Monthly Archives: August 2016
Texas Southern University Team Wins International Entrepreneur Competition
The Texas Southern University team showcased their RadBlok device, an electromagnetic chip that improves cellphone reception, increases cellphone battery life, and protects the user from unwanted radiation.
In Memoriam: Robert Colbert, 1950-2016
Robert Colbert was an associate professor and director of the counseling program in the department of educational psychology in the Neag School of Education at the University of Connecticut.
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.
The Snail-Like Progress of Racial Diversity in Sororities at the University of Alabama
This year's sorority rush was just completed. There were 25 African American students who received bids among the 2,488 women who were accepted at traditionally White sororities. This is just a shade over 1 percent. Blacks are 11 percent of the undergraduate student body at the university.
Medical University of South Carolina Becoming More Diverse
According to U.S. News & World Report, the Medical University of South Carolina enrolls the fifth highest number of African American students among medical schools that are not considered historically Black institutions.
Alicia Henry of Fisk University Wins the 1858 Prize for Contemporary Southern Art
In announcing the award the society stated that "Henry’s work specializes in painting, textile and mixed-media installation work that explores social relationships through depictions of the human figure shown in isolation and interacting with one another."
The Song “Dixie” Will Be Heard No More at Ole Miss Football Games
The song, sometimes referred to as the Confederate National Anthem, has been played at football games and other campus events for at least the past 70 years.
A Leadership Crisis at Florida A&M University in Tallahassee
Recently the board of trustees voted by a 7-5 margin not to renew the president's contract when it expires in April. The board created a task force to determine the future of leadership at the university. It did not rule out extending the president's contract and it did not rule out letting her go.
Tracking The Snail-Like Progress of Faculty Diversity
A new report from the TIAA Institute finds that African Americans have made only slight progress in increasing their percentage of faculty positions in higher education over the past two decades. And the gains that have been made are mostly in non-tenure-track positions.
The New Director of the School of Music at the University of Maryland
Jason Geary has been serving as an associate professor and associate dean for graduate studies, equity, and inclusion for the School of Music, Theatre & Dance at the University of Michigan. He has been on the faculty at the University of Michigan for the past 12 years.
“Handholding” of Young Black Males in High School May Hinder Their Success Later On
Chezare A. Warren conducted a study that found that special attention given to Black males in urban high school classrooms may not serve them well later in life.
A Trio of African Americans Appointed to Positions as Deans
The new deans are Amanda Bryant-Friedrich at the College of Graduate Studies of the University of Toledo in Ohio, Cheryl Easley at the College of Health Sciences at Alabama State University, and James D. Anderson at the College of Education of the University of Illinois.
UCSF Study Finds Racial Disparity in Prescriptions for Opioids at Emergency Rooms
Researchers examined data from more than 60 million pain-related emergency room visits between 2007 and 2011. They found that in cases where there was no definite outward sign of a pain-producing injury, Black patients were half as likely as White patients to be given prescriptions for opioids.
In Memoriam: Joyce Carol Thomas, 1938-2016
Joyce Carol Thomas, the author of more than 30 children's books and a former college professor, won the National Book Award and the American Book Award in 1983. She taught at several higher educational institutions including Purdue University and the University of Tennessee.
Spelman College Is a Leader in Study Abroad Programs
According to the Institute of International Education, African Americans are only 5.6 percent of the students who study abroad. But at Spelman College in Atlanta, one fifth of all students study abroad in any given year.
New Academic Assignments for Five Black Scholars
The five Black scholars in new roles are Carl Goodman at Florida A&M University, Ifeoma Kiddoe Nwankwo at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Enoch Agbesi Adogla at Francis Marion University in South Carolina, Moses Alexander Green at Saint Augustine's University in North Carolina, and Serie McDougal III at San Francisco State University.
Private Black Universities Reporting Boosts in First-Year Enrollments
Shaw University in Raleigh, North Carolina, has its largest entering class in six years and Claflin University in Orangeburg, South Carolina, has its largest first-year class in university history.
