President’s Message

PRESIDENT’S OFFICE

Weathering the Storm, Remaining Undaunted

Before the storms of COVID19 battered our lives, I had the great pleasure of attending the Broadway play, “To Kill a Mockingbird” at the Shubert Theater in New York City. Spelman alumna LaTanya Jackson was playing the role of Calpurnia, the maid, who in the book is mostly a sturdy, silent presence. On stage, however, she shares her interior life to great dramatic effect, becoming the conscience of the play and its moral compass. LaTanya is brilliant in the role. I watched her in that role twice, just as I twice watched her play Mrs. Walter Younger in “A Raisin in the Sun” with the same sense of moral clarity and theatrical brilliance.

This season, we celebrate LaTanya Richardson Jackson and her spouse, Samuel L. Jackson, by naming the new performing arts center in the Rockefeller Fine Arts Building for the talented couple. We take this opportunity, as well, to thank LaTanya for the generous gift – the largest from any Spelman alumna – to renovate the Rockefeller Fine Arts Building.

LaTanya has been connected to Spelman College since she was 14 years old. When she came to the College as an undergraduate, she and Sam met on the stage of the Baldwin Burrows Theatre, where they honed their considerable gifts to become world-class artists. With a lead gift from the Hobson/ Lucas Foundation, Bank of America and David Rockefeller Jr., in addition to the Jacksons’ gift, the College will create the LaTanya Richardson Jackson and Samuel L. Jackson Performing Arts Center.

The gift from LaTanya and Sam is one of HOW MANY THOUSANDS of donors who generously gave to our Spelman Ascends campaign, which soared past its $250 million, a seven-year goal in just four years. Together, we have wrought miracles. We are especially grateful to our trustees who formed Spelman Strong, chaired by trustee Susan Dunn and alumna trustee Bonnie Carter. Spelman Strong raised more than $5 million in annual fund dollars. Galvanized by a $2 million challenge from trustee Ronda Stryker, the effort was steered by Spelman Strong alumnae trustees, Gena Ashe, Carmen Harris, Bonnie Carter, Susan Dunn, Lovette Russell and Pauletta Washington.

We celebrate these milestones of the largest alumna gift, the support of our alumnae for a record-breaking annual fund and the largest capital campaign in the College’s history as we mark our 140th anniversary of Black excellence. Happy anniversary Spelman. Despite the storms that have churned all around us, we have linked arms as a community to remain undaunted.

Mary Schmidt Campbell, Ph.D. President, Spelman College