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Roneagle in Spotlight: Dr Calvin Mackie

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Dr Calvin Mackie – Class of 1985
Article courtesy of The New Orleans Agenda publication – June 26, 2018

Governor John Bel Edwards announced his selection of three leading Louisiana advocates of STEM preparation to represent Louisiana at the inaugural State-Federal Science Technology Engineering and Math Summit to be hosted by the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy in Washington, D.C.  The Louisiana attendees for the June 25-26 summit will be Dr. Calvin Mackie, founder of STEM NOLA, AT&T Louisiana President Sonia Perez and Susana Schowen, director of workforce initiatives for Louisiana Economic Development’s LED FastStart program.

The State-Federal STEM Education Summit will convene a diverse group of state STEM leaders, including officials from governors’ offices, educators, workforce and industry representatives, state policy experts and non-governmental organization executives. They will participate in the development of a new federal five-year STEM education strategic plan in compliance with the America COMPETES Act of 2010.

“I am extremely excited to have been chosen by Governor John Bel Edwards to represent the State of Louisiana at the White House for the inaugural State-Federal STEM Summit along with two other leading advocates, Sonia Perez and Susana Schowen” said Dr. Calvin Mackie. “I would like to thank Governor Edwards for supporting the effort to expose our children to the careers of the future and providing the motivation for their dreams.”

Alongside the White House in planning and carrying out this summit are the National Science Foundation, the U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Department of Labor, and the Smithsonian Institution. STEM leaders from all 50 states, as well as U.S. territories and tribes, will attend the summit to illuminate and advance state-federal STEM alignment.

Dr. Calvin Mackie is an award winning mentor, inventor, author, former engineering professor, internationally renowned speaker and successful entrepreneur. Dr. Mackie is the founder of STEM NOLA, a non-profit organization founded to expose, inspire and engage communities about the opportunities in STEM. In 5 years, STEM NOLA has engaged over 18,000 low-resourced K-12 students in hands-on project based STEM activities in New Orleans communities.

Mackie graduated from Morehouse College earning a BS in Mathematics in 1990 and was simultaneously awarded a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Georgia Tech, where he subsequently earned his Master’s and Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering in 1996. He served on the engineering faculty at Tulane University for 12 years. Mackie has won numerous awards including the 2003 Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics and Engineering Mentoring in a White House ceremony and curre

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Roneagle in the Spotlight: Sonya Johnson

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Sonya Johnson grew up in New Orleans and graduated from McDonogh 35 Class of 1988.  After graduation, she chose to attend college out of state.  Mrs. Gladys Torregano, the guidance counselor at McDonogh 35 and graduate of Tuskegee University, suggested Sonya consider the only HBCU at the time offering a BS in Aerospace Engineering.   Sonya received a BS degree in Aerospace Engineering and Mathematics in May 1994 from Tuskegee University in Tuskegee, Alabama.
After completing her studies she started her engineering career with Rockwell Space Operations Company in Houston developing training programs for astronauts on the International Space Station.  Sonya chose to expand her engineering career accepting a position with General Dynamics Electric Boat in Groton Connecticut.  She accepted a position as a shock test engineer.  The position provided an opportunity to perform shock test on Seawolf Class and NSSN Class submarines.
During her stint at General Dynamics, Sonya developed an interest in computers and software development.  She decided to return to New Orleans to pursue a MS degree in Computer Science.  Sonya received a MS in Computer Science from Southern University and Agricultural & Mechanical College in December 2002.  While in graduate school, Sonya found her dream job with Lockheed Martin Space Systems supporting the External Tank.  Lockheed offered her a full time position while allowing her to complete graduate school.  The dream job consisted of being named the Project Manager for the Paperless Manufacturing Execution System (PMES).  The PMES application supported all stages of building the External Tank from receiving the materials through construction to the final delivery to NASA.   This position was the perfect combination of engineering, testing and software.  Sonya was responsible for identifying and resolving problems with the PMES software, testing and coordinating upgrades  to the PMES tool and generally keeping  the 24/7  production floor up and running.  Sonya supported the External Tank program until the end of the Space Shuttle program in 2011.
Faced with the end of the Space Shuttle Program, Sonya sought  opportunities in New Orleans.  She secured a position with eVenture as a Systems Analyst.  The analytical and testing skills used on aircraft, submarines and space vehicles would now be used to support the Veteran Administration.  Sonya worked on the Veteran Heath Identification Card (VHIC) project allowing her support Veterans making sure their new health identification cards worked as expected at VA hospitals and facilities across the country.  Based upon her attention to detail and professional demeanor, Sonya was hired by Engility Corp as the Identity and Security Services (ISS) Governance Manager.   She is responsible for reviewing all work requests for ISS, performing high level project and cost analysis and determining the feasibility of the work being requested.  Sonya has spent the majority of her career supporting vehicles and enjoys the challenge of supporting our Veterans.

