CONTENT CATALOG
Sample our Educational Resource Below
Profile : Shonda Rhimes | You Cannot See What You Cannot Be
Shonda Rhimes is a prolific storyteller with an iconoclastic style. Known as a writer, executive producer, showrunner, and creator of such hit shows as Grey’s Anatomy and Bridgerton, she’s broken barriers and boundaries on her way to the top. “The people telling the stories are the people deciding who you see onscreen, they’re the people who are deciding who are in the writers rooms, they’re the people deciding on the crew.” The onus, Rhimes says, is on her and her colleagues to raise a generation of showrunners to fill those screens, those writers rooms, and those crews with storytellers who reflect the full range of human experience. With incredible determination, motivation, and passion Shonda Rhimes’ impact can’t be missed nor mistaken.
Leadership Series featuring Governor Deval Patrick
Limited Means and Limitless Hope
“I am passionate about generational responsibility, the old-fashioned notion that we in our time must do
what we can to leave things better for those who come behind us."
Deval Patrick was raised on the South Side of Chicago and came to Massachusetts as a teenager when he was awarded a scholarship to Milton Academy through the Boston-based organization A Better Chance. He graduated from Harvard College in 1978, and from Harvard Law School in 1982. He is a Rockefeller Fellow, a Henry Crown Fellow of the Aspen Institute, and the recipient of 20 honorary degrees.
Patrick served two terms as governor from 2007 to 2015; he was the Commonwealth’s first Black governor, and one of only two Black governors elected in the United States. Prior to his career in government, Patrick practiced as an attorney and business executive. He served as a staff attorney at the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, a partner at two Boston law firms, and an executive in two Fortune 50 companies. From 1994 to 1997, Patrick served as assistant attorney general for civil rights, the U.S. government’s top civil rights position, appointed by President Bill Clinton.
After his service as governor, Patrick founded a ground-breaking impact investment fund at Bain Capital. As co-chair of American Bridge 21st Century, he remains engaged in grassroots political organizing through its BridgeTogether initiative, which supports local organizing efforts to engage disenfranchised and marginalized voters.
Profile : Vernon Baker | Lasting Valor
He was a man who suffered terrible indignities and never complained. When WWII erupted, he wanted to serve his country. He did so with amazing courage. His exploits on the battlefield, which eventually led to multiple distinguished honors, were nothing notable to him. He was just doing his job. A quiet and humble man who believed in giving respect before you expect it. An American hero. A story of triumph over extreme prejudice and hardship.
Vernon Baker earned a Purple Heart, a Bronze Star, and the Distinguished Service Cross for his time in the Army during WWII, and the Korean War. In 1996, he received a telephone call from a man working on a federal grant to re-evaluate the heroism of blacks in WWII. During which Baker learned that he was to be awarded the nation’s highest military decoration of valor. He became the first and only living Black World War II Veteran to earn the Medal of Honor. In memory of his service and legacy this is his story of Lasting Valor.
Please be advised contains images of Violence and War
MentorClass : Chief Judge Algenon Marbley | Pulling Back the Curtain of the Justice System
“Thurgood Marshall, James Nabrit, and other great civil rights lawyers represented what we could become. They were role models. If I’m the best version of myself, this is what I can become, and this is what I can contribute. You looked at them through the lens of what is possible. Those men and women like Constance Baker Motley, and Leon Higginbotham proved what was possible. They gave us the roadmap so we stood on their shoulders, and now this next generation may very well stand on ours.” Algenon Marbley is the Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio. He joined the court in 1997 after being nominated by President Bill Clinton. Our conversation details his life story as a change agent and raison d’être (reason for being). “Don’t let anyone define you, but you. That will enable you to sustain yourself even under adverse circumstances.”
Profile : Michelle Obama | This is Me
“Your destiny is not determined on the day you’re born.” Such wise words from Michelle Obama’s grandfather helped mold her into the incredible figure she is today. “Time, as far as my father was concerned, was a gift you gave to other people.” From the humblest of beginnings, she achieved the highest of highs, not without the lowest of lows, like the loss of her father to multiple sclerosis as a young woman. Successful despite the difficulties, no matter the circumstances and without fail, her family was full of love and encouraged her to soar with what little means they had. “Life is practice, and I tell my girls this every day.” Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama: ‘mom-in-chief,’ lawyer, writer, fashion icon, public servant, the first Black First Lady of the United States, and role model extraordinaire. An inspiration for women everywhere, with her intelligence and grace, setting a high bar by example. An advocate for equality, healthy living, service members and their families, higher education, and international adolescent girls education. "When you have a voice, you can't just use it any kind of way.” Sharing her own words on her own terms, daring to be herself, this is Michelle Obama.
MentorClass : Minyon Moore | Cultivating Relationships of Trust
“A person like me, born and raised in the movement… it was instilled in me.”
With the power of perspective, Minyon Moore is considered one of the nation’s top strategic thinkers. She has extensive experience in political and corporate affairs, as well as public policy. Moore leads DSG’s State and Local Affairs and Multicultural Strategies practices with clients ranging from Fortune 100 to startup non-profits.
Under President Bill Clinton’s administration, Minyon served as Assistant to the President and Director of White House Political Affairs. As CEO of the Democratic National Committee (DNC), she was responsible for day-to-day operations and oversight of the Democratic Party.
Moore serves as a member of the board of directors for the Writers Guild Foundation, the NCNW, and co-convener of the Power Rising Summit.
Named one of the 100 Most Powerful Women in Washington by Washingtonian Magazine, and Most Influential Leader by Rainbow PUSH. She has been honored with numerous awards including the Uncommon Height Award for excellence in service to others.
Minyon Moore is a native of Chicago, Illinois. A noted speaker and filmmaker, she continues to serve as a guest lecturer, including such institutions as Yale University and Harvard University Kennedy School of Government. In 2018, Moore was awarded the American Association of Political Consultants (AAPC) Lifetime Achievement Award and has been inducted into the AAPC Hall of Fame.
