Urban League, you can visit their website at www.akronurbanleague.org. |
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