2021 Chapter
of the Year
Through a broad range of activities and programs, the mission of the NBMBAA-DC is to strengthen the economic and intellectual wealth of the African-American community; develop and empower business leaders; partner with local corporations, colleges and institutions to provide new and innovative programs; and enhance the professional development of its members for the 21st century.
ABOUT US
The DC Black MBA Association seeks to align itself with outstanding corporate partners that share our commitment to creating educational opportunities and economic growth for African-Americans and diverse business professionals. We work to foster mutually beneficial relationships that create a pipeline of diverse talent for our partners, offer new and exciting resources and opportunities for our members, while increasing the reach and impact of the National Black MBA Association®.
LEADERSHIP
PRESIDENT
Carletta Hurt
Carletta S. Hurt is an innovative thinker, strategic connector, and passionate youth advocate with over two decades of serving the community and building strong partnerships. She has been involved with the National Black MBA Association for nearly two decades first in Atlanta for almost a decade and now in DC for the past five years. Carletta has served as the Vice President of Administration, Corresponding Secretary and LOT Chair where she supported the DC Chapter in exposing young people to business and entrepreneurship and bringing diverse organizations and individuals to the table including Urban One (TV One), Chick-fil-A (Columbia Heights), and Richard Wright Public Charter School.
As the current President, Carletta looks forward to expanding the level of engagement of current partners, leveraging the geographic location for broader opportunities for members, and expanding our youth offerings. Her platform is CARE:
Connecting members, sponsors, and supporters
Action-oriented leadership to build capacity
Resources sharing within the DMV to build stronger alliances
Education from workshops to scholarships helping members expand their knowledge
In addition to her work within the DC Chapter, Carletta volunteers for several organizations including board service with Science, Engineering, Mathematics (SEM) Link and Women in Film and Video. She is a Past Board President of Women in Film & Video (WIFV).
A graduate of Oglethorpe University and Georgia State University, Carletta works as school counselor with the District of Columbia Public Schools. The American School Counselor Association (ASCA) named Carletta the 2016 DC School Counselor of the Year (SCOY), which included a reception at the White House, hosted by then First Lady Michelle Obama. She was also honored with the Bell Award (Education) from the Oglethorpe Alumni Association. Carletta was the 2019 Mentor of the Year for the DC Chapter.
A native of Georgia with nearly a decade of DC living under her belt, Carletta is pursuing her doctorate in Urban Leadership and Entrepreneurship at UDC and planning a national tour for her award-winning documentary, Clothed Minds, a film about highlights the impact of dress code policies on black girls in DC schools.
VP, ADMINISTRATION
London McCloud
London McCloud is an international trade professional with experience in the private and public sectors. London is committed to raising awareness for diversity and women’s issues through education initiatives. During her tenure as an American University Alumni Board Member and Affinity Committee Chair, and Women’s Leadership Circle Chair, London contributed to strategic initiatives guided by the Office of Alumni Relations and the Board of Trustees. Her devotion to education institutions extends to high school students. She relaunched the Archbishop Carroll High School Women’s Mentoring program in Washington, DC. The program offered weekend college tours, motivational and career development opportunities. She currently serves on the board for ExtraOrdinary Birthdays, a non-profit org that provides birthday parties for homeless children. London has served as Black MBA Membership Chair from 2018-2020 creating innovative programming and events for the DC Chapter.
Her sincere passion and dedication to giving back led her to being honored with several community service awards, including nomination for an NAACP Mentor of the Year from American University, Distinguished Service from the National Black MBA Association and Volunteer of the Year from Catholic Business Network. London is a graduate of American University and obtained her MBA from the University of Maryland.
VP, MEMBERSHIP
Troy Parker
A leader in building and maintaining relationships with more than 10 years of experience in higher education. Troy’s passion has always been to challenge the status quo by identifying innovative ways of serving students, graduates, and his community. Mastering the ins and outs of his students’ and employers’ needs, he has been able to assist his students in finding promising careers and helping organizations find great talent.
Troy spent years in various roles in marketing and advertising, telecommunications, and internal auditing. Each position taught him how to evaluate each situation and explore career options by brainstorming strategies on how to make his own career transitions. His real-life circumstances allowed him the opportunity to apply his experiences to help his students with their careers and transitions. One of Troy’s greatest accomplishments was leading a major two-year nursing school with its accreditation and failing placement rates, to achieve the 1# two-year nursing program in 2017 as rated by Forbes.
Troy shares and lives by the NBMAA commitment to creating educational opportunities and economic growth for the African American community. His first objective in the association’s pursuit of excellence is to build a bridge between the
NBMBAA, local universities, and employers, attracting even more talented people to join us our organization. He desires to begin the exciting work of expanding our reach, strengthening our impact, networking opportunities, and setting our sights even higher for 2021.
