Monthly Archives: December 2016

Cynthia Warrick to Lead Stillman College in Alabama

Cynthia Warrick will serve as interim president beginning on January 3. She is not considered to be a candidate for the position on a permanent basis. In the past, Dr. Warrick has served as interim president at Grambling State University in Louisiana and South Carolina State University.

Sociologist at the University of Connecticut Finds Bias in Hiring at Environmental Organizations

The study, authored by Maya Beasley, found that nearly 90 percent of the search consultants commonly used to find high-level executives for environmental organizations have encountered bias at the organizations that were seeking new employees.

Lisa Cooper Named a Bloomberg Distinguished Professor at Johns Hopkins University

Dr. Cooper has been serving as the James F. Fries Professor of general internal medicine at the university. She is the founder and director of the Johns Hopkins Center to Eliminate Cardiovascular Health Disparities and will now establish a new Institute for Equity and Health.

A Unique Approach to Address the Racial Gap in School Discipline

Researchers at the University of Virginia, Rutgers University and the University of British Columbia have a published a study that shows that teachers who change instruction practices can impact the large racial gap in school discipline.

Debra Foster Greene to Serve as Provost at Lincoln University in Missouri

Dr. Greene has been a faculty member at the university for 20 years and served for eight years as chair of the department of history, political science, and philosophy. She will serve as interim provost and vice president of academic affairs.

When Giving Advice to African American College Students

Dr. Lillian Williams of Columbia College Chicago explores the factors that led to the success of graduating journalism students of color.

Three African American Men in New University Positions

Taking on new roles are Delarious O. Stewart at North Carolina Central University in Durham, Timothy K. Eatman at Rutgers University-Newark, and Garvin A. Reid at the Abu Dhabi campus of New York University.

Board of Regents Gives the Green Light for the Establishment of the New Albany State University

After a year of academic restructuring, staff changes, and approval by the appropriate accrediting agency, the board of regents of the University System of Georgia has voted to make the consolidation of Albany State University and Darton State College official as of January 1.

New Faculty Roles at Major Universities for Three Black Scholars

Sherine O. Obare, professor of chemistry at Western Michigan University was given a new administrative post. Professor Jay Hoggard was awarded tenure at Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut, and Tarell Alvin McCraney was appointed chair of the department of playwriting at the Yale School of Drama.

Eli Lilly Establishes Internship and Scholarship Program at Two HBCUs

The programs will provide internships at Lilly's headquarters for up to eight students from Florida A&M University and Howard University during the summer of their junior year. Students who complete their internship and are offered a full-time job at Lilly upon their graduation, will receive a $12,500 scholarship for their final year as undergraduates.

Tuskegee University Researchers Design Strong Biodegradable Plastics

Michael L. Curry, an associate professor in the department of chemistry at Tuskegee University and graduate student Donald H. White have produced cellulose-based plastics that are flexible and significantly stronger than previously biodegradable plastics.

South Carolina State University Partners With Denmark Technical College

The agreement creates the Bulldog Gateway Program that will facilitate the transfer of students who have earned two-year degrees at Denmark Technical College to four-year bachelor's degree programs at South Carolina State University.

Notable Honors and Awards Relating to African Americans in Higher Education

Tisha Lewis Ellison, an assistant professor of education at the University of Georgia, was honored by the Literacy Research Association, and The Colored Conventions Project at the University of Delaware, led by Professor P. Gabrielle Foreman, will receive an award from the Modern Language Association.

In Memoriam: Hope Lewis, 1962-2016

Hope Lewis was a professor at the Northeastern University School of Law in Boston, where she had served on the faculty for a quarter century. Earlier, she was an attorney in the Office of Chief Counsel of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

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.

A Record Year for African American Rhodes Scholars

It appears that this year seven of the 32 Rhodes Scholarship winners for graduate study at Oxford University are African Americans. This is the most African American Rhodes Scholars in history.

A New Online Archive of the First Blacks in the Americas

The online bilingual archive is called the First Blacks in the Americas/Los Primeros Negros en las Americas. It documents the earliest history of the African diaspora in what is now the Dominican Republic.

In Memoriam: Madelon Delany Stent

Madelon Delany Stent served as vice president for academic affairs at the University of the District of Columbia and was a professor emerita of education at the City College of New York.

Recent Books of Interest to African American Scholars

When completing your holiday shopping here are some books you might want to consider for friends, family or colleagues.

