ATLANTA–Donna Gambrell, longest serving and first African American woman to be appointed director of the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Fund, will deliver the Founders Lecture, “Why Race and Place Matter,” at Georgia State University on Wednesday, Nov. 4.
The lecture, free and open to the public, will take place at 6:30 p.m. in the Centennial Hall Auditorium (100 Auburn Ave. NE). The talk is hosted by the Honors College and is in memory of Charlotte McClure, late founder of the Georgia State Honors Program.
Gambrell is an advocate for revitalizing the nation’s most vulnerable, low-wealth communities.
During her tenure from 2007 to 2013, the CDFI Fund experienced significant growth, more than doubling funding under its flagship program, and it strongly supported a CDFI industry responsible for providing affordable capital, credit and financial services to low-income neighborhoods. Under Gambrell’s leadership, the CDFI Fund designed and administered new initiatives targeted to underserved markets, including the Capital Magnet Fund, the Healthy Food Financing Initiative and the CDFI Bond Guarantee Program.
Gambrell retired from federal government service in December 2013 and is a visiting, non-resident scholar at the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta.
“We are honored to be hosting Donna Gambrell on our campus,” said Larry Berman, founding dean of the Honors College. “Donna has been recognized over the years for her commitment to community and economic development and we can’t think of anyone better to discuss the relevant topic of race and place and their importance.”
Event Contact:
Mallory McKenzie, Assistant Director of External Relations
Georgia State Honors College
404-413-5765
[email protected]
Media Contact:
Annahita Jimmerson, Director of Communications
Georgia State Honors College
404-413-5571
[email protected]