LOS ANGELES, CA—- Many people have experienced violence and abuse yet live in silence. Fear, shame, rejection and the thought of further abuse has kept secrets locked away from even our closest family and friends.
Voices of Truth project is an opportunity for those who have experienced violence or abuse to empower themselves, by telling their truth and as a result, help prevent someone else from a similar experience. Your truth can be anonymous if you prefer!
The Positive Results Center is looking for Black/ African (Americans) and their Descents of all ages and genders that are interested in sharing their truth for an upcoming handbook. This project will create awareness, helping to prevent violence and abuse, and assist people in healing.
Research shows that even brief autobiographical storytelling exercises can have substantial impacts on psychological and physical health even months after the storytelling. Resilience is strengthened by recognizing that we are all experts in our own lives, and we all have something to share with others.
“Silence allows the violence to grow“, says Kandee Lewis, Executive Director of The Positive Results Center. “We are seeking truth to the experiences of those who have been victimized, including: Signs of abuse; what others (parents, guardians & the general public) may not see, which is hidden in plain sight; concerning behavior to be aware of; and strategies for prevention that can help further victimization”.
We are seeking information on all types of violence including dating, domestic & intimate partner violence, gun violence, sexual assault, stalking, sex trafficking, survival sex and sex industry, financial and spiritual abuse to name a few.
If your submission is selected you will receive a $50 Gift Card
Not all submissions will be published.
Deadline is September 22, 2020.
ABOUT THE POSITIVE RESULTS CENTER
Positive Results Center address trauma from a cultural and age perspective; specializing in healthy relationships, dating & intimate partner violence, sexual assault, bullying & suicide awareness.
Their workshops include Understanding How Trauma is Manifested; QPR Gatekeeper Suicide Awareness; Youth Peer Advocacy Training; Healthy Relationships; Positive Family Dynamics; Leadership Development; College and Career Readiness, and Self Esteem. Learn more at http://prc123.org .
Inmate firefighting crews, made up of more than 2,000 inmate firefighters per year, have helped extinguish many of the biggest wildfires in California.
However, once they’re released, they cannot serve in that profession under current law because of their criminal records.
Now, AB 2147, a law that would lift that restriction, has been sent to Gov. Gavin Newsom to sign after passing both the State Senate and Assembly on Aug. 30. The bill allows nonviolent offenders who’ve participated in the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitations’ fire camps to have their records expunged after release.
In California, previously incarcerated persons are often turned away from fire departments because of their conviction records and state licensing rules, even if they fought fires while incarcerated. Currently, it takes years to get their records expunged, which would allow them to obtain Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) certification.
“AB 2147 ensures that formerly incarcerated people who have successfully participated as incarcerated firefighters have a pathway to meaningful employment,” said Assemblymember Eloise Gomez Reyes (D – Grand Terrace), the bill’s author. “These individuals have received valuable training and placed themselves in danger to defend the life and property of Californians. Due to their service to the state of California protecting lives and property, those individuals that successfully complete their service in the fire camps should be granted special consideration relating to their underlying criminal conviction.”
The bill comes to Gov. Newsom during a particularly strong wildfire season, which has collectively burned 1.48 million acres and has seen multiple lightning complex fires — all complicated by unprecedented heatwaves across the state.
Because of the intensity and scale of the fires, Gov. Newsom declared a state of emergency on Aug. 18. The next day, he announced that the state’s resources to fight wildfires were stretched thin.
Allowing previously incarcerated persons to be firefighters also gives them the chance to get well-paying jobs, Reyes has argued, pointing out that steady and meaningful employment would lower recidivism rates. Inmate crews are paid between $2 and $5 a day, with a $1 per hour increase while fighting a fire.
“Those that have served on the fire lines deserve a second chance,” tweeted Reyes on August 30.
