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| Key Topics Explored at Africana Studies Conference | ||
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Dr. C. Charles Mate-Kole, professor of psychology and
director of the CCSU Center for Africana Studies, delivered the opening and
closing remarks at the Centers’ 13th annual conference. The re-emergence of
Pan-Africanism and its implications for the empowerment of Black educators
and students in the African Diaspora was the overall theme of the event.
Among the key topics discussed were the historical and theoretical
foundations of Pan-Africanism and Afrocentrism, Pan-Africanism in the 21st
century, the state of education in the African Diaspora, and the continuing
relevance of Pan-Africanism to current struggles for empowerment.
Dr. Asa G. Hilliard, III, who bears the title Nana Baffour Amankwatia, II, Development Chief of Mankrasa, Ghana, and is also the Fuller E. Callaway Professor of Urban Education at Georgia State University, delivered a lecture on “The Deep Roots Education and the Pan African Imperative.” Former New Jersey Deputy Attorney General Godfrey C. Henry, J.D., presented a lecture, “The New Jim Crow: African Americans, Civil Rights, and the First Presidential Election of the 21st Century.” Dr. Horace Campbell, professor of African-American studies, international relations, and political science at Syracuse University, delivered a paper titled “Pan Africanism in the 21st Century.” |
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| Former New Jersey Deputy Attorney General Godfrey C. Henry addresses conference. | ||
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Dr. Marcia Sutherland, associate professor of psychology
and Africana studies at the University at Albany, SUNY, delivered a lecture
on “Pan-Africanism and African Resurgence in the 21st Century.” Lawrence
Hamm, the chairman of the People’s Organization for Progress, New Jersey,
delivered a lecture on “Continuing Relevance of Pan-Africanism to Our
Current Struggle for Empowerment.” Other speakers were: Dr. Chengiah Ragaven, visiting professor of urban studies at Southern Connecticut State University; Dr. Ghelawdewos Araia, adjunct associate professor of African studies at Lehman College of the City University of New York; Dr. Signithia Fordham, Susan B. Anthony Professor of Gender and Women’s Studies at SUNY-New York; Kenyan writer Mukoma Wa Ngugi, coordinator of Toward an Africa Without Borders at the University of Wisconsin at Madison; and Jennifer Stimpson, chemistry teacher at Yvonne A. Ewell Townview Magnet Center in Dallas, TX. CCSU President Jack Miller and Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Carl Lovitt also delivered remarks during the conference. Other CCSU faculty members who participated were: Dr. Peter LeMaire, professor of physics and earth sciences; Sheri Fafunwa-Ndibe, professor of art; Dr. Warren Perry, professor of anthropology and director of the Archaeology Lab for African and African Diaspora Studies; Dr. Evelyn Phillips, professor of anthropology and director of the International Studies Program; and Dr. Olusegun Odesina, associate to the dean and professor of computer electronics and graphics technology in CCSU’s School of Technology. CCSU’s Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs and Chief Officer for Planning and Institutional Effectiveness Hakim Salahu-Din delivered a lecture on “Student’s Success: Myths and Realities.” The conference also included a student roundtable discussion session, chaired by Dr. Phillips. Students who participated were: Sharyn Lopez, president of the CCSU branch of the Latin American Student Organization (LASO); Amber Woodward, Black Student Union (BSU); Oliver Samuel, United Caribbean Club (UCC); and Cherolle Brown, Africana Students Organization (ASO). A panel discussion on “Challenges in Higher Education in Connecticut” featured Rory T. Edwards, an educational consultant and former dean of students at Amistad Academy; Elizabeth Horton Sheff, member of the Hartford City Council, director of Neighborhood Services of the Community Renewal Team (CRT) in Hartford, and a principal in the Sheff vs. O’Neill landmark civil rights case in 1996; and Ronald Davis, president, New Britain Chapter of the NAACP. An art exhibition on “Apartheid in South Africa” produced by Phoebe Milliken was also on display. The conference was sponsored by CCSU’s Office of
Multicultural Affairs; the George R. Muirhead Center for International
Education; African Studies Committee; the School of Technology; the Africana
Student Organization; the Office of the Provost; and the African-American
Studies program. |
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