HBCU Times Magazine

2020 WINTER ISSUE

Jaime Harrison: The Next African American US Senator?

Charlamagne the God Dr. Wayne Frederick: Leader of the Mecca Delta Sigma Theta’s $200,000 Endowed Chair From Hampton to Brigadier General Commissioner Felicia Johnson: Glass Shatterer Tuskegee Legacy: The Moseby Family

HBCU Success:

Against ALL Odds

Advanced Rehabilitation Research Training (ARRT) Program at the Langston University Rehabilitation Research and Training Center (LU-RRTC) on Research and Capacity Building for Minority Entities PROJECT OVERVIEW:

The Advanced Rehabilitation Research Training (ARRT) Project at the Langston University (historically Black college/university [HBCU]) Rehabilitation Research and Training Center (LU-RRTC) on Research and Capacity Building represents a collaborative effort between the Institute for Community Inclusion at the University of Massachusetts Boston ([ICI] Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-serving institution), North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University ([NCA&T] HBCU), South Carolina State University ([SCSU] HBCU), and Jackson State University ([JSU] HBCU). The Project implements a Peer-to-Peer Multiple Mentor Model to help post-doctoral fellows navigate institutional context and cross-fertilize their independent research project and research grant proposal through exchanges with a primary mentor and a scientific panel of mentors comprised of content experts, multicultural specialists, methodologists, and statisticians.

The ARRT Program works in concert with the LU-RRTC drawing upon the center’s extensive minority-serving institution research capacity building expertise, collaborative networks, resources, and interventions (e.g., methodology and grant writing web-based trainings, communities of practice, strategic planning, sponsored programs office and institutional review board technical assistance and consultation), offer courses, webinars, and implement peer mentoring as an innovative strategy to holistically address the fellows’ research skill building needs.

INVITATION TO APPLY:

We invite individuals who have earned a doctorate from a minority-serving institution (i.e., HBCU, Hispanic serving institution, or American Indian tribal college) or traditionally White institution (TWI) and current doctoral candidates (must graduate before beginning fellowship) at minority-serving institutions or TWIs interested in employment research to apply to participate in the post-doctoral fellowship. Minority-serving institution based faculty members who have earned doctorates are also eligible to apply (i.e., 80% research supplements through subcontract for such faculty in residence at their employing minority-serving institution are optional). We strongly encourage individuals with disabilities to apply. We are particularly interested in recruiting candidates who have a strong desire to obtain an academic faculty position or research position at a minority-serving institution upon completion of the fellowship program.

PARTICIPATION INCENTIVES:

• Salary and benefits package- Annual salary with full health benefits • Peer-to-Peer multiple research mentorship opportunity with scientific panel mentors • Financial research agenda start-up package- i.e., study participant honorariums/fellow research travel • Peer reviewed publications • Present research findings at national rehabilitation related conferences If you have any questions regarding the Langston University Advanced Rehabilitation Research Training Program (LU-ARRT), please contact | HBCU Times 2020 Winter Issue Dr. Corey L.2Moore, Principal Investigator/Training Director at (405) 530-7531 or email: capacitybuildingrrtc@langston.edu.

Rehabilitation Research and Training Center (LU-RRTC) on Research and Capacity Building for Minority Entities The MISSION of the Langston University RRTC is to improve minority entities’ (e.g., historically Black colleges/universities [HBCUs], Hispanic-serving institutions [HSIs], and American Indian tribal colleges/universities [AITCUs]) disability and rehabilitation research capacity and infrastructure by conducting a programmatic line of research examining experiences and outcomes of persons from traditionally underserved racial and ethnic populations and communities and capacity-building efforts.

LU-RRTC TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE

The LU-RRTC serves as a national resource center for minority entities (MEs) seeking to develop their research infrastructure (RI), and to enhance their capacity to engage in disability and rehabilitation research.

To this end, the RRTC initiates dissemination, training and technical assistance (TA) activities to develop strong RIs within MEs for the conduct of research, preparation, submission, and management of NIDRR funded research grant projects. TA services are provided as a part of LU-RRTC interventions for research project participants and to ME and SVRA requestors around the country. The quality, intensity, and duration of TA vary by system (i.e., ME or SVRA) and the readiness of TA recipients.

Minority Entity TA Areas- • Faculty Scholar Role & Function Balance Consultation (e.g., teaching/service/research balance)• Sponsored Programs Office Operations Consultation • Research Infrastructure Strategic Planning • Institutional Review Board (IRB) Operation Consultation • NIDRR Research Proposal Development Mentorship • NIDRR Research Project Management Consultation • Manuscript for Peer Reviewed Publication Development Mentorship • NIDRR Request for Comment (RFC) or Request for Proposal (RFP) Interpretation Consultation • NIDRR Expert Panel Application Development Consultation • Data Management and Analysis Software and Related Technology Support Consultation State Vocational Rehabilitation Agency (SVRA) TA Areas- • SVRA Policy Consultation to Improve Outcomes for Persons from Traditionally Underserved Communities • SVRA Rehabilitation Practitioner Consultation or Training to Improve Outcomes for Persons from Traditionally Underserved Communities LU-RRTC PEER-TO-PEER MENTOR RESEARCH TEAM ACADEMY

The LU-RRTC Peer-to-Peer Mentor Research Team Academy represents a collaborative effort between Langston University and the Institute for Community Inclusion (ICI) at the University of Massachusetts Boston.

The Academy mentors Fellows to conduct research that addresses the rehabilitation needs of persons with disabilities from traditionally underserved backgrounds and communities. Ultimately, the program builds Fellows’ scholarly self-efficacy and research skills by providing them with state-of-the-science knowledge of scientifically valid measurement strategies and methodologies, and direct hands-on experience in the conduct of research and grant proposal development.

HBCU Times 2020 Winter Issue | 3

EDITOR’S MESSAGE The temperatures may be dropping, but HBCU Times is heating up with all new features, interviews, and updates! 2020 is in full swing, so the advocacy, activism, and advancement of the Black community and HBCUs is coming in strong, and we’re here to catch all of the action. From financial literacy advice and stories of perseverance to words of wisdom from the voice of Black media and culture, this special edition of HBCU Times, HBCU Success: Against All Odds, has got you covered!

One of our main features is no other than one of the most influential voices in today’s society, Charlamagne Tha God. In a candid interview, Charlamagne talks about his personal struggles with mental health, specifically his battle with anxiety.

He discusses the impact of the loss of rapper and activist, Nipsey Hussle, as well as the difficult yet powerful reality of being a black in today’s society. Charlamagne expresses the importance of how fundamental the college years are for HBCU students as this time period plays a major role in their development. On the topic of Black empowerment and awareness, Charlamagne mentions HBCU culture’s role in creating systemic black privilege and how it can be utilized to advance the community as a whole.

Nearly everywhere we turn, political debates, news, and campaigns are present, but in a special interview with Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate in South Carolina, Jaime Harrison, we’re bringing something a little different from the norm. Harrison explains the significance of involving HBCU advancement as a major focus of his campaign. He covers issues such as lack of federal funding, student loan debt, and even the importance of HBCUs for first generation college students such as himself. Harrison shares his personal journey growing up in Orangeburg, South Carolina and being able to attend college because of the generous support of a Tuskegee airman. Finally, you’ll definitely want to hear all about his current efforts to help the citizens of his hometown and the state of South Carolina.

Of course, this would not be HBCU Times if we did not celebrate the groundbreaking work and achievements of HBCU alumni. Our interview with Commissioner of the South Carolina Vocational Rehabilitation Department, Felicia W. Johnson, South Carolina State University alumna, is sure to inspire readers.

She details her current work, expanding opportunities for employment through valuable partnerships with high schools, technical institutions, colleges, and universities. In addition to sharing what she has learned about herself through working at the department, Commissioner Johnson also debunks common misconceptions about people with disabilities and shares ways

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DR. DAVID STATEN HBCUs can better serve students with disabilities on their campuses.

Keeping up with the Valentine’s Day spirit, we have a beautiful feature on the Tuskegee University alumni power couple, Marilyn and Nick Mosby. After prosecuting the officers involved in the death of Freddie Gray, Baltimore State’s Attorney, Marilyn Mosby and her husband faced a horrifying aftermath filled with harassment and even death threats. Demonstrating undeniable resilience and commitment to their community, the two share their reasoning behind major sacrifices in the past in order to achieve a larger goal of justice for their city. Finally, our UNCF feature highlights Dr. Calvin Mackie, and his nonprofit organization bringing about impactful change in the city of New Orleans, STEM NOLA. Dr. Mackie, a Morehouse alum, shares the story of how creating a science laboratory in his garage to produce a hands-on learning environment for his son, developed into an educational enrichment program and family learning experience for the people of New Orleans.

As you can see, the year has changed and the work within the HBCU community is moving right along, full speed ahead. From doctors and professors, to on-air personalities and politicians, the line-up is overflowing with people who are committed to achieving excellence, strengthening the community and producing meaningful change. Let’s be honest, you do not want to miss any of this! Relax, start up the fire and begin reading this special issue of HBCU Times

WH AT’S INSIDE

F OR THE C U LTU R E 08 DR. WAYNE FREDERICK LEADER OF T HE MECC A 10 DELTA S IGMA T HETA’S $200,000 ENDOWED CH AI R 13 T HE COMMIS S IONER FELICIA W. JOHNS ON 16 FROM HAMPT ON UNIVERS IT Y T O BRIGADIER G E NE R AL 18 FEAT URE ART ICLE: JAIME HARRIS ON 22 FEAT URE ART ICLE: CHARLAMAGNE T HE GOD

P OL I TI C S 26 HBCU S UCCES S - AGAINS T ALL ODDS 28 GIVING BACK T IME, TALENT AND T REAS URES 30 HIDDEN NO MORE: FLORIDA A&M ADVANCE W O M E N I N STE M 34 UNCF FEAT URE: S T EM NOLA- DR. CALVIN MAC K I E

LEGACY 36 T MCF FEAT URE 39 T US K EGEE LEGACY: T HE MOS EBY FAMILY 42 CHEYNEY MADE 44 MARS HALL TAGGART: AIRPORT ’S FIRS T BLACK D I R E C TO R

SP OTL I G H T 46 CHELS EY RODGERS 47 DIANA F. S MIT H 48 LAK EYS HA HALLMAN 49 TARIK FLOYD 50 FACULT Y S POT LIGHT: S ARAH PRIES T ER

HBCU Times 2020 Winter Issue | 5

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HBCU

CREDITS

EDITOR AND CO-CEO Dr. David Staten CO-CEO Dr. Bridget Hollis Staten ART DIRECTOR Mia Salley ASSOCIATE EDITORS Amori Washington Octavia Robinson Dr. Regina Bush CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Dr. Janelle L. Williams Dr. Robert W. Lay Craig Allen Brown Ericka Blount Danois Kimberlei Davis Keith Harriston Ashley Elliott Laura Onyeneho Kenita Pitts Dr. Crystal Degregory Khalilah Long Dr. Harry Williams Chelsey Rodgers Dr. Diana F. Smith Dr. Lakeysha Hallman Tarik Floyd Sarah Priester

CREATIVE CONSULTANTS G.Kenneth Gary Ebony Hillsman Lynita Mitchell-Blackwell Dr. Demarcus Bush Dr. Corey Phillips Dr. Carlton Watson CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Thurgood Marshall College Fund Terrell Maxwell of Maxwell Photography Howard University Rolondo Davis Nawtron Maxwell Delta Sigma Theta, Incorporated Maryland National Guard Charlamagne Tha God TMCF UNCF Additional Photos provided by the authors Advertising Manager-Melvin Hart

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HBCU Times 2020 Winter Issue | 7

DR. WAYNE FREDERICK LEADER OF THE MECCA

BY ERICKA BLOUNT DANOIS At 9:30am on a humid day in Washington, D.C., Dr. Wayne A. I. Frederick, Howard University’s president, isn’t just starting his workday like most people. He has already seen four patients at Howard Hospital. All of them are suffering from complex gastrointestinal cancers. Almost daily he spends his early mornings operating on patients and teaching residents and students at the hospital.

“It keeps me in the forefront of what I’m doing,” said Frederick about continuing work in the medical field. “And it keeps me in and around the classroom.”

How Dr. Frederick juggles being a surgeon and the president of Howard University at the young age of 48, is a mystery. But some clues lie in his background, both as an exceptional student in his homeland on the island of Trinidad and as a Howard University student starting at age 16 and a graduate of Howard University’s medical school by the age of 22.

Education and directing students have been a part of his path before he likely even realized it was his calling.

Growing up in Trinidad, Frederick had heard about Howard University. The school’s reputation was known throughout the diaspora. It was known as the Mecca – the shining star of higher education. The first prime minister of Trinidad, Eric Williams, was a political science professor at Howard. He left Howard to go back to Trinidad to work to defeat colonialism there, achieving internal self-government in 1959. He became prime minister of the new nation after achieving its independence in 1962 and made the country a republic in 1976. He put into place a system 8 | HBCU Times 2020 Winter Issue

he called “pragmatic socialism” which helped make Trinidad and Tobago the wealthiest Commonwealth Caribbean nation.

“His contribution stands out,” said Frederick. “That’s what I always remembered about Howard and the impact he had. It was a huge influence and a huge part of my decision to come to Howard versus any other school.”

