80-Year-Old Receives Degree At Alabama A&M University

Posted by HBCU Editors
Posted on

When the more than 400 Alabama A&M University undergraduate and graduate students walk across the stage to receive their degrees on Friday, December 6, positioned proudly among them will be an 80-year-old social work major from Birmingham, Ala.

Donzella Washington was born in Memphis, Tenn., but was raised in Los Angeles.  While in California, she met her husband, a tall, handsome man from Bakersfield, at a church.  They had both been praying for a special person to enter their lives, and she truly believes the Spirit led them to each other.

The couple lived on a farm in Pixley, Calif., located in Tulare County, between Bakersfield and Fresno until his death.  During their decades on the farm, however, some 30 foster children, intertwined with their own, called the farm home and left to make their marks on the world.   That lot now includes an attorney, radiation technologist, master electrician, professor and other professionals.

Washington recalls that as a child she stuttered badly, and it had a major impact on her self-esteem.  She eventually overcame it, but she was well into her thirties and had to take four speech classes at the College of the Sequoias to defeat the problem.  In the end, she slowly gained her confidence and was able to manage her thoughts and to be patient with herself.

In her early adult years, her loving husband was always there for her, she said, encouraging her to take bigger steps and to broaden her horizons.  Although she ventured into real estate at a local bank for 18 years, she never really found the time to complete a college degree. 

After her husband died, Washington eventually moved to live with her daughter in Fultondale, Ala., a northern Birmingham suburb.  She later read about a satellite program that AAMU operated on the Lawson State Community College campus down in Birmingham.  Soon, she started taking courses in 2013, testing the waters with just a course or two. 

On Friday, December 6, at the Von Braun Center at 1 p.m., Washington will achieve a dream she dedicates to her late husband.  She will receive her degree in social work, graduating magna cum laude with a 3.64 GPA.  She achieved a 4.0 during her final semester.

In an interview conducted with Washington by AAMU President Andrew Hugine, Jr., the 80-year-old said she wants to inspire the old and young to believe in themselves and their ability to achieve.

When asked about her next step, she told Dr. Hugine that she can envision herself going into nursing homes on a quest to inspire others.  She added that she has even considered returning for her master’s.

Donate To HBCUs

Posted by Luke Lawal Jr.
Posted on

Year-round, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUS) tend to be overlooked and underfunded. That can impact the ability for schools to hire adequate faculty, offer more classes, compete in sports, keep housing updated and more. To help, we have compiled a list of HBCUs that could use your help. These colleges make it easy by allowing donors to give online with a credit card. Many make it even easier by accepting donations through PayPal, by phone, mail, and even recurring gifts.

[table id=37 /]

Please email us if your school needs to be added to the list.

Bernie Sanders Unveils Substantive Plan To Support HBCUs

Posted by HBCU Editors
Posted on

On the heels of Sen. Bernie Sanders’ (D-Vt) HBCU tour last week, the 2020 presidential candidate has released the most substantive plan to support Historically Black Colleges and Universities of the Democratic field, according to a release.

Sanders proposes a multi-billion dollar plan to make private and public HBCUs tuition-free, an Executive Order to eradicate systemic racism impairing HBCUs, the cancelation of burdening public loan debt held by HBCUs, and targeted funding to address disparities in health care, education, and agriculture affecting Black people and other marginalized communities. 

Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders speaks to a crowd of HBCU students on the campus of Morehouse College.
PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE BERNIE SANDERS SPEAKS TO A CROWD OF HBCU STUDENTS ON THE CAMPUS OF MOREHOUSE COLLEGE.

Additionally, Sanders will dedicate $5 billion to expand HBCU and MSI teaching programs and an additional $5 billion to recruit, train, and retain Black K-12 teachers. His plan also ensures teachers will receive a minimum $60,000 per year salary. 

Sanders also set aside billions of dollars in Green New Deal research funds for HBCUs and MSIs to make sure occupied and targeted Black, Latinx, and Indigenous communities “who are most predisposed to the effects of climate change, are guaranteed a role in an expansive plan to transform our country’s energy system and create 20 million new jobs,” according to his campaign’s press release.

 “All over this country, too many HBCUs have struggled financially from a lack of federal resources, they’ve suffered from a drop in enrollment and from crushing institutional debt. And yet today, the need for HBCUs and the education they provide has never been greater,” Sanders said during an event at Morehouse College, which drew 2,000 people.

https://twitter.com/tregodtv/status/1199776986291408898

As the Sanders’ campaign notes, “Had student debt been canceled in 2016, the wealth gap between Black families under the age of 40 and their white counterparts would have shrunk from 12 to 1 where it is today, to 5 to 1.”

