Black Women in Leadership: Honoring Maggie Lena Walker’s Legacy
(BALTIMORE – December 19, 2025) – In 1903, Maggie Lena Walker became the first Black woman to charter a bank in the United States. She didn’t wait for permission. She didn’t ask for a seat at the table. She built the table.
123 years later, her daughters continue that tradition across Greater Baltimore.
They negotiate multi-million dollar deals. Lead institutions that transform communities. Create solutions in boardrooms and laboratories. Overcome obstacles that would crush lesser spirits. Black women remain the most educated demographic in America while simultaneously facing the highest rates of workplace discrimination and economic displacement.
The BMORENews.com family refuses to let their brilliance be marginalized.
WOMEN IN LEADERSHIP PANEL Saturday, January 3, 2026 | Black Wall Street New Year Summit 10 AM – 2 PM
RSVP to BlackWallStreetSummit2026.eventbrite.com.
THE POWERHOUSE PANEL: Moderated by Alexandria Warrick Adams, CEO, Elev8 Baltimore
Featuring:
- Attorney Alicia Wilson, Vice President for Civic Engagement and Opportunity, Johns Hopkins University
- SMonique Smith, Author/Executive/Serial Entrepreneur/Activist
- Shea Rice, Interim CEO, Greater Baltimore Urban League
- Sherida Santiago, Entrepreneur & DBA Candidate, University of MD Robert Smith School of Business
- Tiana Wells-Lawson, Business Banking Relationship Manager at Fulton Bank
- Jacqui Cummings, Founder, Black Wall Street 25th Street
THE CONVERSATION: How do Black women define success on their own terms? When did they stop seeking validation and start setting standards? What does leadership look like when you’re constantly leading from behind enemy lines?
This panel explores self-definition, strategic resilience, and building generational wealth in spaces that weren’t designed for our survival—let alone our excellence.
ALSO FEATURING:
- Authors Panel with Dr. David Miller
- Branding Panel featuring Mob The Block
- Keynote: Media Trailblazer Robyn Murphy
In Honor of Maggie Lena Walker – who proved that economic sovereignty begins when we stop asking permission to be powerful.
Black Wall Street New Year Summit 2026: Because our mothers, wives, sisters, and daughters deserve more than survival. They deserve dominion.
