ALUMNINEWS
MORGAN SPRING/SUMMER2022
Alumni on Their ‘A’ Game! A Campus Transformed Morgan’s Multigenerational Impact
www.givetomorgan.org
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MORGAN FOREVER!
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My Fellow Alumni, The past two years have been challenging, stressful and uncertain for many of us, but Morgan has continued to move forward. The changes happening across campus have transformed the landscape of northeastern Baltimore, and the Morgan Community Mile is taking shape. By the fall, a new dorm will open, and a new Health and Human Services Building will be under construction on the northeast corner of Hillen Road and Argonne Drive. Northwood Commons, formerly the site of racially segregated establishments unavailable to most Morgan students in the 1950s and early ’60s, is rising beside the new Jenkins Behavioral and Social Sciences Building and the Morgan Business Center on the West Campus, and construction to complete the modern retail and office redevelopment is continuing. (See the article on page 4.) If you have not been back to campus recently to see these improvements, maybe this is the year to come to Homecoming, on Saturday, Oct. 8, 2022. During this wave of change, Alumni News has taken on a new look and feel. Many of the departments of the newsletter remain the same, but the presentation has been updated. At the same time, new features have been included, such as Morgan Legacies, which will highlight multigenerational Morgan families. Alumni News is also available electronically online at www.alumni.morgan.edu. I invite you to follow us on social media using the information at the bottom of this page, to keep up with announcements and coming events. The Alumni Relations team is available to answer any questions you may have. Please call us at (443) 885-3015, or send an email to alumni@morgan.edu. There is no place like Morgan! I’ll see you soon. Kind regards, MSU Assistant Vice President, Alumni Relations and Strategic Engagement Executive Director, MSU Alumni Association
Instagram: @MSUAlumniOfficial
PDF Twitter: @MorganStateAA
PDF Heidi A. Bruce, ’95
Facebook: Morgan Alma Mater
PDF M S U A L U M N I A S S O C I A T I O N E X E C U T I V E O F F I C E R S
Phyllis C. Davis, ’82, President
Joanne S. Mack, ’78, 1st Vice President Lt. Col. (Ret.) Michael L. Bell, ’76, 2nd Vice President Gaynelle Lewis-Fleming, ’74, Secretary Leslie Hannibal, ’90, Financial Secretary Todd Beazer, ’91, Treasurer Heidi Bruce, ’95, Executive Director, MSUAA The Rev. Dr. Charles D. Fletcher, Jr., ’70, Immediate Past President
THE ALUMNI NEWS
The Alumni News is published biannually by the Office of Alumni Relations and the Office of Public Relations and Strategic Communications.
Any questions or concerns about this publication can be directed to: Office of Alumni Relations, Alumni House, Morgan State University, 1700 E. Cold Spring Lane, Baltimore, MD 21251 (443) 885-3015.
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Alumni News Spring/Summer 2022
ALUMNINEWS
MORGAN SPRING/SUMMER2022
ALUMNI NEWS CONTENTS Morgan Forever! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ii MSUAA Executive Officers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ii Morgan Made . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Transformation Morgan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Morgan Legacies. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 All Things Greek. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Chapter and Class News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
In the News. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Alumni on the Move . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Choir Schedule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Football Schedule. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Alumni Calendar. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Necrology. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
YOUR VOICE WILL BE HEARD!
Thank you to everyone who submitted an article for the newly redesigned Morgan State University Alumni News. As always, we welcome the opportunity to share your information with the Morgan family. However, because of space limitations, it was not possible to include all submissions in the printed publication. If your news does not appear in these pages, never fear: your voice will be heard! Articles not published in the printed newsletter may be viewed on the MSU Alumni Association website at alumni.morgan.edu.
GIVE A LITTLE, HELP A LOT!
LIFE MEMBERSHIP • JOIN TODAY!
Workplace giving is an easy way to make tax-deductible donations directly from your paycheck to Morgan. When alumni give, it makes Morgan more attractive to investors, experienced faculty and outstanding students. Support Morgan State University Foundation through your Workplace Giving Campaign: Combined Charity Campaign/United Way Campaign #3052 Combined Federal Campaign #49337 Maryland Charity Campaign #237089143
You may also visit www.givetomorgan.org to make a secure gift now! Thanks for helping Morgan continue to soar!
Individuals. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $500 Spouse/Family . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $700
Payable Over 2 Years | Get Started for Only $50 Benefits Include: • • • • •
10% off at the Barnes & Noble university bookstore Use of Richardson Library Discounts to sporting events — including Homecoming 10% discount to the National Aquarium Access to Hurt Gymnasium fitness center
Visit alumni.morgan.edu to submit your application.
MSU EMBROIDERED FACE COVERING Four-ply face coverings embroidered with the MSU logo are still available for purchase! The masks are available online at the following page, for $20 per mask:
https://givetomorgan.org/face-mask
•
Help Stop the Spread!
ALUMNI BUSINESS DIRECTORY Do you own a business? We are inviting you to join our Alumni Business Directory, where you can post information about your business online and gain support from other alumni. Log on today, and be connected at alumni.morgan.edu!
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MORGAN MADE
Charneta Samms
U.S. Army DEVCOM’s New Chief Technology Officer On campus in February for the first time in many years, Morgan alumna Charneta Samms said she was amazed at “how much the campus has expanded and grown. It’s beautiful, all these facilities. I have to come back for my own personal tour of everything. There’s just so much more I haven’t seen.” Samms’ return to her alma mater was also cause for Morgan to celebrate: the MSU industrial engineering graduate — Bachelor of Science, 1996 — had recently been appointed chief technology officer of the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command (DEVCOM), the Army’s largest technology developer. As the command’s first-ever permanent CTO, Samms serves as chief integrator of its multibillion-dollar research and technology mission. She came to Morgan in February as part of the high-level group accompanying U.S. Secretary of the Army
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Christine Wormuth, who made an all-day visit to MSU to review the University’s research capabilities and potential and get firsthand experience with Morgan’s U.S. Army ROTC program, the Bear Battalion. “The education I received from Morgan State University was instrumental in developing the analytical mindset that has been key to all my career successes,” says Samms, who went on to earn a Master of Industrial and Systems Engineering at Virginia Tech. “My MSU professors encouraged me to question and analyze information, which fueled the ferocious fire of curiosity that drives me every day.” Samms’ path to Morgan began in her hometown of Poughkeepsie, New York, where she lived until her family moved to Newport
“The education I received from Morgan State University was instrumental in developing the analytical mindset that has been key to all my career successes.”
— Charneta Samms, MSU Class of 1996
News, Virginia, when she was in her early teens. Like many future engineers, she loved taking things apart and putting them back together when she was a child. Neither of her hardworking parents, nor her hardworking stepfather, were college graduates, but as her time as a stellar high school student was ending, Samms received career advice from a maternal uncle who worked for IBM. “When it was time to start thinking about (college), he pushed me toward chemical engineering,” she recalls. “…It wasn’t really as interesting to me, but engineering itself sounded very interesting. So I decided to pursue that.” Morgan quickly rose to the top of her list of prospective universities. “I was excited about the opportunity to be amongst people of color, because my entire educational career I was always a minority,” Samms recalls. “…My choices were Virginia Tech, Old Dominion University or Morgan State. And then Morgan State gave me a full
www.givetomorgan.org
scholarship based on my GPA, so that definitely helped with the decision. But as soon as I hit campus and saw all the activities and the opportunity to be the majority instead of the minority, that sealed the deal.” “I loved my time at Morgan,” Samms says. “It was the camaraderie, being amongst people who looked like me and understood kind of what I was going through. I think it was a really good setting to build up my confidence in my abilities. I also had some really great professors in industrial engineering. Clarence Fry was actually one of the professors who inspired me to work at the Army Research Laboratory,” where she was employed for more than 24 years, rising to the position of chief of plans and programs before her recent promotion. Samms says she maintains close ties to alma mater, through friends and faculty she met as an undergraduate at MSU. “Morgan’s definitely home,” she says. n
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TRANSFORMATION MORGAN 4
• The Morgan Business Center, home of the Earl G. Graves School of Business and Management, opened in 2015 on the new West Campus; • The Martin D. Jenkins Behavioral and Social Sciences Building, opened in 2017, also on the West Campus; and • Our newest facility, the Calvin and Tina Tyler Hall student services building, which opened officially last fall — an attractive gateway to the main campus.