A phone conversation Frederick overhead his grandmother having helped to direct his path towards medicine.

“I overheard her speaking about sickle cell and she was speaking about me,” Frederick remembers. “I told her I was going to be a doctor to fix it. She was one of those people that never doubted that I could do it. She was always very confident that I could achieve whatever I wanted. That’s who she was to me. That’s who she is today. She just turned 95.”

Being hospitalized regularly as a result of suffering from sickle cell anemia, Frederick was being influenced by the physicians and nurses who cared for him to eventually considering a career in medicine. His mother, who was a nurse, would bring home surgical caps and masks that he would wear. “You never know what kinds of things will influence you,” said Frederick.

Frederick joined the faculty at Howard in 2006 and became the director of the university’s hospital cancer center 5 years later.

That same year, in 2011, he earned another Howard degree after earning a B.S. and a medical degree - he finished a master’s in business administration.

Frederick was appointed the president of Howard University in the summer of 2014 amidst concern about the financial health of Howard’s hospital and a drop in major national rankings for the university. After a few years he helped to stabilize both the university and the hospital. Howard has since become a Tier 1 National university in US News and World Report rankings. The hospital remains important to both the community and to the student population, Frederick says.

“From a cultural competency point of view what we do right now with our students is special because of the patient population they react with and the hospital allows them to do that,” Frederick said.

“If the hospital was not there we would probably have a different experience. When our students leave our medical schools they tend to go and serve neighborhoods with communities of color.

Part of that is because of the patients they see.”

Howard has become a leader in the nation in the field of healthcare.

“We send more African Americans to medical school than any other institution in the country,” said Frederick. “We are helping to diversify the talent pool in the healthcare industry. I think that’s one of Howard’s biggest impact to the nation. That’s a huge contribution.”

Under Frederick’s leadership, programs like the STEM Scholars program, Howard Forward and Howard’s Google Partnership are helping to bring students to the forefront of industries that are thriving. In the past decade, according to Frederick, the National Science Foundation revealed that Howard University has had more students to complete PhD’s than any other

institution in the country. As a result of the STEM program students participate in summer research, travel and work in labs all around the world performing cutting edge research. Howard Forward, another program started by Frederick, is a five-year plan for the university which includes improvements to academic programs and a commitment to community service among other measures to pursue financial sustainability.

For the Google partnership, Frederick recognized that Google had a need for more diversity. He traveled to Silicon Valley to share with companies there the things that Howard students were doing and why they should be interested in Howard students.

Google gave Howard the opportunity to design a program to work in partnership with Howard. Howard faculty have also had the opportunity to teach in the program. The pilot program was a summer residency, an immersion curriculum for rising juniors and seniors in the university’s computer science program. Their workspace was on Google’s Mountain View campus with a stipend for housing and expenses. The program has since become a year-long immersion program with Howard and partnering HBCU institutions.

“It’s a great opportunity for the students and for the faculty.

Faculty come back and influence their curriculum. I think it makes the institution better in the field,” said Frederick.

Frederick’s vision entails continuing to move Howard forward on the path it’s on. “We are leaders of innovation and we have to be mindful of what fields are growing and how our students are prepared to participate in those fields and are well prepared to participate. We want to make sure everyone has access to what they need.”

HBCU Times 2020 Winter Issue | 9

DELTA SIGMA THETA’S $200,000 ENDOWED CHAIR

BY ERICKA BLOUNT DANOIS The original mission of HBCU’s focused on educating black students who came to college from a variety of educational backgrounds. Because of the priority to teach students, many of whom were first generation college students, sometimes the time allotted for research for professors became secondary.

Delta Sigma Theta Sorority has been changing that dynamic with their Distinguished Professor Endowed Chair award (DPEC). The award was established in 1977 by then Delta president Dr. Thelma Thomas Daly, and is a traveling endowed Chair that resides at a 4-year degree granting HBCU. The HBCU is a recipient of the Chair for a two-year period and the scholar-in-residence is noted as the Distinguished Professor for that biennium.

“We have really tried to meet a void and a need,” said Delta Sigma Theta National President & CEO, Beverly Evans-Smith.”

The DPEC award was established at the sorority’s 34th National Convention as a perpetual trust fund to continue the group’s longstanding commitment to educational excellence through quality instruction at HBCUs. Over 19 institutions have been awarded the chair and conducted innovative research, including studying dementia in African 10 | HBCU Times 2020 Winter Issue

Americans, breast cancer research, research that established a history department at an HBCU, and research on non-invasive techniques to address uterine fibroids that received a patent.

“Many of the awardees have come up with areas of research that we would not have thought of,” said Smith. “One of my favorites was on the role of grandparents in the lives of children. She had done extensive work and had a wonderful national convening of experts in that area. The community was so involved in it.”

The Chair receives monetary support of $200,000 a biennium which affords the opportunity to support HBCUs by funding programs, initiatives and research projects to improve the lives of African Americans. Over the years the sorority has awarded almost $3 million in support. The research project must also involve the community.

“When you look at research overall, its usually done by large white institutions or by medical companies and pharmaceuticals and their focus on average and especially in the healthcare field is a 60-year-old white male and all of our medications and drugs are driven by that population,” said Smith. “We really have not had the opportunity to have research focused on African Americans or given the opportunity for our faculty and staff to do the kind of research that they would like to do, nor have we

had the opportunities to have endowed chairs be able to take on a pipeline of scholars that can move the research forward.”

All HBCU’s are allowed to apply for the chair. The award allows for smaller institutions like Stillman College in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and Langston University in Langston, Oklahoma both whom have been recipients - to be able to conduct extensive research they may not have been able to afford otherwise.

DST National President and CEO, Beverly Evans-Smith

DST

The most recent awardee is Dr. Ruby Broadway, Associate Professor and Professor of Biology at Dillard University in New Orleans, Louisiana. Broadway’s research serves to examine culture and foodways in the South and will include work with youth focused centers around the issue of food choices and obesity and working with parents and guardians around food choices and health nutrition.

The prevalence of obesity in African American youth in New Orleans is excessive. Louisiana has the highest adult and child obesity rate in the country.

Broadway will assess the relationship between ethnic foods (creole/soul food) self-identity, acculturation and food choices, and the overall association between food choices and obesity, and obesity-related conditions in African American youth. Broadway, students at Dillard, and the community will work in partnership with the Ray Charles Program in African American Material.

Post doctorate fellows will also be a part of the research design as well as a visiting fellow from Harvard University’s Medical School and School of Public Health.

Delta Sigma Theta’s commitment to HBCU’s has extended beyond the DPEC award over the years, including scholarships and donations to Xavier University and Dillard University of $150,000 combined for relief efforts after Hurricane Katrina, raising money for Bennett College to stay afloat, and the presidential youth academy where high school students are taken to HBCU’s to talk with faculty members and to get a feel for what it’s like on campus.

The DPEC award helps HBCUs and their professors and students and the community at large in equally dramatic ways by supporting and sustaining these historical institutions, providing assistance to expand educational opportunities, and to give long-overdue recognition to distinguished black instructors and professors.

“The mission of this award is clearly linked to community,” said Dr. Joan Prince, Chair of the DPEC Committee. “The research that is being supported by this award must affect those of the African Diaspora. That’s a critical link between the research being done and the community that it’s serving. We need to do more in our institutions to research for us. It won’t get done unless we do it.”

Dr. Joan Prince

THE COMMISSIONER

FELICIA W. JOHNSON South Carolina State University alumna, Felicia W. Johnson has invested decades working to improve the quality of life of South Carolinians living with disABILITIES. Felicia is the first African American to serve as Commissioner for the South Carolina Department of Vocational Rehabilitation.

Johnson, also a graduate of the University of South Carolina is respected by her peers as a well-rounded licensed professional counselor with a history of assisting youth with disabilities transitioning from school to work and serving individuals referred by the correctional system.

HBCU Times recently spoke with the Commissioner of the South Carolina Vocational Rehabilitation Department (VR), to learn what she would’ve told a 13-year-old Felicia and why she believes HBCUs could benefit from partnerships with the Boys and Girls Club and Jack and Jill of America, Incorporated.

HBCU Times: It’s been just over a year since you were appointed as Commissioner of the South Carolina Vocational Rehabilitation Department after having served in the interim position. What have you learned about yourself and the department during that time?

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BY KIMBERLEI DAVIS

Felicia Johnson: I have learned so much since being appointed

to serve as interim Commissioner. I have grown and developed professionally more within the last two years than I have in my entire career. I have learned that our department is filled with individuals who are dedicated to making a positive impact in the lives of others and all of the work that is required to realize that impact. I have learned that the most important part of leadership is being a servant. In order for me to effectively lead, I have to focus on serving our consumers, the employees of the agency and the business community. Ensuring that our consumers are receiving quality rehabilitation services, our employees have the training and resources to be experts in the field of vocational rehabilitation, and that our business partners received talented employees.

HBCU Times: You have a long history with the VR with over two decades of service throughout the state, what do you think are the most common misconceptions about people with physical, emotional, intellectual and/or cognitive disabilities and how are you leading the charge to dispel this?

Felicia Johnson: The most common misconception about people

with disabilities is that they are unable to work, and those who

are able to work are a liability to businesses. I am constantly advocating for our citizens with disabilities by educating business partners, community leaders, and anyone that I may come in contact with. The majority of workplace accommodations come at a low cost and the impact is high, positively impacting the workplace in many ways. Also, studies have shown that hiring a person with a disability results in a loyal, reliable, hardworking employee with low absenteeism and a long tenure. It is important for me to help others understand that the citizens we serve have abilities that far outweigh any disability or functional limitation they may have; it is all about finding the proper fit. Finding the proper fit regarding employment is relevant to us all regardless of physical, emotional, intellectual and/or cognitive ability.

create a talent pipeline for the business. VR consumers interested in working for this particular business partner were referred to the technical college for training, specific to the needs of the business, and upon successful completion of the training were eligible for employment opportunities with the business. Several of our consumers were hired by the business partner and have successful careers.

HBCU Times: What are new steps that are being made to promote continuing growth and development of VR and to sustain interest in the welfare of those you serve?

Felicia Johnson: I would have to say that the most pressing issues

Felicia Johnson: On a national level, the VR program is

concentrating on enhancing contributions to the nation’s workforce needs. The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) is helping to drive this shift in the program’s culture.

Here in South Carolina, we are always looking for ways to enhance our program and improve the level of quality that we provide in serving our consumers, while meeting the workforce needs of our business partners. We are in the process of bringing new and innovative training opportunities to our Job Readiness Training Centers. These opportunities are designed to provide our consumers with hands-on career exploration in demand driven jobs that are available in their local areas. We are also bringing new training to our employees to ensure they have the skills, knowledge and resources needed to maintain their expertise in serving our consumers.

HBCU Times: What unique workforce development opportunities is VR collaborating on with other organizations/ agencies/institutions?

Felicia Johnson: I serve as a member on the State Workforce

Development Board, as well as one of the Board’s subcommittees that is mandated to serve “Targeted Populations”; the disability community being one of those populations. VR realizes the importance of partnerships and building relationships in an effort to ensure our consumers maximize the services available to them.

We have ongoing partnerships with agencies and organizations throughout the state to receive referrals for our services. We serve every high school in the state and have partnerships with the technical school system, and several colleges and universities.

We partner with over 400 businesses in our state to provide training opportunities for our consumers through the provision of contract work in our Job Readiness Training Centers. Many of the partnerships through our Job Readiness Training Centers result in employment opportunities for our consumers. About two years ago, the agency was able to embark upon a unique partnership with a technical college and a business partner to

HBCU Times: As an alumna of South Carolina State University, please explain what you think are the most pressing issues and challenges being faced by HBCUs and what kind of solutions are needed for them to be relevant around five years from now?

and challenges being faced by HBCUs is decreasing enrollment.

I read an article that stated less than 10% of all African American college students attend an HBCU. As enrollment in HBCUs continues to decline, financial challenges in sustaining these institutions of higher learning will increase and cause devastating problems such as program cuts, loss of accreditation, possible closings, etc. In order to maintain relevance, I would suggest earlier education and recruitment. It might help to begin exposing our youth to the value of HBCUs at an early age. Partner with the Boys and Girls Club to bring students to campuses for field studies or organizations like Jack and Jill of America, any opportunity to spark interest in the minds of our youth and let them know what is available to them. We also need to ensure degree programs are relevant and proactively updated, and that there are support services to foster successful completion; and, where possible, partnerships for job placements upon graduation.

HBCU Times: In what ways do you think HBCUs in South Carolina and/or nationally could better serve those living with disabilities?

Felicia Johnson: Ensure there is an active and proactive

Disabilities Services Department that recruits students with disabilities, ensures ADA compliance throughout the campus, provides support services and advocacy, and educates the campus and community on disabilities and disability rights.

HBCU Times: Wife, mother, community leader - you like so many women wear many hats. When the commander-in-chief seems to blatantly disregard the contributions of women of color to our city, state or nation what is your response?

Felicia Johnson: It is abhorrent and disrespectful. That type of

disregard discounts the hard work, dedication, achievements, and value women of color have added to this country and the world.

HBCU Times 2020 Winter Issue | 13

HBCU Times: What is your guilty pleasure and what does “down time” look like for you and the family?

