Bernée E. Long (’81)
Bernée E. Long is a speaker, Gallup-Certified Strengths Coach, and the founder/owner and Chief People Officer of GENersection, a start-up talent identification, development, and placement company. GENersection specializes in guiding youth and young adults through the discovery and maximum utilization of their innate talents, focusing on intrapreneurship (business building), entrepreneurship, and leadership. GENersection’s approach blends scientific research with practical life skills toward the goal of developing socially, professionally, and financially savvy adults who can make meaningful contributions to the workforce and society.
An advocate of social entrepreneurship, Bernée believes that everyone is uniquely called to fulfill a purpose in life and has spent the vast majority of her career doing what she believes is her life purpose: transforming, empowering, inspiring, or otherwise positively impacting the lives of young people. With a passion for the work she does, Bernée seeks to inspire the next generation to pursue their passions and design a life that fulfills their purpose. One of her life goals is to “die empty” having imparted all that she has learned during her lifetime.
One of her favorite quotes is by Henry Ford: “We each have a calling that if left unanswered will become a challenge unmet, a problem unsolved, an opportunity missed, a dream and a legacy unfulfilled, a link missing in the chain of events that were meant to form the history of the world.”
A native of Kansas City, Missouri, Bernée is a graduate of Truman State University (Kirksville, Mo.) and Washington University School of Law (St. Louis, Mo.). Professionally, she currently serves as Director, Distinguished Scholars Programs for the Thurgood Marshall College Fund (Washington, D.C.). She has also served as Assistant Dean for Student Services at Samford University’s Cumberland School of Law (Birmingham, Ala.); Director of Admissions, Drake University Law School (Des Moines, Iowa); Director of Admissions at Talladega College (Talladega, Ala.); Director of the Center for Entrepreneurship at Albany State University (Albany, Ga.); and as an Administrative Law Judge with the Iowa Public Employee Relations Board (Des Moines, Iowa).