Dillard’s Young, New President

May 6, 2012

Dillard’s Young, New President

By Edmund W. Lewis

Special to the Trice Edney News Wire from the Louisiana Weekly

(TriceEdneyWire.com) - On the day that Dr. Walter Kimbrough was announced as Dillard University’s next president, the front page of the local daily paper also had several stories about several murder victims from the previous night. For some, that suggested the timing of Dr. Kimbrough’s appointment couldn’t have been any better.

Kimbrough, who is wrapping up his final semester as president of Philander Smith College, has been described by some as a hands-on administrator who has the ability to connect with college students and challenge them to get actively involved in finding solutions to the problems that plague the Black community.

Kimbrough has used hip-hop music and culture to connect ties with today’s college students so effectively that he has earned the moniker “the Hip-Hop College President.”

After graduating from the Benjamin E. Mays High School and Academy of Math and Science in Atlanta as the Salutatorian and Student Body President, Dr. Kimbrough earned a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture in biology from the University of Georgia in 1989. He continued his education at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, completing a Master of Science Degree in College Student Personnel Services in 1991, and in 1996 he earned a Doctor of Philosophy Degree in Higher Education from Georgia State University.

Dr. Walter M. Kimbrough is the 12th president of Philander Smith College in Little Rock, Arkansas. Before assuming leadership of Philander Smith College, he served in administrative capacities at Albany State University, Old Dominion University, Georgia State University and Emory University.

Dr. Kimbrough and his wife Adria Nobles Kimbrough, associate general counsel with the University of Arkansas System, are the proud parents of two children: Lydia Nicole, five, and Benjamin Barack, two. He is the son of the Rev. Walter L. Kimbrough, pastor emeritus of Cascade United Methodist Church in Atlanta, and Marjorie L. Kimbrough, author and lecturer. He has one brother, Wayne.

Kimbrough says he has attended a number of conferences in New Orleans over the course of his professional career that helped him to become acquainted with the Crescent City and its cultural offerings. “Like most people who visit the city, you’re in there for a few days — you know the reputation of the city, particularly in terms of the culinary arts and of course the Saints,” he told The Louisiana Weekly in a recent interview. “I just had basic knowledge of the city but my wife knew a little bit more — she’s from Mobile (Alabama) so she’s close to it.”

Kimbrough says his church upbringing and his social circle helped to familiarize him with Dillard University and its academic reputation. “Dillard was always one of those places that I knew a lot about,” he explained. “It’s also affiliated with the United Methodist Church like Philander Smith College — I’m a United Methodist preacher’s kid. I also knew people from Atlanta who went to Dillard and people at Philander who worked there, so I’ve always had a very high impression of Dillard.”

Dr. Kimbrough almost accepted a position as vice chancellor of student affairs at Dillard when Dr. Michael Lomax served as president but ended up accepting a vice president post at Albany State University.

As excited as Dr. Kimbrough says he is about taking over the reins at Dillard, he admits that it wasn’t an easy or simple decision.

“It was tough for me because I’ve been here for over seven years now and we thought about looking at some options for the last three or four years,” he explained. “Pretty much when a position opens up at an HBCU, I got a head hunter calling me and saying ‘You need to look at this one.’ I was like, ‘Oh no, things are going well here…’

“We’ve made a lot of progress here,” Kimbrough continued. “Philander was sort of obscure, people didn’t know a lot about the institution even though it has a really strong history. We started doing some really phenomenal things here as a team. It’s been a really good place. Particularly, once you spend a lot of time getting a situation right, you become sort of selfish. It’s like, ‘Do I want to turn this over to someone after putting all this sweat equity into it?’ So at first I was like, ‘No, I think I’m just going to try to ride out Philander and keep doing what we’re doing here.’”

Unfortunately, for Philander at least, those who believed Dr. Kimbrough was a good fit for Dillard University weren’t going to give up that easily.

