15 Alumni Honored among Black Business Ink Power 100

EAST GREENSBORO, N.C. (Sept. 4, 2023) – Fifteen North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University alumni were honored during this year’s 20^th anniversary Black Business Ink Power 100 Awards Ceremony.

The Power 100 Awards Ceremony recognizes 100 of the most influential leaders from across North Carolina in a variety of sectors, including educators, healthcare professionals, politicians, clergy and other professions and organizations. 

N.C. A&T’s alumni honorees were: 

• Adrian O. Baker ‘93, vice president, Food Lion LLC
• Camille Banks-Prince ‘98, district court judge, Forsyth County District Court
• Natalie Brown ‘94, senior director, Ally Financial
• Lora Cubbage ’03, superior court judge, Guilford County Superior Court
• Willie Deese ‘77, retired executive vice president and CEO, Merck Manufacturing Division
• Henry E. Frye Sr. ‘53, retired chief justice, N.C. Supreme Court
• Shirley T. Frye ‘53, retired corporate executive, A&T and WFMY-TV
• Kimberly Gatling ‘96, partner/chief diversity and inclusion officer, Fox Rothschild LLP
• Brian L. James ‘94, chief of police, UNC Chapel Hill
• Harold L. Martin Sr. ’73 & ‘75, Chancellor, A&T
• Ronald Penny ‘74, secretary of revenue, State of North Carolina
• Hilda Pinnix-Ragland ‘77, managing partner, AHK Global Resource
• Dmitri Stockton ‘86, retired president and CEO, GE Asset Management
• Gerald L. Walden Jr. ‘96, vice president/deputy general counsel, The Fresh Market
• Goldie Frinks Wells, Ed.D. ‘77 and ‘86, councilwoman, Greensboro City Council

“It’s a huge honor to be recognized,” said Gatling, who received her B.S. in electrical engineering from A&T.

Today, Gatling prosecutes federal, state and international trademark applications and manages global trademark portfolios.

“I do the work that I do both professionally, and in the community, because it’s meaningful to me,” she said. “Not because I expect to receive accolades. But, it’s nice to be recognized for my work both professionally and in the community.”

Wells, who has helped to fight for civil rights in Greensboro, North Carolina as councilwoman, shares the same sentiments.

“The work that I have done in the community and as a city councilwoman has been to help in our community,” she said. “So, it really is an honor to be recognized for what I’ve been able to do. It is also an honor to be named with such powerful 99 other people in North Carolina. I’m really thankful to Black Business Ink for the honor.”

The Power 100 Awards Ceremony is the singular event of the 2023 State of Black North Carolina Conference. 

Founded in May 2003, the annual conference brings together leaders statewide to address disparities in Black and brown communities.

“It was a very nice ceremony,” Gatling said. “The honorees were divided into segments. For example, law, judiciaries, business leaders, non-profit leaders, etc. There were also musicians and it was very well put together.”

The ceremony took place at the Steven Tanger Center for the Performing Arts, where all honorees were feted with musical entertainment and dance routines that paid homage to African American history and recording artists with North Carolina roots.