Monthly Archives: January 2016

New Biochemistry Major Launched at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff

The University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, a historically Black education institution that enrolls about 2,500 students, has announced that it will offer a new bachelor's degree program in biochemistry beginning in the fall of 2016.

African American Finalists for the National Book Critics Circle Awards

The National Book Critics Circle Awards are given out in six categories with five finalists in each category. Several of the finalists are African Americans who currently hold academic posts at American colleges and universities.

Elizabeth City State University to Launch Agricultural Drone Curriculum

The aviation sciences program in the department of technology at historically Black Elizabeth City State University in North Carolina will offer five different courses that will focus on agricultural applications of drone technology.

Yale Bestows Further Honors on the First Black Person to Donate Money to the University

Mary K. Goodman, a Black laundry woman in New Haven, Connecticut, died in 1872. She left her life savings of $5,000 to Yale University to support the education of African American divinity students.

Morgan State University Announces Its First Endowed Faculty Chair

The Endowed Chair in Internet of Things Security was established by a $1 million grant from the Maryland Department of Commerce. The first holder of the endowed chair will be Kevin T. Kornegay, a professor of electrical and computer engineering at Morgan State.

New Administrative Posts in Higher Education for Five African Americans

Taking on new administrative roles are Kenneth M. Holmes at Howard University, Cherisna Jean-Marie at Jarvis Christian College, Adria N. Kimbrough at Dillard University, Rhonda Jeter-Twilley at Bowie State University, and Wanda K. Brown at Winston-Salem State University.

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.

Tape of Lost Martin Luther King Jr. Speech Found in the Amherst College Archives

On February 6, 1964, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke at the New School in New York City. Until recently, it was believed that there was no recording of the speech. But a tape of the speech was recently found in the archives of the student radio station at Amherst College in Massachusetts.

Two African Americans Leaving Their Higher Education Posts

Iris E. Harvey is leaving her post as vice president for university relations at Kent State University in Ohio and Leonard Hayes III is retiring as senior director for the Institutional Service Division of the Department of Education’s Office of Postsecondary Education.

Recent Books 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.

In Memoriam: Bryan R. Washington, 1958-2015

Bryan Washington was an associate professor emeritus of English at Lafayette College in Easton, Pennsylvania. He joined the faculty at Lafayette College in 1987 and was promoted to associate professor and granted tenure in 1994.

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.

Vanderbilt University Bestows a Further Honor on Its First Black Graduate

The Joseph A. Johnson Jr. Distinguished Leadership Professor Award will honor a faculty member whose contributions to the university have enhanced equity, diversity and inclusion in the university’s academic endeavors.

Gate on Haverford College Campus Linked to Black Architectural Pioneer Julian Abele

New research by a faculty member at Haverford College in Pennsylvania, has found that one of famed architect Julian Abele's first creations was the Edward B. Conklin Gate on the Haverford campus. Abele designed the gate while he was still a student at the University of Pennsylvania.

Increase in African American Applicants to the University of California

This year, 6,589 African Americans applied to one or more University of California undergraduate campuses. They make up 6.3 percent of all students who applied for places at the university. This up from 6.1 percent last year and 5.9 percent two years ago.

HBCUs Awarded 448 Doctorates in 2014, an All-Time High

The 448 doctorates awarded by HBCUs is the highest total since JBHE began tracking this statistic. In 2014 there was a 13 percent increase in HBCU doctoral awards from the previous year.

Racial Differences in Persistence Rates in U.S. Higher Education

More than 40 percent of all African Americans who enrolled in higher education in the 2011-12 academic year were no longer enrolled in higher education in 2014 and had not earned a degree or certificate of any kind. For Whites, 27.7 percent were no longer enrolled.

The Next Dean of the College of Education at Virginia Commonwealth University

Andrew P. Daire currently serves as associate dean for research in the College of Education at the University of Houston. Earlier he taught for 14 years in the College of Education and Human Performance at the University of Central Florida in Orlando.

Study Finds Academic Coaching Helps Retain Minority Students in Ph.D. Programs

The Academy for Future Science Faculty consists of individual and group-based professional development activities, discussions with fellow students, and highly skilled mentors serving as coaches, many of them minorities themselves, trained in diversity issues.

Three African Americans Among the Top 10 Most Influential Scholars in Education

Linda Darling Hammond of Stanford University was rated as the most influential university-based education scholar in the United States. Also among the top 10 influential scholars are Gloria Ladson-Billings of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Claude Steele, provost at the University of California, Berkeley.

Academic Study Shows How Racial Bias May Impact End of Life Care

The researchers conducted an experiment with emergency room physicians and put them in simulations where they had to interact with actors who were portraying patients who were dying and their family members.

Jackson State University Wins Approval to Offer Two New Degree Programs in STEM Fields

Jackson State University will now offer a bachelor of science degree program in biotechnology and a master's degree in computational/data-enabled science and engineering.

Three Black Faculty Members Taking on New Assignments in Higher Education

Taking on new roles are Sean L. Francis at the University of Louisville in Kentucky, Ruqaiijah A. Yearby at the Case Western Reserve University School of Law in Cleveland, and William H. Robinson at the Vanderbilt University School of Engineering in Nashville.

Delaware State Partners With a Korean University for a Joint Degree Program in Accounting

Under the agreement, Jeju National University students will complete their first two years of study in South Korea. They will then travel to the United States and spend their next two years at Delaware State University.

Prestigious Awards for a Pair of African American Scholars

Donald Mitchell Jr. of Grand Valley State University is being honored at the Ethnographic and Qualitative Research Conference and Saundra Yancy McGuire of Louisiana State University will receive an award from the American Association for Advancement of Science.

Harris-Stowe State University to Offer a Dual Degree Program in Occupational Therapy

Students will enroll at Harris-Stowe State University for three years. Then, the students will enroll at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis for two years to earn a master's degree in occupational therapy or three years to earn a doctorate in occupational therapy.

Three African Americans Named to Administrative Posts at Southern Universities

Taking on new administrative roles are Sonja A. Bennett-Bellamy at Shaw University in Raleigh, North Carolina, Marcellina Melvin at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee, and David C. Camps Sr. at Campbell University in Buies Creek, North Carolina.

In Memoriam: Toni Kay Johnson, 1956-2016

Dr. Johnson joined the faculty at the University of Kansas in 2005 and was promoted to associate professor in 2012. Before joining the University of Kansas faculty, Dr. Johnson taught in the College of Social Work at the University of Tennessee-Memphis.

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.

Black First-Year Students at the Nation’s Leading Liberal Arts Colleges

In 2009, only three of the nation's high-ranking liberal arts colleges had entering classes that were at least 10 percent Black. This year there are seven, with another three schools close behind.

Penn State Partners With the National Football League Players Association

Former NFL players will be able to earn their degrees through the World Campus of Pennsylvania State University. The agreement is of particular importance to African Americans. Blacks make up two thirds of all players in the National Football League.

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.

Alice Randall’s Class at Vanderbilt University Explores the History of Blacks in Country Music

Alice Randall, the award-winning author, songwriter, and writer-in-residence in African American and diaspora studies, taught a class that used mapping technology to trace the progress of African Americans in country music.

In Memoriam: Anita H. Grant, 1961-2015

Anita H. Grant was electronic acquisitions librarian at Ohio University in Athens. During her 25-year tenure on the library's staff, she was director of circulation services and director of the microfilms department.

Diversity Chief at Missouri State University Is Stepping Down

After allegations that Kenneth Coopwood had been treated unfairly due to his race and a university investigation that determined he had not been discriminated against, Dr. Coopwood decided to resign.

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