Sanders’ 2020 National Co-Chair Nina Turner, National Press Secretary Briahna Joy Gray, HBCU Outreach Coordinator, and surrogates Phillip Agnew and Ja’Mal Green met with students at Tennessee State University, Alabama State University and Tuskegee University, before the tour culminated at Morehouse.

Lizzo’s New “Good As Hell” Video Features Southern University’s Marching Band

Posted by Brittany Ireland
Posted on

Lizzo has released another video for her hit single “Good As Hell,” released in 2016.

In the new video, you’ll notice the superstar on the campus of an HBCU, Southern University and A&M College, to be exact. Glimpses of campus —the classroom, field, locker room and school bus— are all throughout the 3min and 45 sec video… and Lizzo even sports the uniform of the marching band, Human Jukebox.

Watch the official video here:

At the end of the video, Lizzo sends a special thanks to the Human Jukebox and The Fabulous Dancing Dolls.

Military Veterans Give Leadership Advice To Cadets During ROTC Leadership Week

Posted by HBCU Editors
Posted on

Seasoned military personnel visited Alcorn State University to engage with cadets from the Department of Military Science about being quality leaders.

The Department recently hosted its inaugural ROTC Week. Several alumni veterans participated in various panels in the J. D. Boyd Library Medgar Evers Auditorium. The veterans talked to the cadets about the tools for a successful career in the military and other professions.

One of the speakers was Maj. Gen. Donna Martin, a commanding general of the United States Army Maneuver Support Center of Excellence and Fort Leonard Wood in Missouri. She spoke to the students about exiting their comfort zones and being open and honest about the issues they face. She encouraged them to let their voices be the instruments that enforce positive changes in the future.

“I want you all to take advantage of the opportunity to talk when in the presence of a senior leader,” said Martin. “Open up and talk about the issues that are important to you because the next generation of the Army is not mine, it’s yours. My responsibility is to teach and provide guidance to you and the rest of the next generation of leaders.”

Martin also shared with the cadets about building a reputation that fits a good leader.

“As you grow up in the Army, people will describe you. It is up to you how those people will describe you, so you must display good leadership qualities such as being approachable, charismatic, courageous, and being a good person.”

Other panelists gave cadets advice about carrying the torch into the future. Cyrus Russ, assistant vice president for Athletic Compliance and Academic Services and U.S. Army veteran, advised the students to gain trust by being there for their peers, colleagues, and fellow soldier.

“My priority always has been to build trust,” said Russ. “My soldiers had to have confidence that I would be there to deliver every time. I had to show them that I was always willing to sacrifice for them. Once you gain trust, your troops will follow you anywhere. If you apply this principle to the military and your personal and professional lives, you will be successful at building a good foundation.”

Another Alcornite, Sector Commander/Capt. Kevin Reed, for the United States Coast Guard Sector Long Island Sound, spoke on the importance of displaying excellent customer service.

“While at Alcorn, I learned to under-promise and over-deliver,” said Reed. “There may be times where you won’t have the answer, but you may have some insight or interpersonal connections that you have developed through others. These qualities connect with your reputation because you then become the person who is willing to go the extra mile to help someone with what they need. Your assistance goes a long way in building your reputation and getting jobs in the future.”

The students gave positive feedback about the Department’s first ROTC event, and they look forward to future engagement programs.

Central State University Aquaponics Day

Posted by HBCU Editors
Posted on

Join Central State University (CSU) Extension and Ohio State University (OSU) Extension for a tour of the aquaponics facilities at CSU. Participants will be able to view a working system growing tilapia and lettuce. A second larger system is being built inside a greenhouse on the CSU Research Farm for demonstration and participants will be able to see the progress.

The tour will take place on Tuesday, December 17, 2019 from 4 p.m.— 5:30 p.m. at the Central State University Greenhouse located in front of the Center for Education & Natural Sciences Building located on 1523 State Route 42 Wilberforce, Ohio.  Enter through the main campus entrance off State Route 42 (watch for signs).

This free event also includes presentations by Matt Smith, Aquaculture Specialist, OSU Extension; Dr. Krishna Kumar Nedunuri, CSU Water Quality Specialist; and Dr. Cindy Folck, CSU Extension.

