At 77, Rose Green is still brushing off her cleats and maintaining her status as one of the fastest sprinters in her age group, My Fox DC reports. It’s a pretty impressive feat, not only because of her age but also because she took up the sport just last year and rose to the top of the ranks in such a short time.
According to My Fox DC, Green, a resident of Prince George’s County, Md., has won medals in several competitions, including the 200- and 400-meter races, and is the nation’s record holder in her age group in the 60-meter sprint. Green, a great-grandmother, is trained vigorously by coach Cortez Austin. He’s also her boyfriend.
“She’s world-class,” Austin said about Green’s work ethic and ability. She trains seven days a week.
Green says that she doesn’t get any special treatment from Austin. “He’ll tell me, ‘Your form is not right, you’re not going as fast as you should,’ ” Green said. “He’s a very strict coach even though we are lovers.”
Green is turning into a local celebrity in her Cameron Grove adult community, and she’s helping students and other runners strive to greatness as well. “She is like a celebrity,” said Austin. “It’s no question that she is an inspiration.”
“I hear that so many times that I’m starting to believe that I’m an inspiration to all these people,” Green said.
Green is currently training for the national senior championships in July. “I’m working towards the world record,” she said. “Why not?”
Read more and see video of this inspiring woman at My Fox DC. article by Diana Ozemebhoya Eromosele via theroot.com
Randy Moss with Kassi Spier on Friday. (Pelican Rapids Press)
Back in 1998, two-year-old Kassi Spier caught Randy Moss‘ attention when she yelled his name while Moss was going through his first training camp with the Minnesota Vikings.
The two quickly formed a bond, a bond that became stronger in 2000 after Spier was diagnosed with leukemia. Despite the leukemia, Spier still made it to training camp that year to visit Moss, according to a St. Paul Pioneer-Press story. “Randy loves that girl to death,” Daunte Culpepper said at the time. “They have that connection, and I think it’s beautiful.”
An Associated Press story from 2003 also noted that Moss would take Spier to lunch every day while holding her “tiny hand.”
Moss has been there for Spier for well over a decade and once again, he was there for her on Friday when he handed Spier her high school diploma at a graduation ceremony that took place in Pelican Rapids, Minnesota. Spier was among the 72 graduates who received a diploma at Pelican Rapids High School, according to the Pelican Rapids Press.
Pelican Rapids Public School District Superintendent Deb Wanek told the Fargo Forum that Moss had promised Spier he’d be at the ceremony. “She’s had many struggles in her life, and he’s been there for her,” Wanek said. “He told her he’d be at her high school graduation.”
Even after Moss left Minnesota in 2004, he stayed in touch with Spier. It hasn’t been an easy 17 years for Spier: Not only was she diagnosed with leukemia, but her dad died in a car accident in 2004 and she was also diagnosed with a brain tumor in 2013, but she always had a loving shoulder to lean on in Moss. article by John Breech via cbssports.com
Air Force General Benjamin O. Davis (photo courtesy wikiwand.com)
From 1900 to 1932, no African-American cadet matriculated at the United States Military Academy at West Point. In 1932, Benjamin O. Davis Jr., the son of an Army officer, was admitted. He was “silenced” or shunned by his classmates for four years as officers and administrators at West Point looked the other way. No cadets, faculty or staff members befriended or spoke to him except on an official basis. Yet Davis persisted and graduated 35th in his class.
Benjamin O. Davis Jr. went on to command the Tuskegee Airmen in World War II and later was the first Black general in the U.S. Air Force. He died in 2002.
Now the U.S. Military Academy is paying tribute to General Davis by naming a new cadet barracks in his honor.
“General Benjamin O. Davis Jr. epitomizes the essence of character and honorable living we strive to inspire in every cadet at West Point,” said Lt. Gen. Robert L. Caslen, superintendent of the U.S. Military Academy. article viajbhe.com
Barack Obama has joined Twitter and broken a Guinness World Record.
Some of you are probably thinking, “Just joined Twitter? He’s been on the social media site for years—it maybe even helped him win an election.” And you’d be correct—the President’s checkmarked profile, currently with 59.4 million followers, has been active since 2007.
But on Monday, the handle @POTUS (President of the United States) debuted, featuring tweets exclusively from the president. According to Forbes, it was amassing about 3,314 followers per minute in the time between his first tweet around noon and racking up his millionth follower around 4:15 p.m.
So, in just a little more than four hours, the Leader of the Free World got more followers on the microblogging site than many of us will ever see in our social media lifetime.
He’s still behind Twitter buddy and former President Bill Clinton, who has 3.52 million followers, and former rival Hillary Clinton, who has 3.54 million.
But back to the world record. According to the Huffington Post, Obama logged the “fastest time to reach 1 million followers on Twitter.” That honor had previously been held by Avengers actor Robert Downey Jr., who reached the milestone in about 24 hours upon joining Twitter in April 2014.
