Page 496 – HBCU Buzz

Marc Lamont Hill to mediate 4th Annual NPHC Greek President’s Forum

Posted on Sep 5, 2013

HuffPost Live Host Marc Lamont Hill, a journalist, activist and member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. will be the mediator over a discussion on civil rights issues at the 4^th Annual NPHC Greek President’s Forum Wednesday, September 18 in the US Capitol Visitor Center Auditorium in Washington D.C.

Presented by the Honorable Marcia L. Fudge, who is a past president of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., serving from 1996 to 2000, the event is open to all of the nine members of the National Pan-Hellenic Council.

Doors open at 1:00 p.m. To reserve your seat please visit mlf2013nphcforum.eventbrite.com. For more information contact Bridgett Simmons at 202-225-7032.

About the NPHC

The National Pan-Hellenic Council, Incorporated promotes interaction through forums, meetings and other mediums for the exchange of information and engages in cooperative programming and initiatives through various activities and functions.

Buzz Killer

Benedict College Student Found Dead on Campus by ‘Unfortunate Incident’

HBCU Editors

Posted on Sep 4, 2013

The Richland County Coroner’s Office says they don’t believe there was any foul play involved in the death of a Benedict student.

According to the Coroner’s Office, the unidentified student’s body was found on campus Tuesday evening.

Officials have not released any details on how the student died.

Benedict released a statement confirming the student went to school there, but stopped short of how the student died other than calling it an “unfortunate incident.”

The Coroner’s Office plans to release more details on the student’s death sometime Wednesday morning.

More information coming soon.

Buzzing News

15-year-old Courtney Lewis lands scholarship, admission to Clark Atlanta University

HBCU Editors

Posted on Sep 4, 2013

Since she was a little girl, 15-year-old Courtney Lewis has know that she would forge a career in science. Now the Walker School student has a full scholarship to an Atlanta university after participating in a summer cancer research internship with graduate and post-doctorate students nearly twice her age.

“At first, I was a little cautious because there is a lot of equipment in the lab, but at the same time I was very confident because I just felt like I was in the right place,” Courtney said. “Even when I was little, I could see myself in a laboratory, so it was the realization of my dreams coming true.”

The 11th-grader, who has attended Walker since her freshman year and is the daughter of Kennesaw residents Raymond and Diana Lewis, was invited to work at Clark Atlanta University’s Center for Cancer Research and Therapeutic Development conducting cancer research with graduate and post-doctoral students over the summer.

During her time there, between June 26 and July 29, she performed many experiments alongside her colleagues. One of her favorites, Western blot, studies how proteins in cells can affect cancer treatments.

“We were determining if a cancer treatment was working,” Courtney said. “I really enjoyed that because I loved that someone realized how effective proteins can be studied efficiently in a way that is useful.”

Courtney learned about the opportunity at Clark Atlanta from a postal worker whose child attends the school.

The good news came after she learned it would be too expensive to attend various medical conferences she was interested in.

“I’m just really thankful to God that this happened because I was so discouraged about how things ended up with the medical conference and very devastated,” she said. “I’m just very ecstatic that this opportunity opened up for me.”

This won’t be the end of Courtney’s work with the college.

Sports

ULM’s Berry and Grambling’s Williams share different views of I-20 Classic

HBCU Editors

Posted on Sep 4, 2013

The past two ULM home openers had a turnout that rank in the Top 4 all-time attendances inside Malone Stadium.

The Warhawks opened last season against Baylor, which topped an all-time high 31,175 fans and poured over into standing room only.

It surpassed the 2007 mark of 30,101 when ULM hosted Grambling for the first time in school history, and the event seemed to be just as popular in 2011 when the Warhawks opened their home slate against GSU in front of 26,532, which is fourth all-time in stadium history.

It all seems like a win-win, but Grambling coach Doug Williams is not a fan of what has been dubbed the I-20 Classic.

The current head coach was not around when the contract for the two-time match up was signed in January 2011, but he was back within a week once former coach Rod Broadway resigned.

“It still doesn’t make me a fan of the game,” Williams said at his weekly press conference Monday. “This game was scheduled before I got here. But at the end of the day, it’s the schedule and we’ve got to play it and we’ve got to look at it for what it’s worth.”

ULM head coach Todd Berry thinks the game is worth a lot.

For starters, the contract is pretty favorable for Grambling. When the contract was signed in 2011, then-ULM athletic director Bobby Staub said Grambling would receive around $300,000 from each game with a combination of tickets and financial guarantees.

