Eubanks Development Solutions Opens for Business

October 31, 2013

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Gregory Eubanks, a consulting specialist with more than 15 years in the fundraising and development industry, is celebrating the opening of Eubanks Development Solutions located in The EDGE Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation.
Eubanks Development Solutions assists for profit businesses and nonprofit organizations in planning, organizing and conducting successful capital campaigns by providing the necessary tools to identify, cultivate, solicit, track, and recognize prospects, donors and volunteers.
Eubanks Development Solutions also provides experienced planned giving counsel to assist individuals and their families in developing and executing a comprehensive, systematic, and sustained approach to planned giving.
“With Eubanks you can count on fundraising consultants who care. Whether it’s a national fundraising campaign, Southern giving, or a regional or local campaign, Eubanks Development Solutions can help you raise more money,” said Baron Coker of Making Our Way Better, Union City, Ga. “They provided fundraising counsel for our capital campaign and our annual fund drive.”
In addition to capital campaign and planned giving expertise, Eubanks Development Solutions also offers consultation in prospect research —providing information needed to make well-informed and well-timed solicitations of individuals, foundations, and corporations.
Eubanks cut his teeth as a development officer at the University of Southern Mississippi where he served first as the Executive Director: Presbyterian Student Center and later as Associate Vice President for Development and Church Relations at Stillman College. During this appointment, Eubanks regenerated the previously dormant annual fund drive utilizing a six-step workload to outcome strategy. He also presented proposals to businesses, foundations, government sources, churches and individuals and managed public and private foundation gifts. Eubanks was part of a fundraising team that generated over $19 million for capital projects, $1.5 yearly for operations and over $60 million in grants and contracts over a 5-year period.
Eubanks earned a B.A. from Stillman and attended Alabama A&M University. He went on to Princeton Seminary to earn a Master’s degree. Eubanks actively pursues continuing education opportunities in the area of grantsmanship and fundraising. He participated in the Federal Department of Health and Human Services’ Evaluability Assessment for Non-profits (2005-2007, Washington, DC), The Whaley Company’s Major Gift Prospecting Toolbox (2005, 2012, Atlanta, Georgia), and the Federal Department of Labor/Federal Department of Housing and Urban Development’s The Good and the Bad: New and Emerging Markets Tax Credits workshop (2010, Washington, DC).
“We are open for business and looking forward to doing well by doing good”, Eubanks said.
Eubanks Development Solutions is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. in The EDGE Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation located at 800 22nd Avenue Tuscaloosa, AL 35401.

Ruffner Mountain Nature Preserve Announces New Staff

Birmingham Times

October 31, 2013

Ruffner Mountain Nature Preserve’s Board of Directors announces the appointments of four new staff members joining the team in October 2013.

Kimberly Jeanty has been named the Interim Executive Director. She brings her knowledge of financial stability and her ability to look ‘outside the box” for ideas that will further Ruffner’s mission and help to build consistent income streams for the future. Relocating to the Magic City from South Florida in 2009, Kimberly is using her strengths to enhance Ruffner Mountain’s relationship with the neighborhoods surrounding the “Mountain” and to bring a clear, cleaner focus to the importance of preservation and land acquisition, restoring some of the mountain’s landmarks and creating new programs for the public. She has nearly 20 years of experience in nonprofits, government agencies and Fortune 500 corporations and most recently served the Honorable Councilor Kim Rafferty, Birmingham City Councilor District 2, as Neighborhood Liaison. She is the architect of the Bank on Birmingham initiative and enjoyed working closely with the neighborhood associations of District 2 on their revitalization efforts. Besides being a board member of the East Lake Arts District, Kimberly also serves as an adviser to the East Lake Community Development Corporation or Blight Club, member of East Lake Merchant Group and volunteers with various other organizations throughout the city. Kimberly, her husband, Peter, and daughter, Taylor, have made Birmingham their “adopted” hometown.

