Nashville, Tenn.(TSU News Service) – Tennessee State University’s College of Agriculture will showcase its students and cutting-edge research at its inaugural AgFest on Monday, April 9.
Graduate students Kyle Williams and Uzoamaka Abana work in one of the new Ag labs. (photo by Joan Kite, TSU Media Relations)
The free event will kick off at 11 a.m. in the circle in front of the Agricultural Complex. Visitors will learn about some of the vital research being conducted in the College, as well as lucrative career opportunities available to agriculture majors. Live animals such as goats, cattle, guinea fowl, and a Tennessee Walking Horse will be on display.
The Agricultural Education Mobile Laboratory, a mobile classroom that provides agricultural literacy to audiences that are not familiar with the industry, will be parked at the circle.
“Anybody can come out,” says Dr. Chandra Reddy, dean of the College, which recently opened six new laboratories and remodeled several others. “We want them to see the cutting-edge research being conducted at the College.”
Emily Hayes, a graduate student and assistant with the College’s nationally recognized goat research, says she’s looking forward to AgFest.
“The AgFest is a great opportunity for people to actually see all … these groups together, and see all of the work we’ve done as an entire ag department,” says Hayes.
Earlier this year, the U.S. Department of Agriculture awarded more than $2 million in teaching, research and extension capacity building grants to seven TSU Ag professors.
The funds will be dedicated to developing research and extension activities designed to increase and strengthen food and agricultural sciences through integration of teaching, research and extension.
Tennessee State University
3500 John Merritt Boulevard
Nashville, Tennessee 37209
615.963.5331
About Tennessee State University
With more than 8,000 students, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university, and is a comprehensive, urban, co-educational, land-grant university offering 38 bachelor’s degree programs, 25 master’s degree programs and seven doctoral degrees. TSU has earned a top 20 ranking for Historically Black Colleges and Universities according to U.S. News and World Report, and rated as one of the top universities in the country by Washington Monthly for social mobility, research and community service. Founded in 1912, Tennessee State University celebrated 100 years in Nashville during 2012. Visit the University online at tnstate.edu.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Service) – A record number of participants are expected to attend Spring Preview Day 2018 at Tennessee State University on April 14, organizers say.
The Office of Enrollment Management and Student Success says more than 1,200 high school seniors and juniors from across the nation will attend the one-day event in the Floyd-Payne Campus Center. That’s up from the previous record 800 who attended last year’s Spring Preview Day.
Hundreds of high school seniors and juniors and their parents tour academic departments and other sites during Spring Preview Day 2017. (Photo by Emmanuel Freeman, TSU Media Relations)
The visiting students and their parents and relatives – from about 15 states including, California, Texas, Michigan, Illinois and Wisconsin – will have the opportunity to see the campus during springtime, as well as acquaint them with the university’s offerings and admission processes.
Activities for the visitors, according to organizers, will also include meetings with academic departments, TSU student organizations, campus tours, entertainment by the world-renowned Aristocrat of Bands, and the Big Blue Tiger Spring Blue & White Football Game in Hale Stadium.
“Spring Preview Day is going to be an exciting day of information and inspiration here at TSU,” says Terrence Izzard, associate vice president for Enrollment Management and Student Success.
“As a university, it is important to us that millennial scholars get to see firsthand what we offer here at TSU. We are concerned about their preparation to be global scholars and so we feel like bringing them to campus, opening the doors to our classrooms, to our student life, our academic programs will give them firsthand information about the experience.”
Spring Preview, a major recruitment effort by the university, started several years ago as a “junior preview day,” to give juniors a jumpstart on recruitment, but it has “slowly turned into a day for seniors as well to complete their admission requirement,” says Everett Jolly, TSU’s director of recruitment.
Spring preview is one of several campaigns aimed to recruit the best and brightest, say TSU officials. Last year, those campaigns led to the recruitment of the largest incoming freshman class in school history (1,500 first-year students), a 17 percent increase over the previous year’s freshman enrollment. The “Class of 2021” came in as one of the most academically qualified classes in the school’s history, with an average 3.07 GPA.
