Ohio’s Largest Black-owned Business Newspaper FREE March 15, 2021 Published by The 912 Group, ltd. Ronda Watson Barber—Publisher/Editor-in-Chief Volume 12—No. 5 Advocating, Informing and Promoting Small & Minority Owned Businesses since 2009 Damita Brown to lead the Office of Diversity and Inclusion Columbus Mayor Andrew J. Ginther recently announced that he has appointed Damita Brown as Chief Diversity Officer in the Office of Di- versity and Inclusion. Ginther said that Beverly Stallings-Johnson has accepted a position at Wendy’s. Her last day with the city was Friday, March 12. “Damita is particularly suited to take on the role of Chief Diversity Officer,” said Mayor Ginther. “She has shepherded the Disparity Study through every step and has been key to keeping minority participation at record levels on many projects including the new Crew stadium. The community has faith and trust in Damita, and so do I.” Brown has been with the Office of Diversity and Inclusion since 2016, serving as deputy director and interim director. Before coming to the city, she was a vice president for supplier diversity with Huntington Bank and has also worked for the Columbus Regional Airport Authority and the United Way of Central Ohio. “I am grateful to Beverly for her service to our city. Thanks to her leadership, even during the tumultuous last year, we were able to support small, women and minority owned businesses by streamlining our internal processes, connecting them with financial resources and technical assistance, and forging innovative new partnerships,” Mayor Ginther contin- ued. “I wish her great success as the new Vice President and Chief Diversity Officer for Wendy’s Worldwide.” Brown holds a master’s degree in public administration from The Ohio State University and a bachelor’s degree in political science, history and ethnic studies from Capital University. She is in the OhioMBE Hall of Fame. “I am thrilled to lead the Office of Diversity and Inclusion to help the city address some of its toughest challenges,” said Brown. “I appreciate Mayor Ginther’s confidence in me and look forward to making a lasting difference in how the city addresses minority and gender participation in supplier contracts and the workplace.” Ginther created the Office of Diversity and Inclusion during his first term in office. www.OhioMBE.com OhioMBE is published on the 1st and 15th of each month and is distributed free by The 912 Group, LTD. The publish- er reserves the right to edit, reject or cancel any advertise- ment or editorial copy at any time and will not be responsi- ble for checking the accuracy of items submitted for publi- cation. Legal Stuff: The First Amend- ment protects several basic freedoms in the United States including freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom of the press, the right to as- semble, and the right to peti- tion the government. It was Rep. Jarrells to introduce legislation that will remove derogatory terminology part of the Bill of Rights that in the Ohio Revised Code was added to the Constitution on December 15, 1791. The Says all Ohioans should be treated with kindness, dignity, and views expressed in OhioMBE respect and the media outlets of The COLUMBUS—Rep. Dontavius L. Jarrells (D-Columbus) will be 912 Group are solely those of introducing legislation removing additional derogatory lan- the author and do not reflect guage within the state’s code. This legislation will be continu- the views/opinions of The ation of the work started by House Bill 158 in the 131st Gen- 912 Group, the editor, pub- eral Assembly, which replaced references to “mentally re- lisher , our staff or our tarded person” in the Ohio Revised Code. advertisers. Currently, Ohio Revised Code still includes language such as Copyright © 2021 “idiot,” “deaf and dumb,” “mentally retarded,” “lunatics,” All Rights Reserved. “mental defective,” “crippled child/children,” Ronda Watson Barber, “derangement,” and “handicapped.” Editor-in-Chief & Publisher www.OhioMBE.com “These antiquated terms are rooted in historical trauma, re- [email protected] sulting in unnecessary harm for people with disabilities, their families, and advocacy organizations,” said Rep. Jarrells. “All Ohioans deserve to be treated with P.O. Box 533 kindness, dignity, and respect. This legislation ensures the Ohio Revised Code reflects those val- Granville, OH 43023 ues,” Rep. Jarrells explained. 