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Maya Angelou to Receive Honorary Book Award

By goodblacknews on September 5, 2013

Dr. Maya Angelou poses at the the Special Recognition Event for Dr. Maya Angelou � The Michael Jackson Tribute Portrait at Dr. Angelou's home June 21, 2010 in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. (Photo by Ken Charnock/Getty Images)
Dr. Maya Angelou poses at the the Special Recognition Event for Dr. Maya Angelou The Michael Jackson Tribute Portrait at Dr. Angelou’s home June 21, 2010 in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. (Photo by Ken Charnock/Getty Images)

The book world is finally honoring Maya Angelou.

The poet and author of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings will be this year’s recipient of the Literarian Award, an honorary National Book Award for contributions to the literary community, the National Book Foundation announced today. It is the first major literary prize for the 85-year-old Angelou, who has been celebrated everywhere from the Grammy Awards to the White House. She has received three Grammys for best spoken word album, a National Medal of Arts and the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the country’s highest civilian honor.

Speaking by telephone with The Associated Press, Angelou said she couldn’t wait to be in the same room as “some very big names in the literary world” and that the Literarian prize made her feel that she was “picking in high cotton.”

“Dr. Angelou’s body of work transcends the words on the page,” the book foundation’s executive director, Harold Augenbraum, said in a statement. “She has been on the front lines of history and the fight for social justice and decade after decade remains a symbol of the redemptive power of literature in the contemporary world.”

USC Offers Full-Ride Scholarships To Low-Income Students Who Commit to 7-year Program of Tutoring, Classes and Seminars

By goodblacknews on September 3, 2013
Tristan Baizar, Neighborhood Academic Initiative scholarship recipient, in his new dorm room, hugs his mother, Malva Yorke.

Flush with excitement, Tristan Baizar showed up on his USC move-in day even before the official 8 a.m. check-in time. His mom and girlfriend helped him unpack. It was a quick process — from past camps and programs, the 18-year-old South Los Angeles resident knew how to move into USC’s dorms. Except this was the real deal, the first step into his freshman year of college. Baizar met his new roommates, bought textbooks and soaked in the experience.

But later in the day, a few hours before his first dorm meeting, Baizar slipped away from campus. He drove across town to a small elementary school in Boyle Heights and an auditorium full of sixth-graders and their parents.  Baizar stood at the front of the room and flashed a smile. He hoped his presence would help pitch the program he credits for his new Trojan education.
More than two decades ago, USC designed a way to give low-income students in South Los Angeles a chance to attend the private university, free of charge, if they met several conditions.  Currently, students commit to a seven-year regimen of after-school tutoring and classes on Saturdays. Beginning in ninth grade, students also have to take weekday morning classes at USC. Parents must attend Saturday seminars.
Those who stay with the program from sixth grade through their senior year of high school and meet USC admission requirements receive a 4 1/2-year tuition scholarship to the university. The scholarship money applies only to USC, but officials say the program motivates students to attend four-year schools.  The first class of students graduated from the program in 1997. Of those original 43 graduates, 20 went to USC.
Today, the Neighborhood Academic Initiative boasts 745 graduates and a 99% graduation rate from the program, with 83% enrolling as freshmen at four-year colleges and universities and 35% as freshmen at USC.  About five years ago, officials began looking to move the program beyond South Los Angeles for the first time.
To the northeast sits USC’s 79-acre Health Sciences Campus. USC already had long-standing relationships with several neighborhood schools, said Kim Thomas-Barrios, executive director of USC Educational Partnerships.  “Logically, that was the best place for us to expand,” Thomas-Barrios said.  When USC officials approached the principals of Murchison and El Sereno elementary schools to determine interest in the program, they quickly agreed.
“It’s a wonderful opportunity for our community,” said Margarita Gutierrez, the principal of Murchison.
Most families in the area live at or below the poverty line, and almost all of the students qualify for free- or reduced- priced lunch. Gutierrez said parent participation is low — so she was thrilled when two-thirds of sixth-grade parents showed up for an informational meeting last month.
Program manager Isabel Duenas, who took attendance at the meeting, entered the program as a sixth-grader at Johnnie L. Cochran Jr. Middle School in L.A.’s Mid-City neighborhood. When she was in high school, her family moved to Lynwood, and she commuted to classes at USC to keep her spot.
It paid off: She earned the scholarship to USC and graduated in 2010. She’s among the growing pool of graduates who return as teachers, mentors or coordinators.  Duenas will be busy the next few months. The East L.A. branch of the program is slated to launch Jan. 25, and before that, she’ll spend her time convincing students and parents to sign up, as she and eight other program graduates did at the meeting.
Baizar, the tallest, stood in the middle of the line of graduates. It seemed as if time had barely passed since he heard the same presentation as an overly talkative fifth-grader.  At the time, he had some taste of what to expect. His older sister also graduated from the program, falling short of the USC scholarship but doing well enough to attend Loyola Marymount. His mother, Malva Yorke, a single parent, had attended the years of Saturday seminars.
Baizar battled a lack of motivation at first. He got a few D’s and F’s midway through sixth grade and barely clung to his spot in the program. After that, he vowed he’d never get anything below a C.  When Baizar graduated from James A. Foshay Learning Center in South L.A. in the spring, he had a 3.7 GPA and a 1650 SAT score — good enough for admission to USC.  Baizar said the program gave him a shot at a campus that was probably otherwise out of reach.  “I feel like I would have been at a good university, like UC Irvine or Cal State Long Beach, but not as well-funded,” Baizar said. “I don’t believe USC would have been a possibility.”
His girlfriend, fellow program graduate Jessica Alcazar, wasn’t accepted to USC. But she described the process as a “win-win,” saying the classes and mentoring kept her grades high enough to earn admission to UC Irvine.  After the presentation at Murchison, excited chatter bounced around the auditorium as parents and students filled out applications. All 66 sixth-graders at Murchison will be able to participate, as well as 35 more from El Sereno Elementary. Officials said the program will eventually expand to about 600 students in East L.A.
Parent Morena Gonzales was all smiles. She said her oldest child finished only high school, and she didn’t pressure her to continue out of concern about costs.  “As a single parent, I wouldn’t even begin to figure out how to pay for my child’s education,” she said in Spanish. “My whole perspective has changed — I’m looking forward to learning more.”  After the meeting, her daughter Lilia, 11, said she wants to go to USC.
article by Devin Kelly via latimes.com

