Monthly Archives: August 2019

In Memoriam: Julius S. Scott Jr., 1925 -2019

Julius S. Scott Jr. served as president of two historically Black colleges and as interim president of several additional colleges and universities.

University of Chicago Releases Progress Report on Its Diversity & Inclusion Initiative

The report is broken down into four sections: infrastructure, climate, people, and community. In each section, the university details how each area of the institution has made improvements to the school's overall diversity over the past year and a half.

In Memoriam: Harrison B. Wilson Jr., 1925-2019

Dr. Wilson served as president of Norfolk State for 22 years. When he arrived on campus in 1975, the school only offered four graduate programs and enrolled 191 students. By the end of Dr. Wilson's presidency in 1997, the university offered 14 master's programs, one doctoral program, and enrolled 1,110 students.

In Memoriam: Chloe A. Wofford Morrison, 1931-2019

Toni Morrison was a giant of American literature and the Robert F. Goheen Professor in the Humanities Emeritus at Princeton University in New Jersey. In 1993, Professor Morrison was the first African American to be awarded the Nobel Prize in literature.

Carol Johnson-Dean Will Be the New Leader of LeMoyne-Owen College in Memphis

Dr. Johnson-Dean has been serving as executive director of the Memphis chapter of New Leaders, a nonprofit organization that develops educators' leadership skills. Earlier, she led the public school systems in Memphis, Boston, and Minneapolis.

The Snail-Like Progress of Black Scholars on College and University Faculties

In 1997, Blacks made up 5 percent of all college and university faculty, compared to 6 percent 20 years later in 2017. At this rate of progress, the percentage of Blacks on the faculties of American colleges and universities would not reach parity with the percentage of Black enrollments for 160 years.

Mediation Fails to Resolve Lawsuit Filed by Four HBCUs Against the State of Maryland

In December, a federal judge ordered the state of Maryland and four historically Black state universities into mediation to settle a 13-year-old lawsuit. The deadline to reach a solution has come and passed.

The Racial Gap in Student Debt for Graduates of State Universities in Texas

According to a new study by Dominique J. Baker, an assistant professor of education policy at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, White students who graduated from Texas state universities have a debt-to-income ratio of 68 percent, compared to 117 percent for Black students who graduated from state universities in Texas.

Berenecea Johnson Eanes Is the New Leader of York College of the City University of New York

Dr. Eanes has been serving as vice president for the Division of Student Affairs at California State University, Fullerton. She has been on the staff at CalState, Fullerton for the past seven years.

Study Finds Black Students Receive Fewer Warnings From Teachers About Their Misbehavior

New research from the University of Illinois has found that Black middle school students are significantly less likely than their White peers to receive verbal or written warnings from their teachers about behavioral infractions before disciplinary action is taken.

A Quartet of African Americans Appointed to Positions as Deans

LaTonya Branham has been named dean of academic services at DePauw University and Suzanne Barbour is the new dean of the Graduate School at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Orlando F. McMeans is a new agricultural dean at Southern University in Louisiana and Nicholas J. Hill is dean of the business school at Claflin University.

Chemist William Lester Honored by the International Association of Top Professionals

William Lester currently serves as a professor and associate dean in the College of Chemistry at the University of California, Berkeley. He is also the associate director and faculty senior scientist at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.

Fisk University Receives Approval for a Bachelor’s Degree Program in Homeland Security

In addition to existing Fisk faculty, practitioners from the Tennessee Department of Homeland Security will teach courses in the new program. The first cohort of students in the new degree program is expected to begin in the spring of 2020.

New Assignments for a Trio of African American Faculty Members

Stacie J. Fairley is joining the faculty on the Georgia campus of the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine. Gary Bailey, a professor of practice in the School of Social Work at Simmons University in Boston, was named an assistant dean, and Sarah J. Williams joined the faculty at Pennsylvania State University's Dickinson Law School.

Bowie State to Launch the Center for Research and Mentoring of Black Male Students and Teachers

The goal of the new Center for Research and Mentoring of Black Male Students and Teachers at Bowie State University in Maryland is to support a pipeline of Black males joining the ranks of Maryland's educators, especially those who specialize in teaching high-demand fields in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

Four African American Scholars Honored With Notable Awards

The honorees are Gilda Barabino dean of engineering at City College of New York, Lovoria Williams, an associate professor of nursing at the University of Kentucky, WIlliam M. Jackson Jr., professor emeritus of chemistry at the University of California, Davis, and Nicole R. Howard of the University of Redlands.

Wiley College in Texas to Establish a Bachelor’s Degree Program in Film and Theatre

The program will be named for Wiley College trustee and Summer Film Institute founder, Nate Parker, who appeared in the 2007 film "The Great Debaters," based on the 1930s Wiley College debate teams.

New Administrative Positions in Higher Education for Nine African Americans

Here is this week’s roundup of African Americans who have been appointed to new administrative positions at colleges and universities throughout the United States.

In Memoriam: Andraé Derrell Sailes, 1979-2019

Sailes joined the staff at Purdue University in June 2004 as the assistant director of undergraduate admissions. He became director of academic and career advising for the College of Liberal Arts in 2016.

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.

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