“When the search firm contacted me, they insisted that I at least listen. I already had a short list of places that I wouldn’t mind being president of at some point in time,” Kimbrough told The Louisiana Weekly. “Dillard was definitely on that list — it was one that I always looked to.

“Once I got into the process and got to hear about the prospects, it sort of seemed like it was a good fit. I really had to go with my gut. Sort of like, ‘Is this where I’m supposed to be at this point in time?’ Going through that process and the interviews, I was like, ‘This is where I’m supposed to be.’ That’s how I felt. And everything since that time continues to confirm that it’s a great fit. It’s going to be a real good experience and we’ll be able to do a lot of creative things there.”

Asked about some of the factors that drew him to Dillard, Kimbrough said the fact that the institution is “church-related” was “a big plus” for him, along with the size of the student body. “I like to have personal connections with students and really know them and know people by name, so that was really important for me,” he explained. “Students at big schools want that too, but it’s practically impossible to do. It’s easier to do that at a smaller school and that’s and advantage that has to be maximized. Based on my interactions with students at Dillard during a recent visit, they really want that kind of engagement.

“There’s a lot going for the institution,” Kimbrough continued. “It’s in a city that Time magazine recently called ‘the top brain magnet.’ Smart folks with a cause all trying to be in New Orleans — that’s exciting to me, the kind of energy that could be there. To be a part of that movement of people who want to do some positive things and address some serious issues in the community — that’s exciting.”

Kimbrough, who graduated from Benjamin E. Mays High School in Atlanta, says he was inspired by the school’s namesake’s legendary ability to challenge and inspire students like young Martin Luther King Jr. when Mays served as Morehouse College’s president.

“That is my model for how a president should be,” Kimbrough told The Louisiana Weekly. “When (former Dillard president) Dr. Samuel Cook was a student at Morehouse, Dr. Benjamin Mays served as president and that was part of Cook’s model too, so Dillard has seen that before.

“I’m true to that — the kinds of things that Mays did and the kind of relationship that Dr. Mays had with Martin Luther King Jr. and Samuel Cook,” he added. “I always tell people that it’s not as important for me to be known as the president — I want to be the person that helps to produce the next Dr. King. That’s my goal — when I can do that, then I’ll feel like I’ve done something.”

Kimbrough says he has been impressed with Dillard’s community outreach programs and looks forward to further strengthening the institution’s ties to the community. “I want the community coming onto the campus for activities and events,” he told The Louisiana Weekly. “I think they do a good job of that now because I follow some of the students on Twitter. It seems like just about every Saturday Dillard students are somewhere out in the community doing service.

“But how do we bring the community to campus, how do we meaningfully engage the community in the real issues? How do we play a meaningful role in reducing Black-on-Black crime? That’s something that I can’t ignore. On the day that my announcement appeared in the local daily paper, most of that front page was dedicated to several people who were murdered the night before I was announced as president. I can’t come to New Orleans and act like that’s not an issue — that is the issue.”

One of the stiffest challenges Dr. Kimbrough and other HBCU presidents will face over the next few years is finding a way to continue to recruit and attract the best and brightest students to their campuses with college student loan debt reaching unprecedented levels and talk in Washington about slashing student financial aid. Kimbrough says it’s time for Black folks to step up to that challenge and do their part.

“One of the things that those of us in the HBCU community have to do better is find a way to get more of our alumni and friends to give back so that we have unrestricted dollars to provide students scholarships,” he told The Louisiana Weekly. “We’ve got to get past some of the ‘I give back to my school’ rhetoric because there are a lot of people who leave these institutions who do very well and don’t support these institutions. That’s going to be the way to address that. We’ve got to have those unrestricted dollars — these are not dollars from foundations, they are not dollars from corporations. It is individual people saying, ‘I was blessed to have that opportunity and I am going to really significantly help somebody go to school.”

Kimbrough launched a similar campaign at Philander Smith, where he says the institution’s donations from alumni went from less than four percent to almost 16 percent. He expects it to reach 20 percent by the end of the spring semester.

