by Monique Davis
Monique Davis, Artist,CPA
Biography
I am an artist, organizer, and connector of people, ideas and images. I received my undergraduate education at Howard University (1989) and earned a BS in Business and Public Administration with a concentration in Accounting. After receiving a firm grounding in business principles, I began my career as an Affordable Housing Risk Analyst at National Cooperative Bank. During my tenure at NCB, I performed site visits of monitored the performance of cooperative enterprises throughout the US. Since the job required extensive travel, I left the workforce to begin a family. However I remained active and served as the Treasurer for Mocha Moms Inc., a support group for stay at home mothers of color, and was part of the team that moved the organization from region based to a national presence. After 13 years as a stay at home mom, my husband and I decided to leave our urban Washington DC environment, and move to Mississippi, and open a BBQ restaurant which we used as a vehicle to support nonprofits and other community based organizations.
I currently serve as the Membership Director at the Mississippi Museum of Art and am working to have the membership more accurately reflect the community it serves. My goal is to co-create an environment where visitors can deeply engage with art. In November 2015, I was selected from a field of 100 candidates, by United States Department of Arts and Culture, to represent Mississippi as a Cultural Agent. In that capacity, I produced an event titled “All are Welcome All Belong” in June 2016. During the “Imagining” participants created art and stories that reflected their vision for a welcoming community. This past August, I was honored and humbled to be elected as the Treasurer of Alternate Roots, an arts and activist organization for Southern artists. Alternate Roots’ core mission is to support the creation and presentation of original art, in all its forms, which is rooted in a particular community of place, tradition or spirit.
Other organizations I work with:
USDAC Cultural Agent
Mayoral appointee on the Visit Jackson Board
Board of Directors of Mississippi Light Collaborative
Executive Committee Treasurer for Alternate ROOTS