From Single Mom to Attorney, CDC Director and Entrepreneur

I know many of you know my story, The Empowermenteur story, but for those of you who don’t– this one’s for you.

My team said, “Montrece—you’ve been dropping gems and giving value, but it's time to tell the people a little more about who you are and how you came to be here in this space. Tell us about how you started offering advice and tips on how to live a more aligned and empowered life.” 

So today, I’m going to do just that. As cliché as it sounds, let’s start from the beginning. If you stick with me along the way, I’ll offer a few lessons on how I learned to OWN my life, career, and business. You’ll discover how important it is to empower your own damn self. 

Growing Up in a Military Family

I’m an Aries and the only child of two career soldiers. That alone should tell you a lot about who I am.

I was born in St. Louis, Missouri. My mother and her family are from East St. Louis, Illinois. If you know anything about East St. Louis, you know it’s a rough area.

When I worked on environmental public health issues, I learned that it is the most disenfranchised small town in the country. My mother had a vision for bigger and better, so she drove across the bridge to St. Louis and gave birth to me. Then, she joined the Army shortly after giving birth to me.

Both of my parents served in the Army for more than two decades each from Ft. Polk, Louisiana; Mililani Town, Hawaii; Hopewell, VA; Jacksonville, NC; and Columbus GA. I moved quite a bit. I went to three different high schools, and was raised to believe that I was a citizen of the world.

Getting an Education

I graduated from high school in Columbus, Georgia and then went to Georgia Southwestern College (now called Georgia Southwestern State University). I began as a Spanish major, then a political science major. 

I ended up getting pregnant my sophomore year and I moved back home to Columbus, GA. I transferred to Columbus College (now called Columbus State University). It was there that I took a speech class, and then another and another. I made straight As and I loved it. I didn’t know it then, but that was alignment.

I took a class on organizational training and development, and I was hooked. That is what I wanted to do! So, I changed my major (yet again) to speech communications. 

Soon after I gave birth to my daughter, Alyxandra, I married her father. We desperately needed money, so I started working at The Gap in Peachtree Mall as a sales associate. 

I remember watching the assistant manager in action and thinking to myself, “I can do that in my sleep.” So, I said the same to our district manager when she was on a store visit. Two weeks later, I was an assistant manager. 

I worked my way up to be an associate store manager in less than two years, while going to school full-time and raising my daughter.

I often talk to my clients about substance over form. Although retail management wasn’t the form I thought it would take, the substance was there. 

• I was training and developing staff. 
• I was developing my workforce training.
• I was advancing my education skills

I had no clue where this would all take me, but I was in love with The Gap. I loved the people I worked with, my customers and the company. I had a 10-year plan to move up to regional manager, and then make it to corporate in San Francisco. I had plans! 

Providing As a Single Mom

Eventually, I separated from my daughter’s father soon after I earned my undergraduate degree. Although I tried, we both knew it wasn’t meant to last even though our parents wanted us to get married.

I stayed married long enough to graduate, and I knew I needed my parents' support to figure things out. I needed to learn how to be a single mom and get some sense of stability. So, I called my parents when they were stationed at Fort Wainwright, near Fairbanks, AK.

My dad got on a plane, flew to Columbus, GA and helped me pack up my two-wheel-drive white Izuzu Rodeo. My dad, two-year-old daughter and I embarked on the most epic five day road trip from Columbus, GA to Fairbanks, AK. We drove across the country, and through the last frontier of the Yukon territory. Looking back on it, I don’t know how we did it. 

But my dad has never let me down. He’s always been my hero. 

When we made it to Fairbanks, I found work selling loans for a finance company called Norwest Financial. I was good at it. They called me “The Queen of the Living Room.” 

But, I was selling loans at the highest interest rate allowed under the law. If I remember correctly, that was about 56% on a $500 loan in Alaska. 

