Advancing Social Justiceresearch & change

As a pastor, Dr. Augustine has earned a well-deserved reputation for bringing the church into the community and community into the church, in addressing pressing social issues. Since May 2019, he has served as the senior pastor of St. Joseph AME Church (Durham, NC), while simultaneously serving, since January 2017, as the general chaplain of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. Since his appointment to St. Joseph, new ministries have been birthed and many new members have joined the congregation, as it developed an outward-facing social justice focus. In addition to Dr. Augustine’s powerful prophetic preaching, under his leadership, St. Joseph has welcomed numerous social justice icons, including Vice President Kamala Harris, Reverend Dr. William J. Barber, II, Honorable Andrew Young, and Reverend Dr. James A. Forbes, Sr. Prior to serving St. Joseph, Dr. Augustine was senior pastor at Historic St. James AME Church, in downtown New Orleans, the city’s first predominately Black, Protestant church and the denomination’s oldest congregation in the Deep South.

Augustine is also a law professor and reconciliation scholar. Prior to his current service, at North Carolina Central University Law School, he taught as an adjunct professor at Southern University Law Center. His scholarly publications, on issues like immigration reform, environmental justice, and voting rights, appear in journals including the Connecticut Public Interest Law Journal, Hastings Race and Poverty Law Journal, Louisiana Law Review, Loyola Law Review, and the Southern California Interdisciplinary Law Journal. His writings have also been cited by the Louisiana Supreme Court in published opinion. Dr. Augustine currently serves as a missional strategist with the Duke University Center for Reconciliation.

Prior to becoming a law professor, Augustine served as a nationally noted civil rights litigator. He successfully litigated and settled one of the oldest school desegregation cases in the United States, originally litigated by Thurgood Marshall, before his appointment to the U.S. Supreme Court. In working as of counsel with the Southern Coalition for Social Justice, Augustine also co-authored an amicus curie brief filed with the United States Supreme Court in Brnovich v. Democratic National Committee (2021), a case brought under the Voting Rights Act of 1965. He is a member of the Louisiana State Bar Association, and admitted to practice law before several federal courts, including the United States Supreme Court.

Augustine is the recipient of many notable awards, including President Barack Obama’s Lifetime Achievement Award (2016), the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. “Outstanding Alumni Brother of the Year” Award (2017), Ten Outstanding Young Americans Award (2004) and Ebony Magazine’s “30 Leaders of the Future” (2001). He earned a B.A., in economics, from Howard University, before serving as a decorated, active-duty infantry officer in the United States Army. Immediately after his military service, Dr. Augustine earned his law degree from Tulane University and served as a law clerk to then-Associate Justice Bernette Joshua Johnson at the Louisiana Supreme Court. After holding publicly elected and gubernatorially appointed office in Louisiana, he accepted the calling to ordained ministry and earned his Master of Divinity from United Theological Seminary, before completing a fellowship for further study at Princeton Theological Seminary. Augustine also earned his doctorate from Duke University.

Dr. Jonathan C. Augustine serves as an elected member of the Judicial Council (Supreme Court) of the African Methodist Episcopal Church and is married to Michelle Burks Augustine. Together, they have two children.

