Burnea Lester has joined the SITE Improvement Association as Director of Communications and Community Relations. She will engage with key construction industry and community leaders to improve the effectiveness of workforce development programs, develop new minority contracting and workforce participation opportunities and assist contractors with Diversity and Inclusion efforts while also strengthening SITE’s internal and external communications outreach.
Burnea has over 15 years of experience in DEI training and consulting, workforce development, community engagement, organizational capacity building, and strategic partnership advancement. In her leadership positions at the University of Missouri-St. Louis Community Innovation and Action Center, she utilized qualitative data research and process improvement to help prominent non-profit organizations address community development challenges, including housing and literacy. She also led community engagement initiatives to help address workforce shortages in the Healthcare trades and partnered with local high schools to help alleviate barriers for unrepresented prospective students.
She is the co-founder and lead facilitator with The Art of Adaption, a consulting firm that provides evaluation and training in diversity, inclusion, and company culture through their inclusion-design-build process for a range of industries, organizations, and companies.
Burnea received a Bachelor of Science degree in Broadcast Journalism from Northwest Missouri State University, a Master of Arts degree in Media Communications and Media Literacy from Webster University, and a Master of Science degree in Education from Keller Graduate School of Management.
“We are thrilled that Burnea is bringing her experience, connections and collaborative approach to address the challenges facing our contractor members and the workforce issues that are currently impacting the construction industry” said Jeremy Bennett, Executive Director of the SITE Improvement Association. “She knows how to turn problems into solutions and garner support from stakeholders to move our industry forward.”
About SITE Improvement Association
The SITE Improvement Association advances the construction industry in eastern Missouri through public policy advocacy, labor relations support, safety and leadership training and professional networking. Established in 1966 as an independent trade organization, SITE represents more than 230 contractors and suppliers in the Concrete, Asphalt Paving, Sewer/Utility, Highway/Bridge, Earthmoving, Landscaping and Specialty construction sectors. For more information, visit www.sitestl.org.