Felicia Johnson: Guilty pleasures: I am a serial shopper, I actually

have created my own rehabilitation group, Serial Shoppers Anonymous – I am the only member right now. I also LOVE Insomnia Cookies and treat myself to a Caramel Macchiato a few times a week. I don’t get to watch much television but my daughter and I have recently started watching movies on either Netflix or Prime during our “mommy and daughter time.” On Saturday or Sunday, when I can carve out some downtime, we snuggle up on the couch and I let her choose what we watch. The most we have done in a day was four movies.

My favorite sport to watch is baseball. My son plays travel baseball and I have grown to love it over the last five years.

HBCU Times: What advice would you offer a wife and mother and what’s the best advice you’ve been given?

Felicia Johnson: Keep God and family first. My spirituality keeps

me grounded and focused and my family is a big part of why I do what I do. I once heard a speaker at a graduation ceremony say, “There are only 940 Saturdays from the time a baby is born until they day he or she becomes an adult, make each one of them count.” Until hearing that statement, I would willingly work 12 hours a day and still feel like I needed to work more. Hearing that put everything in perspective for me, my husband is my biggest supporter and my children are my world; every moment with them is precious and must be cherished. Jobs are temporary, family is forever.

The best advice I have been given is to always show appreciation because the worst thing you can do to someone is to make them feel unappreciated.

HBCU Times: Take us to your favorite childhood spot in your home and what are three life lessons you wish you would’ve known?

Felicia Johnson: My favorite childhood spot in my home was the

HBCU Times: What have your husband Condie, and your children Chance and Kennedy taught you about love?

Felicia Johnson: They have taught me everything I know about

love. I believe that we don’t truly know love until we love enough to put others before ourselves. My husband and children have taught me that and I am a better person because of them.

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den. I am the oldest of four girls and I grew up in the home with my sisters, my mother and grandmother. We would congregate in the den every day to talk, watch television, and hang out. We had the best times laughing with and at one another and spending time together. I would tell 13-year-old Felicia that everything we experience in life happens for a reason. The difficult circumstances, the mistakes we make, the trouble we get into, etc. all have a lesson in there somewhere that we are to learn. Seek the value in every lesson. Take every opportunity to learn, especially from your elders because they are wise and their advice will prove to be valuable in the future. Understand that when those who love and care about you are hard on you, it is because they see your potential and the leader within you. Tough love has a way of preparing us for the leader we are destined to be. Challenges bring perseverance and perseverance is the key to success.

ELIZABETH WARREN HAS A PLAN FOR:

CANCELING STUDENT LOAN DEBT UNIVERSAL FREE COLLEGE INVESTING $50 BILLION IN HBCUs Join the fight & pledge to vote!

SOUTH CAROLINA PRIMARY: SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 29 W W W . E L I Z A B E T H W A R R E HBCU N . CTimes OM / Winter S C Issue | 15 2020

FROM HAMPTON UNIVERSITY TO BRIGADIER GENERAL

BY KEITH HARRISON When Janeen Birckhead was still in high school on Maryland’s Eastern Shore and thinking about college, her mother issued a challenge: apply for a Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) scholarship.

“There was never a question whether I was going to college.

The question was how to pay for it. I thought to myself, yeah, mommy, the military. That’s not a great idea,” Birckhead said in a recent interview with HBCU Times. “But she knew I liked challenges.”

The then-high-achieving student at Worcester County’s Snow Hill High School, where she was an athletic majorette and cheerleader and volunteered for organizations like the Veterans of Foreign Wars and the American Legion, applied. And, she won a four-year scholarship that she could use at any university where it was accepted and that had an ROTC program.

military service. She is now Brig. Gen. Janeen Birckhead, among the highest-ranking black women in the National Guard. She leads the Maryland Army National Guard, where the highlydecorated Birckhead is in charge of the state unit’s 4,500 Army soldiers. She took over the position in June 2019 and became part of a first in the nation—a state National Guard unit led by a command staff who are all women.

“Back then in high school, there was lots of discussion with my parents about what college I should attend,” Birckhead recalled.

“One question was whether I should go to an HBCU. Well, I had an uncle who attended Hampton. I had a cousin there. My mom thought it would be a great experience for me to see lots of black people doing wonderful things.”

“Once I was selected for the scholarship,” she said, “it was hard to turn down such a great opportunity. I didn’t view it as a calling or a dream to join [ROTC]. All I wanted was something greater than myself and to serve my state and nation.”

She finished Hampton in 1991—a semester early—as a distinguished military graduate with a B.A. in political science.

Her choice to join the ROTC was all about the challenge from her mother. Her father had been in the Navy before she was born. And her mother had been an elected official in their home county. So, there wasn’t lots of family military background to help influence her decision.

She chose Hampton University in Virginia, an HBCU on the banks of the Hampton River, about a three-hour drive from her childhood home. Hampton turned out to be the launching pad of a career that has taken Birckhead to the highest levels of

Birckhead remembers her time at Hampton fondly. She met her husband, Craig Morton, there. She met her current best friend, Chena Younger, during her first-semester. She cites three faculty members in particular for helping to guide her during

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BIRCKHEAD

her matriculation: Mamie Locke, a political science professor, retired Lt. Col. Claude Vann III, who was an assistant professor of military science, and Maj. Eric Handy in Hampton’s ROTC program.

promoted to the highest levels—and he has been present for many of her promotion ceremonies. “She stood out while she was at Hampton,” he said, “but she really blossomed after she left us.”

Younger recalls the two meeting as first-year students living in the Virginia-Cleveland dormitory when Birckhead needed assistance getting her car to a repair shop. “We just had a connection,” Younger said. “You kind of know when you meet someone. Our friendship just blossomed from there.”

Birckhead gives much credit for providing her with a strong foundation to Vann, other Hampton faculty and her ROTC colleagues at the school.

Younger, who grew up in Hampton, introduced Birckhead to local spots, including the famous Smitty’s Better Burger. She invited Birckhead to stay at her parents’ home so often that Birckhead eventually had her own key to the house. By the time they were preparing to graduate, Younger said, she knew big things were in her best friend’s future.

In fact, when Birckhead was deployed to Afghanistan in 2011, Vann sent her care packages that included, he recalled, her special request of tea.

“I could just sense it,” Younger remembered. “I wondered where she was going. She always had a lot of drive and ambition. She had great high school experiences. She had a job waiting for her on Capitol Hill the semester before we were scheduled to graduate. She always was very organized and always had a game plan.”

Birckhead believes attending an HBCU is an option that students should consider. “Don’t get caught up in just going to an HBCU. Make sure that they have the academic program that interests you. The social fabric at HBCUs is top notch,” she said. “There is a lot to be said for that. But there is more. The breadth and depth of diversity cannot be beaten. The kinds of discussions you have in classes. The varying backgrounds of the students makes for a rich experience.”

Vann said Birckhead was “one of my stars” in ROTC at Hampton.

“It was like a family,” she said.

“She is like family,” he said, echoing a common theme among those with ties to Hampton.

“There are always people in life, ROTC included, who will throw stumbling blocks in your way,” Vann said “I watched her masterfully avoid those stumbling blocks. Never saw her get down. She maintained the same disposition. She is one of those people who never gives up.”

When she graduated from Hampton with a commission as a second lieutenant, Birckhead opted for an appointment in the reserves because she had a job waiting for her in the offices of Sen. Paul Sarbanes (D-Md.). Her current full-time job is as a senior advisor in the U.S. Interior Department, a job she continues even while leading the Maryland Army National Guard.

Still, Vann said, he was a bit surprised that Birckhead has been

“It keeps me really busy,” she said.

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JAIME HARRISON

BY ERICKA BLOUNT DANOIS

Democrat Jaime Harrison has always had HBCU’s and their survival and success on his mind. As a teenager in Orangeburg, South Carolina, he was often on the campus of South Carolina State University and Claflin University, both located in downtown Orangeburg. He was inspired by many professionals that went to both schools, especially when they would come to his public school to fulfill their student-teaching requirements. These students had a profound impact on him and offered a window into college life that he hadn’t seen before.

“No one in my family had gone to college,” said Harrison. “The students I saw gave me a sense of the possibilities. They were role models and an inspiration to me.”

Harrison is running against Republican incumbent Lindsey Graham for a Senate seat in 2020. The lack of federal funding for HBCU’s, retention for students, and understanding the importance of HBCU’s for low-income communities and firsttime college students like himself are high priority issues for his campaign.

There are eight HBCU’s in South Carolina: South Carolina State University, Claflin University, Denmark Technical College, Voorhees College, Allen University, Benedict College, Morris College, and Clinton College.

Harrison is currently touring all eight of the HBCU’s in South Carolina and meeting with their presidents.

“HBCUs are a gateway to the middle class,” says Harrison by telephone. “Many HBCU’s don’t have the endowments that predominantly white schools have that give them the flexibility to do new things and invest in their buildings and new programs. I want to make sure federal funding is going to these institutions.”

Harrison says South Carolina State doesn’t get the same attention for federal funding as its sister state institutions Clemson University and University of South Carolina. He wants to make sure federal funds reach HBCUs like South Carolina State

that are research universities. He and the presidents of South Carolina HBCUs have been talking about a potential partnership with HBCU’s and Ivy League schools to help to boost HBCU endowments.

Addressing student loan debt is another big issue for his campaign.

Harrison and his wife combined came out of undergrad and law school with 250K worth of loan debt. He says he will work to make colleges affordable and work to end the student loan crisis in this country.

Harrison has a soft spot for HBCU’s in part because he was only able to attend college because of the help of an HBCU graduate.

On April 2, 1994, Harrison went to the mailbox early in the morning to see if he had received any mail from the colleges he applied to. Thanks to his grandparents and his mother who understood that education was the gateway to change his life, he had always been an exceptional student. His mother, a teenage mother, always bought him comic books to read - Avengers, Spiderman - and Harrison devoured them. By second grade he had skipped three reading levels. “Reading those comic books was really how I learned to read because I was a slow reader at first,” he remembers.

That day at the mailbox he saw a fat envelope, which meant it wasn’t a rejection letter. He started screaming when he opened it as his grandmother came running to the door telling him he was going to wake all the neighbors. His grandmother had an 8th grade education because she had to leave school to pick cotton and eventually worked in the textile industry. His grandfather stopped school in the 4th grade to work in a dairy and work construction. His mother dropped out of high school to give birth to him and went back to school to get her GED. The letter inside the envelope said that Harrison had been accepted to Yale University.

“I was screaming, I got in, I got in! I was jumping up and down in the middle of the street,” Harrison remembers. “My grandma HBCU Times 2020 Winter Issue | 19

had no idea what I was talking about. She knew I was happy, so she was happy. She knew it was a blessing for me to go to school.

It wouldn’t have mattered where I got into school, it just meant an opportunity that would change my life.”

But there was a catch. When he received his financial aid letter he was about $2500 short of what he needed to enroll. No one in his family had enough credit to get a loan. When Harrison met a distinguished graduate of Claflin University, his life would change drastically. He’d met Middleton through the mayor of Orangeburg when Harrison was awarded the honor of being the mayor of his middle school. Middleton was a Tuskegee airman, one of the first African Americans to get elected to the State House, post Reconstruction and one of the first African Americans to get a Coldwell Banker real estate term in the nation. Middleton gave Harrison, then a middle school kid, his card and said anytime you need help, just call me.

The day he received his financial aid package Harrison called him and went to his office. Middleton told him, “I’m going to give you the money you need for school and I am going to give you a little extra money for your pockets and I’m going to buy you a computer.” The trade-off was Harrison worked for Middleton that summer before school started.

“I would drive around and run errands for him. In the end I was able to go to school because of him,” said Harrison.

Now Harrison is running against Lindsey Graham in a state which is considered a conservative, Republican state. He’s using a strategy that is unique and different from other campaigns.

He says he’s focused on helping people right now. “You hear the rhetoric: ‘Wait until I get elected and you’ll see what I do,’ But I know in some of our communities they’ve heard that for generations. There have been a series of broken promises. They want to see action,” said Harrison.

Harrison created a program entitled, “Harrison Helps.” The program partners with community organizations and leaders, identifying challenges in the communities and works to come up with solutions. One event involved a partnership with the Boys and Girls Club in his hometown in Orangeburg. They were able to raise $7000 for school supplies to give to parents.

Harrison Helps plans on conducting homeownership workshops, FAFSA workshops for first generation college students and workshops on resume building and job interview skills.

Ultimately, Harrison says, its obvious that South Carolina is looking for change. “We are getting Republicans showing up to our events who are frustrated with the way the country is going,” Harrison said.

Harrison wants to be the person to bring about that change.

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“ Never let anyone say that you’re not good enough, or it’s not your time.

My life’s work is about proving the doubters and the pessimists wrong.

Because I know how much we can do together.

It is our time.”

Jaime Harrison

Candidate, U.S. Senate

Paid for by Jaime Harrison for U.S. Senate

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CHARLAMAGNE THA GOD SETTING THE RECORD STRAIGHT ON MENTAL HEALTH, BLACK EVOLUTION, & THE POWER OF POSITIVE THINKING

BY ASHLEY ELLIOTT

Ask him and Lenard McKelvey, AKA Charlamagne Tha God will tell you that his path to success was a little unorthodox.

