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Microsoft Word U.S. Champion Dominique Howard Earns Spot to Compete in Microsoft Office Specialist World Championship

By goodblacknews on July 23, 2014

Microsoft Office World Championship contestant Dominique Howard. (Photo: Certiport)

This Microsoft Word master is taking on the world. Harlemite Dominique Howard will put her software-savvy skills to the test this weekend when she competes for the coveted Microsoft Office Specialist World Championship title against some 30 international computer geeks.
“There’s no way that I can’t be excited,” said the 21-year-old JPMorgan Chase receptionist, who uses Word and Excel regularly at work. “They’re all good feelings. They’re overwhelming, but they’re good feelings.”
Howard proved she could do more than copy and paste in June when she won the U.S. championship as a Microsoft Word 2007 wizard.
She reformatted documents with speed and precision, tracked changes, encrypted and mail-merged like a pro. It landed her a ticket to Anaheim, Calif., for the July 27-30 event, where she’ll vie against finalists from more than 30 countries for $5,000. “A lot of people know the basics,” said Howard, who received a perfect score on a Microsoft Word certification test last summer. “There’s a secret developer tab that helps in design mode,” she added. “There’s macros, which is a whole bunch of fun.”

11 Year-Old Soap Maker Donovan Smith Donates Proceeds to Help Homeless

By goodblacknews on July 21, 2014

Donovan Smith soap maker
ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) – Donovan Smith is 11 years old and has an amazing talent for soap making. He is starting his own business, and he is trying to help people in the process, donating to the same organization that helped him and his mother find a home.
Donuts, ice cream and hamburgers—treats that look so good you could just take a bite out of them. “Someone actually licked one,” said 11-year-old Donovan Smith. That someone quickly regretted it. The treats are actually Donovan’s soap creations.
He makes soap with Aloe Vera and goat’s milk for his bath product business, Toil and Trouble. Donovan chooses the molds, the colors and the fragrances. “Darth Vader smells kind of like cologne. I tried to make it smell what Darth Vader would smell like,” he said.
Once Darth Vader smells just right, he sells him and the rest of the gang at the Rail Yards Market in Albequerque each Sunday. He is the youngest vendor there. He said his Yoda soap is one of the best sellers. It takes about an hour to make twelve of them.
Twenty percent of the sales from his pie-shaped soaps will go to Supportive Housing Coalition of New Mexico, an organization Donovan and his mother, Casey, said helped get them back on their feet three years ago when they struggled with homelessness themselves.
“He was still going to school every day. I was having meltdowns during the day because I could not see this getting any better at all,” Casey said.
Casey is a former Navy cryptologist, still dealing with PTSD and a leg injury as a result of her time in the military. She said she couldn’t find a job during the recession, hearing she was overqualified. Now, with the support of local groups, she has a job, an apartment and a hobby, helping her son with his budding business of soaps.
“They’re fun and the fact that they have the potential to help someone else makes it even better,” Casey said.
To see video of this story, click here.
article by Lysee Mitri via krqe.com

11 Year-Old Genius Ramarni Wilford Scores Higher Than Einstein on IQ Test

By goodblacknews on July 21, 2014

An 11-year-old in the U.K. found out he’s a genius after taking an IQ test. His 162 score makes him smarter than Bill Gates – and Albert Einstein – according to the Romford Recorder.
Ramarni Wilford was invited to take the IQ test after writing an essay an essay snagged him an invitation to a graduation ceremony at Oxford University. Although he was very surprised and happy by the results – he’s in the top one percent in the U.K. – he remains modest.
“I can’t begin to compare myself to these great men whose hard work clearly proves that they are true geniuses,” Wilford says.
RELATED: Child Prodigy Adam Kirby, 2, becomes Youngest Ever to Join Genius Club Mensa
A member of a gifted and talented program as well as the Brilliant Club, he can now add a membership to Mensa to his future college applications. Mensa, the world’s oldest IQ society, has invited Wilford to join so he can attend exclusive events and mingle with like-minded kids.
“I don’t really see having a high IQ as a big deal, but I do feel very privileged to be invited to join Mensa and can’t wait to attend some of the events,” he says.
Read more at the Romford Recorder.
article by Teronda Seymore via clutchmagonline.com

