Page 10 - Florida Sentinel 6-22-18

Local
Tampa Catholic’s Kevin Knox Expected To Go In NBA Draft First Round
Runway Noir:
Fashion Show To Feature Local Talent And Benefit Community Organization
ELIZABETH CARSON RACKER
FASHION SHOW
The NBA draft kicks off tonight (Thursday, June 21st) and Tampa Catholic High 2017 graduate, Kevin Knox, II, is expected to go in the first round. He and his family have been invited to sit in the Green Room.
Knox, 18, is the first player from the Bay area to leave col- lege after 1 year to enter the draft.
Knox, a 6-9 forward, played his year of college bas- ketball at the University of Kentucky.
BY KENYA WOODARD Sentinel Feature Writer
Elizabeth Carson Racker’s life changed when she was 12.
That year her father took her to see the Ebony Fashion Fair, a philanthropic event sponsored by the iconic African-American magazine that hosted shows that fea- tured fashion from designers like Yves St. Laurent, Willi Smith, and Christian Dior. The show, which raised more than $50 million for charities and scholarships, closed in 2009 after a 50-plus-year run.
Sitting at that show, Racker knew almost instantly that a career in fashion would somehow be her future.
“It kind of opened my eyes to the fashion world,” she said. “I wanted to do everything with fashion.”
Fast forward to the pres- ent and Racker is now the boutique owner where she cre- ates both ready-to-wear and custom-designed pieces for a growing clientele.
For Racker, the road to success was cemented with that fateful night and paved with a two-year stint as an as- sistant stylist for the show.
On Saturday, Racker will relive her Ebony Fashion Fair days with Runway NOIR Fash- ion Tour, a traveling show in- spired by the esteemed showcase.
Joining Racker in coordi- nating Runway NOIR is fellow
designer and stylist, Ricc Rollins, owner of The Style Boutique @5508.
More than 20 designers will be featured, including Markquis Kordale of For- ever Doyge and garments made by human trafficking vic- tims with the Nigeria-based Hope Center International Foundation.
Proceeds from the event will go to the foundation and Tampa-based nonprofit, Mira- cles Outreach, which assists children who are homeless and human trafficking victims.
The event, hosted at Hills- borough Community College’s Trinkle Center in Plant City, is more than models twirling in beautiful clothes, Rollins said.
It’s a chance to highlight Black and brown up-and-com- ers in the Tampa Bay fashion community, he said.
“It’s really an opportunity (for them) to design, do hair, makeup, showcase jewelry,” he said.
It’s also a chance to resur- rect the old school elegance and grace of the Ebony Fash- ion Fair with a twist, Racker said.
“We’re making it more modern, more innovative, and more creative,” she said.
That includes technology that will allow attendees to re- ceive notifications regarding the availability of pieces in the show and purchase them on the spot in real-time, Racker said.
Another show is planned in Clearwater in the fall. Plans are underway to host shows in Miami and Atlanta before the end of the year, Rollins said.
Hopefully the show will spark a flame in other young people and push them to un- leash their fashion-related tal- ent, Racker said.
“Runway NOIR will have that impact on the next Eliza- beth Carson Racker,” she said.
If You Go
The first show of the
Runway NOIR Tour 2018 will take place Saturday at the Hillsborough Commu- nity College Trinkle Cen- ter, 1206 N. Park Rd, in Plant City. VIP hour be- gins at 5:30 p. m. followed by the show at 7 p.m. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit www.runwaynoir.com.
KEVIN KNOX ...Enters NBA Draft
USF To Offer New Bachelor’s Degree In Cybersecurity
First class of new stu- dents will be enrolling this fall
The University of South Florida College of Engineer- ing is pioneering a new de- gree program designed to prepare students for careers in one of the country’s fastest growing industries – Cyber- security.
The Bachelor’s in Cyberse- curity, housed in the college’s Department of Computer Sci- ence and Engineering, is the first undergraduate degree program of its kind among Florida’s 12 public universi- ties.
“With the growth of the Tampa Bay area as technol- ogy hub, the Cybersecurity Degree will provide employ- ers with a technical workforce able to protect a company’s assets,” Dean of the USF Col- lege of Engineering Robert H. Bishop said. “Cybercrime shows no signs of slowing down and the high demand for Cybersecurity workers, coupled with a limited supply of talent, means that gradu- ates going into the field can earn high salaries performing a variety of jobs.”
Experts predict jobs in the Cybersecurity industry will grow by nearly 30 percent through 2026, with a re- ported median salary for in- formation security analysts at
more than $95,000, accord- ing to the U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The anticipated growth, combined with the opportu- nity for graduates to find high-paying jobs, are the pri- mary reasons behind USF’s development of this new de- gree.
The collaborative program is built on a technical founda- tion of computing and infor- mation technology, while also exploring human behavior, a key factor in how cyber crim- inals often exploit their vic- tims. Students will learn how to ensure online security and protect digital assets, whether it involves personal bank records, state secrets or criti- cal national infrastructures. They will also take courses in business, ethics and policy.
The College of Engineering expects to enroll the first 50 new students into the pro- gram this fall, who will com- bine with approximately 40 other students transferring in from other programs across the university.
USF already offers Mas- ter’s Degree programs in Cy- bersecurity and Cybercrime, multiple certificate programs and the Florida Center for Cybersecurity is housed on campus, making USF uniquely positioned as a statewide and national leader in this field.
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