Dr. Melissa Noland Chester

Dr. Melissa Noland Chester

Educator. Entrepreneur. Speaker. Author. Wife. Mother.

Currently touted as a Success & High Performance Strategist, Dr. Melissa Noland Chester is a former professor who taught on the collegiate level for approximately fifteen years. She is a three time Amazon best-selling author and is also the Co-Founder & CEO of the national nonprofit, Black Educators Rock, Inc., a national nonprofit for minority educators and those serving minority students. Black Educators Rock, Inc.’s (BER, Inc.) flagship initiative is an annual summer Professional Development conference, The ROCK Conference. BER, Inc. also has three internet stations, Elevate Media, Enlighten Media, & EmpoWEr Media. The organization is also in the process of creating BER, Inc. Publishing, which will publish educational material that reflects today’s society. Dr. Chester is committed to serving and impacting the lives of others by improving their situations through consulting, facilitation, and speaking. Her dedication and passion to assist individuals and organizations is evident in the many seminars, workshops, and programs she has participated in and implemented. Dr. Chester is also a Broker/Realtor and Florida licensed real estate instructor. She is the Managing Broker at Premier Coast Realty, LLC . She is also the Lead Instructor at Premier Coast Real Estate School. She is also licensed in Georgia and is currently working on obtaining her Alabama and North Carolina Licenses. Dr. Chester is also the National Association of Real Estate Brokers (NAREB) local board president for Jacksonville, FL. She sits on several local and regional boards that are committed to supporting youth, including Georgia Association of Alternative Education, River Oak Recovery School, and The Center One Foundation. She is also a proud member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. Dr. Chester is married to Dr. Albert Chester II who is a Pharmacy Manager at Walmart. They have two sons, Aiden and Alexander. You can visit her website at https://www.solutiontosuccess.com or her organization websites at https://www.blackeducatorsrock.org or www.rockconference.org.

Sheila Gilmore

Sheila Gilmore

Sheila Gilmore is a savvy marketing and advertising executive with over 25 years of experience including strategic planning, brand and campaign management, creative services, direct response marketing, event planning, market research, product development, and database management. Producer of high-profile signature events during Super Bowl, NBA All Star week, and the renowned Long Beach Jazz Festival. Client Roster includes Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, (Rainbow PUSH Coalition), Dr. Joseph Bryant, Jr. (PROSPEAK, Calvary Hill Community Church), Chris Broussard, (K.I.N.G. Movement), UNCF, Rainbow Promotions, Navigator Sales & Marketing, and Hallmark/Mahogany Cards.

Sheila began her cable career with Valley Cable in Los Angeles, CA and has moved onto hold positions of increasing responsibility in the marketing and sales, culminating with the launch of the Gilmore Group, a full-service marketing and advertising company specializing in integrated marketing solutions to a diverse roster of clients in the sports, entertainment, corporate and non-profit sectors.

Prior to launching her company, Sheila was the Vice President, Sales and Marketing, West Division for Charter Communications. In this role Sheila was responsible for the strategic development and implementation of the day-to-day marketing activity for all product lines and sales channels in the West Division, serving over 1.1 million customers in California, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, and Texas. In this role, Sheila also made all programming selection decisions for the Division.

Prior to joining Charter Communications, Sheila was the Director of Acquisition for Time Warner Cable, Los Angeles Division. Sheila played an integral part in the Time Warner marketing organization that has consistently posted among the highest customer growth rates in all of Time Warner. In fact, as a result of Sheila’s marketing activities in recent years, the West Valley cable system has achieved the highest customer penetration levels, at 63%, of any franchise area in the City of Los Angeles.

Sheila gives generously of her time to support a variety of charitable and civic causes. It is through her leadership in this area that she has become a preferred partner for cable programmers interested in collaborating for community and system level events.

AFFILIATIONS/AWARDS
1991 - Employee of the Year by fellow employees at Cablevision Industries
2000 - WICT (Women in Cable & Telecommunications) Woman of the Year, LEA Award
2000 – Present National NAMIC Board Member
2002-2007 – Event Co-Chair NAMIC Vision Awards
2003 - CTAM Mark Award and NAMIC’s Excellence Award for Multi-Cultural Television Commercials
2007-Present – NAMIC Vision Awards Judge
2008-2013 – NAACP Image Award Nominating Committee Member

Michael Robinson

Michael Robinson

Michael Robinson applies over 20 years of expert knowledge, industry experience, and relentless energy to solving your company’s issues. A graduate of Walden University with a Masters Degree in Nonprofit Management & Leadership, to accompany his 2 Bachelors Degrees from Valdosta State University in Criminal Justice and Paralegal Studies; Michael began his career at The Center One Foundation, Inc. as a College Counselor. Within 5 years, Michael became Director of Operations at The Center One Foundation and assisted the company in achieving over 3 million of awarded scholarships to college bound seniors, the implementation of the Only Historically Black College and University College Fair, and the successful completion of 2 multi-state college tours.

Today, Michael specializes in working with companies in the fields of Sales and Operations, strategic planning, and marketing. With his most recent post being Sales Manager for a KIA dealership specializing in training and development and sales implementation. With more than 11 years of experience and the successful completion of more than 20 projects, Michael can work effectively with your staff, listen to their ideas and help implement the changes necessary for successful completion of the project. Let Michael be your consulting partner, as he has done for companies including Pay It Forward, Inc. (Nonprofit Organization designed to educate people about Insurance and Medicaid services), Project M (Independent Video game developer), and HYPE for Purpose Inc. (Nonprofit Sports and Performing Arts Company). His expertise and experience can be an incredible asset to your company and its goals.

Nelson McCoy

Nelson McCoy

Nelson McCoy has 20 years of educational and entrepreneurship experience.
Nelson has graduated with his Masters in Secondary Education from the University of North Florida. He currently is a second year PhD student at Florida State University focusing on Educational Leadership and Policy Studies. After teaching in the Duval County Public Schools system for 7 years, he founded a non-profit that offers Holistic College Preparation Services and job placement. He is the current Founder and Executive Director of The Center One Foundation Inc. During his powerful career path, Nelson developed the Iota Youth Alliance in Jacksonville, Florida and served as a director on the national board. He created the first national HBCU College Fair in Jacksonville, Florida. He has received the UNF Black Alumni Achievement Award for his work in nonprofit development. He has been awarded the Community Pearls Award for being a change agent in the Jacksonville Florida Area. He has been named Bethune Cookman's top 40 under 40. He currently sits on the board of the University of North Florida's Black Alumni Association. Nelson enjoys his works with young adults and is committed to his beliefs about a fiscally responsible education through his community engagements at international universities and colleges.