ldunbar@nul.org

New York, NY, Feb. 15, 2000–The National Urban League announced today that effective immediately, Gena Davis Watkins will assume the position of Vice President for Development and Chief Development Officer for the organization. The news comes in the wake of the announcement by M. Gasby Greely, Senior Vice President, Development & Communications, that she is joining The Washington Opera as Executive Vice President of Strategic Resource Development.

Under the communications umbrella, Greely was also responsible for the direction and supervision of National Urban League publications, including Opportunity Journal, and all media relations activities. In the new structure, those departments will now function under Lee A. Daniels, Publications Director and Leslie A. Dunbar, Media Relations Director, respectively.

Prior to this appointment, Watkins, an XX year veteran of the League, was Director of Development. In her new position, she is responsible for cultivating and maintaining major corporate donor relationships, as well as the strategic direction of all National Urban League fundraising initiatives. Watkins earned her Master\'s and Bachelor\\\'s degrees from the University of Pittsburgh and her fundraising certification from the Indiana University Center on Philanthropy.

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In her five years at the National Urban League, Greely created an impressive legacy of accomplishments, including:

• Resurrecting Opportunity Journal after a 46-year hiatus;

• Positioning the National Urban League as a prominent and respected player on the national policy and advocacy scene;

• Providing valued communications services to the League’s network of 115 affiliates;

• Dramatically increasing net revenue from special events, including record income from the League’s annual Equal Opportunity Day dinner;
• Successfully launching the National Urban League’s endowment drive, resulting in a 114% increase in the League’s capital base in just one year.

"Gasby’s departure will be felt by all members of the League and she will be missed, without question," National Urban League president Hugh B. Price said. "However, when we shared the news that Gena is stepping up to fill the void, the entire Urban League movement breathed a sigh of relief. Gena is highly respected among the movement and by all of our corporate partners and individual donors. She is an asset to our organization and we are looking forward to continuing the momentum established by her predecessor."

Before joining the National Urban League as publications director, Lee A. Daniels was a Fellow at the W.E.B. DuBois Institute for Afro-American Research. A former Fellow at the Institute of Politics at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University and a Teaching Fellow in the Expository Writing Program at Harvard College, Daniels was also a reporter for the New York Times, a reporter and editorial writer for The Washington Post and a reporter for WGBH-TV in Boston.

Media relations Director Leslie A. Dunbar is a ten year veteran of the public relations industry. Her background includes positions at leading public relations agencies Edelman Worldwide, Manning Selvage & Lee and Ruder Finn.

Founded in 1910, the National Urban League is a nonprofit organization whose 115 affiliates in 35 states and the District of Columbia provide direct services focused on empowering African-Americans to achieve economic, academic and racial equality. The League’s headquarters is located at 120 Wall Street in New York City.