“The demographics at Philander and Dillard are very similar — both schools are plus-70 percent Pell Grant-eligible students,” Kimbrough said. “That means most students at Dillard come from families that earn less than $40,000 a year — they need the money.

“We’ve got to really step up,” he continued. “We can’t wait for somebody to come in and just give us all kinds of money so our kids can go to school for free. There are those of us who have been blessed with wonderful careers — we need to help somebody’s child who is not our own go to school. That’s something I firmly believe and something that I have done since coming to Philander.”

Kimbrough says since taking his current post at Philander, he was donated 10 percent of his salary to the institution. “I do that off the top because I think it’s my responsibility to help somebody’s child to go to school and have the same opportunities that I had,” he said.

Kimbrough said that while volunteerism is important, contributing financial resources is also vital to the growth and development of HBCUs and communities of color. “We have to really invest in own communities and turn those dollars back into our own communities,” he said. “That becomes a good way to keep students from graduating with this massive loan debt…If they default on their debt, the school gets penalized and it becomes a vicious cycle that pulls everybody down.”

Kimbrough says he has attended a number of Dillard board meetings and spent some time on campus recently mingling with students, professors and administrators. He is clearly excited about taking over the reins in July.

“Once I make it to Dillard, I’m going to talk to a lot of people to get a good handle on where we are and make sure that everybody knows where we are,” Kimbrough said. “Then for us to collectively say, ‘OK, where do we go from here, and where do we see Dillard in the next 10 years and what do we need to do to get us there?’ It’s not so much about a new president coming in and imposing his vision on everyone. I don’t believe in that because I think a vision has to be collective and most people need to buy into it…I think part of being a leader is asking the right questions, so I’m going to come in and ask a lot of the right questions to help us to see where we are and then move forward.”

Africans: World Bank Prez Picked 'In Smoke-filled Rooms'

May 6, 2012

Africans: World Bank Prez Picked 'In Smoke-filled Rooms'

Special to the Trice Edney News Wire from GIN

J.Y.Kim and Pres. Obama

(TriceEdneyWorld.com) – Nigeria’s candidate for the presidency of the World Bank, Ms. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, enjoyed the support of the African Union, Brazil, and South Africa but it was not enough to defeat the U.S. pick - Jim Yong Kim – for the powerful global finance position.

Kim’s selection was announced this week, ending a tight race between the developing world candidate with years of World Bank experience and a candidate endorsed by Washington, Europe and Japan.

For over half a century, the selection of World Bank chief was made by the U.S. but some believe those privileges of power should expire. Ms. Okonjo-Iweala was even more blunt.

“You know this thing is not decided on merit... It is voting with political weight and shares, and therefore the U.S. will get it,” she told a group of Nigerian journalists before the decision was announced this week.

South African Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan said he had "serious concerns" about decisions made in "smoke-filled rooms" - a reference to the political carve-ups of the past. Poorer countries should have a greater say in shaping policy, he said.

"If the World Bank doesn't reform it runs the risk of becoming irrelevant," Kusemi Dlamini from the Institute of International Affairs in South Africa told the BBC.

Elizabeth Stuart, head of the development agency Oxfam shared Ms. Okonjo-Iweala’s views. "Dr. Kim is an excellent choice for World Bank president and a true development hero," she said to a reporter. "But we'll never know if he was the best candidate for the job, because there was no true and fair competition. This sham process has damaged the institution and sullied Dr. Kim's appointment."

A third candidate, former U.N. under-secretary general Jose Antonio Ocampo, a Colombian, withdrew from the race in favor of Ms. Okonjo- Iweala.

Jim Yong Kim, past president of Dartmouth College, is a global health expert and co-founder of Partners in Health, a group highly praised for its work in Haiti and other developing nations. He worked for three decades as a physician and medical anthropologist and with the World Health Organization combating the spread of HIV/AIDS.