15 Year-Old Jaylen Bledsoe Builds Multi-Million Dollar Tech Company in St. Louis

By goodblacknews on September 3, 2013

Jaylen Bledsoe in screengrab from According to msnnow.com, Jaylen Bledsoe is a 15-year-old sophomore at Hazelwood West High School in St. Louis who also happens to be the CEO and President of Bledsoe Technologies.  Bledsoe started his IT consultancy when he was 12 or 13, quickly growing it into the $3.5 million enterprise it is today.

He plans to attend Harvard after he graduates from high school and will be a presenter for a St. Louis youth entrepreneurship nonprofit Independent Youth at their annual TrepStart Day in September, as well as being a national speaker for the organization.  To see video of Bledsoe and his story, click here: [Source]
article by Lori Lakin Hutcherson 

Hip-Hop Version of 'Othello' by Chicago Shakespeare Theater Resonates Behind Bars

By goodblacknews on September 2, 2013
Rapper Postell Pringle wears a wig as he performs a hip hop adaptation of William Shakespeare titled "Othello: The Remix" at the Cook County Jail in Chicago.
Rapper Postell Pringle wears a wig as he performs a hip hop adaptation of William Shakespeare titled “Othello: The Remix” at the Cook County Jail in Chicago. (M. SPENCER GREEN / AP)
CHICAGO — Act I, Scene 1: Four actors in well-worn coveralls and baseball caps take the stage at the county jail. They’re here to tell a tale of love, friendship, jealousy and betrayal. It’s the stuff of Shakespearean tragedy. The names and themes haven’t changed over the centuries, but the language has a modern beat:
“Othello never knew, He was getting schemed on by a member of his crew.”
This is “Othello-The Remix,” the Chicago Shakespeare Theater’s hip-hop version of the tragedy about a valiant Moor deceived by the villainous Iago into mistakenly believing his wife has been unfaithful. After Othello smothers his beloved Desdemona, he discovers she has been true to him and he kills himself.
That’s how Shakespeare told the story 400 years ago. This modern version – performed this week for about 450 Cook County jail inmates – is a rhyming, rapping, poetic homage to the Bard. It has singing and dancing. Comic touches. Men playing women. Sexual talk. References to Eddie Murphy and James Brown. A throbbing beat, courtesy of an onstage DJ.
And a contemporary plot: MC Othello is a self-made rap star turned music mogul (think Jay-Z) who decides to promote Cassio, a middle-of-the-road rapper, by releasing his next album. That infuriates the edgy rapper, Iago, who vows revenge. “This is why I hate the Moor,” he fumes. “He never lets me get my foot in the door.” Desdemona is not seen, but heard, her ethereal golden pipes occasionally filling the air.
The Othello remix is the brainchild of two Chicago brothers and rappers – GQ and JQ, aka Gregory and Jeffrey Qaiyum. They wrote and directed the show, honing 40 or so drafts over eight months into a 75-minute rhyme-a-thon. It’s their third hip-hop translation of Shakespeare, following “The Bomb-itty of Errors” and “Funk It Up About Nothin.'”

