Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated

ALPHA KAPPA ALPHA SORORITY MOURNS LOSS OF ITS MEMBER CALIFORNIA CONGRESSWOMAN JUANITA MILLENDER-MCDONALD

Juanita Millender-McDonald

Chicago, IL (BlackNews.com 4/23/07) - Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority's worldwide network of 200,000 members is mourning the loss of its beloved member, Congresswoman Juanita Millender-McDonald.

Rep. Millender-McDonald, who made her transition on April 22, 2007, enjoyed a long and distinguished career as a public servant representing the Southern California district that embraced Compton, Long Beach and parts of Los Angeles.

She was serving in her seventh term and widely acclaimed as one of Congress' most popular and effective leaders.

In extending condolences, Alpha Kappa Alpha's International President Barbara A. McKinzie hailed Millender-McDonald for her courage, commitment and for being a model of Alpha Kappa Alpha excellence.

Declared McKinzie, "Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority's mission is to provide 'service to all mankind'. Through her bold leadership, sensitivity to her constituents and her pioneering spirit, Juanita Millender-McDonald embodied the ideals of the Alpha Kappa Alpha woman. She gave generously to our Sorority in action and in deed and her loss will be felt Sororitywide. Our sympathy goes out to her husband James, her children, grandchildren and to her constituents who benefited from her vision and dynamism."

Added Alpha Kappa Alpha's Far Western Regional Director, E. Lavonne Lewis: "Alpha Kappa Alpha has lost a sister, a public servant, and a champion for women's rights, civil rights and racial justice. Her political savvy and distinguished record of public service in California and in this nation will be missed. I join the Sorority and our Far Western Region members as we mourn the loss of our dynamic 'sister.'"

A native of Birmingham, Alabama, Rep. Millender-McDonald, was initiated into Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. in 1991 in Los Angeles' Alpha Gamma Omega graduate chapter. She was an active member of the chapter for 16 years and steadfastly served her Sorority, her chapter, and her community.

Rep. Millender-McDonald worked for former Los Angeles mayor, Tom Bradley, prior to her election to the Carson City Council in 1990. Following her term on the Council, Millender-McDonald served in the California State Assembly before taking her seat in the U.S. House of Representatives in 1996.

Most recently, Rep. Millender-McDonald became the first African-American woman to hold the distinguished position of ranking member on the powerful committee on House Administration overseeing the operation of the House of Representatives, the Library of Congress, the Smithsonian Institute, the National Zoo and all federal elections.

In addition, the Congresswoman was the first African-American woman to serve on the Carson City Council and the first to hold the position of Chairwoman for two powerful California State Assembly Committees (Insurance; and Revenue & Taxation) in her first term. She was the first African-American woman to give the national Democratic response to President Bush's weekly radio address, and the first to be named Honorary Curator of the Museum of Latin American Art in Long Beach, California.

Further, Rep. Millender-McDonald was the first Democratic Chair of the Congressional Caucus for Women's Issues to lead the women on two groundbreaking meetings--the first with U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan to talk about the plight of women globally, and another with the Chairman of the New York Stock Exchange to develop strategies for increasing women's investments and net worth.

Finally, Rep. Millender-McDonald also convened the first meeting between women members of Congress and Supreme Court Justices Sandra Day O'Connor and Ruth Bader Ginsberg to discuss issues of national importance to women. She led a delegation of 27 women to meet with former First Lady and New York State Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, taking the Families First Agenda to 35 states across the nation. In recent years, Congresswoman Millender-McDonald worked on issues that particularly resonated with Alpha Kappa Alpha including election reform. As part of her international advocacy--and in concert with AKA's stance--she opposed the genocide in Darfur.

In a move that attracted worldwide attention, and as an example of her bold leadership, in 1996 she accompanied then-CIA director John Deutch to Watts, California where he addressed residents who were concerned over allegations that profits from domestic sales of crack cocaine were being funneled to the CIA-backed Contras in Nicaragua In addition to her Alpha Kappa Alpha affiliation, Congresswoman Millender-McDonald was a life member of the NAACP, served on the boards of the Harbor College Foundation and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference Board, and on the Board of Trustees of Second Baptist Church, Los Angeles. She is Founder and Executive Director of the League of African American Women, an organization of 40 African American women's groups, and founder of the Young Advocates, a political leadership-training program for African Americans between the ages of 18-35.

Millender-McDonald earned a BS in Business Administration from the University of Redlands, a master's degree in Educational Administration from California State University - Los Angeles, and teaching and administration credentials from the California State University system.

Rep. Millender-McDonald leaves to mourn, her husband, James McDonald, Jr., five adult children and five grandchildren.