Sonya is a member of the McDonogh 35 Alumni Association, the McDonogh 35 Class of 1988 reunion committee and the New Orleans Tuskegee Alumni Chapter.  Sonya is also a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.

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Roneagle Spotlight: Rodrick E. Points

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Rodrick E. Points (born May 1971) is a native of New Orleans, La. and is a 1989 graduate of McDonogh #35Senior High. He has a BS degree in Computer Information Systems from Xavier University of Louisiana, an MBA from Amberton University, and a DBA from Walden University.
He pursued the DBA in Leadership program not for a title or hedonistic purposes, but because he wanted to expand his leadership knowledge; a talent he strongly believes very few people possess.

He currently resides in Grand Prairie, TX (a suburb of Dallas/Fort Worth).

Points heads his own management-consulting firm (II the Point, LLC.), which helps business owners and professionals understand and implement the full concept of organizational leadership as well as equip them with the necessary tools to help their businesses and employees grow.  Those tools will include courses in Leadership, Diversity and Inclusion, Customer Service, Conflict Management Resolution, Effective Communication, and Organization Management.

He sits on several Boards of Directors, and is currently the president of two alumni associations.

He sharpened his leadership skills as a member of the One Hundred Black Men of Greater Dallas, Inc., a non-profit, mentoring organization whose vision “seeks to serve as a beacon of leadership by utilizing our diverse talents to create environments where our children are motivated to achieve, and to empower our people to become self-sufficient shareholders in the economic and social fabric of the communities we serve.”  As a member for the past 16 years, he chaired and served on several committees, which ultimately lead to him being elected as president.

He believes leadership, especially effective leadership, involves equipping individuals to meet challenges by helping them reach beyond themselves and their previous ways of working and thinking to achieve their highest potential and making an impact on their organizations and their employees.  Leadership and management are often confused and for that reason, the terms are used interchangeably.  Leadership involves and evokes constant change and improvement.  It also incorporates motivation, positive encouragement, and guidance.  The simple difference is leaders make decisions while managers carry out decisions.

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July: Roneagle in Spotlight

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Ms. Gertrude A. Ivory (Class of 1967) is an independent educational consultant who currently serves as an  Instructional Leadership Coach in the Greensville County Public Schools. She served over 10  years as the Associate Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction in the Charlottesville City   Public Schools. For more than 30 years, Ms. Ivory has served in a large, urban school district  as a teacher, principal, Administrator for Literacy, Director of Extended Learning/Summer  School Programs, Director of Elementary and Early Childhood Education, and Curriculum  Coach for a high school reform model program. As a veteran educator, Ms. Ivory has been  involved in all aspects of leading a school division including the oversight and supervision of all  curricula, instructional, assessment and professional development decisions and initiatives. She  has designed and presented numerous professional development experiences for teachers,  administrators, school support staff, and parents, locally, and at the state and national levels.   She has a strong background in literacy and serving the needs of special education students.  Ms. Ivory loves to read, travel, and listen to music. She is the mother of three children and the  grandmother of three delightful grandchildren.

June: Roneagle in the Spotlight

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Omar Mason is a shareholder (partner) of the New Orleans-based law firm, Aaron & Gianna, PLC. He is a native New Orleanian.  After graduating from McDonogh No. 35 in 1992 and from LSU (Baton Rouge) in 1996, he attended and obtained his Juris Doctor (law) degree from Loyola University School of Law in New Orleans in 1999.  He then began his law practice with Carter & Cates, APLC, where he focused primarily on plaintiff personal injury matters, class actions and complex litigation.  He later joined Lynn Luker & Associates, LLC in 2003, representing business clients in the gaming industry and defending others against asbestos claims.
As a result of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, Mr. Mason relocated to Houston, Texas where he practiced for over six years with the law firm, Johnson DeLuca Kurisky & Gould, P.C., representing business clients in the automobile sales industry as well as banking institutions and small businesses in litigation.  Realizing the strong potential and need for economic and social growth in his hometown, New Orleans, Mr. Mason and his family returned to the city in the early fall of 2012. Upon his return to New Orleans, Mr. Mason joined the law firm of Montgomery Barnett, LLP downtown.

Mr. Mason is admitted to practice before all state and federal courts in both Louisiana and Texas, including the U.S. Court of Appeals – Fifth Circuit, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern, Middle and Western Districts of Louisiana, and for the Northern, Southern, Eastern and Western Districts of Texas. In 2014, Omar was recognized as a Super Lawyers® – “Rising Star” in the category of Business Litigation.  More recently, he was selected for inclusion in Super Lawyers® – 2016 and 2017 in the area of Business Litigation. Super Lawyers® only selects 5% of the licensed active attorneys in each state, making this a significant accolade. Omar has also earned an AV Preeminent Rating for Ethical Standards and Legal Ability from Martindale-Hubbell — another significant accomplishment.