As of Tuesday, current ULM athletic director Brian Wickstrom said Grambling had sold out of its allotment of 1,200 tickets and members of the ULM ticket office anticipated about 15,000 tickets sold so far, including season tickets.

“In relation to proximity, I think it’s a good thing,” Berry said. “I’ve seen the financial contract. It’s a very, very good contract, more than we do with any other FCS program. I’ve been in this thing for 31 years and at a lot of different places. I can’t imagine that we could be more accommodating than we’ve already been, where basically this game and last game we really tried to bend over backwards to make sure to give them their own tailgating spots. That generally doesn’t happen and those other kinds of things. We’ve tried to be good hosts.”

Editorial

3 ways to create inner transformation

Robert Hoggard

Posted on Sep 4, 2013

While in Washington, D.C. last week for the 50th Anniversary of the March on Washington with a few American Baptist College classmates–and students from Morehouse, Alabama State and Howard–I found a new understanding of the ‘little things.’ This is because of something my colleague Jacques Boyd said in mid-conversation.

“I am thankful and appreciative of these moments,” he said. “When one is thankful they are glad of what they have. I am thankful because I am glad of what we Blacks have. When one is appreciative they do something with what they have. As we go back to our communities, we must continue the fight and do something with what we already have.”

Feeling good feels good; when you feel it you know. Here are 3 things you can use to create your own happiness:

1. Fun

Our call seems to be to live out life in many different arenas. Many times life is about having fun and enjoying what the world has to offer. (The chili dog from the classic and Ben’s chili bowl are perfect examples.) Having fun seems to temporarily soothe all the hurt, pain and injustice of world. Let’s face it, what college student doesn’t like to have fun? Just be sure that “fun” does not consume you so much that daily tasks become impossible. Having fun is what revives you to live and fight another day.

2. Faith

In “Across that Bridge” Congressman and civil rights activist John Lewis said “There is one question people ask me more than any other: How did you do it? How did you hold to nonviolence when a pounding wall of vicious hate was pushing through you like waves of fire during the protests and sit-ins of the Civil Rights Movement?…The answer is simple. Faith. Faith has the power to deliver us all, even from the greatest harm.”

The call to faith is a call that, on the outset, lasts and makes lasting impression on ourselves and the people we come in contact with. Life is the gift God gives to you. What you do with it, however, is your gift to God.

3. Freedom

Having freedom is the part of the call that will take the most work and effort. Freedom has never been handed on a silver platter to anyone in history. It has always been earned. If we want to vote freely, go to universities with financial help freely, be able to walk to the corner store to buy skittles and iced tea freely we must demand it in ways that show our resilience, and our intestinal fortitude to conjure “Yes, I’ll give you what you deserve in the first place.”

Robert Hoggard is a HBCU Buzz Staff Writer. Follow him on Twitter @mindofRKH

Entertainment

“The Game” star Wendy Raquel Robinson to headline 2013 Nation’s Football Classic at Howard University

Mike Hamilton

Posted on Sep 3, 2013

Veteran television actress and “The Game” star Wendy Raquel Robinson will headline the 2013 AT&T Nation’s Football Classic in Washington, D.C. at Howard University. The high profile football match takes place annually between the Howard Bison and the Morehouse Maroon Tigers.

This year’s festivities will kick off on Friday, September 6, with Robinson (who is also a Howard alumna) serving as host. “I am honored to return as one of the hosts of the AT&T Kickoff Rally, and I think it’s wonderful that AT&T continues to support HBCUs and education. I am pulling for Howard to get that three-peat this year,” she says.

Representing Morehouse will be Fonzworth Bentley, an alumnus of the Atlanta-based HBCU. The game will take place on Saturday, September 7 at 3:30pm at RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C.

Entertainment

North Carolina A&T lands Kirk Franklin, T.I., K. Michelle, Juicy J for 2013 Homecoming

Mike Hamilton

Posted on Aug 29, 2013

The self-proclaimed “Greatest Homecoming on Earth” (or GHOE) at North Carolina A&T State University announced its 2013 homecoming lineup this evening via its SGA’s Twitter account (@ncat_turnersga). Among the star participants this year are comedian Mike Epps and Grammy Award-winning recording artists Kirk Franklin, T.I., and Kelly Rowland.

Epps will host the comedy show, while Franklin headlines the gospel concert. Rowland and T.I. will take the stage at the homecoming concert, along with rappers Juicy J and J. Cole. R&B singer and “Love & Hip-Hop: Atlanta” star K. Michelle (who is also a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority) will host the NPHC Step Show.

