Laverne McCartney Knighton is Area Development Director for UNCF (United Negro College Fund Inc.), the nation’s largest and most effective minority education organization offering scholarships and opportunities to over a half million Black students in our country. She oversees fundraising, scholarship program development, and external relations to benefit UNCF’s 37 member private, historically black colleges and universities and area students in Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska and North and South Dakota.

She is a native Texan, “a child of the 60s and a child of segregation”, raised in the small rural town of Doucette, Texas. 1n 1968 of her eighth-grade year, she was one of the first Black students bussed from an all-black school to an all-white school across town to test desegregation. After integration was mandated in 1969 by Texas law and the school was fully integrated, Laverne went on to become the first African American valedictorian to graduate in 1973.

Laverne was recruited to Minnesota in 1978 upon graduation from University of Houston where she earned her BS degree in Consumer Science & Merchandising to start her career in retail fashion merchandising with Dayton Hudson Corporation. She returned to Houston, Texas in 1980 where she adapted her career

goals to work in the oil and gas industry for seven years with Panhandle Eastern Pipeline. As destiny would have it, she was recruited back to Minnesota in 1987 to continue in the field of fashion where she was a buyer for ten years with Dayton’s/Marshall Fields.

In pursuit of her passion to serve community and to make a difference, Laverne spent seven years as Public Information and Education Manager for Tubman Family Alliance, a domestic violence organization where she built community partnerships and created public awareness about the issue.

Laverne is also an experienced corporate leader having spent 13 years at Target Corporation in Community Relations/Corporate Social Responsibility where she helped advance Target’s reputation as a leader in education, arts, and diversity. She early retired in 2013 but returned to the nonprofit sector in 2014 as Program Director for The BrandLab where she led and managed an initiative to provide diverse high school students exposure, access, and opportunity to careers in marketing and advertising.

Laverne believes that service equals an authentic and deep connection to community. Whether as a volunteer, mentor, or board member, she serves with diligence, commitment, and enthusiasm. She is an expert connector and collaborator, a passionate ally and advocate for community building and engagement.

Laverne made a bold move in June 2020 and stepped into the arena of politics. In answering the call for change in response to the murder of George Floyd, Laverne was one of forty African American women recruited by Black Women Rising who stepped up to say “no more!” Laverne ran for Minnesota State Senator District 65 against a 30-year incumbent. With just eight weeks leading up to an August 11th Primary, Laverne ran a fast and furious campaign in hopes of winning a majority to be a new voice and new choice on the November General Election ballot. Although she did not win the Primary, she garnered over 36% of the votes as a first-time candidate and put the powers that be on notice that the status quo was no longer acceptable. Her platform addressed the need for changes in systemic racism, public safety reform and bringing much needed and long overdue diversity to the State Senate. Laverne was featured on MSNBC Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell, Elle Magazine, BBC News, Pioneer Press, MPR News with Angela Davis, Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder, Insight News.

Laverne serves as an External Advisor to Governor Tim Walz’s Community Resiliency and Recovery work group to address racial inequalities, and disparities due to COVID-19 and to look at policymaking and other opportunities to help communities of color. She was appointed in 2017 to Governor Mark Dayton’s Young Women’s Initiative Council working to improve equity for young women living with the greatest disparities in Minnesota.

In 2019 Laverne was recognized as a Woman of Excellence at the Celebrating The Sistas Award Ceremony in recognition of her outstanding leadership, contributions and commitment to the Twin Cities community. In 2021, she was honored as a Path Finder and featured in the Minnesota African American Heritage Calendar. She has been recognized by the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal as one of 200 Black Leaders in the Twin Cities region and as a 2021 Notable BIPOC Executive.

Laverne is actively involved in local chapters of professional national service organizations: Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated, The Links, Incorporated and The Girl Friends, Incorporated. She currently serves on the boards of Face to Face and Black Women Rising.

She is an Alumni of Leadership Saint Paul and has served as Advisory Board Member for Cedar Riverside People’s Center, YWCA of St. Paul and Chicago Children’s Advocacy Center. She is a former Board Member of Summit University Planning Council, APEX Charter School and various arts organizations. She

has also served as an active member of Chicago African Americans in Philanthropy, Minnesota Blacks in Philanthropy and Donors Forum and is currently a member of Minnesota Council of Nonprofits. She has served as Graduation Coach for Achieve Minneapolis, Reading Tutor for Reading Corps and mentor for Girls Taking Action and Project Diva. An avid reader since childhood, she has been a member of Our Book Club for the past 35 years.

Laverne resides in St. Paul with her husband of 28 years, Russell Knighton. They have three children -Jason, Kymba, Jaraux and six grandchildren. Laverne and Russell are proud members of Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church in Minneapolis.