I lived in Alaska for a year until my mother got selected for the Sergeant Majors Academy in El Paso, TX. My parents said Alyx and I ARE NOT staying in Alaska without us. They said I could move anywhere I want, but I couldn’t stay here. So, I chose Greensboro, NC. 

Deciding I Wanted More

Norwest facilitated my transfer to be near my dad’s family from the small town of Godwin, NC. We lived with my cousin for a few months, and then got our own one bedroom apartment. We had a table, chairs, stereo system, no couch, and we shared a bed. 

This year in North Carolina transformed my life. 

While sitting on the floor of that one bedroom apartment, I decided I wanted more. I decided that I was destined to live an incredible life. I decided I had something to prove to myself, my daughter, and all those people who said I’d be just another statistic as a young mother.  

So, I started applying to law schools. I always told people that my goal was to go to law school, but then I got pregnant and married. Life changed.

One of those people I told was my good friend and sorority sister, Tisha. She would remind me of that goal on a regular basis. Then, she decided she was going to law school and that we should apply together. So, we did! 

I ended up getting a full ride to the University of Alabama. Even though Alabama wasn’t my #1 choice, it’s hard to beat free tuition.

Attending Law School

At this point, I’m 25 and my daughter is about turn five. I’m thinking I’ll start law school and she’ll start kindergarten. When she’s in school, I’ll be in class. 

But, my daughter’s birthday is September 3rd and kids can start kindergarten in North Carolina if their 5th birthday is before November. But in Alabama, my daughter would have to wait a full year to start kindergarten because of her late birthday. 

Well, that just wasn’t going to work.

I called the superintendent's office and explained my dilemma. It took a few phone calls and some approvals on their end, but I discovered if a child was enrolled in school in the transferring state, then they could enroll in school in Alabama. 

So, I enrolled my daughter in school for one day and had the principal sign a letter saying she was enrolled and attended at least that one day. Now, I was able to transfer her to school in Alabama.

In law school, I met two other single mothers who became my village. We supported each other and shared babysitting duties. I couldn’t have survived law school without them. 

When I graduated from law school, I knew I did not want to practice law in the traditional sense. That same friend who reminded me of my law school goals, who held me accountable, and held my hand through the application process, told me about a program called the Presidential Management Internship Program (now called the Presidential Management Fellowship Program). 

At the time, the program required a nomination from your dean. So, I asked for one.

I was nominated and ultimately accepted as a finalist.

Starting My CDC Career 

I chose to take my appointment at the CDC. I chose the CDC because my parents had recently retired from the Army and were living in Hepzibah, Georgia near Augusta. The CDC was located in Atlanta, only 2 hours away. Close but not too close. 

I was appointed to the congressional legislative branch of the financial management office at CDC. My job was to plan visits for Congressmen and women when they wanted to come to the CDC and learn about the latest science on any given public health topic. 

While I enjoyed the relatively high profile position for a while, it was basically party planning. I did not want to practice the law, but I wanted to use my law degree. My first six months at the agency were frustrating because I did not feel like I belonged. I was the only woman of color in most of the rooms I entered. I was an attorney assigned to an agency full of scientists, but not assigned to the office of general counsel. 

Then, 9/11 happened. I was asked to work in the CDC Emergency Operations Center as an operations analyst. While serving, I was approached and asked to come work on a short-term detail in the newly established public health law program to help them plan the first national conference on public health law. 

At first I thought, “Oh, you want me to plan another party?” Then I decided to lean into it and saw it as a learning opportunity. My job was to plan 28 concurrent sessions on every topic ever and the law. That experience taught me a lesson that would ground my career in public health.

There is no public health without the law.

I planned that conference and six more annual public health law conferences. What was supposed to be a 3-month detail, turned into a 20-year career. 

Finding a Sense of Belonging

About 8-years into my career, I earned my MPH and decided I wanted to do “real” public health. I accepted an offer to transfer from the Public Health Law Program (PHLP) to CDC’s National Center for Environmental Health. I worked on a 2-year project called the National Conversation on Public Health and Chemical Exposures. 

