Wale Makes History With the State of the Union Performance

Posted by Tommy G. Meade Jr.
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Yesterday, Wale made history by becoming the first rapper to open the State of the Union preshow.

We’re not sure what’s more cool, the fact that the HBCU Buzz Top 30 Under 30 member got the incredible opportunity to perform and open Obama’s last the State of the Union, or how awesome our president is.

The country in general, and in particular the black college community, it seems, will miss Obama after he finishes his last term in office.

The DC native said he was humbled by the opportunity and wanted to thank the president for the experience, “The leader of the free world having a rapper in the White House. God bless him. Hip-hop forever,” he said.

From Hip-Hop Wired:

Wale is no stranger to the White House grounds and has been especially chummy with President Barack Obama and the First Family for a while now. The Washington, D.C. rapper made history after opening President Obama’s State of the Union address with a performance, marking the first time a rapper has done so.

While Wale might be the last artist one would expect to warm up the SOTU crowd, it appeared the veteran performer took on the challenge and rocked out as expected. If you haven’t seen a live performance Maybach Music Group artist, he’s definitely a pro on the big stage.

Wale, who attended Virginia State University on a football scholarship and then transferred to Bowie State University before taking rap more serious, was joined by another HBCU alumnus at the event. Terrence J, a North Carolina A&T University grad, was also in attendance and helped host the State of the Union preshow.

Following an introduction by Terrence J, Wale performed a few songs requested by the president himself, including the hits  “Chillin,” “The White Shoes,” and “LoveHate Thing”:

At the end of the performance, he also revealed that his fifth album will be called Shine and is due this year.

Wale previously visited the White House over the summer to perform at First Lady Michelle Obama’s “Reach Higher” initiative, and was in attendance for Obama’s gun control announcement earlier this month.

On his performance, Hip-Hop Wired writer D.L. Chandler said, “Wale made the most of his moment, and even palled around with some of the political elite in the building, including taking a selfie with Dr. Jill Biden, Vice President Joe Biden’s better half.”

You can watch the entire performance in the video below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AkgpxYceAnI

 

President Barack Obama Full of Optimism

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The best word to describe President Barack Obama’s last the State of the Union address: optimism.

Obama’s the SOTU speech yesterday was no doubt a historic moment in American history. Many politicians, both Democrats and Republicans, stood in the room talking to each other as if they were colleagues rather than enemies.

Obama’s speech which was full of optimism to bring unity to Congress, and to restore faith to the American people rather than bring more problems to them.

The common thread that ran throughout Obama’s speech was that everyone should work together for change.

In fact, Obama said that the four biggest questions that we need to address were based on the following: economy, technology, safety, and politics that reflects the best in us, not the worse.

Obama said, “The rules should work for the workers in our economy.”

Obama’s SOTU speech yesterday was no doubt a historic moment in American history.

He continued, “After all, it’s not much of a stretch to say that some of the only people in America who are going to work the same job, in the same place, with a health and retirement package, for 30 years, are sitting in the chamber.”

(Tashni-Ann Dubroy, president of Shaw University, called Obama a “shade-thrower” on Facebook during the speech.)

President Obama argued further, saying, “Why would we want to pass up the opportunity for American business to produce in the future?”

“We agree that real opportunity requires every American to get the education and training they need.”

Obama said, “The rules should work for the workers in our economy.”

On access to education, Obama said, “We agree that real opportunity requires every American to get the education and training they need.”

He added, “We have to cut the cost of college. Providing community college for free to students is a start to that!”

Many activists from #BlackLivesMatter mentioned that POTUS made no mention of police violence in America–a topic that has taken a back seat from mainstream media lately.

Finally, Obama said, “We’ve got to make easier to vote, not harder!”

Bernie Sanders’ HBCU Tour to Stop at FAMU

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Tallahassee Democrat

Bernie Sanders announced Monday via his campaign website he will be making a stop at Florida A&M University.

Sanders is kicking off his “Feel the Bern” Historically Black Colleges and Universities tour at South Carolina State on Thursday. The press release lists FAMU as one of Sanders’ planned tour stops, though no date for the visit has been released yet.

Discussion items listed for the South Carolina State stop include making colleges and universities tuition-free and criminal justice reform, and will feature guest speaker Dr. Cornel West.

“His main message will probably be pretty much the message of his whole campaign,” said Brian Lupiani, a coordinator with Big Bend for Bernie. “The whole problem is the way the system is rigged to favor the incredibly wealthy at the expense of everybody else.”