Faces of Hope: Patrick Oliver Teaches Kids to Be Successful Readers and Writers

By goodblacknews on August 30, 2013
Patrick Oliver traces his success back to this scene: As a little boy in his home in the projects of Little Rock, he shared the morning newspapers with his parents and his grandfather. Each person grabbed a section of the newspaper and passed the other sections around. He and his grandfather, who lived nearby, shared the sports pages.
Years later when he worked himself up from a low level job to one as a material analyst and senior contract administrator in the defense industry, he remembered those scenes at home. His reading and writing skills allowed him to easily understand systems and write proposals that suggested more efficient ways of operating, thus gaining him attention, respect and promotions from upper management. Oliver never forgot the connection between the rituals at his house and his success at work.
“The success of me being a success in corporate America is because of my reading,” he said. “Our house was full of newspapers and magazines,” he said.
Now a literary consultant, program manager and radio host in Little Rock, he devotes most of his life to developing programs that introduce black youth to literature and the importance of reading and writing well. In 1993, he founded “Say It Loud! Readers and Writers,” the nonprofit that provides opportunities for youth ages 10 – 18 to participate in literary arts activities and events designed to enhance their appreciation for literature as a tool for empowerment. Today, in addition to programs in Little Rock, he has partnerships with programs in Chicago, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C.

MUST WATCH: President Barack Obama's March on Washington Speech Today (VIDEO)

By goodblacknews on August 28, 2013

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xOBSeN205pI&w=560&h=315]
29obama-articleLargeOn the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, President Barack Obama honored the legacy and spirit of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. with his own inspired speech this afternoon, echoing the call to freedom and justice that King’s own “I Have A Dream” speech did 50 years ago today.  Obama’s speech was the culmination of a full day of celebration of the March on Washington’s golden anniversary.  Watch his entire address above.
article by Lori Lakin Hutcherson

11-Year-Old Carson Huey-You Youngest Student Ever to Attend Texas Christian University

By goodblacknews on August 28, 2013

Screen Shot 2013-08-28 at 12.15.09 PMThe first weeks of college are a nerve-wracking time for nearly all students, but imagine trying to find your way around campus and meeting all your professors at age 11. Carson Huey-You is the youngest person to ever attend Texas Christian University.

He was reading chapter books by the time he was 2 years old. He was in high school at age 5, and he graduated from Accommodated Learning Academy in Grapevine with a 4.0 grade point average and a 1770 SAT score.

Huey-You’s feet barely touched the ground when he played Beethoven’s “Ode to Joy” during his admissions interview.  Dean of Admissions Ray Brown said he knew he wanted Huey-You to be a Horned Frog, but it wasn’t easy.  “He was completely off the grid when it came to even the most basic of things, like completing an application or completing a financial aid form,” he said. “Because of his date of birth, those forms would not accept his application.”

As a TCU student, he will spend a lot of his time in the technology building, as he studies to become a quantum physicist.  Huey-You’s mother is by his side every day as he attends calculus, physics, history and religion classes on the Fort Worth campus.  “It’s just really fun to have her around,” Huey-You said.

Despite the age difference, he chats with fellow students, as well.  “I’ve actually managed to make a few friends here,” he said.  In spite of intelligence far beyond his years, Huey-You is a normal kid.  He likes playing video games. His favorite movie is “Star Wars,” and he loves the “Chronicles of Narnia” book series. He also said he sometimes gets in trouble for wrestling a little too hard with his brother.