Spring Preview Day 2018 comes on the heels of “Experience TSU,” yet another innovative recruitment campaign that just ended in four major markets – Atlanta, Birmingham, Memphis and Nashville – that aims to meet students where they are.
TSU President Glenda Glover led the campaign to meet potential students face-to-face to ensure their commitment to attend TSU.
These recruitment efforts follow sweeping changes Glover announced in 2016 that raised admission standards, as the university moved to increase retention and graduation rates. Minimum requirements for incoming freshmen went up from a 2.25 GPA to 2.5, while the ACT score remained at 19.
Izzard says “Experience TSU” was a way of “personally congratulating these students for applying and being accepted” to TSU.
“We wanted to personally welcome them to the TSU family and let them know of all the wonderful opportunities to grow and learn while here at Tennessee State University,” says Izzard.
Spring Preview Day will kick off at 9 a.m. in Kean Hall. For more information, go to https://bit.ly/2GWLXJ0.
Department of Media Relations
Tennessee State University
3500 John Merritt Boulevard
Nashville, Tennessee 37209
615.963.5331
About Tennessee State University
With more than 8,000 students, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university, and is a comprehensive, urban, co-educational, land-grant university offering 38 bachelor’s degree programs, 25 master’s degree programs and seven doctoral degrees. TSU has earned a top 20 ranking for Historically Black Colleges and Universities according to U.S. News and World Report, and rated as one of the top universities in the country by Washington Monthly for social mobility, research and community service. Founded in 1912, Tennessee State University celebrated 100 years in Nashville during 2012. Visit the University online at tnstate.edu.
NASHVILLE (TSU News Service) – Tennessee State University students and researchers will showcase their cutting-edge research projects and inventions at the 40th Annual University-Wide Research Symposium April 2 – 6.
The symposium, which is largely composed of presentations from the science, engineering, business and humanities disciplines, will allow students to gain exposure and experience as either oral or poster presenters in an evaluative environment with external judges from the Mid-South region.
Dr. Michael Ivy, TSU associate professor of Neuroscience, and John Barfield, TSU director of engagement and visibility in the Division of Research and Institutional Advancement, serve as the co chairs of this year’s symposium which will feature abstracts from 174 students and 40 faculty members.
Barfield said the symposium is important because it prepares students for future research opportunities.
“When our students go to graduate school, they can go research-ready being able to prove that they already know how to do research and that they have worked in a research environment,” he said. “If they are graduate level students about to work on their doctorate then they will be able to show that they have mastered the rigor of being able to present research at an academic level.”
The theme for this year’s symposium is “Establishing a Culture of Research Excellence.”
Oral presentations will take place throughout the week in the Research and Sponsored Programs Building, Room 009, 163 and 209. Poster presentations will take place in the Jane Elliot Hall Auditorium on Thursday, April 5.
Dr. Patrice L. Jackson-Ayotunde, associate professor of Medicinal Chemistry at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore School of Pharmacy, will provide the keynote address on Friday, April 6 at noon in the Ferrell-Westbrook Complex, Room 118.
Jackson-Ayotunde, who has mentored several graduate, professional and undergraduate students, does extensive research around the treatment of drug-resistant epilepsy. Her laboratory works closely with the Epilepsy Therapy Screening Program (ETSP) at the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. Jackson was named Mentoring Institute for Neuroscience Diversity Scholar (MIND) for 2016-17 and the Emerging Scholar of 2015 by Diverse Issues in Higher Education.
Barfield said the symposium is open to the public. For more information about the 40th Annual University-Wide Research Symposium visit tnstate.edu/researchsymposium.
Department of Media Relations
Tennessee State University
3500 John Merritt Boulevard
Nashville, Tennessee 37209
615.963.5331
About Tennessee State University
With more than 8,000 students, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university, and is a comprehensive, urban, co-educational, land-grant university offering 38 bachelor’s degree programs, 25 master’s degree programs and seven doctoral degrees. TSU has earned a top 20 ranking for Historically Black Colleges and Universities according to U.S. News and World Report, and rated as one of the top universities in the country by Washington Monthly for social mobility, research and community service. Founded in 1912, Tennessee State University celebrated 100 years in Nashville during 2012. Visit the University online at tnstate.edu.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Service) – Beverly Smith, national president and chief executive officer of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated, will serve as the keynote speaker for this year’s Women of Legend and Merit Award Dinner at Tennessee State University on April 10 in Kean Hall.
