The former Chicago Black Inventors changed its name in March to the Chicago Inventors Organization. "We wanted it so people of all persuasions felt this could be their organization," said President Calvin Flowers.
Saturday marks the group's first conference since the name change. The event takes place at the Illinois Institute of Technology.
Previously, only occasional attendees weren't black, Flowers said.
"You could sense that they weren’t comfortable," Flowers said. "But you walk into a meeting now, and every nationality that you can imagine is sitting there. Everybody feels like they belong; and it's just so much more exciting now. People are standing up and saying 'I can make this type of contribution,' or 'I've got these types of skills.' It's turning into more like an organization that they feel like they’re a part of."