Lupiani said he expects Sanders also will stress his positions on racial and economic justice. “Those issues were not prominent in the campaign to begin with, and I think he’s made them real issues.” read more

Top 5 HBCU Bands 2016

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top 5 hbcu bands 2016Have you ever watched a movie that didn’t have a soundtrack? That is what an HBCU sporting event without a marching band compares to. Very dry. Marching bands are essential to the historically black college and university experience and 9 times out of ten elevate sporting events to the next level. Even if you take away the football and basketball teams, we are confident the crowd size won’t dwindle so long as the marching band is in the stands. Though they take the field for a few, brief minutes during halftime, the marching band performance is highly anticipated.

Members of HBCU marching bands arrive months early during the summer and train, practice, and memorize songs, much like athletes on the field who practice and learn various plays. Those who make the cut rehearse every single day, typically more than once, for months to perfect and embody cultural favorites and the latest jams on the radio.

Alumni are without question biased to their alma mater, but we still pose the question… which ridiculously loud, colorfully-costumed, soul-stepping, note-hitting band is your favorite? Considering the leadership, performances, song selection, and of course the esteemed drum majors, which band deserves to be dubbed the best this year?

Vote now BELOW.

Check out our Top 5 HBCU Bands from last year 2015

[polldaddy poll=9269918]

Free Entrance to All National Parks in Honor of MLK Day

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Admission to all national parks will be free on Jan. 18 in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, the park service has announced.

The discount gives visitors a chance to skirt the $25 fee for entering sites likes the Grand Canyon in Arizona or Yellowstone in Montana, Wyoming and Idaho.

The MLK Day promotion is part of events commemorating the National Park Service’s centennial. There will be 16 days in all this year in which admission is free to parks and historical sites run by the NPS.

Read more here.

Cleveland Browns Hire Hampton Alum as VP of Football Operations

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CLEVELAND, Ohio — The Browns’ new executive VP of football operations has been a man on the rise in the sports business world. Brown was named to the Sports Business Journal’s “Forty Under 40” list in 2015.

Brown, named the team’s executive VP of football operations on Sunday, was hired as the executive vice president/general counsel by the Browns in January 2013. This season marked Brown’s 11th in the NFL. Brown will have “ultimate say over the roster,” according to Haslam.

Brown has overseen the team’s salary cap, negotiations of player contracts and worked closely with fired general manager Ray Farmer.

“Sashi, I believe, is the right person to do this for the Cleveland Browns,” owner Jimmy Haslam said on Sunday. “He’s been in the NFL for 10-plus years, has been involved in the cap and has been heavily involved in our football administration and operations for the last year or two. He’s very smart, very organized, good at systems and processes and an outstanding team player. He’s also very strategic so we will use those skills and working for him will be a GM whose primary job will be talent acquisition.”

Read more here.

‘Give Before You Get’ Homelessness Initiative at Howard University Hospital

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WASHINGTON – Howard University Hospital participated in The Stafford Foundation’s 2015 “Give Before You Get” Volunteer Day on Dec. 12. The day was filled with gift giving and self-esteem building.

The “Give Before You Get” (GBYG) initiative partners with organizations in and around the D.C. area to provide individuals in the city’s homeless and at-risk populations with the opportunity to take part in the season of giving by lending a helping hand. At Howard University Hospital, dozens of volunteers who obtain services at area homeless shelters presented gifts to hospital patients.

According to The Stafford Foundation, there are nearly 8,000 homeless persons living in the Washington-metropolitan area. The population includes military veterans suffering from mental illnesses, women and children escaping  abusive partners and people with limited English abilities looking to make a better life.

Please visit and Like the Howard University Hospital Facebook page for notifications and updates.

For more information on The Stafford Foundation, please visit thestaffordfoundation.org. Connect with on Twitter @staffordfnd. #GBYG #DoingGood

For media inquiries, contact Sholnn Freeman, sholnn.freeman@howard.edu.

This post originally appeared on Howard University’s Health Sciences website.

Black Colleges Continues to Promote and Progress Young Black Students

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low angle close-up of a young man carrying a backpack and smilingHistorically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) were initially developed in the 1800s as land-grant colleges to afford underrepresented African Americans their rights to inexpensive, yet high-quality, education, in the face of a prejudicial old guard that has dominated the American high education system.

Since then, HBCUs transformed into a crucial incubation chamber for STEM professionals within the African American community: according to data from the National Center for Education Statistics, HBCUs graduate 50 percent more students in the STEM fields for every 1000 enrolled students than for-profit and predominantly white institutions do combined.

