There was a common theme in just about everything Jabari Hearn, Kenneth Imo and Alex Glover talked about during the 2025 Black Excellence Brunch on Saturday in the Garry Weber End Zone Complex.

The three panelists spoke about mentors they had at SMU and after and how they have tried to pay it forward themselves.

Hearn ('97) is the chief marketing and growth officer at AKQA and spent 12 years at his dream job with Nike. While wondering what to do next in his career, Hearn remembered how he got his start in 

He got his start because the parent of a camper at a basketball clinic he was working at set his professional career in motion. Now, he wanted to pay that forward and support others in their journey.

"I realized that trying to climb and get more and more for me, even if I can get myself 10% better," Hearn said. "I was like, 'What if I tried helping somebody else get better?' And if 10% of my time can make somebody else 50% better? And I started to think about that, and I was like, what's more important, a better Jabari in the world or 1,000 more Jabari's in the world."

When Imo ('99) was at SMU he found his people. It was a blessing and a curse because he was in a bubble that kept him from taking full advantage of everything SMU had to offer. 

But he did have people who helped him from teammates to professors as he would go on to law school, the Air Force and has led in inclusion efforts in law, financial services and technology.

"I was fortunate to have great mentors at SMU," Imo said. "Some of whom were professors that I had that took an interest in me and student athletes. Some of whom were on the team, I like to call them my OGs … Jay Harvey played ball back in the day. … I was fortunate to have people who took an interest in me, whether it be professors, whether it be people on the team."

Meanwhile, Glover ('22, '24) is just getting started, but is already seeing both ends of mentorship. During her time on the SMU volleyball team, she was a pioneer in the new NIL landscape.

She has been able to help current athletes, including the SMU women's basketball and volleyball teams, navigate NIL as a mentor. Glover has also found mentorship in Rising Media Stars as she takes the next steps in her career in sports media.

"I just think it's about giving someone an opportunity they may not have had and also giving them that confidence," Glover said. "They're great opportunities, don't get me wrong, but the confidence that's been instilled in me, that I'm supposed to be where I am in life, has been more invaluable than the opportunities."

Whether they are true mentorship programs like Hearn started and Glover is a part of, or unofficial ones like Imo experienced with a teammate like Harvey who was just there for him during and after their time at SMU, having those people are key.

"Mentors are all around you and you don't have to give things labels necessarily," Imo said. "But it's happening, it happens."

The panel also discussed the hot-button issue of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion programs that have been under scrutiny. 

While the acronym of DEI is easy to attack, the words themselves prove their importance.

"I've been doing diversity work for a long time," Imo said. " I think it's worth truly breaking down each word. … There's so much out there that's trying to pull us apart, create division and get us to not focus on the fact that there is strength in our differences. We need leaders who see those strengths … and put all that stuff together, lean into their individual strengths, the collective power we could create would be incredible."

With companies doing away with their DEI offices and policies there are opportunities. Hearn noted it is easy to recognize places they truly value these ideals and aren't just checking off a box.

It's also a chance to go out and do the best way possible and be that place people can look to as an example.

"Be the blueprint. Show them why this matters, show them how this can be effective, show them what this is all about," Hearn said. "It's not DEI, it's diversity, it is equity, it's inclusion. And if I ask you if you care about those things individually, you might say yes, but if I ask you about DEI it becomes a stupid thing. Get the stupidity out of the conversation."

But most importantly, no matter what you call it, these are important ideals to have.

"Taking away the resources is not an option," Glover said. "I think of it as any other resource that we have. … Getting rid of the resources is not an option at any cost. There's no reason that it should even be on the table."