Rochester Post-Bulletin, 3/24/2009 (Betty Hutchins)

United Way Awards. Betty Hutchins hugs United Way of Olmsted County President Karen Erlenbusch while being honored with the Spirit of Caring award at the organization's Celebration of Caring and Giving 2009 Tuesday, March 24, 2009 at the Rochester International Event Center.

Read the full Post-Bulletin article here.

Wall Street Journal, 3/19/2009 (Dwight Handon)

Business-Services Franchises Offer Second Career to Former Execs. The fact that is members make decisions quickly is a big plus for TAB franchisee Dwight Handon, 50, who was downsized from a senior director position at Freddie Mac. Mr. Handon, of Fairfax VA, launched his franchise last October and has six members in his peer group, with more arriving each week.

Read the full article here.

PRWeb, 3/13/2009 (LaTasha Gary, David Segura)

IT Executives Urged To Look Beyond the Glass Ceiling at ITSMF Symposium/Awards Gala Minority Executives Honored for Contributions to IT profession. The "Who's Who" of information technology (IT) leaders from the public and private sector gathered in Irving, Texas, last month to honor colleagues who have made extraordinary contributions to the advancement of information technology while demonstrating proactive leadership in advancing diversity. This highly-anticipated event was part of the symposium "Globalization from a Business, Economic and Cultural Perspective," a forum designed to equip African American and Hispanic IT executives to compete in today's global marketplace. Events were co-sponsored by the Information Technology Senior Management Forum (ITSMF) and the Hispanic IT Executive Council (HITEC).

Two of the award members are current or former BDPA members:

• LaTasha Gary, BDPA Dallas chapter member and Senior Director of Global Channel Partner Information, HP, won the Member of the Year Award.


• David Segura, former BDPA Detroit chapter member, CEO of VisionIT and Vice-chair of HITEC won the Special Recognition Award.

Read the rest of the press release here.

The Triangle Tribune, 3/9/2009 (Rick Leggett)

Program launches Saturday Academy. A nationally recognized program aimed at increasing students' success in the technology-driven global economy has arrived in the Triangle. "Technology is so new and so burgeoning," Rick Leggett, president of the Triangle chapter, said to the students at the orientation. "You’re getting an opportunity most people in America don’t have. A lot of teens don’t gain this exposure to work with [IT] professionals who are already in the industry. It’s all about the network."

Read the full article here.

ITBusiness Canada, 3/3/2009 (Earl Pace)

IT Alone Can't Unwind the Financial Mess. Well, I can't say I wasn't warned. After writing in a column last December about the destructive labels that are thwarting the closure of the racial divide, a reader in Maryland e-mailed me to say that I should "just stop with the racial discussion" or cancel his print subscription. He e-mailed me again on Feb. 19 to inform me he had called to cancel it himself after reading my interview in that week's issue with Earl Pace, founder of Black Data Processing Associates.

Read the rest of the article here.

Diversity/Careers Magazine, 3/1/2009 (Frederick Blocton, Dorothy Richburg, Joe Richburg)

Medtronic Engages All Its Businesses in Supplier Diversity. Gretchen Ebert is director of supplier diversity at Medtronic, Inc (Minneapolis, MN), the worldwide medical device company that works to alleviate pain, restore health and extend lives. Dorothy Richburg is president and CEO of Keystone Computer Solutions (St. Paul, MN). Keystone is now an important MBE supplier for Medtronic, providing IT staffing and a forward-looking electronics recycling program.

Read the full article here.

Greater Framingham Community Church, 3/1/2009 (Rod Flakes)

Announcements: BDPA Leader --- Rod Flakes. One“must join” organization for Black computer professionals, is the BDPA (Black Data Processing Associates). In November of 2008, our own Rod Flakes was elected President of the Boston MetroWest chapter. With his experience as the Director of IT Support Services for the Department of Mental Health of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Rod brings a wealth of talent to his new leadership position.

Read the full announcement here.