Julia Ann Fleming has been appointed to the position of Director of Development and Communications. Bringing over 25 years of executive nonprofit experience, Julia Ann has been a consultant to regional and national nonprofits for the past 10 years. Her experience ranges from institutions such as Vulcan Park
Foundation, Pathways, Birmingham International Center and Discovery Children’s Museum in Nevada to development and marketing positions with Alabama Public
Television Foundation, McWane Science Center, Miami City Ballet, The Tennessee Performing Arts Center, Carnegie Hall and the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra. She holds a Specialist Certificate in Multiple Arts and a Masters in Music Education from Indiana University and a Bachelors of Music from Rhodes College.

Lindsey Darby comes to Ruffner as the Administrative Coordinator from the Birmingham Zoo where she worked with native species in the Children’s Zoo. She has worked as a naturalist on the “Mountain” since 2012. In 2010, she started the bio diversity survey for the North Alabama Land Trust in Huntsville and holds a BS in Environmental Science from Nova Southeastern University.

Patrick Daniel joined the staff as the Land Manager coming from his own company that consulted and sold landscape designs and installations. He was the initial Curator of the Kaul Wildflower Garden at the Birmingham Botanical Gardens for over two years and has many relationships with nurserymen and plant enthusiasts across the state. As an Alabama native, his experience, background and understanding of the land, plants and environment are already providing the kind of care our “Mountain” needs.

Former Jacksonville State University Professor Sentenced for Attempting to Receive Child Pornography

Birmingham Times

October 31, 2013

BIRMINGHAM – A federal judge today sentenced a former assistant professor at Jacksonville State University to five years in prison for attempting to receive child pornography, announced U.S. Attorney Joyce White Vance, Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations Special Agent in Charge Raymond R. Parmer Jr. and Alabama Bureau of Investigation’s Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force Commander Jeremy Lett.

U.S. District Judge L. Scott Coogler sentenced JONATHAN MARK HERBERT, 39, of Jacksonville, and ordered him to serve 10 years of supervised probation following his five years in prison. Herbert also must register as a sex offender. Herbert pleaded guilty in January to one count of attempting to receive child pornography. U.S. Marshals took him into custody following today’s hearing.

According to court documents, Herbert attempted to receive images of child pornography over the Internet in August 2012 from a 14-year-old girl, who turned out to be an undercover police officer. He also drove to a Birmingham shopping center where he planned to meet the 14-year-old for sex.

The Alabama Department of Public Safety’s Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force and HSI investigated the case, which Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joe Montminy and Daniel Fortune prosecuted.

JUDSON COLLEGE TO HOST Scholarship day NOV.9

Birmingham Times

October 31, 2013

Judson College will be hosting a Preview/Scholarship Day on its campus in Marion on November 9.

Prospective students and their parents are invited to visit the campus, explore the College’s academic programs, meet Judson students and faculty, and learn more about admissions and financial aid. An equine demonstration will also take place in the afternoon.

High school seniors may participate in testing for academic scholarships, tryouts for athletic scholarships, and auditions for performing arts scholarships. Six academic scholarships will be awarded after Saturday’s test: one full-tuition scholarship worth $58,480, two $10,000 scholarships, and three $8,000 scholarships. Values are based on a four-year enrollment period. Performing arts scholarships are available in piano, organ, voice and theatre, and athletic scholarships are available for soccer, softball, tennis, basketball and volleyball. Additional need- or merit-based aid will be awarded in the spring. Ninety-nine percent of Judson students receive merit-based or need-based financial aid, which covers an average of 75% of their total educational costs.

November 9’s Scholarship Day will begin at 8:15a.m. with opportunities to explore the variety of student activities available at Judson. Then students may take the short academic scholarship test while parents learn about financial aid and other aspects of the college parent experience.

Judson College’s next Scholarship Day will be held February 15, 2014. An additional six academic scholarships will be awarded. Prospective students are always welcome to schedule individual tours at any time by contacting the Admissions Office at 800-447-9472 or admissions@judson.edu.

