Category Archives: About Us

About the American Diversity Report

Authors A-H, Social Issues

Don’t get mad, get home safely – by Terry Howard

PROLOG: It’s 11 PM and from our living room we could hear the cranking sound of the garage door opening. Seconds later we heard his Mazda pull in. And a minute later he walked into the room, smile on face, and greeted us: “Hi mom, hi dad, I’m home!” From the perspective of African American parents of a young black male, there’re no sweeter sounds than those six words…. “Hi mom, hi dad, I’m home!”…., particularly given the current dangerous state of race relations in the USA.

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Levine articles

Diversity Training Evolves – by Deborah Levine

Diversity in the business world ranges from local to global and everything in-between. There are the traditional categories of race, ethnicity, gender, and age. There is also a growing global component that brings issues of language, national origin, and religion. The opportunity for culture clash and conflict increases yearly. Diversity debates usually heat up during presidential campaigns and this one should be one for the history books. It’s inevitable that emotions ooze into the workplace.

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Around the world, Levine articles, Of Women, Social Issues

Technologies Shift: Women and Girls Lead – by Deborah Levine

The Independent Television Service (ITVS) is a global asset for women and girls. ITVS supports a dynamic field of independent media makers whose programs creatively engage audiences, expand cultural awareness and catalyze civic participation. Filmmakers from around the world came to ITVS with incredible stories about women and girls. Using a holistic approach, ITVS created Women and Girls Lead, a multi-year initiative with documentaries about women and girls. After launching the domestic initiative, the project went global. Combining the expertise in international broadcasting, storytelling, and on-the-ground knowledge of its partners: USAID, the Ford Foundation, and CARE, ITVS recently launched Women and Girls Lead Global.

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Groundbreakers storytelling, Levine articles, Of Women

Inspiration Stories & Strategies of Southern Women

women storiesHow do Chattanooga’s women overcome obstacles to Think Big and help others do the same? Chattanooga’s Lean In – Women Groundbreakers tackled the question at their recent Think Tank meeting. Their Success Stories and How-to Stories have inspired family members, colleagues, friends, community leaders, church youth groups, and former inmates. The Words of Wisdom from these groundbreakers will inspire you, too.

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Gender, Levine articles, Race & Ethnicity, Social Issues, Southern Culture

Tennessee’s First African-American Female Public Defender: Ardena Garth — by Deborah Levine

Ardena Garth Hicks was the first African American female public defender in Tennessee’s Hamilton County. When the State of Tennessee created the office of public defenders 18 years ago, it was an appointed position by the Governor. Ardena was the only applicant with both defense and prosecutorial experience. Of the 27 initially appointed public defenders, only two were black females.

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Artists, Authors A-H, Inclusion

Great diversity leaders of letters – By Terry Howard

I’m often asked to suggest some conferences to attend, good books to read and other ways to learn about diversity. Here’s a glimpse of some of it.

“Who are the contemporary thought leaders on diversity, Terry?” queried one. “Someone suggested “Dr. So-and- So’s” book; would you recommend it?” surfaced in a recent e-mail.

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Groundbreakers storytelling, Levine articles, Of Women

Chattanooga’s Groundbreaking Women – by Deborah Levine

The Women’s Council on Diversity has inspired Chattanooga since its first meeting the day after 9/11. The influx of international companies led to our community-wide Global Leadership Class six years later, followed by Women GroundBreakers Storytelling. Documented in the American Diversity Report, these projects demonstrate how a small Southern city tackles its growing diversity and internationalization.

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Commerce, Levine articles, Southern Culture

Globalization in Chattanooga – by Deborah Levine

The transformation of the South by international industry has picked up speed. In 1974, there were only 19 foreign-owned manufacturers in Tennessee. They were valued at $649 million. In 1995, the state had 400 foreign-owned firms with a value of $15 billion. By 2013, the number of foreign-owned firms had more than doubled to 864 with a value of $30 billion. According to the Global Location Trends Report by the IBM Institute, Tennessee led the nation in jobs created by foreign owned firms.
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Authors R-Z, Generational

Millennial Dream or Oxymoron? – by Paul Rupert

From the earliest blogs and profiles on Millennials – and there have been thousands – they were described as the anti-formal generation. Popular images painted them as innovating from Starbucks and boycotting performance reviews. No rigid flex options, no packages of stale annual feedback for them.

Times and preferences change. Millennials are quickly becoming the workplace norm, not the newbies. Many seek advancement rather than “job hopping.” This adventurous cohort is forming families in earnest, and with record percentages of dual earner couples. They face challenges that are both considerable and growing.

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Around the world, Authors A-H, Teams & Leaders, Wellness

Learn to Relish the Inconvenience – by Terry Howard

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Guess what readers? It took me 25 hours to go from Dallas to Germany a while back.

But don’t feel sorry for me because that trip was one of my best ever. Now before telling me to get a checkup from the neck up, bear with me for a moment. I’ll get to the rest of the story further down. I first need to come clean with you on a revelation.

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