Monthly Archives: March, 2023

Four African American Scholars Who Have Been Appointed to New Faculty Positions

Taking on new roles are LaQuandra S. Nesbitt at the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Jarvis Givens at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, Nicole B. Burwell at North Carolina A&T State University, and Anthony Greene at the College of Charleston in South Carolina.

Bowie State University in Maryland Adds Two New Master’s Degree Programs

Historically Black Bowie State University in Maryland has announced the establishment of two new master's degree programs. The new programs are in applied biotechnology and molecular biology and the internet of things and internet technologies. The latter program is offered completely online.

A Quartet of Black Women Taking on New Administrative Duties at Universities

The four African American women hired to new administrative positions are Marcia Walker-McWilliams at Tulane University in New Orleans, Felicia L. McMillan at South Carolina State University, Endia DeCordova at Morgan State University in Baltimore, and Melissa Hodge-Penn at North Carolina A&T State University.

Auditor Details Financial Shortcomings at Kentucky State University

Mike Harmon, auditor for the Commonwealth of Kentucky has released a report that found $2.7 million withdrawn from internal endowed funds to supplement cash balances, undocumented credit card transactions, wasteful spending on extravagant bonuses and benefits, and crippling budget and procurement failures all occurring in a chaotic accounting environment.

Spelman College President Helene Gayle Honored for Her Philanthropic Work

Before becoming president of Spelman College in July 2022, Dr. Gayle was president and CEO of The Chicago Community Trust, one of the nation’s oldest and largest community foundations. Earlier, Dr. Gayle was president and CEO of CARE, a leading international humanitarian organization.

American Council of Learned Societies Debuts New Grant Program for Faculty at HBCUs

The new program will seek to advance the scholarly contributions of humanities and interpretive social sciences faculty at historically Black colleges and universities. For three years, ACLS will award 12 grants of up to $10,000 each for research project development, and eight fellowships of up to $50,000 each to support deeper engagement with a significant research project.

A Quartet of Black Americans Who Have Been Appointed to University Posts Relating to Diversity

Taking on new duties relating to diversity at universities are Bi Awosika at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Nefertiti Walker at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, Dorothy Hines at the University of Kansas, Jai-Me Potter-Rutledge for the School of Public Health at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island.

Cato Laurencin Creates Institute for Regenerative Engineering at the University of Connecticut

The institute will integrate biology, medicine, surgery, chemistry, physics, engineering, and artificial intelligence/machine learning to create a powerful platform for addressing scientific and medical problems in the regeneration and healing of complex tissues, organs, or organ systems. Its goal is to achieve limb regeneration by the year 2030.

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.

Scholars Enhance FBI Photographs From Bloody Sunday

Photographs taken by FBI photographers from the ground and in surveillance aircraft were declassified in 2015, but have never been enlarged and enhanced via hi-resolution scans until now. A major question is why these photographs remained classified for 50 years.

University of North Carolina Is Preparing to Launch Graduate Programs in Black Studies

In 2021, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill approved the establishment of graduate programs in its African American and diaspora studies department. The department is now developing the curriculum and searching for graduate faculty. The first students will enroll in these new graduate programs in the fall of 2025.

Attending an HBCU Can Have Long-Term Mental Health Benefits for Some Students

Researchers at the University of Minnesota tracked a large group of African Americans from their high school years until many years after they attended college. They found no overall association for lower symptoms of depression for HBCU students compared to their peers who attended predominantly White schools But for some subsets of HBCU students, there was a positive impact.

Dennis Rome Chosen to Lead Indiana University East in Richmond

Dr. Rome currently serves as assistant to the president for community engagement and strategic partnerships at Northeastern Illinois University. Earlier, served as dean of the College of Letters and Sciences at Columbus State University in Georgia and as associate provost and associate vice chancellor for academic affairs at the University of Wisconsin-Parkside.

The Racial Disparity in Incarceration Rates Has Declined but Remains Large

In 2020, Black adults were imprisoned at 4.9 times the rate of White adults, down from 8.2 times in 2000. Much of the decline was due to a reduction in prison time for drug-related offenses. However, in 2020, Black individuals comprised approximately 13 percent of U.S. residents but accounted for 56 percent of homicide victims and 39 percent of those arrested for homicide.

Cynthia Gyamfi-Bannerman to Lead the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine

Dr. Gyamfi-Bannerman specializes in obstetric complications with a primary focus on preterm birth prevention. She became chair of the department of obstetrics, gynecology, and reproductive sciences at the medical school in 2021. She holds the Samuel SC Yen Endowed Chair. Earlier, she was a professor at Columbia University in New York City.

Police Reports on Facebook Overrepresent Black Suspects Relative to Actual Arrest Rates

Researchers analyzed 100,000 posts from nearly 14,000 Facebook pages maintained by law enforcement agencies in the United States that reported on the race of individuals suspected of or arrested for crimes. Black suspects were described in 32 percent of Facebook posts but represented just 20 percent of all people arrested.

Three African American Women Who Were Appointed Deans

Neporcha Cone was appointed to serve as dean of the College of Education at Middle Tennessee State University. Letitia Williams has been named associate vice president for student affairs and dean of students at Morgan State University in Baltimore and Mary Hill is the new dean of students at Voorhees University in Denmark, South Carolina.

Prairie View A&M University to Offer the Peace Corps Prep Certificate Program

Through a combination of coursework and hands-on experience, students will develop four core competencies that are critical to intercultural fieldwork: foreign language proficiency, intercultural competence, professional and leadership development, and sector-specific skills in one of Peace Corps’ six sectors.

A Quartet of Black Scholars Who Are Taking on New Positions or Duties

Taking on new roles are Barnard A. Jones at St. John's University in Staten Island, New York, Artha Gillis, at the University of California, Los Angeles, Terry-Ann Jones at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, and David Staten at South Carolina State University.

Fisk University and Vanderbilt University Team Up for New Postdoctoral Fellowships

These fellowships have been designed to offer opportunities for recent Vanderbilt Ph.D. graduates to build their teaching and scholarship portfolios, receive mentoring from faculty at both institutions and allow time for publishing their dissertations or preparing other research papers.
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Deborah Jones Named President of the MGH Institute of Health Professions

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“I am inspired by the [MGH Institute for Health Professions'] mission to educate health professionals and researchers who will drive innovation in the delivery of equitable and interprofessional care,” said Dr. Jones. “This mission aligns deeply with my own purpose, which is to bring together people, ideas, and systems for the greater good, because the greater good is stronger than any individual part.”

Ayana Allen-Handy to Lead the Hofstra University School of Education

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Dr. Allen-Handy, professor of urban education at Drexel University, is slated to become dean of Hofstra University's School of Education on January 1. She is a leading scholar on the social foundations and social contexts of education.

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