As EY Americas Director of Inclusiveness, Ken is responsible for developing and implementing the global EY organization’s recruiting strategy to build diverse and inclusive talent pools for member firms in the Americas. Fostering an inclusive work culture where all individuals are valued for their differences and can achieve their full potential is a global priority for EY. Ken frequently serves as an EY industry spokesperson on both diversity and recruiting trends at a range of events and with leading media outlets.

Prior to his current role, Ken was a Director in the firm’s Advisory Services practice and continues to serve the firm’s clients today. Ken currently serves as the Chairman of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants’ (AICPA) National Commission on Diversity & Inclusion and the Chairman of the Audit Committee for the American Accounting Association. He also serves on North Carolina A&T’s Dean’s Advisory Council, Arizona State University’s Accounting Advisory Board and the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill’s Corporate Advisory Partners, as well as several national Corporate Advisory Boards.

Ken has a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting from Manhattan College in Riverdale, New York and is a Certified Internal Auditor.

Dr. Megahed has worked in higher education for over twenty years.  She has served as a faculty member, a dean, and a president. In addition, she has overseen the administration of operations of multiple campuses for a number of proprietary institutions.   Megahed has demonstrated a track-record of success relative to institutional growth and development.  Her passion is building student centered organizations focused on student success and empowering our most underserved to achieve social and economic mobility through education.

Since 2010, Megahed has served as the 11^th president of National Louis University, a 130 year old institution recognized for its leadership in professional preparation, most notably teacher preparation, and for its commitment to closing the post-secondary attainment gap through innovative cost effective scalable models of education.   Prior to this role, she served as President of Kendall College in Chicago.

Dr. Nivine Megahed earned her bachelor degree in psychology from the State University of New York at Buffalo in 1981, graduating summa cum laude and as a member of Phi Beta Kappa.  Her master and doctoral degrees in clinical psychology were earned at the University of Rochester in 1984 and 1987 respectively.

Megahed has been sought out internationally to present on issues related to the democratization of education, women in leadership, innovation in education and closing the achievement gap.  She has also consulted internationally on program development.  Currently, Megahed sits on the board of Tricoci University, The Partnership for College Completion, the Association of Urban School Leadership (AUSL), and New York Kids Club.  She is a member of The Economic Club of Chicago and The Commercial Club of Chicago.

In addition to her passion for higher education, Megahed enjoys time sailing, kayaking, reading, and watching movies, and spending time with her husband and dog, Chubaka.

Michele C. Meyer-Shipp has been Chief Diversity Officer and Vice President at Prudential Financial, Inc. since October 2012. Ms. Meyer-Shipp is responsible for leading and directing all diversity and inclusion initiatives and for ensuring ongoing compliance with federal and state equal employment opportunity/affirmative action laws and requirements. She has a unique blend of experience in the diversity and inclusion and EEO/affirmative action space, as well as a recognized passion for work. Ms. Meyer-Shipp joined Prudential in April 2010 as Vice President and Counsel in the Employment and Labor Law Group, where she provided legal advice, counsel, training and investigative support to several lines of business on a variety of employment and human resources related matters. Prior to Prudential, Ms. Meyer-Shipp served as General Counsel of the Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor. She served four years at Merrill Lynch. She led the diversity and inclusion efforts of the Global Wealth Management business. Ms. Meyer-Shipp has been a Director of GLSEN, Inc. since May 2013. She served as Director of the State of New Jersey’s Division of Equal Employment Opportunity and Affirmative Action. Ms. Meyer-Shipp was in private practice with the law firms of Collier, Jacob & Mills, P.C. and Lowenstein, Sandler, P.C. in Roseland, N.J. She also served as an Adjunct Professor at Seton Hall University School of Law. She served as Law Clerk to the Honorable James H. Coleman, Jr. of the New Jersey Supreme Court. Ms. Meyer-Shipp is an active Member of several professional associations including the Association of Corporate Counsel, Minority Corporate Counsel Association, Corporate Counsel Women of Color, National Employment Law Council Conference, and Society for Human Resource Management. She was honored as one of the “Most Powerful & Influential Women of the Tri-State Area” by The Tri-State Diversity Council. Ms. Meyer-Shipp graduated from Seton Hall University School of Law in 1995.