Enhancing the Built Environment Visiting alumni often comment on the visual appeal of Morgan’s campus, and even for those of us who work here daily, the environment seems to get better by the day. The improvement is intentional. Morgan’s state-of-the-art facilities, and the aesthetics of the nation’s only campus designated a National Treasure by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, attract talented students and faculty, and savvy investors, and are vital to the University’s progress toward its strategic goals. If you haven’t been with us in person in the past 10 years, you’ll see many new sights when you return, sights such as: • The Center for the Built Environment and Infrastructure Studies (CBEIS), completed in 2012;
The current Facilities Master Plan is being implemented to help carry out Morgan’s new strategic plan, “Transformation Morgan 2030: Leading the Future.” With continued strong support from the State of Maryland, more good things on campus are soon to come, among them: • A new Health and Human Services Building, at the northwest corner of Argonne Drive and Hillen Road, on the former site of Turner’s Armory; • A new Science Center, on Cold Spring Lane, on the current site of the Washington Service Center; • Renovation of the Carter-Grant-Wilson administrative building, to house the Graduate School and the International Affairs Division; and • $20 million in deferred maintenance and site improvements for recently constructed facilities.
Nearly 155 years into Morgan’s journey, the best is yet to come!
Excitement Rises at Northwood Commons If you haven’t visited Morgan’s West Campus lately and looked next door at the redevelopment of Northwood Plaza Shopping Center, “You’re in for a treat,” says Sidney Evans, Morgan’s senior vice president for finance and administration. The $50-million project, driven by Morgan’s partnership with two development firms, the shopping center’s owners, the local community and the city and state government, is transforming a long-blighted strip mall into an attractive retail and office venue named Northwood Commons. The groundbreaking celebration for the redevelopment, in November 2019, spotlighted the historical significance of the site, which is where many Morgan students engaged in successful civil rights activism to racially integrate facilities in the 1950s and ’60s. Confirmed tenants of Northwood Commons include, among others, a Lidl grocery store, IHOP, Georgia Peach (a Black-owned soul food restaurant chain), Fulton Bank, Chipotle and the Barnes & Noble Morgan State University Campus Store — a seller of clothing, gifts and accessories as well as books. More retail confirmations are to Alumni News Spring/Summer 2022
come, Evans reports. The MSU Police and Public Safety Department is also on track to move into its state-of-the-art facility at Northwood Commons this summer. “What’s significant about this project is Morgan’s involvement to meet the needs of our students and the Morgan Community Mile,” Evans says. “We’ve successfully converted a food desert into numerous retail options and a better community environment. The other thing that I believe is significant is several of the businesses at Northwood will be owned by Morgan State alumni. I am excited for the Morgan students,” Evans adds. “They’ll be able to just walk across the street to a safe environment to have a number of options that they’ve never had before. And I think that is going to help the University’s recruitment of students and make Morgan another attractive college option for many.”
MORGAN LEGACIES
(left to right) Samuel, Troy and Avonnee Brown
Becoming the Browns Troy Brown recalls growing up in Baltimore County, Maryland, in a “Heathcliff and Claire Huxtable-like” environment, where Mom and Dad were accomplished professionals who loved each other and their children; big brother was intelligent and athletic; education, advocacy and self-confidence were highly valued; and an HBCU was near the center of the family’s life. A Harvard-trained lawyer with a long track record of success in large and small law firms, government and academia, Brown is part of Morgan State University’s powerful history within his family. His late mother, Avonnee Burge Brown, was a stellar history major at Morgan, Class of 1967, who leveraged her prodigious talent and the knowledge and skills she acquired in college to make a positive difference in her community through social service. His father, Samuel Brown, earned his Bachelor of Science in mathematics at Morgan, also in 1967, before his 38-year, Hall of Fame career as a teacher and administrator at
Baltimore Polytechnic Institute. Troy followed in his parents’ footsteps, earning a Bachelor of Science in political science and government at Morgan, in 1999. His parents’ experience at Morgan was clearly a major influence on him, Troy says: “I grew up hearing stories about their time at Morgan, how they met at Morgan, the impact of their…fraternity and sorority on their development, the pride of being young, Black and in college, the pride of being educated and why that was important for my brother and me and how it would be important, too, in terms of dealing with other people, matriculating through education…. My aunt as well as my parents’ friends were people that they went to college with.” The civil rights movement was the context of many of his parents’ stories about Morgan, Brown adds. “I heard about them doing sit-ins. My father marched. Both my parents did. This was still very much during segregation for them, or right on the edge of it.”
Social Growth
Samuel Brown (circa 1971)
www.givetomorgan.org
Sam Brown, retired for nearly 17 years now, is happy to talk about his time at Morgan. The first-generation college student arrived on campus from his hometown in rural Frederick County, Maryland, in September 1962, with an outstanding high school record.
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“My cousin and best friend was a year ahead of me. In fact, he was pledging Alpha (Phi Alpha Fraternity) when I got there. So I knew I was going to pledge Alpha,” Sam remembers. “I
they were released, their charges were dropped, and the theater was integrated. “I have never ever had that arrest expunged from the record,” Sam says, “because…it’s one of the things I’m most proud of.”
Turning Points
to try to integrate Northwood Theatre (in February 1963), my cousin and I walked over to Northwood right away and joined in the march,” Sam recalls. “We were what they called trespassing, marching around the theater.” The two were arrested — along with hundreds of other protestors — and spent three uncomfortable days and nights in jail before
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On Morgan’s campus in 1964, Sam met the love of his life: Avonnee Burge, an honors student from a prominent, college-educated, community-oriented family in Cherry Hill, in Baltimore City. Sam’s grades slipped as he focused his attention on his beloved and on the social growth he says benefited him later in his career. Moreover, he was in no hurry to be separated from Avonnee by graduating before her. But when she threatened during her senior
1966
also knew that so many people flunked out in their first year. So my whole first year, I didn’t go to any parties…. I went to the library after dinner, partly because I was kind of ‘country’ and didn’t really know how to relate to many people, secondly because I wanted to make sure I was OK academically. And I made Promethean Kappa Tau, the freshman honor society, and pledged Alpha in March of my freshman year. But I was still socially somewhat behind the kids who grew up in the various cities.” His fraternity, and Morgan, provided him with invaluable opportunities to grow socially, Sam says. “And I took advantage of that opportunity as much as if not more than the opportunities (Morgan) gave me academically. And there were a lot of people like me there, meaning kids who were not overly wealthy, didn’t come from rich families but had middle class values and valued family.” Having experienced the pain of Jim Crow discrimination in racially segregated Frederick County, Sam responded immediately to the call for Morgan students to join the protests for civil rights near the campus at Northwood Theatre, and elsewhere. “…When we heard that we were going
year not to marry Sam if he didn’t graduate, he applied himself fully to the task. “So my final year at Morgan, I worked my butt off. I think I had the highest grades I’d had since my freshman year,” Sam recalls. After their graduation in spring 1967, Avonnee was the first of the two new graduates to land a job with career potential, with the Baltimore City Department of Social Services, that summer. Sam was working as an attendant at Rosewood State Hospital, and worrying about the prospect of being drafted by the military to fight in Vietnam, when he landed an interview that fall with the supervisor of math teachers for Baltimore City Public Schools. Sam impressed his interviewer during a brief conversation, using some of the math and social skills he’d developed at Morgan, and was immediately offered a job as a math teacher at Baltimore Polytechnic Institute (“Poly”), a highly rated public high school that was beginning its first year in a newly constructed building. Sam
began teaching at Poly in September, and he and Avonnee married two months later, in November. Sam and his interviewer, William Gerardi, later worked together for 11 years, when Gerardi served as Poly’s principal. Sam was one of the few African-American faculty for the predominantly white, all-male student body at Poly when he arrived, he recalls. With no student teaching experience, he struggled with balancing encouragement of students with the need to manage the classroom, he admits. “But by the second semester of my second year, it just clicked…” he says. “Just letting kids know you cared about them: I found that when you did that, if in fact any of them caused a problem, they would listen to you, because they
Samuel Brown and Son Troy
already knew you cared…. When they think it’s just out of anger or you’re being tentative, it was no good. So I adapted my (teaching) style to my personality.”