On Aug. 17, the “Yes On Prop 17” campaign held its Official Proposition 17 Campaign Virtual Kick-Off on Facebook Live. The event featured testimony from previously incarcerated persons on why more than 50,000 parolees in California deserve the right to vote. Prop 17, which passed the state legislature as ACA 6 in June, is a measure on the November ballot. If Californians vote to approve it, Prop 17 would amend the state constitution, granting any eligible person who is not currently incarcerated the right to vote. If passed, California would join 17 states that allow parolees to vote. Initiate Justice Co-founder and Executive Director Taina Vargas-Edmond hosted the event that featured Assemblymember Kevin McCarty (D – Sacramento), author of ACA 6, as well as Brandon Flynn, an activist and actor on the Netflix show “13 Reasons Why.” To start the event, Flynn and McCarty spoke about how the current global political movement calling for the dismantling of systemic racism has affected their understanding of – and advocacy around — the proposition. “We’ve learned that this is just a remnant of some of these old Jim Crow values and racial oppression –when they want to hold back African American voters from being able to participate in the democratic process, and that’s wrong. That’s what we’re going to change,” the lawmaker said. The program’s anchor event was a Q&A moderated by Edmond featuring “Yes On Prop 17” Fellows Betty McKay and John Windham. McKay and Windham, who are both on parole, spoke about the importance of voting for currently and previously incarcerated persons. McKay, who is a motivational speaker and organizer with Initiate Justice, talked about the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR), arguing that she has done the time for his crime and should not be punished for it after her release. “The people who make the rules, the system, CDCR gives you a long list of things that if you do this, this, this, this and this, then you’re a productive citizen,” she said. “Well, I’ve exceeded all that. So why aren’t I voting? I’m paying taxes. So why aren’t I voting?” Edmond also presented data from Initiate Justice’s 2019 “Democracy Needs Everyone” report, compiled from a survey of 1,085 incarcerated members of California state prisons as well as members on parole. According to the report, only 37 % of respondents said they voted before they were incarcerated, but 98 % said they would vote now if they could. Also, the top three political issues that the respondents listed as “very important” were jobs and the economy, education and healthcare. For Windham, who was incarcerated for 30 years and now mentors youth in his community, not having experienced voting was a deterrent in urging kids to vote. “The one thing I couldn’t really delve into with him is talking about voting. I tell them to vote, but I was shut down when they asked me, did I vote. It was the hardest thing for me to have to tell a child – that couldn’t vote because I’m on parole. I no longer want to have to tell no child that, because that takes away their hope. They see me as hope and the only hope they see was dashed.” When asked to respond to the arguments of Prop 17 opponents, McCarty said, “They’re saying that Betty and John still need to pay their debt to society. But when the parole board releases people from state prison, they’ve determined that you’ve served your time [and they] want to reintegrate you back into society. So, it makes no sense to say we want you to go back to your community, but we’re going to make you a second class citizen.” Attachments area
After months of protests and tough negotiations with representatives from various industries, California lawmakers have released an updated list of professions that could be exempted from AB 5, the controversial worker re-classification law that went into effect January 1.
AB 2257, a new bill that revises some Labor Code sections affected by AB 5, will exempt artists, appraisers, insurance field representatives and youth sports coaches, allowing them to work as independent contractors. This is in addition to previous exemptions made for musicians, writers, photographers, tutors, interpreters and other industries.
AB 2257 is backed by Assemblymember Lorena Gonzalez (D-San Diego), who authored AB 5 and has been its primary advocate.
“We have utilized the reasoning in Dynamex, existing case law, and all of the provisions of workers comp and the [Unemployment Insurance] code developed over the last 40 years to try to create a framework for employment in California. We are confident that legitimate [independent contractors] will be able to work as such” said Gonzalez in an August 27 tweet.
Assemblymember Christy Smith (D-Santa Clarita), co-author of AB 2257, said, “These clarifications to AB5 create additional industry specific pathways for people to work independently and prevent abuses that hurt workers and small business.”
Under AB 5, companies must determine whether their workers are employees according to criteria known as the “ABC” test. Workers can only be classified as independent contractors if A) Their work is free from control of the hiring entity B) They perform work that is outside the hiring entity’s usual course of business, and C) They have an independent business.
AB 5 has been challenged by various industries since it was introduced as a bill. Truck drivers won an injunction that prevented AB 5 from being enforced for their industry on Jan. 16. Recently, a California Superior Court judge ruled that rideshare companies Uber and Lyft must classify their drivers as employees. The judge later paused the injunction after the companies threatened to stop operating in California.
Uber and Lyft have also funded a ballot measure along with other rideshare and delivery companies that would exempt the companies from AB 5 restrictions if voters approve it in November. If Gov. Newsom signs AB 2257 into law, it would take effect immediately.
White carved out a pioneering career path that stretched from the Pentagon’s head office to Hyundai headquarters
As Hyundai North America’s first chief communications officer, Dana W. White knows what it is like to have two feet in two worlds.
“Growing up I always knew about the power of communication, the power of words,” she said, talking about her childhood in Charlottesville, Virginia. “My grandfather, who was born in 1896, founded the oldest black newspaper in the state. I used to cut ad sheets every month and write copy and process black-and-white photos [at the paper]. The entrepreneurial spirit runs deep in me and my family.”
