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TSU honors students win national HBCU research competition

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Service) – Tennessee State University Honors students are champions once again, securing the first and second places in scholarly research at the National Association of African American Honors Programs (NAAAHP) Conference for the second consecutive year.

The 32nd annual NAAAHP conference took place in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, during the fall semester, where TSU honors college students competed against students from 10 other HBCUs nationwide in various categories. Hosted by Southern University, the competition featured TSU honors students excelling in the research poster category, the quiz bowl category, and Honors Got Talent.

Meaghan Lewis, a senior honors biology major, claimed the first-place victory for her cancer research presentation.

Meaghan Lewis claimed first-place victory for her cancer research presentation at the NAAAHP conference. (Photo submitted)

“I was shocked,” Lewis said reflecting on her achievement. “I worked very hard, and I was very happy. I felt achieved that all my hard work paid off.” The previous year, Lewis secured second place in the same research category and expressed pride in reentering the competition and clinching the first-place victory.

Her research, titled “The Role of Toll-Like Receptors 3, 4, and 8 in Tributyltin Stimulation of Tumor Necrosis Factor a Production by Human Immune Cells,” won accolades for content, in depth research, presentation, and quality.

Currently working in the laboratory of Dr. Margaret Whalen in the department of chemistry, Lewis initiated her cancer research during her freshman year at TSU.

“It shows TSU students that if you put in the work and get into these research opportunities presented around campus, you will gain the knowledge and show that you can be one of the best.”

Eseoghene Ogaga, a senior studying honors biology, won second place in her poster presentation titled “The Role of IL-17R Signaling in the Stomach Epithelium During H. pylori infection.” Ogaga is TSU representative collaborating with Vanderbilt University and the Department of Veteran’s Affairs Hospital in Nashville, Tennessee.

The Quiz Bowl team of five won the trophy for second place. The team consists of Tyler Vazquez, Morgan Gill, Kaitlin Skates, Kara Simmons, and Jada Womack. Skates earned third place in the Honors Got Talent category. All participating students received monetary awards.

Dr. Coreen Jackson, the dean of the Honors College, said she is proud of the achievements of TSU honors students, highlighting their academic and scholarly excellence. Dr. Jackson, a past president of the NAAAHP, said, “TSU is known to produce outstanding researchers among our peer institutions. We returned to defend our research title and won the coveted first and second place winners. These students are products of our world-class faculty.”

Dr. John Miglietta, a professor of political science and the Honda Campus All-Star Challenge (HCASC) coach, prepared the TSU Honors students for the quiz bowl competition. Last spring, the team earned a spot in the top eight teams at the National Tournament held in Torrance, California.

Dr. Tyrone Miller, Associate Director of the Honors College, served as the Honorary coach at the conference.

The three categories were part of NAAAHP’s annual national conference, where HBCU students engage in a Model African Union, debate, research presentations, and quiz bowl competitions. This marked TSU’s second-ever championship in the NAAAHP quiz bowl tournament.

The National Association of African American Honors Programs, founded in 1990, is a national consortium of HBCU honors programs promoting scholarship, professional development, community service, and an appreciation of African-American culture. For more information, visit www.naaahp.org.

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State Sen. Raumesh Akbari to Speak at TSU Honors Day Convocation March 26; University to Recognize Best and Brightest

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Service) – Tennessee State University will recognize its best and brightest students at the annual Honors Day Convocation in Kean Hall on Tuesday, March 26.

State Sen. Raumesh Akbari, of the 29th District, will be the keynote speaker.

About 2,340 students with grade point averages of 3.0 or higher will be recognized. Of that number, 283 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.

Some of the students, administrators and staff of the Honors College celebrate during the recent Honors Week observance on campus. (Submitted Photo)

TSU President Glenda Glover, faculty, and administrators will be on hand to congratulate the honors students.

