Miss America Organization Board of Trustees Announces Six New Trustees
External and internal expertise come together to advance Organization’s mission and vision
For immediate release
Atlantic City, New Jersey
August 27, 2018
The Miss America Organization Board of Trustees today is pleased to announce the addition of six talented individuals who broaden the expertise and experience of the board in order to advance the mission of the organization ~ preparing great women for the world and the world for great women.
New Board members include a prominent advertising and marketing executive and former local titleholder; a financial advisor and former elected official; an expert on male advocacy for women in leadership; a chief client officer for one of the world’s most iconic ad agencies; a former Miss America who is an author, producer and former sportscaster, and an expert, author and advocate for women’s issues.
New trustees joining the board are:
Shenan Reed
As President, Chief Client Officer, at Publicis, Shenan manages Verizon’s strategic activity across the Publicis Groupe agencies serving its business and creates bespoke solutions that drive the business forward. An entrepreneurial business leader with over 20 years of experience, Reed was previously President of the US L’Oréal business at Wavemaker (formerly MEC), where she oversaw the strategic direction of the agency’s partnership with the beauty brand. Prior to her tenure at Wavemaker, Reed founded the digital marketing agency Morpheus Media, which became renowned for its work with premier luxury, fashion and retail clients. Over the course of her career, Reed has worked with an impressive roster of blue chip brands across various categories including The New York Times, Neiman Marcus, LVMH, Net-A-Porter, Lord & Taylor, Tiffany & Co., Chanel, A&E Networks, Vimeo, IFC, Sundance and The Economist.
Shenan is a highly sought-after thought leader, regularly presenting at major advertising and digital media industry conferences. She has been quoted often in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, AdAge, MediaPost, Huffington Post, AdAge, AdWeek and Women’s Wear Daily to name a few. She has served on several advisory boards including Pinterest, AdLedger, Namely and Style Coalition.
A strong advocate for developing the next generation of female leaders in her industry Shenan was selected by AWNY as a Changing the Game Winner in 2016 and an AWNY Working Mother of the Year Honoree 2015. She has been a judge for the Stevie Awards for Women in Business as well as an award recipient.
“I’m thrilled to be joining the board of Miss America and am looking forward to working with my fellow board members to help shape the future of this storied organization. Together we will guide it into a new era continuing its tradition of helping young women achieve their goals.”
Barbara Moore
Barbara has been a financial advisor with Uhlmann Price Securities for more than 30 years. As the former mayor of the Village of Greenwood Lake, New York, Barbara strove to secure alternative funding to finance community projects, ensuring economic viability and continued prosperity for her community. She initiated and maintained ongoing communications with local, state and federal governmental agencies and was selected from more than 600 mayors in the State of New York to be one of eleven members of the New York Conference of Mayors Executive Committee.
Barbara has been both a participant and supporter of the Miss America program as a contestant, judge, producer and director of numerous programs in the Miss America system.
Jeffery Tobias Halter
Jeffery is the country’s leading male expert on engaging men in women’s leadership advancement. He is the president of YWomen, a strategic consulting company that works with Fortune 500 companies and leading industry associations. Jeffrey is a two-time TEDx speaker and the author of two books, including WHY WOMEN, The Leadership Imperative to Advancing Women and Engaging Men.
His work has been profiled in The Atlantic, New York Daily News, and Forbes. Jeffery’s clients include IBM, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Gallo Winery and dozens of other Fortune 500 companies. He also sits on the Simmons College business advisory committee and has led major projects at national organizations including the Network of Executive Women.
“I am humbled and honored that the Miss America Organization has invited me to become a board member. My goal is to help drive male advocacy and support, as well as corporate governance and to uphold the mission of the Miss America organization.”
Shelley Diamond
As the Chief Client Officer for Young & Rubicam, Shelley is a passionate builder of global brands and businesses, with expertise across an integrated array of communications disciplines. As one of the highest ranking female executives in advertising, she was named the 11th Most Powerful Woman in Advertising by Business Insider.
An experienced public company board director who brings extensive consumer, digital/social and communication strategy expertise to the boardroom, Ms. Diamond’s corporate and private governance experience includes tenures on the boards of Paetec Holding Company (PAET:US), serving on its compensation, nominating and governance committee 2009-2012 (acquired by Windstream Communications in 2012 for $2.3 Billion); W.O.M.E.N in America and Enactus, an NGO working with over 66,500 students 1,600 university campuses in 36 countries. She also serves on the advisory board of Sweetwater Energy, a renewable biotech company.
She is the practice lead for Y&R Inspire Change, a unit driving social-good initiatives and partnerships for for-profit and nonprofit client partners and currently Acting CMO at UNICEF USA. She has managed P&L responsibilities for Dell, Tyson Foods, the Campbell Soup Company, and Xerox throughout WPP-representing over $100 million in annual revenue.