Accrediting Agency OKS Launch of "Oakwood Online University"

Birmingham Times

October 31, 2013

“A game changer,” predicts OU president, Dr. Leslie N. Pollard

BLACKNEWS.COM – The Atlanta-based Southern Association of Colleges and Schools has approved Oakwood University providing adult learners a business degree completion online, it was announced today.
“Oakwood Online University,” a concept first spelled out by then-new Oakwood president, Dr. Leslie N. Pollard, in “Vision 2020,” his first address as its 11th president on January 25, 2011, will start as a pilot program in January 2014, as Organizational Management (business), one of its five LEAP adult degree completion programs, will be offered both as fully online and continued as its on-site track.
“Through our LEAP program, Oakwood Online University will be able to reach adult learners all over the world, who have been wanting to complete a lifelong dream: to finish their college degrees and improve their standards of living and the quality of life for themselves and their families,” summarized Mrs. Hyacinth Burton, Dean of the OU School of Business & Adult and Continuing Education. Additionally, she continued, OOU achieves one of the primary visions of our university strategic plans for academic offerings, enrollment and more diverse learners.
In his initial “Vision 20/20 Statement” 2011 address, Pollard forecasted, “By 2020, OOU is launched: Oakwood Online University. . . . The lower-cost revenue from Oakwood Online University helps grow the amount of institutional aid to needy students in our residential program.”
More recently and in his annual presidential address at the school’s First Chapel program on Thursday, August 22, President Pollard announced several of what he called “game changers”:
•   “Recovering a base of industry at Oakwood University . . . that will employ our students and bring in non-tuition revenue . . .”;
•   Breaking ground for the 11,700 sq. ft. Media Center and the Oakwood University Broadcasting Network, “to produce our own products – our own talk shows, our own dramas, our own editorials and religious news casts – and market them on our own terms, in our own voice” – which occurred on Wednesday, October 9; and
•   OOU, as “we (the President’s Council) voted to fast-track OOU’s development process by buying into the HBCU Online Consortium, supported by Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. This means we will immediately save hundreds of course-development hours by acquiring access to collaboratively-developed course content. Oakwood Online University will be a game changer. We will no longer be bounded by local geography, but can make Oakwood University accessible to students around the world.”
For more information on Oakwood Online University and its program offerings, contact Mrs. Hyacinth Burton, OU School of Business, 256-726-7081.

Alabama Power website goes mobile

Birmingham Times

October 31, 2013

Customers can access a host of services through smartphones

Alabama Power customers can now use their mobile devices to quickly and easily obtain information about their accounts and to access company services.

Customers who type alabamapower.com on their smartphone will be immediately taken to a mobile-friendly site where they can:

*       View their account balance
*       Report an outage or check the status of an outage
*       Make payments
*       Find the nearest business office.

Customers can also connect to the full website, which can be bookmarked and accessed as an application on compatible smartphones. Customers that qualify can also log in via smartphone to track their home energy usage.

“Whether it’s assisting by phone, Internet, mobile web or through social media we are always looking for new ways to communicate with our customers. The smartphone enabled website is just one more way to serve them,” said Jonathan Porter, director of Customer Services.

Of course, customers can still reach customer service 24 hours a day by dialing
1-800-245-2244. Whichever way they choose, customers are invited to connect and learn more about the variety of programs, options and information available to them through Alabama Power.

Alabama Power, a subsidiary of Atlanta-based Southern Company (NYSE:SO), provides reliable, affordable electricity to more than 1.4 million people across the state.

