Awards & Recognition

• 1998 Fellow of the North Carolina Institute of Political Leadership
• 2012 Richard H. Hagemeyer Educational Advancement Awardee for former CPCC students
• The Charlotte Business Journal – 2009 ‘40 under 40′ leadership class
• 1997 Charlotte Observer – “A New Generation of Leadership”
• 2003 Pride Award – MOMO declared Organization of the Year
• 2009 American Memorial Fellow – The German Marshall Fund
• BMW Foundation Young/Responsible Leaders Community
• NBC LEO Fellowship – National League of Cities
• Certified Housing Development Finance Professional – National Development Council
• Serves as member of the BMW Foundation Young Leaders Community, and participated in the 16th Transatlantic Forum in June 2012 which was held in Berlin, Germany. The title of the conference was “The Art of the Possible: Striking a Balance between Participation and the Delegation of Power”. Howard was honored to serve on a panel entitled “The Professional Citizen – An Equal Partner in Business and Politics?” during the conference where he shared the opportunities and challenges of public service.
• Select as one of two newly elected officials to be in the 2011 inaugural fellows class with the National Black Caucus of Local Elected Officials (NBC LEO) Foundation, a caucus of the National League of Cities.
• Achieved the Bronze Level Certification from the Leadership Training Institute of the National League of Cities.
• 2009 Charlotte Business Journal’s “40 Under 40 Award”, which recognizes 40 individuals under the age of 40 whose efforts have helped make the Charlotte region a better place to live and conduct business.
• 2009 German Marshal Fund American Memorial Fellow, which affords emerging leaders from the United States an opportunity to travel Europe and learn more about its societies, institutions, and people. The Fellows tour five European cities during the three week program. [Brussels, Belgium; Amsterdam, Netherlands; Barcelona, Spain; Skopje, Republic of Macedonia; and Berlin, Germany]
• In 2003 and 2004, represented the Office of Congressman Mel Watt (NC13) at the Annual National African American Leadership Summits on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. These annual summits are sponsored by the U.S. Senate Democratic Caucus and the Congressional Black Caucus to help develop better dialogue and partnerships between African American community leaders and their Congressional representatives.
• Featured in a 2003 Charlotte Observer article entitled “A Decade of Comfort” which recognized David and the other founders of Mothers of Murdered Offspring, Inc. (MOMO) on the organization’s 10th Anniversary.
• In 2003, David and the other MOMO founders were jointly recognized with the Pride Award as the Organization of the Yearand were awarded a special grant by Lowe’s Home Improvement Stores Foundation.
• In 2003 and 2004, represented the Office of Congressman Mel Watt (NC13) at the Annual National African American Leadership Summits on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. These annual summits are sponsored by the U.S. Senate Democratic Caucus and the Congressional Black Caucus to help develop better dialogue and partnerships between African American community leaders and their Congressional representatives.
• Featured in a January 1997 Charlotte Observer article entitled “A New Generation of Leadership” which spotlighted five emerging leaders in the Charlotte community.
• In 1997, served as a group facilitator for the Community Building Conference, a city-wide effort to improve cross-racial communications in Charlotte’s communities.
• Served on the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department’sTask Force on Police Training, the goal of which was to prepare new recruits to work in various area neighborhoods with community leaders.