State Senator Calls for Dismissal of SC State President

SC State Sen. Robert Ford, a member of the Legislative Black Caucus, has asked the Board of Trustees at South Carolina State University to remove President George Cooper, citing the board's grade of D+ for the university's leader.

"It is time for a change," said state Sen. Robert Ford in a statement.

Sen. Ford says Cooper has had ample time to enact an agenda, but he "instead continues to earn poor grades on his leadership abilities."

This latest turn of events with Cooper is in a long line of events stretching back to 2010. In July 2010, the Board of Trustees voted to fire Cooper, but he was later reinstated after two new board members voted to reinstate him.

Ford is threatening to get Gov. Nikki Haley and members of the General Assembly involved if the board does not act in removing Cooper.

Off Topic: So long friend !!

Savannah State opens new Student Union

Savannah State University recently gave students, alumni and  faculty a look at its new student union building.  The new $11.75 million building will house new office suites, study lounges, a dance studio, meeting and events space with video projectors and smart technology, and a food court.

Students voted in 2009 to pay an extra $150 a semester to pay for the building.

SC State plans $100 million Capital Campaign

South Carolina State University is planning its first capital fundraising campaign.  The full University Trustees will consider the idea on September 29, after a trustee committee approved the plan last Thursday.

Trustee Matthew Richardson says the campaign probably will start next year.

South Carolina State vice president Anthony Holloman says state support for the school has dropped dramatically.

Money raised from the campaign would go for need-based scholarships, building an endowment, as well as faculty development and perhaps a new student fitness and wellness center.

UDC receives $200,000 Kaiser Permanente Workforce Grant

Kaiser Permanente of the Mid-Atlantic States has awarded  the University of the District of Columbia a $200,000 workforce grant, as a part of its mission to invest in the future of health care and help build communities that sustain good health.  The workforce development grants will support an estimated students with scholarships, equipment, and educational training in nursing, allied health, and health technology.

At UDC Kaiser hopes to build capacity in health related programs and purchase simulation equipment to enhance instruction.

Southern University pushes its faculty for pay cuts

Southern University “likely” will ask to declare a financial emergency next week unless nearly all of the faculty agree to furloughs and shorter termination notices, the chancellor said Wednesday.

Southern’s new chancellor, James Llorens, said the budget shortfall proved larger than expected and greater demands are being asked of the faculty. But some of faculty members are balking at the requests, essentially creating a standoff with Southern’s administration.

Declaring a financial emergency, called exigency, allows the administration more leeway to lay off tenured faculty and axe academic programs. Exigency is generally considered a serious blemish that could scare away current and potential employees.

Southern faculty are receiving “voluntary furlough and program discontinuance” agreements to sign. The wording includes furloughs equaling 10 percent of their annual pay across-the-board for all Southern employees.

The agreement does not guarantee that exigency, which would allow the university to force furloughs, will not be declared.

Llorens said unless 95 to 100 percent of the faculty voluntarily sign the agreement, university administrators would have no option but to call exigency. “I understand this is a difficult situation. It’s nothing we go into lightly,” Llorens said.

After initially agreeing to furloughs of up 10 percent last month, Southern Faculty Senate President Sudhir Trivedi said the extra demands and lack of guarantees change everything.

“They refuse to be fair and equitable, and that is why our offer is not on the table anymore,” Trivedi said, noting that the executive committee of the Faculty Senate unanimously opposes signing the agreement.

“We will fight in every possible way against financial exigency,” Trivedi said. “If they are bluffing, I am calling out their bluff.”

Llorens said he plans to meet with faculty leaders Thursday.

Atlanta church steps in to help Morris Brown pay debt

Cascade United Methodist Church, in Atlanta, presented a $22,000 check to Morris Brown College Sunday to help the college paying off a $500,000 debt to the U.S. Department of Education. The funds represented the exact amount needed to help the 130-year-old college eliminate its federal government debt. The U.S. Department of Education's offer to settle the college’s multi-million dollar debt with an amount of $500,000. With Cascade’s donation, Morris Brown will have more than enough funding to pay the settlement, due Wed., Aug. 24th. “We recognize the historical significance of Morris Brown College to our community and the world,” says Rev. Dr. Moss.  “We are grateful that our Cascade members have answered the call during these tough economic times. We are called to be a light in the community so we are pleased to participate in this vital way.”

McClaurin out at Shaw U.

Irma McClaurin, Shaw University's third president in three years, has stepped down.   Neither McClurin or the university would say what led to the resignation, both said it was a mutual decision.  McClurin is Shaw's 15th president and the school's first femaie leader.  She held the job less than a year.  She was hired Sept. 6.

