Monthly Archives: March 2021
A Quartet of African Americans Who Have Been Appointed to Diversity Posts in Higher Education
Taking on new diversity positions are J. Goosby Smith at Pepperdine University in Malibu, California, Shawna Patterson-Stephens at Central Michigan University, Omar Brown for the Big 10 athletic conference, and Keesha Burke-Henderson at Randolph College in Lynchburg, Virginia.
In Memoriam: James E. Conyers Sr., 1932-2021
In 1962, James E. Conyers Sr. became the first African American faculty member at what is now Indiana State University. He taught sociology at the university for 28 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.
Bryant University in Rhode Island Appoints a New Dean of its College of Arts & Sciences
Veronica McComb currently serves as dean of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences, academic chair for the history department, and program coordinator for Africana studies at Lenoir-Rhyne University, with three campus locations in North and South Carolina.
The First African American Editor in Chief of the Syracuse Law Review
When she assumes her duties for Volume 72 (2021-22), Hilda Frimpong will be the first Black student to lead the Syracuse Law Review since it began publishing in 1949.
Samson Jenekhe Wins the 2021 Polymer Physics Prize
Samson Jenekhe is the Boeing-Martin Professor of Chemical Engineering at the University of Washington. The Polymer Physics Prize was established in 1960 in conjunction with the Dow Chemical Company, which remains its chief supporter, and includes a cash award of $10,000.
Consortium of Prestigious Academic Institutions to Collaborate on SlaveVoyages.org
Emory University in Atlanta will now bring in a group of partners to help it maintain and enhance its SlaveVoyages.org project. The website documents nearly 50,000 transatlantic passages of slave ships between the sixteenth and nineteenth centuries.
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.
Study Examines Racial Differences in Students’ Experiences in Campus Housing
After interviewing campus housing administrators, staff, and students at three major universities, Zak Foste of the University of Kansas found that students of color who lived in predominantly White facilities commonly reported not feeling welcome, being uncomfortable with roommates, and avoiding spending time in their residence.
Laurie A. Carter Will Be the First Black President of Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisconsin
Since 2017, Carter has been president of Shippensburg University in Pennsylvania. She spent 25 years in leadership positions at The Juilliard School and later was executive vice president and university counsel at Eastern Kentucky University. She will begin her new duties on July 1.
Charter Schools’ Impact on Racial Segregation in K-12 Education
According to the study, led by a sociologist at Cornell University, the average district to expand charter school enrollment between 2000 and 2010 experienced a 12 percent increase in White-Black school segregation and a 2 percent decrease in White-Black residential segregation.
Gary Crosby Will Be the First Man and First African American to Lead Saint Elizabeth University
Since 2015, Dr. Crosby has been vice president for student affairs at Alabama A&M University. Prior to joining AAMU, he served in various capacities at Jackson State University in Mississippi. When he takes office on July 1, he will be the first man and first African American to lead the university in its 121-year history.
COVID Almost Eliminated the Black-White Unemployment Rate Gap, But Now It’s Back
For many decades the Black unemployment rate has traditionally been double the rate for Whites. This racial gap existed in both good economic times and bad with only slight fluctuations in the ratio. After the pandemic hit, the Black rate was only 1.2 times the rate for Whites. Since then the racial gap has reappeared.
Gilda Barabino Selected to Lead the American Association for the Advancement of Science
Gilda Barabino is the president of the Olin College of Engineering in Needham, Massachusetts. She was the first African American woman admitted to the graduate program in chemical engineering at Rice University. In 1986, she was the fifth African American woman in the nation to obtain a doctorate in chemical engineering.
Howard and Columbia Universities to Collaborate on Black Studies Book Series
An editorial board of eight faculty – four each from Howard University and Columbia University – will oversee the new series. Acquisitions for two to three publications per year in the new series will begin immediately. Funding is currently being sought to expand the program to publish up to 20 titles per year.
A Quartet of African Americans Scholars in New Faculty Positions or Roles
The four African American faculty members appointed to new ranks or positions are Lucy Mule at Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts, La Marr Jurelle Bruce at the University of Maryland, College Park, Rediet Abebe at the University of California, Berkeley, and Darius Scott at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire.
The Center for Black Entrepreneurship Established at Morehouse and Spelman Colleges in Atlanta
Co-located on the Morehouse and Spelman campuses, the Center for Black Entrepreneurship is powered by $10 million in funding from Bank of America, which will support the development of an academic curriculum, faculty recruitment, co-curricular programming, and the development of new physical space.