To register emailDr. Cindy Folck afolck@centralstate.edu and use subject line: Aquaponics.

About Central State University:

Central State University, located in Wilberforce, Ohio, is a regionally accredited 1890 Land-Grant University with a 132-year tradition of preparing students from diverse backgrounds and experiences for leadership, research and service. The University, which has been named 2017 HBCU of the Year byHBCU Digest, fosters academic excellence within a nurturing environment and provides a strong liberal arts foundation and STEM-Ag curriculum leading to professional careers and advanced studies globally.

SCLC Founding Member And 3-Time HBCU Grad, Dr. D.O. Simpkins Dies At 94

Posted by HBCU Editors
Posted on

SHREVEPORT TIMES – C.O. Simpkins was a founding member of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference in 1960 and worked with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. until King’s death in 1968.ADVERTISING

Simpkins was born in 1925 in Mansfield. He left the state to attend college — at Wiley College in Texas and Tennessee State University, where he received his undergraduate degree.

He pursued dentistry,earning a Doctorate of Dental Surgery from Meharry Medical College School of Dentistry in Nashville, Tennessee.

Simpkins served in the Air Force until 1951 and he returned to Shreveport to practice dentistry. Read more via Shrevepoint Times.

Morehouse School of Medicine Professor Discusses Unique Mental Health Risks

Posted by HBCU Editors
Posted on

WebMD shares: Gail Mattox, MD, a professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta, has been working for more than 30 years as a psychiatrist.

She has gotten grant funding to take a deeper look into behavioral health in a university setting, particularly at historical black universities like Morehouse.

Kisha Holden, PhD, is a psychologist who worked with Mattox to address health disparities and health issues that may be problems in various communities.

“We both believe that the mental health of the African American community is important,” Holden says. “We try to look at our students from a holistic and comprehensive perspective.”

Because primary care doctors may not recognize or know how to diagnose mental health issues, Holden says it’s important to get beyond the initial clinical setting.

They look to find out what is happening to the whole self, “and not exclusively at what their presenting problem may be at a medical facility.”

“We want to look deeper into the issues that contribute to or prompt some of the health problems they see. We’re pulling the Band-Aid back and looking at what may be some of the underlying problems,” she says.

Getting out of the clinical setting is key, Holden says. It’s difficult enough to get people to voluntarily come in for an appointment.

“Try and meet the patient or potential patient where they are,” she says. “Go into the community and have trust. Have stakeholders important in that community, and respecting them is certainly a part of how we build the trust and subsequently connect them to care.”

“We would go out to the community church and school and be part of the community to be aware of the signs and symptoms of psychological illness and the importance of overall health.” Read more via WebMD.

On His 100th Birthday, Tuskegee Airman Takes To The Skies To Celebrate

Posted by HBCU Editors
Posted on

FREDERICK, Md. (WUSA) — Most birthdays don’t involve a $3 million private jet, but Charles McGee wanted to celebrate his 100th birthday in the air.

“It took me a half-second to decide,” Boni Calderia of Cirrus Aircraft, who was asked to take McGee flying, said. 

The former Tuskegee Airman from Bethesda turns 100 on Saturday, and said as he climbed into the pilot’s seat of a Cirrus Vision Jet, that his birthday was not about him.

“Aviation is an important technology and something we hope all youngsters get an interest in,” McGee said, surrounded by local and national media covering the celebration at Frederick Municipal Airport.

During World War II, white pilots went home after 50 missions, but McGee flew 136 flights over Nazi Europe. McGee then served in Korea and Vietnam and earned the Congressional Gold Medal.

Calderia said the centenarian was young again at the controls, even though the jet was hardly the P-51 fighter McGee flew in World War II.

“He’s mentally ahead of me,” Calderia said, noting that McGee “hand flew” without the aid of autopilot for almost all of the flight. “He’s still looking forward—to me that’s what keeps him going. It’s truly inspiring. No matter what your age, you have a contribution to make.”

The pair flew to Dover Air Force Base in Delaware before returning to cheers in Frederick.

Before going into a hangar birthday party, McGee said he hopes to inspire everybody– especially young people– to take flight.

“It’s so important that everything we do is an inspiration for them and moving them in the right direction,” McGee said.

Five Women From HBCUs Are Top Contestants In Footaction’s No 1 Way Design Program

Posted by HBCU Editors
Posted on

Black people and black culture shape popular culture and fashion. Yet and still, leadership within the fashion industry does not often reflect the people from the communities in which they draw their inspiration from.

