The Speakers & Host
Vince TyraUniversity of Louisville’s Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics & Director of Athletics
Read Bio
Vince Tyra, a Louisville native with strong business credentials, was named as the University of Louisville’s Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics and Director of Athletics on March 26, 2018. He had previously served in an interim role leading Cardinal Athletics for six months prior to his appointment. Tyra has been highly active since assuming his position, using his business acumen, passion for Cardinal Athletics and background in athletics to lead UofL during a period of transition. He has provided leadership while continuing to move the Cardinals forward in all sports, building upon the positive legacy of previous athletics successes, and taking the time to personally reach out to the UofL fan base and donors on multiple fronts. Prior to his appointment at UofL, Tyra served as an operating partner since 2007 for Southfield Capital, a Greenwich, Conn. based private equity firm that invests in lower middle market companies. Tyra most recently served as chairman of the board and interim Chief Executive Officer of Elite Medical, a company based in Clearwater, Fla. Tyra was a corporate advisor from 2008-2017 for ISCO Industries, a privately held piping supply company based in Louisville, Ky. He also formerly served as the president of Retail and Activewear for Fruit of the Loom in Bowling Green, Ky. |
Mae Suramek Founder / Owner of Third Space Kentucky, Berea, KY
Read Bio
Mae is the Founder/Owner of Third Space Kentucky in Berea, KY. Third Space represents places where we spend time, between home and work, exchanging ideas, building relationships, and strengthening our communities. You can find Mae and some of the best food in Berea by visiting Noodle Nirvana, Hole & Corner Donuts, and Happy Jack's! |
Jonathan WebbFounder & CEO of AppHarvest
Read Bio
Kentucky native Jonathan Webb is turning his dream of a high-tech farming hub in Appalachia into reality with AppHarvest. The company is building some of the largest indoor farms in the world, combining conventional agricultural techniques with today’s technology to grow non-GMO, chemical pesticide-free produce. The company’s first greenhouse spans 60 acres – the equivalent of 45 football fields – and opened in 2020 in Morehead, Ky. Why locate in Appalachia? Like many Kentuckians, Jonathan grew up knowing of the devastating job losses in the region. His grandmother was raised in Whitley County, where a coal mining accident killed his great-grandfather. Jonathan strives to work alongside the hard-working men and women of Central Appalachia and build a resilient economy for the future. Before founding AppHarvest, Jonathan worked with the U.S. Department of Defense on what was then the largest solar project in the Southeastern United States. The project aimed to help achieve a White House goal of ensuring the military receives 20% of their electricity from renewable sources by 2025. |
Sadiqa ReynoldsPresident & CEO of Louisville Urban League
Read Bio
Sadiqa Reynolds is the President and CEO of Louisville Urban League. Her appointment made her the first woman to hold this title in the affiliate’s 95-year history. She has previously served as Chief for Community Building in the Office of the Mayor where she oversaw approximately 1500 employees. Sadiqa serves on several boards including Fund for the Arts, the Louisville Chamber, WAVE3 Editorial Board, WDRD Advisory Board and is a Director for the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. She served for two years as District Judge for the 30th Judicial Court. She was also the first African American woman to clerk for the Kentucky Supreme Court when she served as Chief Law Clerk for the late Chief Justice Robert F. Stephens. Her life as a public servant also includes being the first African American to serve as Inspector General for the Commonwealth of Kentucky. Services. Prior to entering the public sector, Sadiqa owned her private legal practice, which included criminal litigation, employment law, death penalty litigation and serving as Guardian Ad Litem representing abused, neglected and dependent children as well as arguing successfully before the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals. She has also been recognized by the Louisville Bar Association for providing pro bono hours in which she represented domestic violence victims and other disadvantaged citizens. Sadiqa earned her BA in Psychology from the University of Louisville and her law degree from the University of Kentucky. She is a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. and Bates Memorial Baptist Church. She received the 2017 Community Leader of the Year Award from the National Alliance on Mental Illness because of her work to reduce the stigma around mental