Avery Johnson and Michael Sorrell to Speak at SMU + GSV Mission Summit
We’re thrilled to welcome Avery Johnson and Michael Sorrell as keynote speakers for the SMU+GSV Mission Summit!
Avery Johnson is a former NBA basketball player, NBA Coach of the Year for the Dallas Mavericks, and Men’s Basketball Coach at the University of Alabama.
A New Orleans native, Mr. Johnson signed with the Seattle Supersonics in 1988 and went on to play a sixteen-season career with the NBA. Known as “The Little General” for his on-court leadership and diminutive stature, Mr. Johnson played with seven different teams, most notably helping guide the San Antonio Spurs to their 1999 NBA Championship.
In 2004, Mr. Johnson began his coaching career as assistant coach for the Dallas Mavericks. The following year, he took over as head coach and led the Mavericks to the team’s first ever Western Conference Championship and was later named NBA Coach of the Year.
From 2015 – 2019, he was invited to join the University of Alabama’s athletic department as the new head men’s basketball coach where he guided the Crimson Tide to the 2018 NCAA tournament. During this time, Mr. Johnson also worked as a broadcast analyst for ESPN & CBS Sports, where he continues to be featured to this day.
Today, Mr. Johnson is President & CEO of Avery Capital, a private equity firm focused on commercial real estate.
Michael Sorrell is the longest-serving President in the 151-year history of Paul Quinn College. During his 16 years of leadership, Paul Quinn has become nationally celebrated for its ability to reimagine higher education to better serve the needs of today’s students and their communities.
During President Sorrell’s tenure, Paul Quinn has increased graduation rates by more than 30%, reduced the average student loan debt by $30,0000, and has been named the HBCU of the Year.
Dr. Sorrell is one of the most celebrated college presidents in America. Among his most notable awards and recognitions are the following: being named one of the World’s 50 Greatest Leaders by Fortune Magazine; receiving the George W. Bush Presidential Center’s Bush Institute Trailblazer Citation; being the only three-time recipient of the HBCU Male President of the Year Award (2018, 2016 and 2012); and winning Education Dive’s Higher Education’s President of the Year Award.
Time Magazine listed him as one of the “31 People Changing the South.” Washington Monthly Magazine identified Dr. Sorrell as one of America’s 10 Most Innovative College Presidents and Rev. Jesse Jackson, Sr. and PUSH/Excel honored him with its Education Leadership Award.
We’re thrilled to have Avery Johnson and Michael Sorrell at this year's Summit. Don't miss what promises to be an inspiring and thought-provoking event!
To learn more about the Summit, go to smugsvsummit.com and register below.