Monthly Archives: September 2014

The Discovery of a Lost Landmark of African American History

The Museum of Modern Art in New York City has announced the discovery of 101-year-old film footage that may include the earliest surviving depictions of African Americans actors on screen.

Black Enrollments at State Universities in Mississippi

There are 3,285 African Americans enrolled at the University of Mississippi this fall. They make up 14.2 percent of the total enrollments. Blacks make up 37.4 percent of the state's population.

Professor Lonnie Brown Is One of Four Finalists for Dean of the University of Georgia Law School

Professor Brown is the associate dean of academic affairs at the law school. He joined the faculty at the law school in 2002 and currently holds the A. Gus Cleveland Distinguished Chair of Legal Ethics and Professionalism.

In Memoriam: Elton C. Harrison, 1917-2014

Dr. Harrison taught mathematics at Fort Valley State University in Georgia and then had a long career as an administrator at Southern University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and Dillard University in New Orleans.

Emory University Debuts Archive of 12,000 Photos of African Americans

The Robert Langmuir African American Photograph Collection includes nearly 12,000 photographs depicting African American life in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

Winston-Salem State University Names Its Next Chancellor

Since 2012, Elwood L. Robinson has served as provost and vice president for academic affairs at Cambridge College in Massachusetts. Previously, he served on the faculty at North Carolina Central University in Durham.

Lehigh University Settles Racial Harassment Complaint

The Department of Education has announced that Lehigh University has signed a voluntary resolution agreement to resolve a complaint filed by an alumna after a multicultural dormitory on campus was vandalized.

Brown University Dedicates Its Slavery Memorial

The memorial includes a 4.5 ton cast-iron sculpture that sits in front of University Hall, Brown's oldest building that was built in part by slave labor. The sculpture depicts a large iron ball and a chain where the third and final link is broken.

Survey Finds Large Racial Differences in Student Loan Debt

According to the Gallup survey, only 22 percent of Black students who graduated college in the 2000-to-2014 period did so without any student loan debt. Half of all Black students who earned their degree in the period had student loan debt of more than $25,000.

What Are the College Prospects for the 4 Million Black Children Living in Poverty?

In 2013, there were 4,244,000 African Americans under the age of 18 in the United States who were living in poverty. This was 38.3 percent of all African American children.

A Check on the Status of Black Enrollments in U.S. Graduate Schools

The Council on Graduate Schools reports that 40,584 African Americans enrolled in graduate programs for the first time in the fall of 2013. Of these, 69 percent were women.

The Most Diverse Student Bodies in American Higher Education

According to U.S News & World Report, the Newark campus of Rutgers University was rated as the most diverse in the country. Andrews University, Stanford University, St. John's University, and the University of Houston tied for second place.

New Report Offers Strategies for Increasing Internationalization Efforts at HBCUs

Over an 18-month period, the American Council on Education worked closely with seven HBCUs to conduct a review and analysis of their current internationalization efforts and to develop a strategic plan for enhancing those efforts.

Southern University Teams Up With Baton Rouge Community College

Students who have successfully completed associate's degrees in political science, psychology, history, criminal justice, business, and military science will be able to enroll in Southern University bachelor's degree programs as juniors.

Five African Americans in New Administrative Posts in Higher Education

Taking on new roles are Dexter A. Bailey Jr. at Stony Brook University in New York, Cheryl Evans Jones at Paine College in Georgia, Stacy Downing at Delaware State University, Brian Seymour at Edward Waters College in Florida, and Jonathan Muse at Cheyney University of Pennsylvania.

Tennessee State University Partners With a Community College in Memphis

Under the agreement, students who successfully complete their associate's degree program at Southwest Tennessee Community College will be able to transfer their credits to pursue a bachelor's degree at Tennessee State.

Notable Honors for Three Black Men With Ties to the Academic World

Patrick Cage of Chicago State University and Chinedum Osuji of Yale University are being honored by professional societies and mystery writer Walter Mosley is receiving an award from the City College of New York.

