A Birthday Wish Well Worth Giving

A Personal Appeal from Eddie Griffin

Monday, January 30, 2012

My friend and colleague Wayne Hicks has a birthday wish today, one well worth fulfilling. It is a wish, which I say, is also a wish of my own.

WAYNE’S WISH: Help me raise $700 for BDPA Foundation: Stimulate the Interest of Young People in the Field of Science and Technology… we need to help them “win the future”.

Since April, 2010, Eddie Griffin has been a member of the BDPA Education & Technology Foundation (BETF) eGroup, as an advocate for minority students’ involvement in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) education. When becoming a member, it was my hope to establish a BDPA chapter in Fort Worth, Texas, in collaboration with the Dallas chapter.

Boosting our children’s academic achievement in Science, Technology, Engineering, Math

BDPA (Black Data Processing Associates) is a non-profit organization of professionals working in or having an interest in the Computer Science and Information Technology fields. BDPA has a diverse representation of information technology professionals. Included amongst the organization's members are programmers, analysts, engineers, managers, instructors, and entrepreneurs, to name a few.

Earl Pace and the late David Wimberly founded BDPA in May of 1975. BDPA was formed out of a concern shared by both men that minorities were not adequately represented in the information technology industry. (Source: http://www.bdpa.org/?page=About_BDPA)

As of this week BDPA has 45 chapters around the nation. (Source: bit.ly/AnD5uW)

BDPA Education and Technology Foundation (BETF Foundation) is a 501(c)3 non-profit charity, founded in 1992 to support the education and technical programs of Black Data Processing Associates (BDPA).

BETF recognizes that to close the gap of computer and technology literacy, minority youth must participate and compete in today’s digital economy. We want students from historically disadvantaged communities to learn advanced computer science and community responsibility from any of the BDPA chapters located around the nation.
http://www.crowdrise.com/BDPAFoundation

See Also:
A PHOTO GALLERY: BDPA STUDENT ACHIEVERS & EVENTS

BDPA Foundation YouTube and iRadio

BDPA Education & Technology Foundation (BETF) SLIDESHOW provides financial support for BDPA and share information about fundraising, funding sources and BDPA programs.

Facebook:- http://www.facebook.com/pages/BDPA-Foundation/13734387198
BETF Blosite: http://betf.blogspot.com/


Donate at Wayne Hicks Birthday Wish: http://wishes.causes.com/wishes/427957?bws=day_before

Sincerely,
Eddie Griffin

Blogsites by Eddie Griffin
Education: http://educationofeddiegriffin.blogspot.com/
Social Justice: http://eddiegriffinbasg.blogspot.com/
Bible Study: http://eddiegriffinbiblestudy.blogspot.com/
Economic Development: http://eddiegriffinecode.blogspot.com/

First African-American Superintendent in Fort Worth ISD

a homeboy prepared all life for the job


http://www.star-telegram.com/2012/01/17/3667207/dansby-is-lone-finalist-for-fort.html#my-headlines-default

The Second story, which would have otherwise been the first, was the selection of Walter Dansby as new Superintendent of FWISD.

Eddie Griffin is pictured with the newly selected FWISD Supt. Walter Dansby in this morning’s Star-Telegram

The picture reminds me of the conversation and promise that I made to Mr. Dansby at that time. If he were selected, I would come out of retirement and volunteer once again in the service of the children in our school system, in raising student academic achievement, and continue building a community support network.

If he should have me back in his volunteer ranks, I would look at strengthening our support infrastructure, from a proactive perspective, rather than being passively disengaged in the process of aiding our student's success.