TREASURER
Dr. Lemar T. White
Dr. Lemar T. White has achieved outstanding results in his field and in the community. Lemar is recognized as an expert in the field of anti-bribery/anti-corruption, and is regularly called upon to speak at conferences, both in the US and Internationally. A native of the island of Barbados, Lemar received the Urban League for Bergen County Young Professionals (ULBCYP) Empowerment Award in 2016 for his outstanding work in the compliance field and also for his tireless efforts in education and promoting diversity. In 2018, he also received the diversity award from City & State NY for outstanding leadership in advancing diversity in the community, the President’s Award from the NBMBAA-DC Chapter for outstanding service to the Chapter and to the community, and the Diversity Award from Google. In 2021, Lemar led the Chapter to capture the national Chapter of the Year award.
Lemar served as the Membership Chair of the NBMBAA-DC Chapter from July 2017 to July 2018 where he helped to increase social events in the organization. Additionally, while serving as Membership Chair, Chapter membership grew over 25%. Given his outstanding contributions to the Chapter in his role as Membership Chair, Lemar was appointed to serve as the Vice President of Administration in July 2018. He then became President in 2019, and served two terms (until December 31, 2022).
Lemar currently works for Google as a Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Program Manager and also teaches as an adjunct professor. He earned a Doctor of Education degree from Northeastern University, holds three Master of Science degrees from Wilmington University, an MBA from Texas A&M University- Commerce, and has a Bachelor of Accounting from Florida International University. He has broad and significant experience serving/having served on the Board of Directors for Washington Yu Ying Public Charter School, the Florida International University Alumni Association Board of Directors, Reach Credit Union, Young Playwrights' Theatre and many others.
DEPUTY TREASURER
Kristi Smith
Kristi Smith serves as chief of the Department of Defense - Defense Information Systems Agency’s Cyber Security and Analytics Directorate Portfolio Control Division. Smith is responsible for providing program control and oversight of financial execution and formulation, contracts and acquisition, governance and reporting, and asset management. Smith and her team support divisions within the Cyber Security and Analytics Directorate to plan and execute programs efficiently and effectively by monitoring program cost, schedule, performance, and risk.
Prior to her current role, she served in other leadership roles including systems administrator, project manager, operations manager, and portfolio manager. These functions included life cycle management, lean six sigma, strategic innovation, and process development. Smith has served on various integrated product teams and working groups.
In 2011, under my oversight as the project manager for the Joint Force Projection capability, DISA used that capability to monitor and make decisions regarding the personnel and material resources to support the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami recovery efforts in Japan. Smith earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Edward Waters College in Jacksonville, FL, and a master’s degree in Information Systems from Strayer University in Alexandria, VA. Smith is currently pursuing a master’s degree in business administration from Howard University in Washington, D.C. Smith is Defense Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act Level I and II certified and is in the process of obtaining the Level III certification. She is a member of DISA’s Women’s Employee Resource Group, DISA’s Mentor Program, a member of the National Council of Negro Women, a troop leader with the Girl Scouts of America Nation’s Capital Troop, and a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated.
CORRESPONDING SECRETARY
Dominique Clayton
Dominique Clayton, MBA, PMP is a Senior Manager, Association Solutions at MCI USA. She graduated from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette with a bachelor of science in business administration (marketing) and a masters in business administration with an emphasis in health systems management from Texas Woman’s University. She made several career transitions before settling in Northern Virginia to begin a career in the nonprofit industry. In her role, she provides project management, strategic planning, and process improvement techniques to nonprofit clients. She previously provided professional development and continuing education for medical professionals through various eLearning courses and webinars.
Dominique has served on several nonprofit boards in Dallas, Texas, Baltimore, Maryland, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and Washington, DC. These organizations served domestic and sexual abuse survivors, youth mentoring programs and home stability. She is a member of the alumni associations for the University of Louisiana at Lafayette and Texas Woman’s University, American Society of Association Executives, and Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Incorporated. In her spare time she continues to advocate for mental health, freelance as a writer, provide business and marketing consulting and volunteering for causes that are important to her. She resides in Northern Virginia.
RECORDING SECRETARY
Phillip Wells
Phillip Wells is a 2nd Year MBA student at Howard University. Hailing from Miami, he graduated from the University of Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Telecommunication: Production. After graduating, he migrated to Los Angeles to work in the entertainment & music business, returning to graduate school with a focus in Marketing. He plans to return to the entertainment industry as a Brand Strategist and Talent Manager to music artists, actors, and athletes.
History
1970
The National Black MBA Association was established by a group of Master of Business Administration candidates who met at the University of Chicago.
1974
The organization was incorporated as a non-profit organization in the state of New York in 1974.
1976
Visionary African-American MBA professionals founded the “Black MBA Association of Washington, DC.”
1982
This group later became the Washington, DC Chapter of the National Black MBA Association, Inc. (NBMBAA-DC).
2001
NBMBAA-DC received its 501(c) (3) status.