Page 15 - Florida Sentinel 3-3-17

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NAACP Elects Leon W. Russell As Chairman Of The Board Of Directors
Chairman Roslyn M. Brock Steps Down After Seven Years; Mississippi State President Derrick Johnson Elected as Vice Chair
The NAACP elected Leon W. Russell as the Chairman of the Board of Directors at its annual board meeting on February 18 in New York. He re- places Roslyn M. Brock, who decided to step down as chairman after seven years of leadership.
“I am honored to have served seven years as chairman of the nation’s most important civil rights group,” said Roslyn M. Brock, NAACP Chairman of the Board since 2010. “Leon W. Russell is a stalwart NAACP civil and human rights leader who is prepared to lead the NAACP into the future. Mr. Russell has been the chief ar- chitect in the development of the NAACP’s strate- gic plan and champion of its organizational policy and resolutions process,” she added.
Chairman Brock succeeded the late Chair- man Emeritus and civil rights icon H. Julian Bond in 2010. She served as the fourth woman and youngest individual elected to the position of chairman in the organization’s esteemed history.
Mr. Russell most recently served as Vice Chair of the Board and has been a board member
LEON W. RUSSELL ...Tampa Resident, Elected Chair, Board of Directors, NAACP
for over 27 years. He served as President of the Florida State Conference of Branches of the NAACP, after serving for fifteen years as the First Vice President. He is also the former Director of
the Office of Human Rights for Pinellas County Government, Clearwater, Florida.
“This is a most prestigious, yet humbling honor and one that escalates in importance as we move into a new era of increased challenges against civil and human rights,” said Chairman Russell.
The recipient of numerous civic awards and ci- tations, Mr. Russell was also elected for two terms as the President of the International Asso- ciation of Official Human Rights Agencies. He is also a member of the International City Manage- ment Association and numerous other organiza- tions.
The 64-member board also elected Mississippi NAACP State President Derrick Johnson as the Board’s Vice-Chairman to replace Mr. Russell.
Mr. Johnson currently serves as State Presi- dent of the Mississippi NAACP and as Executive Director of One Voice Inc. A former Mel King Community Fellow with Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Mr. Johnson also serves on the Board of Directors of the Congressional Black Caucus Institute, Mary Reynolds Babcock Foundation, and as an adjunct professor at Touga- loo College.
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