MCA Lunch & Learn: Enhancing Art, Businesses and Communities through Diversity

ENHANCING ARTS, BUSINESSES AND COMMUNITIES THROUGH DIVERSITY - Culture and art routinely complement each other and often influence society. We will explore the intersection of art and culture in America from historical perspectives, while simultaneously enhancing participants' understanding and appreciation of diversity and its influence on America.

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ABOUT CAIN DAVIS... Mr. Davis has a unique and extensive civil rights and human relations background, distinguishable from most in that in addition to serving as an EEO and civil rights expert in the private sector; he has served in similar roles as a professional or executive at the city, county, state and federal government levels. He is a former Interim Assistant Director of Affirmative Action at the University of Florida, Director of the U.S. Housing and Urban Development's Civil Rights Offices for the states of Alabama and Tennessee, Equal Opportunity Manager and Workforce Development Officer for the Veteran Affairs Central Iowa Health Care System, Program Manager for the United States National Veteran's Crisis Line with oversight responsibilities for EEO, Project Management, Compliance, Freedom of Information Act and Privacy operations. He has testified in federal court regarding civil rights allegations, supervised and participated in numerous civil rights investigations, developed affirmative action plans, drafted civil rights legislation, reviewed and approved equal opportunity and diversity policies for various organizations, interpreted and led the efforts to implement policies based on civil rights legislation, managed Alternative Dispute Resolution programs, developed and conducted civil rights training for thousands of employees, both in the United States and abroad.

He is a retired member of the U.S. Armed Forces, serving a total of 24 years. Mr. Davis is a graduate of the University of Florida, where he earned a Bachelor's Degree in Political Science and received his commission into the United States Army. He is also a graduate of the Defense Equal Opportunity Management Institute (DEOMI). As a graduate of DEOMI, he earned the distinction of being a member of the Commandant's List in recognition of his exceptional academic achievements.

ABOUT DR. SHENI MEGHANI... Dr. Meghani has developed and conducted trainings in cultural competence and diversity for a wide spectrum of groups ranging from law enforcement to healthcare professionals.

Dr. Meghani is board-certified in Internal Medicine, Geriatric Medicine, Palliative Medicine and Hospice Care and had the honor of serving our nation’s veterans for twenty years as a physician with the United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). Her experience includes serving as a medical director of palliative care programs at several VA hospitals on the East Coast, Midwest and the Southern United States. In addition to being a clinician, she has developed programs, processes and training in palliative care for VA medical staff across the nation as a VA faculty for Palliative Care Leadership Center and as the lead clinician-champion in Hospice and Palliative Medicine for the Heartland Region of the VA Healthcare System for several years. Dr. Meghani leveraged her expertise in clinical innovations, best practices and quality improvement to develop and implement nationally recognized programs that integrated palliative care into oncology, geriatric psychiatry and dementia care. She has presented her work in Palliative Medicine at several conferences, both nationally and internationally.

Dr. Meghani has actively participated in and contributed to ethics, peer review and education of medical students, residents and fellows. She has developed and conducted trainings in the areas of leadership, cultural competence, diversity, de-escalation for a wide variety of clients such as healthcare, nonprofit and law enforcement organizations. She also holds certification as an EEO investigator from the U.S. Equal Opportunity Employment Commission and is a graduate of the International Association of Directors of Law Enforcement Standards and Training's De-Escalation Instructor Course.

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This special event is part of the November exhibit CONVERGING COMMUNITY & CULTURE, hosted by MCA. Exhibit dates are November 5 - 27, 2021. For questions, please