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TestimonialsThe strength of a professional organization lies in the character of its members and the quality of their experiences. Here are a few members to tell you how BDPA over the years has helped both their character and their careers. Professional and Executive membersDenise Street-Robb - Atlanta Chapter I have been a member of BDPA since 1979; one of the founding members of the New Jersey chapter. I served as the Membership coordinator for two years. My brother Jeffrey C. Street was one of the first recipients of the BDPA-New Jersey Scholarship. He graduated from Morehouse College, is currently a member of the Richmond Chapter of BDPA and has a lucrative business in the Metro Washington DC area as an Oracle DBA. I eventually relocated to Atlanta and became a member of that chapter. My daughter Nia S. Allen was on the HSCC team of 1998-1999 and also received a scholarship from BDPA-Atlanta. She has been able to use her skills which she obtained through the HSCC training to provide additional income while in college. She also assisted the High School Technical Staff at Banneker High School, providing tutorial services for the Visual Basic 6.0 class. Truly BDPA is a family thing. Because of my connections through BDPA, I have served on the State of Georgia's Y2K task force, and the Fulton County Technology initiative. I attribute my personal and professional growth to the strong leadership BDPA attracts. Glenn Rogers was my first African American boss, Gerard Anderson was also instrumental in assisting my career growth. Because of all these things and of course more, I've realized that my true calling is that of a Public Servant, and have entered the political arena of Georgia. I owe my BDPA family a great deal of gratitude and I'm thankful to have experienced the BDPA way of life. Leon B. Tynes II - Baltimore Chapter I am writing this letter to express my appreciation for your hard work during this year in setting-up the BDPA Conference. I am one your newest members who recently joined the Baltimore Chapter. The BDPA Conference has helped me regain confidence in Black people. I thought that we had given up on one another and working together. Also, this conference provided me the opportunity to interview with a Dell executive who is also a member of BDPA. Each member I've met has helped me understand what it means to be a part of BDPA, as well as helped me in other areas to improve myself and be ready to compete in today's difficult job market. Student membersKeon Hercules - New York City Chapter This last Annual National Conference was very special to BDPA, which celebrated its 25th year of helping Blacks lead the way in the Information Technology (IT) industry. BDPA had a quarter century of uniting African Americans across the nation to come together and empower ourselves, and put us at the forefront of this booming industry. I was honored to take part in this celebration. Senior BDPA members seem to hold the High School Computer Competition (HSCC) students in high honor and view us as the best of the best. Our job was to live up to their high expectations; I think we were successful in doing so this year. I am blessed to be a member of a great team. They were wonderful teammates, and more important, good friends. I was the Captain of the Team. We worked extremely well together, and were able to cogitate in unison when challenging times approached us during the competition. The actual competition challenge was quite demanding and arduous, but as a team we pulled together and tried our best to complete the task as stated. Some of the important values that BDPA taught me are teamwork and how to work well with other people. I can use values such as these the rest of my life. Apart from the HSCC, the conference was one of the most fun and informative times I have experienced. I met many people in positions and professions I would like to pursue in the future. Some of the people included Network Administrators for enterprises, and entrepreneurs who started their own IT businesses. I talked with them to gather knowledge, which can help me achieve the same status in the future. The 25th Annual Nation Conference is definitely a time to remember for the rest of my life. I hope to attend future Conferences and to have the same mental awakening that this conference has provided me. I established new friendships that I will never forget. So, I thank BDPA for providing me with this experience. Janeen Thomas - Washington, DC Chapter I can still remember May 8, 2003 when my mother told me that I was going to start taking Saturday classes at SouthEastern University for BDPA. I was very upset-now I also had to do school work on the weekends. The first day I attended class I remember thinking to myself "why in the world do they think I can do all of this work in addition to my schoolwork?" After a couple of weeks I started enjoying the class, mostly because I knew all the answers and it made feel extremely smart. I started socializing more with the other people in the class, and every class became more fun. On July 26, 2003 they announced the people that would represent DC in the High School Computer Competition. I was so excited to know that I along with seven other people were going to Philadelphia to represent the nation's capital. In addition to our 3-hour Saturday classes we started having classes on Sundays. We had two weeks to learn everything we could about BDPA and programming. Every free minute I had turned into a chance for me to study and