Tag: University of Oklahoma

Aondover Tarhule Appointed President of Illinois State University

"Under my leadership, Illinois State will remain visible, engaged, and a collaborative partner committed to improving the quality of life and enhancing the sense of belonging for everyone in our community," said Dr. Aondover Tarhule, the new president of Illinois State University.

Aondover Tarhule is the New Leader of Illinois State University

Dr. Tarhule joined Illinois State University as vice president for academic affairs and provost in 2020. His immediate prior administrative appointment was vice provost and dean of the Graduate School at Binghamton University of the State University of New York System. Earlier, he served on the faculty at the University of Oklahoma.

Allyson Watson to Serve as Provost at Florida A&M University

Dr. Watson was named dean of the College of Education at Florida A&M University in 2019. Before coming to Florida A&M, she was dean of the College of Education at the University of South Florida St. Petersburg. Earlier, Dr. Watson spent nearly 14 years on the faculty at Northeastern  State University in Tahlequah, Oklahoma.

T. Elon Dancy II Honored by the Critical Race Studies in Education Association

T. Elon Dancy II, the Helen S. Faison Endowed Chair in Urban Education and executive director of the Center for Urban Education at the University of Pittsburgh, recently received the 2022 Derrick Bell Legacy Award. The award honors critical race theorists, critical race studies scholars, and progressive educators-activists committed to advancing social justice and educational race equity.

Bill Pink Chosen as the Next President of Ferris State University in Big Rapids, Michigan

Dr. Pink has been serving as president of Grand Rapids Community College since May 2017. Earlier, he was vice president and dean at the college. Dr. Pink is scheduled to become the nineteenth president of Ferris State University on July 1.

Honorée Fanonne Jeffers Wins the National Book Critics Circle Award for Fiction

Honorée Fanonne Jeffers, a professor of English at the University of Oklahoma and author of five poetry collections, was the winner in the fiction category of the National Book Critics Circle Awards. She was honored for her novel The Love Songs of W.E.B. Du Bois.

Oklahoma City Community Colleges Names Mautra Jones as its Eleventh President

Dr. Jones has been serving as vice president of institutional advancement and external affairs at Langston University. She is the site administrator for the university’s Oklahoma City campus, as well as the executive director of the Langston University Foundation.

A Trio of Black Faculty Members Who Are Taking on New Assignments

Dedric Carter, a professor of practice at Washington University in St. Louis, was named the inaugural vice chancellor for innovation and chief commercialization officer at the university. Kalenda Eaton, an associate professor at the University of Oklahoma, will direct Oklahoma research for the Black Homesteader Project, and Bayo Akinfemi has joined the faculty at the University of Southern California.

Two State Universities in the South Name African American Provosts

The University of Oklahoma announced the appointment of André-Denis Wright as senior vice president and provost for its flagship campus in Norman and Monica Terrell Leach was appointed provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs at Fayetteville State University in North Carolina.

Library of Congress Changes Subject Heading of the Tulsa Race Riot to the Tulsa Race Massacre

The impetus for the Library of Congress Subject Heading Change Proposal Task Force was the members’ shared belief that naming matters: the words used to describe people and events affect perceptions and, in turn, those perceptions have concrete implications for social justice.

Four African Americans Scholars Appointed to University Dean Positions

The new deans are Trisha Clement-Montgomery at the University of Kentucky, Darryl Scriven at Clarkson University in Potsdam, New York, Denise Stephens at the University of Oklahoma, and Rhea Ballard-Thrower at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

In Memoriam: Edward Joseph Perkins, 1928-2020

Edward J. Perkins was the first African Amerian to serve as ambassador to the Republic of South Africa and later taught at the University of Oklahoma.

In Memoriam: Melvin Richardson Todd, 1933-2020

After many years as an administrator in Oklahoma public schools, in 1975, Dr. Todd went to work in the Chancellor's Office of the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education, eventually becoming vice chancellor for academic affairs.

Four African Americans Who Have Been Appointed to Diversity Posts

The four African Americans who have been appointed to serve as diversity officers are Galen Gomes at the College of St. Rose in Albany, Linda Strong-Leek at Haverford College in Pennsylvania, Enobong “Anna” Branch at Rutgers University, and Shaniqua Crawford at the University of Oklahoma.

Colleges and Universities Announces the Hiring of Seven African Americans to Administrative Posts

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.

Study Finds That 93 Percent of Confederate Monuments Still Remain in Place

A new study by researchers from the University of Oklahoma found that over the past three years, 108 statutes or other monuments honoring the Confederacy have been taken down. But the authors found that 93 percent of all Confederate monuments remain in place. Seven states have passed laws banning their removal from public spaces.