Kathleen M. Buck Holst (Kathi) is the President/CEO of RCMS, LLC, a firm specializing in providing consulting services to clients in the highway construction, technologies markets as well as small business and start-ups. Kathi founded this business in 2012. Previously, she was the Chief Operating Officer and Senior Vice President for Business Development and Strategic Initiatives for RoadSafe Traffic Services, Inc. a provider of traffic control and pavement marking services nationwide. RoadSafe was begun in 2007 when NES Traffic Safety was divested by National Equipment Services (NES) and previous to that, NES acquired ACCi, a firm which Kathi founded in 1988, serving as its President.

Kathi has been very involved in the advancement of roadway safety at the local and national levels, and in many cases has been the first woman to serve in various board roles. Her current and past board membership and chair roles include: American Traffic Safety Services Association (ATSSA), American Road and Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA), Illinois Road and Transportation Builders Association, Construction Safety Council, and the American Traffic Safety Services Foundation.

Kathi has received several honors, including the Small Business Administration’s Entrepreneurial Excellence Award, the Industry Achievement and Presidential Awards from ATSSA and the Ethyl S. Birchland Lifetime Achievement Award by ARTBA for her career efforts in promoting the interests of the roadway industry. She has also been recognized her alma mater, Bradley University, with the Distinguished Alumni Award and was inducted into its Centurion Society. She now serves as a Trustee on Bradley’s Board of Trustees.

Kathi earned her CPA certificate and was a graduate of Bradley University where she received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Accounting. She has attended the Strategic Business Leadership Program at the University of Chicago’s Booth School.

Carina E. Sánchez serves as the Executive Director of the Public Building Commission of Chicago (PBC), a full-service public development organization created by state legislation for the sole purpose of planning, designing and constructing municipal buildings.

Appointed by Mayor Rahm Emanuel in January 2017, Ms. Sánchez oversees the construction and renovation of neighborhood anchors that help to make the communities of Chicago and Cook County better and safer places to live. From parks to branch libraries, modern schools built for 21st century learning and public safety initiatives, Ms. Sánchez leads a team that is developing buildings that have helped to stabilize neighborhoods and serve as a catalyst for more development that is reshaping and revitalizing Chicago’s and Cook County communities.

Prior to her appointment to the PBC, Ms. Sánchez served as the Deputy Clerk for the Office of the Chicago City Clerk where she managed a $10 million operating budget, supervised more than 100 employees and oversaw the historic transition from seasonal sales of Chicago Vehicle Stickers to a year-round sales program which generated $35 million in new revenue. A dedicated public servant with over 15 years’ experience in government, Ms. Sánchez has served in various positions for the Cook County Board President, Illinois State Treasurer’s Office, Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation and the Illinois House of Representatives.

As a native Chicagoan and eldest daughter of Mexican immigrants, Ms. Sánchez has helped to organize task force hearings for Immigrant Access to Higher Education and lobbied to pass the legislation that resulted in a state law that allows in-state tuition for undocumented students in Illinois. She has worked closely with state elected officials to increase penalties for gun violence, petitioned for the protection of children from violent video games and worked on initiatives to curb racial profiling.

Ms. Sánchez is a graduate of the University of Chicago, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science and Latin American Studies. She also holds a Master’s in Business Administration from National Louis University. She lives in Chicago’s Uptown community with her husband, son and dog.

