Wanda White

Leading WSEP, Wanda White brings lessons from local government, the private sector, and the not-for profit sector and her business development training to foster economic development and employment opportunities to other women. White strategically links women to economic opportunities, in her own words, "with a commitment to community but also an understanding of the private sector. It’s a real commitment to make sure that people can turn their personal asset of self into a material asset." White not only has overcome her own set of obstacles and challenges, but inspires others to do the same.

The obstacles I guess would be what women experience. I don’t know that mine have been unique to African-American women, other than the voice of African-American women in the community, in economic development. And, economic development is fairly small; it’s a small world.

Having been exposed early to a very diverse social and familial environment, having a very entrepreneurship-oriented family that said, "Yes. There is a cliff. Prepare, but jump. There’s going to be a landing, and it’ll be a good experience."

I am a breast cancer survivor. I remember doing chemo and going to do a community meeting in the afternoon and chemo in the morning. I was able to not only be an inspiration for other people, but had other people who kind of helped me along at the same time.

Another major accomplishment would be to organize communities to work together to achieve the Chicago’s empowerment zone designation. The process was both public and private and really driven from neighborhood.

I just did an interview with someone who’s doing a book on fathers and daughter’s relationships and I realized as I was talking to her, that from my father through my career, there have been a lot of African-American males that have served as mentors.

Skeptics are necessary because they keep us accountable, because they’re always raising questions, but they’re not negative. Cynics are people who don’t believe it’s possible, and so they aren’t rejuvenating; they aren’t reinvigorating; and they don’t give life and birth to innovation.

At fifteen you don’t have to have it all figured out. If you can think of yourself as the center of the wheel, there are lots of spoke opportunities that you will have. At fifteen, you just want to make sure that you’re prepared to go off into one of those spokes.

To admit that we need ego-stroking is human; to expect it to occur where you are doing your life’s work should not be the case. I tell people, "The singing part of me recognizes that I can be an entertainer, and if I need to have a stroke, I’ll find a stage."