"Shaw University has seen many changes and experienced challenges in the last six months. And with change comes transitions," the university said in a statement issued today.

In June 2009, Dorothy C. Yancy took over as interim president after the abrupt announcement that President Clarence Newsome was taking a one-year leave of absence and would not return.

Shaw in 2009 announced that it was drowning in more than $20 million in debt. In 2010, the university was given a $31 million federal loan to keep its doors open.

On April 16, the school suffered more than $3 million in damages after a tornado touched down on campus. More than 27 buildings were damaged.

The school mounted a rapid recovery. Classes are scheduled to begin Aug. 17, with all classrooms and residence halls open.

On Sunday, McClaurin said Shaw's financial burden had prompted her to seek new investors.

McClaurin said she planned to take her "Imagining More" campaign - an effort to improve upon prior blueprints - to private investors and alumni across the country.

"We still have a funding challenge," she said Sunday. "The goal is to boost donations more aggressively."

Board members referred questions about the resignation to Willie Gary, chairman of Shaw's board of trustees. Calls to Gary were not immediately returned. 

Work continues on new dinning facility at Hampton

Hampton University is completing construction on a new $25 million, 100,000 square-foot cafeteria.  The university broke ground for the new waterfront dining facility in September 2010 and expects to complete it by June 2012.   The 3-story facility will house two dining halls, one for students that will seat 1,500 and another for special University dining and entertainment events that will seat 1,150.

The building is designed to offer views of downtown Hampton through a 3-story convex glass curtain wall that will be the length of the building. The facility is surrounded by a terrace where eaters can dine outside when weather allows.

Hampton has been raising money for the new cafeteria since late 2006 and planned to break ground when reaching $25 million.  In May 2010, the University needed only $1.4 million more and a hard push was made to raise the rest by late 2010.   Officials are still encouraging alumni to donate toward the project.

Fire Damages Tuskegee U. Dorm

A fire on the Tuskegee University campus has severely damaged a residence building.  News video showed large flames and thick, black smoke pouring from the roof of the West Commons apartments, described as a dormitory-style building.

University officials say the blaze began shortly before 5 p.m. Investigators say they believe lightning from a thunderstorm is a possible cause, though an official cause had not yet been determined.

Authorities say three students lived in the building during the summer session but were not in the complex when the fire started.

University officials say they are trying to find housing for students affected by the fire.

SSU hires former UGA A.D as "consultant"

Former University of Georgia athletic director Damon Evans has been hired as a "consultant" at Savannah State University the newest member of the Mideastern Athletic Conference.  Evans will consult on athletic matters.

The hiring come on the heals of  the dismissal of Marilynn Suggs as SSU athletic director.  Evans has indicated he is not interested in the job. 

Evans was hired by Savannah State president Cheryl Dozier to take a look at the university's troubled athletic department, including its administration and fundraising.

While taking the athletic director position might have seemed like a big step down after a six-year stint as AD at Georgia, Evans could have used the job as a springboard to a comeback of sorts.

Evans succeeded Georgia's head football coach Vince Dooley as athletic director for the Bulldogs in 2004. That came tumbling down on June 30, 2010 when he was arrested for DUI. He resigned from Georgia five days later. He pleaded guilty to the charge and received probation, community service and a $750 fine.

Alabama State economic impact approaches $1B annually study says

The results of a one-year study which measured the economic impact of Alabama State University showed that the school has a nearly $1 billion impact on its region.

The study, conducted by the Washington Economics Group, of Coral Gables, Fla., shows that the University's operations and related activities have a $901 million impact on the state's economy and in particular the economy of the three counties that comprise the River Region. The study further reported that the University “is a powerful catalyst of economic development for the state and for the River Region in particular.”

"We want to share this news because our long-term development secures a bright future for our children and grandchildren," ASU President William H. Harris said. "We want others to know the importance of the University so they will become partners with us. These numbers reinforce the importance of Vision 2020."

In addition to the annual $901 million state-wide impact, the University generates 10,500 jobs.

Howard Opens New Center for Drug Research and Development

The Howard University School of Pharmacy recently opened a new Center for Drug Research and Development in a renovated area of the school’s basement. The Center will provide 4,900 square-foot of dedicated space for faculty, students and outside companies to develop new drugs and drug products.

“This is a significant occasion,” said Beatrice Adderley-Kelly, Ph.D., dean of the College of Pharmacy, Nursing and Allied Health Sciences. “This allows our faculty to be on the cutting edge of research and allows the school to partner with industry to develop new drugs.

