Page 13 - Florida Sentinel 9-8-17

FLORIDA SENTINEL
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2017
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TOBA Leaders Plan To Address USF Board Of Trustees About Spending Within The Black Community
After years of wrangling with ad- ministration and little change, a local civil rights organization is taking its fight for the University of South Florida to spend more of its money with African-American-owned busi- nesses to the university’s Board of Trustees.
James Ransom, a board mem- ber of the Tampa Organization of Black Affairs (TOBA), said he and other members of his group will at- tend Thursday’s meeting of the Board to present its case and formally re- quest they implement some changes to improve the university’s supplier diversity program.
Ransom said the school has made increment steps toward progress, including the hire earlier this year of Terrie Daniels as assis- tant vice president of supplier diver-
JAMES RANSOM,
Board Member of the Tampa Organization of Black Affairs (TOBA)
sity.
But it’s not enough to effect seri-
ous change in boosting the amount of
money the university spends with African-American-owned firms, which TOBA has been advocating for since 2011, Ransom said.
“We would like to have a quarterly report of diversity in spending and hiring,” he said. “We just want them to understand they spend $30 million every month...and they’ve spent barely anything with Black-owned companies.”
A review of the upcoming meeting does not show TOBA formally on the meeting agenda.
To illustrate his claims, Ransom submitted to the Sentinel documents of information regarding the univer- sity’s spending with African-Ameri- can-owned businesses that he said TOBA researched and analyzed.
According to one report, the uni- versity spent a total of $375,648 with
self-identified African-American- owned business for the 2015-2016 fis- cal year. The total amount budgeted to spend with minority and women- owned business enterprises for the same time period was $137 million.
The university lags behind other local public and private entities of similar size, such as the Hillsborough County Aviation Authority and the Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority regarding spending with African-American-owned firms.
Until recently, TOBA was engaged with university president Judy Gen- shaft and other administrators to remedy the problem. But any move- ment on that has stalled within in the last year with Genshaft unavailable for meetings and a lack of consistency from other administrators, Ransom said.
Walker Charity Luncheon Celebration
Dr. Paulette Walker, 25th National President, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., Helen Felton, mother of honoree; and Cynthia M. A. Butler-McIntyre, 24th Na- tional President.
The “Walker Charity Luncheon, A Tribute of Gratitude” ignited a flame of sisterhood and com- munity Saturday, August 26, 2017, in honor of Dr. Paulette C. Walker, 25th National President of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.
Dr. Walker entered the room to 600 smiling guests and live instrumentation of Alicia Keys’ "Girl On Fire.”
She was honored by proclamations from the City of Tampa, Hillsborough County, Congresswoman Marcia Fudge (21st National President of Delta Sigma Theta), and Congresswoman Kathy Cas- tor. Dr. Walker also was presented a Key to the City from Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn.
Having led the sorority of 275,000 women across the globe for two consecutive terms, dozens of guests fondly spoke of Walker’s impact on their personal lives. Her impact on the sorority and the greater Tampa Bay community reverberated loudly throughout the event.
“It was Dr. Walker’s unwavering commitment to education and community that inspired me to pursue my doctoral degree years ago,” said Leslie Brown, President of the Tampa Alumnae Chapter.
Mayor Bob Buckhorn welcomed guests to Tampa.
Beverly Smith, National President of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., poses with members of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc.
Dr. Paulette Walker, 25th National President, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., Beverly Smith, National Pres- ident; Sandy K. Horton, Southern Regional Director, and Crystal Adams.
Local artist and University of South Florida grad- uate Esque Dollar penned and performed a poem dedicated to Dr. Walker, “What Is A Delta.”
Dr. Walker received the Key to the City.
Dr. Walker, a retired USF administrator will continue to serve her community through her soror- ity and Mount Olive A. M. E. Church. (Photo credit: Ashley Canay Photography)