Monthly Archives: February 2016
The Next President of the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Washington
Since 2008, Dr. Isiaah Crawford has served as provost of Seattle University. Previously, Dr. Crawford served on the faculty at Loyola University in Chicago for more than 20 years and was chair of the department of psychology and dean of the College of Arts and Sciences.
The Escalating Debt Problem for African American College Students
An analysis of the student debt load for fourth-year undergraduate students found that in 1990, 69 percent of African American college students had accumulated debt. By 2012, the figure was 90 percent.
Alec Gallimore Named Dean of Engineering at the University of Michigan
Professor Gallimore joined the faculty at the University of Michigan in 1992. He was promoted to full professor in 2004. Dr. Gallimore is the director of the Michigan Space Grant Consortium, funded by NASA and the director of the Michigan/Air Force Center of Excellence in Electric Propulsion.
The Racial Gap in the Perceived Value of Higher Education
A survey by the Pew Research Center finds that 62 percent of Black parents and only 34 percent of White parents believe getting a college degree is extremely import for success in life.
Michelle Howard-Vital Is the New Provost at Florida Memorial University
From 2007 to 2014, Dr. Howard-Vital was president of Cheyney University in Pennsylvania. Earlier in her career, she served as interim chancellor of Winston-Salem State University and as associate vice president for the University of North Carolina System.
New Study Finds Wide Racial Disparities in Access to Government Child Care Programs
A new report from the Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP) in Washington, D.C., finds that only 46 percent of eligible Black children participated in the Head Start preschool program. Nationwide, 21 percent of Black children eligible to be given government funded child care, actually are covered.
Fairfield University Students Hold a “Ghetto-Themed” Party
Photos posted on the internet showed Fairfield University students wearing baggy clothes, gold chains, and fake baby bumps while drinking 40-ounce beers at an off-campus party.
Harris-Stowe State University Begins Dual-Degree Program With the St. Louis College of Pharmacy
Under the new program students will spend their first three years at historically Black Harris-Stowe State University, majoring in biology. They will then spend four years in the pharmacy doctorate program at the St. Louis College of Pharmacy.
University of Scranton Recognizes Its First Black Graduate by Renaming a Building in His Honor
Louis Stanley Brown was born in 1902 in Scranton. At the age of 17 he earned a commercial degree from what was then St. Thomas College, later renamed the University of Scranton. Recently, the university renamed a campus building in honor of Louis Stanley Brown.
Morehouse School of Medicine Debuts New Community Health Television Series
The first episode that aired earlier this month on the Atlanta Interfaith Broadcasting network was entitled "Take This to Heart: Everything You Need to Know About Cardiovascular Health and Wellness."
Four Black Scholars Selected to Receive Notable Awards
The honorees are JoAnne Epps, dean of the law school at Temple University in Philadelphia, Virginia Caples of Alabama A&M University, Julia Bryan of Pennsylvania State University, and Charles A. Watson of the University of Rhode Island.
Simmons College Partners With the Baptist Seminary of Kentucky
The nation's newest HBCU has entered into an agreement with the Baptist Seminary of Kentucky that will explore ways to offer graduate education programs for Black students in Louisville's West End.
Four African Americans Taking On New Administrative Duties in Higher Education
The appointees are Gregory E. Triplett at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Wendy Wilson at Albany State University in Georgia, Sabrina Sanders at California State University, and Darryl Keith McGee at Lane College in Jackson, Tennessee.
The Three Finalists for Chief Diversity Officer at the University of Connecticut
The three candidates for chief diversity officer are Lisa McBride of the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, Joelle Murchison, an executive at The Travelers Companies in Hartford, and Franklin A. Tuitt of the University of Denver.
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 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. The books included are on a wide variety of subjects and present many different points of view.
Columbia University Makes David Dinkins Archive Available to Researchers
The archives includes 10 hours of oral history interviews with Professor Dinkins as well as speeches, fundraising letters, campaign materials, position papers, and correspondence. He was the first and only African American mayor of New York City.
Spalding University Honors Its First Black Graduates
The new Patricia Lauderdale and Barbara Miller Endowed Scholarship honors the first two African Americans who graduated from what was then Nazareth College in 1951.