NUL Young Professionals Developing New Leaders

May 6, 2012

To Be Equal

NUL Young Professionals Developing New Leaders

By Marc H. Morial

marcmorial

(TriceEdneyWire.com) - “Our mission is to support the National Urban League Movement through our volunteerism, philanthropy and membership development.” National Urban League Young Professionals mission statement

My faith in the power and potential in our young people was renewed this past weekend as hundreds of African American high school students from around the country spent their Friday and Saturday participating in an annual Day of Service organized by the National Urban League Young Professionals (NULYP). This year, in partnership with the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE), the NULYP launched STEMWORKS, an education and mentoring program designed to engage more African American youth in studying Science, Technology, Engineering and Math or the STEM disciplines.

Hundreds of students in St. Louis, Pittsburgh, San Diego, Austin and New Orleans were able to talk with experts in the field, participate in workshops and mingle with representatives from some of the nation’s most innovative companies that depend on STEM-educated workers. I was inspired by the enthusiasm of the teens I met at New Orleans’ Sophie B. Wright Charter School, where volunteers helped students create chemically powered robotic cars. The goal was to introduce and educate public school students in grades 9-12, about the impact, importance and earning power that the STEM disciplines have on the economy.

While STEM skills are essential to filling the high-tech jobs of the future, America is currently experiencing a shortage of STEM-educated workers. This is not only imperilling the nation’s ability to compete and win in the global economy, it is causing good paying jobs to go unfilled simply because companies can’t find the talent to do the job. According to Strauder C. Patton IV, of NSBE, “By 2020, our STEM workforce demand is predicted to increase by 20 percent.” The National Urban League Young Professionals wants to make sure African American youth are prepared to fill that gap. NULYP President Brandi Richard said, “We want to guide young people into STEM fields by demystifying science and technology and showing them they can achieve in these areas.”

The NULYP is an outgrowth of the National Urban League’s commitment to developing new leaders. For more than 10 years now, NULYP has been helping prepare young people for leadership roles within the National Urban League, the civil rights movement and society-at-large. With 53 chapters nationwide, and a membership of approximately 4000 young professionals, ages 21-40, NULYP is the largest volunteer auxiliary of the Urban League Movement.

Through an infusion of youthful energy and new tools like Twitter and Facebook, these young leaders are making a big difference within our organization and throughout society. In addition to current NULYP president, Brandi Richard, two of our youngest affiliate presidents have their roots in NULYP. Nolan V. Rollins, President and CEO of the Urban League of Greater New Orleans is a past NULYP president; and Jonathan Peck, President and CEO of the Tucson Urban League, has been an Urban League and national youth leader for many years. We are also proud that newly elected Denver Mayor, Michael Hancock, got his start as a youth leader with the National Urban League. Mayor Hancock made history in 1999 when he became president of the Denver Urban League and the youngest Urban League President in America at the age of 29.

To find out more about NULYP visit www.nulyp.net.

He's Got You Covered!

May 6, 2012

He's Got You Covered!

By Dr. E. Faye Williams

(TriceEdneyWire.com) – He’s got you covered, and it will stay that way! Obviously, I’m talking about President Barack Obama. Of course, some know little about the intention of the Founding Fathers who required health care and health insurance for employees. President Obama is a constitutional scholar, so he didn’t just decide to take a chance that what he was proposing was legal. He knew it was constitutional. We know there are several examples of individual mandates that were passed by the Founding Fathers which directly refute the current claims that the original intent precludes affirming the Affordable Care Act. Contradictions between historical fact and contemporary conjecture are laughable.

Reliable scholars tell us that:

* In 1790, a Congress including 20 Founding Fathers passed a bill requiring that ship owners buy medical insurance for their seamen. President George Washington signed it into law.

* In 1792, another bill signed into law by President Washington required that all able-bodied menpurchase a firearm. (So much for the contemporary argument that Congress cannot mandate citizen participation in commerce!)

* In 1798, a Congress including five of the original framers passed a bill requiring all seamen to purchase hospital insurance for themselves. President Adams signed this legislation into law.

