WS Chronicle

Reynolds American executive Lisa Jeffries Caldwell will keynote the Wake Forest Black Law Students Association’s 28th Annual Scholarship Banquet on Friday, Feb. 15.

The banquet, which will be held at the school’s Benson University Center, is the annual fundraising effort for the BLSA Scholarship Fund.

The evening will begin with a cocktail reception at 6 p.m., followed by dinner and the program at 7 p.m.

This year, the Black Law Students Association (BLSA) is celebrating its 40th year at Wake Forest and its parent organization, the National Black Law Students Association (NBLSA), is marking its 45th anniversary.

The event’s theme, “Honoring Our Past as We March into the Future,” also pays homage to the milestone anniversaries of Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation and the historic March on Washington

In addition to a keynote address by distinguished alumna Lisa Jeffries Caldwell (’86), the evening will feature the awarding of the BLSA Scholarship and the inaugural presentation of the BLSA Legacy Award.

“Our keynote speaker, Lisa Jeffries Caldwell (who graduated from the WFU Law School in 1986), executive vice president and chief human resources officer at Reynolds American and R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Co., is the first African American to rise to this level in the companies’ histories,” Seawright explains. “In her current role, Ms. Caldwell is responsible for leading a transformation of the tobacco industry by driving innovation throughout RAI’s businesses, redefining enjoyment for adult tobacco consumers, reducing the harm caused by smoking and accelerating the decline in youth tobacco use.”

Black Enterprise Magazine recently recognized Caldwell as one of the Top 100 Most Powerful Executives in Corporate America. She was also named one of the Top Influential Women in Corporate America by Savoy Magazine.

“During her time at Wake Forest, Caldwell was not only a Wake Forest Scholar but an exemplary member of Wake Forest BLSA,” Seawright says. “It was under her vision and leadership the idea of the BLSA Scholarship emerged. Thanks to Ms. Caldwell’s efforts, the BLSA Scholarship was started in 1984 and now, 28 years later, it remains a hallmark of BLSA and our legacy.”

Banquet tickets are $50 per person. A table for eight is available at the discounted price of $400. Tickets can be purchased  at http://blsa.law.wfu.edu. Tickets will be available for purchase until Feb. 12.

For more information, visit http://go.wfu.edu/t5d