Scholarship Coach Shanice Miller Shares How She Graduated College with No Debt and a $10,000 Refund

By goodblacknews on July 20, 2014

Scholarship Coach and Author Shanice Miller

Republished from the Huffington Post:

In our Money Mic series, we hand over the podium to people with controversial views about money. These are their views, not ours, but we welcome your responses.
Today, one woman shares how she amassed enough scholarships to graduate from college debt-free.
The first time I ever heard about student loan debt was in 2007. I was a high school senior in Upper Marlboro, Maryland, and in the midst of applying for colleges.
My cousin, who had graduated with a business degree six months earlier, had come over to visit and was complaining about someone named Sallie Mae. Since getting her degree, she hadn’t been able to find a job — and was struggling to make payments on her $9,000 of student debt.
I wondered: Who in the world is Sallie Mae?
After hearing my cousin’s explanation — that Sallie Mae was a company that gives students money to attend college — I was shocked, worried and confused.
I’d never thought critically about the costs associated with going to college. Everyone — family, teachers, friends and even my guidance counselors — just told me I needed to attend in order to secure a better future, which I could do by choosing the school that offered the best education. But it hadn’t occurred to me that I’d have to pay for that privilege.
My mind started racing: How would I ever be able to afford college? The housing bubble had just burst, and I knew my mom, a real estate agent, wouldn’t be able to contribute. What would happen if I couldn’t come up with the money? Would I still be able to get a good job?
I knew I had to come up with a plan — quick.

UPDATE: Charges Dropped Against Shanesha Taylor, Mom Who Left Kids In Car During Job Interview

By goodblacknews on July 20, 2014

Shanesha Taylor freed
We’re happy to report that charges against Shanesha Taylor, the mother who left her children in the car during a job interview, have been dropped.
The gripping mugshot featuring Taylor and her tear-stained face spread quickly and garnered worldwide support for her case. According to the Maricopa County Attorney, a judge ruled that Taylor will have the charges dismissed if she completes a diversion program.
Taylor was arrested back in March after police say she left two children in her Dodge Durango for 45 minutes while she was in a Farmers Insurance office in Scottsdale. Taylor told authorities that she was unemployed, didn’t have child care and had been occasionally homeless.
This morning, after the deal was reached, Taylor attended a settlement conference this morning, where she told reporters:
“This is a beautiful resolution to a very long, very hard journey.”
The program will require Taylor to complete parenting and substance abuse classes and establish education and child care trusts for her three children. Each education trust must have $10,000 in it.
If you’re wondering where that money will come from, you may remember that fundraisers were set up on Taylor’s behalf to help with legal fees and other expenses. The effort raised $144,775 from over four thousand donors.
In reference to the resolution, Bill Montgomery, the county attorney, said: “Where we can focus on an opportunity for rehabilitation without having to use punitive consequences we’re always willing to take a look at that. And our resolution today shouldn’t be taken as a policy shift, this is just how we were able to resolve this one particular case.”
They also took into account the fact that Taylor was searching for employment and had no other criminal history.

Miles Johnson, 16, Wins 1st Place at Youth Entrepreneur Camp with Financial Tracker App for Teens

By goodblacknews on July 17, 2014

As a boy, 16-year-old Miles Johnson‘s father taught him about the power of compound interest: If he had money and put it away, it would grow so that one day he’d be able to buy something he really wanted. Steadily contributing to his savings account, he got a nice pair of headphones, a laptop for school and an idea — a mobile app that could help others from low-income backgrounds reach retirement and financial freedom.
His plan for the “Next Generation” mobile app took first place and won $1,000 at a business plan competition recently, part of the free Los Angeles BizCamp Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge. The summer camp was created by the nonprofit Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship in partnership with the Los Angeles Urban League.

