Henry L. English

May 27, 1942 – March 5, 2016

Henry L. English, was born on May 27, 1942 in West Point, Mississippi. Son of Flozell and Julie Pearl (Smith) English, and rose to become a nationally recognized and respected not-for-profit institution executive, as President & CEO of the Black United Fund of Illinois, Inc, founded to promote Black Philanthropy.

Since 1985 Black United Fund of Illinois (BUFI) has advocated reliance on self-help at the local community level and encourages individuals at every economic level to set aside a portion of their own resources (ideas, money, energy, supplies, skills, and time) to collectively support economic empowerment. Since its inception, BUFI has assisted through grants, technical assistance, and support services, over 700 grassroots organizations and programs statewide that address critical needs of the African American community.

Noted for his leadership as a young man, Mr. English is credited as a leader in the Black liberation movement in Chicago and will be remembered as an important Chicago student leader, founder and first president of Chicago City College student government, and eventually a leader in the Black Panther Party. English lead the successful movement to change Crane Junior College’s name to Malcolm X College, and continued pivotal work in this area from 1968-1971. He was named a fellow of the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation, 1972-1974; recipient, Leadership Award Boy Scouts America, Chicago, 1983, and Appreciation award, Service award Clara’s House Shelter, Chicago, 1995; recognized this year with a special award from the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago; and has received many other awards too numerous to mention.

Through Mr. English’s leadership, BUFI has recently expanded its programming to include entrepreneurial training for youth, and outreach, referral and job training for ex-offenders and the long-term unemployed. The organization continues the Safe Passage program, where community residents are hired to walk students to and from their local schools safely. BUFI hires approximately 140 adults to be community watchers at seven (7) local schools.

English has over forty-five (45) years of diversified management, in the health care, education and fund development fields. Mr. English was instrumental in The Coalition to Save South Shore Country Club, which helped to transform the once exclusive South Shore Country Club into the South Shore Cultural Center, a public facility that provides a range of programs and services for the community. He was also instrumental in the reorganization of South Shore High School into four small schools, and was involved in the development of the new South Shore International College Prep High School and served on the Local School Council, lending his leadership and expertise to promote high quality academic environments for our youth.

His passion for helping people, particularly youth, along with his relationship and coalition building skills, made him a sought after community leader with the vision and determination to make things happen. As an activist for social change, Mr. English believed that it is important to “help people help themselves.”

Prior to stellar service as President & CEO of the Black United Fund of Illinois, Inc., English was a leader of the National Black United Fund movement in America. He was also Assistant Director of Development, Kittrell College, North Carolina, 1974-1975, and Assistant Administrator at Jackson Park Hospital, Chicago from 1975 to 1977. He served as Director, Planning and Marketing at South Chicago Hospital from 1977 to 1985, as Co-chairman United Black Voters of Illinois from 1977 to 1979, and on the board of directors of COMPRAND Illinois from 1981 to 1986. English was a commissioner for the Calumet District Boy Scouts America, Chicago from 1982 to 1984, a member of the National Health Care Executives, and a member of Blacks in Development (receiving their Appreciation Award in 1993). He has served on numerous boards and committees throughout his career.

A champion for education, in addition to his unparalleled contribution as a student leader at Malcolm X College, Chicago, he graduated from the University of New Hampshire and received a Master of Public Administration from Cornell University in Ithaca, New York in 1974. Most recently he served as Adjunct Professor at Northeastern Illinois University’s Carruthers Center for Inner City Studies.