Professor Broderick began her academic career as a clinical faculty member. She directed the Criminal Defense Clinic at the Antioch School of Law for ten years representing more than 2,000 individuals charged with crimes in the Superior and District Courts of the District of Columbia. She also co-directed the Legislation Clinic for four years, supervising students working primarily on health and safety, environmental justice and criminal justice legislation with the D.C. Council. She has taught Criminal Procedure, Evidence, Professional Responsibility, State and Local Government Law, First Amendment Demonstration Law, and a seminar, “Perspectives on Social Justice.” She taught in Harvard Law School’s Trial Advocacy Workshop, in the Fall Semester, for many years. Professor Broderick received the 2020 “Thurgood Marshall Award,” “in recognition of her exemplary legal career dedicated to service in the public interest, in the pursuit of equal justice and opportunity for all Americans,” from the D.C. Bar; the 2018 ”Potter Stewart Award” from the Council for Court Excellence; the 2017 “Heman Sweatt Award” from the National Bar Association; and the 2016 “Education and Leadership Award,” from the Thurgood Marshall Scholarship Fund. She has also received the 2015 “Effective Force in Service of the People Award” from the D.C. Chapter of the National Lawyers’ Guild “in recognition of outstanding leadership” and the 2009 “Deborah L. Rhode Award” from the Association of American Law Schools ‘in recognition of her work to increase pro bono and public service opportunities in law schools.” She was honored with the “Servant of Justice Award” by the Legal Aid Society in 2005. Professor Broderick received the “National Equal Justice Works Outstanding Law School Dean Award” in 2002, and the “William Pincus Award” for “Outstanding Contributions to Clinical Legal Education” given by the Association of American Law Schools in 1999. She was named a Fellow of the American Bar Association in 2000.

Mental Health Jail Diversion Program designed to implement and expand community-based services to individuals with behavioral health issues through information sharing between the criminal justice system and community service providers. He is also serving as the chair of the MacArthur Foundation funded Houston Racial/Ethnic Disparities Committee Data Workgroup and is also leading a research team in a large scale evaluation of the Houston Police Department Body Camera Program. Dr. Henderson received his BS in criminal justice administration from Middle Tennessee State University, his masters of criminal justice from Tennessee State University, and his PhD in Criminal Justice from Sam Houston State University.

comes to the Initiative from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) where he had worked since September 2005.

At FEMA, he served in various positions, including Coordinator for Intergovernmental Affairs in the External Affairs Division, Program Officer in the Individual Assistance Division and Program Officer in the Policy and Procedures Branch of the Public Assistance Division. Meldon has held senior governmental positions at the municipal, state and federal levels. He has served as Vice President for University Relations at Texas Southern University, and as a university administrator at Harvard University and the University of Maryland at College Park. He has taught on the faculties of Northeastern University, the College Park and Baltimore County campuses of the University of Maryland and Howard University. Prior to joining FEMA, Meldon taught Government and Political Science at Howard University. Over a 35-year work history, Meldon has served in the Army Security Agency; as Special Assistant to the Assistant Secretary for Education in the Department of Health, Education and Welfare; as Director of the White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities; as an attorney; and as a business consultant. In 1965, while serving as an enlisted man in the Army, Meldon received a presidential nomination to, and attended, the United States Military Academy at West Point. He holds an M.A. in Government and Politics from the University of Maryland at College Park, Maryland and a J.D. and M.P.A. from Harvard University. He has studied international law and indigenous courts at the University of Legon in Ghana, West Africa.

House of Representatives for the 54th District from 1968 to 1994.

Love began serving in the Tennessee House of Representatives for the 58th District in 2012. He serves on the following House Committees: Education, State Government, Consumer and human resources. In addition he serves on the Tennessee Advisory Commission for Intergovernmental Relations(TACIR) and the Tennessee Second Look Commission.

Love was ordained by the African Methodist Episcopal Church (A.M.E.) Church in 1999 and was assigned to Pastor Hopewell A.M.E. Church in Columbia, Tennessee. From October 2002 to November 2016, he was the pastor of St. Paul A.M.E. Church in Nashville, Tennessee, and in 2015 was also the Presiding Elder of the South Nashville District of the A.M.E. Church. On November 21, 2016, he was appointed pastor of Lee Chapel A.M.E. Church in Nashville, Tennessee.

the University of Iowa. He serves as a local co-president for the American Federation of Teachers and is vice chair of the AFT Higher Education Policy and Planning Council.

Moten recently wrote a new introduction to Dr. L. D. Reddick’s “Crusader Without Violence: A Biography of Martin Luther King Jr.,” the first biography of MLK Jr.

