Monthly Archives: August 2014
Boise State University’s New Institute Seeks to Boost Minority Students in STEM Fields
Boise State University in Idaho has announced the formation of the new Institute for STEM and Diversity Initiatives. One goal of the new institute is to increase the quality, quantity, and diversity of students graduating in STEM fields.
Star Quarterback Returns to the University of Texas as a Development Officer
Vince Young, who was the quarterback for the University of Texas's football team when it won the BCS Championship game in January 2006, has been hired by the university as a development officer.
Dillard University to Offer Free Hazardous Waste Management Training for New Orleans Residents
The free training program in hazardous waste management, housed at Dillard's Deep South Center for Environmental Justice, is funded by the National Institutes of Environmental Health Sciences.
Seven African Americans Taking on New Administrative Duties in Higher Education
The new African American administrative appointees are Maria E. Hamilton Abegunde, Travis D. Boyce, Anthony Scott, Nevada Winrow, Angel Mason, Joyce Wilkerson, and Yakima S. Rhinehart.
In Memoriam: Harry Leon June Sr., 1957-2014
Dr. June was a professor of psychiatry, professor of pharmacology and experimental therapeutics, and director of substance abuse research at the Howard University College of Medicine.
Online Articles That May Be of Interest to JBHE Readers
From time to time, The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education will provide links to online articles that may be of interest to our readers. Here are this week's selections.
Recent Books That May Be of Interest to African American Scholars
The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education regularly publishes a list of new books that may be of interest to our readers. Here are the latest selections.
Racist Posters Appear on the Campus of York University in Toronto
The posters showed photographs of York students in the 1960s. All of the students in the photographs are white. A more recent photo showing a diverse group of students contained the caption, "Soon Whites will be the minority."
Cornell Black Alumni Association Starts Grant Program to Help Aspiring Authors
The first beneficiary of the grant program is Dionne M. Benjamin, a member of the class of 2000. She received a grant that helped her offset the cost of an illustrator for the first of her series of children's books.
University of Nebraska Helps Establish Five Poetry Libraries in Africa
The project is the idea of Kwame Dawes, a Chancellor’s Professor of English at the University of Nebraska. The libraries, scheduled to open in September are located in Gambia, Botswana, Ghana, Kenya, and Uganda.
Higher Education Grants of Interest to African Americans
Here is this week’s news of grants to historically Black colleges and universities or for programs of particular interest to African Americans in higher education.
Emory University Scholar to Receive the Lillian Smith Book Award
Bernard Lafayette Jr., the Distinguished Senior Scholar-in-Residence at the Candler School of Theology at Emory University, is being honored for his book about his time as leader of the Selma, Alabama, voting rights protests.
C. Dwight Lahr Is Retiring From Teaching at Dartmouth College
C. Dwight Lahr was named professor of mathematics emeritus at Dartmouth College. He first joined the Dartmouth faculty in 1975 as an assistant professor.
Two Black Scholars Join the Humanities Faculty at Cornell University
Naminata Diabate has joined the department of comparative literature and C. Riley Snorton is a new assistant professor in Africana studies and feminist, gender, and sexuality studies.
The Good News and Bad News on Sororities at the University of Alabama
This year 21 Black women were offered bids to join sororities at the University of Alabama. But Black women were just 1 percent of all new sororities members. The process was further tainted by a sorority member's posting of a photograph with a racist caption.
New ACT Test Results Show Very Few Black Students Are Prepared for College
According to the 2014 scores on the ACT college entrance examination, only one in 20 Black students were rated college-ready in all four areas: English, reading, mathematics and science. Whites were nearly seven times as likely as Blacks to be college ready in all four areas.
Number of Black Applicants to U.S. Graduate Schools From Africa on the Rise
A new report from the Council on Graduate Schools shows that the number of foreign applicants to U.S. graduate schools in 2014 from Africa increased by 9 percent from a year ago. Black acceptances were up 3 percent.
Another Act of Kindness by Kentucky State University President Raymond Burse
President Burse came to football practice to announce that he would support senior football player Deshon Floyd's effort to raise money for an internship in New Zealand. President Burse said he would cover the remaining expenses.
