The Knoxville Area Urban League (KAUL) recently closed its extensive search for a new leader, securing Dr. Laurie Shanderson Evans as its new president and CEO. The experienced academic leader and CEO of Accreditation Insights, Evans, brings over 30 years of leadership in higher education and consulting expertise. She will begin her tenure with KAUL on July 7, with strong endorsements backing her appointment, according to WATE.
Shanderson Evans, who has been lauded for her strategic vision in community-building and advocacy for equity, is established as a figure capable of guiding the KAUL into its next chapter. "I am honored to join the Knoxville Area Urban League and lead an organization with such a powerful legacy of service and advocacy," she articulated, based on a statement obtained by Knox News. She is expected to move to Knoxville from Nashville to assume her new position and will step into office just ahead of one of KAUL's key events, Shoes for School, set for August 2.
In the interim, Dr. Avice Reid held the fort as the organization's interim president and CEO, following Dr. Charles F. Lomax Jr.'s departure last August. Evans was unanimously elected on June 18 after a national search in collaboration with the National Urban League, highlighting the board's thorough search for a candidate of her caliber, as noted by WBIR.
The scope of Evans's experience speaks for itself, with senior roles including serving as chancellor of Methodist College and as founding dean of the School of Health Sciences at Northcentral University. "She also completed a certificate in higher education administration from Harvard Graduate School of Education," according to Knox News. Peers have described Evans as mission-driven and strategic, with her background seemingly intertwining seamlessly with the demands of a community-based CEO role, per the insights KAUL shared.
