Today we’d like to introduce you to Dr. Leslye Kornegay.
Hi Dr. Leslye, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I often say my story is one of Redshift moments those pivotal turning points where life asks you to expand, evolve, and lead with deeper purpose. I grew up watching strong, determined Black women like my mother and grandmother lead with grace, grit, and conviction, and that foundation shaped everything that came after.
My professional journey began long before I ever held an official title. It began with service, curiosity, and the belief that leadership is about impact, not authority. Over the years, my path has taken me through complex organizations, high-stakes environments, and transformational leadership roles. Today, I serve as the Executive Director of University Environmental Services at Duke University, where I lead a large operation focused on operational excellence, organizational restructuring, labor strategy, and above all people development.
But my leadership story extends far beyond the workplace. As a faculty member teaching graduate level Leadership, Entrepreneurial studies, and Marketing courses, I help emerging professionals understand not only the “what” and the “how” of leadership, but the why. Education is deeply personal to me, and I’ve dedicated much of my work to developing programs that build capability, confidence, and long-term professional growth.
Writing my book, Leading to Change the World, was another defining moment. It shares my journey as a Black woman navigating and rising within predominantly white institutions, and it opened doors for national conversations about equity, resilience, confidence, and inclusive leadership.
That commitment to community and legacy is also the heart of the Kornegay Foundation, which I established to support education, wellness, economic/financial empowerment and community development. I am a huge advocate of wellness empowerment. It’s one of the major pillars of the Kornegay Foundation. Through initiatives like the Sarah Hatcher Mack and Dr. Leslye Kornegay Scholarship that I established at the University of Mount Olive, focused wellness and leadership events, the Kornegay Foundation amplifies everything I believe in: elevating others, expanding access, and seeding pathways for futures that may not have seemed possible.
Today, my work sits at the intersection of leadership, transformation, education, and social impact. Whether I am leading a large organization, teaching in the classroom, writing, or investing in community through the Foundation, all of it is grounded in one belief:
When you live well and lead well, you can change the world.
And every chapter of my story past, present, and still unfolding reflects that purpose.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
I don’t think anyone who looks at my life today would describe the road as smooth and honestly, I wouldn’t want it to be. My story has been marked by challenges, detours, and moments that forced me to grow into the woman I was becoming long before I recognized her.
I often talk about Redshift moments those turning points when everything around you shifts, and suddenly you’re required to step forward with a level of courage you didn’t know you had. I’ve had many of those. As a Black woman navigating predominantly white institutions, I’ve had to prove myself in rooms where expectations were low, assumptions were high, and the path was not laid out for someone who looked like me. There were moments where the weight of being “the first,” “the only,” or “the one they didn’t expect” was heavy. But those moments also built my strength and sharpened my purpose.
There were times in my career when I had to rebuild systems, restructure organizations, or stand firm in environments where change wasn’t welcomed. There were seasons when I faced my own health battles while still leading teams, caring for my family, teaching students, and mentoring others who depended on my voice. I’ve experienced loss, pressure, and the kind of quiet resilience that people don’t always see, but that shapes everything.
None of that journey was smooth. But it was necessary.
Every challenge professional or personal taught me how to lead with empathy, how to build confidence not just in myself but in others, and how to stand in my truth even when it would have been easier to shrink.
Those experiences are also why I started the Kornegay Foundation and the Sarah Mack and Kornegay Scholarship, . I know what it feels like to need support, need opportunity, and need someone who believes in you before you fully believe in yourself. The Foundation allows me to turn everything I have lived through into something that lifts others: scholarships for students, programs for young people, wellness and leadership spaces for women, and initiatives designed to open doors that were once closed to me.
So no the road hasn’t been smooth.
But it has been meaningful.
It has been transformative.
And it has prepared me for every room I walk into, every student I teach, every leader I mentor, and every life I touch through my work and the Foundation and scholarship.
My journey isn’t about perfection. It’s about purpose.
And every obstacle has helped shape the leader and the woman I am today.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I have included in my earlier responses insight into my why and the work that is purposeful. Please draw from those responses.
What has been the most important lesson you’ve learned along your journey?
I like to say my story is a tapestry stitched together by resilience, faith, and a whole lot of Redshift moments. I didn’t arrive here by accident or privilege. I arrived here because life kept stretching me, challenging me, and preparing me long before I understood what leadership truly meant.
I started as a little Black girl in Miami, watching my mother and grandmother navigate the world with strength and grace. They didn’t have titles, but they were leaders in every sense of the word. They taught me that you don’t wait for permission to make an impact, you just step into who you are. That was my first lesson in leadership.
But has the road been smooth? Not even close.
There were seasons when I was the only Black woman in the room and sometimes the only voice advocating for fairness, equity, or simply being seen. I’ve had to navigate systems that were not built for people who look like me. I’ve had to lead through illness, career crossroads, heartbreak, professional betrayals, and moments when I wondered if my dreams were too heavy to carry.
There have been days where I showed up to lead large teams, manage multimillion-dollar operations, mentor students, or speak on stages even while fighting the private battles that no résumé could ever capture. Resilience became my companion. Faith became my anchor. Purpose became my compass.
Those hard chapters gave birth to my book, Leading to Change the World, because I knew I couldn’t be silent about the challenges that Black women face in leadership. And they also inspired the creation of the Kornegay Foundation and, so I could give back what I often needed most access, opportunity, and belief. Through scholarships at University of Mount Olive Mack & Kornegay endowment, youth programs such as the Kids Camp at The Fit Factory lead by Vance Bynum, and wellness initiatives, the Foundation is my way of transforming pain into purpose and obstacles into open doors.
And through it all, my career kept evolving from frontline roles to executive leadership, from the classroom to community leadership. Every step has been about creating excellence, building people, and making sure others rise with me.
My most important lesson?
That leadership is not about being strong all the time, it’s about being real.
It’s understanding that your trials shape your testimony.
It’s realizing that your voice has power even when it trembles.
And it’s knowing that you can be both vulnerable and victorious at the same time.
I’ve learned that when you lead with authenticity, purpose, and heart, you don’t just change your own life, you change the lives of the people you touch.
So no, the road hasn’t been smooth. But every rough place shaped me. Every challenge prepared me. And every moment good or hard brought me exactly where I’m meant to be, still evolving, still leading, and still walking boldly into my next Redshift moment.
Pricing:
- Donations for Kornegay foundation
- Donations for the Mack & Kornegay Scholarship
- Personal/ Professional Coaching pricing by consultations
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.kornegayfoundation.org/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kornegayfoundation?igsh=MXFrc3lhNXl1ODhzbA==
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leslyekornegay?utm_source=share&utm_campaign=share_via&utm_content=profile&utm_medium=ios_app
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/@leslyekornegay?si=G8hYRguEOXaLsot_
- Other: https://KornegayKonsulting.com