Shelley is also a globally renowned mentor and a champion of women in the work force. She leads women’s initiatives for Y&R Globally including WPP’s commitment to the United Nations Gender Equality Sustainable development goal. Among other endeavors, she is a founding member of W.O.M.E.N in America and a charter member of the prestigious Fortune / U.S. State Department Global Mentorship Program since inception. Ms. Diamond has recently been named a Global Ambassador for Vital Voices. Her mentees were named Goldman Sachs & Fortune Global Woman Leaders two years running.
“I have spent many months working with the Miss America Organization on the rebranding of Miss America. It has been a journey of discovery, unearthing the magic of the past almost 100 years of this amazing organization and helping to create the vision and framework that will give this powerful brand relevance for the next 100 years. In bringing necessary change, we make possible our mission to ‘prepare great women for the world and the world for great women,’ I am honored to now join the board.”
Sharlene Wells Hawkes
Since 2005, Sharlene Wells has been President of Remember My Service (RMS) Military Productions, a Division of StoryRock Inc. Today, RMS is the Military’s only full-service book and video production support for unit historical records and Department of Defense War Commemorations. She was appointed by the Secretary of Defense to the Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Services and is a member of the AMAR Foundation (London) Board member working to rebuild lives in middle east conflict areas.
Sharlene holds a Bachelor’s degree in Communications from BYU, and a Master’s degree in Integrated Marketing Communication from the University of Utah. After college, she signed with ESPN and spent 16 years as an award-winning sportscaster there, covering such world-class events as World Cup Soccer, World Cup Skiing, the Kentucky Derby 1995-2004, the French Open, and Big 10 College Football. She was a host of College Gameday, World Cup Soccer Today, Scholastic Sports America, ESPN’s Sailing, and Great American Events.
Sharlene was born in Paraguay, later living in Ecuador, Chile, Mexico, but spent most of her teenage years in Buenos Aires, Argentina. She is the only foreign-born Miss America (1985), and is an accomplished musician and published author.
“I believe in the Miss America mission and continue to believe that we are capable of change towards relevancy through professional discourse and development. Today’s forward-thinking, bold women require a whole different format to challenge and reward them. I am excited to work with the board and all who care about the Miss America program. To the candidates heading to Atlantic City, focus on doing your best, stay positive and soak up the experience. We are part of something uniquely American!”
Kathleen Neville
For the last eight years, Kathleen has served as a senior advisor and consultant to the National Football League on major social issues including sexual assault, sexual harassment, domestic violence and gender equality, where she created the NFL’s first dedicated workplace policy guidelines on sexual harassment and workplace conduct standards
She is an author of multiple books and essays and a communications and reputations strategist for diverse workforces including Wall Street and private equity firms, financial institutions, holding companies, school and college campuses, multinational corporations and the military.
Kathleen has appeared on Good Morning America, The Today Show in NY, CBS This Morning, National Public Radio, NewsHour on PBS, Oprah, CNN, NBC, Fox and ABC networks. She has also been quoted in The Wall Street Journal, Associated Press, Agence France Presse, The Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times and numerous other media outlets around the world.
She has successfully developed and implemented various empowerment/self-esteem programs for young girls through such organizations as the YWCA. Prior to establishing her own consulting firm, Neville served as a Senior Vice President at Hill and Knowlton International Public Relations in the New York.
“I wholeheartedly support the direction of Miss America 2.0. First and foremost, Miss America must be relevant. Change doesn’t disregard the past of this organization, it supports it. Miss America 2.0 fully honors the rich history of the Miss America organization and remains true to its vital core mission — to provide both an opportunity and a platform for women to earn scholarships and experience the kind of personal growth and sisterhood that is solely unique to the Miss America competition. The leadership of the Miss America Organization recognizes all that is at stake, right now. In order to continue to offer this opportunity to women going forward, sustainability is critical. In essence, that is what everyone is rooting for — we want to ensure that Miss America remains a relevant part of our culture for years to come. It’s time to come together and make sure that happens.”
About The Miss America Organization
The Miss America Organization, a 501(c)4, is one of the most recognizable household names in America working to empower young women through education and service. The Miss America Organization is comprised of 51 licensed state organizations, including all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Miss America candidates contribute tens of thousands of community service hours annually and have raised over $17 million for Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals and Miss America scholarships since 2007. The Miss America Foundation, a 501(c) (3), provides academic, community service, and other scholarships to young women.
Follow The Miss America Organization on social media:
Facebook: @MissAmerica
Twitter: @MissAmericaOrg
Instagram: @MissAmerica
Official website: www.missamerica.org Hashtag: #MissAmerica