912-290-2112 This legislation will replace terms related to people with disabilities and updates statutory provi- [email protected] sions relating to assistance dogs, braille teacher standards, the Children with Medical Handicaps OhioMBE welcomes letters to Program, and accessible parking spaces. the editor from readers. The implementation of this bill could not have happened without the collaboration and support Typed letters of 350 words or from advocates in the disability, deaf, mental health, and victim services communities: less are preferred. Each letter must include name, home Mental Health America of Ohio address and daytime phone National Alliance on Mental Illness Ohio number. Some letters may Ohio Association of County Behavioral Health Authorities appear on our website. Page 2 3 Ways to Protect Your Credit During The Pandemic By Kenya Mays publisher’s note It has been almost a year of living through this pandem- Happy Black History Month! ic. Many have lost jobs, By Ronda Watson Barber homes and their normal way Publisher of life. Throughout all of the changes that COVID-19 has The recent state Girl’s Division I presented, one thing that Basketball State championship was has remained important is EPIC! My hometown Newark Lady your credit matters. Wildcats proudly represented. The on the court battle against Cincin- We constantly hear talks nati Mount Notre Dame was leg- about credit reports, credit endary. These lady hoopsters got scores, credit freezes and game. There were cross-overs, credit monitoring. But blocked shots, steals, and three- what does it all really pointers were raining during the mean? Your credit matters, double-overtime 57-55 game won and will affect your ability to live and work comfortably once by the MND Cougars. outside fully opens. It will certainly not look the same, howev- er, you will want to work on your financial foundation as our While the ladies were displaying their skills, leadership, and new normal will begin. Are you fully prepared? talents on the court, I didn’t observe women in leadership on the sidelines. Both teams were coached by men, men officiat- Here are the 3 things that you can do….. ed the game and men oversee the high school athletic pro- Order A Copy Of Your Credit Report. This has become an grams. easy task as you are entitled to a free copy of your credit report from Annualcreditreport.com from the three major I penned a letter to the Ohio High School Athletic Association. I credit bureaus : Experian, Equifax and TransUnion. As of have questions: right now, this is good until April 2021. Make sure to check your reports for errors and be pre- 1. Why were men officiating the girls' final? pared to dispute any inaccurate information. Although credit bureaus have regularly had errors, they are now at 2. Have any women been officiating any boys' top tourna- an all time high of inaccurate reporting. It is important to ment games? If so, how many? review your reports at least once a month to ensure that 3. Are there any women that coach boys’ high school basket- you are not a victim and your credit report does not ball teams in Ohio? suffer. Call Your Lenders and See Programs They Offer. If you are 4. How many men lead girl's basketball programs? having an issue with making your payments, reach out to 5. How many women lead girls’ basketball programs? the lenders and ask what programs do they have. Many lenders have programs that are catered to those who have 6. How many athletic programs are led by women? been impacted by COVID-19. The names of these pro- grams vary based on the company. They may be referred 7. What is the OHSAA doing to foster an environment for to as “relief” or “hardship” programs. I would recom- women to coach and officiate girls sports? mend that you have a pen and paper handy to write down Title IX of the education amendments was enacted into law in your options. It is important to ask the important ques- 1972. Title IX prohibits sex discrimination in any educational tions of how will these arrangements affect your reporting program or activity receiving any type of federal financial fund- to the bureaus. Will making these arrangements change ing. the current contract? Request that the changes be sent to you in writing. Finally, be sure to take down the name of What are local school boards and universities doing to create a the agent that you spoke with and time of the call. This pipeline for women to become leaders on the sidelines? Al- will be important in the event that you will need to use it most fifty years since the signing of this federal law, why aren’t in the future. there more women coaching women and girls? Why aren’t Check Your Credit Card Statements. I will invite you to get there more women athletic directors? What message does this See Credit on page 13 See Publisher on page 14 www.OhioMBE.com The 912 Group is pleased to announce the launch of OhioContractorConnection.com The website and mobile app is a collection of Ohio’s top small businesses, resource service providers, and business news. There is a focus on construction contractors. “A lot of people are looking to do business with Black-owned compa- nies.