Richard Brown III, Anthony G. Stepney become first African-Americans to earn PGA Master Professional Designation

PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. – The PGA of America has announced that Richard Brown III, PGA Director of Instruction at Quail Valley Golf Course in Missouri City, Texas; and Anthony G. Stepney, Executive Director of APEX Development Partners in Orlando, Florida, are the first two African-Americans to earn PGA Master Professional status, the highest educational designation that can be obtained by a PGA Member.

Brown III, a 14-year PGA Member; and Stepney, a 12-year PGA Member, joined an esteemed group of just 428 PGA Professionals in the history of the PGA of America to have earned PGA Master Professional status. Currently, just one percent of the nearly 29,000 PGA Professionals have achieved the PGA Master Professional designation. Brown III is the first-ever African-American to achieve PGA Master Professional status, with a focus in Teaching & Coaching, while Stepney is the first African-American to achieve PGA Master Professional status in Player Development. 

The PGA Master Professional Program (MPP 2.0) is available to any of the PGA of America’s PGA Professionals who have achieved advanced certification through the PGA Certified Professional Program, which was launched in 2004. The curriculum is comprised of an extensive project based on the specific certification previously acquired by the PGA Professional. Upon approval of the project and successful completion of a presentation, a PGA Member will earn the prestigious PGA Master Professional status. To be eligible, the program requires a minimum of eight years of PGA Membership.

“The PGA of America is proud of Richard Brown and Anthony Stepney for accomplishing the highest education achievement a PGA Member can earn in becoming PGA Master Professionals,” said PGA President Suzy Whaley. “They are both leaders in the game and industry, and the example they are setting for their peers and the next generation of PGA Professionals is a tremendous standard of accomplishment.”

Richard Brown III, PGA, a member of the Southern Texas PGA Section, who earned PGA Certified Professional status in 2017, has been recognized as a U.S. Kids Top 50 Junior Instructor. He credits Calvin Peete, Lee Elder, Charlie Sifford, Jim Dent, Ted Rhodes, John Shippen and Bob Johnson for paving the way, allowing him the opportunity of becoming a PGA Professional. Brown III operates the Richard Brown School of Golf, where he offers a full lineup of player development programs for kids and adults.

“This achievement is a highlight of my career, but, it does not define my career,” said Brown III. “Yes, this accomplishment places me in rarified air, but I will continue to stay humble and hungry trying to be the best PGA Professional that I can be, to make the game better, one player at a time.”

Anthony G. Stepney, PGA, a member of the North Florida PGA Section, is the Executive Director of APEX Development Partners, an Orlando, Florida-based consulting firm that supports the broad-based developmental needs of organizations, including several golf companies and facilities throughout the country seeking strategic growth and increased profitability. In 2015, Stepney earned PGA Certified Professional status in Player Development. A year later, he was selected for the inaugural PGA LEAD Class, the Association’s leadership development program that identifies, mentors and progresses PGA Members from diverse backgrounds, who aspire to assume leadership positions in the Association.

“Achieving the prestigious PGA Master Professional designation is a pinnacle career accomplishment,” said Stepney. “I consider it an honor to be among the approximately one percent of the PGA of America’s 29,000 Professionals—and among only seven PGA Members who specialize in Player Development, including PGA President Suzy Whaley.”

Stepney’s Master Professional thesis focused on “Making the Business Case for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the Golf Industry.” Themes from his final project demonstrated proven and pragmatic ways to grow and broaden the golf consumer base including: helping golf be more accessible and welcoming to a broader population; increasing the number of women, minorities and other underrepresented populations in the golf industry; and guiding members of the golf industry to think more broadly and be mindful of the varied dimensions of difference, among others. 

The PGA Master Professional Program (MPP 2.0) was established in 1969, to recognize PGA Members who have made a significant effort to improve as golf professionals and maintain the highest degree of excellence for themselves and their operations. As part of its Member education curriculum, the PGA MPP 2.0 program was designed to ensure PGA Professionals are prepared to meet the growing demands of the marketplace.

NAACP TO HOST 110TH NATIONAL CONVENTION IN DETROIT

NAACP to Highlight 110 Years of Civil Rights History, and the Current Fight for Voting Rights, Criminal Justice Reform, Economic Opportunity, Education Equality & More

BALTIMORE — Thousands are expected to gather in Detroit to commemorate the NAACP’s 110th National Convention from July 20-24, 2019. With the theme, “When We Fight, We Win,” the convention will bring together elected officials, members, organizers, faith-leaders, entertainers, and young leaders for workshops and discussions to promote solutions to problems like police brutality, racism, #LivingWhileBlack, voter suppression, partisan gerrymandering and sexual violence and mental health in the Black community.