Emmanuel O. Akala, Ph.D., associate professor in the School of Pharmacy, will serve as the program director for the new facility, which was funded by a grant from the National Institutes of Health’s National Center for Research Resources.

Included in the center’s numerous work spaces are a Formulation Laboratory, where active and inactive pharmaceutical ingredients are handled; an Aseptic Laboratory for developing drugs for intravenous use, and a Manufacturing Laboratory, where capsules and tablets are produced.

The center also contains an Analytical Laboratory to check to insure that products have the correct amount of active ingredients, and a Quality Assurance Laboratory for a final check of the products and packaging area, where drugs will be packaged and labeled.

SACS Rejects Fisk U. Financial Plan

Financially troubled Fisk University was dealt another setback Thursday in its efforts to remain a significant player in higher education when the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools rejected the Nashville university’s financial update and added more items to the important agency’s list of concerns about the historic school’s viability.

At its summer meeting in Charlotte, N.C., which ended Thursday, SACS continued its “warning” status for Fisk until December, giving it six more months to address a variety of issues or face being placed on probation or dropped from membership in the widely respected regional accrediting body.

Fisk has been on warning status from SACS for more than a year, with the Atlanta-based agency repeatedly citing the school’s weak financial condition as the key reason for refusing to grant Fisk a clean bill of health. In its final statement Thursday, SACS expanded the scope of its concerns to include questions about whether Fisk’s administrators were qualified to lead, the qualifications of its academic officials and the school’s compliance with Title IV education programs.

SACS general rules grant schools 24 months to address “warning” status matters. In the case of Fisk, which has been in warning status 18 months, the SACS decision Thursday means Fisk needs to comply with SACS’s issues by December or the agency would be forced to place Fisk on probation or drop it from membership in SACS.

Removal from membership could result in Fisk being disqualified from receiving federal financial aid for its students, some 90 percent of whom rely on financial aid to go to college. Higher education analysts say such an outcome could essentially doom the historic school, a fixture in Nashville since the Civil War and home of the world famous Jubilee Singers.

Fisk had been hopeful its stepped up fundraising efforts would turn SACS around, had no immediate comment on the SACS action.

A&T to offer new Ph.D. in nanoengineering

The UNC board of governors on unanimously approved N.C. A&T’s request to plan a doctoral program in nanoengineering. The new degree program will be the fourth and final degree program that will make up the joint school, a venture between A&T and UNCG.

“It’s very important to our evolution as a school,” Jim Ryan, dean of the joint school, said about the board’s approval. “I’m looking forward to having both our nanoscience and our nanoengineering programs firmly established.”

Ryan said the nanoengineering program could be ready to accept doctoral students by January. The board of governors must give final approval before the program is implemented.

Ryan said the joint school will be one of a small number of schools that offer doctoral degrees in nanoengineering.

Nanoscience is the study of atoms and molecules smaller than 100 nanometers. Area educational and business leaders say the school and its activities will contribute to economic development in the Piedmont Triad.

The school offers master’s degrees in nanoscience and nanoengineering, and a doctoral degree in nanoscience.

UNCG is offering the degrees in nanoscience, while N.C. A&T is offering nanoengineering degrees.

The school’s inaugural class enrolled last fall. The joint school is under construction on East Lee Street at the Gateway University Research Park’s south campus. Students are studying in a temporary space on the research park campus.

The school’s scientists have taken on important projects, including working on a prototype for a handheld device that could help detect mild brain injuries.

'Bama State searching for a Prez

Alabama State University has a sitting president with a contract that expires in August 2012, but the school's Board of Trustees has reconvened it's presidential search committee and said it is "highly likely" the school will have a new president when the process concludes.

Trustee Marvin Wiggins, who is leading the search committee, said they have not talked to the sitting president about extending his contract, only saying that trustees are working hard to bring in a quality leader to run the university.

"If he (the sitting president) applies for the job, that's his call," Wiggins said. "But right now we're preparing because of the expiration of his contract in August 2012."

Elton Dean, chairman of the Alabama State University board of trustees, said "it's just time" to begin the search.

"That was our plan pretty much when we suspended the search. That was our plan -- not to discontinue, but to suspend," Dean said. "Now it is almost a year out before the president's contract is up. We wanted to get the ball rolling again before that time."

"We don't think finding a president is going to be that easy so we wanted to give ourselves enough time to do a proper search," Dean said.

When asked how likely it was that Alabama State University would have a new president after the search, Wiggins said "highly likely."

ASU President William Harris, through a university spokesman, declined to comment on the situation.

