Throughout the last five decades, African-American unemployment has been almost twice that of the general population of the United States. Currently, African-American unemployment is reported at 13 percent nationwide, while the unemployment rate of the nation is 7.0 percent. The only ethnic group that continues to have a higher unemployment rate than African-Americans is Native Americans. Race still matters! However, key attitudes and skills necessary for successful career management are lacking in many African-Americans. This is the first book of its kind targeting African-American employment development. When Your Parachute is Black is not just another book on career development. It is a learning system which transforms how African-Americans view work now and into the future. The readers experience the power of passion and visioning, taking them beyond survival or "just getting by," to thriving! When Your parachute is Black provides answers to five critical questions by providing African-Americans with the opportunity to elevate their skills, accomplishments, values, strengths, weaknesses, likes and dislikes in a manner that reduces the opportunity for discrimination. More importantly, readers learn how to pursue their passion or vision while creating value for perspective employers. The techniques presented in When Your Parachute is Black provide African-Americans with the management skills necessary to successfully navigate the twenty-first century job market. It is written for African-American job seekers of all ages who are interested in becoming the best they can be in all facets of their lives. A website, yourblackparachute.com has been established to update concepts presented and to allow African-American job seekers to share their challenges and solutions to ongoing acts of exclusion.
About the Author: Dr. William M. White graduated from Bluefield State College, a historically black college in Bluefield, WV, with a bachelor of science degree in chemistry and mathematics. He completed a two year business management course designed for scientists through Alexander Hamilton Institute in Ramsey, NJ. He earned a doctor of education in leadership and change from Fielding Graduate University, Santa Barbara, CA and a graduate certificate from Harvard University's School of Graduate Education in Management and Leadership Education (MLE), designed specifically for academic deans and provosts. Dr. White was the founding dean of Mountain State University's Charles H. Polk School of Leadership and Professional Development and the architect of the research based doctor of executive leadership. He also served as dean of the School of Graduate Studies where he was responsible for all graduate education which included leadership, nursing, psychology, criminal justice, physician assistants and graduate independent studies. Dr. White gained much of his higher education experience while working as a course developer and instructor at the University of California, Davis. Dr. White's publications include a chapter in a doctoral text book on developing leadership as a discipline and two books that he coauthored: Apex Thinking: A Guide to Long-term Leadership for the Raising CEO and What Leaders Believe: Understanding Leadership Intuition and Intellect. In November 2010, Dr. White was appointed to the nine member West Virginia Board of Education by Governor Joe Manchin for a nine year term. The board is responsible for a budget of $2.8 billion. Dr. White is the only African-American serving on the board. Before returning to West Virginia eight years ago, Dr. White worked in New York and California and internationally for over 30 years as a research chemist and executive for Fortune 100 companies including Alza Corporation, Abbott Labs, and Geigy Pharmaceuticals, to name a few. He worked as an outplacement consultant with Lee Hecht Harrison and Drake Bean Morin for over 14 years. This work was the impetus for When Your Parachute is Black. Currently, Dr. White serves on several local, state and national boards promoting learning and achievement. He is very active with KAPPA ALPHA PSI Fraternity at the local, province and national levels. He is the proud father of Aaron R. White of Huntington, WV. Dr. White loves working with people to promote lifelong learning.