Monthly Archives: January 2023
In Memoriam: G. Reginald Daniel, 1949-2022
After serving as a lecturer at UCLA, Dr. Daniel began teaching at the University of California, Santa Barbara in 1992. He was named an assistant professor of sociology in 1998. He was promoted to associate professor in 200e and to full professor in 2009.
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.
Ron DeSantis Mounts Effort to Challenge Diversity Programs at State Universities in Florida
Ron DeSantis, the newly re-elected governor of Florida, has notified all state-operated universities in Florida that they are required to “provide a comprehensive list of all staff, programs, and campus activities related to diversity, equity, and inclusion and critical race theory,” as well as an accounting of all state funds used to fund such efforts.
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.
In Memoriam: Wiley Joseph Henderson Jr., 1934-2022
In 1978, Wiley J. Henderson accepted a position as an associate professor of biology at Alabama A&M University where he taught for the next 42 years.
New Research Documents the Medical College of Virginia’s Ties to Slavery
The Medical College of Virginia was established as a separate entity in 1854 from its 1838 roots at Hampden-Sydney College. In 1968, it became part of Virginia Commonwealth University. A new report found that the Medical College of Virginia remained thoroughly embedded within the institution of slavery from its founding until the end of the Civil War.
Calvin McFadden Is the New President of Arkansas Baptist College in Little Rock
Since 2020, Dr. McFadden has been a church pastor in Houston. Earlier he served in dean positions at Bristol Community College in Fall River, Massachusetts, Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts, and Norwalk Community College in Connecticut.
Black-Owned Businesses Are Still a Small Fraction of the American Economy
In 2020, there were 140,918 U.S. Black- or African American-owned businesses across all sectors of the economy. They had annual sales of $141.1 billion and employed 1.3 million people. Thus, Black-owned businesses accounted for only 2.4 percent of all firms in the nation with paid employees. They employed just 1 percent of all employees.
Clarence Armbrister to Step Down in June From Presidency of Johnson C. Smith University
Clarence Armbrister became the fourteenth president of the historically Black university on January 1, 2018. He had been president of Girard College, an independent college preparatory school in Philadelphia. Previously, he was senior vice president and chief of staff at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore and executive vice president and chief operating officer at Temple University in Philadelphia.
Study Finds that Firearm Death Rates for Black Men in Some U.S. Cities Is Higher Than in War Zones
A new study by researchers at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, and the University of Pennsylvania. finds that in some urban zip codes with large populations of young African Americans, the death rate from firearms was higher than for U.S. troops serving as ground troops in Iraq or Afghanistan.
Three African Americans Who Have Been Appointed to Dean Positions
Gary Edwards is the new vice president and dean of students at Talladega College in Alabama. Kevin Hamilton was appointed associate vice chancellor and dean of student belonging at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth and Danelle Stevens-Watkins was named acting dean of the College of Education at the University of Kentucky.
Two Prominent Black Scholars Have Jumped to Different Universities
Chandra L. Ford has joined the faculty at Emory University in Atlanta after teaching at the University of California, Los Angeles and Fredrick Muyia Nafukho, who has taught at Texas A&M University since 2007, will be joining the faculty and serving as vice provost in the Office of Academic Personnel at the University of Washington.
Philander Smith College in Little Rock, Arkansas, to Offer Its First Graduate Degree Program
Starting this summer, the college will offer an MBA program, the first graduate degree program in the institution's 145-year history.
Five African Americans Who Are Taking on New Administrative Duties in Higher Education
Taking on new administrative roles are James Flowers at Tacoma Community College in Washington, Tasha Bibb at the Mississippi State University Office of Technology Management in Vicksburg, Trey Jones at West Virginia State University in Institute, Nicole Johnson at Rhodes College in Memphis, and Dominique Harrison at North Carolina A&T State University.
Texas Southern University Enters Into a Partnership With the Brookhaven National Laboratory
Under the agreement, university faculty and students will have the opportunity to conduct research and intern at Brookhaven Lab and other national labs.
Vaughn Booker Honored by the Council of Graduate Schools for His Book on Black Jazz Musicians
The Arlt Award from the Council of Graduate Schools recognizes a young scholar-teacher who has written a book deemed to have made an outstanding contribution to scholarship in the humanities. Dr. Booker is the 52nd winner of the award.
