Dr. Kimbrough's BLOG

Covenant Keepers Charter School

Your DisplayName here! — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 16:14:24 GMT

I was invited by Deja Avery, a 7th grade student at Covenant Keepers College Prep, to come to their college prep day. Last month they spent studying HBCUs, and several students presented their schools. So I am sharing her letter below- you see why I had to go.

The Prez

February 15, 2010

Dear Dr. Kimbrough,

My name is Deja Avery. I attend a school called Covenant Keepers College Preparatory Charter School in

Little Rock, AR. I am in the 7^th grade, and I’m doing a Geography project on Philander Smith College. I have

been researching on a lot of stuff on my project so that I can do well on it! This is a very big project for me

and whatever score I get I will be very happy because I’m trying hard.

So would you mind sending me any kind of information or something good about Philander Smith College?

Really any kind of information will work. I just want to make a good grade. The biggest thing I want to ask

you is “Can you come to my school?” It would be really great if you do ‘cause I would probably get extra

points. But if you don’t I will understand.

Presidents are always busy like Barack Obama. But it would be really great if you do. So I would really

appreciate it if you could do these things for me for the research that I’m doing on Philander Smith College.

So please respond to my letter. I would really appreciate it.

Sincerely,

Deja Avery

Bless the Mic: Iyanla Vanzant

Your DisplayName here! — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 01:52:30 GMT

After unexpected hip surgery caused her to cancel her trip in February, Iyanla Vanzant made it to PSC to Bless the Mic.

Sharice opened up the evening.

and let the crowd know you can now give to PSC via texting (go ahead- try it!)

Veneta was up next to make sure the 600+ in attendance knew of all the good things going on here.

Follwoed by Adria Kimbrough, who introduced our guest.

Iyanla Vanzant actually worked out better to be in Women's History Month, because she had a word of encouragement for the sisters.

In a very candid way, she talked about her life story, the challenges she faced as well as her triumphs.

Her speech was very well received, and she spent another hour afterwards signing books and autographs, and taking pictures.

The Prez

New York Times "The Choice"

Your DisplayName here! — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 02:05:20 GMT

Last week I had a chance to serve as a guest blogger for the New York Times. That was definitely very cool. I am going to post a few of them over the next week.

The Prez

Q.Given today’s economic climate, how are historically black colleges and universities able to remain competitive for students of all skills and abilities? Some traditional Ivy League universities have very attractive programs designed to lure black students with four-year scholarships. —Philip Oricke

A.Dr. Kimbrough responds: For the most part, historically black colleges and universities have always recruited a very diverse student, from those who are at the highest levels of academic talent who are being courted by every school, including Ivies, to students who barely got out of high school but want to attend college even though they need quite a bit of remediation. This is a great task, but I think there have been successes throughout this spectrum of ability.

After Brown v. Board of Education, every college wanted black students. So historically black colleges and universities went from having all the students to themselves to sharing students. When critical masses of black students ended up on other campuses, these students began pushing not only for more black students but also for black faculty and staff, relevant curricula, etc. In an effort to meet these demands, institutions began developing extensive programs to “buy” black students. Texas A&M had one where there was $500,000 used solely to make counter offers to students of color.

But the richest colleges have not significantly increased their numbers of black students. The main reason is that as a whole, black students have lower test scores than whites. The richest schools are very cognizant of their U.S. News rankings, which reward them for the level of preparedness of their student body. While a Harvard, which makes enough money on its endowment every two weeks to pay a year’s tuition for all of its undergraduates, could offer free rides to any black student it wanted to, they still want those with perfect ACT and SAT scores, and those students are few and far between.

Lots of institutions are now boasting about programs that ensure lower- and middle-class students can attend at no cost, but few have reported the success of these programs with raw numbers. The reason? Very few students are benefiting because they still want a certain student, and bringing in lots of solid students with lower scores will hurt rankings.

