Volume 68, Issue 1
Tuesday, January 24, 2017 Tuesday . March 21, 2017
Volume 68 . Issue 7
www.southerndigest.com www.southerndigest.com
Remembering Dr. Allen Beloved History Professor passes away at 57
BY BRIA GREMILLION/EDDIE BYNOG
SOUTHERN DIGEST - MANAGING EDITOR / NEW EDITOR
Dr. Troy D. Allen, a professor of AfricanAmerican studies at Southern University-Baton Rouge died Friday, March 17. He was 57. A full professor of the Department of History, Allen taught thousands of students World Civilization, African-American History, Race Relations, and History of Ancient Egypt courses over a span of 20 years. Allen was also an adjunct instructor of African-American studies at LSU. Born in McKeesport, Pennsylvania, Allen earned his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Point Park University in Pittsburgh in 1990. He went on to receive his Master of Arts in Black Studies and Black Community Development from the Ohio State University and a Ph.D. in African-American Studies from Temple University. Allen began working with the Southern University Department of History in 1997. In 2008 Allen’s book, “The Ancient Egyptian Family: Kinship and Social Structure” was published by Routledge Press.
His contributions to academia include scholarly articles on race and African-American studies published in the Journal of Black Studies and the Atlanta Journal Constitution. Dr. Allen’s passing comes as a shock to many. By Friday afternoon, the news had spread to social media with students from all over the country recounting their fondest memories of a beloved and respected professor. Dr. Shawn Comminey is the Associate Chair of the Department of History and a close personal colleague of Dr. Allen. “There was an energy and enthusiasm and passion that he displayed in the classroom, you can easily tell how the students really fed off of him,” said Comminey. “He was a good colleague and a great professor and he’s definitely going to be missed by us all,” finished Comminey. Monday afternoon, students from both Southern University and LSU held a candle light vigil to honor the memory and work that Dr. Allen left so many students with. Junior Business and Marketing major, Armond See ALLEN page 3
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“He believed in you when you didn’t believe in yourself. Dr. Allen was that guy who if you didn’t have nobody else who had faith in you, he had faith in you. And that was just the kind of person he was.” – Myron Smothers LSU alumnus and former NAACP President
“I took your advice bruh. He told me to grow up and write my book, go up for promotion and treat my wife well and I listened to everything he said.” - Roland Mitchell Black Faculty and Staff Caucus President (BFSC)
Current and former students gather outside the Smith-Brown Memorial Student Union on Monday, March 20, to honor the legacy of SU History professor, Dr.Troy Allen, who passed away on Friday, March 17. (Ealiya Toplin/DIGEST)
THE OFFICIAL STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY AND A&M COLLEGE, BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA