Dillard, Grambling State & Xavier prepare to evacuate

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It took mere hours Monday to transform Centenary College’s Fitness Center into a makeshift shelter – turning a basketball court into a space for cots and linens and transforming meeting rooms into quiet spaces for Dillard University students to talk to family members and study away from their New Orleans dorms.

That evening the Shreveport campus began housing approximately 120 Dillard students and administrators trying to escape Tropical Storm Isaac. Centenary officials started preparing for possible evacuees Friday.

“If they need anything at all we’ll be here,” said Lt. Eddie Walker, chief of Centenary’s Department of Public Safety. “We want to be comforting and make this as easy a process for them as possible.”

In addition to housing, Margo Shideler, Centenary’s director of strategic communication, said campus officials are trying to anticipate any other needs students may have. Workers also upgraded wireless systems in the fitness center to accommodate the additional students wishing to check in with loved ones or do coursework.

Dillard’s students also will have full use of campus facilities, including the student union, and will use their existing Dillard meal plans at Centenary’s cafeteria.

“They’ll be just like any other Centenary student,” Shideler said.

At Grambling State University, the campus’ emergency response team is preparing to step up in the event Xavier University students need shelter. Currently, Xavier’s plan is to ride out the storm with students staying on the New Orleans campus or at home.

However, GSU may be used for emergency medical treatment and limited shelter assistance for all evacuees in the event of an emergency related to the storm, and officials will continue to work with Xavier in the event outside shelter is needed. In a release, GSU staff were busy securing bunks, cots and water as well as checking emergency generators.

“We have planned for emergencies such as this and we’re implementing elements of that plan,” said GSU President Frank Pogue.

As for other campus closures and shelters: read more…

SWAC FOOTBALL SEASON IS HERE

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The SWAC Football season is set to kick off on Labor Day weekend with a full slate of games. As teams make final preparations to open the season, here is the schedule of events and contests this weekend.

Monday, August 27
SWAC Coaches Teleconference

Saturday, September 1
New Mexico vs. Southern in Albuquerque, NM (4:00)
Arkansas-Pine Bluff vs. Langston in Little Rock, AR (5:00)
Mississippi Valley State vs. Concordia (Ala), Itta Bena, MS (5:00)
Jackson State at Mississippi State, Starkville, MS (6:00)
Grambling State vs. Alcorn State in Shreveport, LA, (6:00)
Tuskegee vs. Alabama A&M in Birmingham, AL (6:00)
Prairie View vs. Texas Southern in Houston, TX (7:00)

Sunday, September 2
Bethune-Cookman vs. Alabama State in Orlando, FL (11:00)

Last season’s Eastern Division Champions will look to make their way to the SWAC Championship game for the second consecutive year.  Alabama A&M fell just one point shy in last season’s conference title game.  The Bulldogs are hoping to continue their trend of playing stout defense as they finished third in the conference in total defense last season.  AAMU will have to replace Corey Hart, the team’s sack leader from a year ago.  They do however return defensive back Vernon Marshall who was named 2012 Pre-Season First Team All-SWAC. Marshall finished last season with 75 tackles, 11 tackles-for-loss, three sacks and an interception.  Senior First Team All conference QB Deauntae Mason along with senior running back Kaderius Lacey will bring back a wealth of experience in the backfield.  Alabama A&M will take on Tuskegee Saturday September 1st with a 6pm Kickoff from Birmingham’s Legion Field. read more…

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FAMU Cannot Miss This

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When I was growing up, my parents instilled in me several invaluable but simple concepts about opportunity.

First, there are always opportunities even in the worst of circumstances. However, one must look in order to see or recognize an opportunity when it presents itself. Once it is seen, you have to seize it, knowing that it may be a long time, if ever, in coming again. Too many opportunities are missed because they were not seen and seized by the very people who could benefit from them.

A shortened version of a popular Florida A&M fight chant is, “When the dark clouds hover, the Rattlers will strike and strike and strike again!” Hopefully the Rattler Nation will see and strike to seize the great opportunities now before it to make major improvements at FAMU, not just to get the institution back on track to being a top historically black college/university (HBCU), but on track to become a HGCU —­ historically great college/university.

With all the negatives pervading FAMU, some see only dark clouds, but there is actually a golden opportunity to return this university to greatness.

At the heart of the opportunity before the FAMU community is this period without a permanent president. It does not come often, but it can be a great opening to plan for change. It offers a chance for FAMU, through its Board of Trustees, faculty, staff, students and external community, to deliberate on the future course for the university and what it should become and represent. This can be a period of reflection to further define the institution; to objectively reassess its mission, core values, strengths and weaknesses; to develop realistic plans to build on the strengths and correct or cut its weaknesses; to identify new areas for growth and investment; and, most important, to estimate and identify the resources to support new plans.

Without forecasting and committing resources and establishing time lines, new plans are meaningless and their implementation futile. Such plans should be developed at every level, including departments, programs and schools. read more….

UMES’ Saitaua Iosia Named MEAC Player of the Week

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The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference has announced that the University of Maryland Eastern Shore volleyball player Saitaua Iosia is the conference’s Player of the Week for the period ending Aug. 26, the league announced Monday.

This is Iosia’s (Long Beach, Calif.) fourth MEAC Player of the Week award in her time at UMES, totaling 11 weekly awards combined with seven Rookie of the Week honors last season. These are also the first conference weekly awards of the season.

Iosia led the Hawks to a trio of match victories over the weekend, helping UMES be the
SFC Terrier Invitational champion.  UMES defeated NJIT, tournament host St. Francis
(NY) and Radford in Brooklyn Heights, N.Y., to start the season at 3-0.

The sophomore outside hitter finished with double doubles in all three matches and led
the team in kills every contest.  She earned 21 kills with 14 digs against NJIT, 19 kills
and 16 digs against St. Francis and 24 kills with 17 digs in the match versus Radford.
Hitting .358 over the weekend, she currently leads UMES with 64 kills and 47 digs. read more…

FAMU Appoints Interim Dean in College of Education

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Florida A&M University (FAMU) Interim President Larry Robinson has appointed Patricia A. Green-Powell as the interim dean in the FAMU College of Education.

Robinson said the administrative change is in the “best interest of the college and university.”

Genniver Bell, former dean, has been assigned new duties and responsibilities as a full professor within the College of Education.

“I take on this assignment with a high level of commitment to the task,” said Green-Powell. “We will work on implementing the action plan we have outlined for the College of Education. As a college, we are focused and ready to do our best to prepare our students to be leaders in their field.”

Green-Powell has served as associate dean for Student Services. She has provided leadership and management to the Center for Academic Success, Office of Student Teaching, and Field/Clinical experiences and the Title III Grant program. She also serves as a member of the Dean of College of Education Leadership Team.

She earned her bachelor’s degree in speech pathology and audiology from FAMU, a master’s degree and Ph.D. in educational administration/leadership from Florida State University (FSU).

She began her career in 1973 as a speech and hearing therapist with the Health and Rehabilitative Services at Sunland Training Center. In 1978, she served as an educational consultant for the Department of Education Adult and Community Education Unit and became a program director in 1982. In 1990, she became the director of the Teacher Education Center in the College of Education at FSU. In 1993, Green-Powell was appointed director of the Florida Adult Literacy Resource Center at FSU. read more…

Politics with Ariell Tillman

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Ariell Tillman is a senior at Tennessee State University in Nashville, Tennessee and is from St. Louis, Missouri. She is a member of the TSU Social work club, New Direction Gospel Choir, My Sisters Keeper Inc. and Vision College Choir. She is not a political science major; however, she speaks to political issues fluently. We had a transformative dialogue about the political topics that matter to college students.

Robert Hoggard: How does being at an HBCU impact your political views?

Ariell Tillman: It allows me to see politics from a black perspective. Financial aid cuts can possibly threaten the future of black schools because of the lack of money. Black schools are the schools that seem to take the hardest hits. If college becomes more expensive, enrollment will continue to drop, resulting in less money for institutions. This means that more schools will continue to be on the verge of shutting down.

Robert Hoggard: Is voting important for college students, if so, why?

Ariell Tillman: Voting is very important for college students. Whether students realize it, who and what we vote for can determine finances for education, opportunities, tax cuts and our future in job opportunities after we graduate. Many students need to also take in consideration that one day we will be old and social security benefits need to be important to us also because the current laws will lay a foundation for the laws of the future.