The homecoming football game will take place on November 2, when the Aggies take on Virginia University of Lynchburg.

Tickets are on sale now.

News

Norfolk State President, fired

Posted on Aug 27, 2013

After just two years as Norfolk State University President, Dr. Tony Atwater was fired Friday evening. Now WAVY.com has more information on what led to the dismissal he said he didn’t know was coming.

“My termination was sudden, unexpected, and disappointing,” said Atwater on Friday after his dismissal.

Suffolk Delegate Chris Jones wasn’t surprised at all. He knew last Wednesday that Atwater’s dismissal would be discussed at Friday’s Board of Visitors meeting. Jones, however, did not know the board would vote 7-4 to fire Atwater on the spot.

Serving on the House of Delegates Sub Committee on Higher Education, a member of the Joint Legislative Audit & Review Committee, as well as a budget conferee, Jones helps determine where state money goes to support Virginia schools. He has been very aware of the goings on of NSU, and painted a picture of Atwater as a president out of touch with what what was going on at the school.

“Dr. Atwater says everything is fine … things aren’t fine … audits aren’t done,” Jones told WAVY.com Monday. read more

Entertainment

’42’ star and Howard alumnus Chadwick Boseman to portray James Brown

Mike Hamilton

Posted on Aug 27, 2013

Actor Chadwick Boseman added his name to Hollywood’s list of top up-and-comers when he starred in his breakthrough role as Jackie Robinson in the spring 2013 biopic, 42. Now, the Howard University alumnus has been tapped to star as yet another famous icon–the “Godfather of Soul” James Brown–in an upcoming biopic.

Universal Pictures and Imagine Entertainment recently greenlit the project and selected Boseman to star as the legendary musician. Tate Taylor, the writer and director responsible for 2011’s The Help, will be at the helm. The majority of the film will reportedly be shot in Mississippi, according to the state’s governor, Phil Bryant.

Click here to read the full story.

Editorial

5 things to think about before dropping a course

Tommy G. Meade Jr.

Posted on Aug 26, 2013

This useful guidebook exists because of my 1 p.m. Biology class Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays. It is the second week of school here at Central State University. Already I have contemplated dropping the course. Just joking…

There are many reasons (excuses) why to drop a class. The time the class is offered may be all bad for you getting up during early hours or a campus leadership role creates some conflict with your schedule. But consider these 5 things before you decide to drop a class:

1. Do you find the professor boring?

Students commonly drop a class because their professor is boring. There are thousands of people in the world, most of whom you may never understand. So it is just fate, I suppose, that the bulk of these people are employed by our colleges and universities. Nevertheless, make peace with your professor by trying to understand him or her better. And if you decide to stick out the class, add one more network to your professional circle.

2. How much effort is necessary?

Are you taking class seriously? Students taking 12 credit hours are required to study 24 hours per week (most sources recommend that a typical undergraduate college student should study at least 2 hours outside of class each week per unit credit). No debate.

To offset potential drawbacks try sitting in front of class. Come to class fifth teen minutes early. Make serious efforts to be an active participant in and out of class. If you have to, speak with the professor during scheduled appointment hours. This shows responsibility. Later he would be more willing to write you a recommendation letter.

3. Will this course benefit future opportunities?

If you are trying to obtain an internship for spring semester or next summer then perhaps dropping a course would hinder skills you could have already learned had you decided not to. Take the class so you can be informed and self-confident in the office. It pays to be ahead of the game. More to the point, college is too expensive not to take advantage of opportunities.

4. Are you still graduating on time?

Does not Michael Jordan still have his hoop earring in? Of course you are graduating on time. You probably have 115 credit hours and only need a couple more classes to graduate or maybe you are a freshman with no business (no credits). No matter the case, you are graduating on time. Just think twice before dropping a course, and follow-up with your adviser — you could end up staying an extra year or two, or three.

5. Have you asked for help?

Before dropping a class, consider all of the things mentioned above. Help is all around you. There are several resources on the yard that can be of assistance during your stay in college. Use them all.

Do not let Biology school you. Ask for help. You can enroll for tutor services to assist you with some classes. Greeks are ready to lend a helping hand, too, if only you ask for it. Finally, be sure to pay it forward.

Tommy Meade is the Editor of HBCU Buzz. Follow him on Twitter @tommymeadejr

Greeks

Central State fraternity, Iota Phi Theta, wins National Chapter of the Year Award

Tommy G. Meade Jr.

Posted on Aug 23, 2013

Alpha Mu chapter of Iota Phi Theta Fraternity, Inc. at Central State University received the National Chapter of the Year Award August 16 at the 34th International Conclave featuring the fraternity’s 50th Anniversary in Baltimore, Maryland.