Smith, who also serves as the assistant commissioner and Georgia State director for Adult Education and GED Testing through the Technical College System of Georgia, said she is excited about addressing the young ladies at TSU because of the many issues facing women today.
Beverly E. Smith
“We are at a time today when the power of women really matters,” she said. “The power of our voice is clearly something of significance these days whether or not we are comfortable enough with ourselves to use or understand it.”
TSU President Glenda Glover echoed the same sentiments.
“We are extremely pleased to welcome Beverly Smith to our campus for our Women of Legend and Merit Awards Dinner, and look forward to hearing her inspiring and powerful words,” she said. “Women of Legend and Merit is in its 11th year and couldn’t have come at a more pivotal time in our nation’s history. Women should feel empowered and celebrated. Our dinner allows us to do this and raise scholarship and program dollars for students, all while partnering with the community.”
Seanne Wilson, chairperson of the event, which raises money for student scholarships, said Smith’s visit will give the young ladies at TSU an opportunity to witness a “woman of excellence” who is the head of a large body of women of excellence.
“This is an opportunity for them to meet women from varying organizations and diverse positions in life, and to hear their stories and their struggles and how they made it,” said Wilson, who serves as coordinator of the TSU Women’s Center.
According to Wilson, the Women’s Center is a “safe zone” for women at TSU who experience issues such as fear, anxiety and depression, as well as domestic violence, homelessness and the lack of food.
Wilson said the purpose of this event is to empower and uplift the female students at TSU.
Smith said the influence of her father, a civil rights activist, as well as powerful women in her family and early mentors such as legends Dorothy Heights and Althea Gibson helped propel her to success.
“You can’t be what you can’t see, and I think that certainly holds true especially for us in our communities. A lot of times it is very difficult to be what you can’t see,” she said. “If we celebrate who we are and who we have been, it gives us an opportunity for greater heights.”
This year’s honorees are Vivian Wilhoite, Metropolitan Nashville and Davidson County property accessor; Dr. Tameka Winston, TSU interim chair of Department of Communications; Many Bears Grinder, commission of the Tennessee Department of Veterans Affairs; and Tina Tuggle, Tennessee Titans director of community relations.
Awards will also be presented to retired educator Gwendolyn Vincent, and TSU freshman Natalie Cooper.
Tennessee State University
3500 John Merritt Boulevard
Nashville, Tennessee 37209
615.963.5331
About Tennessee State University
With more than 8,000 students, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university, and is a comprehensive, urban, co-educational, land-grant university offering 38 bachelor’s degree programs, 25 master’s degree programs and seven doctoral degrees. TSU has earned a top 20 ranking for Historically Black Colleges and Universities according to U.S. News and World Report, and rated as one of the top universities in the country by Washington Monthly for social mobility, research and community service. Founded in 1912, Tennessee State University celebrated 100 years in Nashville during 2012. Visit the University online at tnstate.edu.
Nashville, Tenn.(TSU News Service) – Tennessee State University President Glenda Glover and Joni McReynolds, president of the TSU National Alumni Association, joined Ag Dean Chandra Reddy at a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Tuesday to open six new Ag laboratories.
TSU President Glenda Glover (center), Ag Dean Chandra Reddy (right), and Joni McReynolds, president of the TSU National Alumni Association, participate in ribbon-cutting ceremony. (submitted photo
The ceremony, which was held on National Ag Day, included the re-opening of five newly remodeled labs, bringing the total number of state-of-the art laboratories at the College to 35.
“In these labs, graduate and undergraduate students along with post-doctoral fellows, visiting scholars, and our principal scientists conduct research in national challenge areas such as food security and safety, environmental sustainability, human health and nutrition, and renewable energy,” said Reddy. “The knowledge generated from these labs is shared with the stakeholders and the public to improve agricultural productivity, human health, and community development.”
