HBCU Digest

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Fisk University Archive

Monday

20

May 2013

0

COMMENTS

Fisk Men’s Basketball Coach Resigns

Written by , Posted in Fisk University, Sports, Tennessee

Fisk University today announced the resignation of head men’s basketball coach Derek Watkins, a Fisk alumnus who finished his three-year tenure with an 18-72 overall record. From the release:

“Coach Watkins will be missed. He did a great job of getting making this program competitive in his three years and we were very excited about the outlook for the 2013-14 season. Last year we swept conference power and nationally ranked Xavier. He had to make a decision that he deemed was best for him and his family at this time and we wish him much success in his future endeavors,” said Athletic Director Anthony Owens.

Assistant Coach Jay Smith was named interim head coach. A search for a replacement will start immediately.

Tuesday

14

May 2013

1

COMMENTS

HBCUs to Welcome More Than 150 Brazilian Students in Exchange Program This Fall

Written by , Posted in Alcorn State University, Delaware, Delaware State University, Dillard University, Fisk University, Florida, Florida A&M University, Georgia, Hampton University, Howard University, Jackson State University, Lincoln University (Pa.), Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Morehouse College, North Carolina, North Carolina A&T State University, Pennsylvania, Savannah State University, South Carolina, South Carolina State University, Spelman College, Tennessee, Tennessee State University, University of the District of Columbia, Virginia, Virginia State University, Xavier University of Louisiana

A partnership between the United States and Brazil will bring more than 150 Brazilian college students to the United States this fall to study at historically black colleges and universities.

The partnership is a part of the HBCU-Brazil Alliance, a program created to increase the number of minority graduates and professionals in the industries of science, technology, engineering and mathematics, while exposing  Afro-Brazilian students and faculty to successful research, economic development and social advancement within a context of historical and systemic racism and discrimination.

The Alliance is an arm of the US-Brazil Joint Action Plan on Racial Equality, developed by the White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities and managed in partnership with the Brazilian Federal Agency for Support and Evaluation of Graduate Education (CAPES’).

‘This partnership is just one example of the Alliance’s commitment to diversity, cultural sensitivity and to providing a world-class education to an eager pool of student talent from throughout Brazil,” said Dr. T. Joan Robinson, Chair of the HBCU-Brazil Alliance and Provost and Vice-President of Academic Affairs at Morgan State University. “We are honored to represent and build upon the collaborative interests of the United States through international engagement and academic support.”

More than 20 HBCUs will welcome Brazilian exchange students for a one-year exchange program. Students will live on campus and study in a variety of undergraduate degree programs with a S.T.E.M. focus, with all tuition, fees and room and board covered by the Brazilian government. The program’s goal is to eventually welcome 1,000 Brazilian students to HBCU campuses. Participating HBCUs include:

  • Alcorn State University
  • Delaware State University
  • Dillard University
  • Fisk University
  • Florida A&M University
  • Hampton University
  • Howard University
  • Jackson State University
  • Johnson C. Smith University
  • Lincoln University
  • Morehouse College
  • Morgan State University
  • North Carolina A&T State University
  • Savannah State University
  • South Carolina State University
  • Southern University
  • Spelman College
  • Tennessee State University
  • University of the District of Columbia
  • Virginia State University
  • Xavier University of Louisiana

Tuesday

7

May 2013

2

COMMENTS

Thursday

4

April 2013

1

COMMENTS

Monday

25

February 2013

0

COMMENTS

Tennessee HBCUs Launch Anti-Obesity Campus Campaigns

Written by , Posted in Fisk University, Knoxville College, Lane College, LeMoyne-Owen College, Tennessee, Tennessee State University

“The goals of these obesity-awareness campaigns are to educate college students and others about the problems associated with being overweight or obese, and to engage them in activities fostering changes to improve lifelong health,” said Lesia Walker, director of the state Department of Health’s Office of Minority Health and Disparities Elimination, in the release. “Statistics show a disproportionate number of African-Americans are either overweight or obese, and we have to start reaching people with important messages earlier in life to make a difference.”

