Annual College of Business Administration and Public Policy Luncheon Celebrates Excellence, Propels Students to the Future

On Nov. 6, The College of Business Administration and Public Policy (CBAPP) hosted its 2nd annual Awards Luncheon in support of scholarships. Attended by representatives of local industry, alumni, students, faculty and staff, the event honored CBAPP’s achievements in “preparing the workforce and leaders of this country,” according to Dr. Mildred García. The president of California State University, Dominguez Hills (CSUDH) referred to the recent election of Sen. Barack Obama as president of the United States to illustrate her hopes for the college and the university.

“There’s an electricity in the air,” said García. “It doesn’t matter who you voted for, but this country proved that we have a can-do attitude. If you took the time and looked at our alums and our students, our institution represents the future of this nation. There is no one single group in the majority. I stand before you in front of an institution that is committed to be the urban model university of this nation, because we are preparing the future.”

James T. Strong, CBAPP dean, welcomed guests to the luncheon and thanked the college’s advisory board and the luncheon’s planning committee, particularly CBAPP board member Guy Fox, who is president and chief executive officer of Guy Fox and Associates, Inc. The luncheon, which was originally Fox’s brainchild, raised more than $25,000 in scholarships, with a doubled attendance from 2007. Strong commended the assembled guests and thanked them for their support, both moral and financial.

“This event is a great experience for our students,” he said. “Students may not realize how much support there is in the community for CSUDH and higher education. It’s also a wonderful opportunity for them to interact with executives, businesspeople and administrators and listen to [them] discuss what it takes to be successful and how the world of business and government is changing.”

The CBAPP Advisory Board Scholarship was awarded to business administration majors Robert Edwards, Ho Kim and Benjamin Taylor. Jessica Cruz, Laura Diaz and Phil Zurbrugg, all respectively in the criminal justice, political science and public administration programs were also awarded, each student receiving $1,000.

The Dean’s Medallion Awards honored an organization, executive, and CBAPP alumnus of the year. The Organization of the Year award was given to BP, as represented by Walter Neil, director of public affairs, who presented President García with a check for $50,000 toward scholarships. Debra Reed, president and chief executive officer of San Diego Gas and Electric and the Southern California Gas Company, was honored as Executive of the Year. Gilbert Ivey (Class of ’75), chief administrative officer of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California was named Alumnus of the Year.

The keynote address was given by Maria Contreras-Sweet, founder and chairwoman of the board of PROMÉRICA Bank, the first Latino-formed bank in the Los Angeles area in 30 years. The former California secretary of Business, Transportation and Housing and the first Latina to hold such a position in the United States, Contreras-Sweet wanted to continue to help minorities when she left office in 2003. As the result of a private effort to educate her sister Latinas on how government works, in the 1990s, with the help of several like-minded female friends from all walks of life, she became one of the founders of HOPE (Hispanas Organized for Political Equality), a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization committed to ensuring political and economic parity for Latinas through leadership, advocacy and education. It was with the help of this same group of friends that she was able to garner support and interest in establishing PROMÉRICA.

Contreras-Sweet shared anecdotes about her emigration to the United States from her native Guadalajara at the age of 5, her job in a jewelry shop that led to being hired as an aide to a California assemblymember and her rise in business and policy making that includes experiences as an equity partner of the 7UP/RC Bottling Company, vice president for marketing and government affairs at Westinghouse and the first Latina to serve on the board of Blue Cross of California. She cited her humble beginnings, the guidance and hope of her mother and grandmother and the support of her husband and children as keys to her success.

“[One] lesson I’ve learned along the way is the importance of being progressive, forward-looking, but traditional in the sense of values, the family and the goals of the entire family unit and its place in society,” she said. “Every time I’m successful, or my husband is successful, or our children, it becomes a family success.”

Contreras-Sweet charged CSUDH students with fulfilling their ambitions while maintaining a moral and socially-conscious outlook, reflecting the aspirations of a nation two days after the first African American president was elected to office.

“You will have enormous opportunities,” she said. “My challenge to you is...what values, what point of view will you bring to the table? How will you carry out justice if you assume a judge position, a political position? What is the proper role of government in our society, for those of you who become the future elected officials?

“Today, we have questions,” she conceded. “You will provide the answers. I hope that you will all come together as one and remember, as Barack said, that this is the United States of America and that we will continue to... embrace all of us in a powerful way... to show that diversity works. The way it works at Dominguez Hills, that all people matter and that all people have the ability to contribute.”

For more information on the College of Business and Public Policy, click here.

- Joanie Harmon

Photos above: Gilbert Ivey (Class of '75) was named CBAPP Alumnus of the Year.

Debra Reed, president and chief executive officer of San Diego Gas and Electric and the Southern California Gas Company, was honored as Executive of the Year.

The keynote address was given by Maria Contreras-Sweet, founder and chairwoman of the board of PROMÉRICA Bank, the first Latino-formed bank in the Los Angeles area in 30 years.

The Organization of the Year award was given to BP, as represented by Walter Neil,
director of public affairs, who presented President García with a check for $50,000 toward scholarships.

All photos by GK