Karsonya “Kaye” Wise Whitehead, Ph.D., founding executive director of The Karson Institute for Race, Peace & Social Justice and professor of communication and African and African American studies, will be honored at the 2025 Who’s Who in Black Baltimore event on Wednesday, April 9, at the Baltimore Marriott Waterfront. 

Whitehead is being recognized by Afro News as a “Game Changer” for her positive contributions to Black culture through her role at the Karson Institute, as a professor at Loyola, and as the host of the award-winning radio show “Today with Dr. Kaye” on WEAA, 88.9 FM.

“I do the work for my children and for the children of my children because I rely so heavily on the lessons and legacy of my ancestors. I think about how my work is helping to shape the memories and experiences of my family for generations to come,” said Whitehead. “Dr. King challenged us to make justice a reality for our children and that is what I am doing. I want to leave them with a desire for justice and a plan to make it happen.”

For more than 30 years, Who’s Who in Black has celebrated local African American achievement in various industries, including business, politics, tech, sports, entertainment, and more. This is only the second edition of Who’s Who in Black Baltimore in the last 15 years. 

About the Karson Institute

Founded and based at Loyola University Maryland, the Karson Institute provides a scholarly space for professors, students, social justice workers, and activists to come together to research, discuss, debate, and explore answers to America’s most urgent questions on inequality, injustice, and racial inequity. The institute is committed to establishing a research and data-based environment built on intersectional liberated ideas and ideologies.