practice. When we arrived in Philadelphia on August 13, 2003 I was so excited. The rest of our day consisted of seminars. Honestly, the first night we were there I did not want to go to sleep because I knew the next day the real competition started. I never had so many butterflies in my life, I was immensely nervous. We got all correct in the oral competition, and did pretty well in the written competition. That night we had to cram infinite amounts of programming code into the heads of four teenagers for the next day's programming competition. The programming portion of the competition was probably the most difficult assignment I have ever experienced in my life. We had to sit in a room for 8 hours, writing a program that would probably take a professional programmer weeks or months to create. While sitting in that room there were times when we all just wanted to give up, there were times I even started crying-but we still got through it. The rest of the trip was a big social event. Saturday morning we went to Jillian's and the mall. Saturday night we went to the banquet. On Sunday it was time for us to depart from one of the best experiences of my life. On the train ride back home it was a time for us to recollect all the memories that we had experienced those past couple of days, and it was a time for us to enjoy our last few hours with each other. When I started BDPA I was only in the program so it would look good on my college transcript, but I left with so much more. I left with knowledge, friends, inside jokes, and most of all memories. Odaro Ighodaro - New York Chapter The summer of 2003, "it was the best of times, the worst of times, the age of wisdom, the age of foolishness, the spring of hope, and the winter of despair." It was the beginning of the BDPA National Conference. Young people from around the country came to compete at the annual national HSCC conference held in Pennsylvania. My name is Odaro Ighodaro, a student at Boys and Girls Highs School. Today, I am a senior in Boys and Girls, but tomorrow a college freshman. At the Conference, I was the "Lead Coder." It was the moment and the hour I had been waiting for. Many people appeared terrified. However, I was calm, and did my best to make the team feel the same. When we met with difficulties times, we remained a team, and looked for and found strength. This was not my first competition; nor was it my last. During my recess time, I had fun, and still was able to demonstrate my love for computers, and knowledge. I was also able to interact with people of different cultures, and lifestyles. Have I learned a lot, and am I thankful? Seriously yes. People can do so much for you, and in life you do not always get that. The members of BDPA helped me realize the importance of being educated, being committed, and being devoted. I especially want to thank Mrs. Lane, Mr. Dakers, Mr. Mills and Ms. Hamilton and my teammates. God bless everyone, for their patience. Wes Williams - Memphis Chapter My older brother Donovan was part of Memphis BDPA three years prior to my joining, so BDPA was not new to me. Donovan, even at his young age, was very technical. Therefore, BDPA was perfect for him. But what about the kids who are not as technically advanced as Donovan? Those kids like me. I was what you would call a typical teenager. Hanging out all the time, goofing off, and walking through life aimlessly and hopelessly with low self-esteem. My mind wasn't focus on school, the future, or anything for that matter. My dad always told me "never live your life as wasted talent." That's just what I was becoming, "Wasted Talent." My parents knew that I had endless potential, but I couldn't see it. So we were running out of options. God blessed my parents and got me in BDPA. Needless to say I was very skeptical of joining at first, but I gave it a chance. Once in Memphis BDPA, wonderful instructors and the entire Memphis BDPA family helped bring out all my talents. Not just technical talents, but also how to speak better, create a resume and be more professional. Most importantly, BDPA gave me a new attitude. The instructors helped and supported my brother Trevor, two friends and I start our company, Zenoge Enterprise (www.zenoge.com). They also lead our computer programming team to four consecutive National High School Computer Competition championships. BDPA and Memphis BDPA did so much for me, I wanted to make sure that they would grow as a high school team and a chapter. I volunteered to be an instructor, mentor, and motivator for the all the classes. I was part of the first IT Showcase for college students in 2003. I received second place honors. Although Memphis BDPA is my home, my love, and my heart, I didn't stop there. Now I work with the Chattanooga Chapter getting their HSCC program started. On my journey I hope to one day be an outstanding Chapter President and maybe a great National President. BDPA helps students inside and outside the IT world. Students like me who might have been in their "terrible twos" all the way up through their teenage years. BDPA can help mold them into something outstanding. Entrepreneur membersDeborah Chambers Chima - www.chambersconsult.com I wanted to take the time to let you know what a wonderful experience I had at my first National BDPA Conference. The networking opportunities as an entrepreneur were outstanding, the speakers were motivating, and the opportunity to present was priceless. Downloads:
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March 2010
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