Four African Americans Appointed to Administrative Posts in Higher Education

Taking on new roles are Belinda Higgs Hyppolite at the University of Oklahoma, Phillip Howard at Tuskegee University in Alabama, D'Andra Mull at the University of Florida, and Jasher Cox at Lincoln Memorial University in Harrogate, Tennessee.

University of Oklahoma Acquires the Papers of Activist and Educator George Henderson

The papers span over 40 years of Henderson’s career in higher education. The donation represents the largest gift by an African-American scholar, educator, and activist to the university’s archives.

The Next Dean of the College of Natural, Behavioral, and Health Sciences at Simmons University

Since 2013, Dr. Sharp-McHenry has served as dean of the College of Nursing at Oklahoma Baptist University. Previously, she served at the University of Arkansas for 15 years as a faculty member and later as the assistant director of the Eleanor Mann School of Nursing.

Two University of Oklahoma Students in Blackface Post Video on Social Media

Two White women at the University of Oklahoma posted a video on social media showing one of the women in blackface and using a racial slur. The two women have now withdrawn from the university.

Nine African Americans Who Have Been Appointed to Administrative Posts at Colleges and Universities

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: Phail Wynn Jr., 1947-2018

Phail Wynn Jr. served for 28 years as president of Durham Technical Community College and then was a long-time administrator at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina.

Benjamin Akande to Lead the Africa Initiative at Washington University in St. Louis

Dr. Akande, a Nigerian-born American citizen. was president of Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri, from 2015 to 2017. Earlier, he had been serving as a professor of economics and dean of the School of Business and Technology at Webster University in St. Louis.

University of Oklahoma Names an Academic Department to Honor Clara Luper

The University of Oklahoma has announced that it is recognizing educator and civil rights leader Clara Luper by naming the department of African and African American studies in her honor. Known as the "Mother of the Oklahoma Civil Rights Movement," she taught high school history for 41 years.

Fannone Jeffers Wins the 2018 Harper Lee Award From the Alabama Writers’ Forum

Fanonne Jeffers, a tenured full professor of creative writing at the University of Oklahoma, will receive the honor during a gala dinner at the Alabama Writers Symposium in Monroeville, Alabama, on April 19.

In Memorian: Rudy L. Horne

Dr. Horne was an associate professor of mathematics at Morehouse College in Atlanta. He received a credit as the mathematical consultant for the Academy Award nominated film Hidden Figures.

Edwidge Danticat Wins the Neustadt International Prize for Literature

Edwidge Danticat, the Haitian-American writer who has taught creative writing at New York University and the University of Miami, was chosen to receive the $50,000 Neustadt Prize, which is awarded by the University of Oklahoma.

The New Dean of the College of Education at the University of South Florida – St. Petersburg

Allyson Leggett Watson is assistant dean for the College of Education at Northeastern State University in Tahlequah, Oklahoma. She also holds an endowed chair in urban education, outreach and research. She will begin her new job as dean at the University of South Florida - St. Petersburg on July 1.

White Supremacists on College Campuses Emboldened by Trump Victory

There has been a rash of racial incidents on college campuses in the aftermath of Donald Trump's election to the presidency.

Five Black Faculty Members Appointed to New Posts

Taking on new roles are Andre Churchwell at Vanderbilt University, Daphne Bernard at Howard University, Ermias Kebreab of the University of California, Davis, Shontavia Johnson at Drake University in Iowa, and T. Elon Dancy II at the University of Oklahoma.

New Assignments for Four Black Faculty Members

Taking on new roles are Sandra Barnes at Vanderbilt University in Tennessee, T. Elon Dancy II at the University of Oklahoma, Lorenzo M. Boyd at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, and Horace Campbell of Syracuse University in New York.

Texas Southern University Chooses Its Next President

Austin A. Lane has been serving as executive vice chancellor of Lone Star College System based in The Woodlands, Texas. From 2009 to 2015, Dr. Lane was president of the Montgomery campus of Lone Star College.

Women Claim They Were Excluded From a Yale Party Due to the Color of Their Skin

The women students said that a guard at the door to the fraternity house told them, "We're only looking for White girls."

Christopher Howard Named President of Robert Morris University

Since 2009, Christopher B. Howard has been serving as president of Hampden-Sydney College in Virginia, one of the few all-male colleges in the United States. He is a former U.S. Air Force helicopter pilot and earned a doctorate at Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar.

Higher Education Grants of Interest to African Americans

Here is this week’s news of grants to historically Black colleges and universities or for programs of particular interest to African Americans in higher education.

The Next President of Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri

Benjamin Akande, a native of Nigeria, has been serving as a professor of economics and dean of the School of Business and Technology at Webster University in St. Louis. He will become the 21st president of Westminster College on July 1.

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