By Meagan Pant Staff Writer, Dayton Daily News
WILBERFORCE —
Central State University’s new president Cynthia Jackson-Hammond has set “compelling priorities” for the historically black institution, but says she realizes the changes will come gradually.
“Central State University is just like a mega yacht, and you don’t turn yachts on the point of a dime. But you put into process those steps that help make sure the yacht turns evenly,” said Jackson-Hammond, who was previously lead education consultant for H & H Educational Consultants and has prior experience as provost and vice president for academic affairs at Coppin State University in Baltimore.
Jackson-Hammond, who took office in July to become the first female president in the university’s 125 years, has identified goals for Central State to address during the coming year. They include ensuring every student has quality collegiate and academic experiences, the university recruits students who are academically and financially prepared for college, the school’s operations are effective and efficient, and more students graduate and graduate in less time.
The new president has already established tenets of service, protocol and civility as ways Central State students will stand out.
Students have embraced those values in their daily lives, on T-shirts and in their classrooms and dorms, and “made it reality, rather than words,” Jackson-Hammond said.
“They’re truly attributes that we need to take in our daily lives,” said senior Teeya Skitter [Miss CSU], who represents the university in the CSU Man and CSU Woman campaign.
“It’s something that we as students can take beyond Central State. These are not values that we just have in-house. That’s how people will know the brand of Central State University,” said senior Christopher Aarone [Mister CSU], a Dayton native. “The atmosphere on campus is different and how we look at each other, not only on campus but representing campus. It’s improved. It’s developed. It’s something to take more pride in.”
Central State is unique in Ohio for its student body. The university enrolls the highest rate of students from Ohio’s urban, high-poverty high schools of any public institution in the state. Many students are the first in their family to go to college, and 93 percent qualify for the federal Pell Grant, financial aid given to low-income students.
Central State University in Wilberforce, Ohio, is one of the nation’s oldest historically black universities, with a 125-year legacy of academic and athletic achievements. The University actively promotes diversity in its student body, faculty and staff, even as the institution adheres to its core historical responsibility to educate young African American men and women.