It’s Time for President Obama to Do Something that Works for the Economy

Birmingham Times

October 31, 2013

By Derryck Green

Dear Mr. President:
With all due respect, your economic stewardship has been a nightmare.
Whether our nation’s lingering peril comes from your misunderstanding of basic economic principles, your rigid and religious-like devotion to political progressivism or because the economy simply isn’t your priority, credit and fault, nonetheless begins and ends with you.
As such, I’m writing to you in an appeal to the one thing that didn’t contract during your presidency: your ego.
No matter how you attempt to spin the news, clear-thinking Americans know — many from personal experience — that the economy isn’t improving.
The federal Bureau of Labor Statistics says the national unemployment rate dropped to 7.3 percent in August. But the rate for Latinos only dropped to 9.3 percent. The rate for Blacks increased to 13 percent, with Black teens at 38.2 percent.
America is still millions of jobs short compared with before you took office, and many of the jobs created during your “recovery” do not pay as well.
The labor force participation rate is at a 34-year low of 63.4 percent, and has been under 64 percent for 19 straight months. Ninety million Americans are no longer in the labor force. Teen employment is tragically low. Almost a million people have given up hope of finding a job in this job market.
More than 250 companies reportedly reduced employee hours and cut jobs altogether in attempts to survive under your signature legislation, ObamaCare.
As captain of this rudderless ship, Mr. President, you are responsible for the fact that more Americans are on disability insurance than people living in New York City. Reinforcing the truth of this sad and unfortunate reality, the Cato Institute notes welfare programs in 35 states provide more of a financial incentive to not work. In 13 states, the welfare equivalent is above the $15 per hour “living wage” promoted by so many of your supporters.
Since your 2008 election, the median family income has dropped for most Americans. For whites, it was a 3.6 percent decline. For Hispanics, there’s been a 4.5 percent decline. For Blacks, your most loyal constituency, it’s a much larger 10.9 percent decline.
But that’s not all. Your economic policies resulted in a spike in poverty, particularly distressing for Blacks at almost 26 percent. This is in combination with Black labor force participation at a rate of 61.4 percent and an unemployment rate continually at or near 13 percent during your presidency.
According to the National Urban League’s 2012 State of Black America, the Black economic gains over the past 30 years were wiped out in the recession and your so-called “recovery” that followed.
These statistics aren’t abstract numbers, Mr. President. These numbers represent real people who continue to press on despite losing hope and faith in you as our leader.
Many may excuse your lack of leadership, preferring to instead blame the economy on everything from obstinate conservatives to lingering pains of slavery. You blamed “phony scandals.”
Sir, these excuses do you no favors. Actually, these excuses further expose your inability on the job and your reluctance to accept responsibility.
It’s precisely why the American public no longer trusts what you say or do. It’s also why you have been found wanting as a leader in the international community.
These critiques aren’t because of your Blackness, but because of your ineffectiveness. The frustration is palpable. In the spirit of Dr. King, whom we all just celebrated for his leadership, you’re rightly being judged on the content of your character — along with the actions brought forth from it — and not by the color of your skin.
History may not be as kind to you as it seems in the bubble in which you currently reside. Becoming the first Black president of the United States may seem to be a historic achievement right now, but being “the first Black” simply isn’t enough in the long-term.
Your novelty has worn off. It’s time you actually do something of substance to warrant the reverence in which you see yourself and which American posterity will remember you. You have three years left. The clock is ticking.