Fond Memories That learning experience as a teacher helped him in raising his children. Todd, Sam and Avonnee’s eldest, was born in 1968. Troy was born in 1977, 10 years into his father’s career at Poly and 14 years before he went to Poly himself, as a freshman. Four years later, as his father was growing into his new job as head of Poly’s math department and his mother was working as Director of Volunteer Services for Good Shepherd School, Troy graduated from Poly and enrolled in Morgan as a freshman, on a full academic scholarship. At MSU, “I got to craft myself into the intellectual I wanted to be in preparation for law school,” Troy says. “Morgan…gave me an encyclopedic understanding of many different things. It helped me with my writing.” “When I look at the people of color, the Black people who were in law school with me, www.givetomorgan.org
there were typically a number of students from HBCUs. We all felt the pressure, but I think we all had that internal, self-perpetuating confidence, that kind of fire to compete and to feel confident with all of our peers, no matter what their financial or economic background was or what their educational background was,” says Troy, who now heads his own law firm, Brown Law Office, LLC, in Baltimore City. The boutique firm represents clients in commercial transactions and litigation, dispute resolution, estate planning and other matters. “Morgan made me incredibly comfortable and confident being the man I am, the man I wanted to be, being comfortable in my own skin, speaking in class, using my voice,” Troy continues. “That was the most important thing.” The loss of Avonnee to a sudden illness in 2009 is still painful to the Brown family, but Sam finds strong comfort in his Morgan memories,
Avonnee and Samuel Brown
such as attending Homecoming and the Howard Cornish alumni chapter’s Martin Luther King Jr. scholarship breakfast with his wife, each year, and helping her with projects she led for the sorority she had joined during her student days at Morgan: Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. The couple became lifetime members of the MSU Alumni Association. “Morgan was so very, very important to me,” says Sam, who retired from Poly as an assistant principal in 2005. “Academically, my wife and my son Troy were so much better students. We used to laugh at the dinner table at times. They’d say, ‘Well, you know, as far as grades are concerned, you’re really at the bottom of the family.’ And my wife would say, ‘because you wouldn’t study like you were supposed to.’ I’d laugh all the time. I’d say, ‘Yeah, but I was learning how to relate to people.’ Morgan was fantastic to me.” n To nominate a Morgan Legacies family to be featured in a future issue, please send name and contact info to alumni@morgan.edu.
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ALL THINGS GREEK
Iota Phi Theta Installs National Officers at Baltimore Inner Harbor Gala
Iota Phi Theta Fraternity, Inc., founded at Morgan State University, celebrated the installation of its new national officers on Saturday, Jan. 29 at the Inner Harbor Hilton Baltimore Hotel. In attendance at the festivities was Morgan alumnus and the surviving Honorable Founder of the fraternity, Lonnie C. Spruill. Iota, which will celebrate its 60th anniversary next year, installed Sean D. Housen, Sr., as its 23rd International Grand Polaris, Myron J. Covington as its International Grand Vice Polaris, Anthony Harden as International Grand Treasurer and Morgan alumnus Craig I. Spencer as the International Grand Secretary. The Master of Ceremonies for the event
was Iota Brother and Morgan alumnus Walter Fields, who was installed as the fraternity’s Director of Communication. In addition, Morgan alumnus Esset Tate was installed as the Director of Programs for the fraternity. Among Iotas honored at the inauguration gala were recent Morgan State University Athletic Hall of Fame inductees Marvin Hicks, Andre Wickham and Arthur Cook. The sponsor of the inauguration gala was Good Health WINS, a healthcare education program of the National Council of Negro Women, Inc., that partners with the National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC) to address vaccine hesitancy. Iota Phi Theta Fraternity, Inc., one of the members of the NPHC — or “Divine 9,” has its Alpha Chapter on the campus of Morgan and has three Baltimore area alumni chapters: Alpha Omega, Psi Omega and Gamma Omicron Omega. The fraternity is known for its commitment to community service in the Baltimore area.
Craig Spencer
Sean Housen
MSU Pre-Alumni Council Drive Boosts the Baltimore Rescue Mission A delivery from the Morgan State University Pre-Alumni Council surprised and delighted Baltimore Rescue Mission staff, last October. As part of the Council’s Toiletry Drive, its members brought more than 100 backpacks to the longstanding Mission, which provides food, shelter and alcohol and drug addiction treatment to poor people in Baltimore City. Morgan alumni stepped up
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in force to donate the backpacks to the PreAlumni Council, which seeks to strengthen the bond between Morgan’s student body and alumni and cultivate students’ desire and fortitude to graduate from Morgan and uphold the institution’s reputation. Lamar Brooks of Morgan’s Class of 2024 was the lead on the Pre-Alumni Council’s community service project.
For the second consecutive year, the COVID-19 pandemic caused the Howard L. Cornish Metropolitan Baltimore Chapter to cancel its Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Scholarship Breakfast. However, the prolonged impact of this global public health crisis could not prevent the chapter from continuing its stalwart tradition of awarding much-needed financial assistance to students at their alma mater. The chapter implemented its second direct-mail support campaign and asked its many resolute members and friends to, again, contribute whatever level of support they would normally give when attending the MLK Breakfast in person — whether that
was purchasing an admission ticket, placing an ad in the event’s souvenir journal, participating in one of the Special Contributions giving categories, or other support. As a result of the unbelievable dedication of its chapter members, fellow Morgan alumni and the general public, the chapter awarded $33,000 in scholarships to 20 deserving students at the University. The funds were applied to the students’ Spring Semester tuition payments. Five of the scholarships were awarded in memory of chapter members who passed away during the year: Bernice McDaniels, ’43; Sarah Montgomery, ’53; Benjamin Holmes, ’53; Spurgeon Washington, ’60; and Janet Briscoe, ’74.
CHAPTER AND CLASS NEWS
Howard L. Cornish Chapter Awards $33,000 in Scholarships
Holiday Raffle
Baltimore County Chapter Has a Productive Winter The Baltimore County Chapter continues to grow. In December, the chapter hosted a Paint and Sip Party and Holiday Raffle, both centered on the theme of Morgan: participants in the Paint and Sip Party created renderings of MSU’s newest bridge, Legacy Bridge, across Hillen Road, and the Holiday Raffle prize was a blue wagon full of Morgan paraphernalia. Both activities were a success. During the holidays, chapter members were encouraged to make financial donations to the on-campus food pantry. In February, the chapter sponsored the Morgan vs. North Carolina Central basketball game. A donation was made to the MSU www.givetomorgan.org
Athletics Department. Over the past four years, the chapter has provided tuition scholarships to four students who are on track to graduate this spring. The chapter is looking forward to spring! A tour of the campus is being planned, and members are looking forward to attending games of the chapter’s sponsored Little League Baseball team. Chapter meetings are held via Google Meet the first Wednesday of the month. You can contact the chapter on Facebook by searching for “Morgan Alumni Baltimore County.
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MSU Alumni Association Establishes a Chapter in Kenya Morgan reached an historic milestone last October with the launch of a Kenyan chapter of the MSU Alumni Association — the first international chapter chartered by the association. The ceremony to mark the event took place in the capital city of Nairobi, in mid-December, after more than a year of collaboration between Morgan’s Office of Alumni Relations and Morgan alumni in Kenya.