Iota Phi Theta serves the campus community by Scholarship, Leadership, Citizenship, Fidelity and Brotherhood. In addition, Alpha Mu chapter acts out of service, protocol, and civility—tenets made by Central State president Cynthia Jackson-Hammond.

“Reading the welcome letter at the beginning of the school year by new CSU president Cynthia Jackson-Hammond inspired us to do more than our fair share,” said graduate Rashad Riley, who also won the Ohio Valley Region Brother of the Year Award.

“Her message that ‘service is our commitment to our institution and the greater community; protocol is our adherence to and value of best practices for accomplishing goals; and civility is our active respect for one another, and for our past, our present, and our future’ is embodied in all we do, and Alpha Mu successfully matched our goals with these tenets.”

Members of the chapter said that being the last fraternity to join the coalition of Black Greek letter organizations known as the National Pan-Hellenic Council made them think outside the box, since not many students come to college “wanting to be an Iota.”

“We really took the yard by storm during the last school year,” chapter President Austin Oten said.

“The chapter wanted to do more educational forums that engages and involves students, instead of the predictable party events. We collaborated with organizations like NAACP and Student African American Brotherhood and expanded on our brand.”

“The chapter of Alpha Mu of Iota Phi Theta Fraternity, Inc. has immensely helped create character and great worth at Central State University,” Greek Affairs adviser Brittany Stephens said.

“I see them everywhere and attending every campus event. They are the ideal organization here on campus—while definitely upholding their motto of not resting on traditions, but building one.”

Iota Phi Theta Alpha Mu chapter at Central State University was founded February 28, 1981 by Brother Quintin L. Hudgens. The fraternity will host an Informational September 12 in the Center for Education and Natural Sciences room 132.

About Iota Phi Theta:

Iota Phi Theta Fraternity, Inc. consists of over 250 chapters located in 40 States, the District of Columbia and the Republic of Korea. The Fraternity is, and shall forever remain dedicated to its founders’ vision of “Building a Tradition, Not Resting Upon One!”

Sports

JET names Cox and Simpson Top HBCU Players for 2013

HBCU Editors

Posted on Aug 22, 2013

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Football players Qua Cox and Robert Simpson received All-Southwestern Athletic Conference preseason selections.

Cox led the league last season with five interceptions, closed out the year with 50 tackles and was named All-SWAC First Team. He led the Jackson State Tigers to a 7-5 record.

The Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils finished 5-6 during last season while Simpson racked up tackles for loss with 22.5—good for second in FCS. He was named to the All-SWAC First Team defense at the defensive tackle position.

Cox is the No. 1 rank and Simpson was selected No. 4. Both players are also among JET magazine’s top players for 2013.

News

ASU’s Stingettes to dance with Robin Thicke on MTV’s ‘Video Music Awards’

HBCU Editors

Posted on Aug 22, 2013

How do you top the experience of performing in a major pop star’s music video?

The Stingettes of Alabama State University just found out. You take it live. On an international stage.

ASU’s Stingettes just wrapped up working with singer Robin Thicke on his new “Give It 2 U” video, rumored to premiere during Sunday’s MTV “Video Music Awards.” The dance team was flown out to L.A., worked two 12- to 14-hour days on a hot football field and returned home the next day, exhausted but still reeling from the experience.

Then, days later, an even bigger jolt: The Stingettes were invited to perform live onstage with Thicke during his performance of “Give It 2 U” at the VMAs.

“They said, ‘We’d like to have those girls perform that same routine with Robin Thicke on VMA awards,’ ” said ASU Marching Hornets Band Director James Oliver. “And the roofs came off at this point. This will be live Sunday, televised across the United States and overseas, as well. It is just really awesome.”

News

University of Maryland Eastern Shore invests in bulletproof whiteboards

Mike Hamilton

Posted on Aug 20, 2013

The University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) has recently announced that it will be purchasing 200 bulletproof whiteboards from armor manufacturer Hardwire LLC. The boards are said to be able to absorb “multiple magazines of ammunition from any handgun or shotgun without ricochet or injury”; the retail price for each is $299.

According to George Tunis, Hardwire’s owner, the purpose of the whiteboards is to provide both teachers and students with needed protection in the event of a school shooting. As of 2012, 297 people have been killed in mass school shootings over the last 32 years (since 1980), an average of approximately 9 murders per year.

