Dr. O’Dell Owens heads Cincinnati Preschool Promise Board
CPP welcomes Dr. H. James Williams to the Board of Managers
CINCINNATI — Cincinnati Preschool Promise (CPP) announces Dr. O’Dell Moreno Owens is elected to serve as Chairman of the nonprofit’s Board of Managers. Dr. Owens has served on the CPP board since 2018. He succeeds the Reverend Michael J. Graham who has retired from the Board.
Dr.Owens is currently the president and chief executive officer of Interact for Health and Interact for Change. He holds both an MD and a master’s of public health from Yale University Medical School. In recent years, Dr. Owens has served as the Hamilton County Corner, Cincinnati State Technical and Community College President and Medical Director/Interim Health Director of the Cincinnati Health Department.
“I am deeply honored and humbled to continue to lead this very important initiative. Increasing kindergarten readiness, under the great leadership of this board of managers, has long-term effects on future performance. Our current preschoolers will be well prepared for third grade evaluations which will be one measure of our success.”
Dr. Owens is currently on the board of the Cincinnati Fire Foundation, the Carl H. Lindner Jr. Family Center for Conservation and Research of Endangered Wildlife (CREW) at the Cincinnati Zoo and the Cincinnati Preschool Promise; and is the longest-tenured member and former lead director of the U.S. Bancorp Board of Directors. For eight years, Dr. Owens has chaired the annual CET Action Auction, which supports Cincinnati’s public television programming. He previously was Chair of the boards of the University of Cincinnati and the Cincinnati Board of Health and has served on the boards of the Greater Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, the Cincinnati Red Cross, ArtsWave and the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center.
Dr. H. James Williams joins Board of Managers
New to the CIncinnati Preschool Promise Board of Managers is Dr. H. James Williams, CPA, CMA, JD, LLM who serves as the seventh president of Mount St. Joseph University.
President Williams is also a Certified Public Accountant and a Certified Management Accountant, with a wealth of practical experiences, having worked in public accounting and in the legal profession as a corporate and tax attorney.
During his career, Dr. Williams has made significant contributions to the Academy, receiving recognition for his outstanding teaching at Georgetown University, and three “Teacher of the Year Awards,” at Florida A&M University and Texas Southern University. He has also received numerous recognitions and awards for his work with students and student organizations – as well as a number of community-service recognitions and awards.
Dr. Williams serves on the Board of Directors of Community Health Systems, Inc. (a publicly held, Fortune 200 company), the Council of Independent Colleges, the Boy Scouts of America (Dan Beard Council), and the Cincinnati Shakespeare Company. He also serves on the Executive Committees of Ohio’s Association of Independent Colleges and Universities (AICUO) and the Greater Cincinnati Collegiate Connection. Dr. Williams serves on the Board of Governors of The Metropolitan Club of Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky and the Higher Education Advisory Board of the National Museum of African American Music (NMAAM) and is a member of The Cincinnatus Association.
“We are fortunate to have the leadership and expertise of Dr. Owens and Dr. Williams on our board,” says Chara Fisher Jackson, executive director and chief executive officer of Cincinnati Preschool Promise. “Both serve the Cincinnati community in unique ways and will enhance our objectives of supporting the educational, social and emotional needs of our preschoolers, families and Providers.”
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About Cincinnati Preschool Promise
Cincinnati Preschool Promise is a non-profit organization, expanding access to quality preschools in Cincinnati. Preschool expansion is made possible thanks to a significant investment from taxpayers who approved a 5-year Cincinnati Public Schools levy renewal in November 2020. Visit our website at cincy-promise.org or follow us on our social media platforms.
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