One Village. One Vision. One Voice.
At the core of our work is the emergence of strong, progressive community leadership. The growth and development of an impactful base of leaders is crucial to the transformation of the South. Our focus is to provide training and technical assistance to individual leaders and groups based on a clear understanding of history and commitment toward progressive growth and empowerment.
Empowering communities, with the support of policy makers, is the central theme of the Mississippi Black Leadership Summit. What began as a roundtable discussion with a small group of elected and appointed officials in 2008 has evolved into the only policy conference in Mississippi where state and local elected officials meet with community leaders to discuss current issues that plague vulnerable and marginalized communities. Stakeholders include the Mississippi Legislative Black Caucus and other elected officials, educators, religious leaders, and community advocates. Each summit features leaders in the fields of community development and policy reform who have produced innovative programs leading to transformational change. Participants are exposed to new ways to impact policy, are able to pitch ideas to elected officials, and are primed to gain knowledge about collaborative efforts that effect positive change. The Mississippi Black Leadership Summit has achieved overwhelming success and has become the model for the development of the Louisiana Leadership Summit.
