I GOT NEXT

How can I get an NV Award? Alright, I’m probably not ready for that honor but it doesn’t stop me from wanting it. It definitely looks like it is the hot event. One day I really want to enjoy that spotlight. Congratulations to your awardees their awards were definitely well deserved. Truly an impressive group. I was especially inspired by Johnita Due. Her resume is amazing and I have definitely enjoyed her contributions to CNN.

Kaye Nixon via email

PERFECT VISION

I have always been a fan of your magazine and your point of view is getting stronger and stronger. Besides the wonderful awardees you honored I really liked the Black is the New Green excerpt. Everything in this issue just tied in and presented this picture of African Americans and people of color that rarely gets in the media. Thank you for continuing to tell our story with style and strength.

Van Cleamons via email

ROLE MODELS

I have been following your NV Awards issues and this has to be your strongest class ever. You may not have had anyone with the wealth of a Don Peebles, who you honored last year, but their stories and the industries they are making their name in are so unique. These are the role models that our kids have to look up to not basketball players like LeBron James who don’t understand tact and discretion. No offense to your honoree D’Wayne Edwards from the Jordan company. But people like him, Robert Marchman, Johnita Due, Michael Johnson and the rest of the NV awardees are truly people who understand where they came from and where they can go. They also know that they can bring communities of people with them and are committed to that happening.

Max Clark via email

have yet to really

harness the marketing

and communication power

that online tools

can provide them”

Used to be, a diligent small business owner with a great idea and plenty of gumption could grow a business through word-of-mouth alone. In many ways, that’s still true. Yet today, much of the “word-of-mouth” conversations and recommendations, which can make or break a business, are happening online, not face-to-face.

With tuition figures continuing to skyrocket, countless college students are stumped when it comes to controlling the costs of attending school. As students continue to rely on Pell grants, loans and side gigs to cover the seemingly endless list of tuition-related fees, many companies are stepping in to assist.

Allstate Insurance Company, the nation’s largest publicly held personal lines insurer is no exception. Allstate has partnered with the United Negro College Fund (UNCF) for “Quotes for Education,” a campaign to aid students in need. For each auto insurance quote completed between August 15 and September 30, Allstate will donate five dollars to the UNCF. “We realized that a lot of students, along with HBCUs are struggling in this recession,” says Kimberly Turner, Marketing Manager, Integrated Marketing Communications for Allstate. “Allstate really values education and thought ‘Quotes for Education’ would be a great way to help students. We want to see our youth graduate.”

In this time of economic uncertainty, people of all ages are considering career changes. According to Kiplinger.com, an online magazine dedicated to business and finance, people are forced into exploring other career options because of layoffs. Others seek a new direction as they experience declining satisfaction with a job they once found exciting. Still others simply opt out of high-stress positions.

The U.S. Department of Labor keeps employment records as the population moves from job to job; however, the data does not reflect individual career shifts. Employment statistics reported online by the government’s Bureau of Labor Statistics show that people change jobs an average of 10 times between the ages of 18 and 38. For those at a career crossroad, several veterans of changing careers offer insight into their experience, and helpful considerations.