Happy Black History Month! We hope 2019 is off to a great start. We're back with our first newsletter in 2019 and it's jam-packed. Be sure to scroll all the way through or view in browser so that you don't miss anything.
In this month’s issue, we're celebrating the pioneers of the School of Business, sharing upcoming events, introducing you to the Spring 2019 scholarship recipients, and as always, highlighting the impressive accomplishments of CAU B-School alumni.
In this month's issue:
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This year one of our resolutions is to create more opportunities for B-alumni to network and give back. In Q1 we have two events for alumni to come together, network and celebrate fellow alumni.
CAU Alumni Night @ the Atlanta Hawks
Tickets to CAU Alumni Night at the Atlanta Hawks have sold out! We're looking forward to a great evening on Saturday, Feb 23 at the newly renovated State Farm Arena. If you'll be joining us, visit SBANA.org/Hawks for updates on the pre-game networking event with Keisha Knight Pullium and the post-game party.
2019 Spirit of Greatness Gala
Join SBANA, Dean Udoka, and the B-School on Saturday, March 23 as we celebrate B-School alumnus, Maurice D. Slaughter (AU MBA ‘84). Alumnus Slaughter is the first African American to own Harley Davidson dealerships in the company's history.
Did you know that Mr. Slaughter has a conference room in Wright-Young Hall named in his honor? Watch the dedication ceremony here.
SBANA Black History Month Mixtape
We've updated our curated playlist that reminds you of the CAU experience! Sounds that celebrate being Black, strolling the campus, and winning in business.
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Spring 2019 Scholarship Recipients
This school year, B-School alumni and supporters have made it possible for us to award almost $6,000 in scholarships.
We received close to 100 applications for five available scholarships. Meet the recipients of the SBANA General Scholarships below.
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Angelo P. Hopson, Supply Chain Management
Junior, 3.75 GPA
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Kennedy McNeil, Marketing
Sophomore, 3.4 GPA
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January 23, 2019
Dear Scholarship Committee,
I want to thank you on behalf of all students, present and past, whom you have blessed greatly with this much needed award for Clark students who are both finding a way and making a way. When I first got accepted into Clark Atlanta during the April HBCU Tour I was elated to get the opportunity to not only attend a historically Black institution but also to be a part of the rich culture that our ancestors created for future generations. People told me it would be a stretch trying to pay the cost of tuition and board. I was discouraged for a moment but then I realized what Booker T. Washington, George Washington Carver and many others had to go through to continue their education. I instantly became empowered. It hit me like an epiphany, nothing worth having comes easy, including a college education. I heard Frederick Douglas whisper in my ear, “Without struggle there is no progress.”
All my life I have been known as being a quitter or underachiever. Growing up in special education... conntinue reading Angelo's heartfelt letter here.
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SBANA General Scholarship Fund Donation
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$25.00
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Help us have an immediate impact on CAU B-School students. 100% of your donation will go to students in need.
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This month we are highlighting the pioneers of the School of Business; Mr. Lorimer Douglas Milton (L.D. Milton), Mr. Jesse B. Blayton, Sr. (J.B. Blayton), and Mrs. Sammye Griffin Dennis.
The founders of the B-School, L.D. Milton and J.B. Blayton were instrumental in the development of the African American business community in Atlanta. Their entrepreneurial endeavors, commitment to educating students in the areas of Business Administration, Accounting, and Economics, laid the foundation for the thriving black business community that exists today.
The School of Business was founded in 1931 becoming the first HBCU to offer graduate studies in business. John Hope, President of Atlanta University, shared the news of the formation of the B-School in the November 1931 issue of the Journal of Negro Life, and the impact it would have on the trajectory of black life in America.
In 1941, a speaker at the First Annual Conference on the Negro in Business, sponsored by the United States Department of Commerce stated, "There is no department of business administration that has developed close ties with local business even in cities like Durham, Nashville, Baltimore, and others. The only exception to this rule has been Atlanta, for reasons quite obvious to everyone. Under the leadership of Professors Blayton and Milton, not only has the business administration department prospered, but Negro business, as well as civic life, in Atlanta has materially improved."
