Monthly Archives: March 2022
Two African American Historians Win the $300,000 Dan David Prize
The Dan David Prize is the largest history prize in the world. It is awarded by the Dan David Foundation at Tel Aviv University in Israel to up to nine early and mid-career scholars and practitioners in the historical disciplines. The honor comes with a $300,000 prize. Kristina Richardson of Queens College-CUNY and Tyrone Freeman of IUPUI are among the winners.
Elizabeth City State University Introduces an Aviation Workforce Development Program
The Aviation Workforce Development Program at historically Black Elizabeth Cty State University in North Carolina will educate 80 high school students about the wide variety of career opportunities in the aviation industry with the goal to recruit students into the university's aviation program.
New Administrative Posts in Higher Education for Six African Americans
Taking on new duties are Myeshia Armstrong at California State University, East Bay, Tracy Clemons at Texas Southern University, Ana Hunt at the University of Arkansas Pulaski Technical College, Lance Franklin at Washington University in St. Louis, Deborah Manning at Bergen Community College in New Jersey, and Charles Prince at Virginia Union University.
In Memoriam: Reneé Patricia Collins, 1950-2022
While working for Western Washington University Dr. Collins earned a bachelor's degree in interdisciplinary studies at the age of 47. She went on to earn a master's degree in adult education at Western Washington University and a doctorate in educational leadership from Seattle University.
Louisiana State University Acquires Large Collection of African American Poetry
Louisiana State University has acquired The Wyatt Houston Day Collection of Poetry by African Americans. This collection of more than 800 works includes poetry from the 18th century, the Harlem Renaissance, and later works including up to the present.
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.
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.
San Diego State University Decides Not to Accept the Donation of a Black Music Archive
In 2020, alumni of San Diego State University donated their John Coltrane Memorial Black Music Archive to the university. Later the university requested $500,000 from the donors to properly handle the collection. The university has now decided not to accept the donation.
Berkeley Law to Require All Students to Take a Course on Race
Starting with the entering class in August 2023, students at the University of California, Berkeley School of Law will be required to take at least one course on race and the law in order to graduate.
The Growing Racial Wealth Gap and Its Impact on Higher Education
If we exclude home equity, the median net worth of non-Hispanic White households in 2019 was $79,010. For Blacks, the median net worth - excluding home equity - was $3,630. Thus, Whites had nearly 22 times as much wealth as Blacks when we exclude the value of homes. Four year earlier, Whites held only a 12-to-1 advantage.
LaTonia Collins Smith Is the New President of Harris-Stowe State University in St. Louis
Dr. Colllins Smith has been serving as interim president since last summer. Before being named interim president, Dr. Collins Smith had been serving as provost and vice president for academic affairs at the university. She has been on the staff at the university since 2010.
Grading the Schools With the Largest Athletic Programs on Their Diversity in Leadership Posts
The latest report on the status of women and racial and ethnic minorities in leadership positions at the 130 educational institutions in the Football Bowl Subdivision of the NCCA has been released by The Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport (TIDES) at the University of Central Florida. These are generally the schools with the nation's largest athletic programs.
Three Black Scholars Who Have Been Appointed to University Dean Positions
Martine Kei Green-Rogers was appointed dean of The Theatre School at DePaul University in Chicago. Michael Abazinge was appointed dean of the School of the Environment at Florida A&M University and Pero G. Dagbovie was named associate provost for graduate and postdoctoral studies and dean of the Graduate School at Michigan State University.
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.
Study Finds Racial Differences in Approvals for U.S. Citizenship
A new study led by Emily Ryo, a professor of law and sociology at the University of Southern California, finds that there are racial disparities in who is approved for citizenship during the naturalization process.
La Jerne Terry Cornish Appointed the Tenth President of Ithaca College in New York
Dr. Cornish has been serving as interim president since August 30, 2021. From 2018 to 2021, Dr. Cornish served as provost and senior vice president for academic affairs at the college. Earlier, she was associate provost for undergraduate studies at Goucher College in Baltimore.
Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science is the Latest HBCU to Receive MacKenzie Scott Gift
Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science in South Los Angeles, one of the nation’s four historically Black medical schools and the only HBCU west of Texas has received a $20 million donation from philanthropist MacKenzie Scott. This one-time gift represents the largest private donation in the history of the university.
Four Black Scholars Who Are Assuming New Roles at Colleges and Universities
Taking on new duties are Richard Wynn at the University of North Florida, Michelle Williams at the University of Connecticut, Lisa Jones at the University of California, San Diego, and Elena FitzPatrick Sifford at Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Pennsylvania.