“Much has changed since the creation of the NAACP 110 years ago, and as we highlight these achievements during this year’s convention, we cannot forget that we’re still tirelessly fighting against the hatred and bigotry that face communities of color in this country,” said Derrick Johnson, NAACP President and CEO. “With new threats emerging daily and attacks on our democracy, the NAACP must be more steadfast and immovable than ever before to help create a social political atmosphere that works for all.”

Among the key events, the Presidential Candidates Forum, CEO Roundtable, LGBTQ, Legal and legislative workshops will bring together some of the brightest minds in the Black community and help hone strategies for moving forward in the face of growing racism and an all-out assault on civil rights in this country.

Other highlights include the awarding of the prestigious Spingarn Medal, the NAACP ACT-SO (Academic, Cultural, Technical and Scientific Olympics) final competition and awards ceremony, and a career fair.

More information about the 2019 NAACP National Convention, including a schedule of events and registration details can be found here.

Press interested in covering the convention may apply for credentials here.

Ayanna Pressley launches leadership PAC

U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley is launching a new leadership political action committee to help boost Democratic candidates — including those challenging incumbents.

The committee, called the Power of Us PAC, will also fund civic engagement efforts and help cultivate a diverse pipeline for community activists and organizers to access federal-level campaigns, something Pressley said is necessary to knock down barriers many newcomers face.

Learn more about the PAC and listen to Pressley talk about it below:

He Served With D-Day’s Only African-American Combat Unit. His Widow Is Still Fighting for His Medal of Honor

Seventy-five years after American troops landed in smoke, fire and chaos on the beaches of Normandy, France, a Maryland woman is fighting for recognition for her late husband, who is likely D-Day’s last unsung hero.

Corporal Waverly “Woody” Woodson Jr., was a 21-year-old medic from West Philadelphia when he splashed down in four feet of churning sea and waded toward Omaha Beach around 9 a.m. on the morning of June 6, 1944.

Woodson was wounded, hit by burning shrapnel that raked his landing craft and ripped open his buttocks and thigh. The soldier next to him was killed. A medic slapped dressings on Woodson’s wounds, and they, along with three other medics in their crew, crept up the beach while crouched behind a tank. They were the first African-Americans to set their boots on Omaha Beach.

For the next 30 hours, Woodson would survive German snipers and his own searing pain to save scores of lives. Decades later, Woodson would learn that he had been nominated for the Medal of Honor.

But he would not receive it, not even when President Bill Clinton belatedly awarded the nation’s highest award for valor in 1997 to seven black soldiers who’d been denied their D-Day decorations by an Army afflicted by institutional racism. “History has been made whole today,” Clinton said.

Woodson’s white marble gravestone at Arlington National Cemetery is inscribed with his final Army rank — staff sergeant — and his decorations, the Purple Heart and the Bronze Star, the fourth-highest award for bravery.

Waverly Woodson died in 2005 but his widow, Joann Woodson, who turned 90 on May 26, has made it her mission to see that her husband’s heroism is acknowledged. “I will fight for him as long as I live,” Woodson said from her home in Clarksburg, outside Washington, D.C.

Read more: He Served With D-Day’s Only African-American Combat Unit. His Widow Is Still Fighting for His Medal of Honor

Big Ten expected to hire Vikings executive Kevin Warren as next commissioner

It appears the Big Ten has found its successor to commissioner Jim Delany.

Sources told Yahoo Sports’ Pat Forde and Pete Thamel that Kevin Warren, the Chief Operating Officer of the Minnesota Vikings, is expected to be named the conference’s next commissioner on Tuesday. The Big Ten, whose presidents and chancellors met in their annual meeting on Sunday, announced Monday that it had a Tuesday press conference scheduled to introduce its new commissioner.

The news was first reported by 670 The Score and NFL Network.

Warren, 55, has worked for the Vikings since 2005 and rose up the ranks to COO in 2015, becoming the first African American COO in NFL history and the highest-ranking African American executive working for an NFL team. Warren, who also worked for the Detroit Lions and St. Louis Rams, has an extensive law background and once worked at a law firm with former SEC commissioner Mike Slive.

If the hire comes to fruition, Warren would become the first African American commissioner of a Power Five conference. Earlier this year, the Sun Belt became the first FBS conference to hire an African American commissioner when it hired Keith Gill from the Atlantic 10.

Warren is set to replace Delany, who announced in March that he would end his term as commissioner when his contract expires on June 30, 2020. Delany has led the conference since his hire in 1989.

[SOURCE: YAHOO SPORTS]