Black MBA - Winter 2008/2009 - (Page 38)

FEATURE Keeth Smart had recently completed an engineering degree and was thinking about applying to business school himself when he died. “For Keeth, being at Columbia now is kind of a continuum of what our parents put into us,” Erinn says. Obtaining an MBA is a family affair in another sense as well. Keeth’s wife, Shyra, is a first-year MBA student downtown at New York University’s Stern School of Business. She left her job as a production manager at VH1. com to travel the school’s media management track. The two were introduced by Westbrook at a Labor Day party in 2003 and married in May 2007. “It’s cool that my wife and I are both MBA student first-years,” Smart says. “We’re learning as we go – going through it together.” GIVING BACK Now with the Olympics behind him and a business career ahead, Smart’s passion for the sport is expressed in his work with the next generation of fencers at the Peter Westbrook Foundation where he got his start. The center has relocated from the cramped West 71st and Broadway space where Smart and pioneering participants in the program began, yet the original spirit of the place persists. There’s likely no other fencing club in the world where champions are so committed to being role models that they show up week after week and year after year to fill the talent pipeline behind them. One Saturday in October, Smart paces up and down a fencing strip dressed in black Chuck Taylors, jeans and a Team USA tee, urging students to slow down and focus on their technique. “The important thing is to do it right,” he says over and over again. “We’re trying to get you to the next level. It’s all about footwork.” The next level is different for each child. Many are weekend warriors. Some will compete nationally, others internationally. All will be pushed to do their personal best and to challenge their peers to improve as well. “If your partner is doing a weak lunge, tell them,” Smart says. “Help them get 38 BlackMBA • Winter 2008/2009 • www.nbmbaa.org Ezra Shaw/Getty Images to the next level.” This idea that it’s not enough to succeed individually – that each is responsible for the success of all – is a part of the foundation’s DNA. Westbrook started the nonprofit at the height of his career to ensure that others had the opportunity to hone their talents, compete and see the world just as he had. Over the years, thousands of students have benefited from the mental, physical and emotional challenges of the program’s drills, conditioning and competition. “It’s great that we produce Olympians, but the most important thing is that we produce an amazing amount of well-rounded citizens,” Smart says. “Our success rate of kids going to college is close to 100 percent. For the most part, we are taking kids that have no exposure to role models in the city and we’re reprogramming them literally with this sense of belief and self-confidence.” At one point, Smart is visibly irked by a talented student’s performance in a bout and scolds him for not winning by a wider margin. He tells the young fencer that no one’s going to be that nice to him in a tournament and that he was doing his opponent a disservice as well. Smart’s not just venting. He’s convinced that his every word and interaction with the young fencers matter, and he believes that being there and showing he cares makes a difference. The foundation works with a lot of at-risk kids who don’t have much structure or discipline outside of fencing, and Smart doesn’t hesitate to speak up when he sees one headed for trouble. Over the years, many kids and parents have thanked him for intervening. “It feels good to have someone come back and say, ‘Remember that time you pulled me aside five years ago? It really meant a lot,’” he says. “That’s more important than winning a medal.” For Smart, business school and Saturdays at the foundation strike the perfect balance. They equip him for success in the competitive world of business and remind him of what that achievement is for – to reach back and lend a hand to those who follow. mba http://www.nbmbaa.org

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Black MBA - Winter 2008/2009

Black MBA - Winter 2008/2009 Contents Preserving Dr. King’s Legacy: Harry E. Johnson is Six Years and $100 million into his First Fundraising Effort Online: www.nbmbaa.org and www.blackmbaonline.com Up Front: Inauguration Takes Over D.C. From the President: Connecting With the Basics The First 100 Days – Already in Progress Back to Basics: Finances 101 Is the Middle Class Disappearing? – Your View From Medals to MBA Conference Highlights Market Forces: The Job of Trying to Find a Job in a Tight Market Applying to an MBA Program?: Avoid Making these Five Critical Mistakes How They Did It: Catching up with the Winning Teams from NBMBAA’s 2008 National Case Competition Change It Up: If a New Job is at the Top of your New Year’s Resolutions, it’s Time for Careful Planning and Preparation Bull Market: Now is the Time to Take Advantage of Web 2.0 On the Move: Member News, Promotions and More Backstage at BET: NBMBAA’s Leadership Institute Takes on BET’s Case for Growth Toronto Rising: NBMBAA’s Toronto Chapter is on a Progressive Track, Building Strong Partnerships and Exposure as Membership Climbs NBMBAA® Chapters: Find Your Local Chapter Here Do What You Love: Turning Your Passion into a Successful Business Requires Patience, Planning and Plenty of Hard Work Above and Beyond: Meet the Winners of the 2008 Wells Fargo/NBMBAA Entrepreneurial Excellence Award Decorating by Design: Michelle Rider Leaves Corporate Life for Entrepreneurship Culture Shock: Black Museums Nationwide Appeal for Greater Support from the People whose Heritage they Strive to Preserve Gear Up for 2009: Books to Herald Success in the New Year Advertiser Index: Who’s Who in the Issue

Black MBA - Winter 2008/2009

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