Growing up in Moncks Corner, South Carolina, Charlamagne was met with many challenges including multiple run-ins with the law, having to attend night school, and getting fired from multiple radio jobs. Fast forward to 2020, and he’s now a New York Times Best Selling author, co-host of one of the top nationally syndicated urban radio shows in the country, The Breakfast Club, made several television and radio appearances, serves as executive producer of his production company, CThaGod World, and is co-host of the Brilliant Idiots podcast, which began in 2014. All of this, including overseeing several new business ventures that are underway shows the phenomenal growth and personal success he has been able to acquire. How though has he been able to change the trajectory of his life so significantly that he has now become one of the most compelling and recognizable names in entertainment?

He credits many things; among them his faith, family, a strong work ethic, and more specifically the power of positive thinking.

This is why he stresses the importance of mental health and has dedicated much of his time sharing this empowering message to those he comes in contact with, particularly youth within the African American community. “I think dealing with your mental health is really the root to everything,” explained the Shook One: Anxiety Playing Tricks on Me, author. “It is so big because we as black people have passed on so many generational traumas and a lot of hurt to each other. Hurt people, hurt people and we just redistribute that pain to the people that look like us. We redistribute it to our women, we redistribute it to other black men –we are violent, so we have to deal with those traumas,” he adds.

Charlamagne often talks about this pain he’s all too familiar with that stemmed from childhood. After dealing with personal traumas and learning about some of the obstacles his father faced, it forced him to look at his own faults, which ultimately helped him become a better son, husband, and father to his three girls. “When you start dealing with your mental health and you

tart becoming a better human being, you can start leaving your baggage at the door – it helps you in all of your relationships,” he stressed. “Even though I loved my father, I didn’t want to be the man he was because of the pain I saw him cause my mom. He dealt with his mental health issues throughout his life, and if he would have told me about his mental health issues earlier when I starting having my bouts with mental health, I would have known that there were resources available for me to actually get right.”

Once Charlamagne realized that part of his purpose was to help others with their own mental health struggles, he set out on a mission to take this life-changing message across the globe. In November 2018, he partnered with Dr. Jessica Clemmons for a VH1 special entitled, In Session: Live with Dr. Jess, where he shared several of his anxiety triggers – some of which are projected by society, such as the killing of unarmed black men by police officers, while others are more personal like what he calls parental paranoia. “Your heart’s walking around outside of your body and it’s hard to relinquish control of your kids to the world,” he says. “Then when they start going to school their little adults now and you can’t protect them from the outside world, you can’t protect them from encountering bullies at school,” he adds.

Most recently, Charlamagne appeared on The Tamron Hall Show where he addressed the stigmas men face when dealing with mental illness. This was a similar message he shared during the first annual Minority Health Film Festival in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. “In order for us to heal, we gotta tell our stories,” expressed Charlamagne. “That’s the biggest thing I would tell the city of Milwaukee: Just don’t be afraid to share your story.”

One of his more profound and resonating messages came during a visit to Claflin University during their 10th annual CALABash (Claflin’s Arts and Letters Annual -Bash) held in April 2019. He and several students joined in on a conversation about the misconceptions around depression and anxiety that plague African Americans. “We try to dismiss every emotion if it’s not a positive one, if it’s not happiness,” Charlamagne noted. “That’s

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not the way life is. I’m human sometimes. I’m going to feel this way or that way.” Topics on how to deal with stress and societal or ‘secondary’ trauma was also addressed. The timing of this discussion was significant as rapper Nipsey Hussle was killed just a month prior in his hometown of Los Angeles, California.

“The death of Nipsey Hussle hit a little different,” admitted Charlamagne. “I’m tired of hearing stories about humans killing other humans for absolutely no reason and it really hits different when those humans are black men because what happened to Nipsey can happen to any one of us at any given time.”

Charlamagne not only reflected on his interview with Nipsey a year prior, calling it one of his most memorable, but also shared how the visit to Claflin was particularly important for him because although he did not attend college, he realizes those years are fundamental for students, particularly those within the HBCU community. “HBCU’s develop character. It’s a place where a lot of people truly come into their own when it comes to black identity. It’s where students gain a sense of pride and confidence.”

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Charlemagne also reflected back to a time when black pride and black power was more prominently portrayed throughout society – when people could be found wearing HBCU gear and clothing that lifted the black community, sporting African medallions, and rocking Malcolm X hats. This was also during the time when his mother, Julie Ford McKelvey was attending South Carolina State University in Orangeburg, SC. It was then that he really began to understand the value that HBCUs bring to the world. “As I got older and started seeing some of the things my mom learned while she was in college, I realized the impact that HBCUs make and I understood what they mean.”

Charlamagne said getting back to black empowerment is what compelled him to title his first book, Black Privilege, Opportunity Comes to Those That Create It. He wants his readers to understand that it’s a privilege to be black while bringing awareness to systemic black privilege, which he feels is largely created through the HBCU culture. “HBCUs give you a different identity. It’s there you will meet people that you’re going

to need in the corporate world later on in life,” he explained. “I talk a lot about black privilege and the concept of black privilege, which for me is something spiritual. It’s an honor to be in this black skin because we are a special group of people, but you want to see that systemic black privilege. I think a lot of that systemic black privilege happens via HBCUs because these are the people that go on to become architects, engineers, lawyers, and business people and they are going to all work together and pull their resources and continue to uplift us as a community.”

Charlamagne recently dedicated his time and resources to support his mom’s alma mater, which is the only public, four-year HBCU in the state of South Carolina. During the University’s 2019 homecoming, Charlamagne announced the establishment of the Ford Family Endowed Scholarship, named after his mother and grandmother. He presented a check for $250,000 that will support African-American women majoring in English, Communications, or those who are interested in pursuing a career in the mental health industry. “Investing in an HBCU is investing in the future of our people,” he acknowledged. “It’s a blessing to be a blessing.”

Growing up with a population of only 10,000 in his hometown, not a lot of people were interested or involved in the same career Charlamagne was, however, he had mentors like his mom, who was an English major and always kept a book in front of him, his grandmother who consistently spoke wisdom over him, and his father who pushed him to aim for higher heights. “Although my father had his battle with mental illness he never gave up on me. He didn’t want me to make the same mistakes he did so he gave me books like, The Autobiography of Malcolm X, Message to the Black Man in America, by Elijah Muhammad, and had me watching speeches from Minister Farrakhan. He instilled a lot in me.”

Looking back to the day he walked into his first radio job at Z-93 Jamz! in Charleston, South Carolina, Charlamagne says he remembers visualizing his future even in that moment. “I remember sitting there listening to Big Tigger, Wendy Williams, and Angie Martinez, and going back and listening to old Petey Greene Interviews,” he recalled. “In Charleston, we had Doug Banks and Tom Joyner and I remember saying to myself, if I’m going to do radio, I want to do it on that level. I want to be a super jock.” He held on to that dream, writing down that one day he would become the biggest nationally syndicated radio

personality in the country. “I never thought otherwise,” he emphasized. This is particularly why getting a handle on his anxiety was so important for him. “The things I don’t want to happen I don’t think or talk about at all because if I hold on to those negative thoughts for too long, and something negative happens to me I’m going to feel like I caused that. This shows the power of positive thinking.”

Now that he feels like he’s finally walking in his purpose, Charlamagne says he will continue to carry out the message of mindfulness and advocation for people to become more mentally aware. “I feel like that’s going to raise a new generation of men and a new generation of women,” he says. “In this moment I feel like all of my experiences in life, whether they were good or I thought they were bad, I used all of them to tell this larger story of just being a better person and being mentally healthy.

Personal evolvement is the main factor he says, referring to his favorite book, The Autobiography of Malcolm X. “That’s why I always loved the Nation of Islam because it was all about growth and evolution, so I want people to look at me and see the same thing.

Owning his own mistakes and refusing to give up on his dreams is what propelled Charlamagne to the next level of success.

Undoubtedly, doors of opportunity started opening early for him, but once he mastered his mental health obstacles, the opportunities were limitless. He now encourages others to do the same and sums up three things they should add to live out their full potential. Keep God first, stay humble, and keep working.

“That’s my motto for everything,” he noted. “To me, you have to have some type of spiritual foundation. I feel like all things are possible if you have God in your life. That’s number one.

I also feel like when you have belief in God it’s like having a belief in yourself because we are spiritual beings living in human existence and not vice versa,” reflected Charlamagne. “Stay humble, because you never know who’s going to be who. You should treat people the way you want to be treated at all times.

Everybody should give positive energy and I think if you put that out there you will get it back.” Finally, he says, “keep working and stay focused at whatever your craft is. Once you find out what your passion is, stay at it and understand it’s not going to be easy. You have to have patience and you got to keep working.”

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University (Class of 2006) campus, her goal of becoming a top media personality was going to require much sacrifice and hard work while in school, but it wasn’t until she graduated when she realized how life also became the greatest teacher. With more than 10 years in the industry, her work has graced various outlets including, MTV News, VH1, Nickelodeon, Entertainment Weekly, Blavity, iHeartRadio, and KillerBoombox.

Memories at Norfolk State University Pierre always knew she was a natural-born leader. The importance of having autonomy in her life and career was what she considered top priority and she wanted to attend an HBCU that would prepare her for the next level. “I grew up in Northern Virginia. I wanted to attend an HBCU out of state just to be in another environment than what I was used to,” said Pierre.

HBCU SUCCESSAGAINST ALL ODDS: GEORGETTE PIERRE

BY LAURA ONYENEHO

HBCU’s have become an essential part of the fabric of the black higher education experience in the United States. The HBCU experience continues to cultivate and produces top black collegiates who excel across various industries despite the numerous challenges they face after graduation.

When Radio Personality, Content Creator, and Producer, Georgette Pierre took her first steps on the Norfolk State

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“Norfolk wasn’t my first choice but out of all the HBCU’s I applied to, they were the only ones that accepted me.”

With an open mind, she took the offer and quickly became acclimated with the campus. “ My HBCU experience was amazing,” she said. “ My parents are West Indian, so I knew the historical context behind an HBCU, but it didn’t dawn on me until I attended one. I liked how there was a traditional campus vibe to it.”

Finding Purpose and Facing Academic Challenges at Norfolk Even though Pierre majored in business, her passion for pop culture and music eventually led her to her first taste in broadcasting as the host of a radio show on WNSB 91.1FM. “At Norfolk, I was in the music studio at school, rapping and performing at talent shows, she said.” “I was good at mimicking voices I would hear, and even though I wasn’t comfortable with my raspy voice, someone convinced me I had the voice for radio, and that was enough encouragement to audition for the role.”

Finally, in tune with her purpose, she spent time developing her skills, but quickly discovered challenges in her academic experience. She grew concerned about the lack of hands-on experience in the classrooms. “The entrepreneurial spirit was in me but my professors at the time weren’t equipped with the necessary business experience,” said Pierre. “They taught straight from the textbooks and the information didn’t stick.

Even as far as reaching out to campus administration to voice my concerns were difficult. It felt like I was dealing with a Hip Hop artist’s public relation’s team jumping through hoops just to get a word in.”

Post-Graduate Life In 2006, Pierre graduated hoping she would get her first job in radio, but ended up working for Enterprise Rent-A-Car and part-time at the Banana Republic for a year before returning to

school to complete her master’s degree in Integrated Marketing Communication at Emerson College in Boston. The available resources and practical training was what Pierre described as the missing piece from her experience at Norfolk. “I lived in the radio studios at Emerson’s 88.9 WERS FM, writing news stories, editing audio, and programming music,” she said.

She hosted and produced her own podcast and wrote for pop culture and music sites. “My skill sets improved, it was easy to connect with school administration, and the network was huge. The best part was being able to navigate my career with the experiences I had at an HBCU and a predominantly white institution. It was one of the most important things that helped me throughout my journey.”

When she graduated during the recession in 2009, she struggled to find work and eventually moved back home to Virginia for a year working temp jobs unrelated to her field. Reality sunk in and she quickly figured out the road to success wasn’t one direct path.

In 2010, she took a risk and moved to New York City to get her foot in the door.

Hustle and Bustle in the Concrete Jungle With the help of multiple informational interviews and Emerson’s alumni network, she was able to secure an externship at New York University’s WNYC radio station that only paid $10 a day.

She took the risk of accepting the position not knowing how she was going to fund her stay. “My mom helped with rent the first four months I was there,” said Pierre. “ The hardest part was positioning for my next opportunity when I completed my time there. At the time, the station did not help me transition into a new position and I was left to find what to do next.”

Eventually, she leaned on temp work for another year and a half, until she could figure out how to get into Viacom. Through networking, she secured a freelance 10-month production assistant job with Viacom. The radio industry was tough especially for freelancers starting in the number one market.

When her contract ended, she was out of a job again for another 8 months.

Unemployment and Mental Health In 2013, the bouts of unemployment took a toll on her mental health. She recalled living in a 100 square foot apartment, with a communal bathroom, without health insurance, or money.

Self-doubt snuck in at every turn like a thief in the night. She questioned everything. At one point she was four months behind rent payments and eventually had to stay with a friend who didn’t charge her for rent. “For three months I worked in retail to save money while working to get back on my feet,” said Pierre. “ I was willing to sacrifice my financial security for a certain period of time. Everything was mind over matter. Not many people could go through what I went through but I had a dream. I had to humble myself and do the groundwork to get there.”

