Howard University granted $2 million to digitize its Black Press Archives

By Sheyla Fairley

Howard University, Washington, DC, was awarded a $2 million grant from the Jonathan Logan Family Foundation, which supports organizations that advance social justice by promoting investigative journalism, documentary film and arts & culture, to digitize its archive of thousands of Black newspapers.

According to a release, Howard’s Black Press Archives includes “2,847 microfilm reels of newspapers, totaling over 100,000 individual issues of publications from Black newspapers in America, Africa and other nations.”

“We were only getting a very one-sided version of our history,” she said. “Newspapers cataloged the day-to-day in our society to help us understand the politics of our society, the culture of our society,” said Nikole Hannah-Jones, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and founder of the Center for Journalism and Democracy at Howard. “The fuller version of all that can be found within the Black archives at Howard. So, it’s extremely exciting that this money is going to help preserve this precious archive, but also make it accessible to millions of people across the world.”

Partnership between Spelman College and SMASH

By Sheyla Fairley

As stated in an article, SMASH, a STEM racial justice nonprofit focused on addressing inequities in education, and Spelman College, Atlanta, GA, announced a partnership to launch a program that will offer programming, mentorship, and college counseling to “young women of color interested in academic and professional careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.”

“As a proud Spelman College Alumna and graduate of the Dual-Degree Engineering Program from Georgia Tech, I know the power of being immersed in Black excellence for a young Black woman, particularly in STEM, and it is a privilege to partner with the country’s leading producer of Black women who complete Ph.D.s in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM),” explains Danielle Rose, CEO of SMASH. “As we see a worsening racial divide in terms of education quality and access across the U.S., creating spaces that prioritize identity, community impact and culturally relevant coursework are critical to systemically diversifying the STEM fields.”

Read the full article, here.

NC Central to launch as USTA Community Hub

By Sheyla Fairley

The United States Tennis Association (USTA) has offered funding grants to schools to turn collegiate tennis facilities into community hubs as part of an effort to promote the sport of college tennis.

According to an article, the program aims to “embed college tennis into the fabric of the game at a local level, while also establishing colleges as leaders in the space.” Of the schools that received grants from USTA, North Carolina Central University, Durham, NC, was the first to start programming with its men’s program led by coach D. Curtis Lawson.

“I like being a pioneer. I like being kind of cutting edge,” said Lawson. “And so the hub initiative, knowing that we’ve got good partnerships within the community… the respect that we’ve been able to garner for what we’re trying to do and represent has availed a lot of opportunities that otherwise may not have been offered up to us.”

For more information, read the full article here.

Texas HBCU to allow students to bring in family

By Sheyla Fairley

By fall 2022, Paul Quinn College, Dallas, TX, is permitting students who have a 3.0 grade-point average and who qualify for federal financial aid to select two family members or friends to attend college with them.

As stated in an article, the goal of the new policy is to “improve a family’s financial footing and alleviate the pressure of first-generation college student”

“Bringing people with you who you know makes college a family affair,” said Sara Goldrick-Rab, a professor at Temple University in Philadelphia, PA. “Which, to be honest with you, I think would particularly resonate with African American families who are very close-knit. That is wicked smart.”

For more details, read the full article here.

SC State joins on collaboration to launch cybersecurity apprenticeship program

By Sheyla Fairley

According to an article, South Carolina State University, Orangeburg, SC, has teamed up with Urban Institute to “launch a new degree-based apprenticeship program in cybersecurity” which is also in collaboration with ISHPI Information Technologies Inc., Integer Technologies LLC, and the SC HBCU consortium.

Supported with technical assistance from Urban’s Apprenticeship Modernization and Expansion Fund contract from the U.S. Department of Labor, the apprenticeship program will “create a pathway to high-quality and rewarding careers in cybersecurity and IT for HBCU students and help meet employer demand for positions in these fields in South Carolina and nationally.”

“Students of color face systemic barriers to entering the cybersecurity field,” said Diana Elliott, principal research associate at the Urban Institute. “This innovative degree-based registered apprenticeship program at HBCUs will help develop highly skilled workers and launch successful, well-paying careers in a field with great demand for talent.”