While the weekly black newspaper, the Charlottesville-Albemarle Tribune, is gone, the family’s entrepreneurial spirit lives on. “The environment I grew up in, my family, was that there was never just a pot of gold waiting for me at the end of the tunnel,” she said. “It’s in my DNA – to make it happen for yourself.”
Dr. Ben Chavis runs the trade group for African American newspaper publishers. “The National Newspapers Publishers Association salutes Hyundai for its decision to elevate an African-American woman leader to the position of Chief Communications Officer. In this year where the focus is on the empowerment of all women, Dana White represents and embodies the best of Black America,” he told Zenger News of White.
Dana White is no relation to the Ultimate Fighting Championship president with the same name.
She studied hard in college, taking the toughest courses on purpose even if they were scheduled early in the morning and required long walks across Chicago wind-chilled campus. Those courses included learning to read, write and speak Mandarin, the mostly widely used of the Chinese-language dialects. She majored in Chinese history at the University of Chicago.
White thought hard about her choices in what to study; she didn’t just take the most popular courses or the easiest ones to earn a top grade. Of course, she said there are no “easy” courses at the University of Chicago, which competes with the Ivy League for students. “At the time, nobody was thinking about China,” she said. “Everyone was terrified that Japan was taking over the world, but no one was thinking about this country of one billion people that was just sitting there, very quiet. I wanted to make sure I’d be employable for the next 50 years, find something that was valuable for the future. So, I decided to study Mandarin.”
She applied for scholarships to study in China’s capital, Beijing, and later in South Korea’s capital, Seoul. This on-the-ground experience would later prove pivotal in her career.
Dana W. White began her professional life helping her grandfather run an African American newspaper. She has built her career by fielding questions from reporters, however. (Courtesy of Dana W. White)
“I think it’s fascinating, working as a Black American within different cultures. In fact, sometimes I think it’s an advantage as I experience my home culture differently and therefore, I think I’m much more observant and intrigued by people, their language and traditions. It’s helpful in translating best practices and communications,” she said. “Communication isn’t just about the literal words themselves, it’s about the feeling, impressions and the image you convey or defy.”
After college, she moved to Washington, DC without a job and worked as an intern and a temp to pay the bills while she applied for jobs on Capitol Hill.
The Republican committee for all GOP lawmakers, then chaired by Rep. J.C. Watts, the only Black Republican serving in Congress, was the first to call her back. She went on to take a series of jobs in government and in media, often working as the only black woman in the room. She accepted a job as deputy press secretary for the House Republican Conference, where she worked for two years until 2000.
Dana W. White (center, seated) is pictured in this undated photo next to then-Pentagon chief Gen. James Mattis aboard a Defense department aircraft. (Courtesy of the DOD)
Then she joined the public relations team at Fox News for a year in 2000. Later she worked at the Heritage Foundation, a think tank on Capitol Hill that is influential among Republicans.
“I was director of the Heritage Foundation’s roundtable for Asia-Pacific journalists, which was comprised of foreign correspondents from outlets such as The Nikkei and Asahi Shimbun and Chosun Ilbo.” she said. “I was working with more than 400 different journalists from across Asia.” Her study in Chinese language and Asian culture had made her stand out. Her careful preparation was paying off in unexpected ways. “At Heritage, I met some wonderful reporters from Taiwan, Japan and Korea. It was so beneficial when I did my first stint at the Pentagon on the China Desk, then at Nissan and now Hyundai.”
Her studies and experience soon took her back to the federal government. President George W. Bush named her Taiwan Country Director at the Defense department.
She returned to the private sector as an editor in the arts and culture section of The Wall Street Journal, the nation’s most widely read newspaper, and lived in Hong Kong.
Dana White briefed reporters at the Pentagon in Arlington, Va. in an undated photograph (Sgt. Amber Smith/DOD)
On June 13, 2017, then-Defense Secretary Jim Mattis (R) and Marine Corps Gen. Joe Dunford, then chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (L), testified in a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing in Washington D.C. (Army Sgt. Amber I. Smith/Department of Defense)
Next, she was tapped as director of policy and strategic communications for the Renault–Nissan Alliance, a joint venture of the French and Japanese auto makers. They needed someone who understood both media and Asia, and she was one of the few that fit the bill. She soon became fluent in French and worked from Renault’s Paris headquarters. Still, she never forgot her roots, often phoning her mother—who was born and raised in a small black enclave in north Philadelphia—and then living in northern Virginia’s ever-spreading suburbs.