Eventually, Viacom offered her another Office Production Assistant contract in 2013 and she worked between VH1 and Nickelodeon for five years. “At the time, the company had a rule about how long freelancers could stay on a job in a given period, said Pierre. “Once I came back though, I stayed for five years moving up in my department and then a different network under the same company umbrella.”

The Power in Creating Your Own Platform To create the autonomy she desired for her life and career, Pierre produced and hosted her own YouTube web series #DearGeorgette in 2015. #DearGeorgette was the next step in her “creative and evolutionary process.” The series was a witty and blunt style relationship and pop culture show that received head nods at the NYC Web Fest and the Hollywood Black Film Festival. The show lasted two seasons. Pierre also produced and hosted her first p op culture a nd edu-tainment internet radio show called Off the Record in 2009.

“I felt so much joy creating content. I took my skills from Viacom and applied them to my own work,” she said. “These days employers want to see if you have an audience. People are taking the initiative now more than ever. Don’t wait for someone else to tell you that you are valuable.”

Next Moves in Media and Entertainment Industry With all of her sacrifice, Pierre felt she was in a great place financially but there was something inside of her that made her feel like she was settling. Her dream was to be in the radio industry and she was ready to make another big career move. “I saw that there was a part-time commercial radio job in Miami and it had it everything I wanted,” Pierre said. “I went for the job and once I got accepted, I bought a plane ticket and left. In New York, I was making $80,000 and took a major pay cut to chase my dream.”

She landed a role as a morning show host at WEDR 99Jamz, a Miami-based Hip Hop and R&B station. Pierre later produced a weekly digital web series for the station called 99 Second Rap Up, as a way to attract more listeners. Pierre continues to be a content creating machine with the launch of her new podcast Black+Nuanced and is in the works to launch more projects in the future. “One day I hope to create a space to connect more black creatives,” she said. “Long term I look forward to building generational wealth, public speaking opportunities, and a consulting business. I can do anything as long as I have the right mindset.”

When asked about what she could have told herself as a Norfolk State student that would have helped her in her career, she said, “Give yourself grace. Love yourself and stop taking yourself too seriously.”

HBCU Times 2020 Winter Issue | 27

The pressures of higher education begin at the ripe age of 12 as a middle school student walks into the office of the Career Specialist and begins to map out his/her future and aspirations.

At a time when coming into who they are, their first crush, tryouts for their favorite sport or cheerleading squad, and the big P word, “puberty!” This is where the journey of assessments, testing, course alignments, time management, community involvement, and social development and awkwardness begins.

Who has time to think about College? They are just trying to get through the anxieties of walking the halls of high school.

Now, that the picture has been painted and the stage is set, let’s talk about you, the beloved alumni. I’m sure by now you have reminisced and gave a good ole’ church shout of thanks that you’ve made it over those hurdles. Now the work begins.

Title III of the Higher Education Act of 1965, Congress officially defines an HBCU as a school of higher learning that was accredited and established before 1964, and whose principal mission was the education of African Americans.

The greatest misconception of “give back” is hog tied to “the almighty dollar.” Monetary donations are wonderful and greatly appreciated, however there is so much more that is needed to protect and enhance the HBCU Legacy and Experience.

TIME: When was the last time you spent “time” on the campus of your beloved Alma Mater? Stop! Homecoming, Galas, and guest speaker appearance are excluded.

GIVING BACK TIME, TALENT AND TREASURES

BY KENITA PITTS

“Life is not about receiving at all times; it is a combination of being thankful for what you have as blessings and sharing those blessings with others who need a fraction of what you have.”

-Catherine Pulsifer What blessings have you received from your beloved HBCU? Would you classify them as priceless? When you look at your conferred degree what emotions and memories over take that moment?

For every after thought, understand that for a first-time and/or first generation freshmen, their moment begins the day they step into the registration line of your beloved Alma Mater.

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Let’s venture on the side of volunteerism, mentoring, tutoring, offering internship opportunities, teaching a young man how to tie a tie, dress for success tips, time management tips, workshops, seminars, and/or forums about the importance of credit ratings, purchasing power, investing, soft skills and the like.

How much TIME have you invested in your university? What does your “give back” look like?

Your presence matters more than your presents. Trust me!

Students look for you to be there. They look for advise, encouragement and guidance. This my fellow HBCU grads is priceless!

TALENTS: What are you holding on to that can help someone else throughout their matriculation? What is the one thing you wish someone shared with you during your matriculation?

Millennials and post-millennials are no different from you. I call it the “remix” generation. Just look around, bell bottoms, biker shorts, high top fades, Frankie Beverly and Maze, and more are resurfacing in ways I would’ve never imagined.

Your gifts, knowledge and yes your talents are beneficial to others. Your blessings are received so that you may share them with others.

Your business, dissertation, countless essays, resources, study habits, referrals, craftsmanship, innovations, inventions, entrepreneurial insight, and talents just may be the “it” factor to give light to a dark moment and/or circumstance. Your insight may be the first or last paragraph and/or page of that 15 page essay that’s due tomorrow. Share that, share your talents. If entertainers never shared their “talents” where would the claps come from?

TREASURES: Now this is a scary word for most. A word that exhibits the most hesitation and in most instances a lack of trust.

Where is money going? Is it tax-deductible? Is it earmarked?

I love my HBCU but I don’t like the President. I had a bad experience with a particular department and/or professor and I’m not giving back.

All valid statements but let’s flip it. You water your garden/plants, remove the brown dead leaves, you speak life to it if and when it wilts, you adjust its placement if the current location is stunting its growth, you repot it when it out grows its current residence and you sit back and marvel at it in awe that you literally had a hand in its growth beauty and healing abilities. It enhances the atmosphere and introduces all to the mystery of life!

Need I say more? But if you didn’t get it, Nurture, Groom, Protect, Research, Take Care of and feed what has provided nourishment for you.

Give back and invest in what you love!

Long Live The Historically Black Colleges and Universities!

Alumni, we need you to survive. Answer the calls of your beloved Alma Mater.

Kenita Pitts-Howard has built her career in middle and higher education and service to her community as a Victim’s Services Provider, motivational speaker and College Admission Coach.

Kenita is a proud HBCU alumna of Claflin University, where she received a bachelor’s degree in Sociology and Criminal Justice Administration.

In her spare time she writes poetry and blogs through “Kenita Speaks”. She is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated and resides in South Carolina with her husband and daughter.

HBCU Times 2020 Winter Issue | 29

HIDDEN NO MORE: FLORIDA A&M SEEKS TO INCREASE BLACK WOMEN ON STEM FACULTY

BY CRYSTAL A. DEGREGORY

Forty percent of associate professors in STEM in the U.S. are women, and 20% of full professors. Women of color comprise less than 5% of assistant professors and less than 2% of full professors in STEM nationwide.

With the help of a five-year, $2.97 million award from the National Science Foundation (NSF), Florida A&M University is hoping to change these statistics and focus on getting more Black women into the STEM professoriate.

The NSF ADVANCE Institutional Transformation (IT) grant is awarded to institutions to promote gender equity in academia.

As the fifth Historically Black College and University (HBCU) to be awarded the NSF ADVANCE IT grant, Florida A&M chose to specifically focus on Black women because there are few Black women professors nationally, and even fewer in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).

Described as being minorities among minorities, Black women and other women of color in STEM faculty at Florida A&M offer the unique opportunity to extend the intersectionality research in STEM in a context where Black women students are the majority, but where Black women STEM faculty are the minority.

Dr. Marcia Allen Owens will serve as the principal investigator of FAMU ADVANCE IT and hopes to unmask the intersectional effects of Black women’s existence and experience in the academy.

“The practice of lumping Black women’s presence into a group with all women, or with other underrepresented minorities, is an effort to maintain statistical significance,” said Owens. And even at an HBCU, Owens said Black women may consider these institutions home, but maybe considered imposters at home.

“The project’s focus is not to merely help women survive the system or to ‘fix’ the women,” says Owens. “Rather, the work of 30 | HBCU Times 2020 Winter Issue

FAMU ADVANCE IT will be to examine and address aspects of the system’s embedded culture, policies and practices that impede the hiring, retention and promotion of women faculty in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), as well as the social and behavioral sciences (SBS) at FAMU.” An associate professor of Environmental Science & Policy, Owens is currently the only woman faculty member in the School of the Environment (SOE), and notably was the first Black woman ever to be tenured in Florida A&M’s School of the Environment.

The grant identified inadequate mentoring as one of the issues it seeks to remedy and creating a formal mentoring system for women faculty is an important grant deliverable.

Another grant deliverable is development of a university wide implicit bias training. Scientists are typically seen to be white and male, leading to the devaluation of women generally, and women of color particularly. Differential burdens and specific microaggressions faced by women of color STEM faculty are coupled and compounded with gendered expectations of what women, regardless of accomplishment should do.

“Just because you are surrounded by Black folks does not mean that you have a sense of belonging,” said Owens. “It’s the double bind imposter syndrome. You look like a Black girl, but you aren’t doing Black girl things as dictated by popular culture, and if you are doing Black girl things and live with visible Black girl joy or style, you’re not a serious scientist or scholar.”

“Even in our meetings, a Black woman observer described the group of Black female principal investigators, as being difficult with ‘strong personalities,’” she continued. “We stopped the meeting and said, just because our personalities are strong, and our voices are raised doesn’t mean that we’re angry. We’re friends and colleagues. We can have differences of opinion, work

“When I was interviewing for my current position, a white woman interviewer asked me, ‘Why would you leave Emory to come here?’ The implication being if one chooses to work at an HBCU, then one must be defective in some way,” Owens said.

The low numbers of women faculty at FAMU are indicative of issues in the university’s culture, but also the culture of science as a discipline that hinders women’s hiring and advancement in faculty issues.

“What is it about the culture that makes women not choose the academy or the academy not choose women for faculty positions?

The answers to these questions also have an impact on the pipeline of women students into the faculty,” she said. “Representation does matter. If women students cannot see themselves as faculty, then they choose other options.”

through them, and still get the work done.”

In the first six months of building infrastructure, Owens and her team have brought together women and men to discuss implementation, through the two main foci: research and policy.

“The teams that we are building bring together people who have seen each other on campus, but have not talked in depth about their experiences,” said Owens.

“With every meeting, when the discussions settle on experience in tenure, promotion and progression, participants begin to share their individual experience and someone else fills in the blanks, acknowledging a similar experience. Each time, the first-year doctoral student and the young Ph.D. who serves as the project manager exclaim, ‘Y’all all have the same story!’”

The meetings are already providing a source of psychosocial support to women — some of whom are telling their stories out loud for the first time.

“They are simultaneously finding out that they are not alone,” said Owens. “But also, men who participate in these meetings are informed about the barriers that women face, while shifting their own perspectives on how culture, policy and practice impact us all.”

STEM Ph.D.s are among an elite group, even at HBCUs. However, because HBCUs are still not perceived as being on even intellectual ground as PWIs, they’re not elite enough to garner the respect of their PWI colleagues.

A historian and storyteller whose research interests include black higher education and college student activism, Crystal A. deGregory Ph.D., serves as the founder of the HBCUstory, an associate professor of history and was formerly the award-winning inaugural director of the Atwood Institute for Race, Education, and the Democratic Ideal at Kentucky State University.

HBCU Times 2020 Winter Issue | 31

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U NC F F E AT U R E

STEM NOLA: DR. CALVIN MACKIE, MOREHOUSE ALUM

BY KHALILAH LONG

A 15-year old kid excels in all subjects in school except science.

He hates everything about it – from the periodic table to the seemingly 50-year old experiments. What’s ironic is – both of his parents have a background in science. His mother is a pharmacist and father is a mechanical engineer –a mechanical engineer who holds a patent currently licensed by Boeing, nonetheless. So science is in his blood – literally and figuratively. So what does a successful mechanical engineer do when his son has no interest in science? You guessed it; he helps him learn to love it. Dad began doing science experiments with his son in their garage. He bought chemistry and biology kits for his son to learn by doing.

Eventually they transformed the garage into their very own science laboratory. As a result, the son’s science grades began to improve. Before long, curious about the work going on in the garage, other kids from the neighborhood started coming over –and they too participated in fun science projects.

As the story goes, dad began to think, “I’m fortunate enough to be able to provide hands-on learning for my son; but what about other kids who aren’t as fortunate? What about those who don’t come from a family of scientists who have access to these

34 | HBCU Times 2020 Winter Issue

types of resources? How can I take what I’m doing in this garage and bring it to every kid – especially those from disadvantaged communities or those who have never been exposed to science, engineering, technology or mathematics in a fun and interesting way?

The father in this story is Morehouse alum, Dr. Calvin Mackie.

He turned a garage learning experience for his son into STEM NOLA, a fast-growing education nonprofit serving students in New Orleans. STEM NOLA designs and delivers STEM-related activities, programs and events to children across the city. The programs expose children to the possibilities that STEM offers – from 21st century career opportunities in STEM to how it is used in everyday life and how STEM can be used to improve communities. STEM NOLA provides varied programs including after-school enrichment programs and camps for students, family learning programs for families, and even professional development and STEM demonstrations for teachers and school administrators.

MAC

Just as a college education is oftentimes the prerequisite for entry into the best and fastest-growing careers, having skills in STEM allows students the ability to infuse real life projects in real world application—essential to 21st century career success. While HBCUs award an average of 32% of STEM degrees earned by black students, STEM careers overwhelmingly lack diversity.