Heather Fine is a Managing Director at Major, Lindsey & Africa in the Chicago In-House Practice Group. She specializes in placing attorneys in corporate legal departments, at all levels, and in a variety of industries, including manufacturing, higher education, consumer products, telecommunications, retail, technology, pharmaceuticals, healthcare, professional services and financial services. Over the last several years, Heather has handled searches for public and private companies of all sizes (including several Fortune 500 companies). She also regularly speaks and writes on a variety of topics involving legal recruitment and the legal market.

Prior to joining MLA, Heather worked for several years at the Children’s Law Center in Washington, D.C. representing children and families involved in the foster care system. She also served as counsel for the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs’ Special Investigation into Hurricane Katrina. Heather began her legal career in a boutique firm in the D.C. metro area. She is a graduate of Colby College and received her JD from the Penn State Dickinson School of Law.

Tasha E. Ransom is an award-winning producer.  Tasha joined Fox 32 Chicago in 2001 and is dedicated to sharing the truth through television.

Tasha has worn many hats at the Fox, including assistant to the news director, satellite coordinator, assignment editor, and operations manager, and field producer.

Currently, she is an Associate Producer at Fox 32 Chicago. One of her notable accomplishments is producing a weekly public affairs show, “Perspective,” that aired on WPWR, Fox’s sister station every Sunday. For her TV work, she received three  Peter Lisagor Awards.  One for One for Best Science, Health, Technology, Environmental Reporting for the show entitled “There is More to Being Gluten-Free”.  Two for Best TV Public Affairs Programming for the shows entitled “ Experts Talk About Sexual Assault and How to Defend Yourself” and “Living with ADHD.”    

Illinois Associated Press Broadcast Awards

Illinois News Broadcasters Association April 12 in Peoria.
On April 12, 2014, I received to Associated Press Broadcast Awards.  One for Best Hard News Feature for the story, “Rowing to Recovery”.  One for Best Light Feature for the story ” Babies Taught Self-Rescue Water Survival”.

The Chicago Bar Association Herman Kogan Media Awards 
25th Anniversary 
Celebrating 25 Years of Chicago’s Outstanding Legal Journalism 
On Tuesday, May 6, 2014 I received a Meritorious Achievement for the story ” Ex Sitter Fights To Get Conviction In Infant Overturned” in the Broadcast Category of the Herman Kogan Media Awards. 

The story is about Jennifer Del Prete, a daycare worker was convicted in 2005 and sentenced to 20 years in prison for shaking Isabella Zielinsky an infant who stopped breathing while in her care. The infant died nearly a year later.  

Carol Marin was the keynote speaker and Rick Kogan, Herman Kogan’s son provided remarks before presenting the awards.  The Chicago Bar Association President, Timothy Eaton hosted the luncheon and Kogan Committee Chair, Dennis Culloton emceed the awards presentation.   The awards luncheon was held at the Standard Club in Chicago, Illinois.
In 1989 the Herman Kogan Media Awards Competition was established to honor local journalists and legal affairs reporting. Named in honor of Herman Kogan, a true friend of the Chicago Bar Association who’s career spanned more than 50 years and included experience as a reporter, feature , editor, author, historian, biographer, literary critic, radio host, and television executive. The Kogans have been given out every year by the Chicago Bar Association since 1989.   

Youth Freedom Fighter Award

On June 9, 2014 for my community work I received the 2014 Youth Action Ministry Award-NFP Youth Freedom Fighters Award during their Juneteenth Celebration.The award was given to me for my commitment to bringing important issues to my community.

In 2009 she received an award from the Probation Challenge court-mandated program for her efforts to highlight the organization’s work to rehabilitate former incarcerated individuals.

She is an active member of the North Shore (IL) Chapter of The Links, Incorporated. In 2012, Tasha graduated from the Scott Hawkins Leadership Institute, an intense two-year leadership development program created by The Links, Incorporated where only 50 women nationally are selected to participate every two years.

Tasha is also a community board member for Metropolitan & Family Services at its Evanston/Skokie Valley location, is active in the Chicago chapter of The Sophisticates, and The Chicago Chapter of the Society, Incorporated.