All told, HBCUs are responsible for the development of nearly one-third of all black scientists and engineers in America, and the numbers are even starker for black females attending college. While HBCUs account for only 17 percent of all enrolled African American females, those institutions produce a whopping 31 percent of all black, female STEM graduates nationwide.

So although HBCUs account for under 20 percent of African American college enrollment, but produce well over a quarter of all black STEM graduates. In a time when the viability of the HBCU system has come into question by critics, hard data underscores the importance of these oft forgotten institutes of higher education. New research shows that while many African Americans branch out beyond HBCUs when seeking out higher education, historically black colleges offer consistent opportunities for under-served and disadvantaged populations, like women and first-generation college students, to earn their degree in a STEM field.

In September, the American Institutes for Research (AIR) released a report entitled, “The Role of Historically Black Colleges and Universities as Pathway Providers: Institutional Pathways to the STEM PhD Among Black Students,” which found that HBCUs have “a unique advantage” to support the nationwide development of STEM programs that increase participation rates from African Americans in both the academic and professional environments.

Read more here.

Spelman Alumna Named New Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer at Bank of America

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A Spelman alum has been promoted to chief diversity and inclusion officer at Bank of America, taking over a position held by Geri Thomas, who is retiring after her incredible four-decade career at the company.

In early December, Black Enterprise reported that Cynthia Bowman will start her new role as chief strategist and leader for diversity and inclusion from a global standpoint at one of the most influential institutions in the world:

 

 

“On the heels of Geri Thomas announcing her plans to retire after a 45-year career with Bank of America, the company has promoted Cynthia Bowman to chief diversity and inclusion officer.

Bowman, who first joined the Bank of America family in 2007, has held several leadership roles within the company. Most recently, she served as learning and leadership development and diversity & inclusion executive for the bank’s Global Wealth and Investment Management organization.”

Bowman graduated from Spelman with a bachelor’s degree in computer science, and then she went on to earn a bachelor of industrial engineering degree from Georgia Institute of Technology and also a MBA from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management. Prior to joining Bank of America, the Spelman alum worked for AT&T and Accenture.

Bowman has also been recognized as one of the top 50 Senior Executives Under 50 by Diversity MBA Magazine thanks to her role at Bank of America.

In addition, Bowman received the 2014 Trailblazer Award by Re: Gender for her efforts to advance women’s issues, promote women’s leadership and change the way the world views women and girls and has served as a panelist at Black Enterprise’s Women of Power Summit.

Top photo: The new diversity and inclusion officer at Bank of America, Cynthia Bowman.

Two New & Diverse Leaders of Technology Who Went to HBCUs That You Should Know

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The people over at REVOLT just highlighted several young, major players in tech who are making big waves in the technology industry. Two of these individuals also earned a degree at one particular black college that everyone from Drake and Diddy to Michelle and Barack Obama reps regularly and supports.

You guessed it—historically black Howard University in the nation’s capital.

Several people in the black community has spoken out over the years against many of the top tech companies in the country for not hiring more people of color—“…the nation’s top tech companies have reported less than 10 percent of the companies’ overall employees were Black (6%) or Latino (7%), compared to 27 percent in the America workforce,” writes Rashad Drakeford on REVOLT.

“For many minority entrepreneurs, they face serious hurdles in accessing capital and investors for their businesses.”

In a critic of the tech industry’s diversity, or lack thereof, technology expert and entrepreneur Angela Benton, CEO and Founder of NewMe, a platform that helps to help entrepreneurs use their non-traditional backgrounds as strengths to leverage them in business, writes, “Google reportedly has 46,170 employees worldwide. Its diversity numbers reveal that while 70% of its workforce is male, only 30% is female, a figure that’s 17% less than the representation of women in the U.S. workforce today.”

Benton added, “What is more startling is its ethnicity figures, which only accounts for the U.S.: 61% are white, 2% are black and 3% are Hispanic; 30% are Asian and 4% are of two or more races.”

Nonetheless, many new, diverse, and young go-getters in tech are paving their own road to success, despite the odds and the stats that show that “people of color in tech exist at a far lower rate than the national workforce average.”

For many minority entrepreneurs, they face serious hurdles in accessing capital and investors for their businesses.

Like Jewel Burks, 26, the CEO of Patrpic, an Atlanta based startup designed to streamline the purchase of maintenance and repair parts using computer vision technology, and also an Entrepreneur in Residence for Diversity at Google and also a graduate of Howard University. Partpic has helped to raise over a million dollars in funds to help integrate the company’s proprietary technology into mobile apps and its founder has been featured in Forbes, Black Enterprise, Essence and Glamour and other publications.

