Dr. Hawks is the Founder and President of Rename Our Lands. In pursuit of justice on behalf of his ancestors and fellow Americans, Dr. Hawks authored a petition on change.org entitled "Rename American lands named in honor of racists, slave owners, and/or confederates." After a week, 1,000+ allies from across the country signed the petition. Supporters promoted the petition by making donations and independently sharing the petition with friends, family, and colleagues. Such high engagement made it clear an organization devoted to this mission was needed.
Professional
Dr. Hawks brings nearly 20 years of decorated leadership experience developing strategy, creating best-in-class people tools & processes, delivering impactful training experiences, & enhancing team performance outcomes globally. His community, professional, and scholastic efforts have garnered recognition from several organizations and individuals, including President Barack Obama. Dr. Hawks recently served as the Senior Manager for Global Employee & Labor Relations for a Fortune 40 corporation with 195,000+ employees and annual sales of $70+ billion.
Scholar
From GED to Doctor--- once homeless and a former foster child, Dr. Hawks holds a Doctorate of Education (Ed.D.) in Organizational Change & Leadership from the University of Southern California Rossier School of Education (USC). His innovation-focused research was nominated for a 2020 USC Dissertation of Distinction Award. Dr. Hawks is a proud alumnus of the Wake Forest University School of Business. At Wake, he earned a Master of Science in Management in addition to multiple accolades for civic engagement & leadership. Prior to graduate studies, Dr. Hawks obtained a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science with a minor in Pre Law (summa cum laude) from Florida Agricultural & Mechanical University and a Associate of Arts in General Education from Tallahassee Community College (FL).