Donna Jones Baker, President/CEO of the Urban League of Greater Cincinnati offers her thoughts on Jobs in Cincinnati. Click the link for the story.
http://communitypress.cincinnati.com/article/AB/20111120/BIZ/111200334/Wanted-Anyone-who-can-qualify?odyssey=mod%7Cnewswell%7Ctext%7CE-Edition%7Cs
Nov 22, 2011
Oct 3, 2011
Leadership at it's Best: Donna Jones Baker
EARLY GOAL: BE DECISION-MAKER
Donna Jones Baker was enjoying one of her first jobs out of college when she learned a tough lesson: Life isn't always fair.
Baker, who was born and raised in Paducah, Ky., graduated from Murray State University with a degree in social work and was promoted to a management role at a social services agency while in her 20s. She was helping people improve their lives and feeling "on top of the world."
Then her immediate supervisor who had promoted her left. Baker didn't expect to get her supervisor's job, but she also didn't expect to be fired during the ensuing management change.
"I was crushed," she says. The experience taught Baker another lesson that changed her life, and which she now shares with others: Leaders look for challenges and make things happen.
In Baker's case, she went back to school for a master's degree in business administration. Today, she's the president and chief executive officer of the Urban League of Greater Cincinnati. Baker is still helping others improve their lives. But she's also managing a multimillion-dollar organization and a staff of 75 full- and part-time employees working to help African-Americans and others at risk by promoting economic self-sufficiency and entrepreneurship.
Her ability to work with other leaders locally, combined with her national stature, helped secure the National Urban League's annual convention for Cincinnati in 2014. Baker was part of a team led by Mayor Mark Mallory and including retired federal appeals judge Nathaniel Jones; Bishop E. Lynn Brown, the regional bishop for the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church; and Thomas Knott, director of diversity strategies at Macy's.
"She's a unique ambassador who is respected on the national level, and accessible on the local level," says Richard Dyer, president and general manager of WLWT 5. Dyer is on the Cincinnati Urban League's board of trustees and will be chairperson in 2012. "She leveraged her reputation on the city's behalf."
The success, Baker says, stems from being fired as a young woman. "What I learned during that period was I wanted to be in a decision-making position," she says. "I wanted to make things happen, not be somebody things happened to."
Baker, who is 55 and married to Gregory Baker, spent four years taking night classes at the University of Baltimore, where she earned her MBA. Simultaneously, she was raising a family and working. Baker has one grown daughter who has three children; her husband has two daughters and three grandchildren. "I had the benefit of youth," she says when asked how she managed family, work and school.
Today, she has the benefit of hindsight. "While what happened to me probably was not fair, it was the best thing that ever happened to me," she says.
The MBA education was "life-changing," Baker says. The immersion into subjects including accounting and finance gave her the confidence to supervise others who specialize in those areas.
"You learn enough about all of these positions that you can supervise the people who have those functions and ask the right questions. It was a great foundation for me."
As a result, Baker has made the necessary tough financial decisions while maintaining the nonprofit's core mission, Dyer says.
"She's a polished, passionate professional," he says. "She has a real command of what the League's mission is and how to implement it."
Baker joined the local affiliate of the Urban League in November 2003. Previously, she was the executive director of Associated Black Charities, a Baltimore nonprofit that was started to strengthen the community through African-American philanthropy.
During Baker's 14 years there, she grew ABC from a $500,000 organization with three funded positions to a $26 million organization with about 60 staff members, multiple locations and a $1 million endowment.
Baker says she was happy in Baltimore and initially resisted overtures from a headhunter to come here. But after a few visits, Baker realized she wanted the job.
"There was no reason for me to (leave Baltimore), but on the other hand, I had gotten more comfortable than I was used to," Baker says. "In hindsight, I was more comfortable than I was comfortable with being."
In Cincinnati, Baker filled big shoes. She replaced Sheila Adams, who, according to the Enquirer in 2003, built the Urban League from a quiet social service agency into an important community player during her 13 years as its leader.
"You couldn't say Urban League without saying Sheila Adams," says Daniel Groneck, the current chairperson for the Urban League's board of trustees, and the Northern Kentucky president for US Bank.
But Groneck says the first board meeting with Baker "was like magic."
"I thought, 'Well, the board embraced her, is the community going to embrace her?' And they did," he says.
Baker, he says, went out of her way to show her appreciation and respect for Adams but did not try to emulate her predecessor.
And Baker, Groneck says, made sure she understood the local organization before making any changes.