Jewel Burks

From REVOLT:

Jewel Burks is co-founder and CEO of Partpic, an Atlanta based startup designed to streamline the purchase of maintenance and repair parts using computer vision technology. Partpic has raised over $1.5 million in seed funding to integrate its proprietary technology into mobile apps and websites of parts distributors and retailers. Partpic has won numerous national competitions including the 2015 SXSW Accelerator and Steve Case’s Rise of the Rest.

In addition to leading Partpic, Jewel also serves as an Entrepreneur in Residence for Diversity Markets at Google. She works to help underserved business owners attract and engage customers using Google’s business tools. Jewel has been featured in numerous publications including Forbes, Black Enterprise, Essence and Glamour. Prior to founding Partpic, Jewel served in management and enterprise sales roles at McMaster-Carr and Google. Jewel is a native of Nashville, TN and graduate of Howard University.

Or like Rodney Williams, 32, who holds four degrees (two masters), one of which is an M.B.A. also from Howard:

Rodney Williams

Rodney Williams, Founder/CEO of LISNR, leads one of the most disruptive companies in the IoT space and the world of mobile connectivity with a new communication protocol that is the most efficient way to connect any device with a speaker or microphone. Fresh off of their $10M Series B raise lead by Intel Capital, LISNR took the stage in 2015 racking some the world’s most coveted awards such as a Gold Lion @ Cannes for Most Innovative Mobile Technology and being selected at #12 on 2015’s CNBC Disruptor 50 to just name a few. Williams is an innovative and out-of-the-box strategic thinker who is obsessed with the ways technology will touch and improve our everyday lives.

Prior to LISNR, Williams spent over four years at Procter & Gamble as a brand manager and is most noted for being the first marketer there to co-write digital patents. Williams holds four degrees but most notably two masters, one of which is an M.B.A. from Howard University.

Read more here.

Organization of Coaches Propose ‘Eddie Robinson Rule’ for Minority Candidates

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static1.squarespace-1An organization representing minority coaches has proposed a new rule that would provide more opportunities for minority candidates to earn coaching and leadership positions.

The National Association for Coaching Equity and Development, along with the National Consortium for Academics and Sports and The No Hate Zone, has asked NCAA schools to adopt the Eddie Robinson rule, which would require institutions to interview at least one minority candidate for all head-coaching and leadership positions before making their final hires.

In the NFL, the Rooney Rule requires teams to interview a minority candidate for executive and head-coaching positions. The NAFCED leadership has asked NCAA schools to voluntarily implement similar measures.

NAFCED, initiated last summer, has replaced the Black Coaches Association in its representation of minority coaches. Dr. Richard Lapchick, the leader of the NCAS and author of the report cards that track diversity issues in sports, has pushed for these measures for years.

“‘The Eddie Robinson Rule,’ as coined by Dr. Lapchick, is an initiative designed to encourage colleges and universities to voluntarily execute a ‘best hiring practices policy’ for their department of athletics by pledging to interview at least one, preferably more than one, qualified racial and ethnic minority candidate in their final candidate pool for open head coaching and executive administrative positions,” NAFCED said in a statement to The Associated Press and ESPN.com on Friday. “The need for such a rule is borne out of the indisputable fact that racial and ethnic minority coaches are frequently overlooked by the search and hiring process commonly used by colleges and universities.”

Read full via ESPN

WSSU Guaranteed Admission into Competitive Masters, Doctoral Therapy Programs

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assurance-agreementStudents earning a bachelor’s degree from Winston-Salem State University will have a leg up on their competition when they apply to the university’s highly competitive Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) or Master of Science in Occupational Therapy (MSOT) programs.

A new “assurance agreement” – the first of its kind offered at a historically black university – guarantees admission into the university’s DPT program for WSSU exercise physiology students who maintain at least a 3.4 GPA and meet the other normal admissions requirements. The university’s DPT program typically receives 500 applications for 30 seats in the program, making the early assurance agreement a significant advantage for WSSU undergraduates.

“This is tremendous for our students,” said School of Health Sciences Dean Peggy Valentine. “Because of the rigor of the program and the number of applicants, many very deserving students do not gain admission. The early assurance program supports WSSU’s new strategic plan in promoting equity in graduate education and supports our commitment to increasing the number and diversity of health care professionals.”

A student meeting the prerequisite criteria would enter the DPT program with one semester remaining in their undergraduate program. The first semester in the DPT program would count toward both their bachelor’s degree and the DPT degree, saving the student one semester’s worth of time and tuition.

