Author Profile

Michael P. McMillan is the President and CEO of the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis, Inc., a nonprofit organization that has been providing social services to the metropolitan St. Louis community since 1918. The Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis is the largest affiliate of the National Urban League movement, which is headquartered in New York City. The agency’s mission is "to assist African Americans and others throughout the region in securing economic self-reliance, social equality and civil rights." Each year, the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis serves more than 100,000 residents with economic opportunity, educational excellence, community empowerment, civil rights and advocacy programs. As an advocate for social and economic parity, McMillan speaks on behalf of Urban League constituents.

In response to the crisis in Ferguson, Missouri,  McMillan created the Save Our Sons program in St. Louis County to help 500 African-American men find jobs, and hosted the agency's largest job fair in history at St. Louis Community College - Florissant Valley. He has also charted the building of the Urban League Community Empowerment Center of Ferguson on the site of a convenience store that was burned down during the unrest. Opened in 2017, the Ferguson Community Empowerment Center houses the Save Our Sons program along with social service partners: The Salvation Army, Midland Division; the University of Missouri Extension; and the Lutheran Hope Center. In July 2017, McMillan and the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis hosted the largest National Urban League Conference in history with nearly 25,000 in attendance.

McMillan has received hundreds of awards and commendations from various organizations. He was recently recognized on the International Civil Rights Walk of Fame and honored as one of the Ebony Power 100 Most Influential African Americans in the United States. Additionally, he is the recipient of the 2013 Trumpet Award for Community Service, the Whitney M. Young and the John Mack Leadership Awards from the National Urban League, the Chairman's Award presented by the St. Louis Minority Supplier Development Council, a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Montford Point Marines (counterparts of the Tuskegee Airmen), and from the Salute to Women in Leadership Awards program.

McMillan is a member of Boards of Directors of the following companies and organizations: Reliance Bank, The St. Louis Zoological Commission, Regions Bank Community Development Corporation, The Sheldon, Grand Center, Heat Up St. Louis, Inc. (Cool Down St. Louis), The St. Louis Community Foundation, The DESE Task Force, The Muny, Greater St. Louis Area Council, Boy Scouts of America, and the Workforce Investment Board of St. Louis County.

McMillan is a graduate of Saint Louis University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in African-American Studies and a minor in Political Science with an emphasis on Finance. Additionally, McMillan earned an Eisenhower International Fellowship to travel to Ireland and Paris to study their forms of government.