VANESHIA HOUSTON
Vaneshia Houston graduated from Cleveland State University where her initial studies were in Civil Engineering, resulting in a double major in Biology and Chemistry. After completing her undergraduate studies, Vaneshia became NIMS, Lean, and Green Belt Six Sigma Certified. Her professional development is unmatched with over 15 years in the transit industry, 18 years as a public service leader, and a champion in business operation enhancement and strategic solutions.
The Transportation Manager for the Paratransit District at Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority, she monitors and assists in managing a budget of $24 million and launched the first Paratransit Operator Mentor Program in the country. In addition, she is an active member of several organizations, a self-published author, and a Board Trustee for the Black Professionals Association Charitable Foundation (BPACF).
CHAD PORTER
Chad Porter, Founder & CEO of CHVD JUSTIN. Graduate of The Ohio State University with a bachelor’s in economics.
CHVD JUSTIN is a minority-owned innovative bag company that the founder started in his dorm room in college, in which he invented a patent-pending wearable tech bag product called the WEARPACK®, a 5-in-1 transitional, hand-crafted, durable bag with a detachable chest piece, shoulder, and waist bag.
ANTHONY W. SCOTT, ESQ
Anthony W. Scott, Esq. has worked for the City of Cleveland, Ohio since 2013. He presently serves as Special Assistant to the Director of the Department of Community Development. He also provides consulting and professional services to small businesses and non-profit entities as the principle of “I.S.I. Consulting, LLC.”
He is the Asst. 4th District Counselor for the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc., President of the Zeta Omega Foundation, and the Governance Chairman for the Black Professionals Association Charitable Foundation (BPACF).
He received a Navy Achievement Medal (while enlisted in the United States Marine Corp); the Zeta Omega “Chapter Man of the Year” and “Omega Man of the Year” awards; “Who’s Who in Black Cleveland”; and Kaleidoscope magazine’s “40 under 40.”
He received his Bachelor of Arts Degree, master’s degree in public administration, and law Degree from Cleveland State University.
MARK GRANVILLE
Mark Granville is originally from Trenton, NJ, and moved to Cleveland to work for the Cleveland Cavaliers. He went to North Carolina A&T, where he received a BS in Industrial & Systems Engineering; he returns each year during homecoming to award scholarships to a few students. His career started at Microsoft in Chicago, IL, as an Account Technology Strategist, but he wanted to work in sports.
He joined the Cavs in 2021 as an Account Executive and was promoted to the Corporate Partnerships team after six months. Since then, he has focused on creating exposure for black-owned businesses through sports marketing. Mark is the chair of BELIEVE, the Cavs’ Black Employee Resource Group. He’s also a recreational basketball coach and a personal trainer. He is also a nonpaid adjunct professor because he graduated last month from Cleveland State with his Master of Arts in History.