His new account is not in the top-tier of users with the most followers—at least not yet. The honor for the most followers belongs to singer Katy Perry, who has 69.9 million followers, and Justin Bieber, who comes in second with 64 million. Obama’s first Twitter account, run by the group Organizing for Action, is at No. 59.4 million followers. article by Joe Lyons via blackenterprise.com
Born Malcolm Little on May 19, 1925 in Omaha, Nebraska and known primarily as Malcolm X, El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz was an African-American minister for the Nation of Islam and a human rights activist who rose to national and international prominence in the 1960s.
He was a courageous advocate for the rights of blacks, a man who indicted white America in the harshest terms for its crimes against black Americans, and one of the greatest and most influential African Americans in U.S. history.
The Autobiography of Malcolm X as told to Alex Haley and published in 1965, remains an important, seminal work to this day, and the Spike Lee-directed feature film Malcolm X garnered critical acclaim as well as an Academy Award nomination for Denzel Washington.
To more fully appreciate the genius of this man, it pays to hear him speak for himself. Even if you just watch the first two minutes of the video below, you will have done yourself an immeasurable favor:
Musical legends Michael Jackson and Ray Charles (photo via eurweb.com)
The United Negro College Fund (UNCF) is putting the icon status of Michael Jackson and Ray Charles towards a great cause with the establishment of two new scholarship programs.
A press release reveals the Michael Jackson scholarship will provide financial assistance to communication arts and social science students attending a UNCF college/university during the upcoming academic year.
To qualify for the scholarship, high school seniors must plan on enrolling at a UNCF member school in the fall. Proof of acceptance at the UNCF college/university must be submitted. Depending on the financial need of the student as verified by the attending University or College, the scholarship will provide an award totaling up $5,000.
In addition to the Michael Jackson scholarship, the release detailed the intent of the Ray Charles Endowed Scholarship, which is set up to help African-American students with high academic promise that have significant financial need.
Endowment scholarships, which are renewable for up to one year, will be awarded to students who meet the recommended eligibility criteria. Criteria includes students being an African-American junior enrolled full-time at a UNCF member HBCU and having a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale. In addition, students must have a demonstrated unmet financial need that is verified by their college or university.
For more details on the Michael Jackson UNCF Scholarship, click here. More information on the Ray Charles Endowment Scholarship can be found here. article by Qwest7 via eurweb.com
Oprah Winfrey and Cicely Tyson at A Tribute To African-American Achievements In Television hosted by The Paley Center For Media at Cipriani Wall Street on May 13, 2015 in New York City. (Photo by Mike Coppola/Getty Images)
The Paley Center for Media hosted a star-studded event Thursday evening celebrating the 35th anniversary of BET’s launch, as well as the groundbreaking achievements of African-Americans in television over the years.
The guest list was basically a who’s who of black America. Everyone from Oprah Winfrey, Cicely Tyson, Larry Wilmore, Tracee Ellis Ross, Lee Daniels, Kerry Washington, Michael Strahan and Phylicia Rashad. Winfrey kicked off the night with an opening monologue, during which she expressed her gratitude for the evolution of African-Americans contributing to some of today’s most successful shows on television.
“When I was growing up there were so few people of color on television, but when there was one of us we would end up missing it because we would be calling everybody else saying, ‘it’s coming on right now. Turn on ‘Ed Sullivan.’ It’s coming on,’” she said. “So part of the power of tonight’s event will be to appreciate and to honor our history as we continue to be an interval part of the entertainment industry.”
One of the evening’s many heartfelt moments occurred during Cicely Tyson’s speech in recognition of her illustrious career. The iconic actress went on to recall the time where she received backlash for her 1963 role as secretary Jane Foster on the CBS drama series “East Side/West Side.” The breakthrough role — which featured Tyson wearing a natural hair style — marked a first for a black actress and sparked a nationwide hair movement.
“This has been a wonderful evening and an emotional evening for me watching the positive strides we’ve taken over the years. We’re not there yet, but we’re going to get there,” Tyson declared. “I have been especially moved by the moments that were a flashback for me… when I first appeared on the air with a natural and received barrels of negative letters that had to do with the fact that I was disgracing the role of the image of black women when I was in a position to glorify it.”
“Well, finally at last I am ecstatic to say that we as a race of people have come to recognize and accept the fact that our pride and glory is our hair… that doesn’t mean you can’t wear your hair the way you want to.” article by Brennan Williams via huffingtonpost.com
Professor Claudine Gay (photo via news.harvard.edu) Claudine Gay, a Harvard professor of government and African and African American Studies, and a distinguished scholar of mass political behavior, has been appointed the Dean of Social Science.
Gay, who will begin her new role on July 1, joined the Harvard faculty in 2006, and has served as director of graduate studies for the Department of Government for the past five years. She has also been a member of the Committee on General Education, and earlier this year joined the Steering Committee for the Institute of Quantitative Social Science. She serves on numerous editorial boards and scientific associations, and is vice president of the Midwest Political Science Association.