Respectfully yours,

Nevada lawmaker would vote for slavery if constituents wanted him to

Birmingham Times

October 31, 2013

By Michael Arceneaux

For the millionth time, racist old people in positions of power: If you don’t want your bigotry to be made into big headlines all over Al Gore’s Internet, go back to journaling. Not that many in the Grand Old Party maintain such modesty, but in the case of Nevada Assemblyman Jim Wheeler (pictured), it’s a lesson he’d best learn to keep in his back pocket for future reference. On Monday, a YouTube video surfaced, featuring Wheeler telling a gathering of Republicans that’d he vote to allow slavery if that is what his constituents wanted of him.
Speaking before members of the Storey County Republican Party at a meeting in August, Wheeler explained: If that’s what they wanted, I’d have to hold my nose, I’d have to bite my tongue, and they’d probably have to hold a gun to my head, but yeah, if that’s what the citizens of the, if that’s what the constituency wants that elected me, that’s what they elected me for. That’s what a republic is about. You elected a person for your district to do your wants and wishes, not the wants and wishes of a special interest, not his own wants and wishes, yours.
In reaction, his Republican peers wasted no time in sprinting away from him. In a statement, Gov. Brian Sandoval said: “Assemblyman Wheeler’s comments are deeply offensive and have no place in our society. He should retract his remarks and apologize.”
U.S. Sen. Dean Heller, R-Nev., called Wheeler’s comments “insensitive and wrong.” And Senate Minority Leader Michael Roberson, R-Henderson, noted via Twitter that Wheeler’s comments are “outrageous, they are embarrassing and they are just plain sad.” Roberson added, “It’s time for Jim Wheeler to find a new line of work.”
You see, it’s okay for the GOP to treat Blacks as second-class citizens in the Reconstruction era realness that is a national effort to disenfranchise minority voters, but don’t you dare mention “slavery.”
Wheeler, the freshman lawmaker, has since released his own statement: The media is having a good time with a clearly facetious statement I made in a town hall meeting earlier this year. They’re attempting to spin an extreme example I used about supporting my constituents to accuse me of being racist. Anybody that knows me knows that’s absurd, and anyone that views the comments in context understands that the whole point of the example is that racism of any kind is something that I find completely unacceptable. During the meeting, I was asked how I would vote if I believed one way on an issue, and my constituents believed the opposite. I stated the truth that I believe, which is that in a Representative Republic, I’m hired by the people to represent their views. I used an over-the-top example of something that I absolutely do not agree with, and even mentioned that to get me to vote for such a thing, my constituents would literally have to hold a gun to my head. In reality, that isn’t the case at all. If my constituents wanted to do something as outlandish as bring back an abhorrent system, then I simply couldn’t represent them anymore. They would remove me from office, or I’d have to resign.
So he’s not the problem, our ability not to discern a “facetious” statement is. Here is the problem with Wheeler’s point of view. Even if I’m silly enough to believe his remarks were made in jest, I’m not dumb enough to think he couldn’t have thought of a better example to illustrate his point. A point that’s flawed in theory anyway.
Your constituents may have elected you based on a common share of views, but they also elected you to act in their best interest. So if you can speak about the virtues of the Republic for which you purportedly represent, you ought to know that a vote for slavery is not in the best interest of anyone besides a scant amount of racists who long for a time that’s long over in 2013.
Might you lose for hypothetically not aligning yourself with the bring-slavery-stance back? Perhaps, but you would have certainly done a better job at being an elective representative.
Wheeler isn’t the only person who legislates with this perspective. Many of his GOP brethren do too, enabling the fringe elements of the party versus being audacious enough to declare how asinine and antiquated many of their positions are.
It explains much of the current mess playing in Washington. Wheeler may be an utter fool for making his slavery comments, but there are bigger fools to fry when it comes to this dumb way of governing.

Michael Arceneaux is a Houston-bred, Howard-educated writer. You can read more of his work on his site, The Cynical Ones. Follow him on Twitter: @youngsinick

The NAACP Strongly Supports the Confirmation of Congressman Mel Watt to Serve as Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency

Birmingham Times

October 31, 2013

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The NAACP released the following statements calling for the confirmation of Congressman Melvin “Mel” Watt to lead the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA).

From NAACP President and CEO Benjamin Todd Jealous:
“Congressman Mel Watt is a champion of champions who will hold banks accountable and will move our country forward,” stated NAACP President and CEO Benjamin Todd Jealous. “In a time when we are stuck in too many ways, Congressman Watt will work to ensure all families have access to the dream that defines our country. He is poised to be a strong and fearless voice for struggling homeowners crippled by the recession and a force against predatory lenders who prey on Black and brown communities. We are confident he can make change for families who need real change.”

