February is Black Achievement Month at Northwest

harlem medium

The Harlem Gospel Choir will cap a month-long series of events scheduled for
Black Achievement Month at Northwest. Opening ceremonies for the annual
observance are set for noon Monday, Feb. 4, in the J.W. Jones Student Union
Living Room. The choir concert will take place at 7:30 p.m. Sunday, March 9, in
the Performing Arts Center.

The theme for this year’s Black Achievement Month celebration at Northwest is “Envisioning the Future by Standing on the Shoulders of Giants.” The annual series of lectures, presentations, films and concerts is sponsored by the University’s Office of Minority Affairs.

Highlights of this year’s celebration include a banquet at 6 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 24, in the J.W. Jones Student Union Ballroom featuring Dr. William C. Parker, retired vice chancellor for Minority Affairs at the University of Kentucky. Then, at 7:30 p.m. Sunday, March 9, in the Performing Arts Center, there will be a performance by the renowned Harlem Gospel Choir.

Parker, a noted speaker, educator and scholar, has spent more than 50 years working in the areas of education, leadership, human behavior and multiculturalism. He is currently the president of Parker & Parker Associates, a human resource development firm headquartered in Lexington, Ky.

The author of numerous articles and books on managerial psychology, multiculturalism, prejudice reduction, effective teaching and leadership, Parker is the founder of the Mandala Movement, a system of institutional diversity training.

A second speaker, Rasheed-Ali Cromwell, will deliver the celebration’s keynote address at 7 p.m. Monday, Feb. 18, in the J.W. Jones Student Union Boardroom.

Cromwell, a former Student Government Association president at North Carolina A&T State University, last spoke at Northwest in October during the MOSAIC intercultural festival. He is currently a consultant and presenter for the Harbor Institute of Washington, D.C.

The full schedule of Black Achievement Month events at Northwest appears below:

7:13 (sic) p.m. Friday, Feb. 1, Charles Johnson Theater: The Main Event Pageant, hosted by Delta Sigma Theta.
Noon Monday, Feb. 4, J.W. Jones Student Union Living Room: Opening ceremonies. Sponsored by the Office of Minority Affairs and the Alliance of Black Collegians, this event will feature a screening and discussion of the documentary “Ethnic Notions.” Maryville Mayor Pro Tem Pat Cummings will issue a Black Achievement Month proclamation at approximately 1:15 p.m.
7 p.m. Monday, Feb. 4, J.W. Jones Student Union meeting room A: Jeopardy, hosted by the Alliance of Black Collegians.
Evening of Monday, Feb. 11, Café Night, hosted by Talents Used for Good (TUG). Time and location to be announced.
Noon Tuesday, Feb. 12, J.W. Jones Student Union Living Room: “The AFRICAN in African American.” This presentation seeks to define which parts of African American culture are African and how the principles of Kwanzaa can serve as a blueprint for success.
7 p.m. Monday, Feb. 18, J.W. Jones Student Union Boardroom: Black Achievement Month keynote speech by Rasheed-Ali Cromwell, sponsored by the Student Activities Council, National Pan-Hellenic Council and the Office of Minority Affairs.
6 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 24, J.W. Jones Student Union Ballroom: Black Achievement Month banquet, Dr. William C. Parker, speaker. Sponsored by the Student Activities Council, Students Taking Action through Service (STATS), Alliance of Black Collegians and the Office of Minority Affairs.
Tuesday, Feb. 26, closing ceremonies, time and location to be announced: “African American Greek History,” hosted by Delta Sigma Theta.
6 p.m. Friday, Feb 29, J.W. Jones Student Union Boardroom: Poetry Slam, hosted by Students Taking Action through Service (STATS).
7:30 p.m. Sunday, March 9, Performing Arts Center: Harlem Gospel Choir, Free admission for Northwest students, faculty and staff (with valid University ID). Tickets for the general public cost $5 and are available through the Student Services Center on the first floor of the Administration Building, or call 660.562.1212 (ext. 1212 on campus).

For more information, please contact:

Anthony Brown,
News Bureau Manager
E-Mail: abrown@nwmissouri.edu
Phone: 660.562.1704
Fax: 660.562.1900

Northwest Missouri State University
219 Administration Building,
800 University Drive
Maryville, MO 64468

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