He lives in Montgomery, Alabama.

organization committed to advancing principled leadership in American institutions. She accepted this position following her retirement as Vice President, Office for the Advancement of Public Black Colleges and Council of Student Affairs of the Association of Public & Land-Grant Universities (APLU) in cooperation with the American Association of State Colleges & Universities (AASCU).

Before joining OAPBC, Payne was the president of Global Systems, Inc. and was a senior staff member under the Carter administration with the President’s Advisory Committee for Women; President’s National Advisory Council on Women’s Education Programs, and the White House Conference on Families. She taught at the former Federal City College and at George Washington University.

An authority on women’s issues in relation to higher education and labor force participation, Payne has published and presented a number of papers on the pursuit of equality for women and African-Americans in higher education.

Payne received a bachelor’s degree in speech pathology from the former District of Columbia Teachers College and earned her master’s and doctorate degrees in education from the former Atlanta University. In 2012, she received a Heritage Award from Alcorn State University for her contributions to the School of Agriculture. She also received a Presidential Medal from Delaware State University and has received honorary doctorates from Lincoln University of Missouri, Lincoln University of Pennsylvania, Kentucky State University, and University of the District of Columbia and in 2012 from Central State University. She was inducted into the District of Columbia’s Hall of Fame and the National Black College Alumni Hall of Fame. She served on the Board of Trustees of the University of the District of Columbia for nine years and served for two years as chair of the Board. She serves on the board of directors of TMCF and formerly on the national board of AARP and chaired the AARP Foundation. She served on the distinguished Foreign Service Performance Evaluation Boards at the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Department of Commerce. She has traveled extensively in Africa, Asia, South America and Europe and recently conducted a fact-finding mission in Singapore; China; Malaysia; Stellenbosch, South Africa and Taiwan.

represent nearly 300,000 students.

Under his leadership, TMCF has focused on creating innovative partnerships, increasing organizational sustainability, and advancing bipartisan advocacy.

As a strategic thinker and visionary, Williams has announced unique global partnerships with some of the nation’s most recognized corporations and brands such as The Boeing Company, Gucci, and Hennessy USA. He has also successfully reimagined long-term partnerships with organizations such as Booz Allen Hamilton, Lowe’s, the NBA, and Wells Fargo, cementing TMCF as the premier source of major employers seeking top diverse talent for competitive internships and corporate careers.

Previously, Williams enjoyed a successful eight-year tenure as President of Delaware State University, increasing student enrollment and forging new public/private multi-million dollar partnerships, grants, and investments into the campus. He has received many awards and accolades for his career in higher education, and previously held senior positions at the University of North Carolina General Administration, Appalachian State University, and North Carolina A&T State University. Dr. Williams earned his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from Appalachian State University, a Doctorate from East Tennessee State University, and is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc.

Most importantly, he is a family man. His wife, Dr. Robin S. Williams, and he are the proud parents of two grown sons, Austin and Gavin. Austin and his wife Reagan both graduated from Howard University and Gavin is a current Howard University scholar-athlete.

113th Congress.

Representative Adams serves on the Committee on Financial Services; Committee on Education & Labor and the Committee on Agriculture. She holds several leadership roles; as Assistant Whip for the Democratic Caucus, Chairwoman of the Committee on Education & Labor’s Subcommittee on Workforce Protections and Vice Chairwoman of the Committee on Agriculture. Representative Adams’s subcommittee assignments, in addition to Workforce Protections, include Civil Rights and Human Services Committee on Education and Labor; Nutrition, Oversight, and Department Operations on Agriculture, and the Oversight and Investigations on Financial Services. Her signature legislative accomplishment in Congress is the enactment of H.R. 5363, the Fostering Undergraduate Talent by Unlocking Resources for Education (FUTURE) Act that permanently provides funding totaling $255 million a year for all Minority-Serving Institutions, including $85 million for HBCUs.