HBCU Talladega College receives historic donation of $2.5 million

Talladega College recently received an anonymous and historic donation of $2.5 million in support of student scholarships.

With these funds, the College plans to expand its ‘Angel Award’ scholarship program which will tremendously impact the lives of current and incoming students.

“This donation is the first of many,” said Dr. Lisa Long, acting president of Talladega College. “Our mission is to equip our graduates for the global community through academic excellence, moral values, community service, and professional development.”

“These funds will enable us to continue our path of success and our unwavering journey to remain an institution of excellence,” she added.

In August, the College received an anonymous donation of $250,000 which was used to create the ‘Angel Award.’ This scholarship has provided financial assistance to nearly 100 students who were facing economic struggles.

According to Long, she is not certain about the identity of the College’s ‘angel in disguise,’ but she is exceedingly grateful for their generosity.

“Our College’s most important asset is our people,” said Long. “This donation is yet another validation that we're on the right track with facilitating the needs of our students.”

Among many other demonstrations of generosity and merits, the College recently cleared $925,666 in debt for students with balances for the terms of Spring 2020 through Summer 2021, and was recently ranked in the top 100 most affordable public administration colleges.

UNCF to Award $1.2 Million to four HBCUs

UNCF (United Negro College Fund) announces the awarding of Liberal Arts Innovation Grants to four institutions participating in the UNCF Career Pathways Initiative (CPI). The initial investment from UNCF provides up to $300,000 to each institution to create a campus-based or virtual liberal arts innovation center that focuses on merging the technical discipline of STEM, healthcare, education, and finance into the liberal arts. The development of these Liberal Arts Innovation Centers (LAIC) will enable the institution to expand the research, provide training and development opportunities to faculty and staff and to incubate and test approaches to implementing embedding technical disciplines into the liberal arts.

STEM Liberal Arts Innovation Center

Fayetteville State University in Fayetteville, North Carolina, will foster collaboration with industry and intuitional partners; promote interdisciplinary instructional strategies across STEM and liberal arts disciplines; and drive improved liberal arts student development of digital literacy skills and improved STEM student development of liberal arts/human-centered skills.

Healthcare Liberal Arts Innovation Center

UNCF-member institution Voorhees College in Denmark, South Carolina, will proactively identify the intersections and highlight the critical impact that liberal arts and multidisciplinary studies theory and practice have on healthcare access and equity for minority and rural populations. Through their center, Voorhees will offer online certificate programs such as Abuse Prevention and Education Certification, HIV Prevention Counselor I, SC Community Health Worker Certification, etc.

Education Liberal Arts Innovation Center

Talladega College in Talladega, Alabama, a UNCF member-institution, will institute an interactive professional learning process for faculty, which will lead to increased student learning and retention. Professors will study student responses to active learning strategies during technology-enhanced lessons using a variety of techniques to include training models focusing on critical‐thinking, communication, and problem‐solving skills.

Finance Liberal Arts Innovation Center

Dillard University in New Orleans, Louisiana, which is also a UNCF member-institution, will introduce a new learning model, Humantics, that blends technical and social skills to develop higher-order mental skills in students that will prepare them to effectively function in and move between jobs and tasks. Professors at Dillard will embed lessons on conflict negotiation and resolution, verbal and written communication, content creation, empathy, planning, teaching and leadership into their courses while also teaching students how to fully utilize programs necessary for data analytics.

We’re extremely excited to begin the work that will result in innovations from each of our participating institutions to advance the knowledge and skillsets of their students and their transition from post-secondary education to careers in their chosen fields,” said Dr. Samaad Wes Keys, strategist for UNCF’s Institute for Capacity Building. “Higher education has forever been a foundation for innovative thought, entrepreneurial action and the building of best practices. The LAICs are UNCF’s response to the liberal arts community that will strengthen the influence that liberal arts have on other professions and career paths. We look forward to working together with these institutions to build their capacity to provide mentorship, solutions-based career pathways, and experiential learning to their students.”

“The economic mobility for students who have a base in a liberal arts education is evident. UNCF is eager to cross-pollinate liberal arts pedagogy into professions that will provide the all-encompassing skill sets that 21st-century employers value,” said Dr. Michael L. Lomax, UNCF president and CEO. “These critical skills that can fuel students’ careers forward with higher earning potential. Thank you to the Lilly Endowment for entrusting UNCF with this very important initiative.”

Since their inception, liberal arts institutions have provided a broad-based education that adequately prepares students for a wide range of professions.

The UNCF CPI, funded by the Lilly Endowment, Inc., is a three-pronged comprehensive approach to delivering career pathways for students: guided pathways, curricular enhancements, and integrated co-curricular engagement. The goal of the CPI is to help students find meaningful employment in their desired career fields. Awarded to UNCF in 2015, the $50 million Lilly Endowment gift marked the second largest gift in UNCF history. Currently, 24 HBCUs or predominantly black institutions actively participate in the UNCF CPI.

Learn more about CPI, visit UNCF.org/cpi

No mentions of civil rights, voting rights, or education on updated Trump White House site.

By George L. Cook III African American Reports

Donald Trump has made many statements about what he would do for African Americans if elected. He said that he would do such an excellent job of making the lives of African Americans better that in four years they would vote for him in record numbers. He even staged a dog, and pony shows with the likes of Ray Lewis, Steve Harvey, and Martin Luther King III to show how much he cared them. He promised many things, but the updated White House website reflects none of that.

There are no mentions of civil rights, voting rights, housing, or education under the issues tab. This is what comes up today on 01/22/2017:

Not that some of those issues are not important to the country as a whole, but it's very telling that the civil rights tab that used to be there has been moved. That shows that this issue is not important to Trump and that he has and only will pay lip service to it.