Open now for active research are the new labs for Plant Nutrition, Wildlife Ecology, Water Resources, Urban Forestry, Entomology, Organic Agriculture and Modeling and Data Analysis. USDA Capacity Building Grants helped fund the creation of the new labs, which were carved from Dr. Reddy’s former office space in the Farrell-Westbrook building.
Before the official tour of the labs, students Kristen Stigger, Taylor Ribeiro, and Durga Khandekar, dressed in crisp, white lab coats, presented Glover with freshly cut flowers. The flowers were grown in the greenhouses at TSU College of Agriculture’s Research and Education Center.
During the tour, the president and McReynolds talked with many of the students who are actively engaged in research projects. The students’ studies range from determining Tennessee’s salamander population through DNA sampling of local streams to research and discovering the best practices for using integrated pest management and biological control to prevent plant and crop destruction.
“I can move forward with my environmental DNA research much more quickly with access to state-of-the-art machines,” said Nicole Witzel, a research assistant in the Wildlife Ecology Lab. “The new lab is allowing us to conduct quality research efficiently, and I couldn’t be happier about it.”
Tennessee State University
3500 John Merritt Boulevard
Nashville, Tennessee 37209
615.963.5331
About Tennessee State University
With more than 8,000 students, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university, and is a comprehensive, urban, co-educational, land-grant university offering 38 bachelor’s degree programs, 25 master’s degree programs and seven doctoral degrees. TSU has earned a top 20 ranking for Historically Black Colleges and Universities according to U.S. News and World Report, and rated as one of the top universities in the country by Washington Monthly for social mobility, research and community service. Founded in 1912, Tennessee State University celebrated 100 years in Nashville during 2012. Visit the University online at tnstate.edu.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Service) – Tennessee State University honors students will hear from one of their own when the university recognizes its best and brightest at the annual Honors Day Convocation in Kean Hall on Tuesday, March 20.
Malick Badjie, a member of the TSU Honors College (Honors Program) and a 2003 graduate with a bachelor’s degree in political science, will be the keynote speaker.
About 2,800 students with grade point averages of 3.0 or higher will be recognized. Of that number, 301 are on the President’s List. These students have maintained a 4.0 GPA throughout their matriculation, according to Dr. Coreen Jackson, interim dean of the Honors College.
TSU President Glenda Glover, faculty, and administrators will be on hand to congratulate the honors students.
Badjie is the executive director and head of Africa for Robeco, an international asset management firm with headquarters in Rotterdam, The Netherlands. He is the company’s team leader responsible for the investment, sales, strategic and commercial decision and wholesale business in the Africa region.
Badjie has more than 15 years of experience in the investment and institutional asset management industry, and in working with institutional clients in Africa, the Middle East and Asia Pacific.
Prior to joining Robeco, Badjie held senior positions with the investment firm of BlackRock as head of institutional business. He was responsible for the strategic development and business management for BlackRock in sub-Sahara Africa that lead to growth in institutional business from $80 million to $14 billion in client asset in just five years.
Badjie holds an MBA in finance from The Warwick Business School at the University of Warwick.
Tennessee State University
3500 John Merritt Boulevard
Nashville, Tennessee 37209
615.963.5331
About Tennessee State University
With more than 8,000 students, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university, and is a comprehensive, urban, co-educational, land-grant university offering 38 bachelor’s degree programs, 25 master’s degree programs and seven doctoral degrees. TSU has earned a top 20 ranking for Historically Black Colleges and Universities according to U.S. News and World Report, and rated as one of the top universities in the country by Washington Monthly for social mobility, research and community service. Founded in 1912, Tennessee State University celebrated 100 years in Nashville during 2012. Visit the University online at tnstate.edu.
NASHVILLE, Tenn.(TSU News Service) – Tennessee State University’s Department of Dental Hygiene is providing free and discounted services to faculty and staff.
The department is seeking individuals 60 years of age and older to receive health screenings and dental exams from its students. In particular, the department is looking for patients with special needs, such as high blood pressure, diabetes and asthma.
Coordinator Rosalyn Word said patients who want to participate have until March 31 to sign up, and treatments will continue throughout the semester.
Word says the department is seeking people with special needs because it wants students to understand how to treat such individuals.
