Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/187632
•pg_28-41__BMT_pg3-58 9/25/13 12:55 AM Page 40 LOCAL HERO GREGORY DESHIELDS: MANAGING DIRECTOR OF BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT HONORED AS A MINORITY BUSINESS LEADER Gregory L. DeShields, managing director of business development for Temple University's Fox School of Business and School of Tourism and Hospitality Management, has been recognized as a 2013 Minority Business Leader by the Philadelphia Business Journal. Judges for the newspaper's annual Minority Business Leader Awards selected 27 minority business leaders or advocates to be honored in the Greater Philadelphia region. Temple is represented by two honorees: DeShields and Dr. Selwyn O. Rogers Jr., professor and chair of the Department of Surgery at Temple University School of Medicine and surgeon-in-chief of Temple University Health System. "It is an incredible honor to receive this prestigious award and to be recognized among some of the most distinguished business leaders in our region," DeShields said. "I sincerely appreciate the opportunity to engage with the regional and national business community every day in support of the educational initiatives offered by the Fox School and School of Tourism and Hospitality Management." As managing director of business development, DeShields cultivates corporate relationships that align with the schools' missions and visions, and he strategically increases the visibility and engagement of the Fox School of Business and School of Tourism and Hospitality Management within the business community. He works within the Fox School's Center for Student Professional Development (CSPD). 40 A Temple University employee for 12 years, DeShields has served as a senior administrator and adjunct faculty member. He has helped establish five endowed scholarships; secured corporate funding for student professional development; attracted high-profile guest speakers; sourced business-solution and industryproject opportunities for centers, institutes and faculty; and strengthened various industry connections. "Greg is resilient, demonstrates the highest level of professionalism and has superb relationship-management skills," said M. Moshe Porat, dean of the Fox School of Business and School of Tourism and Hospitality Management. "His innovative approach to projects and unstoppable energy continue to strengthen our schools' close ties to industry." Before joining Temple, DeShields served as a manager in the hospitality industry for such companies as Hyatt Hotel, Omni Hotels, Sheraton Hotels, Korman Communities and Philadelphia Opportunities Industrialization Center's Opportunities Inn: Hospitality Training Institute. His board membership and committee chairs include the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AH&LA) Multicultural Diversity Advisory Council, Center City Proprietors Association, Communities in Schools of Philadelphia, Philadelphia Academies Inc., Philadelphia Convention & Visitors Bureau Multicultural Affairs Congress, Skal International, COMHAR and the Greater Philadelphia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. A certified hospitality educator by the AH&LA, DeShields' other honors and awards include the 2013 Fox School of Business Administrative Service Award and the 2012 School of Tourism and Hospitality Management Outstanding Service Award. The Philadelphia Business Journal and presenting sponsor Wells Fargo hosted the Minority Business Leader Awards program in August, at the Wannamaker Building and profiled the honorees in a special print supplement the next day. B M & T ••• September/October 2013 ••• www.blackmeetingsandtourism.com