Yacob Astatke, D.Eng., Morgan’s Assistant Vice President for International Affairs, attended the ceremony and reported that the chapter would be vital to the University’s effort to open a virtual or satellite campus in Nairobi. Chapter President Margaret Mukira, ’94, anticipates that the chapter will become a major force in student recruitment for Morgan in Kenya; expansion of the MSUAA to other countries; and development of partnerships between Morgan and universities and communities in Kenya.
New Jersey Alumni Chapter
New Jersey Chapter Keeps the Fire Burning The New Jersey Alumni Chapter kicked off 2021–22 with a successful outdoor “Meet and Greet” event. Participants were thrilled to see one another in person, after a long separation because of COVID-19, and took full advantage of the opportunity to renew bonds forged at Morgan many years ago. Although the chapter has not been able to meet in person since, it
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has kept the “Blue and Orange” fire burning, with regular virtual meetings on Zoom and planning of several special events for the second half of the chapter year. The chapter held a virtual event centered on the NCAA Basketball Tournament (“March Madness”), in March, and an event at the Crossroads Theater launched its membership drive for 2022–23, in June.
Norwegian Cruise Line’s
Norwegian Breakaway
The ship will depart from New York City on April 23, 2023.
Join the Philadelphia Chapter’s Cruise to Fund Scholarships! Join the MSUAA Philadelphia Chapter for an exciting scholarship fundraising getaway: a 16-day transatlantic cruise aboard Norwegian Cruise Line’s Norwegian Breakaway in 2023! The ship will depart from New York City on April 23 next year and return from Rome, its 11th port of call, on May 6. Balcony, ocean view and interior cabins are available. Flights and hotel packages will be offered. A current passport is required for travel. A deposit of $250 per person ($150 nonrefundable) — payable by cash, check or money order — is required for reservations and to guarantee prices. Final payment is due Nov. 21, 2022. Gratuities are $248 per person and can be prepaid or added to the balance due for the cruise. For more information, please contact: Andrea Gaskins-Battle at (215) 545-7460 or amgbpooch0828@gmail.com; Janice Mann at (609) 877-4041 or jejmann70@hotmail.com; or Carolyn Wade, Roeder Travel Agent, at (410) 667-6090, (410) 984-2515 (cell) or achyent@verizon.net.
1962
1969
Class of 1962 Sets Target for 60th Anniversary Giving
Class of 1969 Continues Investing in the Leaders of Tomorrow
To continue its support of alma mater, the Class of 1962 surveyed its members to set a target level of giving to the University to celebrate the 60th Anniversary of the class. The choices were $50, $100, $500, $1,000, $1,962 or $2,000, but donations of any amount were very much appreciated. The goal of the class is to make a significant financial contribution, so Morgan can continue preparing the younger generations to lead the world. Class members who are subject to filing Maryland State income tax returns may derive a tax deduction benefit. The State of Maryland recently passed legislation that provides for a tax deduction of 25% of donations to an endowment fund of a Maryland HBCU. Members may be allowed to deduct their donation up to the amount allowed by law.
The Class of 1969 continues to support its class-sponsored Endowed Scholarship Fund and Morgan’s Food Resource Center through class donations. During the Fall 2021 and Spring 2022 semesters, the Class awarded need-based scholarships totaling $6,300 to three scholars to ensure their highquality education and academic success. The class extends a special thanks to everyone who invested in our leaders of tomorrow. The Class of 1969 will continue to monitor COVID-19 safety protocol as it moves forward with planning for its in-person, on-campus activity, the 13th Annual Homecoming Brunch, this year on Oct. 8. Stay tuned for detailed information. Classmates are welcome to join the MSU Class 1969 Facebook group to get more information about upcoming class events and activities. Also, you may contact Nellie Shields Maskal, Class Agent, at orblue6947@ gmail.com, for additional information or to make suggestions for the Class of 1969’s 55th Anniversary event in 2024. The class looks forward to gathering this year for fun and fellowship during Homecoming!
Please make your check payable to Morgan State University Foundation, Inc. (MSUF, Inc.); write Class of 1962 in the memo section; and mail it to: Morgan State University Foundation, Inc. P.O. Box 64261, Baltimore, MD 21264-4261
Note! This is not intended as financial or legal advice. Consult with a financial advisor for more information about tax-deductible donations. www.givetomorgan.org
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Golden Anniversary Class
Class of 1972, Moving Forward While Giving Back
1972
The Class of 1972 is moving forward to its Golden Anniversary, while giving back to the Class of 2022. With assistance from Morgan’s Office of Student Success and Retention, members of the MSU Class of 1972 established a groundbreaking alumni initiative in 2018 by “adopting” the incoming freshmen/future Class of 2022. Over the past three years, support for the undergraduate class has taken many forms:
• One-on-one tutoring/mentoring; “Living Your Best Life” Workshops covering such topics as Total Body Wellness, Vision Boards, Financial Literacy, Public Speaking/Public Appearance, to name a few; and weekly, interactive “Cooking for Fun” sessions. • Book scholarship awards to qualified Class of 2022 applicants during their sophomore, junior and now senior year. These scholarships are needed more than ever, as students face additional financial pressures from COVID-19.
The Class of 1972 is moving closer to its goal of raising $50,000 for the Class of 1972 Endowment Fund and is anxious to present the gift to “Fair Morgan” when members celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the class, during the weekend of Spring Commencement, May 20–22, 2022. The Class of 1972 also sends “Kudos!!!” and a big “Thank you!!!” to the classmates who are Life Members of the Morgan State University Alumni Association. The numbers would not have increased without the unfaltering support of Joyce Brown, Morgan’s recently retired Assistant Vice President for Alumni Relations and Strategic Engagement, and her exceptional staff. Most recently, her successor, Heidi Bruce, met with the Class of 1972 Reunion Committee, via Zoom, to pledge her commitment to the Emeritus Class and all alumni involvement when and where feasible, as the pandemic continues to dictate day to day life. For additional information about how to make tax-deductible donations to the Class of 1972 Endowment Fund or how to make non-tax-deductible gifts to the Class of 1972 Golden Anniversary Celebration activities, please contact the Class Agents: Linda Davis, at idesofmarch@comcast.net or (678) 234-2406, or Celeste Scott, at cscott3958@aol.com or (410) 608-1293.
Class of 1973 ‘Change Makers’ Plan 50th Anniversary Gift As the Class of 1973 moves closer to its 50th Anniversary, it is also approaching the time to fulfill its commitment to donate $50,000 to the Class Endowment Fund. The target date to achieve the goal is on or before Jan. 31, 2023. The class encourages its members to continue to donate. Please make your check payable to “Morgan State University Foundation, Inc.”; write “Class of 1973” Endowment in the memo section; and mail it to: Morgan State University Foundation, Inc. P.O. Box 64261, Baltimore, MD 21264-4261
Class of 1983 Moves Toward Its 40th Anniversary Goal The Class of 1983 is moving toward its 40th Anniversary goal of raising $83,000 or more for the Morgan State University Scholarship Fund. The class is asking each of its members to pledge to make a tax-deduction gift of $400 before April 30, 2023.
1973
Reminder: if you have moved recently or changed your email address, please contact the Alumni Relations Office with your updated information. The contact information for the office follows: Morgan State University, Office of Alumni Relations 1700 E. Cold Spring Lane, Baltimore, MD 21251 Email: alumni@morgan.edu • Tel: (443) 885-3015
The class is researching ideas for virtual fundraisers and will send information when arrangements have been made. The class looks forward to an outstanding and memorable 50th Anniversary Class Celebration in 2023!
1983
Please make checks payable and mail them to: Morgan State University Foundation, Inc., 1700 E. Cold Spring Lane, Truth Hall, Room 201, Baltimore, MD 21251.
