POSTED: Tuesday, June 16, 2009
BY AMANDA GETCHEL, OURTOWN.COM
LAFAYETTE -- When Shannon White moved to the Greater Lafayette area she never thought she would be staying.
Seven years later, community leaders have recognized White as one of the Top 40 Young Professionals under 40, and she has become the first black executive director of the local YWCA of Greater Lafayette.
Although White did not think she would stay in Lafayette, she said she realized the community was a wonderful place to raise a family.
“Having lived in Atlanta and Houston I realized the public school system is good and the commute times are minimized if they exist at all,” White said. “I’m from a small town. The town I grew up in is [about] the size of West Lafayette, so it’s just a matter of perspective and once you become a parent, you appreciate having the ability to raise your children in a small town.”
College Shaped White's Life
White spent her childhood about an hour northwest of Cincinnati in the approximately 28,000-person city of Xenia, Ohio. She attended Spelman College in Atlanta and received her degree in computer science. She moved to Indianapolis to work at Eli Lilly and Co. then later returned to Georgia where she continued working for Eli Lilly.
However, it was her four years at Spelman College that helped shaped who she is today and how she does her job, White said. One of her professors encouraged her to volunteer and be an advocate for issues, she said.
“[The professor said] volunteering was not an option but a commission to give back and be a voice for those who couldn’t articulate themselves or be able to deal with the issues.”
YWCA Removes Barriers for Community
White said the programs the YWCA offered and its mission helped her decide to volunteer there. She also served on the board of directors for two and one-half years before applying for executive director.
In the past two years since she became executive director, the YWCA has enhanced its mission to eliminate racism and empower women.
“We’re talking about removing barriers to access for women of color,” she said. “When we do it for one woman we’re doing it for the community.”
White said she has worked to bring two programs to the YWCA that aligned with the organization’s mission: unlearning racism workshops and a money management 101 course. The workshops provide forums for people to come together and talk about racism, she said, and the money management course provides information about economic empowerment for women and the community.
Michelle Kreinbrook, a member on the YWCA board of directors, said the programs White helped start were important because the YWCA needed to be the platform as a diversity roundtable and the organization had the means to do it both locally and nationally.
Besides the money management course and the workshops, the YWCA also provides free classes on topics such as budgeting and planning, good and bad debt, taxes and credit scores.
Believing in Community
“I believe in this community,” White said. “It’s very important that low-income [people] or minorities have an organization that’s looking out for their welfare and serves as a benefit for those in the community. This is a unique community because if you didn’t want to see homelessness or poverty you could easily avoid it, but it does appear here.
“There are many obstacles that people who are white just aren’t experiencing so they don’t have a point of reference to say there are unfair practices. Those are ways I think we can be that voice.”
Kreinbrook said White is doing a wonderful job as executive director.
“I think it’s a huge task because it’s not always easy to come into a new position and with new staff but also being given the task to make sure everything [follows the mission],” she said. “I think she’s doing a great job given the tools she’s been given and the timeline. With the economy the way it is, it’s an opportunity of possibilities.”
As if working to enhance the YWCA’s mission was not enough, White was recognized as one of the Top 40 Young Professionals under 40 in 2006. She said she was surprised she won and to this day did not know who nominated her.
“It has done a lot in terms of recognizing not just myself but a group of individuals in our community who really are doing incredible things in an economic, academic or non-profit aspect,” she said. “I think a lot of communities don’t [recognize that] and when you’re not engaging that younger generation it’s easy for people to move away. I think it’s a bigger significance for the community because it shows they’re really looking to recognize and foster talent that exists with all age populations and not just those that are seasoned veterans.”
Kreinbrook said White was an up-and-coming person who should be recognized for her passion.
“We need to foster that and keep her here,” Kreinbrook said. “I’m sure many things she’s brought to the table have helped her to get where she is now. [It’s nice] seeing her present herself and represent the YWCA. Her work represents who she is and her passion for what she does.
“She’s quick to cry and the reason is because it means so much to her. I think that says something about a person. She means what she does.”
Despite all her accomplishments, White remains humble and continues to focus on the community and fostering and informing people on the YWCA’s mission and programs.
"My personal motto is to take one day at a time,” White said. “My responsibility and goal is to implement the strategic plan the board [of directors] approved through 2015. It will continue to allow the community to understand the Y and what we do and allow me to reach out into community and do public speaking on programs we provide.”
For more information about the local YWCA, its mission and the programs it offers please visit ywca.org/lafayette. The YWCA Greater Lafayette is located at: 605 N. 6th St., Lafayette, IN 47901. To contact the YWCA Greater Lafayette please call 742-0075.
Amanda Getchel is a Lafayette native and a recent journalism graduate of Ball State University.