Higher Education Grants or Gifts of Interest to African Americans

Here is this week’s news of grants or gifts to historically Black colleges and universities or for programs of particular interest to African Americans in higher education.

University of Virginia Envisions a Memorial to Slaves Who Worked on Campus

The University of Virginia recently held a meeting aimed at getting input from local residents in the Charlottesville area for their views on a proposed memorial to the Black slaves and laborers who helped construct early buildings on the university's campus.

University of South Florida Looks to Boost Black Student Graduation Rates

At the University of South Florida, the six-year graduation rate for Black students who entered the university in 1999 was 50 percent. Ten years later in 2009 the rate was 69 percent. But the university is taking further steps to boost the Black student graduation rate to new heights.

New Online Archive Documents Bank Redlining Practices in the 1930s

A new website hosted by the Digital Scholarship Lab at the University of Richmond offers visitors a look at a series of maps from the Home Owners Loan Corporation that document the practice of redlining during the New Deal era.

In Memoriam: Harold R. Benson, 1944-2016

Dr. Benson directed the land grant program at Kentucky State University for 36 years. He directed the university's extension program during that period and from 1985 to his retirement in 2011 he also directed the research program.

Study Documents the Severity of the Racial Gap in Dentistry

The study, by researchers at the University of California, San Francisco, and in the dental department of Bronx-Lebanon Hospital in New York, found that for racial parity to prevail with the Black population, an additional 19,714 African American dentists would be needed.

G. Gabrielle Starr Named the Tenth President of Pomona College in California

When she takes office on July 1, Dr. Starr will be first woman and the first African American president of the highly ranked liberal arts college. She currently serves as dean of the College of Arts and Science at New York University.

Student-Faculty Interactions Have a Major Impact on Students’ Perceptions of a Welcoming Campus

The results show that nine of the 12 types of student-faculty interactions had a statistically significant association with a student's perception of the overall campus climate regarding diversity. Five student-faculty interactions had a positive impact and four had a negative impact.

Complaints Skyrocket at the Office for Civil Rights of the U.S. Department of Education

In the 2016 fiscal year, there were 542 complaints involving allegations of racial harassment filed with the Office for Civil Rights of the U.S. Department of Education. Of these, 198 involved complaints related to racial harassment at colleges and universities.

Study Finds Large But Narrowing Racial Divide in Residential Racial Segregation

A recent study by researchers at Pennsylvania State University finds that despite a narrowing in the racial poverty gap, Blacks and Hispanics still are significantly more likely than Whites to live in high-poverty neighborhoods.

Robert T. Palmer Named to Lead the Center for African American Research and Policy

Dr. Palmer has been serving as an associate professor and interim chair of the department of educational leadership and policy studies at Howard University in Washington, D.C. He joined the Howard University faculty in 2015.

Major New Grant Program Will Help Prepare Black College Graduates for Careers

The United Negro College Fund's Career Pathways Initiative has announced that 24 historically Black or predominantly Black colleges and universities will receive five-year grants totaling $35.3 million from the Lilly Endowment to better prepare their students for careers after college.

Howard University Creates a New Ph.D. Program in Higher Education Leadership and Policy Studies

The new Ph.D. program in higher education leadership and policy studies at Howard University in Washington, D.C., will be focused on leadership of historically Black colleges and universities and other minority serving educational institutions.

Three Black Scholars Appointed to New Posts in Academia

The three African American faculty members appointed to new positions are Donald R. Easton-Brooks of the University of South Dakota, Tiphanie Yanique at Wesleyan University in Connecticut, and Laurence Ralph at Princeton University in New Jersey.

Xavier University’s Innovative New Teacher Residency Program

The new teacher residency program is based on the successful formal used by medical schools. Students in the program will receive extensive training in the public schools under the supervision of a mentor and take traditional coursework leading to a master's degree in teaching.

Major Awards for a Pair of Black Scholars

James A. Anderson, chancellor of Fayetteville State University in North Carolina, will be honored by the American Association of Blacks in Higher Education and Tanure Ojaide, a professor at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, received the Nigerian National Order of Merit.

Southern University Strengthens Ties With Louisiana Community and Technical College

Honor students who earn an associate's degree at any of the campuses of the Louisiana Technical and Community College System will be guaranteed admission to Southern University and be eligible for a $1,500 Pathway Scholarship.

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