She returned from Paris in 2015 and started her own public relations firm 1055 Grady, named in honor of her grandfather’s address in Charlottesville, where she was first inspired to be an entrepreneur. Back in Washington, DC, she was tapped by the Trump campaign to help with their strategic communications. Shortly after Donald J. Trump was sworn in, she was asked about taking a high-profile spot back at the Pentagon. Her earlier stint at the Defense Department along with her knowledge and contacts in U.S. and foreign media perfectly positioned her to take the top spot as head of public affairs for the Defense Department. She was sworn in as Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs and Chief Pentagon Spokesperson on April 7, 2017.
It was also the same day the U.S. sent cruise missiles to strike Syria in response to its chemical-weapons attacks. Nearly one year to the day, she would go before the world to brief the U.S. strikes on Syria in response to another chemical attack. She became the first black person to hold that prestigious post.
She reported directly to then-Defense Secretary James Mattis. When he resigned in 2018, she followed the same day. “I left DoD alongside Mattis because I believe in his integrity,” she said.
Mattis differed with President Trump on matters ranging from pulling troops out of Syria and Afghanistan to withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal.
Now Dana White runs North American communications for Hyundai Motor Company, a South Korean car maker that builds more than half of its vehicles at its plant in Alabama and employs some 25,000 people in the United States. She joined the Zenger News advisory board in 2019.
White sees herself as a cross-cultural bridge. At Hyundai Motor North America, she is the Chief Communications Officer—a first for Korean automaker in the U.S. She oversees communications for Hyundai Motor North America headquarters and all of Hyundai’s North America Affiliates including Canada and Mexico, Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama, Glovis (Hyundai’s Logistics Operations), Mobis (Hyundai Parts Operations), Hyundai Capital and the Washington, DC Office. White also has strategic oversight of Hyundai’s luxury automotive brand Genesis, the first SUV for the industry’s newest luxury brand.
Dana White poses for a photo inside Hyundai Motor America in Fountain Valley, California on August 7, 2020. (Carol Larsen/Zenger)
“When I joined Hyundai a year ago, I knew I needed someone who understood decision making at the highest levels, storytelling and how to work across cultures seamlessly to deliver results. So, I called Dana,” said Jose Munoz, Global COO of Hyundai Motor Company and Pres. & CEO of Hyundai Motor North America. “It’s rare to find one person with all the skills, talents and experiences that she has. And she has proven track record of success. In few short months, Dana has already made a big difference in how we operate, communicate and tell the Hyundai story.”
Ultimately for White, she said her passions are education, excellence and empowerment. “I can still hear my grandfather’s gruff voice saying, ‘Mouse, I want you to be a smart little girl. Learn everything you can.’ I think about everything he survived, all the limits placed on his life and how if he could see me now—a man who proud to put pictures of my nursery school graduation in the paper—I know he’d say…’So, Mouse…what’s next?’”
Her father, Sherman R. White, graduated from Charlottesville’s segregated schools was also plaintiff in the desegregation of Charlottesville schools. He attended Howard University at 16 years-old and later pledged the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity. At Howard, he met her and married her mother Agnes Cross, who was from Philadelphia. Her father was an AME minister and her mother one the first blacks to secure a civil service job in the state of Pennsylvania.
Her cousin Cheryl was the President of the local Williamsburg chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha. In high school, Dana was awarded a merit scholarship from the University of Virginia Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta. And her older brother is a graduate of Hampton University
“The thing about me is that I’m propelled by history and obsessed with the future. I’m passionate about ideas and a mission. I want to see people move forward—know their past and explore their future,” she said. “It’s in my family—this spirit of perseverance. I feel like they handed me a baton. They ran hard and ran fast. They carried the baton as far as they could go. Now, it’s my turn to run faster and farther and pass the baton to the next generation. I say, ‘When you stand on the shoulders of slaves, there’s no slouching.’”
About 41 weeks into her pregnancy now, California Board of Equalization (BOE) memberMalia Cohen, who is the state’s only African American woman constitutional officer, is preparing to give birth on September 3.
Motherhood will be a new role for Cohen, a veteran leader and elected official, who served two terms on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, and now administers California’s $70 billion property tax system as a member of the BOE, representing 10 million people in 23 counties.
