President
Barbara Bullard
Barbara Bullard is a creative entrepreneur, publicist, writer, producer and keynote speaker that develops programming including Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) initiatives at the United Nations to multi-media campaigns. This commitment to inspire through storytelling manifests through her offerings to solidify the legacies of social revolutionaries such as, management of historical archives for the legacy of tennis great Arthur Ashe or spearheading the national unveiling of the USPS Shirley Chisholm Forever Stamp. She is curating an event on The Hill to continually produce critically conscious stories offering a platform for marginalized voices. As the author, with quotes from renowned global luminaries, "RE LEASE + BE COME", a newly released book written by Barbara seeks to restore the integrity of the human spirit through art, words, and resources for healing emotional wounds. She is also developing a graphic novel focused on healing of generational trauma.

THE BOARD
Secretary and Special Projects
Jamara Wakefield
Wakefield is a Black queer arts and culture writer. She writes for publication and stage. She produces and directs projects about the experiences of Black people in America, Black women, vulnerability, liberation practices, and debt as a system of oppression. She currently has bylines for Shondaland, Playboy, Very Smart Brothers, Broadway Black, B- Word Magazine and Broadway World. She is currently filming a documentary titled "Black House. Black Joy. New Jersey".
Treasurer
Carlyle Leach
Carlyle Leach has created and assumed leadership positions in his businesses, as an educator, and during his service at the city, state, and federal levels of government. His career and personal life have been devoted to the achievement of social, political, and economic justice for all people.
Angela Yee
Angela Yee, co-host of the Breakfast Club at iHeart Media, has been breaking stories, conducting groundbreaking interviews and giving earnest, expert advice alongside her co-hosts DJ Envy and Charlamagne for the past 9 years. She has also been focused on entrepreneurship, opening the Juices for Life juice bar in Bed-Stuy and starting a subscription based pressed juice business called Drink Fresh Juice. In addition to prioritizing health based businesses she is actively involved in the community, becoming the first NY Public Library ambassador and the first ever global ambassador for diversity, inclusion and community engagement for Brooklyn Sports and Entertainment (BSE) which includes the Barclays Center and the Brooklyn Nets.
Cheryl Davis
Cheryl Davis is a practicing attorney in Manhattan and is the General Counsel of the Authors Guild. She is the Vice President of Theater Resources Unlimited, a producers’ networking organization, and is the outside Counsel for the League of Professional Theater Women. She is an award winning playwright and TV writer, and is a freelance writer for Law and Order: SVU.
Miko Branch
Miko Branch is the Co-Founder and CEO of Miss Jessie's, the Award Winning Hair Care Brand. She is also a Pioneer, National Best-Selling Author, Philanthropist, Proud Mother & Sister to Titi Branch. Miko and her Co-Founder and sister Titi, revolutionized the hair care industry by being the first to develop original and groundbreaking hair products designed to enhance and enrich every type of textured curly hair for people of every ethnic background. They named their brand after their fiercely independent grandmother – Miss Jessie.
Wendy Tyson-Wood
Wendy Tyson-Wood is a sought after business strategist specializing in the areas of managerial insight, interpersonal relationships, analytical analysis, and technical proficiency. She has managed globally diverse teams in executing software deliverables and operations using a variety of methodologies. Wendy has also conducted business outreach workshops in person and virtually for a Two-Billion Dollar Project, achieving a 30% contract goal for M/WBE firms and organizations. With over ten years of experience in Information Technology, her knowledge encompasses solution delivery, data, program, and budget management. She continues to build and maintain customer relations with local community leaders and elected officials.
Honorary Board Members
Beverly Jones-Lawrence
Beverly Jones-Lawrence served as an active member of the Shirley Chisholm Cultural Institute for decades. Her Aunt Margarite Johnson a close friend of Shirley Chisholm and the first President of the Shirley Chisholm Cultural Institute for many years recruited Ms. Lawrence to the organization. Aunt Margarite would always say, "do not join any organization because of your friends, always join for the cause".
William R. Howard
At the young age of 23, the legendary political figure Wesley McD. Holder asked William (Bill) R. Howard to be the Finance Chair for the Shirley Chisholm congressional campaign. William became a party to history when Shirley Chisholm became the first black woman elected to the U.S. Congress breaking a color and gender barrier, which subsequently lead to him working on Shirley Chisholm’s groundbreaking presidential campaign. William always maintained that his personal relationship with Shirley Chisholm opened many doors. This relationship allowed him to meet Presidents Jimmy Carter, George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, and George W. Bush, and the entire US Supreme Court, and in his own words “anybody who was anybody in Washington, DC.”
William E. Howard
William E. Howard (1968 – 2020), son of William (Bill) R. Howard, Finance Chair and Longtime Friend of Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm, served as Construction Executive for Turner Construction. In his spare time, he sponsored the Project Win Summer Basketball Tournament and many community projects. He was about Brooklyn. Godson to the late Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm, William continued the legacies that have came before him.


mission+
objective
Shirley Chisholm Cultural Institute (SCCI)
Established in 1977
To provide voluntary services for children to enhance their development; provide cultural experiences to help children become more expressive, more creative and more appreciative; provide opportunities for the parent/guardians of children to be invested in enhancing the educational and cultural advancements of their children through participation and understanding; to help parents, guardians and children utilize economic, recreational and health and resources in the community; to assist in creating new resources that will lead to family stability. Chisholm depended on the Shirley Chisholm Cultural Institute, a network of women from all walks of life, to keep her in touch with the community and its concerns.