Sheila Johnson

A trailblazer in business, Sheila Johnson is the Founder & CEO of Salamander Collection, ranked as Best Luxury Hotel Brand, and where she has built a distinguished portfolio of luxury hospitality properties. Renowned as the co-founder of Black Entertainment Television (BET), she is also a partner of Monumental Sports & Entertainment, and the only African American woman to have ownership in three professional sports teams: Washington Mystics, Washington Wizards, and Washington Capitals.

She spearheaded the formation of WE Capital, a venture capital consortium to support and invest in female-led enterprises. Ms. Johnson is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences where she serves on the Education Committee; Founding Benefactor for the Consortium for Art and Culture in America; board member of Simon & Schuster Publishing Advisory Board, Aspen Music Festival and School, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, and a committee member of the NeuroArts Blueprint: Advancing the Science of Arts, Health and Well-Being.

The Sheila Johnson Fellowship at the Harvard Kennedy School supported a cohort of 50 fellows. A powerful influence in the entertainment industry, she served as executive producer of documentary and feature films and is founder and chair of the Middleburg Film Festival.