health. She is also a proponent for Restorative Justice and participated in the face it campaign to end child abuse. She has been interviewed by the New York Times, and appeared on CNN’s Headline News for the Louisville Urban League’s work in jobs, justice, education, health and housing, as well as serving as a guest on CBS News, FOX News, BBC and other international news outlets. Sadiqa is a much sought-after speaker recognized this year as the Charles W. Anderson Laureate award recipient by the Commonwealth of Kentucky and one of Louisville’s CEO’s of the year. She’s been previously recognized as a Business First Enterprising Woman to Watch and a Woman of Influence. She has been honored with a Tower Award, a Torch of Wisdom and named a Daughter of Greatness by the Muhammad Ali Center. She’s received the Fannie Lou Hamer award, for her commitment to justice and in 2016 was recognized as BizWomen’s Business Journal top 100 women to watch nationally. She was also recognized for her housing advocacy work by the Mortgage Banker’s Association and in 2017 was recognized as Louisville’s Communicator of the Year. Sadiqa has received honorary Doctorates from Spalding University and Simmons College of Kentucky. She was the 2017 Louisville Magazine Person of Year and a 2018 National Urban League Woman of Power. She has two wonderful daughters, Sydney, 10th grade and Wynter, 8th grade, both being educated in public schools. Her goal is to leave the world better for them.Prior to his appointment at UofL, Tyra served as an operating partner since 2007 for Southfield Capital, a Greenwich, Conn. based private equity firm that invests in lower middle market companies. Tyra most recently served as chairman of the board and interim Chief Executive Officer of Elite Medical, a company based in Clearwater, Fla. Tyra was a corporate advisor from 2008-2017 for ISCO Industries, a privately held piping supply company based in Louisville, Ky. He also formerly served as the president of Retail and Activewear for Fruit of the Loom in Bowling Green, Ky. |
Marvis HerringWeekend Morning News Anchor at WLKY-TV
Read Bio
Marvis Herring is the weekend morning news anchor at WLKY-TV, the local CBS affiliate. You will also find the award-winning multimedia journalist reporting live from the field several days per week. With 2 a.m. wake-up calls, Marvis loves exploring the local coffee scene in addition to the diverse restaurant industry Louisville offers. The Derby City is close to his “home(s),” too. Marvis’ hometown is Memphis, Tenn. After several childhood moves, he graduated high school in central Ind. Then, earned his undergraduate degree from Grand Valley State University. Marvis has worked as a reporter, producer, photographer and anchor in Michigan. His first on-air job, in central Illinois at WMBD News, allowed Marvis to sharpen experience as a reporter, anchor, lifestyle talk show host, digital and news producer. A few pasttimes include crating playlists, traveling (pre-COVID life), workouts, dancing, buying more houseplants and reassuring people that his name does, in fact, end with an “s.” |
Good Business Highlight: Black Soil
|
Representing 1.4% of the primary farm operators in the state, black farmers account for less than 600 of the more than 76,000 agricultural operations in Kentucky.
The mission of Black Soil: Our Better Nature is to reconnect black Kentuckians to their legacy and heritage in agriculture. By bringing together urban families with rural and urban based black farmers/growers/producers across the state, we help introduce opportunities in agriculture that promote self-sufficiency, encourage healthy living, and activate cooperative economics. Our vision is to help foster a greater market share for black farmers and producers as they provide healthy food options to a larger consumer base. |
The Canopy Certification Launch
Watch Scott Koloms, Founder & CEO of Canopy, as he officially launches the Canopy Certification
at the 2021 Good Business Summit.
at the 2021 Good Business Summit.
The 27 Campaign Fund
Watch Scott Koloms, Founder & CEO of Canopy, present the 27 Fund check to the CEO & President of the Louisville Urban League, Sadiqa Reynolds, during the 2021 Good Business Summit. This gift is made to A Path Forward and will be distributed to fund Black-owned businesses in Louisville.
The presentation was a phenomenal wrap up to the 27 Campaign and Fund which Canopy launched in June 2020 to rally Kentucky’s business community to address racial injustice and invest in Black businesses. The campaign consisted of recruiting 26 Kentucky businesses to actively strengthen diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) efforts; raising money to support Black-owned business; and collaboratively creating a DE&I resource guide for businesses undergoing the Canopy Certification. |
|
Get Canopy Certified |
Stay Up to Date |