Report Finds That Tensions Between Black Youth and the Police Are a Nationwide Problem
The report from the Black Youth Project at the University of Chicago finds that 54.5 percent of Black youth report being harassed by the police. This is nearly double the rate for youth from other racial and ethnic groups.
Morehouse School of Medicine Educator Is the New President of the National Medical Association
Lawrence Sanders Jr. teaches internal medicine, business principles, and patient safety/quality improvement at Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta. He earned his medical degree at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee.
University Study Finds Inner-City Youth More Likely to Have Food Allergies
The study found that 10 percent of young inner-city children had food allergies. Peanut allergies were the most common, followed by eggs, and milk. Nationwide about 3 percent of all adults and 6 percent of young children have food allergies.
In Memoriam: Walter Terrell Jones, 1949-2014
Dr. Jones began his career at Penn State in 1980 as a residence hall coordinator. After a one-year stint as acting provost at Loch Haven University of Pennsylvania, Dr. Jones returned to Penn State in 1997 and a year later was named vice provost for educational equity.
Grambling State University Pushes Back Timetable for Selecting Its Next President
Grambling State University in Louisiana had planned to name its next president in October. But a delay in securing the services of an executive search firm has now pushed the timetable for the announcement of a new president to the spring of 2015.
Four African Americans Presented With Prestigious Awards
The four honorees are Lynden A. Archer of Cornell University in New York, Gary L. LeRoy of Wright State University in Detroit, Jada Bussey-Jones of Emory University in Atlanta, and Derek Wilson of Prairie View A&M University in Texas.
Alabama State University President Appears to Have the Faculty in Her Corner
New Alabama State University President Gwendolyn Boyd has had her troubles with the university's board of trustees but she appears to be a favorite of the university's faculty.
New Administrative Posts for Nine African Americans in Higher Education
The new administrative appointees are Joyce A. Dixon, Yohuru Williams, Selina B. Kohn, Milyon Trulove, Denisha L. Hendricks, Destinee Waiters, Mathwon Howard, Lamont Hinson, and Gregory Harris.
Albany State University Forms Partnership With Walmart
The partnership will include scholarships, internship opportunities, in-kind contributions from Walmart to the university and job readiness workshops led by Walmart professionals in fields such as logistics, law, and transportation management.
Online Articles That May Be of Interest to JBHE Readers
From time to time, The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education will provide links to online articles that may be of interest to our readers. Here are this week's selections.
Recent Books That May Be of Interest to African American Scholars
The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education regularly publishes a list of new books that may be of interest to our readers. Here are the latest selections.
Blacks Are Less Than Two Percent of All Applicants to Princeton’s Graduate Programs
Underrepresented minorities made up 5.2 percent of the applicant pool for graduate programs at Princeton University. There were 196 African Americans in the applicant pool, making up 1.8 percent of all applicants.
In Memoriam: Jefferson Parramore Rogers, 1917-2014
Jefferson P. Rogers was an educator, pastor, civil rights leader, and the former director of the Center for Community Change. He served on the faculty at Florida Memorial University and established the Howard Thurman Distinguished Lecture Series in conjunction with Stetson University.
Higher Education Grants of Interest to African Americans
Here is this week’s news of grants to historically Black colleges and universities or for programs of particular interest to African Americans in higher education.
Sierra Club Names Its New Award After a Texas Southern University Dean
The Sierra Club has announced the establishment of a new award that will honor an individual or a group that has done outstanding work in the area of environmental justice. The award will be named after Dr. Robert Bullard, one of the founders of the environmental justice movement.
Coastal Carolina University Project Focuses on African American Veterans
The project, by Coastal Carolina University's Athenaeum Press, is the culmination of a decade of research collecting oral histories, documents, photographs, and other mementos of African American veterans.
Spelman College President Earns Highest Honor From the American Psychological Association
The citation for the award given to Beverly Daniel Tatum said that "you have engaged the very difficult subject of race relations in the United States, and the impact of such an environment on identity development for African Americans."
North Carolina HBCU Tightening Its Belt
Saint Augustine's University in Raleigh, North Carolina, saw tuition revenue drop by $3 million during the last academic year. It has taken several steps to deal with the loss in revenue including the recent decision not to rehire 75 adjunct faculty members for the new academic year.
