Kanesha “KaCey” Venning
Breakout Session: Advocacy: Influencing Policy Change on Non-Profit Boards
A 25-year Atlantan, Kanesha “KaCey” Venning by DNA is a youth and education advocate with an emphasis on mental. She is a Christian minister, entrepreneur, and strategist. A daughter of a mother who retired after 38 years in the public school system; and a father who, with only a high school diploma, became a skilled carpenter producing multi-million-dollar projects. Through her parents’ teaching examples, KaCey learned that business, education, and faith would curate an ideal life advocating for the advancement of youth and urban intellectualism through ministry.
Youth education and advocacy is KaCey’s top priority. In 2009, she co-founded HEY! Helping Empower Youth a 501c3 nonprofit advocating for underserved youth in Atlanta. KaCey has served youth and educators in Title I schools across Atlanta Public Schools through nonprofit work providing curriculum and family support for students and as a liaison for youth and families for 17 years. Her experience with students in and out of school prompted her 2021 Atlanta Board of Education campaign for At-Large Seat 7 to share with the city how and why wrap-around services and a new approach to youth service work is necessary.
In 2016, KaCey became the author of Built For This: A Young Woman’s Journey to Self-Discovery and Empowerment. She followed up with her 2018 book Wrestling with Peace, making KaCey a sought-after speaker and thought leader. Her gift of storytelling helps with hard truth-telling and encourages accountability and empowerment. KaCey thrives from speaking, teaching, and facilitating opportunities for others to realize their purpose and actualize their gifts. She has worked professionally to help foster custom Cause Marketing and Corporate Social Responsibility Plans for fortune 500 companies, including Coca-Cola, L’Oreal Paris USA, Scholastic, and Home Depot. She translates her skilled approach used for corporations to individuals by identifying their own Personal Social Responsibility Plan– better known as their purpose.
KaCey is actively creating a legacy– 25 years of work as an author, nonprofit professional and founder, National Service member, and ordained minister here in Atlanta, GA. KaCey is a product of Morris Brown College, Georgia State University, and the Interdenominational Theological Center with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology and is currently in her last semester towards her Master of Divinity degree to focus on Public Spaces. She is a happy dog mom of a beautiful pitbull named Riley, a trusted member of her Washington Park community, and a public servant.
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