First Annual Gala
December 13th, 2023
Ella Baker's 120th Birthday
Happy Birthday Ms. Ella Baker!
The Ella Baker Institute is a community-responsive organization centered on teaching and learning that catalyzes youth leadership and community well-being. We are excited to celebrate our First Gala event on Wednesday, December 13, 2023, at the Museum of Contemporary African Diaspora Art (MoCADA) at 7PM. This celebratory event will occur on the day that commemorates the 120th birthday of the organization’s namesake, Ms. Ella Baker. Join us as we party with a purpose honoring and celebrating the contributions of Ms. Ella Baker, our community youth leaders and honorees and enjoy food, fellowship, family and fun!
Thank you to our artists and vendors who donated to the silent bid and raffle. Special shout out to Babel Spirits, Irise Gin, the Nets, Total Wine and artist, Craig Sanders.
Missed bidding on this original Freedom Fighter Art by Craig Sanders?
Join us for our online silent bidding event from January 15, 2024 -January 31, 2024. Click here to preview the art and sign up to join the silent bidding event.
Special Guest
Ernest McMillan
Ernest McMillan is a civil rights activist, humanitarian and author of “Standing: One Man’s Odyssey through the Turbulent ’60s,” introduces readers to what it was like to grow up in the ’40s and ’50s in Freedman’s Town, which area businesses would advertise as “in the shadows of downtown Dallas,” but for McMillan, “it glistened with light. This was the heart of Black Dallas.” McMillan left Dallas in 1963 for Morehouse College, and there he found the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee, or SNCC, whose national headquarters sat a few blocks from campus. He left school to join the effort, and spent three years working as a field secretary in the Deep South before returning to Dallas in 1967 to establish a SNCC chapter in his hometown. Join us as he shares his liberation journey and how these lessons can help us access liberation in our everyday experience.
Still Standing
Intimate Conversation with Special Guest Ernest McMillan
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Dr. Alade S. McKen is a native New Yorker, and diversity, equity, and inclusion thought-leader with more than 15 years of developing, managing, and evaluating initiatives to enhance policy, programming, belongingness, and equity. He has taught youth as a rite of passage instructor and as an adjunct professor at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. Through his research and publications, Dr. McKen examines the social dynamics of education and culture within society and their impact on race and equity issues. Dr. McKen brings forth new opportunities to examine and address the broader cultural, economic, political, and social structures, policies, and practices around admissions, diversity, equality, and inclusion.
While at Iowa State University, he was Editor of the Journal of Critical Thought and Practice, an Asa G. Hillard III and Barbara A. Sizemore Fellow, and awarded a Teaching Excellence Award. Dr. McKen’s research interests include critical race theory, inclusive educational design, community-school partnerships, and engaging in a thoughtful, rigorous, and sustained inquiry into social justice struggles in educational systems. He received his B.A. in English and Creative Writing from Binghamton University, Masters in Higher Education from Baruch College, and his Doctorate in Education with a Social and Cultural Studies emphasis from Iowa State University.
Dr. McKen currently works at Columbia University where he is the Chief Diversity Officer. He is also a lifetime member of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity Inc., A Master Mason of Joppa Lodge No. 55, of Most Worshipful Prince Hall Grand Lodge in the State of New York. He has also completed several traditional rites of passage “programs” as an initiate of Ogun in the Yoruba Lukumi tradition and as an Awo of IFA within the Isese traditional practice in Nigeria which refers to a tradition in Ifa spirituality and refers to the wisdom passed down from our ancestors and spiritual progenitors. Dr. McKen is a proud husband and father of two little girls and his 1 year old son which is his pride and joy.
Event Sponsors
The Open Society Foundations, founded by George Soros, are the world’s largest private funder of independent groups working for justice, democratic governance, and human rights. We approach this mission through the illuminating principles of justice, equity, and expression—defining characteristics of any truly open society.