Huey-You plans to earn a doctorate before he’s even 20.  To see video of this story, click here.

article by Lindsay Wilcox via nbcdfw.com 

Fifty Years Ago Today: Martin Luther King Jr. Leads March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom

By goodblacknews on August 28, 2013

martin-luther-king
The 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom turns 50 today.  A new PBS documentary reveals the details of what Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. described would be considered the “greatest demonstration for freedom” in American history.  Narrated by Oscar-winning actor Denzel Washington, The March dedicates the majority of the 55 minute running time to the build-up of the momentous event (see clip below).
Some 250,000 people gathered in Washington D.C. on August 28, 1963, to raise awareness of the poor economic realities of African-Americans and to demand the passage of strong civil rights legislation.  Clayborne Carson, a professor of history at Stanford University, was just 19 when he attended the march.  “Every time I think back, I draw different meanings from it because of my subsequent experiences,” Carson told theGrio.com. “At the time I would not have fully understood the significance of what Dr. King’s ‘I Have A Dream’ speech.” 
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ZQ35wzQ2ns&w=420&h=315]
Carson, whose commentary is featured in The March, is also the director of Stanford’s Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute. He says America does not have a good track record when it comes to understanding what King stood for.  “The main thing we’ve gotten right is that he deserves a national holiday,” Carson said. “He was the most prominent figure in one of the most important movements in American history.”

Antoinette Tuff: The Hero Who Helped Avert Tragedy in Atlanta Elementary School Standoff (VIDEO)

By goodblacknews on August 22, 2013

Antoinette TuffDECATUR, Ga. (AP) — The 911 tapes from a frightening standoff and shooting at an Atlanta-area school show how a school employee’s calm demeanor and kind approach helped end the ordeal without any injuries.  Police said Wednesday that school bookkeeper Antoinette Tuff was heroic in how she responded after being taken hostage a day earlier by Michael Brandon Hill, a 20-year-old man with a history of mental health issues. Hill went to the school armed with an AK 47-style rifle and nearly 500 rounds of ammunition, police said.
On a recording of a 911 call released Wednesday, Tuff can be heard relaying messages from Hill to DeKalb County emergency dispatchers before convincing him to surrender. She tells the dispatcher that Hill said he wasn’t there to hurt the children but wanted to talk to an unarmed officer.  “He said, ‘Call the probation office in DeKalb County and let them know what’s going on,’” Tuff is heard telling the dispatcher. “He said he should have just went to the mental hospital instead of doing this, because he’s not on his medication.”
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MelQCClmDD8&w=420&h=315]

Sybrina Fulton Speaks Out Against Stop-And-Frisk Policies (VIDEO)

By goodblacknews on August 19, 2013

Sybrina FultonThe mother of Trayvon Martin spoke out Sunday against the stop-and-frisk police practice in New York City, saying neither police nor civilians have the right to stop someone because of their race.  Critics say the stops target blacks and Hispanics who aren’t doing anything wrong. Earlier this week, a judge told New York City that its policy was racial discrimination. The city plans to appeal.  “You can’t give people the authority, whether civilian or police officers the right to just stop somebody because of the color of their skin,” Martin’s mother, Sybrina Fulton said on NBC’s Meet the Press.
Over the past decade, New York police have stopped, questioned and sometimes patted down about 5 million people; 87 percent were black or Hispanic. About 10 percent of the stops spur an arrest or summons. Police find weapons a fraction of the time.  New York Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly defended the use of stop and frisk Sunday and said violent crimes would increase if the practice were abandoned.  “The losers in this, if this case is allowed to stand, are people who live in minority communities,” he said on CBS’ Face the Nation.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8zGRfLBRQEM&w=420&h=315]Fulton’s attorney, Benjamin Crump, said the stop and frisk policy targeted people by race and noted it was still being used as the 50th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I have a dream” speech approached.  “It actually takes us away from his poignant words of, ‘I dreamed my children would be judged by the content of their character rather than the color of their skin,’” Crump said.  Fulton has said neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman “got away with murder” in the 2012 killing of her son, largely because of Florida’s self-defense law.
Protesters had been occupying part of the Capitol in Tallahassee, calling for an examination of the Florida law since Zimmerman was acquitted last month. Zimmerman claimed self-defense in shooting the 17-year-old Martin during a fight; Martin’s supporters say Zimmerman profiled and followed him because Martin was black.
article by Associated Press via blackamericaweb.com