Johnson was one of 21 underserved high school students from across Los Angeles who met with teachers and business mentors every day from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. during the two-week camp to find a problem in their communities and address it with a business solution.
Miles proposed a host of simple financial tools that help people, at the touch of a screen, check their budget daily, monitor their credit and access resources about getting out of debt.
“I thought this could help them and prevent them from being broke at 65 … or see how a car or house payment might fit in their budget,” said Miles, who now has a shot at competing on the national level for $25,000 with a free trip to Silicon Valley.
Adrian Griffin, his mother, described him as “completely self-motivated.”
“I can’t say whether I’m proud or embarrassed that I didn’t help at all,” said Griffin, who couldn’t attend the event because she was working. “I had a feeling that he was going to win, so that day I put my phone in my pocket, something I don’t usually do. I wanted to make sure he could get hold of me no matter what.”
At the event, the high schoolers studied concepts in finance, marketing and recognizing business opportunities. They put their knowledge into action by drafting plans for a music school for children with autism, a multicultural magazine to boost young women’s self-confidence, a healthy food truck for high school and college campuses, and more.

The competition gave students such as 16-year-old Mario Seki the chance to work on their own ideal careers. Moonlighting as a magician since the age of 6, Mario, now a student at the School of Arts and Enterprise in Pomona, said he hopes to expand his business, which already includes performing at birthday parties, and social and community events.
“Magic is a really nice form of medicine in a way. My mission is to make someone’s day better,” said Mario, who placed second at the BizCamp competition and won $750.
“I thought this is for him because he can really learn about running a business,” said Judy Seki of her son, the youngest of nine children. “Each one has a different interest and you just support them in any way you can. Part of that was finding this.”
Sisters Passion Lord, 15, and Dajah Blades, 14, saw their confidence skyrocket over the course of the camp as they developed presentation skills. On competition day they fearlessly shared slices of lemon pie and their vision for “P and D’s Sweet Treats” to promote peace through pastries from around the world. They placed third and won $300.
“Why not do something that brings everyone together?” Dajah said. “The secret ingredient is love,” Passion added.
“To see them light up and fill the room was phenomenal,” said Jessie Mosqueda, a community development officer for Citi, which sponsored the camp through its foundation’s commitment to spend $50 million over three years on programs for youths in low-income communities.
Romann Anderson, who will be a sophomore at the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts, won the BizCamp fast-pitch competition and $75. He impressed judges with his pitch for “Prism Gaming,” a compact video game console. “I was very proud that he was able to tap into the business aspect as well as the fun,” said Stacy Beverly, Romann’s mom.
It’s a lesson Romann said he hopes to take with him going forward. “If I go into business in something I’m passionate about, I won’t back down,” Romann said.
A 2013 NFTE research project found that alumni from their programs beat the national employment average of 69% — 88% of their participants are in the workforce. They’re also more likely to be self-employed: 22% of NFTE alumni have their own businesses, compared to the national average of 11%.
“It teaches them how to fish and build futures,” said Estelle Reyes, NFTE executive director.
With participants being tasked to deliver a 30-second elevator pitch and an eight-minute presentation by the program’s conclusion, BizCamp covered a curriculum that typically takes a full academic year, according to teacher Timothy Dura.
“It’s like taking someone, opening up their mouth, shoving in a fire hose and turning it on to see how much they absorb,” said Dura, who teaches at the Hawthorne Math and Science Academy. “They’ve done really, really well. I’m very proud of them.”
To learn more about BizCamp, visit http://www.tinyurl.com/2014BizCampApplication.
article by Sara Hayden via latimes.com

Rally in Times Square Tomorrow To Honor Nelson Mandela Day and Fight Extreme Poverty

By goodblacknews on July 17, 2014

Nelson Mandela (Photo: Getty Images)

Friday is Nelson Mandela Day, a day to celebrate the great humanitarian and former president of South Africa. And if you’re in the area, you totally ought to stop by Times Square in New York City and get in on the activist action taking place!
That’s because Global Citizen, Nelson Mandela’s grandson Kweku Mandela and tons of activists will be there to help put an end to extreme poverty. The get-together starts at 4, and at 4:15 they’ll start playing footage of Mandela on the giant billboards. You’ll also be able to watch the “Zero Poverty 2030” movie and you might even get a photo with Kweku Mandela. Plus, if you attend and are able to get 10 people to sign the Zero Poverty 2030 petition, you’ll receive 8 points on Global Citizen, which could help you get to the Global Citizen Festival this fall.
If you don’t live nearby or can’t make it for any other reasons, there are still ways you can take part. You could share a special #DayofAction video on Facebook (which, again, could help you get tickets to the Global Citizen Festival). You can also share on Twitter to help raise awareness.
What Global Citizen is doing on Nelson Mandela Day is a part of something bigger. They’re serious about ending extreme poverty by 2030, and we can all join in and help them. And creating a world without extreme poverty would be a great way to honor Nelson Mandela and continue his humanitarian mission. After all, Mandela himself said, “Like slavery and apartheid, poverty is not natural. It is man-made and it can be overcome and eradicated by the actions of human beings.”
article by Danica Davidson via act.mtv.com