Howard University Forms The Consortium to Advance Equity for Women and Girls of Color
The Consortium, funded by Melinda French Gates, will provide innovative research, data, and programming to advance gender equity and close the achievement gaps for women of color. Additionally, the Howard University Center for Women, Gender, and Global Leadership plans to launch an annual HBCU conference on women and leadership.
The First Building on the Campus of the University of South Carolina Named for an African American
During the Reconstruction period, Celia Dial Saxon was one of the first African American students to attend South Carolina College, later the University of South Carolina. She taught school in Columbia, South Carolina for 57 years.
National Trust for Historical Preservation Offers Aid to Five HBCUs
Recently, the National Trust for Historic Preservation, through its HBCU Cultural Heritage Stewardship Initiative, awarded more than $650,000 in grants to five historically Black colleges and universities to fund Cultural Heritage Stewardship Plans.
Three African Americans Appointed to New Administrative Positions in Higher Education
Taking on new administrative roles are Michelle Penn-Marshall at Texas Southern University in Houston, Desmond Stubbs at Oak Ridge Associated Universities, based in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, and Olajide Cooper at the University of Nebraska-Omaha.
In Memoriam: Elsie Gloria Jean Moore Smith, 1949-2022
In 1981, Dr. Smith was hired as an assistant professor of counselor education at Arizona State University. She remained on the faculty there for more than 40 years.
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.
In Memoriam: Autherine Juanita Lucy Foster, 1929-2022
In 1956, Autherine Lucy enrolled in a graduate program in education at the University of Alabama. She was the university's first Black student. Angry protests by White students ensued. She was suspended three days later “for her own safety” and she was later expelled.
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 Chicago Creates the Department of Race, Diaspora, and Indigeneity
In outlining the scope of the new department, the faculty committee acknowledged that the core subjects of race, diaspora, and indigeneity are “contested concepts and categories.” Bringing them together will create new opportunities for field-defining research to advance understanding of these concepts, generate new research agendas and train a new generation of scholars.
Black Applicants Increase at the Most Selective of University of California Campuses
At the flagship Berkeley campus, there are 4,647 applicants compared to 4,035 a year ago, an increase of more than 15 percent. This was the largest increase at any of the nine undergraduate campuses.
The Racial Gap in Educational Attainment in the United States
In 2021, nearly 42 percent of non-Hispanic Whites over the age of 25 had obtained at least a bachelor's degree compared to 28.1 percent of Blacks over the age of 25. Black women hold a large lead over Black men in degree attainments at all levels. For Black Americans, the gender gap is most apparent at the master's degree level.
Steve Stoute Will Be the Twenty-Fifth President of Canisius College in Buffalo, New York
Stoute currently serves as vice president for strategic initiatives and chief of staff at DePaul University in Chicago, Illinois. Born and raised in Trinidad and Tobago, Stoute immigrated to the United States in 2000 to attend Seton Hall University in New Jersey.
Ohio State University Study Examines the Reasons for the Racial Gap in Vaccination Rates
A new study led by researchers at Ohio State University finds that Black Americans who were initially hesitant about receiving a COVID-19 vaccine were more likely than Whites who were against taking the vaccine to come to the conclusion at a later date that getting vaccinated was the right thing to do.
Tyrone Howard Selected to Lead the American Educational Research Association
Tyrone Howard is director of the Black Male Institute and holder of the Pritzker Family Endowed Chair in Education to Strengthen Families at the University of California, Los Angeles. He will serve for a year as president-elect and begin his presidency at the conclusion of the association’s 2023 annual meeting.
Mentioning Racial or Ethnic Identity Can Increase Chances of Obtaining Career Help
In a new study, researchers at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania found that people are significantly more likely to offer career help to people from underrepresented groups when help seekers mention their racial or ethnic identity in requests.
A Pair of African American Women Who Have Been Selected to Serve as Provosts
Kimberly Battle-Walters Denu was named provost at Westmont College in Santa Barbara, California, effective August 1 and Dorothy Campbell was appointed interim provost and chief academic officer at New Mexico State University.
Two African Americans Who Have Been Named to Serve as Deans
Stephen L. Ball has been appointed dean of students at Harvard Law School and Lakesia Tucker has been appointed acting dean of the College of Graduate & Professional Studies at South Carolina State University.