Although Cohen could not host the fancy themed baby shower she had once imagined because of the COVID-19 pandemic, on Father’s Day Cohen hosted a “gender” reveal on Zoom instead.
Before that virtual event, Cohen and her best friend mailed party poppers to her close friends and family members, including her mother, mother-in-law and sister. On the video call, her loved ones chanted a countdown with Cohen and her husband before the couple announced that they are having a girl to a Zoom room of cheering loved ones and streaming popper confetti. She has assembled a “birth team” for her delivery, too. It is scheduled to happen at the San Francisco Birth Center.
Courtesy Photos Eric Charmichael
“The birth center allows me to deliver with a team of trained midwives, a Black pediatrician and my birth team, who are my mother, my husband, my sister and my doula,” said Cohen. It’s a professional emotional support system. They will all be around me when I’m laboring.”
Cohen says being allowed to have other close relatives in the delivery room besides her husband was one reason for choosing a birth center over a traditional hospital. Another was safety. An uptick in coronavirus cases in California over the summer sealed that decision.
In addition to planning her birth, working out to stay in shape, and meditating to keep her stress low, Cohen has managed to balance her BOE responsibilities with keeping public speaking commitments and staying involved in state policymaking. She has worked with the governor’s office to get several executive orders in place to provide relief for taxpayers.
She also watches and has called into legislative committee hearings to testify on various issues, and she has written letters to support or oppose a number of bills. Cohen lent her voice in support of ACA 5, authored by Assemblymember Shirley Weber (D-San Diego), that would repeal Proposition 209, and bring affirmative action back to California’s public agencies. ACA 5 is now on the November ballot as Proposition 16, and Cohen is campaigning hard for its passage.
“I’ve had to rely on technology to get things done,” says Cohen whose home office, she says, has been upgraded with a ring light for Zoom or Microsoft Team calls, two laptops, a scanner-slash-printer and the “fastest internet speed possible” to make her telecommuting seamless.
“These coronavirus times are sure different,” says Cohen, recalling the rush to jump on the train to Sacramento and attend government meetings in person.
“I really miss reaching out and working to solve problems face to face,” she says, citing another impact of the pandemic. Cohen says, overall, she has managed to keep her life and responsibilities in order. But there are times when those cravings hit, Cohen says. “They are not so manageable.”
“For the most part – I’ll say 85-90% of the time – I’ve been conscious and healthy. But there is that 10 or 15 % when I have to have Doritos or Oreo Cookies. My mom makes the Rice Krispies treats for me,” Cohen laughed. “Yes, my mom is my enabler.”
At work, Cohen says right now one of her main priorities at the BOE is working on providing safe remote hearing for the Assessment Appeals Boards. That body resolves property value disputes between taxpayers and assessors who appraise properties.
“How do we take things we use to do in-person and bring them online?” She asked. “That way, we are protecting due process. We are protecting the integrity of sensitive documents. We are protecting the health and safety of the petitioner and of our staff.”
Because of the pandemic, Cohen says the BOE has had to make major adjustments. “To use the expression,” she explains, “we are building the plane while we’re flying.”
Away from work, Cohen says watching George Floyd’s murder on TV and seeing reports about Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery murders, as well as following the protests across America and the world, have taken a toll on her.
San Francisco protest in front of city hall. Courtesy Photos Eric Charmichael
“You begin to wonder: What kind of world am I bringing a baby girl into? There are days when I watched the protests and I just sat on the couch crying, just weeping,” says Cohen, who was able to get out to speak at one Black Lives Matter protest in San Francisco. “I wanted to march, too, but I realize that I had to protect myself and my baby.”
Cohen says a source of stress that has always been in the back of her mind is looking honestly at how the country cares for Black women.
“There is a disparity between Black women and White Women. Less Black women carry their babies full term,” Cohen pointed out. Through it all, Cohen says she stays positive and remembers all the things she can be thankful for like being able to take naps when she gets overwhelmed by sleepiness or not having to commute from her home in San Francisco to weekly meetings in Sacramento.
Then there’s the inspiration of Kamala Harris. Cohen says she been a supporter of the former California Attorney General since she was a DA in San Francisco. Cohen served on the city’s Board of Supervisors and worked with Harris on more than one occasion. Cohen says that Harris’ selection to run as Vice President “Is but one more step in a long road towards justice and representation for African Americans.”
For now, Cohen says she is preparing to go into labor and for all the joys and challenges that are bound to follow.
“I can’t wait to pour into her everything that I’ve learned, my understanding of the world,” says Cohen.
