Black Employees at Drexel (BEAD)
Our Mission
- Foster a sense of community through support and engagement.
- Serve as a united voice to represent the needs of the Black community at Drexel University
- Cultivate an open atmosphere of collaboration, dialogue and engagement within Drexel University's Black community.
- Encourage professional achievement, scholarship and research opportunities among Black faculty, professional staff and students.
- Create and advertise social and educational opportunities to strengthen the University's knowledge regarding cultural awareness; cultivate a community of social responsibility; and improve outcomes within our university community.
Our Vision
BEAD (formally BFPSA) is committed to enhancing the experience of faculty, professional staff and students at Drexel University by focusing on education, mentoring, community involvement and networking.
To subscribe to the listserv, please email listserv@lists.drexel.edu with "Subscribe BEAD-L" as the subject line. For more information, please email BEAD@drexel.edu.
Annual Events
Below are annual events organized or co-sponsored by BEAD. BEAD also offers other events and activities throughout the year, such as wellness, social responsibility, and arts.
Fall Term
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October
Black Dragon Meet & Greet -
December
Year End Mixer
Winter Term
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January
Civic Engagement Hours -
February
Black History Month Luncheon
Spring Term
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April
Social Hour
Summer Term
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June
Juneteenth Block Party
Our Eboard
Ahaji Schreffler, BEAD’s President, is the Senior Director of Education Abroad in Drexel’s Office of Global Engagement, where she leads the Education Abroad team in strategy and program development. Ahaji also teaches community-based intensive study abroad courses to Haiti and Ecuador. In her 18+ years at Drexel, Ahaji’s passion for community and inclusion have inspired her to serve on BEAD’s executive board since 2012 (as Vice President and President). She is also the founder and facilitator of Drexel’s Meditation Group, which has connected people through self-care, mindfulness, and compassion since 2012. Ahaji served as one of the two co-administrators of Drexel’s Anti-Racism Task Force and is now the DEI Liaison on the CORE Team for Drexel’s Strategic Plan. Outside of work, Ahaji is the Founder and President of We The Village, a grassroots non-profit that supports children at Love Orphanage in Haiti through health and education.
Allen Riddick is the Executive Director, Supplier Inclusion for Drexel University where he works within Accounts Payable & Procurement Services to ensure equal procurement access and local workforce opportunity. He works alongside Drexel’s Accounts Payable & Procurement Services and serves as a resource to all University departments for increasing spend with small, minority, women, veteran, service-disabled and LGBTQ+-owned businesses.
Allen is a current Board member for the Women’s Business Enterprise Council East and Vice President of BEAD. He is a former board member of the Institute of Supply Chain Management (ISM -Philadelphia) and serves as co-chair on West Philadelphia’s Promise Zone Workforce & Economic Committee, strategic leader for Women 100 VisionForward, and Turner Construction Diversity Committee.
Shardé Johnson, BEAD’s Events Liaison, is the executive director of diversity, inclusion and belonging, the inaugural director of the Center for Black Culture, and a proud member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. A Philadelphia native, Sharde has dedicated her career to fostering inclusive and supportive communities for students for the past 15 years both domestically and internationally. She has had a range of experiences within higher education including residence life, housing, international scholar services and study abroad. In her free time Shardé enjoys listening to podcasts, taking walks throughout the city, practicing Portuguese and maintaining her Wordle streak. As a Black Dragon and Drexel alum, she is thrilled to serve on the BEAD executive board.
Bernetta McCall-Millonde, BEAD’s Student Liaison, is Director of Diversity Initiatives and Community Relations in the Office of Undergraduate Admissions and serves as the Director of the Liberty Scholars Program in the Center for Inclusive Education and Scholarship. She is a trusted and respected leader across Drexel’s campus, emphasizing the value college-aspiring students from marginalized communities bring to the Drexel community, advocating for their needs, and addressing challenges of historically underrepresented students. Bernetta is a trained Train-the-Trainer facilitator committed to team building, ensuring that team members understand and own their roles in the big picture and inclusion to become confident, independent thinkers whose contributions will continue to propel collective group success.