STEM NOLA and other similar programs across the country, are up to the challenge – introducing African American youth to STEM curriculum early in their K12 education experience.

Students enrolled in STEM NOLA learn about 3D printing, coding, technology, robotics, animation, 3D modeling, app development, gaming and more. STEM NOLA programming is free to all eligible for Free and Reduced-Price Meals or FARM. Be on the lookout for the great things STEM NOLA is doing in the Crescent City. The organization recently announced a partnership with Grambling University and Sodexo Magic to create STEM Grambling. Earlier this year, STEM NOLA was awarded a one-year $140k grant from WK Kellogg Foundation to enhance the organization’s vision to bring STEM education to the children of New Orleans via curated curriculum and train providers and teachers to teach STEM. Dr. Mackie, STEM NOLA founder, is an inventor, former tenured engineering professor, entrepreneur and author. He credits his career success to his choice to attend Morehouse College saying, “I’ve been born three times – through my mother, my career, and through Morehouse. I wouldn’t be doing what I’m doing if I hadn’t gone to Morehouse – a college committed to success.”

Mackie continues, “I had a professor who sat me down and spoke it into me that I could earn a Ph.D. He even called me a doctor before I even knew I could BE a doctor. I was in an environment that saw my deficiencies and saw a pathway for me to move forward. HBCUs put black students in a place where they can learn and be equipped to survive in the world – and that’s what Morehouse did for me.”

FUN FACTS According to the 2019 UNCF report, Punching Above Their Weight: A State Level Analysis of HBCU Enrollment and Graduation, HBCUs awarded, on average, 32% of STEM degrees earned by black students.

HBCUs graduated 46 percent of black women who earned degrees in STEM disciplines between 1995 and 2004.

Over a period of five years, the Fund II Foundation UNCF STEM Scholars Program will identify 500 African American high school students pursuing careers in STEM fields.

Mackie earned a Bachelor of Mathematics from Morehouse and went on to earn both a master’s and Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineer from Georgia Tech. Mackie also served as an instructor of mathematics at Morehouse College while pursuing his doctoral degree. While tenured at Tulane University, Mackie researched heat transfer, energy efficiency and renewable energy.

His memoir, A View from the Roof: Lessons for Life and Business has been adapted as course material by high school teachers and college professors.

He is a lifelong resident of New Orleans where he and his wife Tracy are the proud parents of two sons. Mackie continues to advocate for empowering young people and through speaking engagements, continues to motivate corporations across the globe

CKIE

Khalilah Long, Communications Manager for UNCF writes on topics including critical topics surrounding K-12 Advocacy including education reform, academic standards, teacher diversity, high-quality charters, school choice. Prior to joining, Khalilah has published topics on nursing, healthcare reform, higher education accreditation, and mental health.

HBCU Times 2020 Winter Issue | 35

TM C F F E AT U R E

ONE WAY TO REDUCE FUTURE HBCU STUDENT DEBT IS WITH MORE FINANCIAL AID LITERACY

BY DR. HARRY WILLIAMS

36 | HBCU Times 2020 Winter Issue

Higher education can increase lifetime earnings and enhance career prospects over the course of an individual’s life. At the Thurgood Marshall College Fund (TMCF) we are strong champions for access to higher education, especially at one of our 47 member-schools which provide high quality and affordable education experiences and help to build our nation’s talent pipeline.

Higher education can be an important step that can lead to a successful career and more comfortable and healthy adult life. Unfortunately, the dream of earning a college degree has become a nightmare for a lot of Americans because every year, parents and students borrow tens of thousands of dollars to pay for higher education. Saddling young people and their families with debt that will burden them for decades delays the positive outcomes of higher education such as homeownership, saving money, getting married or starting a business.

According to the Chamber of Commerce’s Student Loan Statistics, the student debt total has swelled to more than $1.5 trillion with the average debt of a borrower that graduated in 2016 was $37,102, which is a 78 percent increase from just 10 years ago. The same report states that 44.5 million people in the U.S. have student debt, and of that number, 2 million people owe more than $100,000.

Carrying a high level of student debt can delay the ability for a young adult to participate in homeownership. The 2019 Federal Reserve report Consumer & Community Context states that there was a nine percent drop in the number of people ages 24 to 32 who owned their homes between 2005 and 2014. “While many factors have influenced the downward slide in the rate of homeownership, some believe that the historic levels of student loan debt have been particular impediments,” the report states.

The impact of student debt is really taking a toll on minorities.

According to the September 2019 report Quicksand: Borrowers of Color & and the Student Debt Crisis (Center for Responsible Lending, The Leadership Conference Education Fund, NAACP, National Urban League, and UnidosUS), “over half of all families with African American heads of household aged 25–40 have student debt.”

The report states that 85 percent of African American graduates in 2016 took on debt to finance their undergraduate degrees.

Additionally, according to Quicksand: Borrowers of Color, of the African American borrowers who entered higher education in 2003–2004 as undergraduates, almost 49 percent had defaulted on those loans by 2016. That figure is staggering but reality.

At TMCF, we are concerned about the impact that student debt can have on the future of young people, especially our African American students across the nation. Many TMCF memberschools are filled with bright minds who have the academic

HBCU Times 2020 Winter Issue | 37

ability to earn the degree but simply do not have the financial resources to afford the full cost of college. In order to help our students and parents, it is important to understand all aspects of the financial aid system for higher education from the very start.

Financial aid literacy is an important key to preventing crippling student debt. At TMCF, we encourage families and students to be informed and educated about all aspects of financial aid, including student loans, grants, and scholarships by doing the following:including repayment plans and terms; understand the differences between federal loans and private lender loans; and learn about repayment programs for which you might qualify in the future.

1. Start by filling out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) form (https://studentaid.ed.gov) to apply for financial aid, such as grants, scholarships, and work-study programs.

2. Look up financial aid opportunities available locally through your city, state or other civic and faith-based organizations.

3. Reach out to your college or university for information about financial aid or scholarship programs for which you (or your student) might be eligible for be it need or merit-based.

4. Educate yourself about how educational loans work, including repayment plans and terms; understand the differences between federal loans and private lender loans; and learn about repayment programs for which you might qualify in the future.

TMCF & NATIONAL BLACK MCDONALD’S OPERATORS ASSOCIATION & DR PEPPER SCHOLARSHIP TMCF and National Black McDonald’s Operators Association and Dr Pepper offer financial assistance to outstanding students attending HBCUs and PBIs. Twelve scholars will be selected to receive a merit scholarship of $5,000, which will be applied to costs associated with tuition and related fees.

TMCF & MCDONALD’S BLACK AND POSITIVELY GOLDEN SCHOLARSHIPS TMCF and McDonald’s offer financial assistance to outstanding students attending one of the HBCUs and PBIs within the TMCF member-school network. Six scholars will be selected to receive a merit scholarship of $10,000, which will be applied to costs associated with tuition and related fees.

Learn more about these TMCF scholarships and additional opportunities to support financial aid for students at www.tmcf. org.

Understanding how to financially afford college can save students and their families thousands in the longterm. With the generous support of scholarship donors, TMCF is helping to make higher education accessible and affordable. We make the effort because their future is worth it.

5. If you are attending a TMCF member-school, apply for TMCF Scholarships. We know the need for scholarship funding is great. In 2019, we received nearly 20,000 applications for just over 700 scholarships. Our current scholarship partners allow TMCF to award funds that are designed to complement the financial aid students receive from other sources for tuition and other education expenses, such as books and housing. However, we know that for every $1 that TMCF is able to award, we have identified another $10 in need.

Here are three TMCF scholarship opportunities that are helping to partially address the financial needs of our students: TMCF & WELLS FARGO TMCF and Wells Fargo offer financial assistance to outstanding students attending one of the publicly-supported HBCUs within the TMCF member-school network. Selected scholars will receive a one-year scholarship of up to $5,000, which will be used to cover the costs of tuition and fees, on-campus room and board, and required textbooks.

Harry L. Williams is the president and CEO of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund, the largest organization exclusively representing the black college community. Before joining TMCF, he spent eight years as president of Delaware State University.

Follow him on Twitter at @DrHLWilliams.

38 | HBCU Times 2020 Winter Issue

TUSKEGEE LEGACY: THE MOSEBY FAMILY

BY ERICKA BLOUNT DANOIS

and development for communities” looking at the symptoms that led to the uprising went viral and led him to become the go-to spokesperson for the community around the nation.

Nick and Marilyn’s careers, relationship, and family were put under the microscope in the aftermath of Gray’s death.

Detractors protested on their lawn. Marilyn received death threats calling her a “racist criminal” and calling for her to be “hung” for prosecuting the six police officers. After the trial ended in three acquittals, a hung jury and a dismissal of the remaining cases, five of the six officers attempted to sue the State’s Attorney for defamation--something that’s unheard of because of prosecutorial immunity. Nick was criticized for running in an unsuccessful bid for mayor in the midst of the turmoil. Marilyn’s career was largely defined by the Gray case. The couple were blamed for everything from a rising murder rate to low morale in the police department. Some predicted that all of the pressure would rattle them. But most didn’t realize that these graduates of Tuskegee University had been doing this kind of work all along.

In 2015, Baltimore set a precedent amidst the barrage of police killings of unarmed black men around the country. Amidst initial peaceful protesting and rioting, something happened that hadn’t happened with the then recent cases of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, or Eric Garner in Staten Island in New York. Baltimore State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby stood in front of City Hall and announced the indictment of six police officers relating to Freddie Gray’s ride in a police van where he suffered a severed spine, fractured vertebrae and crushed vocal box and died from the injuries.

Marilyn became alternately the unlikely hero and villain that came out of the ashes of the spotlight on Baltimore after the medical examiner ruled Gray’s death a homicide and the grand jury chose to indict the officers. Her husband, Nick Mosby, a city councilman at the time representing the district where Gray lived and died was also thrust into the spotlight when he gathered men and pastors to walk the streets in the midst of the uprising. A news interview where he spoke about “decades of failed policies

In her last year in law school at Boston College, Nick and Marilyn got engaged. They had met at Tuskegee University. At Tuskegee Nick was studying aerospace engineering and was a popular student, having earned the title of Mr. Freshman and Mr. Sophomore. Marilyn, who came to Tuskegee on a presidential scholarship as a freshman, didn’t know anything about him. But when she did meet him, her first impression of his friends was that they were obnoxious and country. When they asked her where she was from and then asked if she knew the one person they knew from Boston, she was ready to write them off.

“I’m thinking all these country guys think we know everyone in Boston,” Marilyn laughs.

But the second time she met Nick in the student union they struck up a conversation that lasted for hours about life and politics and their CD collections and love for hip hop. “It felt like home because that’s what we did at home. I’m thinking ‘oh man, I like this dude.’”

Nick talked about how he wanted to go back to Baltimore and be a public servant for his community. She looked at him in his Timberland boots and shorts and thought he was cute and suddenly realized that she had her first crush. Word on her crush

HBCU Times 2020 Winter Issue | 39

eventually got back to Nick. The next time she saw him was in the cafeteria where he turned his chair directly towards and stared at her for a good ten minutes. “He was being cocky at this point because a guy told him I liked him,” Marilyn laughs, mimicking him staring at her seductively.

“My first impression of Marilyn was that she was really beautiful,” Nick remembers. “When I was staring at her she acted like she didn’t see me, like really uncomfortable and then she got up and left.”

They would eventually meet a third time at a party on campus and exchanged numbers this time. They dated throughout their time at Tuskegee, even getting “Best Couple” in the yearbook.

Marilyn graduated magna cum laude and moved to Boston College for law school, while Nick worked as an engineer in Baltimore. Nick would visit every two weeks until she finished law school. They got engaged in her last year in law school.

They both agreed they would live in Baltimore after law school.

When Nick showed Marilyn the house he wanted to live in she almost lost it. The house located in West Baltimore was a dilapidated shell that had been abandoned for 20 years and had a tree growing through the roof. The house next to it was vacant.

Two doors down the house had been firebombed. All the houses across the street were vacant. Next door was an apartment building nicknamed “Murder Mall.”

“Marilyn thought I was crazy. My mother was the same way,” says Nick. “When we first moved in, even I was like, ‘What did I do?!’”

“He brought me to the heart of West Baltimore and I looked at the open air drug market and the numbers of vacant houses. He points to a 20-year-old dilapidated shell and says this is where I want us to live. I said, ‘You’re buggin!’” Marilyn laughs now remembering. “He says, ‘No, Marilyn, everything we want to do we can do it right here.’”

“I trust you,” she finally told him. Fourteen years later there’s no longer an open-air drug market and all of the vacant houses on their block have been rehabbed. Madison Park North apartment complex dubbed as Murder Mall was taken down this year.

“I graduated from a top 25 law school. Nick was an engineer at the time. We could have moved anywhere in the country. He was given a job offer in Houston, but we felt compelled to invest and be an example for our community,” Marilyn said.

For Marilyn it was a tragedy at age 14 that catapulted her towards her calling. She and her cousin, Diron Spence, were so close they were like brother and sister. Marilyn was part of one of the longest running desegregation programs in the county where she traveled out of Dorchester, waking up at 5am and catching the bus at 6 o’clock, trucking it even in Boston’s massive snowstorms 40 | HBCU Times 2020 Winter Issue

to Dover-Sherbon school in the wealthy Dover neighborhood from the time she was 7 years old through high school. She and Diron talked about their futures often. No one in their families had graduated from college so they both aspired to be first generation college students. He wanted to go to Morehouse and she at the time wanted to go to Spelman. Marilyn knew she wanted to work in the criminal justice system, but was unsure whether she wanted to be a prosecutor or a defense attorney.