Sara Gibbs, a Nurse Who Adopted Baby Left On A Doorstep, Sends Her to College 18 Years Later

By goodblacknews on July 17, 2014

Screen Shot 2014-07-17 at 7.59.02 AM
Thinking she’d never become a mom, single nurse Sara Gibbs decided to adopt the newborn girl abandoned on the doorstep of a Corinth, Mississippi, doctor’s office. Eighteen years later, Gibbs is sending her adoptive daughter, Janessa, to college.
“I was single. I worked night shift. I worked 12-hour-nights,” says Gibbs. “There was nothing in my life that had prepared me for a baby.”
Gibbs says she wasn’t even on the schedule for work that day, but she was called in and among one of the first responders. “I feel like it was divine intervention, it had to be, because I wasn’t even supposed to be there,” she says.
But with help from her pastor and her hospital friends, she found the courage to adopt Janessa. “She always tells me that whoever my mother is did it for her,” Janessa says. “She’s the best mom ever,” she adds of Gibbs. “She’s always been my mom.”
Janessa heads to college in the fall.
To see video of this story, click here.
article by Teronda Seymore via clutchmagonline.com

Liz Ferro's "Girls With Sole" Non-Profit Helps Young Women Overcome Life's Challenges Through Fitness

By goodblacknews on July 16, 2014

TODAY
Six days a week, Liz Ferro packs up her car and drives throughout Cleveland to teach young women yoga, swimming and other fitness-based activities. But it isn’t all about breaking a sweat. “It washes away all the cobwebs,” Ferro told TODAY. “Not just out of my brain, but off my heart.”
After using fitness to recover from her own difficult childhood, Ferro now runs Girls With Sole, a non-profit organization committed to helping young women learn to overcome life’s challenges through exercise. “It’s so much easier for them to feel down on themselves,” she told TODAY.
TODAY Ferro hits the road throughout the week to work out with pre-teen and teenage girls in schools, juvenile detention centers, social services and other organizations throughout the Cleveland area. “My car looks like a sporting goods store exploded in it,” she said. “It’s almost like Meals on Wheels, but we’re fitness and wellness on wheels.”
Girls With Sole, which she founded in 2009, is largely inspired by Ferro’s own past. She lived in four different foster homes as a child. By the time she was adopted, she had been sexually abused and experienced other traumas while bouncing from home to home.
“Sports and fitness was the thing that made me find the empowerment to be able to handle it and resilience to move on and keep moving forward,” she explained. “Even in the darkest times, it literally saved my life.”
Ferro is now turning to the next generation of young women to show them how to use healthy coping mechanisms, including running, swimming, biking and yoga, in the face of hard situations, whatever they may be.
“School has stressed me out so much, and I could always look forward to Wednesdays, when I would see Liz and I would see her smile and her energy,” eighth-grader Gina said. “People feed off that.”
When Girls With Sole participant Jada finished her first 5K, it meant more than crossing a finish line. “It makes me feel like I can achieve something in my life,” she said. “Coming here brings the happiness out of me instead of sadness.”
Click here to see video of this story.
article by Amy Eley via www.today.com

International African American Museum to Be Built Where Slaves Set Foot In U.S.

By goodblacknews on July 16, 2014

international-african-american-museum
CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) — Organizers say a $75 million International African American Museum will be built beside the Charleston harbor where tens of thousands of slaves first set foot in the United States.
Charleston Mayor Joe Riley announced Tuesday that the museum will be built near where a wharf once stood in the South Carolina city where the Civil War began. During the late 1770s and early 1800s, tens of thousands of slaves crossed the wharf entering the nation. Riley says there is no better site for the museum. The location is on the waterfront, just down and across the street from the original site planned for the museum.
The project was first announced 13 years ago. Riley says construction on the 42,000-square-foot museum could begin in early 2016 with completion in 2018.
article via newsone.com