I sat down with Dr. Ruben Anthony to reflect on his life’s journey which started in Mt. Vernon and continues here in Madison Wisconsin. The majority of his youth was spent in Yonkers New York where seeds were planted to help him grow into the leader he is today. As a child, he noticed how creative and talented people were.
As a matter of fact a couple of local talents included DMX and Mary J. Blige. “You’d find Mary on Riverdale and DMX spending a lot of his time on Walburton Ave., which is the street in my neighborhood,” he recalls, with a little pride in his voice. His community is a reflection of opportunity yet heartache, a place where dreams are born yet often snuffed out. Ruben acknowledges the success stories that emerged from these streets but also mourns the countless lives lost to the cycle of violence and incarceration. “Many kids don’t leave those communities,” he states, you can hear the seriousness in his tone. Yonkers, he perceives, is a microcosm of America’s broader societal issues—one of the most segregated cities, where doctors and dentists lived side-by-side with those less fortunate, where violence could erupt simply because of someone’s skin color. He remembers a house that had been burned, a chilling reminder of the prejudice that existed.
“Living in a rough neighborhood can add to being tenacious to achieve if you want to rise like a phoenix,” he reflects. Watching his father navigate life with multiple streams of income, Ruben was driven to step up and make something of himself. His uncle’s mentorship as a young supervisor during evenings and weekends introduced him to leadership at an early age. “I guess I was a young professional,” he admits, recognizing the foundation laid before him.
As he ventured into adulthood, Ruben took a significant step forward when he enrolled at Marquette University, a transition that he described as his “Ellis Island.” Milwaukee unfolded before him; He thought it was the cleanest city he’d ever seen. It was filled with opportunities yet to be seized. It was there he encountered Howard Fuller, Marquette’s Equal Opportunity Program’s Director. “I didn’t realize who he was, but I found out!” With guidance and encouragement from Howard and Sande Robinson, Ruben’s focus shifted towards education—“the great liberator,” as he affirmed.
College opened another world—a space where he met so many people who looked like him with ambitions like him, leaving home for the first time like him and joining a fraternity like him. The fraternity afforded him the opportunity to sit across the table with seasoned community leaders that treated him as an equal when working on various projects. This was a place that gave him hope and an assurance that he could do good things for his future by receiving a degree. However, Jackson State University, where he received his Master’s degree was where he found that he could do great things for his future. He met mentors like Dr. Ally Mack and Dr. Curtina Moreland-Young, who recognized his potential and fostered an environment of accountability. “They put me in a first-time internship that ended up as an administrative residency a local hospital sponsored by Benny Thompson (now US legislator). I was actually the highest-ranking African American on staff. They also gave me projects like building a 9-million-dollar outpatient and imaging center and standing up a cardiac catheterization lab.” Other construction projects followed because he stayed within budget and completed jobs on time. He also learned to manage people during these projects. Conducting these projects taught him not just about fiscal responsibility but also about leading diverse teams towards common goals.
With a masters in public policy administration, he returned to Wisconsin, married Wanda and worked on a political campaign. He soon met General Bob Cockroft, who gave him a job as a budget analyst for the Wisconsin Department of Veteran Affairs. He became his chief budget analyst by the time he left. His wife and Bob were very influential during this transformative chapter of his life. After making a presentation for the state legislature fiscal bureau, Bob’s boss had to meet Ruben and stated, “If you continue to make presentations like that, you will be going places.” Fast forward, Bob continued to mentor Ruben but pushed him out of the nest and after 5 attempts, Ruben took a job at the Department of Transportation as a section chief. Over the years, he moved up the ranks from section chief to bureau director, then to division administrator and landed finally as deputy secretary. He started with 3 people as section chief and ended with 3600 people as deputy secretary. “It’s been a blessing from God all the way. At DOT, I had 2 republican appointments and 1 democratic appointment. My biggest challenge was to implement a reduction in staff. I had to eliminate positions and perform an agency restructure.” Instead of having to eliminate many staff members, his team created “soft landing” which made the task a little more humane.
Now, as President and CEO of the Urban League of Greater Madison, Ruben feels a profound connection to his work. He loves all of the programs and is especially passionate about the youth programs which include… STEAM camp (Science Technology Engineering Arts and Math)- the REACH Program where students are able to shadow community professionals, and Gaming & Coding which shows students the science of how platforms are created. “I love the financial empowerment that comes with all the other programs as well because we help people find careers that can change the trajectory of their lives and families. We place people in positions to build generational wealth through home ownership and we give businesses an opportunity to start and grow and in turn generate their own revenue.” Financial empowerment is one of the most powerful and most effective components that is offered at the Urban League.
Balancing his commitments at work and home, Ruben credits Wanda for managing much of their family life. Even amidst his busy schedule, he makes a deliberate effort to be present for special moments in his children’s lives. “Wanda didn’t want me to take the job initially because she knew how much I admired and cared about what the Urban League does and that I would throw myself into it. And, she was right!” During his early tenure, Ruben had kidney failure, but made it through and began to pace himself. “I really like knowing my kids watched me doing work for the community. I think it is insightful and valuable giving me a greater resolve. I love the work that I do and it’s natural for me. I’m an Urban League baby as there was one in my neighborhood that I used as a respite to keep be off the streets and Wanda worked at the league as well.” Ruben feels that accepting this positions as Urban League CEO is one of the best decisions that he could have ever made. “As busy as I am, I know that I must take myself off the grid sometimes. I do this by fishing which relaxes me and gives an opportunity to reminisce on how my father took me fishing.” I asked Ruben about his cooking skills and retorted, My uncle was my cooking mentor and gave me barbecuing skills. Wanda’s father enhanced my smoking meat skills. I’ve entered many cooking contests and I have won many awards.” When asked about his Thanksgiving tradition, Ruben stated, “Thanksgiving is a time for families to come together tell stories and watch football. You have to have turkey and dressing with sweet potato pie as the dessert. On occasion we’ll travel to Mississippi to visit family.”
What about your future thoughts as you look ahead? “I would love to see the Black Business Hub be fully activated and fully utilized by the community for years and years to come. I would also love to see black and brown families have some form of home ownership even if’s it’s a condominium or townhouse. Own it or be part of the solution.”
