Monthly Archives: October 2018
Clemson University Launches New Center for Recruitment and Retention of Diverse Educators
Faculty from Clemson will work with education and community leaders in local districts to get minority students interested in teaching at an earlier age and ease their transition from K-12 to two- and then four-year institutions of teacher education.
Duke University’s New Slavery to Freedom Lab
According to its website, the new lab will "examine the life and afterlives of slavery and emancipation, linking Duke University to the Global South."
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.
Tulane University Researchers Launch Sexual Health Website Aimed at Young Black Men
Researchers from Tulane University's School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine in New Orleans have created the Check It website, which is specifically designed for young Black men to promote sexual health and screening for sexually transmitted diseases, including chlamydia.
Florida State University Launches a New Civil Rights Institute
The mission of the new institute is to honor and study the United States civil rights movement and to promote civil rights and social change. It will host speakers and events, curate museum exhibits, develop an interactive website and publications, and support education and research.
Educate Black America Launches a New Product Line to Support Scholarship Fund
ABC Ventures has announced its first product in the Educate Black America sportswear and accessories line, the "Educate Black America" cap.
Why Black Girls Experience Harsher School Punishments Than Their White Peers
Participants in a Georgetown University survey viewed Black girls as more adult than White girls. In particular, they viewed Black girls as needing less protection and nurturing and more knowledgable about adult and sexual topics than their White peers.
Patricia Sims Named President of J.F. Drake State Community and Technical College in Alabama
Dr. Sims has 25 years of experience in K-12 and higher education. Most recently, she was the dean of the College of Education at Athens State University in Alabama. Before that, she was the director of student services management and dean of instructional and student services at Drake State.
Fordham University Study Analyzes Barriers Students of Color Experience in STEM Education
The research team has conducted one-on-one interviews with students who have had both positive and negative experiences with STEM. So far, the researchers have found that teachers' behaviors towards their students greatly affects their performance.
Kevin Gaines Named to a New Endowed Professorship at the University of Virginia
Dr. Gaines comes to the University of Virginia from Cornell University where he was the W.E.B. Du Bois Professor of Africana Studies and History. Previously he has taught at Princeton University, the University of Texas at Austin, and the University of Michigan.
Cornell University Research Shows Racial Bias Occurs on Dating Apps
According to the researchers, Black men and women are 10 times more likely to message White people than White people are to message Black people. Additionally, they also found that men who used these dating apps heavily viewed multiculturalism less favorably, and sexual racism as more acceptable.
The Racial Poverty Gap and Its Impact on Higher Education
In 2017, nearly 9 million African Americans, 21.2 percent of total Black population, were living below the official poverty line in the United States. Obviously this huge group of African Americans will face difficulty in obtaining higher education, a path that could lead them out of poverty.
Three African American Men Appointed to New Faculty Positions
Walter Rucker, Eddie Glaude Jr., and Reginald McGee were named to new positions in academia.
Princeton University’s Tera Hunter Wins Book Awards From the American Historical Association
Tera W. Hunter, the Edwards Professor of History and professor of African American studies at Princeton University in New Jersey, has been awarded the Joan Kelly Memorial Prize in women's history and/or feminist theory as well as the Littleton-Griswold Prize in U.S. law and society from the American Historical Association.
Fisk University Forms Partnership to Improve Sustainability Efforts on Campus
For the first phase of the program, the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation gave the university 47 recycling bins, helped the institution secure a grant to start a composting program, and partnered the university with local environmental groups to educate the community about sustainability.
New Administrative Posts in Higher Education for a Quartet of Black Americans
Appointed to new administrative positions are Ronald Howell at Virginia State University, Olufemi Ogundele at the University of California, Berkeley, Dejah Carter at Stanford University, and Bryan Terry at Arkansas State University.
Morgan State University and Newspaper Firm Forming New Polling Enterprise
Historically Black Morgan State University in Baltimore and AFRO-American Newspapers have announced a new collaborative effort to conduct a series of polls that will gauge the opinions of African Americans across the state of Maryland. Eventually, the partners plan to take their research nationwide.