Write “Class of 1983” on the memo line of the check. To donate online, apply your donation to “Class Giving,” and in the “Instruction About My Donation” section, specify “Class of 1983.”
For additional information about the class gift, please contact Shelia Peters Lee, at sheliaplee26@gmail.com or (703) 901-9985, or Annette Brown at bighat42@yahoo.com or (410) 664-3054.
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Alumni News Spring/Summer 2022
IN THE NEWS
Morgan, Howard Meet in First NBA HBCU Classic The Morgan Bears met the Howard Bison for the first-ever NBA HBCU Classic basketball game, held this past February in Cleveland, Ohio, during the National Basketball Association’s 2022 All-Star Weekend. The Bison prevailed, 68-66, in the game, which, nonetheless, represented a big win for Morgan and Historically Black Colleges and Universities. The Classic, presented by AT&T and broadcast live on TNT and ESPN2, was part of the NBA’s ongoing commitment to HBCUs, featuring new programs designed to create greater opportunity for students and alumni, encourage economic advancement and further celebrate the rich traditions of the Black institutions. During the All-Star Weekend, more than $1 million was contributed to support the HBCU community through the Thurgood Marshall College Fund, UNCF (United Negro College Fund) and
academic institutions. In addition, HBCUs were showcased through unique content, storytelling and special performances. Thanks to the Morgan State University Alumni Association Executive Board, Vanessa Grey of Morgan’s Office of Alumni Relations and Lydell Sargeant, Sr., of the MSU Department of Intercollegiate Athletics for facilitating bus travel and admission to the HBCU Classic for Morganites. Those who rode the bus got an extra treat, the Clorox Rising Stars game on Friday night. Thanks also to Chicago Alumni Chapter President Ebony Johnson and members of her chapter, and MSU Midwest Regional Admissions Officer Ciara Evans, who partnered with President Laura Williams of the Cleveland Council of Black Colleges Alumni Association to raise Morgan’s profile at the game.
Bears Basketball Great Hired as Assistant Coach at Loyola Morgan State University women’s basketball great Corin (“Tiny”) Adams, ’10 and ’19, has been hired as an Assistant Coach of the men’s basketball team at Loyola University Maryland, in Baltimore. Adams is one of only two current female assistant coaches in NCAA Division I men’s basketball. She had been the video coordinator for Morgan’s men’s basketball program since 2017 before taking her current post at Loyola. Adams was honored with the Morgan State University Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Distinguished Alumni Award in 2021 and received the award this past March during the MEAC Basketball Championships in Norfolk, Virginia. The awards presentation had been postponed for a year because of COVID-19 restrictions. Adams compiled a stellar athletic record at MSU: she holds the Bears’ record for career points. Named the 2010 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Player of the Year, she was a three-time all-MEAC First Team honoree, MEAC Defensive Player of the Year in 2008 and a member of the MEAC All-Rookie and All-Tournament teams in 2007. Adams earned two degrees at Morgan: a Bachelor of Science in physical education and a Master of Arts in journalism. Following her stint as a player at Morgan, Adams excelled in professional basketball overseas, playing in Puerto Rico, Portugal, Bosnia, Bulgaria, Sweden and the Czech Republic. An author and an athlete, Adams has penned a book titled, “Tiny Setbacks, Major Comebacks: From Brooklyn to Europe.” www.givetomorgan.org
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ALUMNI ON THE MOVE
TNG Consulting LLC has promoted Senior Supervising Consultant Tanyka M. Barber, J.D., ’98, to Partner. With her promotion, Barber becomes TNG’s practice leader for developing products and services for K–12 schools and districts, an expanding market for the company. Barber brought extensive experience in civil rights and equal employment opportunity (EEO) compliance in higher education and K–12 settings to TNG when she joined the firm in 2019. Her earlier posts include Director, Diversity and EEO, and Title IX Coordinator at Morgan State University, and EEO Officer for the Baltimore County Public Schools. She began her career with the Maryland Commission on Civil Rights, where she rose from law clerk to Assistant General Counsel. Barber earned a Bachelor of Science in health education at MSU. Corporate tax lawyer Sabrina Bradley Conyers, ’99, has joined McGuireWoods’ Tax & Employee Benefits Department as a Partner in the firm’s Charlotte, North Carolina, office. Conyers has more than 17 years of experience advising clients on domestic and international tax matters, including service as lead tax counsel, negotiator and facilitator for transactions valued at more than $2 billion. She came to McGuireWoods from the Charlotte office of Nelson Mullins, where she was a Partner in the tax and benefits practice, and previously was a Senior Manager at a Big Four accounting firm. Conyers has received numerous honors for her work, among them selection as a “Dealmaker of the Year” by The American Lawyer in 2021, for her role creating a first-of-its-kind community investment fund for Black and Latinx business owners on behalf of Invest Newark in partnership with New Jersey Community Capital. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in communications at Morgan.
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Alumni News Spring/Summer 2022
Ed Gainey, ’94, has been inaugurated as Mayor of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, after a resounding victory with more than 70% of the vote in the November 2021 general election. Gainey left his longtime position as State Representative serving Pennsylvania’s 24th Legislative District to become Mayor and is the first African American to hold Pittsburgh’s top post. Gainey’s mayoral campaign promoted his advocacy for good union jobs, affordable housing, genuine public safety and a culture of inclusivity for the people of Pittsburgh. He holds a bachelor’s degree in business management from Morgan. Randy Griffin, ’96, been appointed Commander in the Technical and Analytical Services Bureau of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) of the District of Columbia. In his new post, he oversees all information technology services, as well as research and analytical services used to support innovative policing operations and public safety practices. Griffin had served the department as Commander for the Fourth District since March 2018, during which time the district had overall crime decreases for 2019, 2020 and 2021. He began his career with the MPD as a Fourth District patrol officer in 2001, five years after he received his Bachelor of Science in biology from Morgan. Over the course of his career, Cmdr. Griffin has received numerous trainings and certifications and has volunteered in his community as an AAU basketball coach and in other roles. Alicia B. Harvey-Smith, Ph.D., ’84, President of Pittsburgh Technical College (PTC), has received two recent recognitions for her outstanding work in her profession. The Pittsburgh Technology Council selected Dr. Harvey-Smith as its Tech 50 Outstanding CEO of the Year for 2021, and Smart Business 2021 chose her as a Pittsburgh Smart 50 Award honoree. The Smart 50 Awards recognize top executives in the Greater Pittsburgh region for their ability to build and lead successful organizations. Dr. Harvey-Smith has led PTC since April 2019. A learning-centered educator with 30 years of experience, she came to PTC from Lone Star College in Houston, Texas — one of the largest college systems in the country — where she had served as Executive Vice Chancellor since 2016. At PTC, she supports the institution’s foundational values to provide an immersive, careerfocused education. Dr. Harvey-Smith is the first African American to serve as President of the college. She earned her Bachelor of Science in business administration at Morgan.
The sixth book authored by Morgan graduate and former MSU faculty member Max Hilaire, Ph.D., ’79, has been released by the publisher, Logos Verlag Berlin. In “The Evolution and Transformation of International Law,” Dr. Hilaire encourages a rethinking and reconfiguring of the international legal order to make it more effective in responding to the global challenges of the 21st century. Dr. Hilaire served Morgan as Associate Professor and Chair of the Department of Political Science for 20 years, until his retirement last September. A two-time
Never provided with a standing military force to implement enforcement actions, the Security Council instead developed a formula for the use of international peacekeeping forces; it has often delegated enforcement powers to coalitions of states or to regional alliances; and it has advanced the use of mechanisms not anticipated by the original framers of the UN Charter, such as international criminal tribunals and post-conflict transitional administrations. Increasingly involved in matters traditionally considered the domestic preserve of nation states, the Council’s agenda is ever more dominated by issues related to economic disparity, internal political repression, corruption, insurgency, and struggles over natural resources. This book examines the actions – and sometimes the failure to act – of the Security Council over the past seven decades. Professor Max Hilaire has provided a comprehensive analysis of the role of the Security Council in transnational armed conflicts from UN and normative frameworks. Waging Peace is a valuable addition to the literature of international law and international relations, and of the history of what remains a uniquely idealistic experiment in creating an institution to safeguard peace and security globally.
