Marybeth GasmanUniversity of Pennsylvania professor Marybeth Gasman explores issues of access and retention for students and faculty of color and Historically Black Colleges and Universities, among other things.OpinionLooking Forward Rather Than BackwardLast Thursday, I attended the “Unfinished Business: National Dialogue on Historically Black Colleges and Universities in the 21st Century” meeting at Morgan State University. Most of the conversation centered on the inequity that continues to exist in public higher education, especially in the Southern and border states. During the presidents’ roundtable, the speakers detailed […]November 16, 2009OpinionHBCUs, Student Protest and Lincoln University’s Library“Every man of humane convictions must decide on the protest that best suits his convictions, but we must all protest.” —Martin Luther King Jr. A week ago, I attended the History of Education Society annual meeting in Philadelphia. On the program were four or five different papers about HBCUs and their historic traditions of […]November 1, 2009OpinionPerfectionism: Just Stop It!The best piece of advice received in my academic career thus far was given to me by Dr. Wayne Urban, an historian and professor at the University of Alabama. During my first year as a faculty member, I walked into his office and asked, “Wayne, how do you write so much excellent scholarship, how […]October 26, 2009OpinionHow about a Career in Fundraising for Students of Color?Editor’s note: This blog post was co-authored by Nelson Bowman III. From time to time, I like to write with others and this week my friend Nelson Bowman III, director of development at Prairie View A & M University, had some good ideas — so we decided to write about them together. Both […]October 19, 2009OpinionGiving Back is a Matter of Surviving and Thriving for HBCUsAs I was perusing the Facebook statuses of some of my “friends” today, I came across one who posted the following: “Did you attend an HBCU? If you had a great time and appreciate all that your HBCU did to make you who you are today, then put your money where your mouth is and […]October 12, 2009OpinionUse Your Voice!This week in my History of American Higher Education course, we were discussing perspective — meaning that each of the authors and articles I assign has a perspective or an inherent bias. I work hard to teach students to critically think and to realize that bias is everywhere and that it’s nearly impossible to find […]October 1, 2009OpinionCome on People! What’s the Big Deal about a President Welcoming Students Back to School?By Dr. Marybeth Gasman Ronald Reagan did it, George H.W. Bush did it, why can’t Barack Obama? Why can’t public school children listen to our president welcome them back to school? I’ll admit that I was not the biggest fan of our last president, but I would not have a problem with him speaking to […]September 6, 2009OpinionIt’s HBCU Week in Washington DC: Let’s See What the Future HoldsEvery year, I attend the White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities Conference, which is held in Washington D.C. in September. It’s a unique event in that it brings together the leaders of both public and private HBCUs with members of the federal government, funders, and those representing the private and nonprofit sector. […]August 31, 2009OpinionGet and Give All You Can: Advice for New Graduate StudentsIt’s that time of year — new graduate students are setting foot on campuses across the nation hoping to gain knowledge and have new experiences that will help them progress in their careers. As a professor and adviser, I get really excited about new graduate students. They are usually wide-eyed, excited, and eager to get […]August 10, 2009OpinionWhite Privilege: What if Henry Louis Gates had been White?By now, most enlightened people have heard about the incident involving Harvard University Professor Henry Louis Gates and the Cambridge, Mass., police. As a recap, the Cambridge police arrested the eminent scholar in front of his home. Just having returned from filming a PBS special in China, Gates, along with his Black taxi driver, were […]July 23, 2009Previous PagePage 7 of 11Next Page
