SSU's Babb return key in East's HBCU Bowl win

ATLANTA, Georgia - A happy homecoming wasn't the only return for Justin Babb at the HBCU All-Star Bowl. Atlanta, GA (Sports Network) - A happy homecoming wasn't the only return for Justin Babb at the HBCU All-Star Bowl.

Babb's 100-yard return of a failed field-goal attempt fueled the East All- Stars to a 23-13 victory over the West All-Stars on Saturday. Babb, a senior from Savannah State, was playing the all-star game in his hometown of Atlanta. He scored with nine seconds left in the third quarter to push the East's lead to 20-10.

"The coaches put me in the best position to be successful and I did that," Babb said. "I've never done it (a touchdown return) on an attempted field goal. Once I caught the ball, I saw all my blue jerseys escort me down the field. They did great blocking for me. So I just did what I can."



READ MORE

Delaware State's Sessoms to Be President of UDC

'Change Agent' To Lead UDC

An Ivy League-educated physicist who has run a historically black state university for the past five years will be the next president of the University of the District of Columbia, a choice that school officials said signals dramatic change at the public institution.

UDC's trustees announced yesterday that Allen Sessoms will become president Sept. 1. Sessoms, president of Delaware State University, will arrive as the long-troubled school is struggling to redefine itself.

UDC is moving forward with plans to create a community college within its program, but some city leaders have said that it isn't strong enough to take on such a major initiative. James Dyke, trustees chairman, said Sessoms will show that UDC can be both a strong community college and university.

CONTINUE READING, CLICK BLOG TITLE.

Lawsuit doesn't spur North Carolina A&T students to rethink racing

Photo: Mauricia Grant, a former NASCAR official, filed a $225 million discrimination lawsuit against NASCAR last week alleging racial and sexual discrimination and wrongful termination (USPresswire, Mike Basso).

BROOKLYN, MI - Joshua Lewis still aspires to obtain a job in NASCAR. Yes, the 20-year-old in North Carolina A&T 's motorsports program has heard about this week's lawsuit that alleges racist and sexist allegations against NASCAR. No, he won't abandon his goal. Instead the lawsuit motivates him to help change the stock-car racing series. "I want to be one to bring about more diversity," he said.

Other classmates echoed his comments. Even Mauricia Grant, the woman who cites racial, sexual and gender discrimination in her suit against NASCAR, says she would recommend that minorities be a part of the sport. "We have to work together to change the racist culture and, anyone who has an interest in motorsports, they should be allowed to work in that environment without having to deal with racism or sexism or racially ignorant people," Grant said this week.

CONTINUE READING, CLICK BLOG TITLE.

VIEW ENTIRE MAURICIA GRANT DISCRIMINATION LAWSUIT

In Grant's lawsuit, the 32 year old former NASCAR Official cites 23 specific incidents of sexual discrimination and 34 specific incidents of racial or gender discrimination. NASCAR officials Tim Knox and Bud Moore were placed on indefinite administrative leave Friday and are accused of exposing their genitals to Mauricia Grant.

She also is suing for wrongful termination after being fired from her job as a technical inspector responsible for certifying cars in the Nationwide Series. She was employed from January 2006 to October 2007, when NASCAR fired her citing poor work performance. Grant suit claims the termination was done in retaliation for filing complaints for workplace discrimination and sexual harassment.

NASCAR doesn't stand a chance to win this suit with 57 possible breaches of federal law and a well established culture of discrimination that is of no secret to the world. Look for Ms. Grant to prevail in this forthcoming battle that won't make it to the Court.

Grant's Bio

• Hired by NASCAR in January 2005, becoming NASCAR's first African-American female official.


• Successfully graduated from the Los Angeles Urban League Automotive Training Center (ATC) in 2004 with honors.


• Graduated from Stony Brook University.


• Born in The Bronx, New York in Eastchester Projects; raised by a single parent mother of four.

South Carolina State University Trustees Selects New President

Photo: Tallahassee, Florida native George Everett Cooper, Ph.D., earned his Bachelor’s degree, Florida A&M University; master’s degree, Tuskegee University; doctorate, University of Illinois, Urbana. Dr. Cooper currently serves as the deputy administrator for Science and Education Resources Development at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, D.C.