ALPHA KAPPA ALPHA TO PROVIDE FREE COMPUTER TRAINING TO COMMUNITY RESIDENTS ON TEN COLLEGE CAMPUSES NATIONWIDE

Undergraduates' Signature Program Mirrors AKA's Economic Mission

Barbara McKinzie

Nationwide (BlackNews.com 4/21/07) - Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority has unveiled a model program at colleges and universities nationwide where technological skills will be taught free of charge to residents in communities adjacent to the schools. The ambitious program is part of AKA's resolve to give African Americans high-end skill sets so they will be more competitive in the workplace and can improve their economic standing. This initiative also parallels the economic vision of International President Barbara A. McKinzie whose programmatic theme, ESP, represents Economics Service and Partnerships.

Alpha Kappa Alpha will work with higher education institutions and other student groups to develop an exemplary model undergraduate access and training program that serves the community and becomes part of the central activities of the institution.

It will be administered by undergraduates at each college/university that has an undergraduate chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority. It is part of the sorority's International Program and is titled, "Undergraduate Signature Program: Economic Educational Advancement through Technology." The program incorporates traditional and non-traditional approaches with technology as its cornerstone.

The official announcement was made on April 21 at North Carolina A&T, one of the eleven beta sites for the initiative. These sites, which will be in operation from 2007-2010, will be housed on the following campuses, which include four Historically Black College and Universities.

Langston University
University of Toledo
North Carolina A & T University (HBCU)
Florida A & M University (HBCU)
Jackson State University (HBCU)
Northwestern University
Texas Southern University (HBCU)
Vanderbilt University
Brown University
Stanford University
University of the Virgin Islands

Attending the official ceremony marking the launch of the program was International President McKinzie and Second Vice President Ranika Sanchez, who heads Alpha Kappa Alpha's undergraduates internationally. She attends Loyola University in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Also attending the rollout of this initiative were International Program Chairman Loann Honesty King; Ruby Bates Archie, Mid-Atlantic Regional Director whose territory embraces North Carolina A&T; and Dr. Lloyd "Vic" Hackley, chancellor of North Carolina A&T.

According to McKinzie, the goal is to instill the value and importance of volunteering to assist in worthwhile causes in young adults; fill an important need in underprivileged and/or underserved communities; and increase cooperation, communication, and collaboration between undergraduates, universities, businesses and surrounding communities. The overarching resolve is to enhance participants' skills and position them to obtain better paying jobs, generate more per capita earnings and imbue them with marketable skills so they can navigate their way in a high-tech world.

Each undergraduate chapter in collaboration with their respective college/university will develop a community outreach plan to attract area residents to participate. Undergraduates will fan out to the community to spread the word about this historic program.

As part of the program, members of Alpha Kappa Alpha will draw from their technological background to conduct workshops to teach community members on the use of technology in improving life quality. Emphasis will be placed on identifying youth with limited or non-existent technology skills to bridge the technology gap. Others who will be targeted are low-income community members including senior citizens. Through mastery of these skills seniors will be able to conduct much of their business online and avoid the scams and predators to which they are often prey.

This thrust's multi-faceted purposes are:

*To fill an important need in underprivileged and/or underserved communities
*To provide a means for low income families to learn to use computers and other modern technology
*To increase technological knowledge and use in and by community residents, organizations and businesses
*To prepare disadvantaged persons for jobs requiring use of technology

Another positive by-product of this effort is to instill leadership skills in undergraduates and reinforce their commitment to service - a concept that lies at the core of Alpha Kappa Alpha's mission.

Corresponding with the acronym ESP, this undergraduate program embraces all three elements:

* Economics -- This program makes participants computer savvy and gives them an economic edge

* Service -- Undergraduates involved in this program provide an invaluable service, by donating their time, talent and resources to its success

* Partnerships -- The participating colleges represent a potent partnership that will benefit the community

"Technology is the gateway to success, and computer skills must be mastered if there is any hope of economic advancement," declared McKinzie. "Through this program, we hope to strengthen our ties to the community by giving them access to a program that will positively impact their lives." Added Sanchez, "It is also a vehicle where undergraduates can carry out their volunteer mission while gaining the rewards that seeing community residents improve can yield." Sanchez said that this program will become an integral part of the community and is expected to emerge as one of AKA's signature thrusts.

Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority is America's first Greek-letter organization founded in 1908 by, and for, Black college women. Headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, it is one of the world's leading service organizations. The sorority serves all mankind through a nucleus of more than 200,000 women in over 930 chapters in the United States, the Caribbean, Germany, Korea, Japan and Africa. The sorority celebrates its Centennial Celebration in 2008 with a birthday celebration at its founding home – Howard University in January 2008; and with its Centennial Conference in July 2008 where more than 20,000 members are expected to converge to celebrate its 100-year milestone.