“When they go out into the private sector, they can better manage and understand the treatment that’s required for these patients,” she says.
The first 10 patients will receive free treatment, and those after that will receive a 50 percent discount, says Word.
Dental hygiene student Ramziya Haji says the hands-on experience is beneficial, particularly in the case of older patients.
“An older adult is one of the comps that we have to complete before we graduate,” says Haji, who will be graduating in May. “So it gives us a different kind of patient to work with, and how we can help them.”
Demetra Scruggs, a clinical dental hygiene supervisor, says the special treatments being offered this month is also another opportunity to showcase what’s happening in the Dental Hygiene Department.
“A lot of faculty members are not aware of what we offer here in Dental Hygiene,’ says Scruggs.
TSU’s Dental Hygiene Clinic provides service to nearly 600 patients a year, including students as well as the Nashville community.
Tennessee State University
3500 John Merritt Boulevard
Nashville, Tennessee 37209
615.963.5331
About Tennessee State University
With more than 8,000 students, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university, and is a comprehensive, urban, co-educational, land-grant university offering 38 bachelor’s degree programs, 25 master’s degree programs and seven doctoral degrees. TSU has earned a top 20 ranking for Historically Black Colleges and Universities according to U.S. News and World Report, and rated as one of the top universities in the country by Washington Monthly for social mobility, research and community service. Founded in 1912, Tennessee State University celebrated 100 years in Nashville during 2012. Visit the University online at tnstate.edu.
Nashville, Tenn.(TSU News Service) – Tennessee State University’s College of Agriculture will celebrate National Ag Day with its inaugural AgFest on March 20.
TSU President Glenda Glover will be present at 2 p.m. to cut the ribbon for the opening of the College’s brand new labs in the university’s Agriculture Complex on the main campus. College Dean Dr. Chandra Reddy will host a tour of those labs and existing ones. Anyone interested will have an opportunity to peer into all 27 labs.
“We want everyone to see our state-of-the-art research facilities,” says Reddy. “We want them to see the cutting-edge research being conducted at the College.”
Food, fun and festivities will be set up on the Circle in front of the complex. This year, National Ag Day’s theme is “Food for Life.” To recognize the diversity of the faculty and staff, College employees are bringing snacks and finger foods that represent their countries of origin for “A Taste of Ag.”
Dexter cattle, goats, and guinea foul from the College’s Agricultural Research and Education Center will star in the livestock show.
Urban Green Lab’s Mobile Sustainability Laboratory, a mobile classroom that offers people free interactive lessons about sustainable living and green careers, will be parked at the Circle.
Emily Hayes, a graduate student and assistant with the College’s nationally recognized goat research, says she’s looking forward to AgFest.
“The AgFest is a great opportunity for people to actually see all … these groups together, and see all of the work we’ve done as an entire ag department,” says Hayes.
Earlier this year, the U.S. Department of Agriculture awarded more than $2 million in teaching, research and extension capacity building grants to seven TSU Ag professors.
The funds will be dedicated to developing research and extension activities designed to increase and strengthen food and agricultural sciences through integration of teaching, research and extension.
Emoni White, a sophomore in TSU’s College of Agriculture who is majoring in animal science, says she’s proud of the work she’s doing in the College, and continues to be amazed at how far-reaching TSU’s research is.
Tennessee State University
3500 John Merritt Boulevard
Nashville, Tennessee 37209
615.963.5331
About Tennessee State University
With more than 8,000 students, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university, and is a comprehensive, urban, co-educational, land-grant university offering 38 bachelor’s degree programs, 25 master’s degree programs and seven doctoral degrees. TSU has earned a top 20 ranking for Historically Black Colleges and Universities according to U.S. News and World Report, and rated as one of the top universities in the country by Washington Monthly for social mobility, research and community service. Founded in 1912, Tennessee State University celebrated 100 years in Nashville during 2012. Visit the University online at tnstate.edu.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Service) – Tennessee State University is continuing an innovative recruitment campaign that aims to meet students where they are.
“Experience TSU” was launched last year to attract the best and brightest students in four major markets – Atlanta, Birmingham, Memphis and Nashville.