Ransomware Group Attacked Xavier University of Louisiana
Historically Black Xavier University in New Orleans was subjected to a ransomware attack by the Vice Society. Xavier University declined to pay the ransom and Vice Society in return said it has leaked data on students and staff. However, the university has not been able to determine what if any information was leaked.
Three African Americans Who Are Taking on Roles Relating to Diversity at Universities
Taking on diversity assignments are Sofiya Alhassan at the Graduate School of the University of Massachusetts Amherst, Jacquez Gray for the Michigan State University Department of Police and Public Safety, and Keona Lewis in the provost's office at the University of Notre Dame.
In Memoriam: Theresa A. Powell
Theresa A. Powell was vice president for student affairs at Temple University in Philadelphia. Dr. Powell came to Temple in 2002 after serving as vice president of student affairs at Western Michigan University.
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.
East Tennessee State University Has Digitized a Collection of Black History in Appalachia
The Langston Heritage Group Collection includes a wealth of historical information about Black churches, schools, civic clubs, and organizations throughout Washington County, Tennessee from the end of the Civil War to the present. It was donated to the university in 2000 but has now been digitized and made available to researchers and the public.
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.
Sylvia M. Jenkins to Retire From Presidency of Moraine Valley Community College in Illinois
Dr. Jenkins started out her career as a librarian at Virginia Union University in Richmond. She joined the library staff at Moraine Valley in 1986 and in 1995 was named department chair of the library. She subsequently served in several administrative positions before becoming president of the college in 2012.
The Black Percentage of School Principals Has Declined in Recent Years
Overall, during the 2020-21 school year, 78.4 percent of school principals were non-Hispanic White and 9.5 percent were Black or African American. In the 2017-18 school year, Blacks were 11 percent of all school principals.
Roderick T. Heath Is Fayetteville State University’s New Dean of Students
Before joining Fayetteville State University, Dr. Heath served as director of the Men’s Achievement Center & African American Male Initiative at North Carolina Central University in Durham.
Is There Racial Bias in the Virtual Classroom?
Overall, the study found no bias among teachers in grading or ability judgment or in recommendations for gifted education programs. But the study found that Black students were not more likely than their White peers to be recommended for extra help and support in school.
Is Their Racial Bias in the Virtual Classroom?
Overall, the study found no bias among teachers in grading or ability judgment or in recommendations for gifted education programs. But the study found that Black students were not more likely than their White peers to be recommended for extra help and support in school.
The Snail-Like Progress of Blacks Into the Ranks of Head Coaches in College Football
The good news is that three Black head coaches have been hired by FBS schools. The bad news is that the number of Black head coaches is actually one less than was the case in 2022. Thus, Blacks are 10.5 percent of all head coaches at FBS schools.
University of Chicago Report Finds Racial Bias in Federal Pretrial Detention
In 37 percent of cases, federal judges imposed monetary bail conditions, including bail bonds, and over one third of those people remained in jail because they were too poor to make bail. Black and Latino people were much more likely to face financial burdens than White people.
Montrale Boykin Is the New Leader of the Graduate School at Winston-Salem State University
Since 2012, Dr. Boykin has served as the co-chairperson of the department of health care management in the School of Health Sciences at the university. He first joined the staff at the university in 2006.
La Marr Jurelle Bruce Wins First Book Award From the Modern Language Association
La Marr Jurelle Bruce is an associate professor of American studies at the University of Maryland, College Park. According to the Modern L:anguage Association selection committee's citation, "Bruce develops original and provocative readings across media and genres, and the impact of his work will be felt in multiple fields and disciplines."
Jackson State University to Participate in Research on Coastal Flooding
The College of Engineering, Science and Technology at historically Black Jackson State University in Mississippi recently established a multi-year, three-pronged partnership with Woolpert, an international architecture, engineering, and geospatial firm, to improve and expand upon current numerical coastal inundation modeling systems.
Four Black Scholars Join the College of Education & Human Development Faculty at Georgia State
The four new faculty members College of Education & Human Development at Georgia State University are Bobby Bonwenyue Gueh and Tamika P. La Salle in the department of counseling and psychological services, Dionne Cowan in the department of educational policy studies, and Christopher Jett in the department of middle and secondary education.
Norfolk State University Enters Partnership With the University of the West Indies
The agreement calls for joint research activities; joint teaching and supervision of students; and the staging of joint seminars, conferences, and academic meetings. The agreement will also facilitate education abroad for undergraduate and graduate students, including exchanges and internships.