South Carolina State University's Board of Trustees voted unanimously Friday to hire George Cooper as the school's next president. Cooper, deputy administrator for Science and Education Resources Development at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, was selected from among three finalists for the top post at the state's only public historically black university. Cooper has worked in various positions for the Department of Agriculture since 1991.

The board discussed the finalists for about 90 minutes Friday in a closed-door session at a retreat in Charleston. "There was lots of discussion" among board members about the finalists, "but Cooper was the clear front-runner," Chairman Maurice Washington said.

"I am honored to be selected as the 10th President of S.C. State University," Cooper said in a news release from the school Friday. "I look forward to working with the Board of Trustees, administration, faculty, staff, students, alumni, and stakeholders as we together movetowards academic excellence. It is my intent to establish a creative and participatory campus environment as we embark on defining S.C. State's future."

CONTINUE READING, CLICK BLOG TITLE.

THE COOPER PROFILE

At the USDA: Coordinates $140 million in grants in education, research and extension for land-grant universities and other institutions; held several positions at the Department of Agriculture since 1991.

Previous career: Professor of animal science, Alabama A&M University, Normal, Ala., where he taught graduate students and supervised graduate research in animal science; executive assistant to the president of Alabama A&M, 1988-89; vice president for academic affairs, 1985-88; taught and was a dean at Tuskegee University in Alabama, 1978-85.

Education: Bachelor’s degree in animal husbandry, Florida A&M University; master’s degree animal science, Tuskegee University; doctorate, animal nutrition, University of Illinois, Urbana. Dr. Cooper graduated from Tallahassee's Lincoln High School and his parents were educators in Leon County (Florida) schools.

Family: Wife, Diane Delois Shaw; children, Nikki Angela Cooper, Carey Allison Cooper. Dr. Cooper is the oldest of three boys.

Hobbies: Photography, cooking, golf, reading and genealogy.

Community: Vice-chairman of the deacons board and Sunday School teacher, People’s Community Baptist Church, Silver Spring, MD.

Chief Justice of U.S. Supreme Court to visit NCCU

Photo: The United States Supreme Court Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr., will be the judge on the bench at NCCU 2009 moot court competition. Last year, preLaw Magazine named North Carolina Central University Law School "the nation's best value among law schools."

DURHAM - The N.C. Central University law students who compete in the finals of next year's moot court competition have a little extra reason to be nervous: The judge on the bench will be John G. Roberts, Jr., chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court.

Roberts will be on campus for a day next April at the behest of Raymond Pierce, dean of NCCU's law school. Pierce met Roberts at a recent judicial conference and gave the hard sell, regurgitating fact after fact about the school, which has been lauded in recent years for affordability and stellar passage rates on the state bar exam.

Pierce asked him to come and speak at the school. "He said he doesn't do speeches but would judge a moot court competition," Pierce said Friday.

CONTINUE READING, CLICK BLOG TITLE.

Southern University names new chancellor

Dr. Kofi Lomotey holds a Ph.D. and Master's degree from Stanford University in Educational Administration and Policy Analysis, a M.Ed. from Cleveland State University in Curriculum and Instruction and a bachelor’s degree from Oberlin College in Economics. He previously served as President of Fort Valley State University, Senior Vice President, Provost and Professor of Education at Medgar Evers College (CUNY) and as a member of the faculties at Louisiana State University and the State University of New York (Buffalo).

Southern University picked a new chancellor Saturday. Southern University System President Ralph Slaughter and the Board of Supervisors chose Kofi Lomotey, 57, of Fisk University in Tennessee out of three finalists. Lomotey was picked on a 9-6 vote at the end of a five-hour meeting that included final interviews on campus.

Those board members voting in opposition said they wanted more time to deliberate after interviewing the three for the first time Saturday. The Fisk executive vice president and provost was chosen over Southern University at Shreveport Chancellor Ray Belton and Alcorn State University Vice President for Academic Affairs Napoleon Moses.