University of California, Davis Chancellor Receives Lifetime Mentoring Award
Gary S. May, chancellor of the University of California, Davis, has received the 2021 Lifetime Mentor Award from the American Association for the Advancement of Science. The award honors researchers who have positively impacted a department or institution over the course of 25 years.
Texas Southern University to Establish a Future Bankers Leadership Program
The program will start in the Fall 2021 semester. The commercial banking concentration will be at the undergraduate level, offering foundational knowledge and the critical skills necessary for students looking to enter the financial services sector.
Five African Americans Who Have Been Assigned to New Administrative Posts in Higher Education
Taking on new administrative roles are Rose Mercier at McDaniel College in Westminster, Maryland, Verna Orr at Benedict College in Columbia, South Carolina, Brad Jennings at Miles College in Fairfield, Alabama, Victoria N. Nichols at Virginia Union University, and Kayton Carter at the University of California, Davis.
Three Black Scholars Appointed to Endowed Chairs at Yale University
Gerald Jaynes is a professor of economics, African American studies, and urban studies. Emily Greenwood was named the John M. Musser Professor of Classics and Tavia Nyong’o was appointed William Lampson Professor of Theater and Performance Studies.
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.
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.
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.
Pearson’s Guidelines to Eliminate Systemic Racism in Educational Publishing
The guidelines aim to help content developers - including authors, reviewers, and editors - "create meaningful representations of minorities and challenge racial stereotypes and associated prejudices in all Pearson" products.
Professor Cornel West to Rejoin the Faculty at Union Theological Seminary
Cornel West has been appointed to the Dietrich Bonhoeffer Chair at Union Theological Seminary in New York City. Last month, Professor West told Harvard he would leave the university if it did not reconsider its decision to not grant him tenure.
Whites Still Hold a Disproportionate Number of Head Coaching Positions in College Sports
Among the most startling statistics in the new report from The Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport at the University of Central Florida is that while Blacks are more than 53 percent of the athletes in Division I basketball, African Americans are 22.7 percent of the head coaches, down from 25.2 percent 15 years ago.
Christine Johnson McPhail Is the New President of Saint Augustine’s University in North Carolina
Dr. McPhail has been serving as a professor of practice at the John E. Roueche Center for Community College Leadership at Kansas State University. Earlier, she was director of the Community College Leadership Doctoral Program at Morgan State University in Baltimore and president of Cypress College in California.
Black Students’ Mental Health Impacted More by Online Racism Than In-Person Encounters
Researchers at Boston College and the University of Connecticut have authored a new study that finds that college students of color who encounter online racism can experience real and significant mental health impacts – even more significant than in-person encounters of racial discrimination.
Gbemi Disu Appointed Executive Director of Carnegie Mellon University Africa in Rwanda
Prior to joining CMU-Africa, Disu served as chief business officer at George Mason University Korea. Earlier, she held other leadership positions at George Mason University including special assistant to the president and executive director for Global Strategy.
The High Toll of Gun Violence in Majority-Black Neighborhoods
Utilizing data from the Gun Violence Archive and American Community Survey, the researchers found that, among middle-class neighborhoods, the rate of gun homicides is more than four times higher in neighborhoods with mostly Black residents than neighborhoods with mostly White residents.
Two Universities Appoint African American Scholars to Dean Positions
Darryl Scriven has been appointed dean of the School of Arts & Sciences at Clarkson University in Potsdam, New York, and Taléa Drummer-Ferrell is the new dean of students at Kent State University in Ohio.
Racist Hate Message Found on the Campus of Kansas State University
The message displayed on a white board at the Multicultural Student Center asked “Why do you celebrate Black History Month?” The answers to this question found on February 26 during Black History Month said “What history?” and “Because it’s a joke.”
Five African Americans Scholars Who Have Been Named to New Positions in Academia
Appointed to new faculty positions are Phillip Atiba Goff at Yale University, Jomaira Salas Pujols at Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York, Katwiwa Mule at Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts, Kimberly Juanita Brown at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire, and Sonia Eden at Wayne State University in Detroit.
A Major Shot in the Arm for Morris Brown College in Atlanta
Morris Brown College has announced a $30 million investment from CGI Merchant Group, a minority-owned global investment management firm. The funds will be used to convert existing campus facilities into a 150-key upscale hotel and hospitality management training complex. Construction of the 90,000-square-foot state-of-the-art facility is expected to begin later this year.