TSU President Glenda Glover is leading the campaign to meet potential students face-to-face to ensure their commitment to attend TSU, recruitment officials say.
Targeted students – about 100 first-time freshmen in each market – have already applied and been accepted to attend TSU.
This year’s “Experience TSU” visits are scheduled for Atlanta on March 10, Memphis on March 17, and Birmingham on March 21.
“We are continuing this annual effort by visiting major cities in an effort to close the loop on students who have been admitted to the university,” says Dr. John Cade, vice president for Enrollment Management and Student Success. “This is an initiative that began last year and it proved to be very beneficial to us with respect to a better quality of students.”
In 2016, President Glover announced sweeping changes that raised admission standards to attract the best and brightest. Minimum requirements for incoming freshmen went up from a 2.25 GPA to 2.5, while the ACT score remained at 19.
Following the announcement, TSU launched several major efforts in its recruitment drives, including a near 40 percent discounted tuition rate for students in counties within 250 miles of Nashville; presidential scholarship receptions for students in their communities; and on-site recruitment fairs, among others.
“’Experience TSU’ is part of these efforts to get a commitment from admitted students that they will be enrolling at Tennessee State University this fall,” Cade says. “The average student has about five schools to which they have been admitted. We want to make sure TSU is their choice. We believe that the face-to-face encounter adds a personal touch. It removes any barrier, and students are able to put names to faces and to get a warm and welcoming feel about what they will experience when they get to Tennessee State University.”
Terrence Izzard is TSU’s associate vice president for Enrollment Management and Student Success. He is directly responsible for recruitment and admissions.
He says “Experience TSU” is a way of “personally congratulating these students for applying and being accepted” to TSU.
“We want to personally welcome them to the TSU family and let them know of all the wonderful opportunities to grow and learn while here at Tennessee State University,” Izzard says. “There are all kinds of ways to tell the story of TSU, such as through the media, newspaper and television. But we want students to experience TSU through us, and that’s why our team, along with our president, is taking the time to go and help our newly admitted students experience TSU.”
Shariah Edwards, a student from Power Center Academy High School, has been admitted to 149 colleges, along with $7.6 million in scholarship offers. She says TSU is among her top choices. (CBS News Photo).
In Memphis, the “Experience TSU” team has in its sight on Shariah Edwards, a graduate from Power Center Academy High School, a charter school, who made national headlines last year for being accepted to 149 colleges. Along with the acceptance, Edwards received more than $7.6 million in scholarship money. TSU was one of her top choices.
According to Cade, TSU has offered Edwards a full-ride scholarship to TSU. Additionally, President Glover has personally reached out to Edwards and her parents to encourage her to come to TSU, Cade said.
Department of Media Relations
Tennessee State University
3500 John Merritt Boulevard
Nashville, Tennessee 37209
615.963.5331
About Tennessee State University
With more than 8,000 students, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university, and is a comprehensive, urban, co-educational, land-grant university offering 38 bachelor’s degree programs, 25 master’s degree programs and seven doctoral degrees. TSU has earned a top 20 ranking for Historically Black Colleges and Universities according to U.S. News and World Report, and rated as one of the top universities in the country by Washington Monthly for social mobility, research and community service. Founded in 1912, Tennessee State University celebrated 100 years in Nashville during 2012. Visit the University online at tnstate.edu.
NASHVILLE, Tenn.(TSU News Service) – Dr. S. Keith Hargrove, Tennessee State University dean of the College of Engineering, will receive the Ivory Dome Award at the 14th Annual Information Technology Senior Management Forum (ITSMF) Technology Achievement Awards ceremony on March 9 in Dallas.
According to ITSMF President and CEO Viola Maxwell-Thompson, Hargrove’s commitment to developing tomorrow’s STEM leaders is in alignment with the organization’s mission of “increasing the representation of black professionals at senior levels in technology, to impact organizational innovation and growth.” She said the Ivory Dome Award is given to an individual focused on increasing the number of students in the STEM discipline.
“Dr. Hargrove won all of the support of the committee,” Maxwell-Thompson said. “We were so impressed with his achievements at TSU and how he has inspired and educated hundreds of students there as well as other areas within Tennessee where he has interacted with not only college students, but K-12 schools as well.”