Some may argue that the lack of representation at the top is due to a skill or knowledge gap–while others may claim that there are many barriers to entry. In this case, both sentiments are true. That is why Footaction created the No 1 Way Design Academy in partnership with two Portland, Oregon based black-owned design academies PENSOLE and FAAS Studio to build a pipeline to get designers from historically black colleges and universities into the industry.

Footaction is committed to amplifying and celebrating the next wave of creative visionaries who continue to push the culture forward. As a part of that commitment, the design academy offers No 1 Way competition which aims to foster diversity of talent and champion the idea of creative individuality.

In August, Footaction made an open call to over 85 HBCUs to participate in a six-week digital and in-person design intensive. Hundreds of students applied to be a part of the program by sending in their designs, but, only 10 students were selected to participate in the FAAS at PENSOLE online program to refine their designs. From there, the competition was cut in half and the top five finalists (which so happen to be five young women) relocated to Portland for a 3-week hands-on design academy at the FAAS Studio.

This post was written by Lydia Blanco, a writer at Black Enterprise, where it was originally published. It is published here with permission.

HBCU Student Voters Are Tired Of Joe Biden Clinging To Barack Obama’s Legacy

Posted by HBCU Editors
Posted on

ATLANTA — Ask a young black voter in Atlanta about Joe Biden’s presidential campaign and you’ll likely be met with an exasperated sigh, a side-eye, or a grimace before they launch into a frustrated answer about the former vice president.

The young voters say they’re tired of Biden tying the promise of his campaign to former president Barack Obama’s legacy and what they see as older generations of black voters’ inability to see past that legacy in support of another candidate who just might push the country in a more progressive direction.

“It really bothers me!” Ayanna Ucheena Woodfolk, 18, a freshman at Spelman College, said of Biden’s stronghold on older black voters. “I think it’s because they think, He was with Obama, so he must be OK. But it’s really important to, even if they look good, listen to what they’re saying and at least attempt to learn about them.”

“If you’re paying a little bit of attention at all, it just seems like he doesn’t seem to have the gusto that I need. I feel like we need someone who’s going to be a champion for people like me, and he doesn’t have what it takes to be the president for people like me,” Ucheena Woodfolk added.

Over a dozen young black people who spoke with BuzzFeed News at a nonpartisan debate night watch party hosted by Black Youth Vote and Georgia Stand-Up at Georgia State University and at Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders rallies in Atlanta this past week said that there’s a clear generational divide that’s formed between older and younger cohorts of black voters when it comes to what they’re expecting from a presidential candidate. Older black voters’ willingness to quickly give their support to Biden is frustrating, they said, and concerning for their futures.

“I want change. I don’t want the next 20 years to look like the previous 20 years,” said Bryan Bloomfield, a senior at Morehouse College.

“They know he’ll move the needle just enough maybe, and I think they believe that’s good enough and any progress is better than no progress to them. I don’t believe that just moving two feet is enough — Malcolm X once said, ‘If there’s a knife in my back and it’s 9 inches deep and you take it out 6 inches, you haven’t done anything to help me really,’” Bloomfield said.

The Biden campaign pushed back on that characterization and connected BuzzFeed News with two students who volunteer and intern with the campaign through Students for Biden and with Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta, a 29-year-old Philadelphia state representative who has endorsed Biden’s campaign.

“He’s always made that case that you have to solidify the gains that you’ve made and then go further,” said Kenyatta.

Read more here.

Nas Is Partnering With TMCF To Help Students Attend Grad School At An Historically Black College

Posted by HBCU Editors
Posted on

Nas, the Thurgood Marshall College Fund, and Hennessy — the cognac company the rapper endorses — have teamed up to help students attend graduate school at an HBCU.

They’re doing so by giving scholarships of up to $20,000 for each academic year, and the money will be for those doing graduate work at an accredited HBCU. Plus, the students will be given a $10,000 yearly stipend for additional expenses related to their studies.

Nas has teamed up with Hennessy and the Thurgood Marshall College Fund to help people pay for their graduate course at an HBCU. (Photo: Johnny Nunez / WireImage via Getty Images)

The initiative is called “Hennessy Fellows,” and the cognac company has pledged to give $10 million over the next decade to the Thurgood Marshall College Fund to help students pay for their corporate-relevant grad courses, according to the TMCF website. 