Lomotey will lead Southern’s main campus in Baton Rouge with an enrollment of about 8,000 students starting July 1 after his contract is worked out. “I’m attracted to the tremendous potential...

CONTINUE READING, CLICK BLOG TITLE.

Howard University names Sidney Ribeau president

Photo: Dr. Sidney Ribeau (Courtesy Toledo Blade)

Howard University named the head of Bowling Green State University, Sidney Ribeau, as its 16th president Wednesday after an eight-month search, replacing the embattled Patrick Swygert.

Ribeau, who has led the 21,000-student Ohio university since 1995, will take over Aug. 1. A professor of communication, he previously was vice president for academic affairs at California Polytechnic State University in Pomona.

"I am excited by the opportunity to serve this historic institution," Ribeau said of the 10,000-student university. "Howard is a remarkable university, a truly international university and one that has made significant contributions not only in this country but around the world, training principally African-Americans for global leadership roles in America and the world."

Former Secretary of State Colin Powell, who co-chaired the search committee with Time Warner Inc. Chairman Richard Parsons, stressed Ribeau's reputation for communication.

CONTINUE READING, CLICK BLOG TITLE.

A clarion call from Bennett College new president

Photo: Dr. Julianne Malveaux is an economist, author and commentator, and the Founder & Thought Leader of Last Word Productions, Inc, a multimedia production company. She is also currently serving as the 15th President of Bennett College for Women, Greensboro, N.C.

GREENSBORO, N.C. — Julianne Malveaux has but one major goal for Bennett College for Women: that it become an oasis for education.

"The mantra must be 'Education or extinction,' " she said.

Malveaux was installed as the college's 15th president in a Saturday-afternoon ceremony filled with dignitaries, scholars and celebrities.

Her speech: "Belle: A Clarion Call for Excellence and Equality — Right Here! Right Now!"

Her pledge: Bennett College will move from "good to great."

In her inaugural address, Malveaux said it is important that Bennett College answer the call to nurture the intellect, education and academic achievements of its students.

"If we do not educate this population, we fail," she said.

Malveaux, who has a doctorate in economics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, discussed the importance of embracing global studies now that the American economy is on the brink of recession.

"We have to prepare our students for a global world," she said.

CONTINUE READING, CLICK BLOG TITLE.

Author and syndicated columnist Dr. Julianne Malveaux, Ph.D, gives an inspiring talk on the contributions of W.E.B. DuBois and other African-American scholars in this event marking UCSD's celebration of Black History Month. Dr. Malveaux received her BA and MA degrees in economics from Boston College in three years, and earned a Ph.D in economics from The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). She holds honorary degrees from Benedict College, Sojourner-Douglass College and the University of the District of Columbia.

Spelman, Black Schools Hit by Budget Ax as Bush Erases Aid Gain

(Bloomberg)--When it comes to America's more than 100 historically black colleges, the Bush administration is giving with one hand and taking back with the other.

President George W. Bush signed a law in September adding $85 million to the annual support of $238.1 million for Spelman College, Grambling State University in Louisiana and the other schools, saying it would help low-income Americans earn degrees and prepare them to compete for U.S. jobs. The Bush administration's new budget cuts aid to the schools by the same amount, angering Democrats who helped provide the money.

CONTINUE READING THIS IMPORTANT ARTICLE BY CLICKING ON BLOG TITLE.

Many historically black schools may face Title IX issue

The College Sports Council will release a study Wednesday that says 72 of 74 historically black colleges and universities do not meet the proportionality standard of Title IX, the law that bans sex discrimination at schools receiving federal funds. The council, an advocacy group for men's sports, counted only co-ed historically black colleges with athletic departments. Allen University and Morris College, both in South Carolina, are proportional, the study says.

"We're not asking for punishment; we're pointing out how hard it is for HBCUs to comply with proportionality," council Chairman Eric Pearson says. He argues HBCUs are faced with the prospect of cutting men's teams at a time when they are trying to attract and retain male students.

CONTINUE READING THIS ARTICLE BY CLICKING ON BLOG TITLE.

The Legend of the Hill