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Jimmy McMikle is a Spring 1991 initiate of the Indiana University Chapter, the Alpha of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc.  He is a proud Grand Chapter and Northeastern Province life member of the fraternity and currently a member of the Hartford (CT) Alumni Chapter.

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Brother McMikle was elected at the 85th Grand Chapter Meeting in July 2021, to serve the fraternity as the Senior Grand Vice Polemarch. In this role, he chairs the Council of Province Polemarchs and Council of Senior Province Vice Polemarchs, where he provides a high level of direct support, direction and oversight for the senior leadership of Kappa Alpha Psi. Since his election to this position, Jimmy has worked to raise the bar of operational excellence and set a new standard as it relates to leadership expectation. He has also worked tirelessly to forge new partnerships and relationships that benefit the brand and financial well-being of our fraternity.  

 

Jimmy was appointed the fraternity’s National Director of Organizational Effectiveness in 2019, a role in which he developed Kappa Alpha Psi’s five-year strategic plan (for years 2021-2025). He chairs Kappa’s COVID-19 Task Force Committee, charged with developing the operational “way-forward” to guide the actions and protect the membership and growth of our fraternity throughout the worldwide COVID-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic.   

 

Brother McMikle also created and chairs Kappa Alpha Psi’s National “Learn 2 Live” Community Policing Initiative, a collaborative effort with the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE).  The initiative is designed to educate and train young persons of color with regards to police encounters and interactions. His committee has performed 140+ forums in over 100 cities, training more than 65,000 students.  The Learn 2 Live Initiative was featured in the Spring 2020 issue of The Journal. 

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He has served the fraternity as a member of the Grand Board of Directors, elected to that role during the 82nd Grand Chapter Meeting in New Orleans, Louisiana In August of 2015. He was re-elected to a second term in that same position during the 83rd Grand Chapter Meeting in Orlando, Florida in 2017. In his role on the Grand Board of Directors, Jimmy served as the chair (and had oversight) of the Fraternity's Leadership Training and Development Cluster (CRWLC, The Achievement Academy, MTA, Chapter Advisors Committee, ULI & LEAD Kappa). 

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He served the Northeastern Province as the 26th Northeastern Province Polemarch from 2011-2015.  Three administrative focus areas guided his term as Province Polemarch.  They were: Membership, Image and Finances.  The Membership focus area was concerned with three objectives.  The first was, “Increasing the level and quality of service provided to the Provincial membership” to create a well-informed, well directed, well-supported and high functioning Province.  This included a high level and frequency of communication and the creation of programs that addressed health and wellness and that fostered and promoted higher levels of fraternalism.  The second objective was, “Undergraduate Growth and Development.” Jimmy chartered two undergraduate chapters as Province Polemarch and he established, “Kappa Academy,” a summer leadership training conference initiative for the Northeastern Province collegiate demographic. Kappa Academy offered additional training and mentoring to our collegiate members by providing practical tools for success. He also ensured that there was an undergraduate member participating on every province committee.   The third objective was “Overall Chapter Development” in which all chapters in the Province experienced monthly interaction with their respective Regional Board Members, who were focused on chapter, officer and individual member advancement (with measurable metrics). The "Image" focus area involved defining our image in a credible manner, while creating and implementing strategies that transform the community image of Kappa Alpha Psi, establishing our fraternity as the premier service organization in the Northeastern region of the country.  As it pertains to the focus area of “Finances,” Brother McMikle’s administration completed a comprehensive review of all fiscal operations and developed an operational strategy to increase the financial viability of the Northeastern Province.  A copy of the revised policy and procedures was made available to the Province membership at large. Through strict fiscal conservatism and full transparency in operation, the Northeastern Province’s exchequer grew by $300K in net assets during Jimmy’s tenure as Northeastern Province Polemarch.  Brother McMikle also established a Province Foundation (Dream Builder’s Foundation) to create additional streams of revenue generation to fund program initiatives and expansion while awarding large scholarship dollars on an annual basis.  