Harris was president of ASU from 1994 to 2000. He returned in 2008 as interim president after the departure of Joe Lee. Harris has also served as president of Paine College and Texas Southern University.

Wiggins said Harris was initially the interim president and, as part of negotiating his contract extension, Harris "felt better with the title being president instead of interim president."

"All we did was change the title," the trustee said. He said there were no other new terms or benefits.

Former Hampton football Coach files $7 million lawsuit against University

Former Hampton University football coach Jerry Holmes, who was fired in 2009 amid allegations he was seeking another job, is suing the school for nearly $7 million.

Holmes claims that statements made by HU athletic director Lonza Hardy and then-director of human resources Angela Dunn were false and have damaged his professional reputation. Holmes was dismissed following his only season as head coach on Jan. 26, 2009.

Then, Hardy told local newspapers in the Hampton area that Holmes was terminated because he was networking for a professional assistant coaching position at the Senior Bowl all-star game in Mobile, Ala. Holmes denied he ever interviewed for another position.

The lawsuit claims Hardy knowingly or with reckless disregard made "materially false statements" with the intention of "humiliating" Holmes. The suit claims the statements were "willfully designed by defendant to discredit plaintiff in his profession."

The suit, filed by attorney Steve Forbes in Hampton Circuit Court, seeks $6.5 million in actual damages and $350,000 in punitive damages.

Holmes, was the secondary coach for the Hartford Colonials of the United Football League last fall.

In its response dated Feb. 14, Hampton University requested the suit be dismissed. HU claims that each alleged false statement "either was not published, was privileged, constituted opinion, did not prejudice (Holmes) in his profession, or by its plain and natural meaning was not defamatory."

In particular, the response argues that all correspondence from Hardy and Dunn were sent directly to Holmes and copied only to "university employees who were in a position to have a need to know." Dunn was never quoted in the media.

Holmes signed a two-year contract to be HU's head coach on Dec. 31, 2007, replacing longtime coach Joe Taylor after serving as an assistant for the previous four seasons. The contract stipulated Holmes could be terminated for violating NCAA rules or making negative comments about the athletic department or university to the media. There was no mention of interviewing for other jobs.

The Pirates went 6-5 in Holmes' only season. On Jan. 26, two days after the Senior Bowl, Holmes received from Hardy a letter of dismissal. Hardy claimed that Holmes not only told his assistant coaches of his attempts to leave, he encouraged them to do so. Hardy called that "highly unprofessional and disrespectful" to HU.

Howard U. Class of 2011 includes Three Fulbright Scholars

The Howard University Class of 2011 includes three Fulbright Scholars – Antonino Eugene Lyons II, Jessica A. Cooper and Manjot Kaur Jassal – who will spend next year in Brazil and India respectively.

Lyons, received a degree in supply chain management, will work to prepare small Brazilian businesses for the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympic Games. He will also teach English. In preparation for Brazil, Lyons will study Portuguese at the Middlebury Language School in Vermont.

Congresswoman's "earmark" improves Edward Waters Col

A $2 million earmark by Jacksonville, FL Congresswoman Corrine Brown has made much needed improvements to Edward Waters College.

Brown, a democrat, made a point of saying the improvements were the result of a congressional earmark, which funds specific projects at a lawmaker's request.

"There's a lot of negativity about earmarks," Brown said. "But this project would never have happened without it."

Yesterday, the school and the Jacksonville Transportation Authority marked the end of the $2 million improvement project. About $1.4 million came from the federal government; $600,000 came from the state.

Brown's earmark added new sidewalks, bus shelters, lighting, landscaping and improved drainage and signals and even the college seal in the roadway.

Edward Waters President Nat Glover said the improvements made the area safer and more attractive to future students and their parents. And he said he hoped the project would lead to a neighborhood revitalization.

"Our first goal is the campus," he said. "But we also hope this spurs improvements in the community."

Hampton U. receives $1m gift from it's President

Hampton University President Dr. William R. Harvey and Mrs. Norma B. Harvey have donated $1 million to Hampton University to be used as incentives to increase faculty salaries. This is the second $1 million gift they made to the University. For the academic year 2011-12, every Hampton University faculty member will receive at least a three percent increase.

The Harveys’ donation will provide additional funds to faculty members who have received grants, published articles in refereed journals, and provided significant service to Hampton University. Under this arrangement some faculty members may be able to receive salary increases up to eight percent.

In 2001, President and Mrs. Harvey donated $1 million to fund a scholarship, dedicated specifically for high school students from Hampton and Newport News interested in becoming teachers.