It wasn't long before she faced hard decisions. In January 2004, she cut six mid- to upper-level positions because of a drop in individual and corporate contributions that impacted many nonprofits as the economy weakened following the 9/11 attacks.
"She had tough financial decisions to make, and she did it," Groneck says.
That ability, combined with her formidable people skills, has earned Baker the respect of her employees and her board.
"It's all done by empowerment. She runs it like a business," Groneck says. "She's financially kept the company strong and stayed in tune with her investors. She can also leave the board room, see somebody in (one of the league's programs), and lift them up."
Dyer says he's proud of the employee growth at the Urban League. Baker gives employees who start in support roles the chance to move up and take on additional responsibilities. And, Dyer and Groneck were impressed by her recent decision to gather a group of past chairpersons and invite them to be part of an auxiliary board, which was formed in 2011. David Dillon, Kroger's chairman and chief executive officer, is chairman of the auxiliary board.
They said the former chairpersons were expecting to be handed a pledge card. Instead, Baker told them: "This is about utilizing your wisdom. We just want to keep you closer to the family."
The idea is to leverage their connections and expertise on behalf of the League. But it also reflects Baker's belief in keeping people connected and always working to improve the organization.
That vision doesn't stop at the Urban League. Baker is proud of her new hometown and sees its relationship with the Urban League as a two-way street. When she told her board about the national 2014 convention, she wasn't just happy for the Urban League, Dyer says.
"When she announced it to the board, she said, 'This is good for the Urban League, yes, but will be great for Greater Cincinnati,' " he says.
"That's how she thinks."
Donna Jones Baker was enjoying one of her first jobs out of college when she learned a tough lesson: Life isn't always fair.
Baker, who was born and raised in Paducah, Ky., graduated from Murray State University with a degree in social work and was promoted to a management role at a social services agency while in her 20s. She was helping people improve their lives and feeling "on top of the world."
Then her immediate supervisor who had promoted her left. Baker didn't expect to get her supervisor's job, but she also didn't expect to be fired during the ensuing management change.
"I was crushed," she says. The experience taught Baker another lesson that changed her life, and which she now shares with others: Leaders look for challenges and make things happen.
In Baker's case, she went back to school for a master's degree in business administration. Today, she's the president and chief executive officer of the Urban League of Greater Cincinnati. Baker is still helping others improve their lives. But she's also managing a multimillion-dollar organization and a staff of 75 full- and part-time employees working to help African-Americans and others at risk by promoting economic self-sufficiency and entrepreneurship.
Her ability to work with other leaders locally, combined with her national stature, helped secure the National Urban League's annual convention for Cincinnati in 2014. Baker was part of a team led by Mayor Mark Mallory and including retired federal appeals judge Nathaniel Jones; Bishop E. Lynn Brown, the regional bishop for the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church; and Thomas Knott, director of diversity strategies at Macy's.
"She's a unique ambassador who is respected on the national level, and accessible on the local level," says Richard Dyer, president and general manager of WLWT 5. Dyer is on the Cincinnati Urban League's board of trustees and will be chairperson in 2012. "She leveraged her reputation on the city's behalf."
The success, Baker says, stems from being fired as a young woman. "What I learned during that period was I wanted to be in a decision-making position," she says. "I wanted to make things happen, not be somebody things happened to."
Baker, who is 55 and married to Gregory Baker, spent four years taking night classes at the University of Baltimore, where she earned her MBA. Simultaneously, she was raising a family and working. Baker has one grown daughter who has three children; her husband has two daughters and three grandchildren. "I had the benefit of youth," she says when asked how she managed family, work and school.
Today, she has the benefit of hindsight. "While what happened to me probably was not fair, it was the best thing that ever happened to me," she says.
The MBA education was "life-changing," Baker says. The immersion into subjects including accounting and finance gave her the confidence to supervise others who specialize in those areas.
"You learn enough about all of these positions that you can supervise the people who have those functions and ask the right questions. It was a great foundation for me."
As a result, Baker has made the necessary tough financial decisions while maintaining the nonprofit's core mission, Dyer says.
"She's a polished, passionate professional," he says. "She has a real command of what the League's mission is and how to implement it."
Baker joined the local affiliate of the Urban League in November 2003. Previously, she was the executive director of Associated Black Charities, a Baltimore nonprofit that was started to strengthen the community through African-American philanthropy.
During Baker's 14 years there, she grew ABC from a $500,000 organization with three funded positions to a $26 million organization with about 60 staff members, multiple locations and a $1 million endowment.
Baker says she was happy in Baltimore and initially resisted overtures from a headhunter to come here. But after a few visits, Baker realized she wanted the job.