Diron, three years older than her was already an honors student and a talented artist who had plans on becoming an architect.

One day she heard shots ringing out right outside of her front door while someone was incessantly ringing her doorbell. When she opened the door she saw someone running past and a friend that had been ringing the doorbell told her that someone had shot Diron who was laying on the sidewalk. Her cousin had been mistaken for a drug dealer.

“If it wasn’t for the testimony of my neighbor who cooperated with police and testified in court we wouldn’t have received any justice,” Marilyn remembers. “We had this tight-knit community and they were not going to violate the Thompson family.”

Marilyn got an unwanted lesson on the inequities in the criminal justice system when she had to go to court and saw scores of

black men coming in and out of the courthouse in chains and shackles. Both her cousin and the kid that shot him were 17.

She thought then that she would make it to college so she could reform the criminal justice system. “I realized we have to ensure we get to these young men before they continue to take these black boys’ lives.”

Meanwhile, in the late 80s, Baltimore kids were known to make a way out of no way. In Northeast Baltimore, Nick Mosby and his friends would cut the bottom out of a milk crate and post it onto a lamppost to create a basketball court in the alleyway. Baltimore Gas and Electric workers would come and take it down and they would just fashion a new one. On some days they’d create a baseball diamond from the cracks in the alley and play stick ball. Other days they played detective or turned the alleyway into a speedway to ride their bikes. All was good until his mother, Eunice Orange, called him at the top of her lungs from the porch to come inside before it got dark.

Ms. Eunice was no nonsense and she loved sports, especially football and even worked with Nick in learning how to throw a football. Eunice was involved in the community, church and local politics, including BUILD (Baltimoreans United in Leadership Development) and her enthusiasm for politics rubbed off on her son. When Kurt Schmoke won as the first black mayor of Baltimore, everyone in his family and their circle was excited which got Nick excited. He knew then he wanted to be a public servant. Nick would come to have several serendipitous meetings with Schmoke throughout his youth--more proof that politics and service was his right path.

As a woman of color Marilyn represents one percent of all elected prosecutors in the county.

Nick as the head of the Ways and Means committee is in Annapolis daily focused on issues like lead paint, a curiously prevailing problem in the city, and getting away from pockets of poverty in the city with real estate inclusionary bills. He was the author of ban the box where employers are no longer able to ask questions or do background checks during the interviewing process. They can only obtain information once an official offer has been rendered.

The fallout from the Gray case for Nick was that his family lost anonymity. “I had to worry about the safety of my wife and my girls,” he said.

But they both say Baltimore has gained much since the uprisings that put them both in the national spotlight. Most recently after the conviction of 8 police officers for racketeering, Mosby reviewed 790 criminal cases handled by 25 city police officers and has begun to ask judges to throw out the convictions. “I feel like Baltimore has a really unique opportunity to be a model for the rest of the country,” Marilyn says.

CHEYNEY MADE

BY DR. JANELLE L. WILLIAMS ‘07 AND DR. ROBERT W. LAY II ’10

What does it mean to be “Cheyney Made”? #CheyneyMade is a celebration, an acknowledgement, appreciation shown, and an understanding that our heritage deserves respect. It all started way back in 1837, with the establishment of the Institute for Colored Youth (ICY). Since then, the ICY – known today as Cheyney University of Pennsylvania has been an advocate of and pioneer for the education of Black Americans. As the nation’s first historically Black university, Cheyney University is responsible for educating and graduating over 30,000 prominent and influential professionals including the second Black woman to become a physician in the United States, Dr. Rebecca Cole, the architect of the Philadelphia Art Museum Julian Abele, and former CBS News journalist, Ed Bradley.

As proud graduates of this trailblazing institution, we share our story of how Cheyney University laid the foundation for us to pursue our individual dreams and make those dreams our reality. There are many aspects of our time spent at Cheyney that contributed to our current positioning as scholars, thought leaders, and change agents, however we will reflect on three areas: Culture, the Keystone Honors Academy, and Greek Life and the impact these three areas have had on our journeys.

Culture - Shifting from PWI to HBCU Attending predominantly White institutions (PWIs) for our primary and secondary education we both decided there was an essential need to be in a space where Blackness was embedded and embraced in our post-secondary educational pursuits. In a practical way, attending a historically Black college or university (HBCU) seemed to be the obvious solution. Collectively HBCUs are a representation of Black history and the Black family overflowing with traditions, legacies, and excellence.

Robert, reflecting on the culture of C heyney shared: “It was not until I attended the first HBCU, Cheyney, that my understanding of Black culture, my culture, flourished. The music, ethnicities, the accents, the fashion, the SWAG that I experienced, showed me who I was, and when people ask me why I attended Cheyney now days, I always reply I did it for the culture.”

The ability to be fully immersed in a culture that posited Blackness in the highest esteem during developmental years, allowed us to embrace our heritage, and grow in an unapologetic way both in and out of the classroom.

42 | HBCU Times 2020 Winter Issue

Keystone Honors Foundation

Academy

-

Laying

Academic

Cost was among the determining factors in our decision of which HBCU we would ultimately attend. As acceptance letters came in, so did reality, and offer letters with high tuition costs— similar to many of the nation’s colleges and universities. However, the acceptance letter from Cheyney came in with a “Congratulations Scholar and Welcome to the Keystone Honors Academy” (KHA). The KHA is a program housed exclusively at Cheyney University; the program provides high-achieving students with a full academic scholarship, room and board, and a stipend for books. In a time where student debt is crippling generations of students, this offer seemed to make the most sense, financially.

Based on this generous scholarship and the pride associated with attending the first HBCU, we both decided that the KHA at Cheyney would be our choice. Upon matriculating into Cheyney we found that KHA is more than just a scholarship, it was an affirmation that we belonged and that we were viewed as scholars. As KHA scholars we studied abroad, participated in pre-professional and cultural programming, lived together in a Living Learning Center, and received extensive graduate school preparation. In fact, through the KHA we were both able to take advantage of the Bond-Hill Scholarship program which allowed us to pursue graduate study without worrying about the burden of cost. After graduating from Cheyney, Janelle used the Bond-Hill scholarship to attend The Pennsylvania State University where she earned a master’s degree in Public Administration. Robert used the Bond-Hill scholarship to attend Temple University where he earned his doctorate degree in Higher Education.

What’s better than one free degree? Two. Greek Life- Leadership, Persistence, Scholarship and Service The Divine Nine, the collective name for nine historically African American, international Greek-lettered fraternities and sororities, are a staple on HBCU campuses and in many African American families. Being initiated into these organizations is a rite of passage, one that we both experienced at Cheyney University.

Manhood, Scholarship, Perseverance, and Uplift, are the founding principles of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity Incorporated.

Robert was initiated into the fraternity in spring 2009 in the Beta Gamma chapter. Robert recalls, “My journey was hard, difficult an d long, but it ta ught me leadership an d persistence, two attributes that have helped me find success i n every facet of my life. Omega Psi Phi fraternity has helped me with both my professional, educational and personal goals. In addition, it has provided me with a brotherhood that rivals that of my blood relatives, and without it, I would not be as successful as I am today”.

into Delta taught me to be strong, yet graceful, to be poised, yet unafraid to be outspoken, to be humble, yet proud of my history.

Delta’s light imparted many life lessons that has prepared me in many personal and professional areas.”

Within our organizations, we gained a sense of social identity, cultivated teambuilding abilities, developed leadership skills, and formed lifelong bonds of brotherhood and sisterhood, respectively.

In closing, we leave this reminder as a living testimony for our generation. As proud Cheyney graduates, we say thank you Cheyney for providing the foundation, support, and encouragement, for instilling confidence, for telling us we can, for believing in us, for making a way out of no way. The knowledge, pride experiences, friendships and networks we created at Cheyney will last a lifetime. We thrive today because we are #CheyneyMade

Dr. Robert W. Lay II is a Residence Life Coordinator at the Pennsylvania State University.

Follow him on Twitter@therealroblay or contact him on his website: https://bit.ly/2SHedTt Dr. Janelle L. Williams is a Visiting Scholar at Rutgers University, New Brunswick at the Center for Minority Serving Institutions in the Graduate School of Education.

Follow her on Twitter @SincerleyDrJae

“Intelligence is the Torch of Wisdom” is the public motto of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated. Janelle was initiated into the sorority in the spring of 2006 in the Delta Tau chapter.

Janelle, speaking of her sorority experience said, “My initiation HBCU Times 2020 Winter Issue | 43

CAU GRAD MARSHALL TAGGART IS AIRPORT’S FIRST BLACK DIRECTOR

BY CRAIG BROWN

On May 15, the city of Montgomery, Ala. hired Clark Atlanta University (CAU) alumnus Marshall Taggart Jr. as the first African-American executive director of the Montgomery Regional Airport. Taggart states that the education he received at CAU played a pivotal role in the hire that he calls “the pinnacle of my career.”

Taggart, an Atlanta native, pursued a bachelor’s degree in accounting, and continued at Clark Atlanta for a master’s degree in public administration. He is scheduled to receive his doctorate in political science, also from CAU, pending approval of his dissertation.

When asked about the unique accomplishment of obtaining all three degrees from an HBCU, Taggart stated that the process wasn’t unique at all.

“The thought process is: HBCUs provide a quality education, great opportunities, and a way to matriculate in a very diverse environment,” he said. “We’re not a monolithic type of [entity], when you talk about an HBCU. I always came back to Clark Atlanta University because I always felt at home.”

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Clark Atlanta, as a result of the 1988 merger of Atlanta University and Clark College, has two mottos: ““I’ll Find a Way or Make One” and “Culture for Service.” Taggart’s career pursuits and countless acts of service are indicative of his beliefs in those charges.

Taggart served as the national president of Clark Atlanta’s Alumni Association and as a member of CAU’s board of trustees.

Under his leadership, the alumni association expanded from 14 chapters to over 40 nationally. He also oversaw the creation of an alumni mentoring program, which has doubled in size over the last four years.

These efforts culminated in his being awarded the President’s Lifetime Achievement Award by Barack Obama. Taggart takes pride in this achievement, as the election of the first AfricanAmerican president served as inspiration to him to use his talents and skills to serve others.

There are very few African-Americans serving as directors of regional airports in the country. Despite his success, Taggart did not initially aspire to have a career in aviation. However, a chance meeting in 2000 with then-commissioner of aviation at

Chicago O’Hare’s airport, Thomas Walker, sparked a change.

Walker’s success, particularly as an African-American in such a technologically-complex field, served as a source of inspiration to Taggart.

Taggart’s 20-plus years in the aviation industry is highlighted by leadership positions at Chicago’s Midway and O’Hare airports, Atlanta’s Hartfield-Jackson Airport, and DeKalb Peachtree Airport, among others.

As the executive director of the Montgomery Regional Airport, Taggart has used his authority to offer paid internships to deserving students. One of his interns is Matthew Daniels, a 2018 graduate of Clark Atlanta and current graduate student at the University of Auburn. In his capacity as a marketing and communication intern, Daniels has gained real world communications experience that will undoubtedly be of use upon his graduation.

“The opportunity to intern with Mr. Taggart has been the best work experience that I have had,” Daniels said. “He wants [his interns] to leave the internship with skills that are tangible and transferrable across the work force. He affords us a level of access

and exposure to all facets of a corporate structure that most internships do not.”

Taggart understands the importance of giving HBCU students the opportunity for paid internships, and feels that the students, in turn, provide a superior level of competence and expertise. “I feel their performance is indicative of the level of education and preparation that CAU instills in its students,” Taggart said. “I’m proud to say that I hired my own. That is something that I think every alum should do: reach back, pull somebody up, and give them an opportunity.”

Marshall Taggart has not rested on the success made possible by his continuous pursuit of an HBCU education. He has demonstrated an unyielding confidence in his alma mater, all the way to the doctoral level. And just as important, he has emphasized the importance of always giving back.

“I feel very blessed. The quality of education I received at Clark Atlanta is second to none. And the motto of ‘Finding a Way or Making One’ is very apropos.”

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PO WER AL U M N I

CHELSEY RODGERS Chelsey Sophia Rodgers is an attorney at law in the Washington, DC metro area. She serves the public interest as an appellate litigation and senior attorney advisor/ technical regulatory compliance specialist with the Social Security Administration.

Chelsey is licensed to practice law in the District of Columbia, Maryland, and New York, and was recently admitted to the Bar of the Supreme Court of the United States.

Chelsey previously worked as an attorney in asset-backed securities, mortgage-backed securities, and business litigation in the New York office of McKee Nelson, LLP and provided pro bono representation to indigent women in divorce and family law proceedings in the Southern District of New York. She also owned a solo law practice, the Law Office of Chelsey Rodgers, PLLC that handled criminal defense, intellectual property, and contract matters in the District of Columbia, and served as Assistant Director of Business & Legal Affairs for Johnson Media, Inc. in Atlanta, Georgia.

