50 s THE QUEENS COURIER • BLACK HISTORY • FEBRUARY 7, 2013 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT www.queenscourier.com black histroy AFRICAN AMERICAN HERITAGE/ BLACK HISTORY MONTH COMMUNITY ACHIEVEMENT WINNERS ANITA ROMERO SEGARRA BOROUGH PRESIDENT’S AWARD Anita Romero Segarra served as the deputy district director for the Jamaica Center for Arts and Learning (JCAL) for over 14 years, and also as interim executive director several times during her tenure. Before coming to JCAL, Segarra was the executive director of the Southeast Queens Community Partnership, and the neighborhood director for Neighborhood Housing Services of Northeast Queens. Before beginning her career, she studied community health at York College and Human Resources Management at Molloy College. Currently, she is also enrolled in the Queens College ACE Program for Business Management. Segarra was born in Woodside and lives in southeast Queens. She has worked with a host of civic, youth and block associations on an array of community issues and events, and has served on the Borough President’s African American Heritage Committee and the Queens General Assembly. She is an advisory board member for the Queens Educational Opportunity Center and Youth Court of Queens County. Segarra also was on the board of the Violence Intervention Program, an organization dedicated to ending domestic violence. Currently, she is the Director of Operations and Administration for the Weeksville Heritage Center, a multidimensional museum dedicated to preserving the history of the 19th century African American community. Segarra resides in Laurelton with her husband, three sons and three stepchildren. VETA BROME BUSINESS AWARD Veta Brome has been an active community member for roughly over a decade. Since 2000, she has served as a district leader in the 35th Assembly Disrict, is a member of her block association, the NAACP, Queens Chamber of Commerce and many more. She also works with Ne i g h b o r h o o d Housing Services of Queens in helping educate fi rst time home buyers to accomplish their goals. Brome also is an active advocate for young children and the elderly. Brome is also a member of the Kiwanis Club of LaGuardia Airport, where the needs of children take top priority. She has held numerous leadership positions with the club, and is the second woman and fi rst African American to serve as president. She is also the second woman and again the fi rst African American to become lieutenant governor in the Queens West Kiwanis Division. Brome is chair of the Camp Kiwanis Committee, which sends kids to camp each year in upstate New York, is also chairs and co-chairs various organizations geared towards helping children. She is the treasurer of the Queens West Kiwanis Foundation, treasurer for Marshall for Queens and treasurer to the current LTG of Queens West Kiwanis. Recently, Brome was elected fi rst vice chair to Congressmember Joseph Crowley in the Queens Democratic Organization. She has resided in East Elmhurst for 40 years, where she and her husband have a real estate business. She is the proud mother of one and grandmother of four. GREG MAYS ARTS AND CULTURE AWARD Greg Mays is the founder of A Better Jamaica, Inc., a nonprofi t community service organization that engages in activities designed to strengthen the n e i g h b o r h o o d of Jamaica. The group was created in 2007, and since then Mays has worked tirelessly to beautify his community. Mays did his undergraduate studies at Howard University in Washington D.C., where he received a degree in Business Administration. Shortly after college, he became a Certifi ed Public Accountant (CPA), and earned an MBA from Harvard University. Throughout his career, Mays fi rst worked as a CPA for two years with Coopers & Lybrand, and was national advertising director for Black Enterprise magazine. He also spent two years as district manager of fi lm distribution for Sony Corporation’s Columbia Pictures. Currently, Mays is the board treasurer for the Classical Theater of Harlem, and is also trying to jump start the Jamaica Arts Council through A Better Jamaica. WILLIAM NEWLIN CIVIC AWARD When William Newlin started as executive director at the Jacob Riis Settlement House in 1990, the legendary community organization was struggling fi nancially, had inadequate programming and an aging and unkept facility. Under Newlin’s leadership, Riis Settlement re-emerged as a leading service provider in the community, signifi cantly increasing its ability to meet the needs of underserved residents. Newlin was able to increase the budget signifi cantly, and build an organizational organiza- infrastructure with a qualifi ed and committed staff. He has also strengthened and computerized fi scal management and developed linkages with local service providers. Also under Newlin’s leadership, the settlement house has been able to increase its capacity and also its program portfolio from solely recreational activities to a wide range of comprehensive services, including a youth development program, family support services, senior citizen’s program and others that complement the multiple assets of the community. He also sat on the board of United Neighborhood Houses and elevated to president of the Executive Directors Council. Prior to coming to Riis Settlement, Newlin worked for 10 years as the director of fi eld services at the City Commission on Human Rights and was responsible for 10 offi ces citywide. He received his undergraduate degree from Queens College and a graduate degree from Hunter College School of Social Work. WILLIAM FAHEY EDUCATION AWARD William Fahey is the principal of The Louis Armstrong Middle School in East Elmhurst and has more than 11 years experience as a school administrator. He has more than 30 years of experience in the fi eld of education including public and private schools and the business sector. Fahey and the team of administrators, teachers and staff are committed to bringing together a culturally diverse group of students and helping them grow academically, socially, emotionally and physically. At the school, students are exposed to a variety of teaching styles, social groupings and realworld issues. This serves to prepare them to become socially responsible, life-long learners. To achieve this, the students’ strengths, interests and morals are bridged with the skills and knowledge necessary to compete in an ever-changing, culturally diverse, global society. In September 2012, The Louis Armstrong Middle School was recognized by the New York State Education Department as a “Rewards School.” This is the highest designation given to schools by the department. Only 53 of the more than 1,700 city schools earned this high status.
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