The Joseph M. Bryan Distinguished Leadership Lecture Series continues this spring with programs featuring Bonnie McElveen-Hunter (Feb. 20), Jim Melvin (March 7) and Jim Hunt (April 29). Each program will be moderated by John Alexander, Isabella Cannon Distinguished Professor of Leadership. Details...
Bonnie McElveen-Hunter
CEO, Pace Communications; chairman, American Red Cross
7 p.m.
Wednesday, Feb. 20
Law School Library
McElveen-Hunter is the founder and CEO of Pace Communications, the nation’s largest custom publishing company, serving Fortune 500 companies such as United Airlines, US Airways, Bluetooth and Wachovia. The company was ranked by Working Woman Magazine as one of the top 175 businesses owned by women in the nation.
She currently serves as chairman of the American Red Cross. Appointed by President Bush in 2004, she is the first woman to lead the organization in its 126-year history. McElveen-Hunter previously served as U.S. Ambassador to Finland from 2001 to 2003, championing the cause of women and children. She organized the successful Women Business Leaders Summit in Helsinki in 2002 for women from the Baltics and Russia, and led similar summits in Latvia in 2004 and Jordan in 2007. She also initiated efforts to help Finnish and Russian charities assist children at risk from drugs, crime, HIV/AIDS and trafficking. For her efforts, McElveen-Hunter received the Commander Grand Cross of the Order of the Lion from the president of Finland.
McElveen-Hunter has been active in civic affairs, both in the Piedmont Triad and nationally. She has served on the international board of directors for Habitat for Humanity, the United Way of America and United Way of Greensboro. She chairs the National Women’s Leadership Giving Campaign of the United Way, and was founder of the United Way Billion Dollar Women’s Leadership Initiative. She has received the Trailblazer of the Year Award from the Women Leaders Forum and the National Athena Award for business and civic contributions from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
Jim Melvin
President, Joseph M. Bryan Foundation; former Greensboro mayor
Noon
Friday, March 7
The Empire Room, 203 South Elm Street, Greensboro
Melvin is president of the Joseph M. Bryan Foundation, which invests in projects that promote economic, cultural and recreational enrichment in the Greensboro community. He played a crucial role in fundraising efforts to support the Elon law school, and was the driving force behind the construction of Greensboro’s new baseball stadium, NewBridge Bank Park.
He has been a tireless advocate for Greensboro and the Piedmont Triad, working to improve the quality of life for all citizens. Melvin served as Greensboro mayor from 1971 to 1981, the longest tenure in the city’s history. He was a co-founder of Action Greensboro, an organization that has helped revive the city’s downtown through support from business and community leaders.
Melvin served 18 years on the board of directors at Jefferson-Pilot and currently serves on the Piedmont Triad Regional Vision Plan steering committee. In 2005, Melvin received an honorary doctor of laws degree from Elon University in recognition of his efforts to establish the Elon law school in Greensboro.
Jim Hunt
Former North Carolina Governor (1977-1985, 1993-2001)
Time TBA
Tuesday, April 29
Proximity Hotel, 704 Green Valley Road, Greensboro
The first four-term governor in state history, Hunt led efforts to improve the state’s schools, enhance the quality of teaching and provide programs for children to achieve early educational success. Hunt’s Smart Start program for pre-kindergarten children provides quality healthcare, childcare and family support for each child who needs it. The program has gained national recognition and received the prestigious Innovations in American Government Award from the Ford Foundation and the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.
A nationally-renowned leader in the area of education, Hunt has devoted a significant portion of his career to the improvement of teaching in the nation’s schools. He served on the Carnegie Task Force, which created the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards and has served on the Spellings Commission on the Future of Higher Education. He founded and served as chairman of the National Commission on Teaching and America’s Future at Stanford University, and is chairman of the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education.
Hunt founded The James B. Hunt, Jr. Institute for Educational Leadership and Policy at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and the Institute for Emerging Issues at North Carolina State University. He has received numerous awards, including the National Education Association’s Friend of Education Award and the National State Board of Education’s Policy Leader of the Year Award.