Educating for Equity: Education, Opportunity & DemocracyModerators:Delegate Edith PattersonDelegate Cheryl PasteurFocus: Education remains one of the most powerful pathways to economic mobility, civic participation, and long-term opportunity, yet access to high-quality educational options is not equal across communities. This session will explore how Maryland can strengthen both traditional and non-traditional pathways to education and career success, from K–12 classrooms and higher education to vocational training, trade schools, apprenticeships, certifications, and other workforce development opportunities.Panelists will examine the policies, investments, and partnerships needed to ensure that students and adult learners—regardless of ZIP code, income, or background—have access to the academic preparation, technical skills, credentials, and career connections necessary to compete in a rapidly changing economy. The discussion will also consider the broader role education plays in preparing informed, engaged citizens and strengthening communities and democracy for the next generation.

The Great Wealth Transfer: Keeping Businesses, Property & Assets in the CommunityModerators: Senator Antonio Hayes Delegate Denise RobertsFocus: America is entering one of the largest intergenerational transfers of wealth in history, creating both tremendous opportunity and significant risk for Black families, entrepreneurs, and communities. This session will explore how succession planning, estate planning, business ownership transitions, access to capital, and intentional intergenerational wealth strategies can help families retain businesses, real estate, and other appreciating assets. The conversation will move beyond simply starting businesses to examine what it takes to grow, scale, acquire, merge, collaborate, and ultimately transfer successful enterprises.Panelists will discuss mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, venture capital and private equity, business valuation, access to institutional capital, and strategies for positioning Black-owned businesses for long-term sustainability. The session will also challenge the next generation of entrepreneurs to think differently about ownership—building businesses and assets that can create wealth not just for today, but for generations to come.

Healthy Communities, Stronger Futures: Closing the Health Equity GapModerators:Senator Malcolm AugustineDelegate Jennifer White HollandFocus: Where we live, work, learn, and raise our families can have as much impact on health outcomes as the care received inside a hospital or doctor’s office. This session will examine the social, economic, environmental, and policy factors driving persistent health disparities in Black communities and identify solutions capable of producing measurable change. The conversation will address access to quality care, maternal and infant health, mental health, chronic disease, prevention, food and nutrition, and the importance of trusted community-based health interventions.Panelists will also explore the rapidly expanding role of artificial intelligence, digital health, data, and emerging technology in improving health education, early detection, prevention, and access to care—while addressing the risk that technology could deepen existing disparities if communities are not represented in its development and deployment. The goal is to move beyond documenting disparities toward identifying policies, partnerships, investments, and innovations that can actually close the health equity gap.

Democracy on the Line: Protecting Civil Rights, Power & Justice in the Age of AIModerators:Senator Charles SydnorDelegate Greg WimsFocus: The civil rights landscape is changing rapidly, and the fight for equality now extends from the ballot box and courtroom to algorithms, data systems, workplaces, financial institutions, housing markets, and digital platforms. This session will examine voting rights, equal protection, discrimination, representation, and the role of public policy in safeguarding civil liberties while asking a critical question: What does civil rights leadership look like in the age of artificial intelligence? Panelists will explore how AI can be used to expand access and opportunity, as well as how algorithmic bias and automated decision-making can reinforce discrimination in employment, housing, lending, healthcare, education, policing, and other areas of everyday life. The conversation will also examine Maryland’s evolving approach to AI governance and consumer protections, strategies for building meaningful coalitions across communities and generations, and how Black communities can move from simply responding to change to owning their power, shaping policy, and helping determine the rules of the emerging digital economy.

From Environmental Justice to Economic Power: Building the Communities of the FutureModerators:Senator Benjamin BrooksDelegate Regina BoyceFocus: Environmental justice is about far more than pollution—it is about health, wealth, ownership, infrastructure, food, energy, and who benefits from the investments transforming our communities. This session will examine how historically underserved communities can move from bearing a disproportionate share of environmental burdens to participating fully in the economic opportunities being created by clean energy, infrastructure modernization, climate resilience, and sustainable development. Panelists will explore the connections between environmental health and chronic disease, energy affordability, neighborhood infrastructure, food insecurity, transportation, and community development.The conversation will also spotlight economic opportunities in renewable energy, utilities, construction, green businesses, urban and Black farming, food cooperatives, community-owned enterprises, and emerging environmental industries. Rather than viewing environmental justice only through the lens of what communities must be protected from, this session will focus on what communities can build, own, invest in, and benefit from as Maryland prepares for a cleaner and more resilient economy.