Four Black Scholars Taking on New Faculty Roles

Raymond Wise was appointed director of the African American Choral Ensemble at the African American Arts Institute of Indiana University in Bloomington. He will also serve as a visiting professor in African American and African diaspora students in the College of Arts and Sciences.

Dr. Wise has recorded 22 albums and has written more than 600 musical compositions. He is a graduate of Dennison University in Granville, Ohio, and holds a master’s degree and a doctorate in music education from Ohio State University.

Omiunota Ukpokodu was promoted to full professor of curriculum and instruction in the School of Education at the University of Missouri at Kansas City. She has been on the faculty at the university since 1998. Previously, she taught at Northwest Missouri State University in Maryville.

A native of Nigeria, Professor Ukpokodu holds a bachelor’s degree, two master’s degrees, and a doctorate in educational curriculum and instruction, all from the University of Kansas.

Joseph Mwantuali was promoted to full professor of French at Hamilton College in Clinton, New York. He has been on the Hamilton faculty since 1995.

Professor Mwantuali holds bachelor’s and master’s degree from the University of Zaire. He holds a second master’s degree from the University of Southern New Hampshire and a Ph.D. in French from Pennsylvania State University.

Reginald Bess is the new chair of the department of English and foreign languages at Claflin University in Orangeburg, South Carolina. He was chair of the division of general studies at Morris College in Sumter, South Carolina.

Dr. Bess holds master’s degrees from West Virginia State University, Grambling State University, and Louisiana Tech University. He earned a Ph.D. in medieval German studies at Ohio State University.

Related Articles

Leave a Reply

Get the JBHE Weekly Bulletin

Receive our weekly email newsletter delivered to your inbox

Latest News

Higher Education Gifts or Grants of Interest to African Americans

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

The University of New Mexico Partners With the University of the West Indies

The University of New Mexico and the University of the West Indies Five Island Campus, Antigua and Barbuda, recently created a new partnership designed to expand immersion opportunities for students at both institutions.

The Huge Racial Gap in College Completion Rates

According to a new report from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, the percentage of students who began college in the fall of 2018 and earned a credential within six years rose to 61.1 percent. For Black students who enrolled in 2018, 43.8 percent had earned a degree or other credential within six years. This is more than 17 percentage points below the overall rate. And the racial gap has increased in recent years.

American-Born Layli Maparyan Appointed President of the University of Liberia

Dr. Maparyan, a distinguished academic and prolific scholar, had been serving as the executive director of the Wellesley Centers for Women and a professor of African Studies at Wellesley College in Massachusetts.

Featured Jobs