District hires new diversity officer

COLUMBIA, SC — At the Tuesday, August 11, 2015 board meeting, Superintendent Debbie Hamm recommended and the Richland School District Two Board of Trustees approved the hiring of Helen Nelson Grant as Richland Two’s first Chief Diversity and Multicultural Inclusion Officer.

Grant will be responsible for managing and implementing Richland Two’s diversity and multicultural strategies and their multiple components. She will work closely with district leadership to provide insight, resources, tools and actions to advance diversity and multicultural goals and initiatives. She will also assist in analyzing district data, identifying opportunities for improvement, and assessing the district’s culture and climate.

Grant comes to Richland Two from Nexsen Pruett, LLC, where she developed strategic goals and methods of measurement for recruitment and retention of a diverse workforce. She assisted with coordination of external diversity initiatives to improve the legal profession and to increase awareness and opportunities for diverse students to study law. With more than 30 years of experience as an attorney, Grant has also served as Of Counsel for The Charleston Group in Fayetteville, North Carolina; attorney and partner of Gergel, Nickles and Grant, PA; and vice chairman and secretary of Grant Business Strategies in Columbia.

“Throughout my career I have taken on various issues and these experiences have prepared me for the demographic and diversity challenges currently facing Richland Two,” said Grant. “I am truly humbled to work in a school district that I love, my family loves and one that we want to see perform at optimum levels through inclusion.”

Grant holds a Juris Doctor from Duke University School of Law in N.C., and a Bachelors of Arts in history and public affairs from Columbia College. She and her husband, Tony, have four children. Their sons, Hamilton and Alexander are graduates of Richland Two, and twin daughters, Kristina and Katherine, attend Richland Northeast High School.

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