Alumna receives ATHENA leadership award

UNC Charlotte alumna and College of Health and Human Services adjunct faculty member Tchernavia Montgomery has received the 2018 Charlotte ATHENA Leadership Award for Service, honoring her accomplishments with the Crisis Assistance Ministry. The award honors professionals in the nonprofit sector who give back to improve quality of life in the Charlotte community and assist women in discovering their full leadership potential.

As the chief program officer of the Crisis Assistance Ministry, Montgomery is responsible for advancing the strategy of the organization to help more than 50,000 members of the Charlotte community move from crisis to stability. She oversees programs that offer counseling in financial stability and economic empowerment and that provide assistance with rent, utilities, clothing and furniture. Montgomery said she strives to give poverty a voice and signal a call to action within the community.

The ATHENA Leadership Awards Program recognizes leaders in 500-plus communities across the globe. The program recognizes outstanding professionals in positions of corporate, service and young professional leadership.

Montgomery, who earned a master’s in social work at UNC Charlotte, also gives back by sharing her expertise with future health and human services professionals. She serves as a chair of the School of Social Work’s Community Advisory Board, a clinical supervisor in social work and teaches classes as an adjunct faculty member for the School of Social Work and Department of Public Health Sciences.