The Georgia Tech African American Student Union and the 50th Anniversary of Matriculation of Black Students at Georgia Tech are co-sponsoring a Town Hall Panel on Saturday, March 12, from 2:45 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Klaus Atrium.  The Town Hall Panel will feature co-authors Randal Pinkett and Jeffrey Robinson (a Georgia Tech alumnus), who wrote Black Faces in White Places.

Pinkett has established himself as an entrepreneur, scholar, author and speaker. He is the chairman and CEO of BCT Partners, a multimillion-dollar consulting firm based in Newark, NJ, that specializes in information technology, organizational development and public policy.

Pinkett was the season four winner of NBC’s hit reality television show, The Apprentice, the first and only African American winner. A sought-after speaker for corporate, government and community groups, he has appeared on CNN, Fox, The Today Show and Nightline. In 2009, he was named to then New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine’s official shortlist as a potential running mate for lieutenant governor. He is the author of Campus CEO: The Student Entrepreneur’s Guide to Launching a Multimillion-Dollar Business and No-Money Down CEO: How to Start Your Dream Business with Little or No Cash.

Pinkett is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Incorporated, the National Society of Black Engineers, the National Black MBA Association, the Information Technology Senior Management Forum and Black Data Processing Associates.  He is also a member of the board of directors for the New Jersey Economic Development Authority, New Jersey Public Policy Research Institute, the Nonprofit Technology Enterprise Network and the National Visionary Leadership Project. He is a spokesperson for Autism Speaks, New Jersey Reads, Junior Achievement of New York, and the Minority Information Technology Consortium.

Pinkett holds five degrees including: a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Rutgers University, where he competed on the track and field team as a high jumper and long jumper; a Master of Science in Computer Science from the University of Oxford in England; and a Master of Science in Electrical Engineering, Master of Business Administration, and Doctor of Philosophy in Media Arts and Sciences from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.  He also received an honorary doctorate from the New Jersey Institute of Technology. Most notably, he was the first and only African American at Rutgers to receive a Rhodes Scholarship.

Georgia Tech graduate Jeff Robinson is an award-winning business school professor, international speaker and entrepreneur. Since 2008 he has been a leading faculty member at Rutgers Business School, where he is an assistant professor of management and entrepreneurship and the founding assistant director of The Center for Urban Entrepreneurship & Economic Development. The Center is a unique interdisciplinary venue for innovative thinking and research on entrepreneurial activity and economic development in urban environments. 

Robinson’s research examines how business practices and entrepreneurship can shape societal issues, with particular emphasis on community and economic development issues for urban metropolitan areas in the United States and abroad. He is the author of books and articles on such topics as social entrepreneurship, African American women in entrepreneurship, and Black unemployment. In 2007, he received the Aspen Institute’s Social Impact Faculty Pioneer Award for his research, service and teaching activities at the intersection of business and society.

Robinson is a sought-after speaker, author and media commentator, having appeared on Dateline NBC and NBC Nightly News, PBS, NJN News, NJBIZ, and in The Star-Ledger and The New York Times. The keynote speaker at international events and conferences in Shanghai, Lagos and London, he has been invited to present his work on six continents.

Robinson is co-founder and a member of the Advisory Board of BCT Partners, which provides management, technology and policy consulting to non-profits, foundations, corporations and government entities as they plan and implement change strategies to improve organizational effectiveness. In 2008 he and his wife, Valerie Mason-Robinson, opened Eden Organix, a day spa and retailer of organic skin and beauty products in Highland Park, New Jersey, that has been recognized by New Jersey Magazine as one of the 10 best spas in the state.

Robinson has completed five academic degrees in the areas of engineering, urban studies and management including a Doctor of Philosophy in Management and Organizations from Columbia Business School and a Master’s of Science in Civil Engineering from Georgia Tech. He lives in Piscataway, New Jersey, with his wife and their three children.

The authors will have a book signing immediately following the forum discussion.