During these two years, PHLP underwent quite a few changes. They hired a new director named Matthew Penn. At the end of the 2-year project, Matthew gave me a call that changed the trajectory of my career.

Matthew: “Would you come back to the public health law program?”

Me: “Only if I finally get to do Training and Workforce Development in Public Health Law.”

Matthew: “What’s that?”

Me: “I don’t know, but if you give me a desk, some space, and some time…I’ll figure it out.”

And, I did. I spent my last 10 years of my career at the CDC helping Matthew and our team rebuild the Public Health Law Program. I built a key component of that program, an award-winning Public Health Law Training and Workforce Development Team. 

Matthew gave me a sense of belonging. I felt psychologically safe to put myself out there, try things, and make mistakes to learn and grow. That sense of belonging allowed me to grow my confidence and self-esteem. Honestly, it’s what made it easier for me to leave. 

Launching a Business

I made the perfect pivot and decided to start The Empowermenteur. 

I built a Program at the CDC, which was basically my own business. Matthew gave me room and space to see what I was capable of, and that led to my confidence that I could do it for myself.

During my 20-year career at the CDC, I fought for a sense of belonging by helping others belong. I coached and mentored thousands on:

• growth mindset,
• careers in public health,
• careers in public health law,
• communicating effectively, and
• owning their voice.

I trained tens of thousands on the role of law in advancing public health as it relates to just about every area or concern. I spoke on hundreds of stages about topics at the intersection of public health, law, and equity. I earned awards from the American Bar Association and the American Public Health Association.

Once that program was built up and running, there was no more promotion potential for me. I started to feel the ugly creep of microaggressions, racism, and discrimination. I didn’t feel like I was being treated like similarly situated white men. 

I knew I needed out.

So, the CDC sent me to Florida for training in October 2019 where we received two hours of executive coaching. I was placed with a coach that coaches coaches. She told me what I tell so many of my clients: “Stop playing small. If you are called to it, do it.” I phrase it as, 

Anywhere you are called, or aspire to be, you belong. 

Knowing You’re Doing the Right Thing

My clients always ask me about God’s will. I believe God’s will is the desire in our heart. Free will is what we choose to do with it. 

Today, I know that becoming the coach I am today was God’s will for me and my clients. It took me years to make it come to life, but I’m so glad I finally did.

Within three months, I was enrolled in Georgetown University’s Executive Leadership Coaching Program. My goal was to put some science into what I thought I knew as a coach. 

But I learned so much more. 

I loved it! While we didn’t earn grades in the traditional sense, I felt that same alignment I felt when I took those speech communication classes. I knew I was in the right and suitable place. I knew I was where I belonged. 

The 9-month program was rigorous and life-changing. Within a month of graduating, I resigned from the CDC and officially launched The Empowermenteur Coaching and Consulting Group. 

Two weeks after that, I moved to Miami. Today, I run my business, host The Empowerment L.A.B., and spread the message about the #1 motivator for all human beings. 

Belonging.

Helping My Clients

As an international speaker and trainer, I coach high achieving women (and a few good men) through the following programs: S.T.R.U.T.™ into Coaching Academy and Your Career Owned Collective.

I’ve recently launched my newest coaching program, The Empowered Speaker. I also serve as the Director of the National Coordinating Center for Public Health Training within the National Network of Public Health Institutes. 

Yep, I’m busy.
But balanced.
Because I’m aligned. 

I don’t do it all. I have a team of interns, an amazing assistant, and I outsource the stuff I’m not good at. But, I make the money I knew I was destined to make. I impact the lives I knew I was destined to impact.

And I feel aligned.

That’s it. That’s my story! I hope it helps you get to know more about me and the Empowermenteur. I hope it also offers a few lessons that might help you to, 1) OWN your own life, career, and business, 2) take inspired action on the desires of your heart, and 3) find your own sense of empowerment, alignment, and belonging.