Sandra Hickman - President

Sandra was elected President in 2007 and was recently elected to serve another two year term.

Sandra is a Life Time Member since joining the organization in 2002. Prior to serving as president, she served in the following capacity: Vice President of Administration, Vice President of Operations, and Secretary.

As President of the New Orleans Chapter, my goals are to continue to lead members in New Orleans and Baton Rouge areas according to the mission established by the National Headquarters that states “The National Black MBA Association leads in the creation of educational opportunities and economic growth for Blacks”.

Sandra’s personal goal for the New Orleans Chapter is to become the Premier Chapter in the South by continuing to reach out to all professionals and students at every university in the State of Louisiana.

Hickman joined Entergy formerly known as “New Orleans Public Service Inc.” in 1972 as a Secretary and received numerous promotions over the years. She currently works as a Senior Customer Service Specialist in the Executive Office/Customer Relations Department where she has spent over eight years.

Hickman graduated from Booker T. Washington High School in 1970. She received her Bachelor of Science Degree from Southern University at New Orleans in 1993 and Master’s Degree from the University of Phoenix in New Orleans in 2002.

Hickman is looking forward to assisting in the revitalization and redevelopment of the New Orleans area by introducing the NBMBAA - New Orleans chapter to the citizens of New Orleans area and surrounding parishes.

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Kristi Bivins - Vice President of Administration / Scholarship Committee Director

Kristi Bivins is the Vice-President of Administration for the National Black MBA New Orleans Chapter. Kristi is also the Committee Chair of the Scholarship Committee for New Orleans and Baton Rouge.

Kristi has 4+ years of Financial Analyst experience from various industries such as Telecommunications, Sales, and Retail. During 2006-2007, Kristi was elected as Finance Ambassador of the Finance Learning and Development Team at Sprint Corporation. During her term, Kristi worked with various Finance and Accounting Departments to assist with identifying continued education courses for its employees. Kristi also received an Honorary Award as a Finance Ambassador. Currently, Kristi holds the position of Procurement Analyst at LSU Health Sciences Center in downtown New Orleans. In this role as a Procurement Analyst, Kristi has been tasked with creating standardized reporting tools for the Purchasing Department and to help minimize spending.

Kristi is also the Owner of MRC Investments, INC. a housing rehabilitation company in Mississippi.

Kristi is also a member of the Urban League of Greater New Orleans Young Professionals where she currently holds the position of Co-Chair of Social and Cultural Committee. Last year Kristi served as the Co-Chair of the Fund Development Committee which sponsored an Annual Holiday Benefit Gala at Harrah’s Casino generating funds for disadvantaged families. She is also the Treasurer for the Orleans Parish Young Democrats.

Kristi’s goals as VP of Administration are centered on creating and maintaining standard reporting for the organization. She believes that as an organization it is important to keep written records of procedures as well notate various activities of the organization. As Scholarship Committee Chair, Kristi is looking to develop relationships with local Colleges/Universities to ensure participation of it students. Kristi is looking forward to putting together a reception to showcase not only the good deeds of the organization, but the students of the community that benefit from the organization.

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Dwayne Bourgeois - Vice President of Operations – New Orleans / LOT Director

Dwayne joined the NBMBAA – New Orleans chapter in February 2008. His educational background includes an MBA from the University of Phoenix, and he is currently pursuing his DBA. Dwayne currently works at Delgado Community College for Veterans Upward Bound. This program helps veterans start and complete their post-secondary education. He has a passion for working with young adults as well as veterans. He is a retired Marine of with 23 years service. His favorite book is " As a man thinks" and his favorite quote is " To whom much is giving much is required."

The Leaders Of Tomorrow Program (LOT) holds a special meaning to Dwayne. He feels that it is the manifestation of knowledge and empowerment to our youth to not only become leaders in corporate America, but champions of the entrepreneurship spirit in their communities. Once our youth understand the process of giving back and community involvement they can then see their on goals grow and become realty. His goal is to see that average young person, who has a business and/or obtains an advanced degree, becomes that extra-ordinary adult that sprinkles those extra-ordinary seeds back to the average young person in the community to repeat the process. My vision for the LOT is that one day every active participant becomes a member of the NBMBAA-New Orleans Chapter.

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Essence Harris - Secretary

Essence Harris currently serves as a Specialist in Supplier Diversity & Development for Entergy’s Corporate Supply Chain Group located in New Orleans, Louisiana. In this role, Essence is responsible identifying, pre-qualifying and promoting the utilization of diverse suppliers capable of meeting Entergy’s various sourcing needs. Essence serves as an advocate on behalf of diverse suppliers throughout Louisiana and Mississippi to provide successful integration of new and existing diverse suppliers and develops business programs that enhance supplier interaction while building relationships and partnerships.

As part of Entergy’s renewed five-year supply chain strategy, Essence is also responsible for broadening the company’s commitment to diverse businesses and economic development efforts among its employees and local communities.

She currently serves on the board of directors of the following organizations - Entergy Women of Color (EWOC), Mississippi Minority Business Alliance (MMBA), Louisiana Minority Business Council (LAMBC) – Supplier Diversity Advisory Council, National MBA Association (Louisiana Chapter), New Orleans Multicultural Tourism Network, Inc.

