Just steps away from the historic Apollo Theater on West 125th Street in New York City, more than 40 Colgate students joined with nearly 100 alumni for the 2025 Convergence Leadership Summit and a special Alumni of Color panel discussion about arts and innovation.
The March 14–15 event, open to all students and organized by the Men of Color Success Network and the Women of Color Network, brought together students and successful alumni from a wide range of professional backgrounds to foster career exploration and networking opportunities.
“This transformative experience brought together 44 talented Colgate students and dozens of inspiring alumni, creating a space for deep conversations, mentorship, and collaboration,” said Dean of Students Dorsey Spencer Jr. “From an empowering keynote to insightful workshops and panel discussions, the event was a testament to the power of community, leadership, and innovation.”
Spencer also gave a nod to the students in attendance for giving up the first two days of their spring break to participate in leadership development and networking opportunities.
“Your mission today is to connect with at least seven different people,” Spencer said. “Get their business cards, their LinkedIn, email, phone number, whatever. That’s what you need to do.”
Friday night keynote speaker Nicol Turner Lee ’90 shared her experiences working at the Brookings, where she is a senior fellow in governance studies, the director of the Center for Technology Innovation (CTI), and co-editor-in-chief of the TechTank blog and The TechTank Podcast. Her research focuses on the intersection between technology and social justice in areas that range from universal access to communications to the design and application of artificial intelligence models.
Turner Lee delved into the subject of artificial intelligence, which she covers in her newest book, Digitally Invisible, How the Internet Is Creating the New Underclass. Lee said there’s value in having teams of people from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds working on AI to help design systems that don’t inadvertently discriminate based on the overwhelming amount of information being analyzed without context online.
“Who sits at the table matters when it comes to technology,” Turner Lee said. “What data is used also influences the AI model.”
Saturday panelists included: Senior Content Curator at Tubi Imani Ballard ’18; Colgate Assistant Professor of Film and Media Studies and Africana and Latin American Studies Aaron Dial; Founder and Executive Director of HOPE Murals and Vice Chair, City of Miami Arts and Entertainment Council German DuBois III ’91; Photography and Registrar and Archivist for Nick Knight CBE Kali McMillan ’10; Founder of Ballers4Life, Film Production and Literacy Teacher at Minneapolis Public Schools Jeffrey S. Williams ’89; and closing remarks were made by the Denny Gonzalez ’13, director of diversity, equity, and inclusion at the Barrie School.