Akbari, formerly a member of the Tennessee House of Representatives for the 91st district, is a member of the Senate Commerce and Labor, Energy, Agriculture and Natural Resources, and Ethics Committees. She also serves as 2nd Vice-Chair of the Senate Education Committee.

A graduate of Washington University and the Saint Louis University School of Law, Akbari is chair of the Senate Democratic Caucus; treasurer of the National Black Caucus of State Legislators (NBCSL), a state director within Women in Government, and financial secretary of the National Organization of Black Elected Legislative Women. 

She has received several honors and awards from the Council of State Governments and its affiliated Southern Leadership Conference, Leadership Memphis, Leadership Tennessee, the National Council of State Legislatures, and the State Legislative Leaders Foundation.

In 2016, the Democratic National Committee invited Akbari to speak at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia.

 For more information on the Honors Day Convocation, go to http://www.tnstate.edu/honors/.

Department of Media Relations

Tennessee State University
3500 John Merritt Boulevard
Nashville, Tennessee 37209
615.963.5331

About Tennessee State University

With more than 7,000 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, 24 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.

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TSU Honors Day Convocation Recognizes More than 2,800 Students for Academic Excellence; Speaker Tells Students to Never Give Up

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Service) – Tennessee State University’s Kean Hall was filled with cheers and congratulatory statements Tuesday when the university recognized its best and brightest students at the annual Honors Day Convocation.

More than 2,800 students with grade point averages of 3.0 or higher were recognized for academic excellence. Among the honorees were 302 President’s List scholars. These are students who have maintained 4.0 GPAs throughout their matriculation.

President Glenda Glover, right, and Dr. Coreen Jackson, Interim Dean of the Honors College, present Abhilasha Vishwanath with the Dr. McDonald Williams Scholarship for Academic Excellence. Vishwanath, a senior Psychology major, is a President’s List scholar, who has maintained a 4.0 GPA throughout her matriculation. (Photo by John Cross, TSU Media Relations)

TSU President Glenda Glover; interim Vice President for Academic Affairs Dr. Alisa Mosley; interim Dean of the Honors College, Dr. Coreen Jackson; other senior officials, deans, faculty and student leaders participated in the convocation.

Malick Badjie, a 2003 TSU graduate and executive director and head of Africa for Robeco, an international asset and investment management firm, was the keynote speaker. Badjie was a member of the Honors College at TSU.

In her welcome remarks, Glover congratulated the honors students for their achievements and thanked Badjie for agreeing to “come back to TSU to inspire our students”

“Today we honor ‘honors,’” Glover said. “We are proud of you and the Honors College for continuing this tradition of excellence. For 54 years, TSU has been committed to mentoring and motivating students to pursue academic excellence through the Honors College. We thank you and honor you.”

Thousands, including faculty, students, staff, administrators and familily members attended the 2018 Honors Day Convocation in Kean Hall. (Photo by John Cross, TSU Media Relations)

Badjie told the honor students that in their pursuit of excellence they must learn to be humble, resilient, think global, never give up and ‘Think Work Serve,’ the TSU motto.

He said in life success is “attributed too quickly” because one has graduated college, attained a new job, or received a promotion.

“When anyone tells me, ‘You are successful,’ I cringe because success is a journey, it is a destination,” said Badjie, who has more than 15 years experience in the investment and institutional asset management industry, including senior positions with BlackRock, a Wall Street investment firm now the largest in the world. “Success is about improving yourself every single day. It’s about pushing yourself further and further, saying, ‘I am going to do everything within my ability to continue improving myself.’”

Amber Hawkins and Wateasa Freeman, two outstanding students, listened keenly as Badjie spoke about resilience and humility.

“His (Badjie) insights on leadership and not giving up are very inspiring to help students be the best they can,” said Hawkins, a senior President’s List scholar from Memphis majoring in political science.

For Freeman, a psychology major with a 3.8 GPA from Columbus, Ohio, Badjie was just the “right person for this occasion.”

