Pictured: from left to right: Mimi Woldeyohannes, director of external affairs at Center for Black Educator Development, and Nicole Golden, Hillsborough teacher and president of HABSE].

Halfacre Construction Company, a Lakewood Ranch-based commercial construction company, recently donated $1,000 to Nicole Golden, Hillsborough teacher and president of HABSE, the local chapter of the National Alliance of Black School Educators (NABSE), to help fund her trip to Washington D.C. to serve as a panelist for The White House Initiative on Advancing Educational Equity, Excellence and Economic Opportunity for Black Americans. The commercial construction company’s director of community and business diversity, Eric Graham, met Golden three years ago during his time working with Hillsborough County Public Schools. The Celebration of Black Educator Excellence: Education as a Form of Resistance event that Golden was a panelist for took place on Tuesday, Feb. 1 at the Bernard auditorium, located in the U.S. Department of Education in Washington D.C. The event celebrated the resilience, innovation and achievements of black educators in history and facilitated conversation among participating individuals, institutions and organizations interested in engaging relevant stakeholders about the White House initiative.

Pictured: from left to right: Mimi Woldeyohannes, director of external affairs at Center for Black Educator Development, and Nicole Golden, Hillsborough teacher and president of HABSE].