Essence is also a member and affiliated with the following organizations - Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), American Association of Blacks in Energy (AABE), Entergy Corporate Contributions Community Connectors, Entergy Operations Diversity Council, Edison Electric Institute (EEI) – Supplier Diversity Committee, Women’s Business Council Gulf Council (WBCGC), Young Leadership Council-YLC (New Orleans), Mississippi Black Chamber of Commerce, Mississippi MED Week Planning Committee, Hispanic Chamber of Commerce-Louisiana, Entergy ENSHAPE Champion, PJ Program – Louisiana Chapter, New Orleans Women’s Shelter, WomenHeart Champion and spokesperson– The National Coalition of Women with Heart Disease, American Heart Association Go Red Planning Committee, spokesperson and advocate.

Essence earned a bachelor’s degree in Arts and Science in English Writing from Loyola University New Orleans in 1996 and is currently working on her executive master’s degree in Business Management from the University of New Orleans. Essence is a native of New Orleans, Louisiana. Essence has been distinguishably recognized for many of her accomplishments. Recognitions include the 2006 Louisiana Minority Business Council (LAMBC) Business Advocate of the Year Award and 2006 Mississippi Minority Business Alliance (MMBA) 2006 Chairman’s Award for her efforts with diverse suppliers.

Essence has a 7 year old son, Jaden Banks.

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Treasurer - Position Available

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Fund Development/Fund Raising Chair - Darryl Ward

In 1992 Darryl was appointed Director of the Jefferson Parish Department of Employment and Training, which is one of 18 Service Delivery Areas in the State of Louisiana. During his tenure as Director of Employment and Training, Jefferson Parish was consistently rated the #1 or # 2 SDA in the state. His elite Service Delivery Area was a member of the prestigious “Enterprise” for USDOL (U.S. Department of Labor), which recognizes high performing Workforce Development entities around the country.

Currently Darryl serves as Chief Administrative Assistant to Jefferson Parish President Aaron F. Broussard. He is responsible for five government agencies including Workforce Connection, Community Development, JeffCAP, Citizens’ Affairs and Transit.

He serves on the board of many organizations including New Orleans Sports Foundation and the Jefferson Community Foundation. He is a Past President of the New Orleans Chapter of the National Black MBA Association and currently holds the position of Corporate Partner Chairman. The mission of the NBMBAA is to lead in the creation of economic and intellectual wealth for the African American community.

Darryl is a huge advocate for children. He dedicates time out of his busy schedule to serve as a mentor to area schools. He was a coach for Little League Sports and is a participator in many community and civic organizations.

His educational background includes graduating from West Jefferson High School in Harvey, and received a BS degree in Business Administration from Southern University at New Orleans. He also earned his MBA from the University of Phoenix in August 1998.

The professional accomplishment of Darryl includes the 1996 Finalist for the Bureau of Governmental Research’s’ 1996 Excellence in Government Awards Program. He also was elected Vice-President and then President of the Louisiana Service Delivery Area’s Directors’ Association. He was a recipient of the 2005 Minority Small Business Person of the Year Award.

Darryl is married to Detra and has three wonderful children: a daughter Charlos, who is a Chemical Engineer with British Petroleum; a son Darryl II who is a Computer Engineer with Philips Medical Systems; and a 12 year old daughter Cydni.

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Social Committee Chair - Open

This position is currently open.

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Leaders of Tomorrow Chair - Dwayne Bourgeois

See Executive Biography

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Economic Development Chair – Ricardo Thomas

Ricardo Thomas, a 25 year veteran of the financial services industry, is President and Senior Financial Consultant of THOMAS-WADDELL & Associates, a financial consulting and asset management firm with offices in Louisiana and Northern California. The objective of the firm is to provide access to the financial markets through qualified professionals, quality investment strategies and services, and education - all leading to a goal of achieving financial independence.

The mission of the Economic Development Committee is to promote increased financial and business literacy in our communities. This is done by providing seminars and workshops on a variety of financial and business development topics. The flagship program is the “On the Money” events which introduced a new concept in professional networking. Here, business people come together not only to network and fellowship but also to discuss timely financial and business topics in a setting that makes it comfortable for dialogue.

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Student Relations Chair - Open

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Community Relations Chair - Shawne Favre, CPA, MBA

Shanwe Favre is an accounting professional with over 12 years experience including international experience in developing and analyzing financial reports and supervising financial staff in a variety of industries including Public Accounting, Hospitality, Energy, Education and Financial Services. She has worked in Management Consultant with 4 years experience in evaluating and developing standard operating procedures (SOP’s) for organizations, reviewing business plans, reviewing, developing and implementing strategies for growth.

Shawne’s educational background includes a BS- Accounting from Florida A & M University, and an MBA-Management from Tulane University. She is an active member of American Institute of CPA’s and Louisiana Society of CPA’s. Shawne also serves as board Treasurer for YWCA-Greater New Orleans. Currently Shawne operates as the President of Significant Solutions, Inc a management consulting company.

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Public Relations, Publicity, and Marketing Co-Chairs - Ricardo Thomas & Essence Harris

See Biographies listed above

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Strategic Advisory Chair - Glenn Yancy

Glenn Yancy graduated from the National Louis University with a B.A. Management/Organization Behavior. Glenn is a proven professional with experience in Technology, Leadership, Business Development, and Strategy serving Federal, State, Local, and Commercial industries. Glenn has worked for notable companies such as IBM, Allstate Insurance, Stone Container, and PeopleSoft. Former Chair, New Orleans City Council Advisory Committee. Currently, he is serving as President/CEO of Frontline Solutions Group, Inc, a consulting firm that operates a Youth Career Center in Gretna.

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New Orleans Past Chapter Presidents

• Cynthia Sylvain-Lear
• Larry Burney
• Norman Roussell
• Wayne Benjamin
• Eula Bazile
• Darryl Ward
• Alverez Stampley

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