{"product_id":"mr-secretary-from-the-potato-fields-to-the-white-house-9798988299899","title":"Mr. Secretary: From the Potato Fields to the White House","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e Growing up in South Florida in the 1940s, Wilbert Bryant wanted nothing more than to help his disabled mother get enough money to build a house with electricity and running water. At age 8 he picked potatoes in the fields with his four brothers to help earn money for the family. In an era of segregation, the challenges of poverty would shape him into a man who forged a path through an HBCU education, romancing his lovely wife Emily, serving in Vietnam, Korea, Germany and England. Rising through the Army to the rank of colonel, mentored by Colin Powell, he returned to higher education as Vice President of Students Affairs at a Virginia HBCU. His daughter's heartbreaking murder thrust his family onto the national stage with news stories in every major national newspaper, articles in People Magazine and an interview on Oprah Winfrey's show. Becoming Virginia's Secretary of Education, he managed a $17-billion biannual budget, the largest in Virginia's state government. In the White House's Rose Garden, Wil defended Virginia's own education policy against the No Child Left Behind initiative. Starting his serious education at an HBCU, Wil ended his career strengthening HBCUs in George W. Bush's White House. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/cacorrectionsbookstore.com\/search?type=product%2Carticle%2Cpage\u0026amp;q=AUTH-18386577\"\u003eColonel Wilbert Bryant\u003c\/a\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e New Bay Books LLC\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 02\/28\/2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 320\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.27lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.00h x 6.00w x 0.87d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9798988299899\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBISAC Categories:\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e- \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/cacorrectionsbookstore.com\/search?type=product%2Carticle%2Cpage\u0026amp;q=CAT-BIO\"\u003eBiography \u0026amp; Autobiography\u003c\/a\u003e | \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/cacorrectionsbookstore.com\/search?type=product%2Carticle%2Cpage\u0026amp;q=BISAC-BIO008000\"\u003eMilitary\u003c\/a\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eThis title is not returnable\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"New Bay Books LLC","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46663357759627,"sku":"9798988299899","price":26.67,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0626\/5100\/7115\/files\/img_2f352c08-a550-4334-9191-d4f82de9d34e.jpg?v=1776448290","url":"https:\/\/cacorrectionsbookstore.com\/products\/mr-secretary-from-the-potato-fields-to-the-white-house-9798988299899","provider":"CA Corrections Bookstore","version":"1.0","type":"link"}