Forty-five Midlands Leaders Join Diversity Leaders Initiative

FOR INFORMATION:

Claudia Winkler
Director of Marketing and Communications
The Riley Institute at Furman University
864.294.3368; [email protected]

 

February 3, 2025 – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

FORTY-FIVE MIDLANDS LEADERS JOIN DIVERSITY LEADERS INITIATIVE

An award-winning program with over 2,900 graduates across South Carolina, the Diversity Leaders Initiative leverages diversity to drive progress.

GREENVILLE, S.C. — Forty-five leaders from across the Midlands have been selected to participate in the Riley Institute’s intensive 5-month Diversity Leaders Initiative (DLI). For over 20 years, DLI has brought together community stakeholders and equipped them with the skills and perspectives necessary to leverage diversity in their organizations in ways that drive social and economic progress in South Carolina.

Participants are selected following nomination by a DLI graduate and a thorough application and interview process. Each class includes leaders who represent the varied demographics in our state and who work with a wide variety of communities and organizations.

Juan Johnson, the designer and facilitator of the program, has crafted a curriculum that includes interactive case studies, scenario analyses, and experiential learning tools. With five meetings over the course of five months, this program will explore modules related to how diverse teams can better support organizations’ missions and goals and better serve their stakeholders and constituents.

Among the topics explored in these discussions are the differences between bias and discrimination, the role of context, differences in mental and physical abilities, generational differences, and other leadership frameworks.

The DLI program concludes with groups undertaking community action projects. With these capstone projects, this new class of DLI participants will identify challenges in their communities and will work together to address them. Many of our DLI graduates have developed projects that continue to produce tremendous good within their communities.

Graduates of DLI become Riley Fellows and join a community of changemakers in South Carolina.

Listed below are the participants of the spring 2025 Midlands DLI class.

Sara Ballard
Executive Director
SC Women in Leadership
Blythewood, SC

Terrance Barr
Stormwater Director, Lancaster County, SC
Lancaster County Government
Lancaster, SC

Pamela Benjamin
Assistant City Manager
City of Columbia
Columbia, SC

Jenifer Blair
Vice President of Enrollment Management
SC Governor’s School for Science and Mathematics
Hartsville, SC

Marie Boyd
Professor of Law
University of South Carolina Joseph F. Rice School of Law
Columbia, SC

Connie Breeden
Attorney
The Law Office of Connie D. Breeden, LLC
Columbia, SC

Leonardo Brown
County Administrator
Richland County
Columbia, SC

John Cadena
Manager, Economic Development and Local Government
Dominion Energy South Carolina
Cayce, SC

Savannah Crosby
Program Director/Community Project Assistant
Arras Foundation
Lancaster, SC

Nicholas Davidson
Director of Region Operations and Community Engagement
SC Department of Public Health
Columbia, SC

Cynthia Davis
Senior VP
Sustain SC
Ridgeway, SC

Joette Dukes
Executive Director
Pee Dee Regional Council of Governments
Florence, SC

Dean Faile
President/CEO
York County Regional Chamber
Rock Hill, SC

Raven Favor
Social Media Manager
SC ETV
Columbia, SC

Raashad Fitzpatrick
Superintendent
Lancaster County School District
Lancaster, SC

Matthew Fowler
Principal & Co-Founder
Continuum Advisory Enterprises, LLC
Chapin, SC

Robin Free
Vice President
Palmetto GBA
Columbia, SC

Chantal Fryer
Director of Business Services
SC Department of Commerce
Columbia, SC

Jason Giulietti
President and CEO
Central South Carolina Alliance
Columbia, SC

John Gordon
President and CEO
Leroy Springs and Company, Inc.
Fort Mill, SC

Dylan Gunnels
Founder/Missions Director
The Agape Table/Emmaus Church
Columbia, SC

Justin Hancock
Director – Recreation, Grants & Policy
South Carolina Department of Parks, Recreation & Tourism
Columbia, SC

Lakesha Jeffries
Attorney
Jeffries Law Firm, LLC
Orangeburg, SC

Jermaine Johnson
SC State Representative
State of South Carolina
Columbia, SC

Olivia Jones
Executive Director
South Carolina Bar Association
Columbia, SC

Amalia Luxardo
CEO
WREN
Columbia, SC

Joshua Malkin
Advocacy Director
Columbia Law School
Menands, NY

Fred Manning
Partner
Fisher Phillips LLP
Columbia, SC

Melanie Matney
COO
SC Hospital Association
Columbia, SC

Jennifer McQuesten
VP of Corporate Communications
Zeus Company LLC
Orangeburg, SC

Perry Mills
Chief Opportunity Zone Officer
Public Charter School District
Columbia, SC

Murphy Monk
President
Greater Hartsville Chamber of Commerce
Hartsville, SC

Stacey Moore
President
York Technical College
Rock Hill, SC

Quincie Moore
Executive Director
South Carolina Association of School Administrators
Columbia, SC

Jean Popowski
Deputy Public Defender
Lexington County Public Defender
Lexington, SC

Brandy Price
Principal/Attorney
Dickie, McCamey, & Chilcote, PC
Lancaster, SC

Bob Ruff
SVP, Group Voluntary Benefits
Aflac
Columbia, SC

Darci Rush
Senior Chief Officer for Communications and Strategic Partnerships
Richland School District 2
Columbia, SC

Nicholas Sambenedetto
Director
Companion Data Services
Columbia, SC

Eric Shytle
General Counsel
Municipal Association of South Carolina
Columbia, SC

Jesse Smith
Executive Director
JEDA
Columbia, SC

Sara Svedberg
Lawyer/Shareholder
Maynard Nexsen
Columbia, SC

Tony Tam
Vice President
Interstate Management and Investment Corporation (IMIC Hotels)
Columbia, SC

Will Williams
President and CEO
Western SC Economic Development Partnership
Aiken, SC

Cliff Wilson
CEO
The Centric Group – self employed
Columbia, SC

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About the Riley Institute at Furman University

The Riley Institute empowers emerging and established leaders—across sectors and throughout society—with the knowledge and tools to advance equity and drive social and economic progress in South Carolina and beyond. We work to strengthen public education; promote the power of diversity to help teams, organizations, and communities thrive; and elevate informed, evidence-based approaches to critical public issues. In all it does, the institute is committed to nonpartisanship and a bias-free path to change.