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L.D. MILTON
Founding Dean of the Atlanta Univesity School of Business
Mr. Milton was the founding Dean of the Atlanta University School of Business, Banker and Entrepreneur.
Mr. Milton served as the President of Citizens Trust Bank for over 40 years while serving as Dean of the B-School. He kept the bank afloat through the Great Depression, World War II, and segregation. Under his leadership, the bank became one of the top 5 black-owned banks by 1940 and the first African American bank to join the FDIC and Federal Reserve.
Mr. Milton was the co-owner of several businesses, most notably, the Yates and Milton Drugstore chain. The first black-owned chain of it's kind. |
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JESSE B. BLAYTON
"Dean of Negro Accountant"
Jesse B. Blayton was affectionately known as the "Dean of Negro Accountants" because of his dedication to the training of African American accountants.
In 1928 Mr. Blayton became the first African American C.P.A. in the state of Georgia and fourth in the United States.
With encouragement from W.E.B. DuBois and other Atlanta University colleagues Mr. Blayton established the Department of Accounting, Business, and Economics. He served as the Andrew Carnegie Foundation professor for economics and business administration from 1930 until his retirement in 1970.
In the December 1939 edition of the Atlanta University Bulletin, Professor Blayton was characterized as exhibiting "a fine type of leadership in his attempts to make a place for Negroes in the field of business. He has won the faith and confidence of his students, and the respect of people with whom he has had business relations."
In 1949 he became the first African American to own and operate a radio station in North America by purchasing WERD in Atlanta for $50,000. WERD was located above the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and became the media outlet for Martin Luther King, Jr. and the SCLC during the Civil Rights Movement. He was posthumously inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 1995.
On June 30, 1964, Mr. Blayton became the first black Commissioner of the Atlanta Housing Authority. |
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Together, Mr. Milton, Mr. Blayton and their business partner were the most influential businessmen in Atlanta, owning the largest constellation of businesses in the city from the 1930s to 1970s.
They opened the first African American night club in Atlanta, Brown Boy Bottling Company, and headed Citizens Trust Bank, Mutual Federal Savings & Loan, financing some of Atlanta's most beloved business institutions like the Atlanta Daily World, Paschal's Restaurant and H.J. Russell & Company.
Interested in learning more about L.D. Milton and J.B. Blayton's impact on the Atlanta Black business community? Start with the resources below:
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SAMMYE GRIFFIN DENNIS
Mrs. Griffin was the first female to major in and receive a degree in Business Administration from Clark University. Learn more about her and her accomplishments here.
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This year's Pathways to Excellence honorees include Maurice Slaughter (MBA '84), Carl Seldon, Juanita Eber, and music producer Bryan-Michael Cox.
The Thomas W. Cole Jr. Legacy Award Recipient is Brenda Walker.
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B-SCHOOL ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT 
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Congratulations to School of Business alumni and SBANA Historian, Nichelle D. Joyner (CAU '07), on being named the 2019 Presidents Club 1st place winner at Alliance Health with 129.7% volume growth in 2018!
Alumna Joyner achieved this milestone in only her second year with the company and bested 38 other account executives!
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Wednesday, February 13, 2019 | 9am-1pm
CAU Day at the Capitol
Location: Clark Atlanta University
Learn More | RSVP
Saturday, February 23, 2019
CAU Alumni Night @ the Atlanta Hawks
Location: State Farm Arena
Event Details
Saturday, March 23, 2019
11th Annual Spirit of Greatness Gala
Location: Hyatt Regency Atlanta Hotel
Purchase tickets | reserve seats at the B-School tables
Saturday, May 16-20, 2019
May Weekend 2019
Location: Clark Atlanta University
Saturday, June 8, 2019
SBANA Celebrates CAU International Alumni Day
Location: Atlanta, GA
October 17-20, 2019
Homecoming Week
Location: Clark Atlanta University
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