“Pouring into her curiosity; a respect for other people and cultures; a desire to travel; and resiliency. Our daughter will inherit the world we will make better through our struggles and our commitment to justice.”
As we ended our interview, Cohen added, “Every day I have a smile on my face and joy in my heart when I think of her. I can’t wait for her to be born!”
Rest In Power, Young King CHAD BOZEMAN. You were just coming into your own. You were generally regarded as “The Next Denzel” with no other contenders to this elite super-star throne.
Born in South Carolina in 1976, YOUR NAME meant BOX OFFICE to Hollywood executives who picked YOU to portray historic icons like Jackie Robinson, Thurgood Marshall and James Brown. However, when CHAD BOZEMAN played King T’Challa in the blockbuster BLACK PANTHER, your talented name became the talk of the town.
Your fans NEVER KNEW you had been fighting cancer for the past 4 YEARS. Everyone is now in SHOCK!! Your close family, your colleagues and your peers are shedding inconsolable tears because 43 years old seems WAY TOO YOUNG to die. Not many folks who might live to see 100 will achieve YOUR admirable accomplishments – no matter how much or how hard they might try.
CHAD BOZEMAN – you exuded class and dignity. You were an elite actor who studied & perfected your craft. You were serious. You were skilled. You were sincere. You loved to smile. You loved to laugh.
Colon cancer canceled your future performances in SUPER HERO FILMS that made Black people proud. Grown folks showed up in record numbers to theaters wearing dashikis to represent WAKANDA and Black Pride OUT LOUD.
The acting crowd in Heaven will welcome your brilliance like we gaze at a SHOOTING STAR. They will not do lines from any of your billion-dollar grossing movies. It must be royal welcoming already, so far…
Regardless of who you are, you must ADMIT actor Chad Bozeman was 100 percent LEGIT. He was a polished professional ironically ahead of his time – because TIME and LONGEVITY was not on his resume – even though iconic “King T’Challa” will LIVE FOREVER in our hearts and mind.
WAKANDA FOREVER – but more importantly, how will you wake up and LIVE YOUR LIFE tomorrow? Chad Bozeman is receiving TRIBUTES because he lived out his dream in the midst of secret chemo treatments and private sorrow.
Rest In Peace, Young Warrior Prince. You had the whole world absolutely CONVINCED you were invincible as the The Black Panther. You were a COMET whose light was bright and very condensed as YOU, Idris Elba and Jamie Foxx were the 1, 2 or 3 ANSWER in a very short window of Black box office fame. And just like Jackie Robinson, Thurgood Marshall, James Brown & King T’Challa – young CHAD BOZEMAN – the world will always remember YOUR NAME!
Margie Lee Pellum was lovingly known by family and friends as “Big Mama”, recently recognized in the San Bernardino County 2020 Black History Month “Phenomenal Woman” parade.
Mrs. Pellum received awards from Fiona Ma, State Treasurer, San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors, City of Fontana, Congresswoman Norma Torres, Assemblywoman Reyes as well as from the organizers of the event the Concerned Citizens for the Development of North Fontana for her dedication as an educator for 35 years prior to retiring from the district.
On August 25, 2020, Mrs. Pellum transition from this life to the next to celebrate her 95th birthday with her Heavenly Father, we thank God for her longevity. The North Fontana Community is grateful for her lifelong dedication to the thousands she touched, unlocking young minds, and always reminding us that education is the key to success. Thank you, Donald, Jerry, and Fred Christian for sharing your phenomenal mother with us.
Services will be held on Monday, September 9 at 11 a.m. at Greater Faith Grace Bible Church located at 249 E. Randall Avenue in Rialto. The service will be live streamed from the church via www.gfgbcrialto.org.
SAN BERNARDINO, CA—- With the start of the 2020 fall semester, California State University, San Bernardino (CSUSB) will launch the School of Entrepreneurship, the first of its kind in California. The unique program, one of less than 15 existing worldwide, will boost the university’s already highly successful entrepreneurship program.
The School of Entrepreneurship, housed in the Jack H. Brown College of Business and Public Administration, further places CSUSB as a leading entity in the growing field of entrepreneurship education, said Mike Stull, a professor of entrepreneurship and director of the university’s Inland Empire Center for Entrepreneurship, who will serve as the school’s director.
“Establishing the School of Entrepreneurship is an important step for CSUSB and the Jack H. Brown College as it evolves and innovates to meet the needs of students and the local community,” said Stull. “We envision a substantial positive impact, as it will further cement the JHBC reputation as a leader in the field of entrepreneurship education and increase the college’s ability to engage with the local business community in terms of relationships, collaboration, and resources.”