With a full understanding of the precedence established by the Founding Fathers, it’s obvious that President Obama knew there was a problem with the Founding Fathers’ model of health insurance. The problem was not that it was unconstitutional to require participation in or purchase of health insurance. It was the fact that the Founding Fathers’ plan did not include women! In his Affordable Care Act, President Obama has corrected the sole deficiency in the original plan by including women! We thank the President for his insight and concern.

Presumably the President’s critics have read something about the Founding Fathers and what they did concerning health care; yet now, they condemn the notion of a mandatory universal health care plan and reject a nearly identical plan to that of the one created by their current presidential standard bearer, Mitt Romney. Funny, these same critics were silent or agreeable when Mr. Romney thought a mandatory health care plan in Massachusetts was the solution to that state’s health care management. This leads the critical thinker to wonder what factor (s) really motivate the vitriolic condemnation of President Obama’s attempt to bring us a similar form of health insurance that is essential for millions of our citizens. I will bet you can guess why there is a difference in sentiment and treatment!

Although the Affordable Care Act is now law, its fate has been taken out of the control of those who support it. Those who reject it have forced the debate of its constitutionality because of the historic nature of the accomplishment. They would mislead us and have us believe that government does not have the authority to regulate the conduct of citizens in a manner similar to our requirement to pay taxes.

Later this summer, nine Supreme Court Justices, some of whom may or may not allow partisan consideration to influence their judgment, will rule on the constitutionality of affordable care for us and our fellow citizens. Ultimately, these Justices will determine whether competent health care is a right of citizenship or a privilege of wealth.

I am confident that whatever the judgment of the Supreme Court is on the Affordable Care Act that President Obama will champion quality health care for all of us as long as he serves. He jokingly gave the guarantee at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner that should it be necessary, he’d make its passage the hallmark of his second term! That is something we that we voters will decide!

(Dr. E. Faye Williams, Esq. is National Chair of the National Congress of Black Women. www.nationalcongressbw.org. 202/678-6788.)

Crowning of “Miss Black France” Ignites Controversy

Special to the Trice Edney News Wire from the Afro African American

(TriceEdneyWire) - Mbathio Beye was crowned the first “Miss Black France” April 28 under a heavy cloud of controversy in the still racially-charged city of Paris.

The exclusive contest was created to celebrate Black beauty in a way traditional beauty contests failed to do, one organizer said.

“The Traditional Miss France contest is not representing today’s French population accurately. There are usually very few Black candidates in it,” Frederic Royer, one of the organizers of Miss Black France, told AFP. “Our contest aims to focus on these women, who are rarely given any media attention.”

The pageant was a joint project between the French Representative Council of Black Associations (CRAN) and the organizers of the traditional Miss France competition, according to RT.com.

But many decried the contest as unnecessary, divisive, “stupid” and even “dangerous.” Even CRAN’s founder and former president Patrick Lozès called it hardly “progressive.”

“This logic is detrimental to the values of French society,” he said, according to the Black women’s website Madame Noire. “If I think that there are not enough Black people in the most prestigious schools and companies, am I going to go create establishments exclusively reserved for Blacks?”

He later said such exclusive events undercut attempts at integrating Blacks into French society.

“Everything possible must be done so that these people recognize themselves as French, and not as Black people living in France,” he added. “We can’t start having ethnically exclusive contests if our ultimate goal is to have all-inclusive national contests. It’s a serious strategic error.

Historian Pascal Blanchard, a specialist in immigration at France’s National Centre for Scientific Research, shot down the initiative’s supporters who pointed to ethnically-exclusive beauty contests in the United States.

“I know that in the U.S., there are ethnic beauty contests. The fact that they’re tolerated doesn’t change my mind,” he said. “Anytime that anyone, no matter where in the world, talks to me about a contest reserved for a specific racial category, I hit the roof!”

Despite the philosophical wrangling, the show went on. In the end, Beye, a 21-year-old marketing student from Senegal, won after being selected from a pool of 1,000 applicants and beating out 16 other finalists.