Foundation

ABOUT THE FOUNDATION

The Broward County Black Chamber of Commerce Foundation was established in 2017 and created to be the educational and community arm of the Broward County Black Chamber of Commerce. The Foundation has a board, consisting of local business professionals, who are responsible for governance and ensuring the overall well being of the organization.

The purpose of the Foundation is to encourage promote wealth building through entrepreneurship and financial literacy. We focus on startup education, business basics sessions, as well as education to help increase capacity and provide information on new industries, business trends, and new opportunities. Lastly, we aim to increase access to financing and information as that may help close the financing gap.

Ultimately, we want to increase the number of strong, stable, black businesses, which will create more jobs and wealth in the community and reduce poverty. Overall, this makes our regional, state, and national economy stronger.

OUR FOCUS

The Broward County Black Chamber of Commerce Foundation is dedicated to creating economically healthy communities through entrepreneurship and financial literacy education and technical assistance.

ABOUT THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Jocelyn Carter-Miller

Bio

Jocelyn Carter-Miller is President of TechEdVentures and SoulTranSync- entrepreneurial ventures specializing in the development and marketing of high performance educational and personal/community empowerment programming. Also, she leads Jocelyn Carter-Miller, LLC, a business consulting firm. Jocelyn serves on the corporate boards of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (Compensation Committee Chair, Nominating and Governance Committee), InterPublic Group, Inc. (Nominating and Governance Committee Chair, Audit Committee), and Arlo Technologies, Inc. (Compensation Committee Chair, Audit Committee), and served on the Netgear, Inc. board until August 2018. Recently, Jocelyn joined the private board of Backblaze,Inc., a cloud storage and data backup company, where she serves as Lead Director and Compensation Committee Chair. Also, she serves on several non-profit boards including NACD National and the Broward Black Chamber of Commerce Foundation. As a corporate director, Jocelyn focuses on best-in-class governance practices and strategy, and provides oversight/expertise on effective marketing principles and techniques (i.e. branding, targeting/ personalization, data analysis, digital marketing, social media and user experience), and financial management to support cultures that drive efficient growth, spending accountability, and increased valuations. Jocelyn has also used her expertise to successfully take three companies public through the IPO process. Previously, Jocelyn was Executive Vice President- Chief Marketing Officer of Office Depot, Inc. with global marketing responsibility for 846 superstores, contract, catalog and e-commerce businesses. Prior to Office Depot, she was Corporate Vice President- Chief Marketing Officer of Motorola, Inc. with overall marketing responsibility for its $30 billion diverse communications, infrastructure and semiconductor businesses. Also, Jocelyn was general manager for Motorola network operations in LA and EMEA. Before Motorola, she was Vice President- Marketing and Product Development at Mattel, Inc., achieving record sales and profits for Barbie.

Kristen Goss, Esq.

Bio

Kristen Goss, Esq. was born and raised in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. She earned her high school diploma from Fort Lauderdale Christian School. Thereafter, she earned a Bachelor of Science with a concentration in Communication Studies and Political Science and a minor in Spanish from the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida. Mrs. Goss attended the Thomas M. Cooley Law School and interned as a Certified Legal Intern for the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office her last semester of law school. She earned her Juris Doctorate degree with a concentration in Litigation in May of 2010. A cool fact about Mrs. Goss is that she obtained her Series 6 and life insurance licenses, operating as a Financial Advisor for a New York-based investment firm for 3 years after graduating from law school. Not only is she a licensed Attorney, Mrs. Goss is a Certified Guardian Ad Litem, Florida Supreme Court Certified Family Mediator, and a Collaborative Family Law Attorney. Mrs. Goss’s communications, legal, and financial background provide her the ability and experience to remain empathetic while actively listening to her clients. Mrs. Goss has mediated over 100 cases, and she has a high track record of helping families settle and resolve their legal issues. Mrs. Goss has been nominated for Super Lawyers and the top 40 professionals under 40. In addition to her professional career, Mrs. Goss is a wife to her husband, Marlon, of 13 years and counting and mother to two beautiful daughters who are 9 and 5 with one on the way. Mrs. Goss enjoys giving back to the community. A few of her community engagement activities include being the CEO of a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization entitled, “Kids Demonstrating Worth, Inc.,” serving on the engagement and legal committee of Missions United that provides support to our Veterans in Broward County, and serving as a pro bono collaborative law attorney for the Broward Pilot Program at the Broward County Courthouse. She also serves as the Community Service Chair for the Broward County Black Chamber of Commerce.

E. Mike Gelin, CEBS

Bio

Mike Gelin, CEBS is a business owner, an insurance broker for over 20 years, and a community servant. He understands the importance of serving the community and has volunteered in a variety of capacities. Mike has represented his city on the Community Involvement Roundtable of the Broward Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO), served on the City's Insurance Advisory Board, and graduated in the 2009 Class of Tamarac University. He is a past member of the Forum Club of the Palm Beaches, Florida’s premier non-partisan political and public affairs organization. In 2014, he was selected as a Fellow for the inaugural class of the New Leaders Council of Broward County. Mike currently serves on the board of directors of the Center for Independent Living of Broward County, the Youth Survivors Foundation, a nonprofit that provides mentoring and scholarships, the National Forum of Black Public Administrators (NFBPA), and a volunteer with the local Kiwanis Club in Tamarac, Florida. Previously, for years he served on the Board of Directors of the Cooperative Feeding Program, and as a committee member for the Hanley Center Foundation’s Annual Family Picnic. In addition to community service, Mike is involved in South Florida's business community and professional organizations. He is a member of the Broward League of Cities and the Tamarac North Lauderdale, Lauderhill, Haitian-American, and Miramar- Pembroke Pines Chambers of Commerce. He is also a member of the Broward Association of Health Underwriters. He is the Membership Chair for the Broward County Black Chamber of Commerce. For many years, he was an active member of the Greater Fort Lauderdale Alliance, the Miami Beacon Council and the Palm Beach Business Development Board. Mike is a graduate of Morris Brown College. He studied abroad at the University of Ghana in West Africa, and the American InterContinental University in London, England. Since graduation, he has continued his professional education and training, earning multiple professional designations including the Certified Employee Benefit Specialist and the Group Benefits Associate from the International Society of Certified Employee Benefits Specialists and the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

Donnette Russell-Love, Esq.

