LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (KATV) — If you spent the weekend looking for a fresh career spark, or just a good reason to learn something new, the fifth annual HBCU Black Wall Street Career Fest delivered.
The annual event wrapped up after a weekend of activities focused on creating opportunities to inspire growth and success, with a big emphasis on technology and entrepreneurship. The career fest began Friday at Arkansas Baptist College, where it was established years ago, and wrapped up today at the Hall of Industry at the Arkansas State Fairgrounds.
Organizers said the goal is to help level the playing field for graduates of historically Black colleges and universities.
“Look at the numbers when it comes to graduates from HBCUs, the numbers are not as high as when you graduate from a PWI. And so we wanted to make sure that we had a level playing field,” Edmond W. Davis, founder of the HBCU Black Wallstreet Career Fest, said. “So we invited some business owners to come back, we invited some entrepreneurs to come here and to have those honest conversations, but using AI, because when you think about it, only 100, no, I would say 15% of the 100 HBCUs have advanced AI modalities in terms of their curriculum.”
The weekend brought together more than 100 organizations, vendors and guests combined, including an Arkansas Baptist College graduate who said they were there to serve the community.
“I provide life insurance, pre needs, pre arrangements for one case, Medicare, I mean, financial literacy. I’m just here to service the community, and I’m so grateful and honored to be here,” Natasha said.
Technology support was also a major theme, including help for small businesses trying to keep up with fast-moving tools like artificial intelligence.
“I help small businesses implement AI into their business on the creative side. So I help them learn how to create images, animate the images, and then create small videos to make for their social media purposes,” Misti Martisse of Digital Glam Agency said. “I’m passionate about the community just advancing. You know, I feel like we always kind of like behind the eight ball. So for us, you know, it’s just, it’s our time. It’s an even playing field. Everybody needs to get into it, and it’s not going anywhere. It’s going to be here. It’s like the computer.”
Along with vendors and networking, the career fest featured panel discussions, keynote speeches and demonstrations, including drones. One presenter said drone piloting can be a natural next step for people who already enjoy gaming.
“You know, a lot of students, a lot of people in general, don’t realize the same skills that you use for gaming, which a lot of people do today, are transferable skills to be a drone pilot,” Steffanie Rivers of TCB Drones said. “And so we teach people how to pass the Part 107 exam so they can be certified drone pilots, because there are a lot of industries that are using drones.”
And for anyone worried about the price tag, organizers highlighted one more perk: The career fest is free and open to all demographics.