Dr. S. Keith Hargrove
Hargrove, who earned his BS degree in mechanical engineering from TSU, immediately pursued his MS degree as a National GEM Consortium Fellow at Missouri University of Science and Technology. He later secured his Ph.D. from the University of Iowa.
“I am honored to received this award. It is a result of the hard work of the faculty and staff of the College of Engineering at Tennessee State University, and the partnerships we have with industries like Lockheed Martin, Boeing, and K-12 Education to promote STEM careers,” he said. “This award reflects the support of TSU and our commitment to expanding the workforce in STEM and the dedication of TSU leadership and the quality of the students in our program.
As a recipient of the Ivory Dome Award, Maxwell-Thompson said Hargrove will be an honorary member of ITSMF for one year, which will enable him to attend the organization’s symposium, network with other STEM professionals and mentor within the organization.
“We just want him to feel proud that he is being recognized in yet another way, considering the fact that he has tons of accolades and recognitions,” Maxwell-Thompson said. “This organization wants to also add to that list of recognizing an individual who is so incredibly passionate about the youth and tomorrow’s leaders.”
Hargrove said pursuing a career in STEM, obtaining advanced degrees and becoming a college professor were a result of the advice and mentoring he received from the TSU faculty while he was an undergraduate student.
“Seven out of the top 10 best jobs are STEM-related. My role as Dean is to insure they are completing an academic program that prepares them to be technically competent and have the leadership skills to have successful careers,” he said. “My engagement with my own students and with our partnerships with high schools, help promote careers in STEM and encourage them to seek occupations in this area. In most instances in K12 education, it’s about exposure and awareness. The College of Engineering is committed to both.”
In addition to mentoring and educating students at TSU, Hargrove serves as a founding board member of STEM Preparatory Academy in Nashville, Tennessee. He also serves on the advisory STEM boards of several local K-12 schools.
Dr. Kimberly Gold, a cybersecurity engineer for the U.S. Navy, said Hargrove is the reason she has a Ph.D.
Dr. Kimberly Gold
“He is my mentor. He promotes rigor, excellence and he never turns his back on his students,” she said. “He’s someone they can count on. I was actually the first African-American female to graduate with a Ph.D. in computer and information systems engineering, and I could not have done that without him.”
Gold said Hargrove teaches his students to never come to him with complaints, but with solutions. She said his mentorship and the nurturing environment at TSU played a key role in her success.
“When I got to the Navy, we were less than maybe 8 percent of the population on our base so a lot of times people doubted my abilities because they were not familiar with working with people of color,” she said. “Hargrove would have these closed door sessions where he would teach us how to maneuver through systems that were not created for us to excel. So that is why I say he is more than just a mentor. He is also a friend.”
Maxwell-Thompson said she hopes honoring Hargrove will lead to future collaborations between ITSMF and Tennessee State University.
“We look at the number of students who are majoring in the technology piece of STEM, and we know that there are so many opportunities in technology that will present themselves by the year 2025, and we want to make sure that there are a good representation of black students that are ready to take on those roles.”
Founded in 1996, ITSMF is the only national organization dedicated exclusively to cultivating executive-level talent among black technology professionals. Their members hail from Fortune 500 companies, governmental agencies, technology businesses and academia. This annual event attracts top-notch technology industry leaders and has historically been hosted by companies like Bank of America, Lowes, Hewlett-Packard, PepsiCo and Lockheed Martin.
Department of Media Relations
Tennessee State University
3500 John Merritt Boulevard
Nashville, Tennessee 37209
615.963.5331
About Tennessee State University
With more than 8,000 students, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university, and is a comprehensive, urban, co-educational, land-grant university offering 38 bachelor’s degree programs, 25 master’s degree programs and seven doctoral degrees. TSU has earned a top 20 ranking for Historically Black Colleges and Universities according to U.S. News and World Report, and rated as one of the top universities in the country by Washington Monthly for social mobility, research and community service. Founded in 1912, Tennessee State University celebrated 100 years in Nashville during 2012. Visit the University online at tnstate.edu.
