Leadership Transition

Leadership Transition

CBI Announces a New Executive Director

CHARLOTTE, NC (June 16, 2022) – We are proud to announce that the CBI Board of Directors has selected Janeen Bryant to be Community Building Initiative’s next Executive Director, beginning July 25th, 2022. 

 

Janeen is a tireless advocate for issues of diversity, equity and inclusion.  She knows Charlotte, knows CBI and understands our mission, vision and needs. After more than 20 years in our community, she brings to CBI a wealth of experience in nonprofit leadership, community engagement strategies and pragmatic partnership processes.

 

“I have taken part in CBI programming and worked with them in the past, so I am thrilled at the opportunity to now lead Community Building Initiative,” says Bryant. “CBI’s mission and values align perfectly with mine:  A human-centered society in which we see all individuals as valuable and move closer to our goal of community equity. My intention is to both preserve the legacy of Community Building Initiative, and to guide it onward as CBI evolves to meet the ever-changing needs of Charlotte-Mecklenburg.”

A Conversation with Janeen Bryant

CBI Board Member Ely Portillo sat down with new Executive Director Janeen Bryant to discuss her vision for this next chapter in the CBI story.  Janeen talks about her history here in Charlotte and with CBI, her vision of equity in action, and how CBI will be instrumental in advancing this in Charlotte-Mecklenburg.

Meet Janeen Bryant

CBI envisions a connected community where everyone WAKES UP to discrimination and injustice; INTERRUPTS inequitable systems and structures; and STEPS UP to champion equal rights, access and opportunity. Janeen Bryant’s life encapsulates these goals. She credits the start of her own personal development to her upbringing in Greenville, SC. Sitting around the dinner table, Bryant and her siblings were encouraged to express their opinions, with her mother sometimes playing devil’s advocate to teach the children how to defend their positions.



She took these skills with her to Davidson College, where she graduated with a degree in Anthropology, and focused on Ethnic Studies. Being a first-generation college student in her family, Bryant recognized the opportunities that were available to her and took full advantage – traveling to India, Bolivia and Ghana to study abroad. These experiences broadened her perspective and led to a deep appreciation for diversity and the value to be found in differences of belief and culture.  

 

Leveraging her degree in Anthropology, Janeen has studied cultural and systems dynamics as a classroom educator, museum leader, multi-region advocate, and entrepreneur. She received her Master of Science in Management and Leadership from Montreat College.

 

Most recently, Janeen worked as the Founder and Principal Consultant for Facilitate Movement, LLC where she and her team specialized in crafting proactive strategies that guided institutions to address shifting demographics with responsive leadership to strengthen long-term vision, cultural competency and empathy. Janeen also served as a liaison and Community Catalyst Coach for 12 communities in the Southeast through her work with My Brother’s Keeper Alliance, an initiative of the Obama Foundation. She has served on the boards of MeckEd and the Brenda H. Tapia Family Foundation, and is a 2021 Black Voices for Black Justice Award recipient.  

 

Janeen is proudly raising her 16-year-old daughter, a student in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Public Schools. She still very much believes parents play a vital role in the education and development of students, much as her own mother did for her.  

 

After more than 20 years in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg community, Janeen brings a wealth of experience in nonprofit leadership, community engagement strategies and pragmatic partnership processes to the work of Community Building Initiative. CBI’s mission and work very much align with her own belief that once we accept and value others, we can move forward as a stronger and more connected community.  Janeen has come to view herself as an architect building a more just and equitable world. Her current role at CBI is a natural continuation of that work.

UPDATES ON THE SEARCH AS THEY MATERIALIZE

June 16, 2022 CBI Announces a New Executive Director
After a competitive search process with significant interest, the Board of Directors is proud to announce Janeen Bryant has been hired as the next Executive Director of Community Building Initiative (CBI). Bryant succeeds founding Executive Director Dianne English, who retired at the end of last year. You can view the full announcement package here HERE .
May 1, 2022 CBI Executive Director Candidate Interviews Continue
CBI has seen significant interest in its Executive Director position. CBI’s search consultants at Elinvar Leadership Solutions have been conducting initial interviews of candidates followed by more in-depth interviews conducted by CBI’s Executive Director Search Committee. CBI’s Search Committee is pleased with the progress that is being made and looks forward to the selection of CBI’s next Executive Director.
Jan 1, 2022 Interim Executive Director steps in
Stephen L. Smith stepped in as Interim Executive Director at the start of the calendar year. Stephen was previously the interim director for Care Ring, and has served on the boards of numerous nonprofits for the last 20 years. For more on Stephen, you can read his bio HERE .
Dec 15, 2021 CBI Executive Director job is posted
CBI’s founding executive director retired at the end of 2021 and an interim Executive Director has been retained. The Board of Directors seeks an innovative, collaborative, and mission-driven leader to lead the nonprofit in the next phase of its work.  You can view the full job posting HERE .
Nov 17, 2021 Dianne English retirement announced
CBI Executive Director Dianne English announced her retirement on November 17, 2021 after 24 years of service. A search committee was formed to begin the unenviable task of finding someone suitable to fill this role. Stay tuned for updates as they materialize. You can read the full story bio HERE .
Nov 10, 2021 CBI retains Consulting Firm for interim ED services
The search committee and the CBI Board of Directors selected LevRidge Resources to aid in the selection of an interim Executive Director. To learn more about LevRidge Resouces, please visit their website .
Oct 10, 2021 Search Firm is engaged to fill ED role
The search committee and the CBI Board of Directors selected Elinvar Leadership Solutions to support the executive search and to ensure a smooth transition. To read more about Elinvar leadership, please visit their website .
Sep 2, 2021 Search Committee for new ED formed
Once it was known Dianne English planned to retire, a search committee was convened to begin the process of finding a new Executive Director. The committee is chaired by former CBI Board Chair Byron Hawkins. In addition to Byron, the search committee comprises current CBI board members Ray Feaster and Rick McDermott and former CBI board members Claude Alexander, Jenni Faisbauer, and Jenny Ward.
Aug 16, 2021 Dianne English communicates decision to retire as ED
After 24 years of service as Executive Director of CBI, Dianne English made the decision to retire at the end of 2021. She communicated this to the internal CBI team and Board, who then began the challenging process of finding a new individual to assume this role.
  • Interim Director
  • Search Committee
  • Search Firm

