Monthly Archives: July 2018

Ernest J. Grant Will Be the First Man to Lead the American Nurses Association

Dr. Grant is an internationally recognized burn care and fire safety expert and oversees the nationally acclaimed North Carolina Jaycee Burn Center at the University of North Carolina Hospitals in Chapel Hill. He also teaches at the university's School of Nursing.

Two African American Faculty Members to Serve as Chief Diversity Officers

Ronnie A. Dunn, an associate professor of urban affairs at Cleveland State University, and Keith A. Alford, an associate professor in the School of Social Work at Syracuse University in New York, will both be serving as their university's chief diversity officers.

U.S. Navy Says “All Aboard” to Historically Black Colleges and Universities

The United States Navy is holding a Naval Opportunity Awareness Workshop at Clark Atlanta in late August. The event will serve as a recruitment tool to get more HBCU faculty involved in naval-relevant scientific research - and to attract students to internships.

M. Shawn Copeland Honored for a Lifetime of Distinguished Theological Achievement

M. Shawn Copeland, professor of theology at Boston College, received the John Courtney Murray Award from the Catholic Theological Society of America. She is the first African American to receive the award.

Florida A&M University to Expand Its IGNITE Transfer Program

Under the program, students at seven community colleges can transfer to four-year programs at Florida A&M University to complete their bachelor's degrees in two years. Now Florida A&M is adding three additional two-year colleges as partners in the program.

Ten African Americans Who Have Been Named to Administrative Posts in Higher Education

Here is this week’s roundup of African Americans who have been appointed to new administrative positions at colleges and universities throughout the United States.

Meharry Medical College Lays Off 55 Employees

Recently, Meharry announced that it was laying off 55 employees. The layoffs were in executive and administrative ranks and did not include faculty. The medical school also stated that the layoffs would not affect the operations of the college's teaching facility, Nashville General Hospital.

In Memoriam: Gina Carter-Simmers, 1968-2018

Gina Carter-Simmers, the general manager of the public radio station operated by Jackson State University in Mississippi, died late last month after a two-year battle with breast cancer. After her diagnosis of triple-negative breast cancer, Carter-Simmers became a staunch advocate for breast cancer survivors.

Homeland Security & Emergency Management Studies: Where Are the HBCUs?

A well-trained, culturally diverse workforce, representing the breadth of racial and ethnic diversity, is needed to plan for, then deal with disasters and provide assistance after they occur.

Online Articles That May Be of Interest to JBHE Readers

Each week, JBHE will provide links to online articles that may be of interest to our readers. Here are this week’s selections.

Recent Books of Interest to African American Scholars

The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education regularly publishes a list of new books that may be of interest to our readers. The books included are on a wide variety of subjects and present many different points of view.

Building That Honored a Leader of the Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment to Be Renamed

The building, named for former U.S. Surgeon General Thomas Parren, is home to many of the programs of the Graduate School of Public Health at the University of Pittsburgh.

Lumina Foundation Awards Racial Justice and Equity Grants to 19 Colleges and Universities

The Lumina Foundation of Indianapolis has announced that 19 colleges and universities will each receive grants ranging from $25,000 to $50,000 for efforts to promote racial justice and equity on campus.

Cornell University Task Force Makes Recommendations to Improve Campus Climate

After a series of race-related incidents on campus last fall, Cornell University President Martha E. Pollack formed the President's Task Force on Campus Climate. The task force has issued three reports on campus experience, regulation of speech and harassment, and campus response.

New Scholarship at Vanderbilt University Honors Rev. James Lawson

Rev. James M. Lawson Jr. was a leading figure in the civil rights movement and an associate of Martin Luther King Jr. The new scholarships will be given to students from underrepresented groups who have shown a commitment to civil rights and social justice.

The First African American Poet Laureate of the State of North Carolina

Jaki Shelton Green, an instructor at the Center for Documentary Studies at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, was named the ninth poet laureate of the state of North Carolina. She is the third woman and the first African American to hold the position.

Esther Jones Will Be the Inaugural Dean of the Faculty at Clark University

Dr. Jones joined the faculty at Clark University in Worcester, Massachusetts, in 2009 and held the E. Franklin Frazier Chair of African American Literature. She was also the inaugural director of the Africana studies program at the university.

Higher Education Grants or Gifts 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.

Racial Stereotypes Influence Teacher Perceptions of Parental Involvement in Children’s Education

A new study finds that school teachers believe that mothers and fathers of immigrant or minority students are less involved in their children's education. The authors believe that such perspectives hamper the academic trajectory of those students.

Jaffus Hardrick to Lead Florida Memorial University in Miami Gardens

Dr. Hardrick will be the third person to serve as interim president of Florida Memorial University since August 2017 when Roslyn Artis left to become president of Benedict College in South Carolina.

University of Massachusetts Study Examines Workforce Diversity in Silicon Valley Firms

The report found that on average, Black men make up less than 1.5 percent of employees in professional, managerial, and executive posts. Black women are rare in all professional, management and executive jobs. There are 10 firms with no Black women at all.

Gracie Lawson-Borders to Lead the Association of Schools of Journalism and Mass Communications

Gracie Lawson-Borders, dean of the School of Communication at Howard University in Washington, D.C., was appointed vice president of the Association of Journalism and Mass Communications. She will become president-elect in 2019 and president of the organization in 2020.

America’s Churches Are Becoming More Racially Integrated, But Have a Long Way to Go

A study by scholars at Baylor University and North Park University, finds that the percentage of multiracial church congregations in the United States nearly doubled between 1998 and 2012. Yet, one third of all congregations still were composed of worshipers from a single race or ethnic group.

The First Black Woman to Lead the American Medical Association

Patrice Harris, a practicing psychiatrist and an adjunct assistant professor in the department of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Emory University in Atlanta, was chosen as president-elect of the American Medical Association. In June 2019, she will become the first Black woman to lead the organization.

Two African American Men Named Athletic Director at Major Universities

Terrance J. Turney was appointed director of athletics at Fresno State University in California and Damon Evans was named director of athletics at the University of Maryland, College Park.

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