Recent Honors and Awards for African Americans in Higher Education
Here is a listing of a group of African Americans in higher education who have been honored by colleges and universities or who have received notable awards from other organizations.
Meharry Medical Colleges Launches New Data Science Institute
The institute will allow health care practitioners, researchers, and students to mine more than 3.5 million medical and dental records to gain new insights into various trends that impact the health of underserved populations.
In Memoriam: Roosevelt Wilson, 1940-2018
Wilson joined the staff at Florida A&M University in 1969 as the director of sports information. He held various roles during his tenure at the university including director of university publications, director of athletics, and professor in what is now the School of Journalism & Graphic Communication.
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.
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.
Texas A&M University Project Will Document Freedom Colonies Throughout Texas
Freedom colonies were self-sufficient, all-Black settlements that former slaves established after they were freed. The Texas Freedom Colonies Project, established by a scholar at Texas A&M University, aims to help African-American Texans reclaim their unrecognized and unrecorded heritage.
In Memoriam: Mildred Ollee, 1934-2018
Mildred Ollee served as president of Seattle Central Community College in Washington State from 2003 to 2010. She worked in higher education for over 40 years.
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.
Michigan State University Professor to Lead $50 Million Project to Improve Farming in Africa
The Strengthening Higher Education for Agri-food Systems project led by Michigan State University professor, Thom Jayne, is a partnership between the World Bank, African governments, and the Regional Universities Forum for Capacity Building in Agriculture.
Vanderbilt Unveils Portraits of Ten Individuals Who Have Supported Blacks on Campus
The Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center at Vanderbilt University has unveiled 10 new portraits of individuals of all races from Vanderbilt's present and past who have made the university a more inclusive space for Black students, faculty, and staff.
University of North Carolina at Asheville Honors Two Black Faculty Couples
The University of North Carolina at Asheville has announced that it will rename the Humanities Lecture Hall to honor two African American couples who were among the first Black faculty members at the university.
Examining the Data on Black Enrollments in U.S. Graduate Schools
In 2017, there were 188,838 Black students enrolled in graduate schools in the United States. They made up 12.6 percent of all enrollments. There were 56,765 Black men and 130,006 Black women enrolled in graduate school.
Paine College in Augusta, Georgia, Experiences Legal Setback In Accreditation Battle
A federal judge has ruled that the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges was within its rights to revoke the accreditation of Paine College in 2016. The college sued the accreditor and has retained its accreditation during the course of the litigation. The college has 30 days to appeal.
A New Study Finds Black Medical Students Face Bias During Residencies
A survey of medical residents from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups found that these medical professionals experienced bias and microaggressions daily. They were also asked routinely to serve as "ambassadors" to resolve diversity issues.
Gary LeRoy to Lead the American Academy of Family Physicians
Gary LeRoy is an associate professor of family medicine and the associate dean for student affairs and admissions at the Boonshoft School of Medicine at Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio. He will become president of the organization that represents more than 131,000 physicians in 2019.
Dartmouth College Study Finds Racial Disparities in Student Debt Can Persist Later in Life
This study is the first to examine how racial disparities in student loan debt change over a person's life rather than only analyzing them at a single point in time when they leave college. Disparities in student debt may contribute to the severe racial economic inequality later in life.
Ronald A. Johnson Steps Down From Presidency of Clark Atlanta University
Ronald A. Johnson, the fourth president of Clark Atlanta University, the historically Black educational institution in Georgia, announced that he is leaving his post for "personal reasons." Lucille H. Maugé, the chief financial officer, was appointed chief operating officer and will serve as acting president.
No Progress in Closing the Racial Scoring Gap on the ACT College Entrance Examination
Some 48 percent of Whites who took the ACT test were deemed college ready in three of the four areas of English, mathematics, reading, and science. For Blacks, only 11 percent of all test takers were deemed college ready in at least three of the four areas.
Cheyney University Remains Hopeful Despite Severe Drop in Enrollment
According to the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education, Cheyney's total enrollment dropped to 469 students this fall compared to 755 last spring. This represents a decline of 38 percent.
