Black MBA - Winter 2007/2008 - (Page 60) CAREER Profiles in Giving “Those are still very big hurdles for us to overcome,” Gilbert said. “We’ve got to find a way to hear from people who are economically marginalized.” Communities of color, she added, must begin to organize their money in their own communities to create more successful outcomes. “We still have some work to do,” she said, “and it’s sad, because at the program level, where there are few African Americans, and at the CEO level, where there are even fewer – that’s where you get to impact how resources are allocated.” “We are the fastest-growing ethnic population, but we are also the sickest and our children will die the earliest.” Why Philanthropy? • An opportunity to impact change by determining where philanthropic resources are spent. • A chance to give back to the community by making a real impact on the ground level. • A way to bring your perspective on the world into an industry looking toward better inclusion. Dr. Dwayne Proctor, Senior Program Officer, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation A former professor of health communications at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine in Farmington, Conn., Dr. Dwayne Proctor knows he is doing what he is supposed to do at the Princeton, N.J.-based Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF). A senior program officer on the RWJF’s Childhood Obesity Team – one of the foundation’s top priorities – Dr. Proctor aims to reverse the trend of childhood obesity in the U.S. by 2015. “This is the biggest health issue facing African Americans and Latinos,” he said. “We are the fastest-growing ethnic population, but we are also the sickest and our children will die the earliest.” His work at RWJF focuses on the environments in which children live, and on policies that impact these environments and could be altered to benefit the children whom they deeply affect. “I don’t know if someone else sitting here would have the same passion for what I’m doing,” he admitted. “For me, it’s a reflex.” Dr. Proctor said he left academia because he believed he could do more to improve the health care of all Americans by working for the foundation. “You can’t just wait for something to happen,” he said. “Change often takes time, but you’ve got to keep your fi nger on the button.” mba 60 BlackMBA • Winter 2007/2008 • www.nbmbaa.org ©Ankevanwyk | Dreamstime.com http://www.nbmbaa.org
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