She received a master’s degree in Media Management from Columbia College in 2002 and her undergraduate degree from Drake University, majoring in Finance and Insurance.

Tasha’s life has been inspired by a quote from Winston Churchill: “We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.”

Rashada Whitehead is the change leader and Chief Transformation Officer of KGBERRY, a company she started because of her passion to create more meaningful connection between organizations and their constituents. The firm works with purpose-driven companies to infuse conscious strategies into their business models. Her mission: to shift the culture of business around the world from transactional to transformational.

Prior to taking the helm at KGBERRY, Rashada was President and CEO of an award-winning, national public relations firm. She previously held other leadership positions including a role of Vice President at top global PR agency GolinHarris, where she led national and global communication initiatives for McDonald’s, including the activation of its sponsorship in the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China. She is an advocate for diversity, inclusion and intercultural relations. Through her work at KGBERRY she partners with organizations, institutions and high-profile individuals for sustainable reputation management outcomes.

A recipient of more than 50 industry honors, she was recognized by PRWeek with its coveted “40 Under 40” award, and featured in Essence, Diversity Journal (Women to Watch), and other national media as a rising thought leader.

A native of Chicago’s west side, Rashada graduated from the University of Illinois at Chicago with a Bachelor of Arts in English. She holds a Master of Science in Integrated Marketing Communications from Roosevelt University, where she currently teaches at the graduate level. She serves on the boards of Chicago Scholars and ColorComm.

Outside the office, Rashada enjoys writing and traveling. Her self-proclaimed indulgences are French fries, sweet potatoes and biographies. She focuses her time on family, community and using her entrepreneurial spirit and business acumen to help others.  Rashada believes there should be a blurred line between work and life, and everything we do should be part of a comprehensive, joyful experience.

Olga Camargo, AIF® is Managing Partner at TOROSO Investments, LLC, a registered investment advisor firm. Olga provides investment advisory and retirement plan advisory services to clients that include: high net worth individuals, business owners, public and private corporations, public sector entities, and not-for-profit entities and foundations. Olga holds the Accredited Investment Fiduciary® (AIF®) professional designation from Fiduciary 360, and is able to effectively implement a prudent investment process for all of her clients.  

Olga has 18 years of financial services experience. Prior to joining TOROSO Investments, she was a Senior Vice President at Mesirow Financial co-leading an investment advisory practice where she provided culturally-relevant financial services. Before that, Olga was at JPMorgan Chase and Thomson Reuters.

Olga has received national recognition for her professional work as a retirement plan advisor as related to helping the Latino community/workforce become retirement ready. She advocates on the community’s behalf and guides plan vendors to better serve it. Olga is frequently called upon by some of the fastest growing businesses and policymakers to provide her unique perspective.  

Mayor Rahm Emanuel appointed Olga to The Metropolitan Pier & Exposition Authority Board. She serves on the IL State Treasurer’s Advisory Council; The Metropolitan Planning Council Board of Governors and its investment committee; the finance committee for Frances Xavier Warde School; a member of The Rotary Club of Chicago; and, a member of New America Alliance’s American Latina Leadership Caucus—an aggregation of 100 influential Latinas across sectors in the U.S. Olga was previously  previously served on The Chicago Plan Commission, and as treasurer for the Chicago Cook Partnership Workforce Investment Board.

Linda Hsu has worked in the legal field for the past 11 years.  She is a Certified Legal Manager (CLM), and currently serves as the Chief Operating Officer of Chico & Nunes, P.C., a boutique law firm in Chicago specializing in government and regulatory issues, procurement, land use, MBE/WBE/DBE certifications, and strategic business counseling.
Prior to her time in the legal industry, Linda worked in campaign politics and government on the local, state, national, and international levels.  She has been involved in aldermanic, gubernatorial, and U.S. Senate races in various roles, and has worked on a Democratic National Convention and a Presidential Inauguration.
Linda is a spiritual and life adventurer.  She is a graduate of Psychology of Vision’s transformational 100 Day Program, has journeyed to India to become a Oneness Blessing giver, and studies the works of J. Krishnamurti.  Linda lived in Asia for several years while working in Taiwan’s Legislative Yuan, and has traveled extensively throughout China, witnessing first hand its incredible economic transformation.  She loves the green pastures of the English countryside, plans to visit Alaska and Antarctica in the next decade, and hopes to retire to the beaches of Belize with a Rat Terrier named Hemingway.