"There was no reason for me to (leave Baltimore), but on the other hand, I had gotten more comfortable than I was used to," Baker says. "In hindsight, I was more comfortable than I was comfortable with being."
In Cincinnati, Baker filled big shoes. She replaced Sheila Adams, who, according to the Enquirer in 2003, built the Urban League from a quiet social service agency into an important community player during her 13 years as its leader.
"You couldn't say Urban League without saying Sheila Adams," says Daniel Groneck, the current chairperson for the Urban League's board of trustees, and the Northern Kentucky president for US Bank.
But Groneck says the first board meeting with Baker "was like magic."
"I thought, 'Well, the board embraced her, is the community going to embrace her?' And they did," he says.
Baker, he says, went out of her way to show her appreciation and respect for Adams but did not try to emulate her predecessor.
And Baker, Groneck says, made sure she understood the local organization before making any changes.
It wasn't long before she faced hard decisions. In January 2004, she cut six mid- to upper-level positions because of a drop in individual and corporate contributions that impacted many nonprofits as the economy weakened following the 9/11 attacks.
"She had tough financial decisions to make, and she did it," Groneck says.
That ability, combined with her formidable people skills, has earned Baker the respect of her employees and her board.
"It's all done by empowerment. She runs it like a business," Groneck says. "She's financially kept the company strong and stayed in tune with her investors. She can also leave the board room, see somebody in (one of the league's programs), and lift them up."
Dyer says he's proud of the employee growth at the Urban League. Baker gives employees who start in support roles the chance to move up and take on additional responsibilities. And, Dyer and Groneck were impressed by her recent decision to gather a group of past chairpersons and invite them to be part of an auxiliary board, which was formed in 2011. David Dillon, Kroger's chairman and chief executive officer, is chairman of the auxiliary board.
They said the former chairpersons were expecting to be handed a pledge card. Instead, Baker told them: "This is about utilizing your wisdom. We just want to keep you closer to the family."
The idea is to leverage their connections and expertise on behalf of the League. But it also reflects Baker's belief in keeping people connected and always working to improve the organization.
That vision doesn't stop at the Urban League. Baker is proud of her new hometown and sees its relationship with the Urban League as a two-way street. When she told her board about the national 2014 convention, she wasn't just happy for the Urban League, Dyer says.
"When she announced it to the board, she said, 'This is good for the Urban League, yes, but will be great for Greater Cincinnati,' " he says.
"That's how she thinks."
Sep 30, 2011
To Be Equal #39
September 28, 2011
A Long Shadow of Doubt: The Execution of Troy Davis
Marc H. Morial
President and CEO
National Urban League
“When ... the Supreme Court gave its seal of approval to capital punishment, this endorsement was premised on the promise that capital punishment would be administered with fairness and justice. Instead, the promise has become a cruel and empty mockery. If not remedied, the scandalous state of our present system of capital punishment will cast a pall of shame over our society for years to come. We cannot let it continue.” Former United States Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall
Last Wednesday, September 21, 2011 was a sad day for American justice. On that date at 11:08 PM Eastern Time the State of Georgia administered a lethal injection into the body of 42-year-old Troy Davis and put him to death. With his dying breath, Troy Davis maintained his innocence in the 1989 shooting death of off-duty Savannah police officer Mark Allen MacPhail. For 20 years, the shadow of doubt that hung over Davis’ conviction grew so large that it galvanized anti-death penalty advocates around the world, including hundreds of citizens wearing “I am Troy Davis” T-shirts who kept a solemn vigil outside the Jackson, Georgia prison until the final hour
Over the last 20 years, the National Urban League and dozens of other prominent organizations and leaders argued that Davis’s conviction was in serious doubt. Seven of the nine witnesses who originally identified Troy Davis as the murderer, later recanted their testimony. And no murder weapon or other physical evidence was ever found linking Davis to the crime. That is why we joined the NAACP, the Congressional Black Caucus, Amnesty International, former president Jimmy Carter, Nobel Laureate Desmond Tutu, Al Sharpton, former FBI Director William Sessions, Pope Benedict, former Georgia Congressman, Bob Barr and others in calling for Davis’ exoneration or at least further investigation.
The racial subtext of this case cannot be ignored. Davis, a black man, was convicted of killing MacPhail, a white police officer. While African Americans make up only 13 percent of the population, more than 42 percent of death row inmates are black. Over 75 percent of the murder victims in cases resulting in an execution were white, even though nationally, only 50 percent of murder victims were white. .
