Building Leaders + Legacies

Developing Purpose-Driven Leaders. Building Generational Impact.

Building Leaders + Legacies (BLL) exists to develop executive, professional, and emerging women leaders for expanded leadership roles - and to guide them in building community, economic empowerment, and generational wealth that extend far beyond individual success.

BLL delivers holistic, cohort based leadership programs that integrate:

Executive and professional leadership development
Board governance training and board-readiness pathways
Economic empowerment and legacy wealth-building
Purpose cultivation and values-based leadership
Community engagement and philanthropic giving

In addition to leadership training and issue consciousness, participants gain direct access to C-suite executives, community leaders, government officials, and successful entrepreneurs, along with exposure to board service and civic leadership opportunities.

Of the 100 women who have completed the annual program, 94% have had major job promotions or started successful entrepreneurial ventures and over 50% now sit on boards for the first time.

Your Investment: Impact in Action

An investment in Building Leaders + Legacies creates measurable, lasting impact by:

Developing values-driven executive and professional leaders
Strengthening economic empowerment and generational wealth-building
Expanding board and civic leadership pipelines
Supporting inclusive leadership within organizations
Providing scholarships for Emerging Women Leaders, ensuring access to leadership development and mental wellness support regardless of financial means

Your support helps leaders transform organizations, uplift others, strengthen communities, and create change that lasts for generations. Together, we are not just developing leaders - we are building legacies.

Executive & Professional Women Leaders Program

The Executive & Professional Women Leaders (EPWL) Program is the cornerstone of BLL’s work. It prepares women - primarily women of color - for expanded leadership roles across corporate, nonprofit, civic, and community sectors. This program is for professional development, as well as legacy-building leadership that transforms organizations and communities alike.

Emerging Women Leaders Program

BLL also invests in the future through its Emerging Women Leaders Program, designed for women ages 21–28. This cohort focuses on leadership foundations, purpose discovery, values, early career decision making, and mental wellness. By supporting women early in their leadership journey, BLL helps ensure that the next generation of leaders is both prepared and whole.

BLL History

Carolene Mays founded Black Leadership & Legacies, Inc. dba Building Leaders + Legacies in 2022. Having been blessed to sit at many tables of influence, she saw the talents of women and minorities continue to be overlooked or not known. With a heart for community and a call from God to use the talents developed through her diverse backgroud, she stepped away from a successful position to develop a program which could help move talented, community conscious individuals to higher leadership levels and to tables of influence. She developed a holistic program which incorporated life and leadership skills, purpose cultivation, support, and access.

Her wide breadth of professional and personal experience gave her the tools to develop this successful, well rounded program. She has a diverse career background in corporate and small business, publishing, television, public speaking, and state utility regulation, as well as an elected official and appointed state agency head. She serves on corporate, international, university, and non-profit boards; previously serving on over 30 non-profit boards. She has also chaired several major sporting and chairitable events.