Lincoln University set to host President’s Gala April 2

(Jefferson City, MO) - The Lincoln University Foundation, Inc. will host the 9th Annual President’s Award Recognition Gala and Auction on Saturday, April 2, at Capitol Plaza Hotel.
This year’s theme is Masquerade.
The black tie optional event begins at 5:30 p.m. with a silent auction. The awards program will follow at 7 p.m. Masks will be provided for all those in attendance. This year the Foundation will honor five individuals and business for their contributions to the community, their professions and Lincoln University.
The 2011 Gala Honorees are: Ms. Mary Harris, Professor Emerita; Mrs. Elizabeth Ann Wilson, Special Recognition; Senator Yvonne Wilson, Trailblazer-Public Sector; Mrs. Darla Porter, Trailblazer-Business Sector; and Unilever/Mr. Dennis Myers, Corporate Award.
Tickets for the evening are still available at a price of $100 per person or $1,000 per table. Please cal1 573-681-5096 to reserve your seats today.

Albany State to host Alice Coachman Invitational Track Meet - April 2

(Albany, Ga.) - Albany State University will host the 19th Annual Alice Coachman Invitational Track Meet on Saturday, April 2, at ASU’s Robert Cross Track and Field Facility and Hugh Mills Stadium in Albany, Ga. The hammer throw competition, followed by the javelin throw, is slated to start at 8 a.m. at the ASU complex. Other track and field events, starting with the long jump events, will begin at 11 a.m. at the Hugh Mills complex. The awards ceremony will start at the conclusion of the meet. 
 Sponsored by the ASU women and men’s track and field programs, the meet will feature world-class athletes from various track and field clubs in the Southeast. Several Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) teams, including Morehouse College, Benedict College, Clark Atlanta University, Tuskegee University, Fort Valley State University, Paine College and Stillman College, are expected to compete.
The annual track meet is held in honor of Alice Coachman-Davis, the first African American woman to win an Olympic gold medal. Coachman-Davis made history and gained international attention by capturing the high jump title with a record-setting jump of 5′ 6 1/8″ during the 1948 Olympic Games in London. 
 The Albany, Ga., native attended Tuskegee University, but earned her bachelor’s degree from Albany State (College) after returning from the 1948 games. For more information about the meet or entry information, call 229-430-4761 or 229-430-4673.

Dr. M. Evelyn Fields elected to the Board of Directors for the American Association of Blacks in Higher Education

Orangeburg, S.C. - Dr. M. Evelyn Fields, an associate professor and president of the Faculty Senate at SC State University, was recently elected to the Board of Directors for the American Association of Blacks in Higher Education (AABHE).
The AABHE pursues the educational and professional needs of Blacks in higher education with a focus on leadership, access and vital issues impacting students, faculty, staff and administrators. AABHE also facilitates and provides opportunities for collaborating and networking among individuals, institutions, groups and agencies in higher education in the United States and internationally.
“I am particularly honored to have been chosen by my colleagues from around the nation.  As a board member, I will support the chairperson in carrying out the vision of the organization and support initiatives that are aligned with our mission,” says Fields.  
The AABHE is an outgrowth of the Black Caucus, which was a component of the former American Association of Higher Education (AAHE). As such, AABHE has a rich history of representing blacks in higher education on a national level.  

JSU to host lecture series on black males in post-secondary instititions

 Jackson, Mississippi- The Medgar Evers/ Ella Baker Civil Rights Lecture Series in cooperation with The Fannie Lou Hamer National Institute on Citizenship and Democracy, The Veterans of the Mississippi Civil Rights Movement, and The Margaret Walker Center at Jackson State University continues social discussions.
The sixth lecture of the 2010-2011 Medgar Evers/ Ella Baker Civil Rights Lecture Series—“A Growing Decline of Black Males in Post-Secondary Institutions: An Educational Conundrum””—will be held Thursday, April 14 at 6:30 p.m. at the Smith Robertson Museum and Cultural Center located at 528 Bloom Street, Jackson, Mississippi 39202.
The enrollment of black males in higher education has not improved, despite many efforts to recruit and retain them. Although black female enrollment increased by 126 percent between 1976 and 2002, black male enrollment increased by only 51 percent.
In Mississippi, Black males made up only 11.7 % of students enrolled in Mississippi’s public university system in 2008, compared with 24.4 % Black females. Approximately one in four African-American males between the ages of 20 and 29 are incarcerated, on probation, or on parole; only one in five is enrolled in a two or four-year college program.
What steps can we take to reclaim the African American male in the education pipeline? How can social institutions develop a system to attract more black men to higher education and to help them succeed? The panelists— Dr. Alfred Rankins, Jr., Assistant Commissioner for Academic and Student Affairs, Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning; Dr. Marcus Chanay, Associate Vice President for Division of Student Life, Jackson State University; Mr. Albert Sykes, Coordinator with Young Peoples Project, Jackson, Mississippi, and Dr. Nikisha G. Ware, Executive Director, Mississippi Learning Institute; will explore this subject during the session on Thursday, April 14, 2011 at 6:30pm at the Smith Robertson Museum and Cultural Center.
For details, call The Hamer Institute at (601) 979-1562, 601-979-1563 or email: hamer.institute@jsums.edu.