Honors and Awards for a Trio of African Americans With Ties to Higher Education
Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland is honoring alumna and congressional representative Stephanie Tubbs Jones. LaDonna Christian of Simmons College in Boston was named Nurse Educator of the Year and the late Professor Clement Alexander Price is being remembered by Rutgers University-Newark.
Southern University in Louisiana to Implement Advanced Adaptive Technology Coursework
The Advance Adaptive Technology platform uses 21st century learning technologies to deliver quality online instruction coursework that will be used in biology and history classes to assess the effectiveness of the learning environments to improve student-learning outcomes.
Five African Americans Taking on New Administrative Duties in Higher Education
Taking on new assignments are Kelli V. Randall at Livingstone College in North Carolina, Angela Jones at Eastern Washington University, W. Tramaine Rausaw at Central Arizona College, Cheryl L. Johnson at the University of Pittsburgh, and Darryl A. Pope at Fort Valley State University in Georgia.
Online Articles That May Be of Interest to JBHE Readers
Each week, JBHE 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.
A New African American Center Planned at the University of California, Berkeley
The new center will be named after Fannie Lou Hamer, the voting and civil rights activist. The agreement to establish the center comes after a year of talks among the administration, the Black Student Union and other campus African American groups.
Winston-Salem State University Unveils New Logo and Branding Campaign
The new logo shows a stone arch which the university says "represents the strength of the university community and reflects the faculty and staff's commitment to advocating for students and providing them a safe and supportive environment in which to pursue their education."
A New African American Dean at River Parishes Community College
Walter T. Tillman Jr. was named dean of student services and enrollment management at River Parishes Community College in Gonzales, Louisiana. He is a former executive of the Southern University System.
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.
Jarvis Christian College to Open Its First Satellite Campus
Jarvis Christian College, a historically Black educational institution in Hawkins, Texas, has announced that it is opening its first satellite campus at the Friendship-West Baptist Church in Dallas.
First Four Botstiber Scholars From Africa Arrive at Penn State
The four students from African nations have been awarded full scholarships at Penn State. The scholars will also receive mentoring and internship opportunities. The first cohort includes two students from Ghana and one each from Rwanda and Zimbabwe.
Old Dominion University Professor Named Virginia’s Poet Laureate
Tim Seibles, professor of English at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia, was named poet laureate of the Commonwealth of Virginia by Governor Terry McAuliffe. Professor Seibles joined the faculty at Old Dominion University in 1995.
The Youngest Woman Recipient of a Ph.D. in Africa
Muswenkosi Donia Saurombe is on track to receive Ph.D. in industrial psychology from the North West University in Mafikeng, South Africa, this October. At the age of 23, she will be the youngest women in African history to earn a Ph.D.
Do Young Black Students Do Better When They Have a Black Teacher?
A new study by researchers at the University of Virginia’s Center for Advanced Study of Teaching and Learning suggests that the racial or ethnic heritage of the teachers in the front of pre-kindergarten classrooms can make a big difference in the performance of students.
Vanderbilt Paying $1.2 Million to Remove the Word “Confederate” From a Campus Building
Confederate Memorial Hall opened in 1935 and originally was used as a dormitory for women studying to be teachers. Its construction was partially financed by a donation from the United Daughters of the Confederacy.
New Discovery May Improve Treatment for Those Who Suffer From Sickle Cell Disease
A study by researchers at Carnegie Mellon University, the University of Pittsburgh, Harvard University, MIT , Florida Atlantic University, and the University of Korea reports on a discovery that may help physicians treat those who suffer from sickle cell disease.
Tracking African American Progress in Higher Education
A new 188-page report from the U.S. Department of Education offers a wide-ranging summary of most of the important educational statistics on enrollment, financial aid, graduation rates, degree attainments etc. as they pertain to race all in one place.
Duke University Scholar Finds That “Beauty Is in the Ear of the Beholder”
A new study by Robert L. Reece, a doctoral candidate in sociology at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, finds that when test subjects are told a person is of mixed-racial heritage that person is perceived as more attractive than when test subjects are told the person is Black.
Spelman College in Atlanta To Decide Whether to Admit Transgender Students
Spelman College, the historically Black liberal arts educational institution for women in Atlanta, has announced that it will convene a task force that will make recommendations on whether the college should admit transgender students.