When it comes to housing not being mentioned Trump's appointment of Ben Carson as leader of HUD lets us know all that we need to know about how important Trump feels this issue is.

Also an ominous sign for African Americans is where Trump promises to stand up for our law enforcement community. What does he mean by that? He has already nominated a man to be U.S. Attorney General who is no fan federal investigations in police forces across the nation. He has also spoken in favor of the "policing" policy known as stop & frisk which catches very few criminals and only works to even further alienate the police from the community. Will Trump support bad cops such as Micheal Slager who shot an unarmed man to death as he ran away from him?

The updated site also does not mention of education at all which should be a major issue to all regardless of race. That's not on the site because then Trump would have to show the cuts he plans to make to education that would overwhelmingly affect black and brown students as well as hurt black colleges like Talladega College that marched in Trump's inaugural parade.

As for voting rights I didn't expect anything to be there because if many of these bogus voting laws had been struck down, you can make an argument that Trump would not be president. Why allow people to vote who would not enable you to remain in power four years from now?

Steve Harvey and Armstrong Williams have asked black people to wait and see what Trump does. Well if the updated website is any indication he is not going to do much.

By George L. Cook III African American Reports

Fox News viewers raise over $500,000 for Talladega College marching band to go to Trump inauguration

Talladega College's marching band was able to raise over $500,000 to go to Donald Trump's inauguration from donations by Fox News viewers. Conservatives flocked to the band's GoFundMe page after school's president appeared on "The O'Reilly Factor" to beg for the money. Many gave not to support Talladega College but to spite those who didn't want the band to go. I hope they enjoy the money for now but hopefully someone will remind them "that all money ain't good money." George L. Cook III African American Reports.

Donations on a GoFundMe page set up to cover Talladega College's Marching Tornadoes band expenses for the Trump inaugural parade trip went over $500,000 this weekend.

The fund, which originally set a goal of $75,000, stood at $580,000 as of early Tuesday morning ( 01/17/2017).

More than $300,000 in donations poured in last Friday, after Talladega College President Billy Hawkins appeared on Fox News' "The O'Reilly Factor" last Thursday night.

Approximately 3 million viewers tune into O'Reilly each night, making it one of the top rated cable shows on American television, according to Media Life Magazine. The donations continued through the weekend.

In a Friday news conference, Hawkins called the response "probably the single-greatest fundraising effort" for the school. Almost 10,000 donors have contributed on the GoFundMe page, many of the donations coming in relatively small amounts of $10, $20, $50 and $100.

Read more: Talladega College band donations top $500,000 after O'Reilly appearance

WHY TALLADEGA COLLEGE WILL REGRET MARCHING IN TRUMP'S INAUGURATION

Talladega College explains why its marching band will perform at Trump inaguration

Talladega College president Billy Hawkins has decided that the college's marching band will participate in the inauguration parade for Donald Trump making it the only HBCU to do so. While I'm sure many of us can think of several reasons that the school should not participate, Talladega has put out the following press release to explain why their band will be participating:

TalladegaPressRelease Revised01.05.17 by George L. Cook III on Scribd

Talladega College marching band will perform at Trump inauguration

The Talladega Marching Tornadoes will participate in the 58th Presidential Inaugural Parade, Talladega College President Billy Hawkins announced Thursday. The decision follows several days of controversy after the historically black college initially accepted an invitation to perform, with critics saying the move amounts to support for President-elect Donald Trump -- who made some comments during the presidential campaign that were widely viewed as disparaging to people of color and immigrants.[SOURCE: CNN]

Talladega College: We’ve not Committed to Trump Inauguration

Talladega College ignited controversy on Friday afternoon when its marching band was included on a list of 40 organizations purportedly slated to perform in President-elect’s Donald Trump’s Inaugural Parade on January 20. The list was released by Trump’s Presidential Inaugural Committee (PIC).

As of early Tuesday afternoon, however, Talladega officials said there has not been an official decision from the president’s office on whether Talladega’s Marching Tornadoes will be performing at the inauguration, contradicting the PIC’s assertions.

“From Trump’s inaugural committee, via their press release, we are listed as one of the schools in attendance, but the official word that I’m receiving from the president is that a decision has not been made as to whether we would attend or not,” a Talladega representative said. An email to the PIC was not returned.

Read more: Talladega College: We’ve not Committed to Trump Inauguration

HBCU marching band agrees to participate in Trump's inauguration, sparks controversy

The marching band of Alabama's oldest private, historically black liberal arts college has accepted an invitation to perform at President-elect Donald Trump's inaugural parade, organizers said.

Talladega College's band will march at Trump's inauguration as other historically black schools such as Howard University, which performed at President Barack Obama's first inaugural parade, said they won't be marching in the Jan. 20 event.

"We were a bit horrified to hear of the invitation," said Shirley Ferrill of Fairfield, Alabama, a member of Talladega's Class of 1974.

"I don't want my alma mater to give the appearance of supporting him," Ferrill said of Trump on Monday. "Ignore, decline or whatever, but please don't send our band out in our name to do that."

The move has lit up Talladega College's social media sites with a sharp debate about the band's decision to participate in the parade. Some people voiced strong opposition, while others support the band's participation.

"After how black people were treated at Trump's rallies, you're going to go and shuck and jive down Pennsylvania Avenue? For what?" Seinya SamForay said in an interview. "What they did is a slap in the face to other black universities."

SamForay, of Chicago, was among dozens of people commenting on the school's social media sites.

The Presidential Inaugural Committee announced Friday that the Talladega College Marching Tornadoes was among 40 groups, including high school bands and military organizations, scheduled to perform in the parade. Some members of the Marist College band in upstate New York, also scheduled to perform at the inauguration, say they won't participate, a school spokesman said Monday.

[SOURCE]