Charmaine Ward Says Black Wealth Begins with Youth Mentorship
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photo by steed media service
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President of the NBMBAA, Atlanta Chapter
As
the president of the National Black MBA Association’s largest chapter –
Atlanta with its 800 members – Charmaine Ward is entrusted with
developing and increasing intellectual and economic wealth in the black
community. While this is accomplished via “focusing on education, on
career [and] professional development and entrepreneurships,” Ward says
more resources need to be appropriated to instill these principles in
adolescents.
“I think one of the ways that we take it to the
next level is to . mentor young people and to show them that ‘yes they
can’ and yes they can do what they want to do including being the
president of the United States,” says Ward, who sparkled as she was
honored as one of the 100 most influential African American women at
the Atlanta Business League gala recently.
It’s the apex of
intellectual dishonesty to believe that the community will thrive
simply by bolstering and multiplying the black upper class and
intellectual elite. The creation of black prosperity really begins
during a youth’s formative years, which is when Ward says that
intervention, mentorship and guidance must begin.
“Right now
we need to start locally, we need to start making a change in our
communities and have middle school [students] … mentored by high
school [students] and high schools students … mentored by college
students. And we as professionals and women who have been selected
[ought to be] honoring those college students. It’s really [about]
mentoring the youth and bringing them up.” –terry shropshire