“When Sandy Hook happened … a light bulb went off that it’s really the teachers and administrators [that need protection],” Tunis told the Baltimore Sun. “Those brave souls were trying to close the gap and get to the shooter and stop him, but they didn’t have anything that could stop the bullets along the way.”

UMES President Juliette B. Bell told the Sun that, while the University has never experienced the horror of a school shooting, they must still be ready for the unfathomable. “Being able to respond accordingly is very important,” Bell said. “It’s all about being prepared.”

Although UMES is the first university to take advantage of the bulletproof whiteboard technology, it is not the first school to do so. Hardwire says that it has sold the product to more than 100 schools in five different states, and reports that an increasingly large industry has grown around marketing protective gear to schools.

Click here to read the full story.

Buzz Killer

Texas Pastor, AJ Aamir, bans weave from his church

HBCU Editors

Posted on Aug 20, 2013

Hell hath no fury like a pastor who doesn’t like hair weave.

When it comes to expressing your religious beliefs, they say come as you are…but not if ”how you are” involves any type of hair weave. Pastor AJ Aamir of Resurrecting Faith Church in Texas has gained attention for an unusual ban in his church: Weaves.

According to the Pastor’s holier than thou rule book (not the Bible), women who wear weaves have a false image of themselves and weaves are associated with women who have low self-esteem.

The Pastor suitably quoted Lil Wayne (who is all natural, honey) while backing his decision to ban weaves from his congregation. Pastor Aamir told Americapreachers.com:

“Long hair don’t care. What kind of mess is that? I don’t want my members so focused on what’s on their heads and not IN their heads… I lead a church where our members are struggling financially. I mean really struggling… Yet, a 26-year-old mother in my church has a $300 weave on her head. NO. I will not be quiet about this.”

Pastor Aamir admits he was raised in a strict household. His mother and father are members of the Islamic faith. At 39 years old, he leads a congregation whose average age is 22. Referenced from Global.

Editorial

4 Reasons Why HBCU Alumni Don’t Give Back, and 4 Ways to Fix It

Luke Lawal Jr.

Posted on Aug 19, 2013

Numbers Matter

HBCUs generally have a lower number of graduates due to the lower student population, when compared to larger schools. The belief that less students equals less graduates, less graduates equal less alumni association members and less members equal less fundraising money has led the HBCU Community to want and accept less. Making them feel comfortable with giving less or none at all.

Fix; Explain to students that it is up to them to change the thought that less is more. Even if 200 people graduate in your class, you have the potential to raise, give back and support your university better than 2,000 gradates can. Same concept explained in Members Vs Men by Walter Herbert Mazyck.

Bad College Experience

HBCUs are unfortunately known for terrible administration services to students. When it comes to dealing with student inquiriesuniversity staff tend lack organizational skills, management skills and most important, customer service skills. If this continuously occurrs semester after semester, students will develop a distaste for the university.

Fix; Students voice your opinion consistently. Just make sure your voicing it to the right person. Do not ask a secretary to do something that is only in the power of the President. Also on the part of the administration; pay close attention to who you hire. Conduct surveys monthly to check up on how things are going. Ensuring that cases where students have issues are closed and have reached a proper resolution in a timely and professional are imperative to making sure that everyone is satisfied with the effort put forth by the administration they are paying to help them with their educational needs. Who would want to give back hard-earned money to an institution that did not work hard for them?

Non Qualified Staffing

At times we may find that Alumni Association leaders are not always qualified to hold that position. How do you expect to raise money when the one leading the efforts does not have a proven record for raising money? A few years ago, I watched a student at Howard University, Victoria Fortune, raise $8,000 for Somalia and $20,000 Haiti in a short span of time. She made that endeavor seem effortless. She was passionate and tenacious in her efforts to raise money for a cause that was important to her. Leaders like Ms. Fortune are the kind of people you want leading Alumni Associations efforts.

Fix; Pay close attention to who we let lead our Alumni Associations. Representatives need to have passion, accountability and a great track record.

Financial Stability

Student loan interests rates are at a all time high, and it is hard to keep up with payments when one may not always be able to find work right after graduation. It is safe to say that some people do not have the income that will allow them to feel secure in giving back to their Alma maters. When we have bills stacking up, and other important life obstacles ahead of us we do not always have helping our old university on the top of the to-do list.

Fix; It is simple–something is better than nothing. If 1000 people give only $1, that is $1000 more that we now have in our bank that was not there before. You do not have to give hundreds of dollars. The pennies add up over time, a small contribution is better than no contribution at all. Also, it is important to understand that giving back does not always mean giving money. Volunteering your time when you can is just as valuable as money.