Tuesday

12

February 2013

1

COMMENTS

Thursday

6

December 2012

2

COMMENTS

Fisk Presidential Pick Solid, Not Sexy in H. James Williams

Written by , Posted in Fisk University, Leadership, Tennessee

The only thing more pressing than Fisk University’s needs for stability is its need to reemerge as the elite institution of choice for black American scholars. So while Dr. H. James Williams appears on paper to be a solid choice as the 15th president of the institution, there are questions about if his name and pedigree can bring the kind of attention and pop cultural prestige the university once enjoyed in Nashville and throughout the nation.

(more…)

Wednesday

7

November 2012

0

COMMENTS

Friday

3

August 2012

0

COMMENTS

Fisk Earns $31 Million From Sale of O’Keefe Art Collection

Written by , Posted in Fisk University, Tennessee

The battle over the Georgia O’Keefe art collection at Fisk University has reached an end, with the school poised to collect $30 million from the Crystal Bridges Museum in Arkansas. The agreement calls for Fisk to sell a 50 percent stake in the collection, and allows the Bridges Museum to display the collection two out of every four years, according to the New York Times.

(more…)

Wednesday

25

April 2012

0

COMMENTS

Fisk Moves Closer to Sale of Art Collection

Written by , Posted in Fisk University, Headlines, Tennessee

[mpoverlay]Fisk University drew closer to its goal of selling a stake in its $30 million bequeathed art collection earlier this week, as the state supreme court said that it won’t hear an appeal to keep the collection on the campus. 

The court battle revolved around Georgia O’Keeffe’s 1949 donation to Fisk of 97 pieces from the estate of her late husband, Alfred Stieglitz, and four of her own paintings. She stipulated that the collection could not be sold or broken up.

It includes pieces by Pablo Picasso, Pierre-Auguste Renoir and Paul Cezanne, plus O’Keeffe’s renowned Radiator Building at Night-New York.

School officials have maintained that selling the artwork was essential to strengthening the university’s financial profile and avoiding potential closure.[/mpoverlay]

Tuesday

13

March 2012

1

COMMENTS

HBCU Stories: Margaret Murray Washington – The Fisk Alumna Behind the Tuskegee Machine

Written by , Posted in Editorial, Features, Fisk University, Headlines, Tennessee, Tuskegee University

Favicon

In the more than half century since the publication of W.E.B. Du Bois’ ‘The Souls of Black Folk’ in 1903, Du Bois’ ideological and pedagogical views have been increasingly pitted against those of Booker T. Washington. In many ways, the struggles between the two men, some real and others imagined, are directly related to their different realities. Du Bois was born free; Washington born a slave. Despite sharing mixed parentage, Washington, although red-haired with grey eyes was unquestionably black; while Du Bois was café au lait.

Washington was based in the South, while Du Bois’ research took him across the globe.

For all their perceived differences, Washington and Du Bois did have something, or rather someone, in common. Both men shared a deep and enduring relationship with Margaret James Murray Washington—Du Bois as a Fisk classmate, and Washington as her husband.

(more…)

Tuesday

21

February 2012

0

COMMENTS

After Retirement, Fisk President Hazel O’Leary Pledges Continued Support

Written by , Posted in Fisk University, Headlines, Leadership, Tennessee

Fisk President Hazel O’Leary today told reporters that after she retires at the end of the year, she will continue to support the university as a donor and advocate.

O’Leary said Tuesday that she has “always been a generous donor to Fisk, and I intend to continue to do that.”

“I have said to my board of trustees … that I will do whatever,” said O’Leary, adding that she’s currently helping with a comprehensive fundraising campaign for the university. (Associated Press)

O’Leary, 74, said “the time was right” for her to retire. She has been president of the university since 2004.

