African American Students

Sikivu Hutchinson  |   OW Contributing Columnist
Sep 15 2011

Some see a ‘push-out’ mentality of Black students in effect

As an assistant principal with 29 years of experience in South L.A. schools, John Alvarez knows the drill. 

Sikivu Hutchinson  |   OW Contributing Columnist
Sep 1 2011

Suspensions of African American youth soar as the school system—and parenting—fails them.

Sitting in the sparsely filled auditorium of Gardena High School in Los Angeles at the beginning of an annual senior awards ceremony, I looked around, and wondered; where the hell are the Black parents? I was attending the ceremony to see students from my Women’s Leadership Project program—the majority of whom are African American and en route to four-year colleges—receive much-deserved awards for service and academic achievement. 

Erich C. Nall  |   OW Contributing Columnist
Sep 1 2011

An Ultimate Transformation Moment

As the summer months wind down, the transition into the academic school year begins. This week’s Ultimate Transformation Moment is about building expectations.

It’s time to build academic expectations for our children, have them set some goals and then give them support as they decide how they’re going to achieve them.

Apr 27 2011

Eight HBCUs host ending violence against women events

WASHINGTON, D.C.—On April 27, 2011 over 3,500 students at eight (8) Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs)—Clark Atlanta University, Coppin State University, Howard University, Lemoyne-Owen College, Morehouse College, Morgan State University, Norfolk State University and Prairie View A&M University—will participate in the 3rd Denim Day at HBCUs. The HBCU movement for Denim Day is organized by Ending Violence Against Women (EVAW): The HBCU Project, an initiative funded through the U.S.

Brittney M. Walker  |   OW Staff Writer
Apr 6 2011

Film on the subject provokes discussion in the AV

PALMDALE, Calif.—“Waiting for Superman,” a riveting new documentary on the state of learning in America, is being screened in theaters all across the country. The film’s impactful message about hope, poverty, and education recently caught the attention of Antelope Valley residents, including parents and teachers.

On Tuesday (March 29) night at the Palmdale Learning Plaza, the League of Women Voters of the Antelope Valley hosted a screening and a subsequent discussion of the controversial film.

Across Black America

Here’s a look at African American people and issues making headlines throughout the country.
 

Alabama
Freeman A. Hrabowski, president of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, will address the annual African American Business Council luncheon on June 28. Hrabowski, who is chairman of President Barack Obama’s Advisory Commission on Education Excellence for African Americans, has a national reputation for his work studying the performance of minority students in math and science. Hrabowski, named one of the 10 best college presidents in the country by Time magazine, was a child leader in the Civil Rights Movement in Birmingham in the 1960s.
 

Arkansas
The Liberty Counsel filed a motion and a brief in United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas seeking to intervene on behalf of a Concepts of Life crisis pregnancy center to defend against a suit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union and the Center for Reproductive Rights. The groups seek to impose a permanent injunction before the Human Heartbeat Protection Act goes into effect July 18. Liberty Counsel also filed a brief opposing the ACLU’s request for an injunction. The “Heartbeat” bill states that when a woman seeks an abortion at or after the 12th week, doctors must test for a fetal heartbeat before an abortion is performed and inform the pregnant mother that the child in her womb has a heartbeat. If a heartbeat is detected, a woman cannot have an abortion, except in cases of rape, incest, and if a mother’s life is in danger. “As we promised when the legislation was introduced, Liberty Counsel will defend this law without reservation for the people of Arkansas, born and pre-born,” said Matt Staver, founder and chairman of Liberty Counsel. “No right is more foundational than the right to life. Without life, all other rights are irrelevant,” concluded Staver.