Bio

Donnette Russell-Love, Esq graduated from the University of Miami School of Law with her Juris Doctorate in May of 2000. After Law School, Ms. Love worked as an Assistant Public Defender at the Broward County Public Defender’s Office from 2000 to 2004 before starting her own law practice Donnette Russell-Love, LLC in 2004, which she has operated for the past 18 years. Her practice focuses Immigration matters processing Family and various Business immigration Visas in the US and abroad. Additionally, her practice extensively handles US immigration and US Border matters for individuals throughout the Bahamas, Caribbean, and US pre-clearance countries representing clients with issues preventing them from entering or re-entering the US. She is also the CEO and President of Immigration Care Service, LLC in Florida, an immigration, and criminal document retrieval service company that she founded in 2014. The company has served hundreds of clients of the with obtaining relevant immigration and US criminal documentation requested by US Customs and Border Protection Agents Ports and US Consular Offices abroad not readily accessible to individuals residing in foreign countries. A longtime member of the American immigration Lawyers Association, and an active immigration advocate, volunteering time and resources to support various community immigration and citizenship drives throughout the year.

Benson Ellis

Bio

Benson Ellis serves as a Director with the Foundation and has been a practicing Architect for almost 20 years. He is active in the community as a soccer coach, serving on the Board of Directors for the Youth Survivors Foundation, and he has owned a small business. Benson Ellis, RA, LEED AP is currently a Project Manager at RLC Architects, where he has worked since 2005. He is a graduate of the Florida A&M University, where he earned his Bachelor of Science in Architecture. He is also a part of the Washington Alexandria Architecture Consortium.

Shaheewa Jarrett, Esq.

Bio

Shaheewa Jarrett, Esq. serves as the General Counsel and Vice President of Compliance for an insurance brokerage company. In 2017, she incorporated the Broward County Black Chamber of Commerce and the Broward County Black Chamber of Commerce Foundation. The Chamber launched in August of 2018 and currently has over 260 members. The Chamber is focused on access to capital, advocacy, connecting its members to decision makers in the public and private sectors, and educating its members and the community about the value of certifications. The Chamber Foundation received its 501(c)(3) status in July of 2020 but the entity has provided training and technical assistance since its inception. Shaheewa has been honored for her hard work and dedication. In March 2015, the Broward County Women’s History Coalition presented her with the 2015 Rising Star Award at their annual Women’s Hall of Fame Luncheon. In 2018, she was honored as one of “South Florida’s Most Influential and Prominent Black Women in Business and Industry” by Legacy Magazine. In 2019, she was honored with the T.J. Reddick Bar Association’s President’s Award and recognized by Legacy South Florida as one of “South Florida’s Most Powerful and Influential Black Business Leaders of 2019.” In late 2019, she received the “Healing the Community Award” from the Healing Arts Institute of South Florida International in recognition of her efforts to build community collaborations. Shaheewa has volunteered with several community organizations. She is currently a member of the Broward County Small Business Development Advisory Board and Broward County Public Schools Small Business Advisory Board. Shaheewa also serves on the Board of Directors for OIC Strategic Integration. In the past, she has served as Board Member and Vice President for the League of Women Voters of Broward County, as a member of the Broward County Human Rights Board, and on the Board of Directors for the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Southern Florida. Shaheewa graduated from the Florida State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Political Science and earned a Juris Doctorate from the University of Miami School of Law. In 2009, she received a certificate in Non- Profit Management from Duke University.

OUR PROGRAMS

Youth / Students

Speaker Series - The Foundation has a monthly speaker program, where entrepreneurs share their life and business experiences with the students.
Tech Day - The Foundation has also helped to organize and provided a keynote speaker for Dillard Tech Week, which introduces students to tech start-up concepts.
Mentorship – We helped the students create a business for entrepreneurship competitions. Concrete business topics such as raising capital, pricing, business models, and marketing are covered.
Our programming expanded this year to include Dillard High School, Boyd Anderson High School, and Walker Elementary School.

Adults /Community Wide Sessions

We host financial literacy workshops and sessions that are open to the community to close the wealth and information gaps. There is instruction on budgeting, improving credit scores, saving, retirement, purchasing life insurance, and much more. The goal is to prepare these families and small business owners for college expenses, buying a home, starting a business, investing or otherwise moving them up the economic ladder. We have also held sessions on getting certified, small business legal clinic, among other useful sessions.

The Foundation funds technical assistance, both in group and individualized sessions, on basic and advanced entrepreneurship topics. We utilize accounting, legal, marketing, and business services as part of our programming.

OUR PARTNERS

The Foundation believes in working with others in the community to achieve our goals.

We are grateful to our funding partners Truist, Comerica Bank, CVS/Aetna, FloridaBlue and Bank of America. The support of our funders is the lifeblood of the Foundation.

We have worked with other partners, such as the African-American Research Library and Cultural center, the Lauderdale Lakes Education Center, and we plan to add a few cities so we can run business centers in their cities.