The Roanoke Branch NAACP invites you to attend the 20th Annual Citizen of the Year Awards Program (a Freedom Fund Raiser) at the Holiday Inn Tanglewood Hotel and Conference Center, 4468 Starkey Rd in SW on Friday, May 4, 2018.
The evening starts at 5:30 with a reception that includes: Hors d’ oeuvres and a no-host bar. The Awards Dinner starts promptly at 6:00 p.m.
This years distinguished guest speaker is Dr. Pareena G. Lawrence, president of Hollins University!
Dr. Lawrence became Hollins University’s 12th president on July 1, 2017. A proven leader and strategic thinker, she is devoted to the empowerment of women and the liberal arts.
She was born and raised in India. While growing up she attended an all-girls’ school which she credits with changing her life and serving as a catalyst for her strong belief in the power of a woman’s college.
She graduated with honors in economics from the University of Delhi in 1987 and two years later, moved to the United States to pursue her Ph.D. in economics at Purdue University. She joined the faculty at the University of Minnesota, Morris in 1994 and was presented the University’s Morris Alumni Association Teaching Award in 2005, and the following year, she received the Horace T. Morse – University of Minnesota Alumni Association Award for Outstanding Contributions to Undergraduate Education; and in 2008, she became a full professor of economics and management.
She was also appointed provost and chief academic officer at Augustana College, a nationally ranked liberal arts college in Illinois, in 2011 where her responsibilities went beyond the traditional role of provost. She oversaw an innovative set of student services, pioneered new career development initiatives, and was a successful fundraiser and external ambassador for the college.
President Lawrence has studied extensively the role women play in international economic development. Her new book, Life Histories of Women Panchayat Sarpanches from Haryana, India, (co-authored with Kavita Chakravarty,) was published in the Summer of 2017 by Cambridge Scholars Publishing. The volume features ten women who have been elected as village leaders and explore their motivations, the barriers they face and the difference they are making.
She is married to Todd Lawrence, a financial advisor and they have two sons: Aaron, a college junior, and Josh, a high school senior.
Tickets modestly priced at $65.00 per, for your convenience are available at The Roanoke Tribune, 2318 Melrose Ave. NW and WTOY Radio Station, 2206 Melrose Ave. NW.
For more information about this year’s Freedom Fundraiser you may contact Mrs. Cleo Sims, Freedom Fundraiser chair for the Roanoke Branch NAACP, at 540-353-2159.