This year the National Academy of Sciences elected 84 new members from the United States. While the academy does not release data on the race or ethnicity of its members, after an analysis of the list of new members by JBHE, it appears two of the new members are African Americans. Dr. Scott V. Edwards Scott V. Edwards is the Alexander Agassiz Professor of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology at Harvard University. He is also the curator of birds for the Museum of Comparative Zoology at Harvard. A native of Hawaii, Professor Edwards is a magna cum laude graduate of Harvard University. He earned a Ph.D. in zoology at the University of California, Berkeley. Dr. Edwards has been on the faculty at Harvard University since 2003. Dr. Jennifer A. Richeson (photo via wikipedia.com) Jennifer A. Richeson holds the John D. & Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Endowed Chair in psychology at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. She also serves as professor of African American studies at the university. Professor Richeson has been on the faculty at Northwestern since 2005. Previously, she taught at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire. Dr. Richeson is a graduate of Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island. She holds a Ph.D. in social psychology from Harvard University.
The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a non-profit organization in the United States. “Established by an Act of Congress, signed by President Abraham Lincoln in 1863, the NAS is charged with providing independent, objective advice to the nation on matters related to science and technology.” “The National Academy of Sciences charter commits the Academy to provide scientific advice to the government “whenever called upon” by any government department.
As a national academy, new members of the organization are elected annually by current members, based on their distinguished and continuing achievements in original research. Election to the National Academy is one of the highest honors in U.S. science. article via jbhe.com (additions by Lori Lakin Hutcherson)
Dillard University Board of Trustees Member MC Lyte (photo via eurweb.com)
Philanthropist, rapper and hip-hop pioneer MC Lyte has taken her community involvement to new heights, as she now sits on the board of trustees for Dillard University in New Orleans.
Through herHip Hop Sisters Foundation, Lyte had previously providedcollege scholarships to four young women, and this time around, sought to take on a different mission, encouraging black men to pursue their education through the organizations signature initiative, “Educate Our Men,” (#EducateOurMen) born within Dillard.
“More than just a necessity, given the percentages of men to women at Dillard, immediately we just thought how can we raise the awareness of the education to be had at an HBCU [which] is like none other,” said Lyte.
According to Dr. Walter Kimbrough, President of Dillard University, what began a simple meeting of the minds turned into a full fledged opportunity for Lyte to leverage her renowned platform, and implement change on Dillard’s campus.
Dr. Kimbrough passionately shares how he and Lyte’s partnership began.
“Last April MC Lyte’s foundation president, Lynn Richardson, reached out and said MC Lyte wanted to meet with me. I told her okay, let me know what her schedule looks like and I will come out. She said no, we’re coming to you. So they came and indicated that MC Lyte wanted to do something with HBCUs, and has done a scholarship in the past (U. of Wisconsin). So, the idea was to do scholarships for young men to attend Dillard, explains Dr. Kimbrough, “A pleasant surprise. But we kept talking and they wanted to be more involved in Dillard. So we ended up talking about doing a course- I Cram to Understand: Hip Hop, Sex, Gender and Ethical Behavior. It was already on the books at Dillard (minus hip hop) so we just refreshed it. She came and did an open lecture for the campus plus a special session for the class.”
Lyte lectured the course at no costs to the university and stayed in touch with Dr. Kimbrough after the lecture to further discuss the schools needs and how she and her platform may be of assistance.
“Because of her sincere interest, we thought it would be great to have her be part of the board of trustees, said Kimbrough, “ It will be a new experience for her, and I think a good one to learn more about higher education, and she has a platform that can benefit Dillard.”
Lyte speaks highly of Dr. Kimbrough’s sincere passion as well, and both seem excited for the fruits of their blossoming partnership.
“He’s [Dr. Kimbrough’s] always had a really great relationship with hip hop in general, with the culture and a mass amount of respect for what it is that we do, said Lyte,“It feels like a natural collaboration.”
Through this particular initiative with Dillard, the two, are seeking to bring male enrollment numbers up and improve learning outcomes. Lyte believes Dr. Kimbrough’s moxie and dynamic understanding for the #EducateOurMen cause, makes Dillard the perfect inaugural home for the initiative.
MC Lyte and Denzel Washington at Dillard University (photo via eurweb.com)
“For me, there is no other school to do it with but, Dillard,” said Lyte, “Education gives one opportunity, gives an outlook and allows someone to dream of something better– of making their circumstances better, of providing for their families and providing for their children.”
Lyte explained her reason for becoming an artist was always to inspire others and to use any influence gained along the way to shine light on issues that deserved acknowledgment– and hopefully with the help of Dr. Kimbrough, and Dillard University, they will do just that, for a community of people, who Lyte believes, have been overlooked.
Recently, she oversaw the 2015 graduation where acclaimed actor Denzel Washington was the commencement speaker and received an honorary degree. article by Brittany Dandy via blackenterprise.com (additions via eurweb.com)
by Lori Lakin Hutcherson (
This year the National Academy of Sciences elected 84 new members from the United States. While the academy does not release data on the race or ethnicity of its members, after an analysis of the list of new members by 