Friday

17

February 2012

1

COMMENTS

Fisk President Hazel O’Leary to Retire

Written by , Posted in Fisk University, Headlines, Leadership, Tennessee

Fisk University today announced that president Hazel O’Leary will retire at the end of this year. O’Leary made the announcement to the Board of Trustees yesterday, according to a release from the institution. From the release:

O’Leary said “Our work with the board, students, faculty, staff, and alumni to transform and grow Fisk using a metric based Strategic Plan has been rewarding. On a personal note, I am grateful to the Board for its advice, policy guidance, and resolve to measure outcomes, as well as, its deep commitment to Fisk during my tenure. Each member of the Fisk Family has contributed to our relentless quest for measurable improvement in our academic and student support programs. Our drive for continuous improvement has been daunted by our failure to increase new student enrollment during the economic downturn. In spite of that challenge, the public record indicates that Fisk has achieved top tier performance among liberal arts institutions in academics, student retention and engagement. While much remains to be done, I am confident that Fisk, the institution I love and have led these past eight years, is in better shape than when I arrived, and it will continue to enjoy a long and distinguished legacy.”

The university says that research funding, retention and graduate school placements all saw increases under O’Leary’s tenure. The university remains in a legal process to sell a stake of its Stieglitz art collection, which university officials said would be the only way to secure financing to keep the university open.

Tuesday

31

January 2012

0

COMMENTS

State of Tennessee Appeals Fisk Art Sale Judgment

Written by , Posted in Finance, Fisk University, Headlines, Tennessee

The State of Tennessee yesterday appealed a judgment clearing the way for Fisk University to sell a stake in a bequeathed art collection. Now headed to the state Supreme Court, Fisk asserts that sale of the Georgia O’Keefe collection, valued at more than $30 million, will bring needed revenue to the school and help avoid closure.

The state, in its appeal to the state Supreme Court, said donors need assurance that their gifts will not be sold by a cash-strapped recipient.

The collection of 101 pieces of artworks includes O’Keeffe’s own 1927 oil painting “Radiator Building — Night, New York.” The gift was made because Fisk educated blacks as a time when the South was segregated.

Fisk has argued that it cannot afford even the $131,000 it currently spends to display the collection each year. (Associated Press)

Saturday

7

January 2012

0

COMMENTS

Judgement Clearing Sale of Fisk Art Collection Could Face Appeal

Written by , Posted in Fisk University, Tennessee

A Jan. 28 deadline will determine if Fisk University can finally sell a portion of its famous Georgia O’Keefe art collection, or if the Tennessee attorney general’s office will again block the move. The Tennessean today reports that both sides are uncertain about the future of the transaction.

Georgia O’Keeffe donated 97 pieces from the estate of her late husband, Alfred Stieglitz, plus four of her own paintings to Fisk in 1949. The gift carried stipulations that it could not be sold or broken up.

Fisk officials want to tap into the collection’s value — $74 million — to shore up the school’s finances. School officials have said in court records that they can no longer afford the $131,000 a year it takes to display and maintain the collection. (The Tennessean)

Monday

12

December 2011

0

COMMENTS

Fisk Receives $435,000 National Science Foundation Grant for Condensed Matter Science Research

Written by , Posted in Fisk University, Tennessee

Fisk University last week announced a $435,000 grant award from the from the Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship Program (IGERT) Program of the National Science Foundation as part of a five-year, $3 million research initiative for a project entitled “Neutron Scattering for the Science and Engineering of the 21st Century.” The project will focus on the study of condensed matter science, which covers interdisciplinary aspects of physics and biology, as well as chemical and mechanical engineering.

“Condensed matter science involves the examination of liquids and solids,” said Fisk Professor of Physics and Vice Provost for Academic Initiatives Dr. Arnold Burger. “We are pleased that this research initiative will train our graduate students in the study of materials, their structure and behaviors when exposed to neutrons in a process called neutron scattering.”

Since 2007, The U.S. Department of Energy has increased its research capabilities through a $2 billion investment at Oak Ridge National Laboratories to establish a world-class facility for neutron science Data obtained from neutron scattering will enable Fisk to develop an understanding that will lead to advancements in drug design, discovery of improved of high-strength metals and cements, deploy new materials in innovative electronic and magnetic devices and hydrogen storage materials.

Read the full story at:
Fisk University Receives $435,000 National Science Foundation Grant Award for Graduate Research in Condensed Matter Science

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