March 2021 Phenomenal Woman in Leadership

Charity Dean
President/CEO Metro-Detroit Black Business Alliance

Charity Dean is President and CEO of Metro-Detroit Black Business Alliance (MDBBA). The mission of the MDBBA is to develop programs and advocate for policies that result in profitable and sustainable Black-Owned Businesses that are connected to public and private economic opportunities while building trusted relationships.

She is the owner of Dean Law and Consulting established in 2018 in Detroit, Michigan. Charity is an advisory member of the Detroit Women's Leadership Network, the president of Grandmont Community Association and was recently appointed by Governor Whitmer to serve on the Michigan Women’s Commission. She was awarded Crain’s 40 under 40 in 2020 for her role in leading the City’s small business response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

She is the former Director of Civil Rights, Inclusion, and Opportunity for the City of Detroit. This department oversees civil rights violations in the city of Detroit and also executes compliance for major development projects in the City and works with small and minority owned businesses in Detroit. Additionally, Charity serves as the Chairwoman of the Mayor’s Equity Council which consists of City Department heads who are committed to ensuring equity in every area of city government.

Before taking on this role, she was appointed by Mayor Duggan to design, craft and implement the Bridging Neighborhoods program based on a $32 million dollar community benefits agreement for residents in Delray and Southwest Detroit. The first of its kind, the Bridging Neighborhoods Program seeks to provide optional relocation assistance to residents by the rehabilitation of vacant Detroit Land Bank owned properties across the city of Detroit and facilitate the relocation of Delray residents into those homes in new neighborhoods.

She previously worked as the Sales and Programs Manager for the Detroit Land Bank Authority (DLBA) where she was responsible for the coordination and administration of DLBA’s core programs: Auction, Direct Sales, and Side Lots. She was also responsible for developing and implementing a program for the thousands of DLBA owned occupied properties.

Charity worked as a community advocate in Southwest Detroit before attending law school at University of Detroit Mercy (UDM) where she served as Vice President of the Student Federal Bar Association and Black Law Student Association. She was honored with the service award at UDM for creating a yearlong program for high school students, teaching the students law, implementing mock trial and ending the program with a scholarship opportunity for the students.

Charity Dean was also a fellow with the Michigan Political Leadership Program and is currently member of the Wolverine Bar Association and the State Bar of Michigan. In 2019, Charity was appointed by Governor Whitmer to Michigan Women’s Commission. She also serves on the Board of the Downtown Development Authority

Charity earned her bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Oakland University and her juris doctorate from The University of Detroit Mercy School of Law, where she also currently serves as an Adjunct Professor of Law. A lifelong Detroiter, Charity lives in the city with her husband Erik Dean and her children Elijah and Lauren.