Waging Peace: The United Nations Security Council and Transnational Armed Conflicts
Fulbright Scholar, he has lectured extensively at universities in more than 30 countries in Africa, Europe, Latin America and λογος the Caribbean under the auspices of the Department of State Speakers Program. He earned his Bachelor of Arts in political science at Morgan and two master’s degrees and a doctorate in international relations from Columbia University.
The United Nations Security Council has, since 1945, formed the core of an international security regime devoted to maintaining or restoring international peace and security. During and since the Cold War, the world has seen a progressive reduction in inter-state warfare, an evolution in which the Council has played its part. But the Council has also seen its share of failures, both in domestic wars involving non-state groups, and in matters of legitimacy, seen as it is as a vehicle for the interests of the three western permanent members.
Waging Peace The United Nations Security Council and Transnational Armed Conflicts
Max Hilaire
Max Hilaire
Logos Verlag Berlin
ISBN 978-3-8325-4000-5
Heritage Associates (www.Heritage-Assoc.com), a specialized genealogical and historical research and training firm led by siblings Donna Tyler Hollie, Ph.D., ’63, ’92 and ’00, and Brett M. Tyler, ’69, has been awarded a contract to find living descendants of the victims and perpetrators of the 40 or more lynchings that occurred in Maryland between 1854 and 1933. Funding for their work came from a grant awarded to Maryland’s Office of the Attorney General and the Maryland Lynching Truth and Reconciliation Commission in 2020, by the United States Department of Justice’s Emmett Till Cold Case Investigations Program. Donna Hollie earned a Bachelor of Science in business administration and a Master of Arts in history at Morgan and was the first person to earn a doctorate in history at MSU. Her brother Brett earned a Bachelor of Science in economics at MSU.
Donna Hollie
www.givetomorgan.org
Financial liberation expert, educator, author and public speaker Kevette Minor Kane, ’00, has been selected as one of SUCCESS Magazine’s TOP 125 Thought Leaders of 2021 and as one of Women of Distinction Magazine’s Top 50 Unstoppable Innovators of 2021. Kane, a graduate of Morgan with a Bachelor of Science in finance, guides women and men on their journey to self-sufficiency by educating them to take back their financial power and supporting them in gaining the confidence to fulfill their purpose in life. Kane is CEO and Founder of MarimorLife Mindset & Money Management, which is a vehicle for her mission to elevate women worldwide to a greater quality of life. She is a monthly contributor to iShine Magazine, writes the #MindfulMoneyMoments Blog at www.marimorlife. com and hosts the #MindfulMoneyMoments Broadcast on YouTube. Matthew J. Maddox, ’99, has been appointed to serve as a United States Magistrate Judge in the United States District Court for the District of Maryland. He will sit in Baltimore, Maryland. Maddox has served in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland as an Assistant U.S. Attorney since 2015, prosecuting a wide range of criminal cases, and has served as the Office’s Identity Theft Coordinator since 2018 and Deputy Chief of the Major Crimes Section since 2020. He received an award from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in 2017 for Outstanding Contribution to a Law Enforcement Initiative. Maddox graduated summa cum laude from Morgan with a Bachelor of Arts in philosophy and religious studies and earned his J.D. at Yale Law School.
Brett Tyler
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A L U M N I
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M O V E
Rolando Reid, ’16, competed for his home country of Jamaica in the 2022 Winter Olympics, in Beijing, China, as a member of the four-man bobsled team. During his time as a student at Morgan, Reid earned his Bachelor of Science in economics and was prominent on the Men’s Track and Field team, which won the gold medal at the 2015 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Championships. Reid returned to MSU’s
Educator and activist Emily Moore, ’65, has been inducted into the United States Tennis Association (USTA) Eastern Hall of Fame as a member of the Class of 2021. Moore, a gifted athlete, came to Morgan from her hometown of Freeport, New York. She was prominent among the student-activists at Morgan during the civil rights era as she earned her Bachelor of Science in physical education. She then joined the Peace Corps, teaching health and physical education in Nigeria for two years, before returning to the U.S. to begin what became a nearly 50-year career as an elementary school teacher in the Roosevelt (New York) School District . In 1975, she founded the Alliance Junior Tennis Development Program, which has introduced the sport to thousands of Long Island children while also guiding the development of their discipline, leadership qualities and citizenship skills.
Rolando Reid, second from left
campus last summer to “train like and sprinter and lift like a thrower” with the Bears track and field team, to prepare for bobsledding at the Olympics, he told the Baltimore Sun. His team was in the media spotlight as Jamaica returned to the Olympic bobsled competition for the first time since 1998. D’Angela (“Dia”) Simms, ’97, is continuing her rise in the business world. Promoted to President of Sean
An article published in the Feb. 24, 2022 online edition of Catholic Review profiled Morgan alumna Sandra Williams Ortega, Ph.D., ’57, the first Black woman to receive an officer’s commission in the U.S. Air Force. Dr. Ortega was pursuing her bachelor’s degree in sociology at Morgan in the early 1950s when President Martin D. Jenkins and other Morgan administrators recommended her for the college’s ROTC program. Commissioned as an Air Force second lieutenant in July 1958, Dr. Ortega went on to earn a master’s degree in counseling and a doctorate
in psychology, and overcame racism as she traveled the world serving in management and executive positions in personnel and administration for the Air Force. She met her husband, Julio, early in their Air Force careers, and the couple had three children. After retiring from the military, Dr. Ortega served in civilian leadership positions and, in 2018, was inducted into the Maryland Women’s Hall of Fame.
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Alumni News Spring/Summer 2022
(“Diddy”) Combs’ Combs Enterprises five years ago, she is now Chief Executive Officer of the tequila and mezcal company Lobos 1707. Simms spent nearly 15 years working with Combs, in positions of increasing responsibility, before taking her new post. Lobos 1707, based in New York City, has a workforce that is 60% women, but Simms’ hiring as CEO is a rarity in the wine and spirits industry, where only 4% of C-suite positions are held by women, says a profile of Simms published in the Jan. 18, 2022 edition of the Baltimore Sun. Simms earned her Bachelor of Science in psychology from Morgan and worked for the U.S. Department of Defense and in advertising sales before being recruited by Combs.