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His province leadership history includes service as the Senior Province Vice Polemarch and as its Northern Region Board Member.  Prior to that, as Polemarch of the Hartford (CT) Alumni Chapter, Jimmy led the Chapter to three consecutive Province “Chapter of the Year” Awards, a Province “Guide Right Chapter of the Year” Award, “Reclamation Chapter of the Year” Award, as well as, the National Jay Crosby Award.  Jimmy has been awarded the Northeastern Province’s highest honor, the James M. Kidd Award, in addition to a host of province, local chapter and community awards for service.  

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Jimmy has also served the fraternity as the National Co-Chairman and National Vice-Chairman of the CRWLC Committee.  In his role as Co-Chairman, he restructured the fraternity’s leadership conference to ensure quality and national consistency in training.  He established the first national training curriculum for the conference and conducted the National Committee's first "Train the Trainer" retreat, at which all twelve Province CRWLC Chairmen gathered to ensure consistency of implementation across the fraternity landscape.

 

A native of Connecticut’s Greater Hartford area, Jimmy graduated with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in 1992 from Indiana University, where he earned All Big-Ten Conference honors as a sprinter for the school’s Track & Field team. As a member of three indoor Big-Ten Championship and two outdoor Big-Ten Championship teams, Jimmy is still one of the current record holders for the University’s 4x100 meter relay team. He also holds a Master of Business Administration degree. 

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Jimmy enjoyed a successful career as a firefighter with the West Hartford (CT) Fire Department.  Perhaps no other work experience exists in any professional endeavor that offers the same high level teaching and understanding of the concept of teamwork; an environment where failure to coalesce as an effective team presents potential life and death consequences.  It was in this arena where Jimmy learned and mastered how to build, operate and function in highly effective and efficient teams.  Literally baptized by fire, Jimmy developed a sense of calmness in the midst of chaos, a level of comfort quickly assessing challenging situations, making critical decisions, prioritizing next steps, setting strategy and effectively communicating direction and leading execution. Brother McMikle also served (for a decade) as a commander of the Department’s Honor Guard.   But, despite his love for firefighting, it was during his two decades of service as a firefighter where he began his entrepreneurial journey, by creating and building a consulting firm that would shape the next chapter of his life after retirement from the fire department.  

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Powered by the passionate belief that everyone can achieve greatness, and driven by the opportunity to spark significant, powerful change, Jimmy McMikle has dedicated his life to service and the uplifting of community.  He regularly inspires audiences of children, college students, educators, parent groups and professionals alike, championing achievement and bridging the gap between current positioning and desired direction. Jimmy is a respected leadership consultant, accomplished author and sought-after motivational speaker and life coach. Three simple, yet powerful words define his mission and direct his passion to equip people for success: Educate, Inspire, & Empower!   He is President of the McMikle Group, LLC, a leadership training and development firm.  His company and personal motto is: “Educate, Inspire, and Empower!”  He shares the distinction of being a certified John C. Maxwell Speaker, Leadership Trainer, and Life Coach with a select group of phenomenal speakers worldwide, personally trained and mentored by the world’s foremost leadership authority figure, Dr. Maxwell himself.  

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Jimmy McMikle has authored two children’s books, entitled “Hey Big Boy,” and “Hey Big Girl.” They provide powerful life directional messages to youth of all ages. His latest adult motivational book, “DREAM NOW: 10 Steps to Accomplish the Extraordinary,” offers a roadmap to stepping out of an ordinary existence and experiencing a life of extraordinary measure.  He is the founder of the D.R.E.A.M. NOW Program, an intensive youth leadership program whose mission is, “to develop responsible, educated, adaptive minds for future leadership.” The program develops the social, emotional, physical, and intellectual competencies critical for future leadership proficiency.

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Jimmy McMikle is proud of the fact that he is a man of God and a family man. Jimmy and his wife Marclion currently reside in Windsor, Connecticut, where they are raising two future leaders, a son named Miles and a daughter named Logan.