Tallahassee, FL. – William H. Gray, III, founder and chairman of the Amani Group, a business advisory firm, will be the keynote speaker for Florida A&M University’s (FAMU) Founder's Day program scheduled for Wednesday, October 3, at 10:10 a.m. in Lee Hall auditorium. This year’s Founder’s Day celebration will commemorate FAMU’s 120th anniversary.
Gray is the son of former President William H. Gray, Jr. Under the guidance of President Gray, Jr., expansion, along with reorganization, continued; the college had obtained an Army ROTC unit, and student enrollment had grown to more 2,000.
Prior to founding the firm, Gray was the president and CEO of the United Negro College Fund (UNCF), the nation’s largest and oldest minority education assistance organization.
Before joining UNCF, he represented the Second District of Pennsylvania as a Congressman from 1979 to 1991. During his tenure, he was secretary and vice-chair of the Congressional Black Caucus. He was also the first African American to serve as Majority Whip of the House of Representatives, chair of the Budget Committee of the House of Representatives, and chair of the Democratic Caucus. After leaving Congress, he served as the special advisor to the President and to the Secretary of State on Haiti during the Clinton Administration.
Gray has served as an active Baptist minister of churches in Montclair, New Jersey and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He recently retired after 35 years as pastor of the Bright Hope Baptist Church in Philadelphia.
He received his bachelor’s degree from Franklin & Marshall College. He earned a master’s degree in divinity from Drew Theological Seminary and a master’s degree in theology from Princeton Theological Seminary.
The general public is invited to attend. For more information, call (850) 599-3413.
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