Brandi Slaughter, ’95, has been elevated on the job and in the community. Last fall, the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP) appointed her as Director of the Karabelle Pizzigati Initiative in Advocacy for Children, Youth and Families and Associate Clinical Professor in UMCP’s School of Public Policy. In her new roles, Slaughter trains students to become effective advocates for children, youth and families. Earlier, last June, she joined the Board of Directors of her high school alma mater, the Columbus School for Girls, in Columbus, Ohio, where she is supporting diversity, equity and inclusion efforts and an executive search for a new head of the school. This spring, Slaughter will teach a graduate class at the Methodist Theological School in Ohio: “Social Justice in the Law.” Slaughter received a Bachelor of Arts at Morgan as a political science major. Yvette E. Taylor, ’79, a lawyer in private practice, has been elected to the Board of Supervisors of Upper Makefield Township, in Buck County, Pennsylvania. She is serving a six-year term. The five-member board is the governing body of Upper Makefield. Taylor, a 25-year Bucks County resident, has extensive experience in estate planning, business and insurance law, compliance and risk management and public service, having served as the Inspector of Elections in Upper Makefield District 1. She also serves on the boards of two nonprofit organizations: the David Library of the American Revolution and the Bucks County Estate Planning Council. Taylor earned her bachelor’s degree in political science at Morgan, where she also began her political career in the MSU Student Government and served as the Student Regent in 1978–79. She continued her education at Villanova Law School, where she graduated in 1982. Calvin Thomas II, ’14, has launched an enterprise named Dolphin University, which provides swim lessons emphasizing water safety and social development at locations in Atlanta; Baltimore; Bowie, Maryland; Los
www.givetomorgan.org
Angeles; and Prince George’s County, Maryland. Dolphin’s classes are geared toward African Americans, who historically have had little access to swimming, Thomas says. Not an actual university, the business employs an academic model, with midterm exams and graduation of participants from one level to the next. More than 1,200 children have enrolled for Dolphin’s classes, and the swimmers range in age from 6 months to teen, Thomas reports. He received his bachelor’s degree in sociology at Morgan. Scientist and inventor Valerie L. Thomas, ’64, has been inducted into the Hall of Fame of the National Black College Alumni Hall of Fame Foundation. Thomas, who was honored for her achievements in science, was among the 14 honorees in the 2021 cohort. Thomas earned her Bachelor of Science at Morgan, where she was one of only two women in her class who majored in physics. After graduation, she took a job at NASA as a mathematical/data analyst. Her talent eventually moved her up the ranks of the space agency, and she is now best known for receiving a patent for her illusion transmitter, a device she invented to use in her work managing the development of the image-processing system for the “Landsat” satellite. The technology is still used today to send images from space to Earth. Educator, athlete and entrepreneur Rashad Vance, Ed.D., ’17, is now an author of a published book. “Goal Setter: How to Win at College” seeks to inspire readers with his story of personal achievement through discipline, hard work and a focus on worthy goals. Born and raised in Baltimore City, Dr. Vance overcame dyslexia and other challenges to become a scholar-athlete, wrestling in an NCAA Division I program while earning a bachelor’s degree in physical education. He then went on to earn a master’s degree in sports administration and came to Morgan, where he obtained a doctorate in urban education. Dr. Vance is now an educator for the Baltimore City Public Schools, specializing in physical education curriculum and course development, and teaches mixed martial arts, boxing, wrestling and fitness classes for the Baltimore City Division of Recreation and Parks. His business ventures include ownership of Goal Setter mobile gym and Goal Setter athletic clothing line. Dr. Vance is a mixed martial arts North American Champion.
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CALENDAR
M S U C H O I R S C H E D U L E
Football
Spring 2022 Tour of Peru, Ecuador and Galápagos Islands May 23–June 4, 2022
BEARS 2022 FOOTBALL SCHEDULE*
Date Sept. 3 . . . Sept. 10 . . Sept. 17 . . Oct. 1 . . . . Oct. 8 . . . . Oct. 15 . . . Oct. 22 . . . Oct. 29 . . . Nov. 5 . . . . Nov. 12 . . . Nov. 19 . . .
At
Opponent
Location
Away . . . Georgia Southern University . . . . . Away . . . Towson University . . . . . . . . . . . . . Home . . Sacred Heart University . . . . . . . . . Home . . Virginia University of Lynchburg . . Home . . Norfolk State University . . . . . . . . . Away . . . North Carolina Central University . . Away . . . University of Delaware . . . . . . . . . Home . . South Carolina State University . . . Away . . . Stony Brook University . . . . . . . . . Away . . . Delaware State University . . . . . . . Home . . Howard University . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Statesboro, GA Towson, MD Hughes Stadium Hughes Stadium Hughes Stadium Durham, NC Newark, DE Hughes Stadium Stony Brook, NY Dover, DE Hughes Stadium
*Game times are to be determined. M S U
A L U M N I
ALUMNI EVENTS, SPRING– FALL 2022 May 21 MSU Spring Commencement
Hughes Stadium, 10 a.m. For more information, please visit https://commencement.morgan.edu.
June 11 MSUAA Board of Directors Meeting
HOMECOMING CALENDAR Oct. 7 Annual MSUAA Homecoming Business Meeting
University Student Center, 11 a.m. 38th Annual Homecoming Gala
Martin’s West, 6817 Dogwood Rd., Baltimore, MD 21244, 7 p.m. For more information, please visit www.morgan.edu/gala.
Location TBD, 12 p.m.
Oct. 8
Aug. 7
Homecoming Parade
Morgan on the Vineyard
Through Aug. 14. Morganites and friends will gather on Martha’s Vineyard to celebrate Fair Morgan. To register, or for more information, visit www.morganonmv.com.
Parade begins at the Alameda Shopping Center, 8 a.m. Tent City
Visit homecoming.morgan.edu for more details. MSUAA Life Member Breakfast
Calvin and Tina Tyler Ballroom B, 9 a.m.–12 p.m.
Sept. 17
Oct. 9
Class Agents Meeting
Candlelight Memorial Service
Location TBD, 10 a.m.
University Student Center Theater, 10 a.m. Luncheon follows in Tyler Ballroom. Pre-registration will be required because of space limitations.
MSUAA Board of Directors Meeting
Location TBD, 12 p.m.
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C A L E N D A R
Alumni News Spring/Summer 2022
BOOK NOW! NEW HOST HOTEL FOR HOMECOMING 2022 Discounted room rates for Morgan State University alumni and friends are available for booking now at Hotel Indigo, this year’s official Homecoming host hotel. This boutique property in Downtown Baltimore’s culturally rich Mount Vernon neighborhood will be the perfect base for your trips to campus and elsewhere to connect with fellow Morgan alumni and what’s current at MSU. The hotel is located at 24 Franklin Street, Baltimore, MD 21201. The Homecoming rate is $149 per night for single, double, triple or quad room accommodations, on Thursday, Oct. 6 through Sunday, Oct. 9, 2022, and does not include Maryland State and hotel occupancy taxes. To receive the discounted rate, you must
ask for the “Morgan State Homecoming rate” when you call to make reservations.
Contact and other information for the hotel is below. The cut-off date/time to make reservations at the discounted rate is Tuesday, Sept. 6, 2022 by 11 a.m. EDT.
Please make your reservations early!
Hotel Indigo 24 W. Franklin Street Baltimore, MD 21201 MSU Rate: $149/night, Oct. 6–9, 2022 Phone: (855) 914-1370 – Ask for the “Morgan State Homecoming rate,” or provide the block code: MSU
To make your reservation online, please visit: https://tinyurl.com/MSU-Homecoming-Hotel Parking is available across the street from the hotel for $13/day on Thursday and Friday (no in-out privileges) and $5/day Saturday and Sunday. Prices are subject to change.
Homecoming 2022
Homecoming Football! • Saturday, Oct. 8 Bears vs. Spartans • 12 p.m., Hughes Stadium Make It Orange! Tickets available at Ticketmaster at (410) 547-7328 or http://www.ticketmaster.com, or before the game at the Box Office, University Student Center first floor NEW! Homecoming Host Hotel
38th Annual Homecoming Gala
Thursday, Oct. 6–Sunday, Oct. 9, 2022 Hotel Indigo 24 W. Franklin St., Baltimore, MD 21201 Ph: (855) 914-1370 Web: https://tinyurl.com/MSU-Homecoming-Hotel
MSUAA Business Meeting & Luncheon Friday, Oct. 7, 11 a.m. Meeting will begin promptly at 11 in the University Student Center Theater, followed by the luncheon in Tyler Ballroom.
H E L P
U S
S T A Y
UPDATE US WHEN THINGS CHANGE:
Friday, Oct. 7, 8 p.m. Martin’s West 6817 Dogwood Rd., Baltimore, MD 21244 Tickets will be on sale starting July 1, 2022 at homecoming.morgan.edu.
MSUAA Life Member Breakfast Saturday, Oct. 8, 9 a.m.–Game Time University Student Center, Tyler Ballroom Invitations will be sent with more details.
C O N N E C T E D !
