Women of Color Luncheon Planned for April 28

Fairmont State University will host the Women of Color Luncheon: A Celebration of Diversity and Achievement on Thursday, April 28. Honorees at the event will be Tiffany Walker Samuels and Priscilla Steed.

Organized by the Women of Color Committee and the Office of Student Services, the event will take place at 11:30 a.m. Thursday, April 28, in the Falcon Center third floor conference rooms. Lunch is $10 per plate. To RSVP, contact Trish Price at Trish.Price@fairmontstate.edu or (304) 367-4303. Checks may be made payable to FSU and mailed to the Office of the Vice President for Student Services, Attn: Trish Price, 1201 Locust Ave., Fairmont, WV 26554.

Tiffany Walker Samuels was born in Fairmont. She graduated from Fairmont Senior High School in 1988. While attending West Virginia University, she interned with Consolidated Coal Company as an engineering assistant for five years and acquired her Black Hat Experienced Miner Certification. At WVU, she was a four-year member of “The Pride of WV” marching band.

Through the engineering exchange program Samuels took the opportunity to study in the United Kingdom at the University of Hertfordshire in Hatfield, England. After returning from London, Samuels returned to WVU to obtain a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering in 1994.

Serving as President of the WVU Chapter of the National Society of Black Engineers enabled Samuels to showcase her education and experiences to various companies throughout the industry. Shortly after graduation, Motorola employed Tiffany as an applications engineer within the Semiconductor Product Sector located in Phoenix, Ariz. She continued her education through Motorola University and George Washington University to obtain a Master’s Certificate in Project Management in 2001. She was named program manager over the Global Customer Relationship Management Project. Her responsibilities included world-wide system requirements, development and training.

Samuels leveraged her project management experience by spinning off a separate company named ON Semiconductor. After eight years of service in the engineering field, she decided to focus her efforts on her growing family. She relocated to Monroe, La., to serve in her most cherished profession, domestic engineer (home maker), caring for her husband and four children for several years. Aeneas Williams Automotive Group contracted her to assist with business development.

Samuels returned to her hometown of Fairmont in 2007 to care for her ailing grandmother, Margie Moss. After her grandmother passed away, she decided to make “home” her permanent residence. She stepped in as the Executive Director for the United Way of Marion County in January of 2008 and remained there for seven years. Under her direction, Marion County has consistently reached its campaign fundraising goal each year accumulating more than $3.1 million dollars. While at the United Way, Samuels discovered her passion for working with an on behalf of people.  

Samuels has returned to her alma mater, West Virginia University to serve as the Director of Development for the Reed College of Media.

She was appointed to the ALC for the WV High Tech Foundation, was previously a member of American Association of University Women and the South Fairmont Rotary Club.  She currently serves on several community board of directors such as Augusta Development Corp as vice president, the Dunbar School Foundation, the Devante Waites Foundation as vice president, fundraising chair of Family Service of Marion and Harrison Counties and the Assistant Treasurer of the WVU Black Alumni Association. She is a member of Miles Chapel CME Church of Fairmont, pastored by Rev. Larry and Rev. Jessica Collins.

Samuels is the proud mother of four children: Justice, 20; Jazmin 18; Jenesis, 14; and Jeremiah, 11.

Priscilla Ann Steed is a native of Fairmont and a graduate of Fairmont Senior High School. She received a degree in Secretarial Science with an additional certificate in Data Entry from West Virginia Career College.

She and her husband Joe have three adult children: Robert, LeVar and Nila. Steed is also a doting grandmother to three grandchildren: Kordell and Taysia, along with Robert III (who is now their adopted son). The Steeds are both certified foster/adoptive parents. Steed has a wonderful mother who is 90 years old and two sisters and one brother. 

Steed is a member of Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church of Fairmont, where she serves as the church clerk, deaconess, superintendent of Sunday school and vice president of the Mission Society. She is one of the founding members of the Deacon Jessie Edwards/Sis. Anna McCright Undergraduate Scholarship Foundation sponsored by Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church and is also a founding member of the Dunbar School Foundation. Steed is currently the vice president of the Marion County NAACP organization. She has been a daughter of the Elks and is presently a Sister of the Order of Eastern Star, Ruth Chapter #37, having served as Past Worthy Matron and Associate Grand Matron. Additionally, she served as team leader for the Fairmont Community Partnership at the NeighborWorks Resident Community Leadership Conference; as a mentor for the Pearl & Diamonds for Young Girls program; as president of the Homeowners Community Club under the Fairmont Community Partnership; and has chaired the Action Committee for Neighborhoods Revitalizing Windmill Park Area (Family Section).

For the past 27 years, Steed has worked as an administrative secretary within the College of Liberal Arts, working for both the Department of Social Sciences and the Department of Behavioral Sciences. During her time at Fairmont State, she participated in the first group of administrative assistants who headed up the One-Stop Shop pilot cross-training program for student services. She has served on campus committees such as the Human & Equity Relations Committee, the Committee on Race Relations and the committee that established the first Women of Color Luncheon program under the leadership of Dr. Eunice Green-Thompson. In 1999, she received the Fairmont State Achiever's Award; and in 2008, she was nominated for the Classified Employee of the Year.

Women of Color LuncheonPriscilla SteedTiffany Walker Samuels