Talladega College News May 6, 2018 Talladega College Commencement Speaker Dr. William F. Pickard Donates $100,000 to the College Talladega, AL Talladega College's May 6, 2018 commencement highlights included a $100,000 gift from Dr. William F. Pickard, who made the donation in honor of Dr. Richard A. English, a Talladega alumnus and former vice chairman of the College's Board of Trustees. During his commencement address, Dr. Pickard recounted an old memory of Dr. English. "I went to the Flint Urban League on a Saturday morning when they are normally closed and I needed $250 to pay my dorm fee to go away to college at Western Michigan University," Dr. Pickard stated. The Urban League had already given away all of their scholarships. However, Dr. English said he would raise the funds at an Alpha Phi Alpha meeting. And he did. Dr. Pickard went on to complete a bachelor's degree at Western Michigan University, a master's degree from the University of Michigan and a Ph.D. from The Ohio State University. He is chairman of Global Automotive Alliance (GAA), which has generated over $5 billion dollars in sales. He is also co-managing partner of MGM Grand Detroit Casino; CEO of Bearwood Management Company; and co-owner of five black-owned newspapers. In addition, he is author of the best-seller Millionaire Moves - Seven Proven Principles of Entrepreneurship. He began his forty-five-year entrepreneurial career as a McDonald's franchisee in Detroit, Michigan. In 1982, President Ronald Reagan appointed him as the first chairman of the African Development Foundation. Under President George Bush, he was appointed to the Advisory Committee for Trade Policy and Negotiations in 1990, and the Federal Home Loan Bank Board-Indianapolis Bank in Indiana in 1991. Dr. Pickard is a past recipient of the prestigious Michiganian of the Year award. He has served on numerous business and non-profit boards including Asset Acceptance Capital Corporation, Michigan National Bank, LaSalle Bank, Business Leaders for Michigan, National Urban League, Detroit Symphony Orchestra, and Detroit Black Chamber of Commerce. He is a life member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity. Dr. Pickard has donated over one million dollars to the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C. and over three million to Western Michigan University. The William F. Pickard Living Center at Grand Valley State University and the Hall-Archer-Pickard East and Hall-Archer-Pickard West residence hall complex at Western Michigan University are named in his honor. A true Renaissance man, he is also author of the best-seller Millionaire Moves - Seven Proven Principles of Entrepreneurship. In his address to Talladega's 128 graduates, Dr. Pickard said, "Anybody from anywhere can accomplish anything." He encouraged students to have a vision and stated, "You will never be what you cannot see. SANDRA M. PHOENIX HBCU Library Alliance Executive Director Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library 111 James P. Brawley Drive SW Atlanta, GA 30314 404-978-2118 (office) 404-702-5854 (cell) http://www.hbculibraries.org/ sphoenix@hbculibraries.org<mailto:sphoenix@hbculibraries.org<mailto:sphoenix@hbculibraries.org%3cmailto:sphoenix@hbculibraries.org>> Honor the ancestors, honor the children. Follow us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hbculibraryalliance1/ and Twitter https://twitter.com/HBCULibAlliance Check out "PULSE!" The HBCU Library Alliance's News Source! - https://hbculibraryalliance.wordpress.com/