< Previous28 | TALK MAGAZINE • FALL 2021 COLLEGE NEWS continued from page 6 CACC a 2021 Women of Influence award winner. The Pittsburgh Business Times has honored a total of 26 women as part of the 2021 Women of In- fluence awards. More than 300 people gathered at the Westin Convention Center Hotel on Oct. 6 to celebrate the winners. The Times describes them as "inspiring women who have started and grown businesses, mentored future generations and made the community a better place." Newkirk, who joined CCAC in 2009, has 30 years of experience in higher education. She over- sees the college's South Campus, Boyce Campus, Braddock Hills Center and Washington County Center. One of her proudest accomplishments is the South Campus Cupboard food pantry, which operates in partnership with the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank and was ren- ovated with a grant from the Jefferson Regional Foundation. The pantry, which benefits students and their families who are experiencing food insecurity, is stocked with nonperishable foods as well as meats, dairy, frozen vegetables and personal hygiene items. In season, the pantry also features fresh produce from the campus garden. “This food pantry is one of the most important things I think that I've contributed to this college, and I'm very proud of everything we've done to meet the needs of our students and help them succeed." Newkirk is also proud of CCAC's Men of Merit and Women on a Mission programs, which sup- port students who are at risk of not completing at the college. The programs provide mentorship, coaching and support for students so that they can be successful. The Pittsburgh native is also responsible for ensuring the college workforce represents the demographics of the region. She co-founded the CCAC Leadership Development Institute, which is designed to train and retain a diverse group of leaders. The institute enables members of the CCAC family to develop key leadership and management skills and explore the potential for leadership in a variety of senior college roles. She also encourages staff members to pursue professional development in Pittsburgh and through national programs tailored for train- ing in higher education leadership. "When you see things more, it becomes normal," she said. Dr. Gina Charles is a family physician and beauty expert, as well as the "G" of Dr. G Make- up Artist, a subsidiary of Ade & Gina Studios. Ade & Gina Studios is a business that Dr. Charles started with her husband, Ade Oshodi. They provide photography and makeup services for weddings and are based out of Central Penn- sylvania. When Charles was in medical school, she did makeup on cancer patients as a pick-me-up, and she became interested in the practice. She started doing makeup for proms and other big events, and one day, her husband asked her to do the makeup of the bride for a wedding he was photographing. That's how the couple's business was born. Dr. Charles also owns Serenity Aesthetics and Wellness, a medical spa that specializes in treat- ing acne, hyperpigmentation, and aging skin. "When people get their makeup done by me, I'm hoping to enhance their natural beauty and they feel as good as they look," she said. Dr. Charles believes that representation is a major issue in the beauty industry. She says that historically, Black women have been ignored by beauty brands, and you can see that in the limit- ed choices of makeup products made for people of color. She says that the way to make the industry more inclusive, is to include Black women in decision making processes. "Larger companies should have more Black women at the table during the decision-making process of what to put on the market, they would bring perspective that these companies are lacking," she said. Dr. Charles noted that Black women are the fastest growing group of entrepreneurs in the United States, and she's right, according to The Riveter and Forbes. COVID-19 has changed the circumstances for many Black female entre- preneurs, but the fact remains that the group's business prowess has been blossoming for years. Despite this fact, Black entrepreneurs and their businesses are extremely underfunded and lack venture capital, according to Dr. Charles. And she's right again. According to The Riveter, a company based in Seattle which aims to sup- port women in the workplace, only 56% of Black female entrepreneurs were able to raise capital "which only averaged at a total of $36,000." Dr. Charles says that more opportunities need to be created for Black entrepreneurial endeavors to be funded. Money not being put into Black businesses is an issue that goes far beyond just the beauty industry, however. According to Forbes, despite the fact that between 2007 and 2017, minority-owned small businesses grew by 79%, "minority-owned firms are still having a much harder time accessing small business loans than their white counter- parts." They are also less likely to be approved for small business loans than white-owned firms, and even when they are, they're more likely to receive lower amounts and higher interest rates. Because of this discrepancy, "minority business owners more likely to not apply for small business loans, usually out of fear of rejection," according to the U.S. Department of Commerce Minority Business Development Agency. All four of the women interviewed said that they had experienced, directly or indirectly, issues with banks loaning to Black people. Kageni-Woodard, Wright, and Charles all saved for a long time in order to build their businesses on their own. This is because of the "horror stories" they had heard involving business relationships between Black, female entrepreneurs and banks. Haywood is the only woman of the four who did apply for a bank loan in order to start her business. She said that despite the fact that she came from a middle-class family, had good credit and was educated, the bank she received her loan from "put her through the wringer." She said that she was also surprised by the way she was treated because both of her parents are business owners. Haywood watched them her whole life and spent time in their shop, so she felt she had a greater grasp of business ownership that many young entrepreneurs. "People look at my skin and think 'she cannot be financially stable,'" she said. While the success of the four women profiled in this piece is indicative of change in the beauty industry, and in business ownership generally, the experiences of these women were an uphill battle and they all continue to fight every day to ensure that Black, female entrepreneurs are positively depicted. They all urge everyone to support local busi- nesses, hold larger corporations accountable, and help to get Black women a seat at the table. 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