Female-focused statewide nonprofit Inforum will host its annual Capstone event themed “The Year That Changed Everything,” featuring a keynote speaker and panel discussion on diversity and inclusion

Michigan – October 2020 – Inforum, a statewide organization focused on the professional growth of women, will host its annual Capstone event on Thursday, November 12^th, from 5:45-7:30 p.m. This year’s event will be “The Year That Changed Everything – Antiracism and the Urgency of Now,” and feature keynote speaker Kelley L. Carter, a Michigan native and senior entertainment reporter of ESPN’s The Undefeated, where she focuses on the relationship between race, pop culture, and sports. The event will be held virtually and also will feature a panel of West Michigan women who will discuss ways the local community can better work toward diversity and inclusion. Tickets are available here. 

“The responsibility of media – journalism, yes, but certainly images that are shaped and created by Hollywood as well – is at its most important,” Carter said. “2020 has called every industry to the carpet; nearly every public sector is being taken to task about what their inner workings look like, and Hollywood – always thought to be one of the more progressive industries in platform – is finding that it has to really examine not only the output of images and how they contribute to racial inequities and stereotypes, but also take a hard, firm look at who gets to make those decisions.” 

The annual celebration hosted by Inforum West Michigan is typically held in Grand Rapids but has become virtual as a result of COVID-19. Due to the pandemic, Inforum has moved all of its efforts, including its programming, networking events, and group meetings online. 

“It is an extreme honor to have Kelley L. Carter as this year’s keynote speaker,” said Terry Barclay, Inforum president and CEO. “Inforum is thrilled to have the ability to host this annual event despite the pandemic and shine a light on the importance of diversity, equity, and inclusion.” 

Following the keynote, Robyn Afrik, the first director for the Ottawa County Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), will moderate a panel discussion featuring West Michigan women. The panelists, Michelle LaJoye, sheriff of Kent County; Kelsey Perdue, Kids Count project director at the Michigan League of Public Policy; and Milinda Ysasi, Grand Rapids city commissioner and executive director of The SOURCE, will focus on what community members can do to make important strides toward equity and inclusion. 

“This year has been nothing but unprecedented and unpredictable,” Barclay said. “Regardless of the things it might throw at us, we can grow, learn, and improve during these times. This year’s theme encourages those in attendance to take charge and make change for the better.” 

Amway is Premier Sponsor for the event. Other supporters are Presenting Sponsor Meijer, Leadership Sponsor Spectrum Health, Business Booster Ascension, and in-kind sponsor 8THIRTYFOUR Integrated Communications. For additional sponsorship opportunities, please contact Inforum’s Becky Puckett-Wood at bpuckett-wood@inforummichigan.org. 

For more information or to register for the November 12 event, please visit Inforum online here.

Speaker

Kelley L. Carter 

Kelley is the senior entertainment reporter for ESPN’s The Undefeated where she covers the intersection of race, pop culture and sports. She’s also worked for outlets including USA Today, Vibe, BuzzFeed, Ebony, Essence, ESPN.com, MTV News, the Chicago Tribune, and the Detroit Free Press. Carter is a Michigan State University alum. To read more about Kelley click here.

Panel

Michelle LaJoye

Michelle became Sheriff of Kent County in 2018. She worked diligently during her career to implement processes which make the administration of the mission of the Sheriff more efficient. Michelle has worked for the Kent County Sheriff’s Office since 1989 in various roles within the corrections, patrol, communications, and support services divisions. She represented the office of the Sheriff starting in 2010 as the Chief Deputy and in 2015, the Undersheriff of Kent County. Some of those projects include a jail expansion project, jail management software implementation, electronic fingerprint and mug shot software implementation, law enforcement mobile computing initiatives and record management upgrades. To read more about Michelle click here.

Kelsey Perdue

Kelsey joined the Michigan League of Public Policy in 2019 as the Kids Count project director. She oversees data and advocacy work to increase economic security and racial equity for children across Michigan. Prior to joining the League, Kelsey managed and delivered direct service programming in the education, health and technology sectors in West Michigan, Washington, D.C. and abroad. Her diverse experiences inform her systems level thinking and equity lens. Kelsey is a recipient of the 2019 Grand Rapids Business Journal 40 Under 40 Business Leader Award, 2017 LINC UP Community Spirit Award and her work has been highlighted in online and print publications. To read more about Kelsey click here.

Milinda Ysasi

Milinda is the executive director of The SOURCE, an organization focused on reducing employment barriers and creating opportunities for mobility for employees that work for their partner organizations. The SOURCE began as an idea by local CEOs who wanted to retain talent in their companies and understood that talent is a differentiator for success. Prior to The SOURCE, Milinda worked in human resources at Cascade Engineering, Herman Miller, and Spectrum Health. Milinda is currently a city commissioner representing the 2nd Ward in Grand Rapids. She is a co-founder of the Latina Network of West Michigan, an organic collective focused on changing the Latina narrative in the region. To read more about Milinda click here.

Moderator

Robyn Afrik

Robyn serves as the first director for the Ottawa County Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), established in 2019. With over 280,000 residents and the third fastest growing county, the office convenes key relationships with local community, business and policy leaders; including local units of government in order to lead and develop a DEI strategic plan. Robyn is responsible for assessing implicit bias in current polices and decision-making processes with a goal to operationalize DEI throughout the organization. Prior to this, Robyn led and pioneered Meijer’s Diversity & Inclusion efforts as a D&I Manager. To read more about Robyn click here.

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