As a school of entrepreneurship, it will oversee and coordinate eight major academic programs in entrepreneurship with over 20 full- and part-time faculty, Stull said.
Cal State San Bernardino President Tomás D. Morales said he was pleased to give the final approval to establish the School of Entrepreneurship, which had been championed at the department, college, Faculty Senate, and by the provost.
“The School of Entrepreneurship represents a truly wonderful and pioneering example of our mission here at Cal State San Bernardino in offering our students a challenging, yet rewarding, educational experience,” Morales said.
“The school’s offerings and dynamic faculty will inspire our students to succeed and help prepare them for life after graduation where they will become our future business leaders and leading entrepreneurs.”
“Our entrepreneurship program has evolved to the point where it makes sense for it to control its own destiny as a distinct academic discipline,” said Lawrence Rose, dean of the Jack H. Brown College. “As a school, the program will gain greater visibility and collaboration campus wide. It will be able to innovate and engage different stakeholders across campus structures. Faculty recruitment will become easier, and employers will better understand what hiring a graduate from the School of Entrepreneurship can contribute to their organizations. I also strongly believe this will allow us to deepen our partnership with the community, bringing significant resources and collaborations that will benefit all parties.”
The creation of the School of Entrepreneurship will significantly raise the university’s profile in recruiting potential students and reinforcing its efforts to become a “destination” program that draws students from beyond the Inland Empire region, Stull said.
“Students are looking for programs that are leaders and innovators in the educational field and have the ecosystem that will support their goal to create new ventures or become innovative change makers in their career field,” Stull said. “CSUSB checks all the boxes in that regard – an innovative, well-established program that is going to the next level by creating a school of entrepreneurship.”
For the existing CSUSB entrepreneurship faculty, the designation will provide an advantage in applying for external research and grant funding. It will also create a significant competitive advantage as the school recruits for top faculty talent. The designation also allows for more interdisciplinary collaboration on campus and the potential for joint faculty appointments with fields such as art, natural sciences, social sciences and education.
The school will add to the university’s entrepreneurship program’s already high profile within the inland region with potential employers, donors and other organizations, which in turn enhances support for startup ventures as well as job and internship opportunities for students in the school, said Stull, who added that the hope is that this will attract more local professionals and entrepreneurs to support the school as mentors, guest lecturers and adjunct faculty.
The CSUSB entrepreneurship program is accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), the leading accreditation for business academic programs worldwide and has evolved and grown substantially since it was launched in the early 2000s.
Enrollment has grown from fewer than 20 students in fall 2002 to its current total of 265 students. Program officials believe strongly that the entrepreneurship academic program could nearly double in five years.
This growth will be fueled by increasing interest in entrepreneurship among students from all different fields. In fall 2020, CSUSB is welcoming its largest ever freshman class in entrepreneurship, and the school is launching several new initiatives including a dedicated graduate degree in Entrepreneurship and Innovation, collaborative entrepreneurship academic programs with Art, Liberal Studies and Education and unique new courses such as The Improvisational Mind, a collaboration between entrepreneurship and theater arts faculty.
“We believe strongly that the entrepreneurship academic program can reach 500 students by 2025,” Stull said. “Supporting this potential growth is the fact that entrepreneurship expanded to our Palm Desert Campus in fall 2019 and is currently implementing a wide range of new courses and programs that appeal to students from every discipline on campus.”
As entrepreneurship has grown at CSUSB, the greater academic field of entrepreneurship has also grown and evolved to become recognized through research and programs as a distinct discipline in the field of business. These trends, coupled with the anticipation of future growth and development of the program, resulted in the unanimous decision by the CSUSB entrepreneurship faculty to propose the establishment of a new academic unit representing Entrepreneurship. The school, developed and approved over a three-year process, ultimately received unanimous approval from the Jack H. Brown College, the university Faculty Senate and CSUSB President Tomás Morales.
Stull said as entrepreneurship continues to evolve and grow as a distinct academic discipline, legitimate programs that aspire to national and global recognition are establishing distinct Schools of Entrepreneurship within their respective academic colleges. Universities such as Florida State University, Oklahoma State University and Drexel University are among the early adopters in establishing schools.