Interim Director

INTERIM DIRECTOR

Stephen L. Smith is currently the Interim Executive for Community Building Initiative (CBI), and was previously the Interim Executive for CareRing which provides health services for the uninsured, underinsured or those lacking access to affordable, high-quality health care. For over 20 years, Stephen has served on nonprofit boards in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and North Carolina. He has served in a variety of capacities including Investment, Development and Executive committees. Since being in Charlotte the past 14 years he has served several nonprofits as the CEO including twice succeeding a founder. Stephen believes that his previous experiences as a financial services executive and attorney, combined with his passion for non-profit missions, uniquely prepares him to help organizations thrive.

Search Committee

Search Committee

Byron Hawkins, Committee Chair

Senior Vice President Global Technology & Operations,

Bank of America

Claude Alexander

Bishop,

The Park Church

Ray Feaster

Clinical Physician Executive,

Atrium Health

Jenni Gaisbauer

Chief Development Officer and Executive Director,

Charlotte Mecklenburg Library Foundation

Rick McDermott

Principal,

McDermott IP Law

Jenny Ward

Senior Vice President, Community Relations Manager,

Bank of America

Search Firm

Elinvar Leadership Solutions

Elinvar believes in the power of people and organizations to change communities for the better. Our expertise spans the nonprofit, philanthropic, and higher education sectors. Within these sectors, we have led searches in the fields of public health, economic development, social justice, education, and more.

We have an unrivaled track record of success in working with search committees and boards to successfully identify their next leader. Elinvar’s high-touch, tailored search services extend beyond acceptance of an offer and into the new leader’s transition during their first year in the new role.

Learn more about Elinvar Leadership solutions at https://www.elinvar.com/

Celebrating Dianne and honoring her with
the Future Fund

In celebration of Dianne English’s tenure as the founding executive director of CBI, there is also an opportunity to add to one of her legacy achievements. It was very important to Dianne as part of CBI’s 20th anniversary to begin to think about the organization’s longer-term future. Acknowledging the strength of CBI programmatically and financially, Dianne and the board of directors at that time sought to consider a different stream of support that would be designed to support CBI when it needed to step-in and step-up.  With her leadership and vision, the Future Fund was born.

 

This permanent fund, established at Foundation For The Carolinas, gives CBI the resources and confidence to step-in and step-up to advance its vision of inclusion and equity in the community.  A request to invest Future Fund resources is only made when other funding isn’t available and where the investment meets the identified goals of the Future Fund.  Staff recommends the use of the Future Fund, and the Board of Directors approves.  It is hoped that if an investment is made from the Future Fund, effort will be made to replace the resources.

 

Gifts can be made to CBI in Dianne’s honor using the Donate button below. Please use the comments section to designate your gift to the Future Fund. Pledges can be made by contacting Christi Lee at clee@cbicharlotte.org.

LEAVE A MESSAGE FOR DIANNE

Dianne English spent 24 years working towards a more just and equitable community in Charlotte-Mecklenburg. We’ve had countless people share with us the impact Dianne had on both them and on their community. If you’d like to leave a message or tribute to Dianne, feel free to do so here!

GRACIAS Dianne! Your empathy, courage and leadership to articulate, collaborate and address with outstanding grace and determination the social justice issues, prejudices, discoveries and opportunities for healing and progress in our community, have been always an inspiration and a call to action for me for over two decades.

By: Astrid Chirinos

YMCA OF GREATER CHARLOTTE

Class II 2003

Dianne English...From the moment I met her, I knew she was someone special. At the time I was working EAP for the USPS and not particularly sure I was making a difference. Along came Dianne who practically dragged me from the Postal Service to serve in the first year of Community Building Task Force.

By: Don Taylor

Assistant Professor College of Arts & Sciences

JWU: Charlotte Campus

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