Aaron Mallory
Founder & CEO
GRO Community
Compass: The Navigators of Next
Meet the Gamechangers
Chicago leaders charting bold paths across business, culture, community, health, education, and civic life.
2026 Honorees
The Class of 2026
Aaron Smoot
Community Engagement & Advancement Manager
Cleveland Avenue – The CAFE Group
Alexa Rice
Founder
Beech Beauty
Allen C. Shelton
Founder & CCO
Narratent Digital Marketing
Ariel D. Rainey
CEO and Founder
Hustle Mommies
Aris Singleton
CEO
Thank God It’s Natural
Ashlee Feemster
Director, Brand Solutions
BET
Ashley Coleman
President
C&G Construction Supply Company
Brittany Winstead
Associate Director, R&D Oncology
AbbVie
Chardai Johnson
Managing Director & Head, Economic Equity Advisory Group
BMO Bank N.A.
Cleopatra Draper
Radio Personality
WVON
Corey Williams
Designer, Actor, Author, Stylist
GRÉVYI
Corinth Jackson
Chief of Staff
Obama Presidential Center Operations
Destiny Singleton
2025–2026 CPS Honorary Student Board Member
Chicago Board of Education
Dixon Romeo
Executive Director
Southside Together
Dr. Karen Fields-Lever
Owner
28 to Brush Dental Studio
Iisha Scott
Meteorologist
NBC Chicago
Jamila Trimuel
Founder & CEO
Ladies of Virtue
Janella Curtis
Founder & CEO
Notary Nook and NookScan Protocol
Jessica Barnes
Senior Counsel
Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani
Joy Joshua
Founder & Creative Director
Journey & Thingz
Kalia Coleman
Partner
Riley Safer Holmes & Cancila LLP
Kenneth Griffin
Founder
No Matter What
Kiearrah Lawrence
Associate Director, Marketing
AbbVie
Krista Whitaker
EVP of Legal and Business Affairs & Chief Legal Officer
Chicago Bears Football Club
Kyle Gardner
Angel Investor
Dobson Avenue Capital Partners, LLC
Lauren Green
Vice President
C&G Construction Supply Company
Leah Fulton
Vice President of Programs
Chicago Scholars Foundation
Makunde George Martin
Software Engineer
Malik Jackson
Publisher
Chicago Reader
Malik Zambezi
Photographer and Visionary
Malik Shot You
Marshall Hatch
Executive Director
MAAFA Redemption Project
Moriah Dowd
Digital Producer
Mean Media
Nina Idemudia
Chief Executive Officer
Center for Neighborhood Technology
Oscar Joyo
Visual Artist
Oscar Joyo
Rahim Thompson
Senior Program Manager
Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center
Rev. Ciera Bates-Chamberlain
Executive Director
Live Free Illinois
Ronnie Mosley
Alderman
City of Chicago, 21st Ward
Shantel Franklin
Democratic Nominee for Illinois State Representative HD-08
Illinois General Assembly
Stevie Valles
CEO
Chicago Votes
Teryn Payne
CMO, The Retro Grill
Management, CTC (Chance the Rapper) LLC
Troy Vivrett
Co-Founder & COO
Southern Chicago
Xavier Vance
Executive Chef & CEO
Southern Chicago