Recipients will also be provided with corporate training and development, as well as one-on-one executive coaching, access to online training forums and professional networking.

After those interested go through an application process, the program will choose 10 high-performing graduate students each year, and applications have to be turned in on or before Dec. 31, 2019. 

The recipients will be announced in 2020, and the scholarship money will be given before the upcoming fall semester. And it’s for anyone who’s attending an accredited HBCU or enrolled in a Predominantly Black Institution graduate program.

“Hennessy’s mantra is all about pushing the limits of one’s potential and breaking down barriers,” said Nas in a press release. “‘Never stop. Never settle’ is more than a slogan. It is the creative engine driving our partnership and the motivational compass directing me to push for new limits every day, in the studio, on the stage and in business.”

“Thurgood Marshall College Fund’s mission of ‘changing the world one leader at a time’ is right in line with pushing those same boundaries,” he added. 

Morgan State Professor Explains Why Post-Thanksgiving Trump Polls Matter Most

Posted by HBCU Editors
Posted on

Chris Walker of Hill Reporter shares: Thanksgiving is a time of year that a lot of people went home to loved ones from far away to reminisce and talk about what’s been happening in their lives since they last saw each other.

Image result for donald trump voting
Bloomberg

It was also a time, at least for this year, to talk about politics, one journalism professor contends.

Dr. Jason Johnson, who teaches at Morgan State University, and is also a politics editor at The Root, spoke to hosts on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” program on Friday to discuss how attitudes have changed in the U.S. regarding people’s feelings on President Donald Trump.

Joe Scarborough was discussing swing states for 2020, and noted how Trump’s numbers seemed to be going down in some key areas he won in 2016.

“In these states, it looks like the states are breaking pretty hard against him,” the host noted.

Johnson agreed, pointing out that it probably didn’t help that a lot of families talked about things outside their traditional political bubbles over the holiday.

“It’s the polls after Thanksgiving that matter,” Johnson explained. “It’s once everybody went home, and had conversations with their family, and talked to the graduating seniors, and talked to uncles, and talked to grandmas, that’s where we start seeing how America feels.” Read more via Hill Reporter.

FAMU Quarterback Ryan Stanley Finalist For The Black College Football Player Of The Year

Posted by HBCU Editors
Posted on

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) — Florida A&M University’s redshirt senior quarterback Ryan Stanley has been announced as one of the finalist for the Black College Football Player of the Year Award.

According to the FAMU Athletics Department, Stanley was among four nominees selected for the award on Friday.

They say the Pembroke Pines native was an All-Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference First Team selection and finished the 2019 season by going 193 of 321 passing for 2,566 yards, with 23 touchdowns and seven interceptions.

Stanley also owns the school’s record for passing attempts, passing completions, passing touchdowns and passing yards.

Read more via WTXL.

Roger Ray Scores 45 Points, Breaks Livingstone Colleges Scoring Record

Posted by HBCU Editors
Posted on

HBCU Gameday — In a game which saw eight ties and nine lead changes where Roger Ray became the all-time leading scorer in Livingstone men’s basketball history, the as LC outlasted Virginia State, 128-122 in two overtimes.

Ray finished the game with 45 points and officially ascended as Blue Bear leading scorer when he made two free throws midway through the second half. Read more via HBCU Gameday.

Senate Passed HBCU Funding Bill, FAFSA Changes

Posted by HBCU Editors
Posted on

Inside Higher Ed reports: The bipartisan deal announced Tuesday to amend legislation tied to funding historically black colleges and universities and other minority-serving institutions is moving quickly. It’s already been passed in the U.S. Senate.

In addition to making permanent $255 million in annual funding to those institutions, the so-called FUTURE Act would also simplify the Free Application for Federal Student Aid and eliminate paperwork for the 7.7 million federal student loan borrowers currently on income-driven repayment plans by automating income recertification.

This was the latest attempt at compromise after Senator Lamar Alexander, the Tennessee Republican who chairs the education committee, proposed a package of bills that was seen as a piecemeal approach to reauthorization of the Higher Education Act.

“By permanently extending funding for these valuable institutions and streamlining our student aid system, this deal is a win-win. Now, I look forward to continuing to work with my Republican colleagues on efforts to overhaul the Higher Education Act in a comprehensive, bipartisan way that does right by all students,” Senator Patty Murray, a Democrat from Washington and the ranking member on the Senate education committee, said in a statement.

Read more via Inside Higher Ed.