Celebrating M.O.gul Women of Excellence

Cheresa “Reese” LaFrances Purnell is a Social Entrepreneur with more than 20 years of expertise in creating and implementing programming for organizations. She currently works as the Founder/CEO of the Black Women Professionals League (BWPL) and is the Owner/Principal Consultant at the King Maker Concierge. Ms. Purnell also serves as a Board Member for the FireHouse Community Art Center. The majority of her career has been in the nonprofit sector and has afforded her the opportunity to facilitate evidence-based SEL curricula to empower thousands of teen girls. Her journey in the nonprofit sector began in 2001 as a part-time Outreach Specialist for Demoiselle 2 Femme, NFP (D2F). In her last position as Education Manager, she was responsible for the development, implementation and training of D2F educational content and curricula. During that time, Cheresa developed and piloted D2F’s “Pathways to Peace” which is a suspension alternative/restorative discipline model that implements innovative restorative practices to increase problem solving, conflict management and critical thinking skills among girls. P2P was first piloted at Fenger High School and reduced suspensions among high-risk girls by 80% over a ten-week period. In 2015, she founded The Black Women Professionals League (BWPL). BWPL is a membership-based company honoring influential Black women. BWPL provides leadership development, resources and support to emerging and established professionals. Since its inception, BWPL has honored and inducted 240 young women leaders through their 40 Under 40 Award Ceremony. They have also served over 500 young women ages 16-24 through their college completion and workforce development initiatives. BWPL has been featured in publications such as Rolling Out, Jet Magazine, Ebony, N’Digo Magapaper, The Chicago Defender, and The Chicago Citizen. In the Fall of 2020, she used the knowledge and skills she’d gained to empower girls and women to build a company, The King Maker Concierge (KMC) that specifically supports Black businessmen. KMC offers their members exclusive access to image/branding consulting, monthly networking events, and business concierge services. As a known Social Impact Strategist and Award-Winning Community Leader, Cheresa "Reese" LaFrances Purnell continues to build platforms that support the personal and professional development of business and community leaders.