Since 1973, a total of 138 man and women have been exonerated or had their death sentences commuted based on post-conviction findings that proved their innocence -- five of them in the state of Georgia. And, according to the Innocence Project, “Seventeen people have been proven innocent and exonerated by DNA testing in the United States after serving time on death row. They were convicted in 11 states and served a combined 209 years in prison – including 187 years on death row – for crimes they didn’t commit.” These disparities and problems cast a long shadow of doubt over our criminal justice system.
People of conscience can disagree on the death penalty, but it is unconscionable by every standard to execute someone who very well might be innocent. Our hearts go out not only to Mr. Davis’ family, but also to the family of Mark MacPhail who will never know for sure that his killer was brought to justice.
Legendary Supreme Court Justice, Thurgood Marshall was unequivocally against the death penalty and would have been a dissenter in last week’s 11th-hour Supreme Court decision allowing the execution of Troy Davis. Justice Marshall felt, as we do, that as long as questions of equity, fairness and fallibility persist, we must stop executions and give death row inmates every chance to prove their innocence.
###
September 28, 2011
A Long Shadow of Doubt: The Execution of Troy Davis
Marc H. Morial
President and CEO
National Urban League
“When ... the Supreme Court gave its seal of approval to capital punishment, this endorsement was premised on the promise that capital punishment would be administered with fairness and justice. Instead, the promise has become a cruel and empty mockery. If not remedied, the scandalous state of our present system of capital punishment will cast a pall of shame over our society for years to come. We cannot let it continue.” Former United States Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall
Last Wednesday, September 21, 2011 was a sad day for American justice. On that date at 11:08 PM Eastern Time the State of Georgia administered a lethal injection into the body of 42-year-old Troy Davis and put him to death. With his dying breath, Troy Davis maintained his innocence in the 1989 shooting death of off-duty Savannah police officer Mark Allen MacPhail. For 20 years, the shadow of doubt that hung over Davis’ conviction grew so large that it galvanized anti-death penalty advocates around the world, including hundreds of citizens wearing “I am Troy Davis” T-shirts who kept a solemn vigil outside the Jackson, Georgia prison until the final hour
Over the last 20 years, the National Urban League and dozens of other prominent organizations and leaders argued that Davis’s conviction was in serious doubt. Seven of the nine witnesses who originally identified Troy Davis as the murderer, later recanted their testimony. And no murder weapon or other physical evidence was ever found linking Davis to the crime. That is why we joined the NAACP, the Congressional Black Caucus, Amnesty International, former president Jimmy Carter, Nobel Laureate Desmond Tutu, Al Sharpton, former FBI Director William Sessions, Pope Benedict, former Georgia Congressman, Bob Barr and others in calling for Davis’ exoneration or at least further investigation.
The racial subtext of this case cannot be ignored. Davis, a black man, was convicted of killing MacPhail, a white police officer. While African Americans make up only 13 percent of the population, more than 42 percent of death row inmates are black. Over 75 percent of the murder victims in cases resulting in an execution were white, even though nationally, only 50 percent of murder victims were white. .
Since 1973, a total of 138 man and women have been exonerated or had their death sentences commuted based on post-conviction findings that proved their innocence -- five of them in the state of Georgia. And, according to the Innocence Project, “Seventeen people have been proven innocent and exonerated by DNA testing in the United States after serving time on death row. They were convicted in 11 states and served a combined 209 years in prison – including 187 years on death row – for crimes they didn’t commit.” These disparities and problems cast a long shadow of doubt over our criminal justice system.
People of conscience can disagree on the death penalty, but it is unconscionable by every standard to execute someone who very well might be innocent. Our hearts go out not only to Mr. Davis’ family, but also to the family of Mark MacPhail who will never know for sure that his killer was brought to justice.
Legendary Supreme Court Justice, Thurgood Marshall was unequivocally against the death penalty and would have been a dissenter in last week’s 11th-hour Supreme Court decision allowing the execution of Troy Davis. Justice Marshall felt, as we do, that as long as questions of equity, fairness and fallibility persist, we must stop executions and give death row inmates every chance to prove their innocence.
###
Sep 8, 2011
Back to School and Back to Work on Creating Jobs
To Be Equal #36
September 7, 2011
Back to School and Back to Work on Creating Jobs
Marc H. Morial
President and CEO
National Urban League
"A world-class education is the single most important factor in determining not just whether our kids can compete for the best jobs but whether America can out-compete countries around the world.” President Barack Obama
Labor Day marks the unofficial end of summer and the start of another school year for more than 60 million public school students.
