Hampton University to Erase Outstanding Student Balances for the Spring 2022 Semester

Recognizing that many Hampton University students and their families have continued to experience financial hardships and have suffered due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. William R. Harvey, Hampton University President, has announced there will be no increase in tuition, fees, room and board for the 2022-2023 academic year. In addition, all outstanding student account balances for the Spring 2022 semester will be erased.

“In keeping with the University’s efforts to help our students, there will be no increase in tuition, fees, room and board for the 2022-2023 academic year,” said Dr Harvey. “In addition, on behalf of the University, I am pleased to announce that all outstanding balances for the Spring 2022 semester will be erased. We hope that this action will continue to assist our students and their families at our Home by the Sea.”

This is the latest example of Hampton University assisting its student body financially in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Qualified students received distributions under the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund and those who had an outstanding balance at the completion of the Spring 2021 semester had their balances paid off. The University also issued a $200.00 book scholarship to all enrolled students for the Spring 2022 semester. In April of 2020, Dr. and Mrs. Harvey made a $100,000 matching donation of their own money to a $100,000 gift from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to provide each on-campus student $100 to assist with travel costs to retrieve their belongings from campus or to return to school in the fall. In May, Hampton University provided each graduate in the Class of 2020 and the Class of 2021, who had a federal student loan, the sum of $500 toward repayment of that loan. These payments were sent directly to the U.S. Department of Education loan servicer that was the holder of the student loan. Those students who did not have student loans were reimbursed their graduation fee of $150.

Hampton University Names Alumnus and Retired Three-Star General Darrell Williams as New President

U.S. Army retired Lt. Gen. Darrell K. Williams, a 1983 graduate of Hampton University, will serve as the institution’s next president.

Williams, chosen president on March 30 by the university’s Board of Trustees, brings four decades of proven success in leading complex military and commercial business enterprises, as well as nonprofit and academic leadership experience, Board of Trustees Chairman Wes Coleman said. 

“Running a university is complex, as was made evident by the global pandemic. When President Harvey told us of his decision to retire, we knew we wanted to build upon what he has accomplished,” said Coleman. “We embarked on a search for a proven strategic leader. The skills Lt. Gen. Williams is bringing to Hampton encompass what institutions of our size need. In a global world increasingly dependent on technology, this kind of strategic leadership expertise and knowledge can only help to move our institution forward over the coming decades.”

Williams will succeed President William R. Harvey, who retires on June 30 after leading Hampton for 44 years.

Williams said he is honored to be chosen as Hampton’s 13^th president and is looking forward to “returning to serve.”  

“I love Hampton and bring a wealth of strategic leadership experiences, including management of large global organizations, as well as the academic and nonprofit experience necessary to successfully lead the university,” Williams said. “I am thrilled to have been selected as the next president. I will work tirelessly with students, faculty, staff, alumni and the broader community to prepare our graduates for today and for the continuously evolving, technology-driven workforce of tomorrow.” 

Williams, of Alexandria, Virginia, is presently employed by Leidos, a Fortune 250 technology company, and serves as the Leidos United Kingdom vice president and managing director of the U.K. Ministry of Defence Logistics Commodities and Services Transformation (LCST) programme, providing global logistical support to U.K. military forces. Williams attributes his business and leadership roles at Leidos with helping to prepare him for this next exciting chapter at Hampton.  

Williams retired from the U.S. Army in 2020 after 37 years of service. His last leadership position was as the first African American and 19^th director of the Department of Defense’s Defense Logistics Agency (DLA). He oversaw a global workforce of over 26,000 civilian and military professionals. Under his watch, the DLA annually provided over $40 billion in global logistical support to all U.S. military services, designated international partner and allied military services, and 42 U.S. government organizations and federal agencies. During the early stages of the pandemic, the DLA provided over $1 billion in COVID-19 relief to the DoD and other federal agencies.  

From 2015 to 2017, Williams led the Army Combined Arms Support Command and the Fort Lee, Virginia, military installation. There, he was responsible for Army Logistics University and the Professional Military Education and the training of thousands of Army logistics junior officer, warrant officer and non-commissioned officer students. Additionally, he led the installation’s strategic engagement with the Richmond, Petersburg, Hopewell, and Colonial Heights communities, and he assured the welfare and safety of the over 25,000 students, staff and faculty, families, and support organizations. 

Early in his career he served as a leadership and logistics instructor at Fort Lee and was named as an Army instructor of the year, one of his many awards. 

Williams, a native of West Palm Beach, Florida, earned his bachelor’s degree in 1983 at then-Hampton Institute. Williams also holds three graduate school degrees: a master’s in business administration from Pennsylvania State University; a master’s in military art and science from the Army Combined and General Staff College, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas; and a master’s in national security strategy (distinguished graduate) from the National War College, Fort McNair, Washington, D.C.

Selection process

Williams was chosen from almost 300 applicants. The Board of Trustees created a presidential search committee in January 2021, after Dr. Harvey announced his retirement. Storbeck Search of Diversified Search Group, a Media, Pennsylvania-based firm, led the university's initial selection process. 

Based on a select set of competencies and through interviews, the applicants were narrowed to a pool of 15 and then three finalists. These three candidates were presented to the Board of Trustees. The board voted Williams as president at the end of March, and he accepted the position on April 8.

Personal life

Williams met his wife, Myra Richardson Williams, while attending Hampton. She also graduated from the university in 1983 with a bachelor’s degree. The couple, married in 1987, will be the first president and first lady to both hold Hampton degrees. 

