Morgan President Provides Update on Homecoming Activities and Campus Safety

Morgan State Community:

It is with great consternation that I deliver this message to our University community following the most unfortunate of events that occurred on our campus last evening. On behalf of our entire Morgan community including our Board of Regents, my administrative team, faculty and staff, we extend our thoughts and prayers to those students injured in this heinous act of violence. Their care and recovery are a top priority.

Today, we unfortunately find ourselves navigating this tragic event during a time at which we should be celebrating our National Treasure during Homecoming. Please understand that the safety of our campus is of the utmost importance and our resolve in ensuring that we have a secure campus is paramount. In response to last evening’s events, we are aggressively increasing security measures on campus, further amplifying additional security measures that have been implemented in recent years.

Regarding Homecoming, regrettably for the very first time in Morgan’s history all activities planned around Homecoming will be either cancelled or postponed until the perpetrator(s) of this atrocity have been found and brought to justice.

• Cancelled activities include: The Homecoming Concert, Silent Headphones Party, Homecoming Pep Rally, Homecoming Parade and all other on campus events including our Lady Bear Volleyball match.
• Activities associated with Homecoming that have been postponed include: the Homecoming Football Game, the MSU 39th Annual Homecoming Gala.

In the abundance of sensitivity for the emotional wellbeing of the campus community, we have also decided to cancel all classes and activities for the remainder of the week and will implement campus-wide programming geared towards the health and welfare of our University community. We strongly believe that this moment calls for reflection, thus allowing our students, faculty and staff the opportunity to focus on their mental wellness.

We arrived at this decision after very careful—and at times emotional—deliberation with key stakeholders within our University community including members of my administration, student leaders from SGA and our University Council.

In closing, I want to reiterate our unwavering commitment to delivering a safe campus for our entire Morgan family. We greatly appreciate the support of our larger community who have expressed their concern and support during this most trying time. As more details become available, please know that you will hear from me in the coming days.

 

Thank you. 

House Minority Leader Hakkem Jeffries Statement On Motion to Vacate the Chair

House Minorty House Leader Hakeem Jeffries realesed the following statment after Rep. Kevin McCarthy was removed from his position of speaker of the House.

My statement in the aftermath of the Motion to Vacate the Chair. pic.twitter.com/woEbuEt2gw

— Hakeem Jeffries (@RepJeffries) October 3, 2023

National Museum of African American History and Culture celebrates 10 millionth visitor

It's been seven years since the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture opened on the National Mall. But in that relatively short lifetime for a museum, a stunning number of visitors have stopped by.

On 9/30/23 the NMAAHC welcomed the 10 millionth visitor through its doors.

Grambling State to Name Field at Eddie G. Robinson Memorial Stadium in honor of James “Shack” Harris and Doug Williams

The Grambling State University Department of Intercollegiate Athletics has announced the field inside of the legendary Eddie G. Robinson Memorial Stadium will be named after GSU football legends James “Shack” Harris and Doug Williams during the Tigers’ homecoming game versus Alabama A&M on Oct. 14.

The football field will officially become James “Shack” Harris and Doug Williams Field at Eddie G. Robinson Memorial Stadium.

“It is our pleasure to honor two of the greatest members of the Grambling State football family,” said Vice President of Intercollegiate Athletics Dr. Trayvean Scott. “These two men have long represented what it means to be a G-Man and have achieved so much while breaking down barriers that few thought were attainable during their playing days. We can’t wait to add another brick to castle of greatness they’ve built.”

“Honoring these two Grambling Legends will be the highlight of our 2023 Homecoming festivities,” said Grambling State University President Richard “Rick” Gallot. “James “Shack” Harris and Doug Williams epitomize greatness at the highest level of football competition. They both deserve to be honored by Grambling State University in this way.”

Fisk University Names Nashvillian Dr. Agenia Walker Clark as Next President

The Board of Trustees of Fisk University announced the appointment of Dr. Agenia Walker Clark as its next president, effective November 6, 2023. She will be the University’s third female head and the 18th president of the 158-year-old-university, one of the nation’s highest-ranking Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).

She replaces interim president Frank Sims, a member of the Board of Trustees, who has served in that position since 2021.

Dr. Clark most recently served as CEO for the Girl Scouts of Middle Tennessee – where, during her 19-year tenure, she increased the agency’s operational efficiencies, increased its reserves, built new facilities, and transformed the agency into one of the highest performing of the 111 councils in the Girl Scout network.

“Dr. Clark’s lifelong dedication to improving the lives of young people, along with her unique combination of fundraising and brand-building skills, are exactly what Fisk needs today,” said Juliette Pryor, chair of the Fisk Board of Trustees.

“I know that Dr. Clark’s bold ideas will positively impact our campus community today while assuring a fast-growing trajectory for the future.”

Prior to the Girl Scouts, Dr. Clark was the Vice President of Human Resources for the Tennessee Education Lottery Corporation, Senior Director of Human Resources at Vanderbilt University and directed human resources for Canadian telecommunications provider Nortel Networks, where she also served as a manager of government relations.

“To serve a new generation of brilliant, socially minded students—not unlike their counterparts of decades past, like W.E.B. Du Bois, Ida B. Wells-Barnett, John Lewis and Dr. Diane Nash—is surely the honor of my lifetime,” said Clark. “No institution of higher-ed has a richer legacy—or a richer promise for the future—than Fisk.”

Dr. Clark was named “Nashvillian of the Year” in 2021 and as one of “Nashville’s 100 Most Powerful People,” 2015–2020, by the Nashville Business Journal. An inductee into the Academy for Women of Achievement, she is also a Nashville Post Person-In-Charge (2014–2021). She is also a member of the International Women’s Forum (IWF), a member of the 2016 Class of Leadership Tennessee, and 1996 Class of Leadership Nashville.

She currently serves on the corporate board of directors for FirstBank Financial Corporation (NYSE: FBK) as well as the boards of trustees for Belmont and Simmons Universities – and is a trustee emerita on the board of the Haslam School of Business at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

Dr. Clark earned a B.S. and MBA from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and her Doctorate in Leadership from Vanderbilt University.

The year-long search for Fisk’s 18th president was led by Board Trustee JoLinda Herring ’85, in conjunction with executive search and leadership advisory firm, Russell Reynolds Associates.

“The Board was searching for a uniquely bold and visionary leader, and we found her in Dr. Clark,” said Pryor.