Copyright Essence
When Cheryl McKissack Daniel walks into any boardroom and realizes she’s the only Black woman there (which happens more often than it should in 2025) she thinks about her great-great-great grandfather Moses. For those unfamiliar, Moses was stolen from West Africa in 1790 and brought to America enslaved. He learned construction and masonry because he had to, and passed those skills down to his children so they could build their way to freedom. Fast forward to now: Cheryl runs McKissack & McKissack, the nation’s oldest Black-owned design and construction firm, and she’s the fifth generation to lead it. In the 120 years since the firm was founded, and particularly under her leadership, they’ve managed over $50 billion in construction projects: everything from the Barclays Center, the Oculus at Ground Zero, the new terminal at JFK, Lincoln Financial Field where the Eagles play. “I know that every time I walk into a room, I’m not just representing myself—I’m representing generations of people who weren’t allowed in that room,” she says. “That awareness keeps me grounded and focused.” She’s telling this story, all of it, from Moses to today, in a new book called The Black Family Who Built America, which came out in August from Black Privilege Publishing (Charlamagne tha God’s imprint). She wrote it with Nick Chiles, the journalist who’s co-authored books with Bobby Brown and Rev. Al Sharpton. Really consider the timeline of the family legacy that was built: Moses McKissack III and his brother Calvin founded the firm in 1905 in Tennessee—just 40 years after emancipation, in the heart of Jim Crow South. They were starting a business in an industry that actively excluded Black people (much like today, but during a completely different time). “Every blueprint we’ve touched since then represents not just a structure, but a statement: that excellence has no color barrier,” Cheryl says. Obviously it wasn’t easy. The early years meant dealing with discrimination that forced them to shift their client base to Black communities, building churches and HBCUs when white clients wouldn’t hire them. But the firm survived, and eventually thrived. For Cheryl, taking over as CEO in 2000, a lot of that same bias was still there, just dressed up differently. People assumed she didn’t have quality staff or proper funding. Or most insultingly, that she didn’t know what she was doing. “My approach is to turn isolation into influence,” she says. “I use my voice to advocate for inclusion, fairness, and excellence—not just for myself, but for those coming behind me.” Her mom, Leatrice B. McKissack, showed her how to do that. In the 1980s, Leatrice’s husband had a stroke and she had to take over the business at a time when women literally could not get a business loan without a man’s signature. “She led with grit and grace, and that inspired me to do the same,” Cheryl says. And that’s actually what the book is really about. Not just the buildings, but how you build something that lasts across generations. Cheryl has strong opinions about this, particularly when it comes to what generational wealth actually means. “Generational wealth isn’t just about money—it’s about ownership, knowledge, and values that endure,” she explains. “Legacy, to me, means that when my daughters and their children walk into a building with the McKissack name on it, they know it wasn’t given—it was earned through faith, hard work, and vision.” She’s deliberate about succession planning. Her daughters are already involved in the business. She wants them to understand not just what the family built, but why and how. “Wealth that isn’t paired with understanding disappears in one generation,” she says. What does she want Black women to take away from the book? “To see that our history is full of builders—women and men who created businesses, communities, and movements even when the odds were impossible.” Her mother couldn’t get a loan without a man’s signature, but she kept the business going. That’s the kind of story Cheryl wants people to know. She’s also practical about how people can start building their own legacy, even if they’re not running a construction empire. “Start where you are. You don’t need to have everything figured out to begin building something meaningful,” she says. Document your story. Protect your assets. Teach your kids about money and ownership. “Legacy isn’t built overnight—it’s built brick by brick, decision by decision, generation by generation.” The biggest lesson from 120 years in business? “Longevity requires both purpose and adaptability. You can’t just survive—you have to evolve.” McKissack & McKissack has gone from hand-drawn blueprints to AI-driven construction management, but the core values haven’t changed—integrity, quality, and the belief that representation matters. “I hope readers walk away knowing that legacy isn’t reserved for the elite,” Cheryl says. “Every family has a story worth preserving. Every dream, no matter how small it seems, can be the foundation for something generational.” From an enslaved man teaching his children a trade so they could be free, to a woman CEO managing billions in iconic projects across the country, the McKissack family proves what happens when excellence meets endurance. And Cheryl’s making sure that story doesn’t get forgotten.