From Lorraine C. Miller, Interim NAACP President and CEO:
“Congressman Mel Watt is a fierce advocate for homeowners,” stated interim NAACP President and CEO Lorraine C. Miller, who served as the 35th Clerk of the House of Representatives. “I have known Congressman Watt and observed his effectiveness on the House Financial Services Committee for over a decade. I am confident that he is the right person for this critical position. He was among the first to speak against the predatory lending crisis that led to the collapse of the housing market and massive loss of wealth, particularly in communities of color. We urge the Senate to confirm his nomination as his leadership and vision are needed to ensure that homeownership is accessible and affordable for all Americans.”

Hilary O. Shelton, NAACP Washington Bureau Director and Sr. VP of Policy and Advocacy:
“The NAACP strongly supports the nomination of Congressman Mel Watt to serve as director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency. With 40 years overall experience in housing and finance, Congressman Watt has spent the last 20 years of his career as a stalwart supporter of civil rights, human rights and economic justice in the U.S. Congress,” stated Hilary O. Shelton, NAACP Washington Bureau Director and Senior Vice President of Policy and Advocacy. “Congressman Watt has served admirably on the House Financial Services Committee and on the House Judiciary Committee. As chair of the Congressional Black Caucus in 2005 and 2006, he led the effort to reauthorize the Voting Rights Act. Congressman Watt is a thoughtful and gifted lawmaker, who is eminently qualified to lead the Federal Housing Finance Agency.”

On May 1, 2013, President Barack Obama nominated Congressman Mel Watt of North Carolina to serve as Director of the FHFA. The NAACP fully supports the president’s nomination of Congressman Watt to serve as director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

Macy's, Barneys Probed After Racial Profiling Claims, Report Says

Birmingham Times

October 31, 2013

From Newsmax.com

The New York state attorney general is investigating Macy’s Inc. and Barneys New York Inc. after complaints from Black customers who were stopped by police after making luxury purchases, the New York Daily News reported on Tuesday.
Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has set Friday as the deadline for the stores to turn over information about their policies for detaining and questioning customers based on race, according to the Daily News, which quoted letters sent to Barneys Chief Executive Mark Lee and Macy’s Chief Stores Officer Peter Sachse.
Lee is meeting on Tuesday with Reverend Al Sharpton at the Harlem headquarters of his civil rights group, National Action Network, to discuss claims of racial profiling by two Barneys customers.
“Attorney General Schneiderman is committed to ensuring that all New York residents are afforded equal protection under the law,” Kristen Clarke, who heads the attorney general’s civil rights bureau, wrote to Lee and Sachse.
“The alleged repeated behavior of your employees raises troubling questions about your company’s commitment to that ideal,” the letters said.
Schneiderman’s office, Macy’s and Barneys were not immediately available for comment.
Barneys and the New York City Police Department were named in a lawsuit filed by a Queens man detained by police in April for two hours after buying a $349 Ferragamo belt, and then released without being charged. Another Barneys shopper said she was surrounded by four undercover police officers in February after leaving with a $2,500 Celine handbag she had purchased.
Two Macy’s shoppers have made similar complaints, including actor Rob Brown of HBO’s “Treme,” who said he was handcuffed and held for an hour after purchasing a $1,350 gold Movado watch for his mother, the Daily News said.
The fourth “shop and frisk” complaint was filed by Art Palmer, 56, an exercise trainer from Brooklyn. He said he was surrounded by police who demanded to see identification in April after he used his credit card to buy $320 worth of Polo shirts and ties, the Daily News reported.
In 2005, Macy’s paid $600,000 to settle similar allegations that many of the chain’s New York stores had targeted Blacks and Latinos for particular scrutiny of theft, according to the New York Attorney General’s office.
Grand larceny has risen 31.6 percent over the past two years in the New York Police Department’s Midtown North precinct, which includes Macy’s flagship store in Herald Square. It is up nearly 4 percent in the Upper East Side’s 19th precinct, which includes Barneys New York.

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