“We have had many exercise physiology students do very well in DPT programs across the state and the country,” said Mike McKenzie, chair of the Department of Exercise Science. “This program keeps our best students at WSSU and gives them the opportunity to get a head start on their graduate education.”

Meanwhile, WSSU students interested in the university’s Master of Science in Occupational Therapy program can take advantage of a similar agreement. In addition to the program’s regular admission process, an early assurance option guarantee admissions, yearly for qualified academically gifted students who meet and maintain early assurance GPA, prerequisites and requirements. Although this agreement is open to students from every major, it will be most appealing to students in the exercise physiology, therapeutic recreation, psychology and the honor programs.

“Students will benefit from this opportunity to streamline their goal for graduate school and gain additional motivation to stay focused as they complete the undergraduate degree,” said Joanne Coco-Ripp, program coordinator for the therapeutic recreation program, who noted that similar to the DPT program, the MSOT receives about 400 applications for 28 seats.

Added sophomore exercise physiology major Justin Fitts, “These programs put me ahead of the game. I won’t have to take a semester or year out of school like some students do just to get accepted into a program.”

Derrick Griffin, Texas Southern Forward Ejected After Punching Alcorn State Player

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Derrick Griffin Texas SouthernDuring Texas Southern’s 74-58 win over Alcorn State Monday night, redshirt freshman forward Derrick Griffin was ejected after punching Braves’ guard Juwan Henderson in the face during a scuffle.

Griffin is averaging 13.8 points and 9.9 rebounds per game this season.

Monday night wasn’t the first time Texas Southern basketball had been involved in punches being thrown during a game.

Last season, 15 players were suspended following a bench-clearing brawl during a Texas Southern-Southern women’s game on March 7, 2015.

As a result of the in-game brawl, Texas Southern withdrew from the SWAC Tournament.

Read full via HBCU Sports

HU Track & Field Resumes Indoor Season With High Expectations for 2016

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passthru_imagecredit_L02_2034FAIRFAX, VA — After a lengthy break, the Howard University Track & Field teams will resume competition on Saturday, January 9 at The Father Diamond Invitational, hosted by George Mason University.  

Both programs had impressive outings at the Naval Academy in December before the break, but Coach Marc Harrison has yet to be satisfied. 

“Fall training went well and it was reflected in our performances in December, but this week will be a testament of how self-disciplined these student athletes really are,” stated Harrison. 

The meet will be loaded with some of the top talent on the East Coast in both Division I and II. 

“It’s going to be very competitive and we should have a good day,” predicted Harrison.”  

Harrison speaks of the strengths as being in the relays and in the field events on the women’s side.  He pointed to the expectations of the dynamic New Jersey duo of Dominique Bynum-Cooper and Cheyenne Bellerand in the shot put and Hanah Billups in the long jump/high jump events.  

The relays will consist of different combinations of Michelle Cole, Aliyah Hale, Uchechi Unouha, Taleya Harris, Skylar Buchanon and Aigner Bobbitt. 

On the men’s side, there is much anticipation to see what two time Academic All American Rajae Gayle will do in the shot put as he prepares for his defense of the Javelin title once outdoor season begins in March.  

The men also figure to make noise on the track with Mohamed Bah and Tariq Fullerton in the mile and 800 meter run, respectively along with the 400 meter quintet of Olujimi Scott, Kahe Kaye, Basil Niccols, Emaunuel Price and Kenneth Chigbue. Harrison predicts that the 4×400-meter relay should be exciting each week.

Delaware State University Student Walks with Elephants

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635878465871526008-Elephant1When Katie Ommanney looks into the eyes of an elephant, she sees a person inside them.

“They have emotions, they have personalities,” Ommanney said. “I know that I am seeing somebody in there. There is a being there that is processing information in the same way humans do.”

Ommanney has more than a tourist’s connection with the world’s largest land animals. One of her earliest memories from growing up in the African country of Tanzania are of a young male elephant standing by her family’s tent and making rumbling sounds as her young brother was bottle-fed.

Ommanney came back to the United States in 1997, graduating from Dover High School. She currently is getting an undergraduate degree in natural resources with a concentration in wildlife management from Delaware State University.

She chose natural resource instead of animal biology because she wants to be versed in things like land-use and planning.

“I believe that, in order to conserve any species, you need the cooperation of the people around it,” Ommanney said. “This degree really helps me focus on the human-animal connection.”

Read Full via Delaware Online