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User:JEdgarFreeman/Sandbox2

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Early life and career

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Nagin was born on June 11, 1956,[1] in New Orleans's Charity Hospital, to a low-income family.[2] His childhood was typical of the urban poor within the city,[2] and his father held three jobs; a janitor at New Orleans City Hall by night, a fabric cutter at the Haspel Brothers clothing factory by day, and a mechanic at Borden's Dairy,[3] to gain sufficient money to support his family, as well as Nagin's education.[4] His mother was employed at a lunch counter in a Kmart store.[1] The family lived on Allen Street in the 7th Ward, followed by a stay at Treme, and then a move to Cutoff section of Algiers when Nagin was a young teenager.[3] Nagin studied at O. Perry Walker High School in New Orleans, and was proficient at basketball and baseball.[1] He enrolled into Tuskegee University on a baseball scholarship,[4] and graduated in accountancy in 1978.[2] He was the second college graduate from his family.[3]

He then went to work for General Motors's purchasing department, afterwards moving to Los Angeles, and then to Dallas in 1981 to take a job with Associates Corp.[3] In 1982, Nagin married Seletha Smith, whom he had met in Algiers.[3] Together, they would have 3 children; Jeremy, Jarin, and Tianna.[1] In 1985, Nagin returned to New Orleans, becoming the controller of Cox New Orleans, the city's only cable television franchise,[3] run by the cable organization Cox.[1] The franchise had been affected by customer complaints, low profits, and very little growth,[1][3] and was one of the poorest performing components of Cox.[3] Nagin implemented an upgrade of the system to 750 Mhz,[3] spent $500 million on developing its fiber-optic cable,[1][3] and introduced new services, including digital cable television and telephony.[1] In 1989, he was appointed to command Cox New Orleans as vice-president and general manager,[1] and between 1985 and 2002 800 jobs were introduced into the business.[3] By the end of his tenure, 85% of customers reported being happy with the service, compared to less than half in 1989.[3] Cox New Orleans became one of Cox's best performing units.[3]

In 1993, Nagin enrolled into the executive MBA program at Tulane University, a course designed for managers.[3] Mark Miester argues that in his role as vice-president and general manager, Nagin gained an introduction to politics, having to lead a business whilst balancing customer and regulator concerns.[3] Nagin also had to lobby politicians and weigh in their viewpoints regarding Cox New Orleans, as it was regulated by the local government which was also behind renewing the business's contract.[1] In 1995, Nagin gained a Young Leadership Council Diversity and Role Model Award, and later sat on the boards of the United Way and Covenant House, as well as becoming the president of 100 Black Men, a national organization of African-American businessmen.[3] His public profile was higher than the average business executive because he hosted a twice-weekly television call-in show for customers.[3] His image in the public eye was further enhanced in 1998 when he became one of a dozen investors behind minor-league hockey team, the New Orleans Brass,[1] becoming the investors' spokesman, and securing a hockey franchise for New Orleans.[3] The initial popularity of the team allowed the group to secure New Orleans Arena as a venue.[3] That year, the local alternative newspaper Gambit Weekly named Nagin as its New Orleanian of the Year.[1]

Footnotes

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Ray Nagin Biography
  2. ^ a b c Despite controversy, Mayor Ray Nagin remains the champion of New Orleans
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s Ray Nagin
  4. ^ a b Profile: Ray Nagin

Sources

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