Managing Partner, CLE Consulting Firm Entrepreneurship and Money 

Board Chair, Step Forward Board of Directors

LaRese Purnell

LaRese Purnell has 18 years of experience in business management, tax and finance. He is one of the founders and managing partners of CLE Consulting Firm, an accounting, tax and payroll company located in downtown Cleveland. As a strong, innovative financial and strategic leader with both instincts and intellect, Purnell is a formidable combination in the business world. He has served in executive positions, leading business and finance departments within multi-million dollar for-profit and non-profit corporations.

Purnell is the author of Financial Foundations: Building Financial Freedom One Tool at a Time, where he uses everyday language to address the fundamental questions people have about money. Purnell also created The Real Black Friday, an organization that brings awareness to and creates educational and collaborative opportunities for hundreds of small Black-owned businesses. 

Tri-C Eastern Campus President

Dr. Todd Kitchen, Ed.D

Todd Kitchen joined Tri-C in 2021 after a decade of service as vice president of student services at Northwest Arkansas Community College. He has extensive experience in driving strategic initiatives to increase access to education and improve student completion rates, having implemented online education programs, created a collegewide counseling and wellness center and led collaborations with four-year institutions to guarantee admissions for underserved students.

Kitchen is a member of the National Association of College Registrars and Admissions Officers and the National Association of Student Affairs Professionals. He is a U.S. Army veteran.

President and Chief Executive Officer, Step Forward

Dr. Jacklyn Chisholm

Jacklyn A. Chisholm, Ph.D. is President and Chief Executive Officer of Step Forward, the largest Community Action Agency in Ohio.  

Prior to joining Step Forward, Dr. Chisholm served as Chief Executive Officer of the Global Music Cultural Center (GMCC), a museum and cultural arts center planned for Atlanta, Georgia.  She is the former Vice President of Planning and External Affairs at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum where she was responsible for the development and implementation of the Museum’s strategic plan, management of government relations and community outreach activities, and Project Director for the construction of the Rock Hall’s $13 million Library and Archives.  Dr. Chisholm also served as Associate Vice President for Community Partnerships at Case Western Reserve University, where she developed the Center for Community Partnerships. 

Founder, Peel Dem Layers Back

Manager, BIPOC Male Mental Health at National Alliance on Mental Illness

Archie Green

In his own words, Green is a “dream, then wake up and go-getter.” He is well-known for his lyrical abilities as a Hip-Hop artist. In fact, Green's introspective single, “Layers,” which was about his lived experience with depression, premiered at VICE.com in 2016 and garnered more than 25,000 streams in two weeks. He subsequently founded Peel Dem Layers Back, a 501(c)3 to promote mental health awareness through a Hip-Hop lens. 

Green has been the recipient of various awards for his work as a Mental Health Advocate including the Gallant Gentleman Award for Mental Health from Alpha Kappa Alpha's Linking Partnership Opportunities, Cleveland Magazine's Most Interesting People Class of 2018, and the 2021 Rising Star Award from the 100 Black Men of Greater Cleveland.

Director, The Fatherhood Iniative

Al Grimes

Mr. Grimes is responsible for developing, implementing and managing the Cuyahoga County Fatherhood Initiative. He has managed the initiative from inception into a successful best practice program while securing millions of dollars for fatherhood activities/programs/special events from a combination of county, state and federal funding. Mr. Grimes manages all county-related fatherhood contracts, leads community activities and represents the county in collaborations. He also directs policy development and technical assistance among collaborations and works with national, state and local partners to monitor the successes of other fatherhood programs.

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Grimes has also spent time working with community organizations that include the United Way, the United Negro College Fund, SCLC, BPA, and the Boy Scouts of America.

Founder, Breadwinners Academy

Creator, Slice of Pie show

Jason Lockett Sr.

Jason Lockett Sr. is the founder and Executive Director of Breadwinners Academy. Breadwinners Academy is a Cleveland-based nonprofit organization that teaches financial literacy & entrepreneurship in high schools, colleges, and community centers throughout Ohio. The mission to is to bridge the wealth gap through financial literacy.

Alongside devoting his career to personal finance, Lockett co-owns several small businesses including commercial properties, merchandising, and retail shops. He is also the founder of “The Breadwinners,” which is a financial planning firm.

Lockett recently created a show called, “Slice of Pie.” It offers a master class on personal finance while highlighting local trailblazing entrepreneurs.

Founder & Board Chairman, National Institute for African American Health

Associate Professor of Internal Medicine, Northeast Ohio Medical University

Associate Professor of Integrative Medical Sciences, Northeast Ohio Medical University

Dr. Greg Hall

A native of Cleveland and graduate of Williams College, Dr. Greg Hall is an internal medicine physician practicing in Richmond Heights, Ohio. Dr. Hall is an Associate Professor in both the Internal Medicine and Integrative Medical Sciences departments at the Northeast Ohio Medical University and an Assistant Clinical Professor at CWRU’s School of Medicine. Dr. Hall was a governor-appointed member of the Ohio Commission on Minority Health and served as Chairman for many years and currently serves as the Board President of the Cuyahoga County Board of Health.

Dr. Hall wrote “Patient-Centered Clinical Care for African Americans: A Concise, Evidence-Based Guide to Important Differences and Better Outcomes,” which is the first comprehensive book detailing the optimal clinical care of African Americans.

At University Hospitals, Hall was awarded the Edgar B. Jackson Endowed Chair for Clinical Excellence & Diversity and he is the Medical Director of University Hospitals’ Cutler Center for Men which takes a multidisciplinary approach to improving all men’s health.