Robert Hoggard: Who should college students vote for in the coming election and why?

Ariell Tillman: College students should definitely vote for President Barrack Obama. He has already done so much for college students, such as, offering hope, lowering college loan interest rates, trying to install a plan to penalize institutions who raise their tuition and much more. Republicans want to cut out everything!

Robert Hoggard: In a televised interview, Congressman from Missouri Todd Aikin, said that women had the power to prevent pregnancies that result from “legitimate rape”. In rare cases when pregnancies occurred, he said, abortions still should not be allowed. How do you feel about his comments?

Ariell Tillman: What is “legitimate rape”? Rape is rape! Decisions like this should be left up to the mother to choose. He should have kept his comments to himself.

Robert Hoggard: Any other comments?

Ariell Tillman: It is very important that students educated themselves on politics and go to vote!

VSU Alum climbs ranks in Army

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Ten-hut! (Hear a bugle in the background?)

Gen. Dennis L. Via, an area native who on Aug. 7 was promoted by the Army to four-star general and given oversight of the Army Materiel Command, will be honored by the Henry County Board of Supervisors and the Martinsville City Council when he returns home for a visit Tuesday.

Via is a graduate of the former Carver High School and Virginia State University. He has served in the Army for more than 30 years.

He is one of only 10 four-star Army generals, according to a resolution that the supervisors will present him during their meeting at 3 p.m. Tuesday.

The resolution describes him as a hero for his contributions to the military.

“Via’s patriotism and career achievements have garnered the confidence of the president of the United States as confirmed by the U.S. Senate in his ability to lead and mold future generations of soldiers and civilians,” states a proclamation that Mayor Kim Adkins will present him during the city council meeting at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday.

Although he is a county native, “Via has continually brought pride and recognition to the city of Martinsville,” the proclamation states.

The county’s resolution mentions that Via will take charge of a materiel command with 69,000 employees and stations in all 50 states and 144 countries. read more…

University of the Virgin Islands participates in marine sciences project

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Hovering low over Tennessee Reef off Long Key earlier this month, Mike Parsons squeezed the trigger of his spear gun and drilled a black grouper.

As tasty as the fish would have been, it was destined not for the grill but for the lab.

Parsons, an FGCU professor of marine sciences, is lead investigator of CiguaHAB, an international team of scientists conducting a five-year project to investigate conditions that lead to outbreaks of ciguatera fish poisoning. The $5 million study is financed by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

CiguaHAB researchers will work in the Keys and St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, for the full five years of the project and for two years at oil rigs in the northern Gulf of Mexico, the Flower Gardens National Marine Sanctuary, the Bahamas, and Veracruz, Mexico.

Participating in the project are the University of Texas Marine Institute, University of South Alabama, University of the Virgin Islands, University of Veracruz, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration Gulf Coast Seafood Laboratory on Dauphin Island, Ala.

Ciguatera, the most common toxic seafood poisoning in the world, is caused by various species of single-cell Gambierdiscus algae, which produce a powerful neurotoxin called ciguatoxin and live on bottom-dwelling macroalgae.

Ciguatoxin works up the food chain when Gambierdiscus cells, sometimes called Gambies, are ingested along with their host algae by herbivorous fish and invertebrates, which are then eaten by predatory fish.

People who eat ciguatoxin-laced fish and invertebrates can come down with ciguatera poisoning. Fish known to carry ciguatoxin include barracuda, jacks, snappers, groupers, hogfish and triggerfish.

Ciguatera symptoms include vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal cramps, blurred vision, numbness and cardiovascular problems.

Before coming to FGCU in 2007, Parsons studied ciguatera at the University of Hawaii.

“We did surveys every month, collecting environmental data and looking at Gambierdiscus abundance,” Parsons said. “We noticed seasonal patterns. We were getting the highest numbers of Gambies in the early summer. read more…

UMES Volleyball wins

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The University of Maryland Eastern Shore volleyball team traveled to the Big Apple and conquered all comers, defeating St. Francis and Radford each in four sets on Saturday to win the SFC Terrier Invitational at the Genovesi Center. The Hawks move to 3-0, while the Terriers fell to 0-3 and the Highlanders fell to 2-1.