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.
In Memoriam: Booker Taliaferro Felder, 1922-2016
Booker Taliaferro Felder taught in the clothing and related arts department at Tuskegee University in Alabama for 40 years. After retiring from teaching he operated a gift shop across the street from the university's campus.
University of California, Davis Student Assaulted in Alleged Hate Crime Incident
An African American student at the University of California, Davis alleges she was assaulted as she walked near her residence at UC Davis West Village in what police are calling a hate crime.
University of North Florida Launches New Institute of Race and Ethnic Relations
The new institute is one of only two centers focusing on issues of race in the Florida state university system and the only one that focuses on research. The institute will sponsor six research symposiums this year.
New Faculty Appointments for Two Black Academic Stars
This coming fall, Bryan Massingale, professor of theology at Marquette University in Milwaukee, will join the faculty at Fordham University in New York and Gregory Pardlo, the winner of the 2015 Pulitzer Prize for poetry, will join the faculty at Rutgers University-Camden.
Michelle Williams to Lead the Harvard School of Public Health
Since 2011, Dr. Williams has served as the Stephen B. Kay Family Professor of Public Health and chair of the department of epidemiology at the school. Earlier she taught at the University of Washington.
The Racial Gap in Women’s Ability to Pay Off Their Student Loans
For women who graduated from college in the 2007-08 academic year, Black women were able to pay off only 9 percent of their student loan debt by 2012. In contrast White women had paid off 37 percent of their student loan debt by 2012.
Walden University Names Its School of Social Work in Honor of Barbara Solomon
Dr. Solomon played a major role in the development of the social work program at Walden University. Earlier in her career, she was professor, vice provost, and dean of the Graduate School at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles.
University of California Aims to Increase Black Applicant Pool
The Achieve UC program targeted 12,000 students at high schools with large underrepresented minority student bodies with programs to guide them through the admission and financial aid processes. The program is being expanded this year to target 60,000 minority students.
Two HBCUs in North Carolina Form Health Science Partnership
Bennett College and Winston-Salem State University have entered into an agreement that will enhance opportunities for Bennett College alumnae to pursue programs in health sciences at Winston-Salem State University.
Proposed State Budget Cuts Threaten the Financial Stability of Kentucky State University
Raymond Burse, president of historically Black Kentucky State University, says that the proposed state budget cuts would be so devastating to the university that it may have "to declare financial exigency and/or prepare a closure plan."
Three Black Scholars Honored With Prestigious Awards
The honorees are Nina Caldwell of Maryville University in St. Louis, Wondwossen Gebreyes of the College of Veterinary Medicine at Ohio State University, and Aldon Morris of Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois.
Faculty Senate at Grambling State University Votes “No Confidence” in President’s Leadership
Less than one year ago, Willie D. Larkin was named president of Grambling State University in Louisiana. Now the Faculty Senate at the university has issued a resolution of "no confidence" in Larkin's leadership.
Four African Americans in New Administrative Posts at Southern Universities
Taking on new duties are Tanaya M. Walters at Clark Atlanta University, James Barnwell at Savannah State University in Georgia, Lee A. Gill at Clemson University in South Carolina, and Frank E. Dobson Jr. at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee.
One African American Among Finalists for Key Post at the University of Wisconsin-Madison
Richie Hunter, vice chancellor and vice president of university marketing, communication, and media relations for the University of Houston, is a finalist for vice chancellor for university relations at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Study Finds Racial Disparity in Risk of Dementia
A study by researchers at the University of California, San Francisco and healthcare conglomerate Kaiser Permanente found that 38 percent of the Black population will likely develop dementia within 25 years after turning 65 years old.
In Memoriam: Chester Davis, 1927-2016
Dr. Chester Davis joined the faculty at the University of Massachusetts in 1971. He chaired the Afro-American studies department there from 1985 to 1988.
Black High School Students Touring Texas A&M Campus Accosted With Racial Slurs
According to their campus tour guide and an official from the preparatory school, the Black students were accosted by a group of White students who used racial slurs and told then to "go back where you came from."