Kentucky State University Teams Up With a Nigerian University

Historically Black Kentucky State University has entered into a partnership with the Michael Okpara University of Agriculture in Umudike, Nigeria. Both universities will send students to study at the partner institution with a focus on participating in research.

Seven African American Scholars in New Teaching Posts

The appointees are Nicole Overstreet at Clark University, Rodney Ridley Sr. at Wilkes University, Danielle Evans at the University of Wisconsin, Barbara Gutherie at Northeastern University, Prince Ellis at Clermont College, A. Todd Franklin at Hamilton College, and Kenny Leon at Fordham University.

In Memoriam: Lester B. Brown, 1929-2014

Over the course of a long career in the academic world, Dr. Brown served as the inaugural chair of the department of chemistry at Albany State University in Georgia. He later taught at Miami Dade College and held administrative posts at Voorhees College and Florida Memorial University.

Colgate University Students Protest Racism on Campus

A large group of students held a peaceful demonstration in the administration building at Colgate University protesting acts of racism and bias that occurred on campus and by Colgate students on social media.

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.

Four Universities Selected as Finalists for the Obama Presidential Library

The Barack Obama foundation has narrowed the field of candidates to host the Obama Presidential Library to Columbia University, the University of Chicago, the University of Illinois at Chicago, and the University of Hawaii.

Longwood University Apologizes for Its Actions During the Civil Rights Era

Longwood University is a four-year, state-operated educational institution. Today, it enrolls about 4,500 undergraduate students and more than 400 graduate students. Blacks make up approximately 8 percent of the undergraduate student body.

University Innovation Alliance Aims to Help Low-Income Students Earn a College Degree

The alliance of 11 large public research universities says that it will test and disseminate proven innovations in education so college and universities across the country can be more successful in retaining and graduating all students, including those from low-income families.

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.

Kansas State University Acquires the Collection of Blues Legend Jimmy Rogers

The collection of memorabilia from one of the greats of the Chicago blues scene in the post World War II years includes more than 2,500 items relating to Rogers' career from the period 1960 until his death in 1997.

University of Virginia’s Efforts to Boost the Academic Success of Its Black Students

The University of Virginia has one of the nation's highest Black student graduation rates. But the university also strives to boost the academic success of these students to a level where they will be able to compete for the best jobs and for places in the highest-ranked graduate schools.

Free Black Woman’s Civil War Diaries Available Online at Villanova University Website

The first entry of Emilie Davis' diaries, written on January 1, 1863, the day in which Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, read, "To day has bin a memorable day and i thank god i have been sperd to see it."

New Mobile Phone App Aims to Provide Means to Pay Tuition for Schoolchildren in Benin

Two scholars at the University of California at San Diego, are developing an app for mobile phones that will allow for friends, relatives, and philanthropists to pay the tuition for schoolchildren in the African nation of Benin in an efficient and secure manner.

In Memoriam: Gerald Stanley Wilson, 1918-2014

Wilson was a bandleader, composer, musician, and long-time educator at the University of California, Los Angeles. Wilson taught a course entitled "The Development of Jazz" at UCLA from 1992 to 2008.

Two Black Professors Are Named MacArthur Fellows

The Chicago-based MacArthur Foundation has announced the selection of 21 individuals in this year’s class of MacArthur Fellows. Two are African Americans with current ties to the academic world: Jennifer L. Eberhardt of Stanford University and Terrance Hayes of the University of Pittsburgh.

Study Finds That Racial Gap in College Completion Rates Is Attributable to Pre-College Factors

The results found that college graduation rates are largely determined by what happened before college — such as family resources, academic preparation and community context — and that the key non-college factors may well differ for communities of color.

The Large and Persisting Racial Income Gap Impacts College Affordability

In 2013, the median income level for Black households was 59 percent of the median income for non-Hispanic White households. With only minor fluctuations, the racial gap in median income has remained virtually unchanged for the past 40 years.

University Study Finds Small Progress in Racial Integration of Church Congregations

New research shows that in 1998, 20 percent of all churchgoers were members of all-White congregations. The latest data shows that only 11 percent of all church goers belong to all-White congregations. The study found no increase in ethnic diversity in predominantly Black congregations.

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