Mj Speaks

ABOUT MARK

Mark is one of the country’s foremost social influencers in specific strategies for advancing racial equity and racial justice at an individual, organizational and systemic level. Using the frame of everyday antiracism, Mark’s talks draw from thirty years of research, consulting and practice in equity, inclusion and social change. He has spoken to academic, non-profit, philanthropic, corporate, community-based and faith-based audiences throughout the US, Canada and internationally. He has also provided workshops and leadership coaching across sectors around the world.
 
His previous engagements for speaking, workshops and coaching include Harvard University, the Ford Foundation, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the Federal Reserve Bank and some of its regional branches, PNC Bank, KeyBank, governmental departments in cities such as Austin, Chicago, San Francisco, Nashville, Seattle, Toronto, along with numerous other foundations, non-profits and community organizations.
 
Mark is the Leona Bevis and Marguerite Haynam Professor of Community Development at the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences at Case Western Reserve University. His academic research expertise focuses on strategies to promote urban equity and inclusion. He is the co-author of the award-winning book Integrating the Inner City: The Promise and Perils of Mixed-Income Public Housing Transformation, co-editor of the volume What Works to Promote Inclusive, Equitable Mixed-Income Communities and has authored dozens of articles and policy reports.
 
Mark is the Founding Director of the National Initiative on Mixed-Income Communities, which conducts research and consulting in cities across the US and Canada. He is founding co-host of the podcast Bending the Arc. Mark received his undergraduate degree from Harvard University, a Ph.D. from the University of Chicago, was a Post-Doctoral Scholar at the University of Chicago and a Harlech Scholar at Oxford University.
 
Mark combines a career in US policy and practice with a lifetime of personal and professional engagement around the world, including several years living and working in Europe and Africa. These experiences have equipped him with a deep comfort communicating across sectors, cultures and organizational contexts. He has a highly engaging style with audiences and work teams of all sizes and demographics and is able to communicate complex and uncomfortable topics
 
As described in the testimonials available here, Mark has a unique ability to blend a dynamic and compassionate spirit, incisive, and an action-oriented focus on organizational change and social impact.
 
Engage Mark if your organization is ready for the next phase of its antiracism journey and is looking for a catalyst for an inspiring vision of what is possible and a concrete path of action.