“Becoming the first School of Entrepreneurship in the state of California enables us to extend our existing brand as a top entrepreneurship program and continue to be an innovator both locally and within the CSU system with regard to entrepreneurship education,” Stull said. “Potential students will be drawn to CSUSB as we practice what we preach – innovation, growth and applying the entrepreneurial mindset to achieve impact.”
Mike Stull, director of the CSUSB School of Entrepreneurship is available for interviews. Contact Joe Gutierrez at the CSUSB Office of Strategic Communication at 951-236-4522 or email joeg@csusb.edu.
About Cal State San Bernardino
California State University, San Bernardino is a preeminent center of intellectual and cultural activity in Inland Southern California. Opened in 1965 and set at the foothills of the beautiful San Bernardino Mountains, the university serves more than 20,000 students each year and graduates about 4,000 students annually. The university offers more than 70 traditional baccalaureate and master’s degree programs, education credential and certificate programs, and a doctorate program in educational leadership. Every one of its academic programs that is eligible has earned national accreditation. CSUSB reflects the dynamic diversity of the region and has the most diverse student population of any university in the Inland Empire. More than 80 percent of those who graduate are the first in their families to do so.
SAN BERNARDINO, CA—– The PAL Center, a local San Bernardino non-profit organization located in the heart of San Bernardino and Muscoy, has been serving the Inland Empire with a variety of community programs for over 35 years.
They were among several COVID-19 front line organizations that shared in an Arrowhead United Way funding drive-thru on Thursday, August 13th at United Way Headquarters.
Dwaine Radden Sr., the PAL Center CEO, stated: “It is always great when your organization and staff are recognized with a grant for making a difference in your community.
Cars were lined up for blocks filled with community leaders to participate in this historic first funding drive-thru hosted by the Arrowhead United Way.
United Way President, Gwen Dowdy Rodgers, said: “Arrowhead United Way has always been the beacon of light for our community and during COVID-19 we continue to serve those in need along with organizations dedicated to our community during these unprecedented times
We supported 30 local agencies affected by COVID for a total of $285,000 because of generous donor support. The Arrowhead United Way team reached out locally and to the mountain communities to make these awards.
While we continue to stay safe and maintain social distance, our Marketing lead, Christopher Ortiz, and the staff felt we could do a safe drive through check presentation, and a follow up virtual check presentation for those unable to make the drive-thru celebration. Most of the organizations were able to join us in the drive-thru celebration.”
Radden, saluted President Gwen Rogers and the Arrowhead United Way Team, for keeping funds in our community and making sure local non-profit organizations were included in this grant. He said, “This grant will provide all of us working on the front line with funds to continue and expand needed services for our families and community.”
Visit PAL Center at www.palcenter.org, or social media Facebook, and Twitter. To make donations, or to learn more about their programs and organization, call (909) 887-7002
Visit Arrowhead United Way website and Facebook and follow up on social Media to donate.
The PAL Center, a local San Bernardino non-profit organization located in the heart of San Bernardino and Muscoy, has been serving the Inland Empire with a variety of community programs for over 35 years.
They were among several COVID-19 front line organizations that shared in an Arrowhead United Way funding drive-thru on Thursday, August 13th at United Way Headquarters.
Dwaine Radden Sr., the PAL Center CEO, stated: “It is always great when your organization and staff are recognized with a grant for making a difference in your community.
Cars were lined up for blocks filled with community leaders to participate in this historic first funding drive-thru hosted by the Arrowhead United Way.
United Way President, Gwen Dowdy Rodgers, said: “Arrowhead United Way has always been the beacon of light for our community and during COVID-19 we continue to serve those in need along with organizations dedicated to our community during these unprecedented times
We supported 30 local agencies affected by COVID for a total of $285,000 because of generous donor support. The Arrowhead United Way team reached out locally and to the mountain communities to make these awards.
While we continue to stay safe and maintain social distance, our Marketing lead, Christopher Ortiz, and the staff felt we could do a safe drive through check presentation, and a follow up virtual check presentation for those unable to make the drive-thru celebration. Most of the organizations were able to join us in the drive-thru celebration.”
Radden, saluted President Gwen Rogers and the Arrowhead United Way Team, for keeping funds in our community and making sure local non-profit organizations were included in this grant. He said, “This grant will provide all of us working on the front line with funds to continue and expand needed services for our families and community.”
Visit PAL Center at www.palcenter.org, or social media Facebook, and Twitter. To make donations, or to learn more about their programs and organization, call (909) 887-7002
Westside Story Newspaper – Online The News of The Empire – Sharing the Quest for Excellence