Frenchye M. Bush Harris, M.A. is the Public Relations Manager for Neiman Marcus in Oak Brook, IL. Frenchye developed a passion for fashion at an early age and since has worked in the industry as a model, fashion show producer, magazine style consultant and columnist, adjunct college professor, television style personality, and founding partner in a fashion public relations agency. A recent Chicago transplant and true #girlboss, Frenchye is an earnest believer in female empowerment and has developed a curriculum for girls ages 9-13 titled, “Fashionably You” that teaches fashion and style to encourage self-awareness, esteem, and acceptance and love for oneself and others.

Frenchye has been featured in the Cleveland Plain Dealer newspaper, Northern Ohio Live Magazine, and Inside Business Magazine as one of the 2010 NEO Top 25 Under 35 Cleveland Mover and Shaker, Fox 8 News (Cleveland, Ohio) and Cleveland Magazine.

Frenchye earned her bachelor’s degree in Fashion Merchandising from the Ohio State University and master’s degree in Communications Management from John Carroll University.

With over twenty years professional industry experience and various Board engagements, Michele Howell has created both market and community impact. Michele presides as VP Business Development, Aon Cornerstone, leading business development efforts across the US central region.  In this role, Michele is responsible for creating innovative three-way partnership opportunities between: minority / small business firms, private / public sector entities and Aon’s risk and human resource solution experts.  Michele’s efforts foster expanded visibility and economic gains for under-utilized diverse firms in the professional services arena while enabling clients to engage suppliers in a new spend vertical with high-value outcomes:  utilization of top talent diverse firms, project savings / efficiencies, economic impact to local communities and enhanced social sustainability.

Michele has maintained a long-standing commitment to driving a cultural shift that embraces diversity and inclusion.  Prior to joining Aon in 2014, Michele held senior management roles across both private sector and non-profit organizations, including Johnson Controls, Bristol Myers-Squibb and the Indiana Minority Supplier Development Council. Michele’s leadership activities resulted in expanded supplier participation, meaningful supplier / procurement programs, greater organizational and marketplace engagement through diversity education / training, the creation of new markets / channels, and increased revenue potential through expanded industry relationships. Through a business approach centered on integrity and a “partnership win-win” strategy, Michele has implemented forward-thinking joint venture models, exceeded business targets and consistently delivered strategic and operational value within a national and global framework.

Dawnyell is an 18-year veteran of marketing and advertising, and began her career at Leo Burnett in 1999. Her career experience reaches both above and below-the-line with extensive knowledge in shopper marketing. Dawnyell has brought strategic and focused business leadership to many blue-chip brands such as Intel, General Motors, Coca-Cola, General Mills, Kraft Heinz, P&G (Clairol Hair color) and Kellogg’s. She has also worked in a client side capacity as Global Brand Director for Claire’s and Icing retail accessory stores.

Dawnyell and her team have won “Design of the Times” awards for innovation and design on the Clairol hair color brand.  In addition, she has focused on strategic initiatives like “Future of Color” to help position Clairol as a leader in the hair color category. She has also received honorable mentions from Kellogg’s leadership for breakthrough shopper focused work for the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.

Dawnyell is currently completing her Ph.D. in Organizational Management and Business Behavior. In her free time she enjoys traveling, interior design and finding the hidden restaurant treasures in Chicago with her dinner club. Her one true passion is Zumba, she is a true aficionado.