But on a more basic level, there is still a great deal of racial tension on college campuses these days. The “Compton Cookout” party at U.C. San Diego (and subsequent noose on campus) and the littering of the cultural center lawn with cotton balls at the University of Missouri — both within the last month — remind students and their families that there is a chance they may enter an environment filled with daily racial micro-aggressions like these.

A free ride is great, but peace of mind is priceless.

Urban Prep Academy in Chicago

Your DisplayName here! — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 02:17:23 GMT

Check out this story from ABC World News Tonight featuring Urban Prep in Chicago, and all-male high school. Each and every student has been accepted into a 4-year college or university. As you will see in this clip, one indicated that he has been admitted here. We're going up there to get a few more.

http://abcnews.go.com/video/playerIndex?id=10089708

The Prez

Attention parents in the Little Rock School District

Your DisplayName here! — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 16:14:58 GMT

Please attend this forum- you need to be engaged with the district.

50 in 52

Your DisplayName here! — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 03:20:09 GMT

Last year around this time I was interviewed as a part of Dafna Michaelson's 50 in 52 where she is traveled the entire country meeting all kinds of people. So this piece tells you a little about the college and my philosophy as a president.

http://www.50in52journey.com/states/arkansas8.asp

The Prez

Lydia is 4

Your DisplayName here! — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 04:20:30 GMT

Lydia turned 4 yesterday. Her birthday party was on Saturday, and on Sunday she got a bike.

The Prez

Minister Kevin Cooper

Your DisplayName here! — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 01:22:55 GMT

This year during the chapel service of Religious Emphasis Week, we had a recent graduate as the preacher. Kevin Cooper is a seminary student at ITC in Atlanta (also a UNCF school). He was a two-term SGA president, and member of Kappa Alpha Psi.

So it was great to have a young alum come back to share his message about not building a bridge to nowhere. Keeping with our social justice emphasis, he reminded us of all the people along the way who need our help, and we have to be sensitive to their needs as well. Good job, Coop!

The Prez

Bishop Vashti McKenzie

Your DisplayName here! — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 03:28:48 GMT

Last week was Religious Emphasis Week. This week is the centerpiece of our Black History Month. The week was filled with worship services, lectures, and service opportunities.

Our chaplain and the religious life organization have really done a great job over the past few years elevating this week. In the past we have had such notables such as Jeremiah Wright, Cain Hope Felder, and H. Beecher Hicks. In an attempt to raise the level even further, he brought in none other than...

Bishop Vashti McKenzie, the first woman Bishop of the AME church. We had a nice crowd on hand for her sermon, and of course she had major support not only from the AMEs but the members of Delta Sigma Theta. So look out for the week next February.

The Prez

Impact Church

Your DisplayName here! — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 21:32:42 GMT

Yesterday, Wesley Chapel UMC had a leadership retreat with our guest being Rev. Olu Brown from the Impact Church in Atlanta. Olu is a graudate of 2 UNCF schools- Jarvis Christian College and ITC. He led a new church start for the United Methodist Church in 2006.

With a core group of 25, they sought to launch a movement, not a church. This movement means they have small groups that meet throughout the city during the week. Their Sunday services are held at a local middle school. They use technology in a way I have never seen a church do before. In fact, their motto is "Doing Church Differently."

4 years later, over 1,000 people attend services there. This kind of movement is needed among all denominations as the news this week again pointed out that younger generations continue to opt out of church. Impact's core group is 20-40, so young people want church, but it needs to be different.

Check them out: www.ImpactDCD.org

The Prez

Groundbreaking

Your DisplayName here! — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 04:08:02 GMT

Yesterday we had our ceremonial groundbreaking for our new residential suites. We postponed because it was raining the first day, but yesterday was COLD!

60 students will be able to live in the suites, with private rooms. We will do some learning communities as well.

This building will be the first of 4, which will dobule our residential capacity. The building will be ready by mid-August.

The Prez