Saitaua Iosia led the Hawks with 43 combined kills and 33 digs, earning double doubles in each match, with 19 kills and 16 digs in the morning and 24 kills with 17 digs in the afternoon.

Ndidi Ibe hit .500 with 19 kills and just two attack errors, adding eight blocks. Kaveinga Lea’Aetoa hit .432 on the day, combining for 18 kills, five aces and eight blocks. Maline Vaitai had 16 kills against St. Francis, totaling 23 on the day, with 12 digs. Jessie Vicic tallied 93 assists and 17 digs. read more…

UA at Pine Bluff specialist predicts lowered livestock fertility

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As if drought damage to pastures and high hay and feed prices aren’t enough, livestock producers may see reduced fertility in their breeding herds this fall, says Dr. David Fernandez, University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff Cooperative Extension Program livestock specialist.

“The exceptionally high heat could impair the ability of bulls, bucks, rams and boars to produce viable sperm,” he says. Cows, does, ewes and sows may produce less viable eggs or experience higher levels of early spontaneous abortions.

Here’s why. Most male mammals’ testes are located in the scrotum outside their bodies. This allows the male to maintain his testes at a temperature several degrees below his body temperature which is essential for sperm production. When temperatures exceed 103 F for several days, the testes cannot be cooled adequately, and sperm production can be impaired, says Dr. Fernandez.

The damage to sperm production can be long term. Sperm production in the ram requires an average of 47 days plus another nine days for the sperm to migrate to the storage area. That’s 56 days. Similar timeframes are believed to exist for bucks. For bulls, it is more than 70 days. The damage is not readily apparent, he says. In some cases, the number of sperm and their motility may be reduced.

“Much of the damage appears to be done to the DNA of the sperm,” he says. This means that a sire may appear to be normally fertile after a breeding soundness exam, but pregnancy rates of dams may be low, with many repeat breeders.

Compounding the problem are the effects of high heat on female reproduction. When temperatures are high, eggs may be less fertile and may not survive to form a viable embryo after fertilization. Fortunately, the effect of high temperatures on females tends to be limited to the estrus cycle in which it occurs. read more…

Meningitis vaccine not deterring enrollment

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The controversial vaccine for a bacterial form of meningitis has not — despite fears — threatened many students’ ability to attend local universities.

The vaccination, called for by Texas Senate Bill 107, was required for all Texas college students in 2012, unless they filed for an exemption due to religious objection or an exemption was requested for a medical reason.

The vaccine was hoped to protect students in close-knit collegiate communities from meningococcal meningitis, an often fatal form of the disease that causes swelling on the brain and spinal cord.

However, the vaccine’s expense, lack of availability and potential dangers to a fetus if taken while pregnant caused concern in critics that it would limit people’s ability to register for college.

Local college; however, reported turning no one away for failing to receive the vaccination

Kilgore College spokesman Chris Craddock said the college purchased 50 extra vaccines so the nurse could administer it for someone undergoing late registration,

“Most of our students had already received the shot and others signed the waiver form,” Craddock said. The school has dozens of vaccinations remaining after using only a few of their supply. read more…

What led Oklahoma State to scheduling Savannah State

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The situation was dire.

Calls to dozens of schools hadn’t panned out, but Martin had a promising lead on a program that might be more desperate to schedule a game than he was.

It was on that bus ride that Martin first called Savannah State.

“Did we plan that?” he said of the scheduling scramble. “No.”

Want to know why in the world OSU, fresh off its best season ever, is opening with Savannah State, its worst nonconference opponent ever?

Then you need to know what led up to Martin placing that phone call on that bus.

It starts with conference realignment. There was time when Martin had four nonconference games scheduled for the Cowboys this season, but then the conferences started swapping schools. Multiple leagues decided to play nine conference games instead of eight, forcing teams to reduce their nonconference slates from four games to three.

Deals that had been done for years were suddenly being altered or voided entirely.

“One move causes another move, and another move causes another move,” Martin said, “and pretty soon you’re moving all kinds of things.”

The domino effect was enormous, and when it hit OSU, the Cowboys were left with only two opponents, Arizona and Louisiana-Lafayette, for three nonconference games.