• NAME • ADDRESS
• TELEPHONE • EMAIL
Let’s stay in touch! Please let us know of any changes to your profile, including your name, address, telephone, email, etc. You may notify us by email at alumni@morgan.edu, by telephone at (443) 885-3015 or through our Online Community (www. alumni.morgan.edu). We would also love to know of any other MSU alumni who are not receiving our mailings. Please check with your MSU family members and friends, and contact us by phone or email if you hear of any missed connections. In addition to housing your profile, the Alumni Online Community provides important alumni information and updates, and we encourage you to log on there on a regular basis.
Connect With Morgan Online MORGAN.EDU
Linktree: https://linktr.ee/MorganStateU
Download the Morgan Mobile App
To view or share the Alumni News digitally, visit https://www.morgan.edu/alumninews/
www.givetomorgan.org
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IT’S TIME TO PAY YOUR ANNUAL DUES! Financial support of the Morgan State University Alumni Association has been amazing during the pandemic years, 2020–present. Thanks to all who continued to pay annual dues to the association during a time of unprecedented challenge. Looking ahead, we want to maintain the Morgan Momentum by providing funds to sustain the critical work of the MSUAA, in support of the University’s mission to expand delivery of the opportunities of higher education.
Annual MSUAA dues for 2022–23 are $35 and are due July 1, 2022. Please note that dues renewals notices will be emailed to alumni this year but will not be mailed in printed form, as we fulfill Morgan’s commitment to lower expenses and increase the environmental sustainability of our operations campus-wide.
Annual dues payments can be made online at https://alumni.morgan.edu. Or mail your payment to: Morgan State University Alumni House, 1700 E. Cold Spring Lane, Baltimore, MD 21251. Questions? Please email them to the Alumni Relations team at alumni@morgan.edu. Thanks again for your suppor t!
N E C R O L O G Y
Deceased MSU Alumni, Faculty, Staff & Students ‘Gone But Not Forgotten’ Chidi Anonye, ’81 and ’88. . . . . . . . . . 10/8/2021 Clarence W. Arrington, ’73. . . . . . . . . . 11/7/2021 Lt. Col. (Ret.) William A. Baker, ’59. . 11/16/2021 Elinor P.W. Bell, ’65. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3/22/2022 Ethyl F. Berry, ’43. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11/10/2019 Marie Bessicks, ’43. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9/12/2021 Mona Lisa Jones Blackwell, ’75. . . . . . 10/3-2021 Lisa Benton Bowers, ’80. . . . . . . . . . . 11/9/2021 Col. (Ret.) Reese L. Boyd, ’60 (Former Staff). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2/3/2022 The Rev. David W. Briddell, ’52. . . . . . . 2/2/2022 Janet Briscoe, ’74. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1/14/2021 Charles C. Brown, ’54. . . . . . . . . . . . . 9/16/2021 Glenn M. Brown, ’65. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1/14/2021 Laura Wilson Brown, ’55. . . . . . . . . . . 9/17/2021 Pearl A. Brown,’71. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11/9/2021 Yvette D. (“Debbie”) Brown (Staff). . . . 3/27/2022 Gloria M. Graham Carter, ’68. . . . . . . 12/16/2021 Jawill Daily, ’13. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11/17/2021 Eva Jessup Denton, ’73. . . . . . . . . . . 10/21/2021 Richard J. Diehl, ’69 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1/24/2022 Jacqueline Freeman, ’86. . . . . . . . . . . 4/11/2022 Mary Gilder, ’54. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12/12/2021 Margaret A. Grasty, ’68. . . . . . . . . . . . 1/24/2022 Dr. Leah Goldsborough Hasty, ’52. . . . 1/18/2022 Doris V. Hawkes (Former Staff). . . . . . .1/19/2022 Sarah A. Duff Hinton, ’56. . . . . . . . . . . 1/20/2022 Maj. (Ret.) Reginald Holloway, ’82. . . 11/11/2021
Eric T. Howard, ’72 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6/22/2021 David Humphries, Sr., ’71 and ’83. . . 12/12/2020 Jean L. Burr Hyatt, ’76. . . . . . . . . . . . 10/23/2021 Dorothy Jennings, ’78. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3/8/2022 Joyce E. Graham Johnson, ’53. . . . . . . 8/15/2021 Joycelyn Martin Johnson, ’71. . . . . . . . 2/13/2022 Cecelia M. Kelly, ’64. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2/21/2020 Bruce C. Kilgore, ’78. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1/16/2022 Byron T. LaBeach, ’54. . . . . . . . . . . . 12/13/2021 Beverly Lawrence (Staff) . . . . . . . . . . . 9/ 21/2021 Marguerite Maxine Lawson, ’76. . . . . . 10/4/2021 Robert Murphy Matthews, Sr. ’70. . . . . 1/14/2022 Estelle H. McCadden, ’47 . . . . . . . . . . 1/31/2022 Bernice M. McDaniels, ’43. . . . . . . . . 11/19/2021 Sharon E. McKinley, ’80. . . . . . . . . . . . 1/14/2022 Carl L. Minott, ’55. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10/17/2021 William M. Modlin, Sr., ’69. . . . . . . . . . .2/6/2022 Angela D. James Moore, ’79 . . . . . . . . . 1/7/2022 Annette Y. Murison, ’66. . . . . . . . . . . 12/31/2021 Doris Nash, ’75. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12/28/2020 John Nash, ’75. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12/27/17 Dr. Demetria L. Newsome, ’92 and ’03. . 1/2/2020 Margaret C. Ogle, ’46. . . . . . . . . . . . . .3/24/2022 Floyd C. Owens, ’66. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3/22/2022 Josephine A. Pearson (Former Staff). . . 8/29/2021 Dr. Louis L. Randall, ’53 . . . . . . . . . . . 12/9/2021 Barry Ransom (Student) . . . . . . . . . . 10/25/2021 Chervel J. Reavis-Porter, ’11. . . . . . . . .10/8/2021
LaSalle Reynolds, Jr., ’72. . . . . . . . . . . . 9/7/2021 June Waters Rhodes, ’55. . . . . . . . . . . . 4/6/2022 Virginia J. (“Ginger”) Richardson, ’42 (Former Staff) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9/22/2021 Robert G. Riesner (Staff). . . . . . . . . . 10/24/2021 Alma Rimmer, ’72. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9/16/2021 Dr. James F. (“Jimmy”) Rogers, ’55 . . 11/17/2021 Dr. James T. Rucker, ’63. . . . . . . . . . . 9/10/2021 Leonidas (“Lee”) Session, ’73. . . . . . 12/21/2021 Dr. Leonard C. Simmons, ’53. . . . . . . . 1/13/2022 Erma R. Smith, ’53. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3/6/2022 Mabel Smith, ’53. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3/13/2021 Michelle D. Smith-Hayes, ’78. . . . . . . . 11/4/2020 Jonathan S. Stanley, ’82. . . . . . . . . . . 11/1/2021 Lincoln B. Stokes, ’70. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1/5/2022 Vicki D. Stukes, ’92 (Former Staff). . . . 2/22/2022 David C. Tanner, ’77. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9/18/2021 Anne Clark Taylor , ’70. . . . . . . . . . . . . 1/24/2022 Donald Tynes, Sr., ‘’65. . . . . . . . . . . . .3/22/2022 Robert Lee Waker, ’84. . . . . . . . . . . . . 8/15/2021 Ian Wallace (Student). . . . . . . . . . . . . 9/30/2021 Blaine A. White, Esq., ’72 . . . . . . . . . . 9/16/2021 Dr. Aimee A. Wiest, ’11. . . . . . . . . . . . . 1/8/2022 Josef Williams, ’03 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10/10/2021 Russell Wilmore, ’70 and ’78. . . . . . . . . 9/8/2021 Brenda L. Wilson, ’78 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1/6/2022 Laura Wilson-Brown, ’55. . . . . . . . . . . 9/17/2021
*This list includes notices received on or before April 15, 2022. Any notices received after that date will be published in the next issue of Alumni News.
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Alumni News Spring/Summer 2022
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