While a student, Williams was Mister Freshman 1979, a three-year Reserve Officer Training (ROTC) scholarship cadet, a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. and senior class president. Myra Williams was a four-year member of the Hampton concert choir and a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.

The couple has two grown children. Daughter Jocelyn Williams Cooper and her husband, Gerron E. Cooper, reside in Springville, Virginia. Son Colin E. Williams is a lawyer and works in New York City. 

MLB celebrates Jackie Robinson Day 2022

MLB's annual Jackie Robinson day celebrates something very special this year.

Seventy-five years on this day Jackie Robinson debuted for the Brooklyn Dodgers.

This year’s celebration marks not just the 75th anniversary of Jackie’s debut but also the 25th anniversary of then-Commissioner Bud Selig’s announcement that Robinson’s No. 42 would be retired across MLB. Ten years after that landmark 1997 decision, Griffey requested and received permission to wear No. 42 on Jackie Robinson Day, and a few other players took part. And in 2009, the practice of every player, coach and manager wearing No. 42 on April 15 became a new tradition.

That tradition will continue this year, but with a twist. In honor of the 75th anniversary, not only will all on-field personnel wear No. 42, but that 42 will be featured in Dodger Blue, regardless of a team’s colors.

Angela Davis calls recent attacks on Black Lives Matter predictable

In a roundtable with members of the Black press Black Lives Matter co-founder Patrisse Cullors addressed the purchase a $6 million mansion in October 2020 with donor cash.

During that discussion Angela Davis, the legendary freedom fighter and professor, addressed what she called “attacks” on Black Lives Matter, calling them predictable.

“I personally knew from the outset, from the time Black Lives Matter was created, that there would be attacks similar to the historical attacks launched against Black leaders,” Davis said. “You know, particularly when we saw the FBI come up with this notion of black identity extremists. This was a sign that there was continuity with COINTELPRO. I can’t say that I would have predicted exactly how these attacks would express themselves. But I was convinced that they would happen.”

“And I think that now we’re experiencing attacks that have been consolidated,” she added, “not only on the on the right-wing, but within liberal circles as well that are designed to cause people who have supported the end to question their support.”

“I think the other, the most important point is that those media sources … have attempted to create the impression that Black Lives Matter is not interested in creating and helping to create the possibilities for a better world.” Davis continued. “It’s not interested in abolishing the institutions of violence and racism that have caused so much pain and suffering over so many decades and centuries, but rather, is only interested in self-aggrandizement. And that makes no sense at all.”

“However, we know that media strategies and other strategies have become far more effective,” Davis noted, “and particularly given the place of social media and communications environment, it is possible to create the impression that the organization that we in the movement, that we admire and with which we have associated ourselves, is only consisting of people who want to create more wealth for themselves — and that is absolutely ridiculous.”

Robert F. Smith helps launch Mobile Prostate Cancer Screening Bus to help Black men

Robert F. Smith and Mount Sinai’s Center of Excellence for Prostate Cancer have launched the very first mobile prostate cancer screening bus in the United States. Prostate cancer is a very common disease that many men are at risk of developing in their lifetime. In fact, prostate cancer is the most common cancer diagnosed in American men (outside of skin cancer), and it’s the 4th most common cancer diagnosis globally.

Another tragic fact is that Black men are at a much higher risk of developing this disease and eventually dying from it compared to white men. To address this issue affecting the Black community, Smith donated $3.8 million to Mount Sinai for the official launch of the Robert F. Smith Mobile MRI Unit to support prostate health awareness. This community effort will help provide increased education, awareness, and early detection screening to Black men across New York City’s greater neighborhoods of color to prevent prostate cancer from progressing further.

Black men are 1.7 times more likely to be diagnosed with prostate cancer and 2.1 times more likely to die from prostate cancer than white men. While a clear reason for these substantial differences can’t be exactly defined, a variety of different factors could be contributing to the inequity. In the United States, Black Americans can be at a disadvantage when it comes to receiving the necessary preventative care needed for health concerns making them at-risk for diseases such as prostate cancer. With increased care and awareness, the racial divide for prostate cancer in men is narrowing. Early detection of this hard-hitting disease is crucial to increasing survivability. That’s why Smith has partnered with Mount Sinai to offer prostate health screenings for the Black community.

The new Robert F. Smith Mobile MRI Unit will bring prostate cancer screening directly to Black men in the communities of Central, Eastern, and West Harlem; the Upper East Side; and Queens. These communities of color are at a higher risk of developing prostate cancer and dying from it than white communities. That’s why it’s crucial to have tools such as the Mobile MRI Unit in place for early detection and prevention of this disease.

This state-of-the-art mobile facility will provide the necessary tools for advanced screening for prostate cancer by trained medical professionals. Through this community outreach program, the Mount Sinai Health Center hopes to:

Raise awareness about prostate cancer and the screening services offered by the Mobile MRI Unit.

Set up prostate screening appointments in predominantly Black neighborhoods across New York City.

Schedule follow-up visits for patients with urologists at the Mount Sinai Center of Excellence for Prostate Cancer.

The Mobile MRI Unit will be able to bring this technology and testing straight to the Black communities of Harlem and beyond. Access to an MRI can be life changing and aids in early detection of this disease in Black Americans. If abnormally high PSA levels are detected, Mount Sinai will develop a treatment plan for the patient which will include follow-up visits at Mount Sinai’s Center of Excellence for Prostate Cancer.