Name:		Mr. Chad Dion Lassiter
		Month:		February 2010
		Schools:		University of Pennsylvania MSW 2001
		Organization:		Black Men at Penn School of Social Work, Inc.
		Title:		President

Chad Dion Lassiter is nationally recognized in the fields of American race relations and violence prevention among African American males. He has worked with resilient and vulnerable families, youth, and communities as they experience normal developmental transitions in challenging environments. Chad Dion Lassiter's research interest attempts to contribute to a more informed analysis of the diverse ways that adolescents and families, especially people of color cope with socioeconomic challenges and institutional racism.

He received his Masters Degree at the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Social Work where he was the "A. Phillip Randolph Award" winner (2001). Mr. Lassiter was chosen by Ebony Magazine as one of the "Young Leaders of the Future Under 30" in February, 2003. In May of 2004, Mr. Lassiter was named "Who's Who Among African Americans 17th edition" along with such notables as Colin Powell and Michael Jordan. He is a former research fellow at the W.E.B. Du Bois Collective Research Institute at the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education, where he worked on two nationally successful research projects (P.L.A.A.Y.- Preventing Long-term Anger and Aggression in Youth) and (H.I.P.P.- Health Information Providers and Promoters).

He was named 2005 Philadelphia's Most Influential African Americans "10 People Under 40 to Watch In 2005" by the Philadelphia Tribune. Mr. Lassiter is one of the co-founders and current president of the Black Men at Penn School of Social Work, Inc. at the University of Pennsylvania School of Social Policy and Practice. The group seeks to recruit black males into the profession of social work as well as providing anti racism and violence prevention trainings to urban and suburban schools around the country. He is an appointee of the Mayor to the Board of Trustees for the Philadelphia Prisons. As the Co- Director of FAMILY (Fostering Adopting and Mentoring to Improve the Lives of Youth) Inc. he works with youth to improve their life outcomes by providing mentors to those who have a parent incarcerated in a state or federal prison.

He has worked on race, peace and poverty related issues both in Africa and Israel. He is called upon often to provide commentary to various media outlets and lectures widely. Presently, he is an adjunct professor at the University of Pennsylvania where he was the 2008 recipient of the "Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Involvement Award", and a Visiting Scholar at West Chester University. As a researcher at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia he is part of a national study called TODAY (Treatment Options for Type II Diabetes in Adolescents in Youth).

Chad Dion Lassiter is mentored by the works and teachings of Dr. W.E.B. Dubois, Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., and Ida B. Wells.

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