Here’s a look at African American people and issues making headlines throughout the country.
Alabama
Tuskegee University is helping develop the next generation of pilots through a new nonprofit program called the Legacy Flight Academy, aimed at reaching at-risk youth through aviation education. The first class of students graduated from the academy in a ceremony following a groundbreaking for new hangars at Golden Eagle Aviation. The academy is a collaborative effort of the Tuskegee University, the Tuskegee Airmen, Golden Eagle Aviation and the National Park Service. Founded by U.S. Air Force Capt. Kenyatta Ruffin, the Legacy Flight Academy is a two-week training program for teens ages 16 to 19. Located at historic Moton Field, the site where the renowned Tuskegee Airmen trained, the academy teaches the teens some of the skills necessary to become private pilots. The students also live and study on the campus of the university during some of their training.
California
Cal State L.A.’s Veterans Affairs Coordinator Laura Shigemitsu has been named a member of the U.S. Army Los Angeles Community Advisory Board to, among other duties, provide opportunities for students interested in serving their country while in college, and help link veterans who have graduated to Officer Candidate School. Comprised of civic leaders and members of the entertainment, business and education communities, the advisory board is dedicated to ensuring the Army continues to attract high-quality soldiers from the region into its ranks. Shigemitsu and her fellow board members coordinate with the U.S. Army Los Angeles Recruiting Battalion to host and support events, conduct media outreach and other strategies to ensure the Army’s story is told, and that potential recruits become aware of the benefits and opportunities Army service has to offer.
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Walton Isaacson, an independently held, minority-owned, full-service advertising and marketing agency, has just been named Supplier of the Year by the Southern California Minority Business Development Council for an unprecedented third consecutive year. No other agency has accomplished this feat. Isaacson’s third straight Supplier of the Year honor reinforces the agency’s commitment to supporting other minority business enterprises as well as its investment in the community at large. Walton Isaacson has supported foundations such as the Jackie Robinson Foundation, Rodney and Holly Robinson Peete’s HollyRod Foundation, the Magic Johnson Foundation and the Immigrant Archive Project, as well as BET’s Internship Program founded by Louis Carr, president of media sales for BET. Its network of corporate partners include Unilever, Lexus, Caesars Entertainment Co., White Memorial Medical Center and Jim Beam Brands.