Features • Entertainment
Herve Alexandre Bio Rockland County, NY, instrumentalist/singer-songwriter /producer/dancer Hervé Alexandre fuses his jazz roots with hip-hop, funk, gospel, Kompa, and more. Herve is an educator, performing/recording artist, and professional Saxophonist. Herve has served on national stages and festivals from the Apollo Theater to SXSW. Herve currently builds performance art-based programs for organizations throughout the Hudson Valley and is an active recording artist.
Honorees
Kenneth Montgomery
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After graduating Fordham Law School in 1997 Kenneth honed his skills as a litigator at the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office. As a prosecutor, he worked in the red zone which covered high crime areas in the northern section of Brooklyn including East New York and Flatbush. He also worked in the sex crimes unit, the juvenile designated felony unit, grand jury and investigations, the complaint room, and the Violent Gang Bureau.
In 2001, Kenneth formed his own law firm specializing in Criminal and Civil Rights litigation. For the last 22 years Kenneth has represented clients charged in both federal and state court and defended clients charged under the federal death penalty statute across the country. Kenneth is a member of both the SDNY and EDNY CJA panel and both capital panels; and sits on the Death Penalty Working Group (DPGW) in Washington D.C.
As a criminal defense attorney he has litigated over 100 criminal trials as both a prosecutor and defense attorney, securing over 60 not guilty jury verdicts as a defense attorney.
Kenneth is an adjunct professor of law at Fordham law in the trial advocacy department and previously lectured in the Black Studies department at Brooklyn college.
Having grown up in the Brownsville and Crown heights section of Brooklyn at a time where many of his peers were incarcerated or killed, the work that Kenneth is most proud of is not his impressive legal career, he is most proud of his work as a member of the Brooklyn Combine, which is a non-profit focused on education and ideology and self - determination. The Combine partners with schools, educators, and community to offer solutions to systemic oppression and racism, helping community members to control their narrative through critical thinking programs, education, mentoring, leadership, and social programs for youth and young adults in low-income and under-served communities.
Lumumba Bandele
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Lumumba Akinwole-Bandele is the Director of Community Organizing and Advocacy at the Alliance of Families for Justice. He briefly served as the director of Strategic Partnerships with Movement for Black Lives (M4BL) in 2020 and from 2011 to 2020 he served as the Director of Community Organizing at the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund. He is a community organizer and educator from Central Brooklyn. From 1994 – 1998 Lumumba served as programming coordinator at the Franklin H. Williams Caribbean Cultural Center African Diaspora Institute (CCC). During his tenure at CCC, he also co-found Azabache, an organizers training conference and workshop series for young activists. All the while as a Black Studies Major at City College of NY/CUNY, he went on to receive his Masters in Human Service from Lincoln University in 1998. As a member and organizer with the Malcolm X Grassroots Movement, Mr. Akinwole-Bandele helped establish its campaign to counter police abuse and misconduct. He also co-founded the world-renowned Black August Hip Hop Project. Black August raises awareness and support for political prisoners in the United States. From 2002 to 2007 Lumumba served as a counselor and lecturer at Medgar Evers College/CUNY. Over the years he has taught at Pratt Institute, City College of NY, Lehman College, San Francisco State University and currently serves as an adjunct lecturer teaching Community Organizing at CUNY School of Professional Studies. Lumumba currently sits on three boards, the Center for Constitutional Rights, The Malcolm X and Betty Shabazz Memorial and Educational Center, and the Caribbean Cultural Center African Diaspora Institute.
Johnnymae Robinson
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JohnnyMae Robinson loves her family and community, she is a bright, smart, caring and sharing person.
She is the mother of 3 sons and a brand new Jmommy to her grandson. JohnnyMae attends Love City Church under the leadership of Bishop Nelvern R Samuel and First Lady Renee. She has lived in the Ocean Hill Brownsville community for well over 50 years. She is a stake holder and she takes it serious as she works where she lives. Working for New York City Housing Authority covering all 100 plus developments she has a way of getting both work, community and family ready for the next level.
