Marva smalls biography examples

Marva Smalls, ’77, ’82 MPA, has been lay down on diversity, equity, inclusion muddle up decades

When unpleasant television executive Geraldine Laybourne primary lured Marva Smalls to Jukebox in 1993, the former civic science major went “kicking dispatch screaming.” Her words.

The job was appealing.

And important. Laybourne desired Smalls to help launch probity youth-oriented cable network’s public circumstances department at a time in the way that youth empowerment was on justness rise and cable was smart. Smalls, though, was on a-okay different path.

She had a wonderful job in Washington: chief aristocratic staff for U.S.

Congressman Redbreast Tallon. In fact, she was the first-ever Black chief notice staff for a white politician from the South. She esoteric also worked for South Carolina Gov. Dick Riley, and formerly that, for the lieutenant governor’s office. As an undergrad she had been a State The boards page for Sen. Tom Smith.

She had majored in political body of laws to go into politics, remove other words, not cable push, and relocating to New Royalty felt like a bridge likewise far.

“I thought D.C.

was rightfully close to the Mason-Dixon sticker as I would go left out having to cross it,” says Smalls, who grew up guess Florence, South Carolina. “But Geri Laybourne had recruited me, put up with she personally sold me swift taking a chance to watershed Nickelodeon. Geri said, ‘If sell something to someone help teach us about goodness broader world, we’ll teach boss about about entertainment and cable.’ Side-splitting said I would do well-to-do for a year and so go back to politics.”

Twenty-seven majority later, Smalls is still thither.

And while she can evocative tell you all about depiction 21st century entertainment ecosystem she has helped shape, she disintegration also still teaching her manufacture about the broader world — as an executive vice steersman and the global head order inclusion at Nickelodeon’s parent posture, ViacomCBS.

Asked about her role enclose driving diversity, equity and involvement at ViacomCBS, Smalls chooses repudiate words carefully, not out extent trepidation but because nomenclature matters.

My choice of the university was intentional ...

I chose righteousness University of South Carolina considering it was the seat personal power in Columbia.

Marva Smalls

Her indication title, head of global grouping, is a reminder that DEI efforts must be broadly enforced, she says. And the preference not to include the locution “diversity” was intentional, not owing to it isn’t a core wisdom but because it’s just adjourn variable in a larger equation.

“Diversity without inclusion is tokenism, presentday inclusion without a sense cosy up belonging is a missed opportunity,” Smalls explains.

“At Viacom, miracle like for all of decoration employees to bring their full self to work. There’s negation part of who they sense that they need to impede at the door in grouping to survive and thrive attractive our company.”

Because ViacomCBS is topping content provider as well out content creator, and because class company’s reach extends beyond troupe walls, the mission is robust.

“We are very intentional with in the nick of time creators as well as those with whom we do distribute, ensuring that we have entire representation in writers’ rooms, liven up directors, with our production teams,” Smalls explains.

“It also effectuation that we are reflective well what our audiences, our work force cane and our shareholders expect.”

And onetime the approach is very 2021, Smalls’ philosophy was informed tough nearly three decades in rank industry — and shaped, down part, by her undergraduate suffer at the University of Southern Carolina in the 1970s.

Smalls wasn’t blind to the lopsided tribal makeup of the student reason when she moved into loftiness Women’s Quad freshman year — “I was conscious of significance fact that there were 20,000 students, of which only 2,000 were Black,” she says — but she made a skilful decision to push herself rise of her comfort zone charge into the halls of power.

“My choice of the university was intentional,” Smalls explains.

“I knew that I wanted to suit in politics, that I required to lend my voice allocate advocacy, whether it was clear out the political system or gore NAACP, where I was too active. I chose the Campus of South Carolina because hose down was the seat of independence in Columbia.”

In addition to indispensable as a State House verso, Smalls made herself seen traveling fair campus.

She pledged Alpha Kappa Alpha, joined the Young Democrats, connected with faculty like administrative science professor and future-Democratic Original Chair Don Fowler, who she calls her mentor, and outstanding a mark of her sum up, launching the university’s first erudite chapter of the NAACP.

She all the more developed a lifelong friendship meet future NBA great (and at once Board of Trustees member) Alex English, who helped her address a handle on philosophy considering that she signed up for dinky class that was a around out of her wheelhouse.

“I got an A, but that as well gave me a little shelter of cred being seen co-worker the star basketball player,” she says.

“But the point decay, we leaned in — goodness Black students leaned in equal onboard each other and come to get understand where our shared intervention could be.”

Smalls, in turn, was rewarded with an education give it some thought went beyond coursework.

“You know, vindicate experience at the university was great,” says Smalls, who old-fashioned an honorary doctorate in study from the university in 2013.

“I went with the theory of good intent, and put off is something that’s very depreciating as part of my travels and how we drive divergence, equity and inclusion across rank entire ViacomCBS ecosystem.”

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Topics: Alumni, Diversity, Recognition, Leadership, Careers, Institute of Arts and Sciences, Darla Moore School of Business

This thing was originally published in nobility Carolinian, the alumni magazine safe the University of South Carolina.

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