Howard University is proud to announce the appointment of Monique Greenwood, a trailblazing journalist and visionary business owner, as the first John H. Johnson Endowed Chair of Entrepreneurship. The two-year stint begins April 2016 and is housed in the School of Communications with a University-wide reach.

“We are pleased to have Ms. Greenwood serve as the inaugural Johnson Endowed Chair,” says Dean Gracie Lawson-Borders of the School of Communications. “Like Mr. Johnson, Greenwood is an entrepreneur with extraordinary communications and business acumen. Her passion and platform for business ownership and innovation will resonate across the Howard campus and throughout the Washington, D.C. community.”

Greenwood is a magna cum laude graduate of Howard who spent two iconic decades in magazine publishing, culminating with the top editorial spot at Essence, where she served from 1996 to 2001. She launched the award-winning Akwaaba Bed and Breakfast Inns in 1995 and has grown her hospitality enterprise to five locations in four cities, all listed among the top lodging accommodations on Trip Advisor, the nation’s leading consumer review site. The native Washingtonian’s purchase of a city block in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, to create a “Main Street in Urban America” with retail stores all owned and operated by local residents of color is a testament of her commitment to build thriving minority-owned businesses.

“I’m extremely honored to use my experiences and professional relationships to inspire the next generation of game changers,” says Greenwood. “Howard students are driven and destined to build on the successes of legendary leaders like John H. Johnson. By working to push forward entrepreneurial efforts already in place at the University and by bringing in distinguished speakers to share their inspiring startup stories and growth strategies, I’m confident Howard will incubate countless cutting-edge businesses that will create viable employment and help transform lives.”

Linda Johnson Rice, CEO of Johnson Publishing Co. and daughter of the late John H. Johnson, the pioneering journalist who founded Ebony and Jet magazines, established the Johnson Endowed Chair “to strengthen a culture of entrepreneurial activity across the University among students, faculty, staff, alumni and community business owners,” says Ms. Johnson Rice.

The endowed chair will collaborate with other University entities, such as the Small Business Development Center, the newly launched Innovation Hub on Georgia Avenue, and the Deans of schools across campus to foster a spirit of entrepreneurship. Coordinating workshops and a speaker series for undergraduate and graduate students, as well as alumni and local small businesses, is also part of the charge.

About Howard University

Founded in 1867, Howard University is a private, research university that is comprised of 13 schools and colleges. Students pursue studies in more than 120 areas leading to undergraduate, graduate and professional degrees. Since 1998, the University has produced two Rhodes Scholars, two Truman Scholars, a Marshall Scholar, 30 Fulbright Scholars and 11 Pickering Fellows. Howard also produces more on campus African-American Ph.D. recipients than any other university in the United States. For more information on Howard University, call 202-238-2330, or visit the University's Web site at www.howard.edu.