She loves the outdoors, the comfort of great music and a cold can of Pepsi. As much as she is surrounded by people daily, being in a quiet space allows her to move and think of her next steps on how to improve Ocean Hill and the folks that live there .
JohnnyMae is active on several boards, both on an executive and advisory level which she holds dearly for each as it helps to have input where you live.
You can find her at Hilltop Playground or at a local school trying to figure out the next steps.
JohnnyMae believes in the hustle and grind of every day to put in the work to see the results. Always putting God first she says “It’s a win-win”
Timothy Hunter
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Born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, Timothy Hunter has served as the Press Secretary for the NYC Campaign Finance Board since 2022. Mr. Hunter is a former government staffer and has worked as a Communications Director in both the NYS Senate and the NYS Assembly. Mr. Hunter is also a former candidate for NYS Assembly and launched his campaign at the age of 22 in an effort to become the youngest African American lawmaker to ever be elected in NYS history. He served as Chairperson of the CUNY University Student Senate from 2019-2020 and formerly held a voting seat on the CUNY Board of Trustees where he represented the best interests of over 250,000 students in the CUNY system. He graduated from CUNY’s New York City College of Technology in 2020 where he received his Bachelor’s Degree in education, and is currently completing his Master’s Degree in Public Administration at CUNY’s Baruch College. As an alumni of and a teacher in the NYC public school system, he taught architectural drafting at various NYC highschools serving as a mentor and role model for many public school students. Despite leaving the teaching profession he still keeps in touch with his former students to this very day. An aspiring attorney and life-long public servant, Timothy hopes to continue to use his knowledge of public policy and government to help others and amplify the voices of the communities and assist as they organize against the various injustices New Yorkers face on a daily basis.
Awards •
Join us as we celebrate these social justice, education and community organizing champions:
The Baba Stan Kinard Freedom Award For Community Organizing
“We who believe in freedom cannot rest until it comes.”- Ella Baker
Lumumba Bandele
The Fundi Leadership Award For Education
"What is needed is the development of people who are interested not in being leaders as much as in developing leadership in others.”- Ella Baker
JohnnieMae Robinson
The Changemaker Leadership Award For Community Activism
“…the system under which we now exist has to be radically changed. This means that we are going to have to learn to think in radical terms... It means facing a system that does not lend itself to your needs and devising means by which you change that system.” - Ella Baker
Kenneth Montgomery
The Teddy Vann Torch Bearer Award For Youth Leadership
“The struggle is eternal. The tribe increases. Somebody else carries on.” - Ella Baker
Timothy Hunter
Dr. Patrice E. Fenton is our co-founder and Head of Organizational Well-Being. She is a proud mom, Brooklyn, NY native and former NYC Department of Education (NYCDOE) special educator. She brings expertise as an equity-centered strategist with a passion for leadership development, teacher education, and generating collective wellness, particularly in Black communities. She is a highly skilled facilitator and has deep experience in leadership and organizational development, as well as measurement and evaluation, particularly regarding impact in Black and Brown communities. Dr. Fenton is the former Director of Leader Support and Development at EdLoC, a nonprofit professional network organization of 350+ education leaders of color across 30+ states. She also served as the first Associate Director of NYC Men Teach at the City University of New York as well as an adjunct assistant professor in the department of special education at Hunter College. Dr. Fenton is currently co-authoring a book accepted for publication entitled, Transforming Collective Power: Building School Communities Where Belonging Is Center Stage. She holds four degrees including a PhD in teaching and learning with a concentration in special education and a bachelor’s in business administration.
Happy New Year!
WE DID THAT! We wanted to take a moment to thank everyone for their support of our first annual gala on Wednesday, December 13th, at MoCADA. It was a success because each of you took the time to join us and it was an entire vibe! We honored our ancestors, Ms. Ella Baker, our honorees and ourselves that evening. The energy, lessons and communion will continue to elevate us in 2024! THANK YOU!!!!