The search was on.

“Listen to this,” Martin said, pulling a sheet of paper out of his files. “I called Stony Brook, Gardner-Webb, Alabama State, Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Jackson State, Southern University, Mississippi Valley, Northern Arizona, Northern Colorado, Southern Utah, Sam Houston State, Tennessee Tech, Portland State, McNeese State, University of Tennessee-Martin, Tennessee State, Idaho State.

“Um, that’s just the front page.”

Some of those schools didn’t have any open dates. Others wanted too much money to travel to Stillwater for a game. Still others wanted no part of the Cowboys.

“Some of those people had games available,” Martin said. “They just didn’t want to play us.”

And since OSU is working with a 60,000-seat stadium instead of an 80,000- or 100,000-seat one, it can’t afford the payouts that some schools can. There are lower-tier FBS schools, also known as Division I-A, demanding well over $1 million for nonconference games and FCS schools, once known as Division I-AA, asking for as much as $750,000. read more…

HU Hospital among those chosen for Best Fed Beginnings national initiative

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The National Initiative for Children’s Healthcare Quality has selected 90 hospitals to participate in Best Fed Beginnings, a national effort to improve breast-feeding support by nurses.

Medstar Franklin Square Medical Center, Baltimore; Howard County General Hospital, Columbia, Md.; Inova Alexandria Hospital, Alexandria, Va.; Inova Loudoun Hospital, Leesburg, Va.; Howard University Hospital, Washington, D.C.; and Providence Hospital, Washington, D.C., were among the hospitals chosen.

According to a news release, facilities participating in the 22-month learning collaborative, funded by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, will work with national breast-feeding and quality improvement experts to implement the “10 Steps to Successful Breast-Feeding” established by the World Health Organization/UNICEF Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative. read more…

Morgan Drops Opener of Battle At The Bay To St. John’s, 3-0

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Ashley Boursiquot finished with a match-high eight kills and a hitting percentage of .800, while Aleksandra Wachowicz added six kills to lead the visiting Red Storm to a 3-0 (25-9, 25-7, 25-22) over host Morgan State in the Battle at the Bay tournament on Friday afternoon at Hill Field House. The match was the first-ever meeting between the two programs and the season opener for both teams. Read Full 

Alabama State Fall Enrollment Numbers Among University’s Highest

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More than 1,500 new students started classes at ASU this fall and are quickly learning why “It’s a Great Time to be a Hornet.”

When fall classes started on Monday, Alabama State University welcomed more than 1,500 new students for the new school year.

Last spring, ASU’s Board of Trustees set an enrollment goal of at least 1,500 new students for the fall 2012 semester.  Cherise Peters, ASU’s associate provost and vice president for Enrollment Management, said her division exceeded that goal and set new records.

“We have enrolled more than 1,500 new students,” Peters said. “Our total enrollment is more than 5,000 students. The Enrollment Management team is working hard to keep this trend of increasing numbers going.”

Freddie Williams, director of Admissions and Recruitment, said the new numbers are the result of a great deal of hard work.

“I think that the increased numbers can be attributed to the willingness of the Admissions and Recruitment staff to work overtime to get the job done and our emphasis on faster application processing and response time,” Williams said.

The fall semester also has introduced a variety of improvements to campus life. The newly built John Garrick Hardy Student Center is now open for students. The center, a “one-stop” shop for students, is home to many student service offices, including Admissions and Recruitment, Enrollment Management, Financial Aid, Residential Life and Academic Advisement.

Senator Kay Hagan Announces $500K For Research At NC A&T University

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Greensboro, N.C. – U.S. Senator Kay Hagan today announced that North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University has received two awards from the National Science Foundation (NSF) worth $197,519 to conduct research, as well as a $300,00 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to study colon cancer prevention.

“I’m pleased that North Carolina A&T is receiving these resources that will help us advance groundbreaking research in our state,” Hagan said. “We must continue to invest in research that will strengthen our nation and our state in a global economy.”

Other institutions of higher education in North Carolina receiving awards are: North Carolina State University; North Carolina Central University; the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; Wake Forest University; Duke University; and Elizabeth City State University.

A total of $3.5 million will go to North Carolina institutes of higher education as a result of NSF awards announced this week. Referenced