Chelsey formerly served as chairperson of the District of Columbia Juvenile Justice Advisory Board, which advises juvenile agencies and ensures juvenile delinquency prevention programs meet the needs of youth. In 2010, she was appointed to the Federal Advisory Committee on Juvenile Justice, which advises the President of the United States, Congress, and Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention administrator on national juvenile justice issues and concerns.

Chelsey is a Summa Cum Laude graduate of Spelman College with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science and received 46 | HBCU Times 2020 Winter Issue

her Juris Doctor from Howard University School of Law. She is a member of Phi Alpha Delta Law Fraternity, International and was administered the oath of membership by the Honorable Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. She was named 2010 and 2011 “Who’s Who in Black Washington DC” by Real Times Media. In 2012 she was named “Top 30 Under 30” by Radio One. Chelsey continues to travel across the metro DC area speaking at youth and legal conferences, schools, jails, and facilitating panel discussions on a variety of legal topics including professional responsibility, privacy rights, executive presence, understanding your rights under “Stop and Frisk” laws, and the legal implications of social media accounts. She has also provided pro bono assistance in the areas of bankruptcy and nonprofit representation in partnership with the D.C. Bar Pro Bono Center. Chelsey serves as General Counsel of the National Black Law Students Association. In her spare time, Chelsey serves as an annual moot court competition judge for law students and mentor for first time graduates studying for the bar exam under the Washington Bar Association Raising the Bar program.

During her 3L year, Chelsey was crowned Miss District of Columbia USA 2008 and went on to represent the District at the 2008 Miss USA Pageant. She also won the title of Miss District of Columbia International 2010 and placed as a top ten finalist at the 2010 Miss International pageant. She currently resides in northeast Washington DC with her two Yorkshire terriers, Trixie and Bailey.

For interviews or appearances, please contact pr@aoagwllc.com

Beginning as a high school educator in 1993, to now serving as Director of Student Services for York School District One, Dr. Diana F. Smith’s dedication to the field of education is unmatched.

After earning her B.A. in English Education from South Carolina State University, Dr. Smith went into the classroom prepared to make a difference in the lives of numerous high school students. Working as a teacher in both Augusta, Georgia and Columbia, South Carolina, Dr. Smith developed instructional techniques which catered to students’ individual learning styles.

She emphasized critical thinking within her classroom, and encouraged her students to adopt a creative approach to learning and understanding the world around them.

Desiring to expand her impact beyond the classroom, Dr. Smith returned to school, earning both, her M.Ed. and Ed. S in Counselor Education, and while later serving as Director of Guidance at South Pointe High School in Rock Hill, South Carolina, she earned yet another degree (Ed. S) in Educational Leadership. During this time, she collaborated with institutions of higher education to create partnerships, facilitated workshops for college preparation, and coordinated Career and Technical Education course offerings. Dr. Smith continued to spread her light and passion for education throughout the state of South Carolina, serving as both a high school Assistant Principal and middle school Principal.

DR. DIANA F. SMITH

In 2009, Dr. Smith earned her Ed. D in Educational Leadership, with her dissertation entitled, A Study of School Counselor Effectiveness and its Relation to Prior Teaching Experience and School Achievement. In her current position as Director of Student Services, Dr. Smith serves as a liaison, working with numerous organizations such as Keystone Substance Abuse Services, Adult Education, Mental/Behavioral Health, and Guidance and Counseling Services. Additionally, she collaborates with school administrators and teachers, to provide professional and staff development on various topics contributing to the well-being of students. Dr. Smith also serves as the ESOL coordinator, ensuring proper delivery of services to English Language Learners and the district’s attendance officer, working with social workers to address chronic absenteeism and truancy.

Finally, as a member of the district’s safety and security team, her current focus is reducing internal threats to students’ safety, such as bullying, mental health issues and suicide.

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DR. LAKEYSHA HALLMON Dr. Lakeysha Hallmon is the founder and CEO of the Village Market. Since 2016, Dr. Hallmon has been a transformational leader and speaker by bringing national exposure to blackowned businesses. She has developed an economical vehicle that empowers the Black community through cooperative economics.

Dr. Hallmon is a native of Batesville, Mississippi. An educator by passion, she began hosting Master Classes to provide tangible tools, resources, and connections to encourage forward progression as a community. The desire that launched The Village Market ATL only three months later was two-fold: to support socially conscious, community-minded, entrepreneurs and startups of color. Kidpreneurs is a unique facet of the market that gives kids a taste of entrepreneurial life from the most grass-roots level.

With the feeling of family and community, attendees are eager to support and circulate their dollars to the many small businesses showcased at the Village Market. The Village Market welcomes thousands of attendees, showcasing hundreds of vetted Blackowned companies from across the country and it’s staple a plantbased cafe’.

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Dr. Hallmon has been featured in Forbes, Because of them We Can, Creative Loafing, Rolling Out Magazine, The Atlanta Voice, Madame Noire, Cool Soror podcast, BlossomTV, Our Voice, Our Lives, and The Official Black Wall Street.

She has been a featured speaker for the Steve Harvey Foundation, the keynote speaker for the Fall graduating class at CAU, keynote speaker for the Boys and Girls Club of NW Mississippi, Power Rising Conference, EnricHER conference, Atlanta University Center’s Financial Literacy and Innovation Conference, and the HBCU Entrepreneurship Financial Literacy Expo.

Walker’s Legacy has honored Dr. Hallmon. In 2017, she was inducted into the 40 under 40 Society at her undergraduate alma mater, Tougaloo College. Dr. Hallmon is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated.

TARIK FLOYD Washington, D.C. native, Tarik A. Floyd, graduated from Virginia State University in 2016, earning a Bachelor of Arts in Mass Communications with an established foundation in Finance.

Floyd is the CEO of S&T Investments. The company specializes in commercial estate acquisitions and private equity investments.

As a former collegiate athlete, his ambition and work ethic is unrivaled. After achieving a longstanding aspiration of interning with Marcus and Millichap, Tarik was accepted into Harvard University’s 2017 Leading Finance Program. The opportunity of working with clients and brokers unearthed a real passion for real estate and diverse business opportunities.

Tarik was granted the esteemed fortune of being mentored in sales by several accomplished figureheads. One, Stacey Milam, impressed the importance of diligence, character and navigating the precise balance of integrity, energy and tenacity in every effort made. Since then, Tarik has honed his skillset to build strong relationships across the board to provide unprecedented service to clients and companies alike.

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FACULTY SPOTLIGHT: SARAH PRIESTER

COMPOSITION PEDAGOGY FOR THE STUDENT-READY HBCU’S

Imagine Frederick Douglass as a student in today’s HBCU composition classes. Would these classes produce the same kinds of well-crafted writings we so proudly applaud today? Would today’s instruction meet the tremendous demands of his needs?

Furthermore, would this instruction catapult him into the prolific writer he ultimately became? Such lofty possibilities can be

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realized but only if our HBCU composition classes operate as student-ready classrooms. So, what exactly is a student-ready classroom? To understand this concept, a student-ready college must first be understood. The book, Becoming a Student-Ready College: A New Culture of Leadership for Student Success, uses the language student-ready to mean practices that “ensure student success by working strategically and holistically to advance students by reversing perspectives on college readiness and working tirelessly to educate all students…..” (McNair, Tia, et al. 5). This idea challenged institutions to ask new questions: Rather than asking, “Are students ready for college?” The real question should be, “Are colleges ready for students that are coming to them?” In the same manner, compositionists should ask themselves if they are indeed ready for the students entering their classrooms. Are their composition classes ready to bear the deficiencies most students bring to college? Are they capable of addressing and eradicating those “marked disadvantages,” that Douglass so poignantly used to define his circumstances?

One may but imagine the possibility of student-ready pedagogy eliminating the weaknesses of Frederick Douglass especially after witnessing his amazing transformation. He evolved from a weak, incapable writer to an eloquent, effective communicator. By implementing this revolutionary idea, along with other effective strategies, the legacy and future of our HBCU’s are sure to be preserved.

Like the priceless instruction Douglass received, today’s composition classes can produce competent, authoritative writers when the tradition of student-ready instruction is adopted to meet the very real needs of all students.

Here is what that instruction looks like: Since success comes from consistently practicing good habits, composition instruction should habitually incorporate embedded tutoring and justin time support (Remediation: Higher Education’s Bridge to Nowhere 2012). Just as highly effective people practice good habits, effective compositionists practice the habit of organizing their classes into three distinct sections, sections that navigate students through the learning cycle to address and meet their needs. Let’s call these sections the pre-learning, learning, and post-learning stages.

During the pre-learning stage, time is spent (approximately ten to twelve minutes) addressing and eliminating deficiencies revealed through diagnostic testing. Embedded tutoring in the form of mini lessons is designed to give deliberate attention to these deficiencies. Weaknesses in grammar, mechanics, content/ development, voice, and organization, just to name a few, can be eliminated if this technique is properly engaged. This is also an excellent time to address Praxis Core grammar skills in a focused, strategic manner for Education Majors. Consider the limited time young Frederick had with his playmates. Think about the enormous risks he took to learn; mini lessons were obviously effective and efficient in laying the foundation he would later build upon.

Now, let’s look at the learning stage of the student-ready composition classroom. Here, students get a panoramic view of the specific goals and objectives they will acquire during the lesson. Skilled instruction in the “nuts and bolts” of composition writing, for example, is delivered during this time. This stage, line upon line, shows students “how to compose” rather than just asking them “to compose.” Custom templates and organizers are used to ensure the transfer of knowledge. Interestingly, this practice and process, along with an innovative, didactic writing song (Composition Writing Song 2018) became affectionally known as Guardrails, Guidepost, Training Wheels, and Things of That Nature, a model developed to meet the needs of underprepared first-year composition students.

for their students’ successful writing experiences.

Lastly, the post-learning stage is where students are given thoughtful opportunities to share and reflect on what they gained from the pre-learning and learning stages of the learning cycle. Just as Frederick Douglass gave an intimate view of his journey and personal experiences, students should be able to verbalize or document what they learned from their instruction.

This reflective time is key for both students and instructors as it provides valuable feedback necessary for planning.

This expert instruction, unfortunately, is only one-half of what stellar composition pedagogy looks like. Until students use composition writing as a tool to successfully analyze literary masterpieces, their abilities of “marked proficiency” is yet to be achieved. The “marked deficiency” of effectively writing to analyze literature challenges the very integrity of the legacy we wish to create in our beloved HBCU’s composition classes. To eliminate these deficiencies and preserve an admirable legacy, student-ready composition class must be taken into serious consideration.

With these practices, techniques, strategies, and shifts in perspectives, the legacy and future of HBCU’s and their composition courses will be preserved with dignity and grace.

Not only would this experience produce writers of whom Frederick Douglass himself would be proud, but it would also produce overwhelming joy when considering the journey and step by step process of these well-trained writers. He would have all the more reasons to declare, “if there is no struggle; there is no progress.” Student-ready composition classrooms are a sure way to make exceptional progress through this nurturing writing process. These classes would be considered the supply that satisfies the demands of our students. Is being student-ready the way to go? I certainly believe so.

To help students write well about literature, consider this strategy: After a thorough discussion of the literature through spirited lectures and active participation, students should be required to complete a guided reading organizer. This organizer requires students to respond to a piece of literature using the three levels of reading: literal, inferential, and evaluative. A critical reading activity of this nature supports critical thinking and builds intimacy with the text, two dynamics needed to write authoritatively. This process can be extended through assigned literature circles for additional, intimate, social time with the text. These student-led discussions are held outside of class.

Personal connections made with the text empower students to write in ways that are organic to them. In addition, professors are highly encouraged to provide students with samples of various rhetorical modes such as argumentative, comparing / contrasting, cause/effects, and expository essays. These sample writings act as guideposts to model expectations for writing about literature. This strategy is known as the cheat sheet. We see this strategy in Douglass’s early learning stage of writing. When he saw two sailors on a ship that docked, he offered his assistance. He paid keen attention to the letters that the sailors marked on the lumber. He mimicked the form of those letters again and again.

He practiced on walls, fences, and anything he could write on. He extended this learning by challenging his peers to a game to see who could write the best. Using the training wheels method of constantly forming letters, creating ingenious strategies to extend learning, and engaging heart-felt convictions about his state as a slave, Douglass fueled the very skills needed to evolve as a great writer. Practice, proven strategies, and intimate knowledge of a subject are exactly what student-ready compositionists provide

Sarah Priester is a passionate instructor of English Composition and Communications at South Carolina State University, Orangeburg, S.C. She is dubbed the “learning strategist” as she has distinguished herself as a pedagogical practitioner. She skillfully trains students to “learn how to learn”. After obtaining a bachelor’s and master’s degree in English Education and Secondary English Education from South Carolina State University, she spent several years perfecting her craft while serving the middle and high schools of her community. During this time, she honed skills in critical reading and writing. This period of growth and development laid the foundation for a career in educational consulting.

Presenting at conferences, leading staff developments, conducting teacher trainings, developing learning models, and coaching for professional exams are key areas where Priester’s high energy, highly engaging, and personable skills are be experienced. After creating the writing workshop, Guardrails, Guidepost, Training Wheels and Things of That Natures” doors of great opportunity opened. She is currently a Ph.D. student at the University of South Carolina pursuing a doctorate in English with an emphasis in Composition and Rhetoric.

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HBCU

W W W. H B C U T I M E S A W A R D S . C O M

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