This year, the Labor Day weekend also coincided with the announcement last week that zero jobs were added in August, and African American unemployment has soared to 16.7 percent, the highest rate in 27 years.
It is my hope that with the return of Congress this week and the much-anticipated jobs speech by President Obama on Thursday, Washington is finally ready to make job creation its number one priority.
Education has always been the gateway to good jobs and a better life for the American people.
This has never been more true than today.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, people who hold bachelor’s degrees earn on average $58,000 a year compared with just $31,000 for high school graduates and only $21,000 for those without high school diplomas.
We also know that a growing number of 21st century high-tech jobs require higher skills and more education than ever before.
That is why for more than 50 years, the National Urban League’s Education & Youth Development division has worked to improve educational opportunities for African-American and underserved students by developing innovative programs to support their academic achievement, encourage their civic involvement, and contribute to their healthy physical and emotional development. We have also made education a cornerstone of our 21st century empowerment agenda with a challenge to the nation that every American child will be ready for college, work and life by 2025.
The Urban League serves more than 200,000 children and youth each year through Head Start, after-school programs and charter schools.
As the nation struggles to find the right balance between fiscal austerity and necessary investments in our future, the education of our children must not be sacrificed in the process.
Doing so would not only shortchange their futures, it would cripple our ability to grow the American economy and remain competitive in the global economy.
We are encouraged by the Obama Administration’s commitment to education, including signing into law the largest investment in education in history as part of the President’s 2009 stimulus package – some $115 billion over two years to save education jobs, send young people to college, modernize America's classrooms, and advance education reforms.
We are also pleased that Education Secretary Arne Duncan has set aside this week for an “Education and the Economy” bus tour to urban centers, including Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Milwaukee, Detroit, and Chicago to highlight the important connection between quality education and quality jobs. “No other issue is more critical to our economy and our way of life than education,” said Duncan.
So, as our children head back to the classroom, we urge students to do their part by studying hard and making the most of what their schools and teachers have to offer.
We ask parents to do their part by getting involved.
And we urge local school districts and Congress to do their part by ensuring that all our students have the resources and support they need to succeed.
September 7, 2011
Back to School and Back to Work on Creating Jobs
Marc H. Morial
President and CEO
National Urban League
"A world-class education is the single most important factor in determining not just whether our kids can compete for the best jobs but whether America can out-compete countries around the world.” President Barack Obama
Labor Day marks the unofficial end of summer and the start of another school year for more than 60 million public school students.
This year, the Labor Day weekend also coincided with the announcement last week that zero jobs were added in August, and African American unemployment has soared to 16.7 percent, the highest rate in 27 years.
It is my hope that with the return of Congress this week and the much-anticipated jobs speech by President Obama on Thursday, Washington is finally ready to make job creation its number one priority.
Education has always been the gateway to good jobs and a better life for the American people.
This has never been more true than today.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, people who hold bachelor’s degrees earn on average $58,000 a year compared with just $31,000 for high school graduates and only $21,000 for those without high school diplomas.
We also know that a growing number of 21st century high-tech jobs require higher skills and more education than ever before.
That is why for more than 50 years, the National Urban League’s Education & Youth Development division has worked to improve educational opportunities for African-American and underserved students by developing innovative programs to support their academic achievement, encourage their civic involvement, and contribute to their healthy physical and emotional development. We have also made education a cornerstone of our 21st century empowerment agenda with a challenge to the nation that every American child will be ready for college, work and life by 2025.
The Urban League serves more than 200,000 children and youth each year through Head Start, after-school programs and charter schools.
As the nation struggles to find the right balance between fiscal austerity and necessary investments in our future, the education of our children must not be sacrificed in the process.
Doing so would not only shortchange their futures, it would cripple our ability to grow the American economy and remain competitive in the global economy.
We are encouraged by the Obama Administration’s commitment to education, including signing into law the largest investment in education in history as part of the President’s 2009 stimulus package – some $115 billion over two years to save education jobs, send young people to college, modernize America's classrooms, and advance education reforms.
We are also pleased that Education Secretary Arne Duncan has set aside this week for an “Education and the Economy” bus tour to urban centers, including Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Milwaukee, Detroit, and Chicago to highlight the important connection between quality education and quality jobs. “No other issue is more critical to our economy and our way of life than education,” said Duncan.
So, as our children head back to the classroom, we urge students to do their part by studying hard and making the most of what their schools and teachers have to offer.
We ask parents to do their part by getting involved.
And we urge local school districts and Congress to do their part by ensuring that all our students have the resources and support they need to succeed.
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