Working Mother, 12/31/2006 (Allstate Insurance)

2006 Women of Color. Women of color are in good hands with Allstate—especially when it comes to career advancement. All multicultural women received career counseling last year. They also accounted for about a third of the women who participated in Allstate's mentoring program. Plus, employees can tap into specialized mentoring groups, such as the Black Data Processing Associates, a networking opportunity for women-of-color IT professionals, and MenTTium, an executive development program for midlevel female employees.

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Diversity/Careers in Engineering & Information Technology, Oct/Nov 2006 (Denise Holland)

Transportation Offers Increasing Opportunities for Women and Minorities. Denise Holland is principal officer and SAP production support manager at Amtrak, working at the forefront of transportation technology. Amtrak's high-speed Acela trains, for example, look like speeding bullets as they fly from Boston to Washington, DC, she says ... A native of Baltimore, Holland learned basic programming at a summer school program. "I was hooked right away," she says. So much so, that today she's national president-elect of BPDA. "I like to keep busy," she remarks with a smile.

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Diversity/Careers in Engineering & Information Technology, Oct/Nov 2006 (Charmaine Allen)

Charmaine Allen is a Senior Manager at BCBSIL. Charmaine Allen has worked with the electronic claim processing systems at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois (BCBSIL, Chicago, IL) for more than twenty years. Her thorough knowledge of the health insurance business and technology helps her guide best practices in processing claims, data collection, management and imaging systems ... She's a member of BDPA, and likes to mentor young people interested in IT careers.

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Diversity/Careers in Engineering & Information Technology, Oct/Nov 2006 (ING Americas)

ING's diverse employee groups help the company succeed. Many sites are growing. Program managers, project managers, business analysts, QA pros, database and data warehouse pros and software developers are needed. "We look for sharp IT people who also understand business needs and can speak the language of both," Robertson says. ING works with groups like BDPA and the Association of Latino Professionals in Finance and Accounting to find potential candidates...

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Business Courier of Cincinnati, 10/9/2006 (Wayne Hicks, Earl Pace)

Hicks to head BDPA Foundation. A local business incubator CEO will take on additional duties as the head of a national nonprofit.

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Auburn University News, 9/14/06 (Juan Gilbert, Betty Hutchins, Gina Billings)

Auburn University and BDPA Launch IT Institute. Black Data Processing Associates joined with Auburn University in the launch this month of the Information Technology Institute Certification Program, an innovative online service designed to help IT professionals sharpen their technical skills and boost their leadership potential.

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Diverse Issues in Higher Education, 9/7/2006 (Juan Gilbert)

Minority Computing Group Establishes IT Institute at Auburn University. The national Black Data Processing Associates organization is kicking off the BDPA Information Technology Institute Certification Program this month...

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YouTube, 8/15/2006 (2006 National BDPA Conference)

The BDPA Foundation YouTube account now has 17 videos including these from the 2006 National BDPA Technology Conference was held in Los Angeles CA. This 3-part video runs for a total of 23 minutes. The video produced by video produced by Kevin Jones (Visual Propaganda) and divided into three parts by Jeff Walt (Jeff Walt Designs)


2006 BDPA Conference (1 of 3)




2006 BDPA Conference (2 of 3)




2006 BDPA Conference (3 of 3)


Do you have any memories of the 2006 BDPA conference held in Los Angeles that you can share with us?

VisionIT Media Room, 8/2/2006 (David Segura)

Detroit-based VisionIT CEO Shares Panel with Nation’s Top IT Executives. On Friday, August 4th in Los Angeles, CA, the Black Data Processing Associates (BDPA) will host its annual luncheon as a part of its 2006 National Technology Conference, which features a panel discussion with some of the nation’s top senior-level information technology executives, including VisionIT president/CEO David H. Segura.

“I am absolutely honored that the BDPA would ask me to engage in such an important discussion along with its members and such an influential group of executives,” said David Segura. “As a U.S.-based supplier with 10 years of IT staffing, outsourcing and vendor management experience, VisionIT brings a unique perspective to this discussion. We have experienced tremendous growth all the while positioning ourselves to become more competitive in the global marketplace.”

Read the full media release here.

Business Wire, 8/1/2006 (Chiji Ohayia)

Capella University PhD Grad Picked to Direct 2006 National Black Data Processing Associates Technology Conference; Chiji Ohayia, a 2005 PhD Graduate of the Online University, Will Direct Conference from August 2-5 in Los Angeles. Chiji Ohayia, a recent PhD graduate of Capella University's School of Business and Technology, will direct the 28th-annual National Black Data Processing Associates (BDPA) Technology Conference, which will be held August 2 to August 5 at the Los Angeles Airport Hilton. "I am honored to be part of this event. The BDPA is the premiere organization for Black IT professionals and this conference will bring nearly 700 of us together in a truly engaging and inspiring atmosphere," Ohayia said.

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PR Newswire, 7/27/2006 (Ken Freeman)

CIGNA Helps Prepare City Youth for Careers in Information Technology. Today, the "computer kids" practice in Philadelphia and Hartford. Next month, with CIGNA's help, they will be on their way to Los Angeles for a national convention for Information Technology (IT). In time, they hope to become leaders in IT across the country.

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Diversity/Careers in Engineering & Information Technology, June/July 2006 (Gina Billings)

Meet Gina Billings, BDPA's new president. 'This year's conference will offer more professional development opportunities for our members," says Gina Billings, the new national president of Black Data Processing Associates (BDPA, www.bdpa.org). The organization's twenty-eighth annual convention and career fair will be held at the Hilton LAX in Los Angeles, CA this August 2 to 5.

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Case Western University, 5/16/2006 (Demo Solaru)

Case Weatherhead grad, 46, advances career with EDM degree. Demo Solaru, of Cleveland Heights, Ohio, in research for his doctoral dissertation for the executive doctor of management degree (EDM) from Case Western Reserve University's Weatherhead School of Management investigated the concept of "flow"—a term first coined by Mihalyi Csikszentmihalyi in the 1970's—to see if it impacts customer loyalty...

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EDS Press Room, 3/29/2006 (Cozy Bailey, Bob Blackwell, Curvie Burton, Deloris McGee, Sharon McNealy, Markita Wadley)

Black History Month at EDS Features Awards, Diversity Celebrations. Four African-American EDS leaders received national honors during Black History Month, which also featured awards for members of an employee network group and corporate sponsorship of other diversity activities...

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Hartford Courant, 2/9/2006 (BDPA Hartford)

Event Promotes Computer Use. Before she retired, LisaMarie Clay knew little about computers, and she was baffled by the concept of the World Wide Web. But after a few basic classes, the busy grandmother of three has discovered how helpful the Internet can be. Clay, 50, of West Hartford, said she now relies on her computer in many aspects of her daily life: communicating by e-mail, doing research for her part-time studies at Hartford Seminary and organizing activities such as a women's retreat for her church.

Read the full media story here.