“Today is very significant and means a lot to honor academic greatness, and he exemplifies that,” said Freeman. “His achievements show he is truly an example of the excellence on display today.”

Badjie, a native of Gambia, recounted difficulties he faced trying to fulfill a dream of obtaining a college degree, such as scholarship offers not materializing. But his luck would soon change in a chanced meeting with Dr. James Hefner during a forum at Mississippi Valley State University.

“At the program I sat next to this man I didn’t know and offered my seat to his wife, who came in later,” Badjie said. “Apparently, the man was impressed by the courtesy and my knowledge of the discussion at the forum. He struck a conversation with me in which I told him about my difficulties. He introduced himself as president of Tennessee State University and offered me a full scholarship to TSU.”

At TSU, Badjie majored in political science, was on the Dean’s List every semester, joined the Honors Program, tutored math and accounting majors, was a member of the Honda All-Stars debate team, and graduated with honors.

“So, every part of my life has always been about setbacks and how I reacted,” he said. “It’s always been about taking the opportunity. So, for me, TSU was the ultimate dream because I had nothing.

“Never give up. People will always doubt you. Dream big; dream beyond your possibilities. Imagine anything you can imagine right now. Never let anyone tell you, “You can’t.”

With a combined roster of 98 for fall and spring, the Honors College will graduate its largest class in school history this year, compared to 67 in 2017 and 42 in 2016.

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.

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Tennessee Sate University Students Win Top Awards at National Honors Conference

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Service) – Tennessee State University students won two first-place awards at the 26th annual conference of the Association of African American Honors Programs held this month at Morehouse College in Atlanta.

Kalynn Parks won first place in research presentation for her study on the effects of hypertension. (Submitted photo)

More than 400 honors students, directors and faculty from 33 HBCUs across the nation participated in research presentations, academic competitions, career and graduate fairs, a quiz bowl, a model African Union, and talent competition Nov. 9-12.

TSU’s Kalynn Parks, of Atlanta, a senior biology major, won first place in research presentation for her project on “Sympathoexcitation and Increased Sodium Chloride Cotransporter Activity in Hypertensive Aged Sprague Dawley Rats.”

Leona Dunn, left, Jerry Tibbet and Alliyah Muhammed received a trophy for winning first place in the Model African Union competition. (Submitted photo)

In the Model African Union completion, the three-person TSU team, representing Kenya, walked away with first place. They included Jerry Tibbet, sophomore aeronautical and industrial technology major from Kenya; Leona Dunn, senior communications major from Omaha, Nebraska; and Aliyah Muhammed, freshman computer science major from Memphis.

“This conference provided an amazing opportunity not only to present my scientific research, but to be immersed in an environment with likeminded people who also looked like me,” said Parks, about her research on the effects of hypertension, which affects about one in three American adults.

Dr. Coreen Jackson, interim dean of the TSU Honors College, said she was amazed at Parks’ presentation.

“Kalynn was flawless in her poster presentation,” Jackson said. “I watched as the judges rigorously critiqued her methodology and findings. Ms. Parks confidently responded in a respectful manner to every question presented and argument raised by the judges. She held her own because of the depth of her knowledge and understanding of her work.”

Overall, Jackson said the 19 TSU students at the conference were outstanding in every aspects of their participation.

Tibbet, who served as the head delegate on the TSU Model African Union team, said he looks forward to one day participating in a “real United Nations General Assembly.

“It was very honorable and enlightening to represent TSU and to be a delegate to Kenya,” said Tibbet, who grew up in the East African nation. “Winning the award showed me that ideas could be turned into resolutions.”

The NAAAHP Annual Conference brings together Honors students, faculty, staff and professionals from HBCUs and PBCUs throughout the United States. TSU hosted the conference in 2016 with Jackson serving as national president.

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.

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TSU to Host National Conference of Honors Programs; More than 400 Top Students to Attend

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Service) – Tennessee State University will host the 2016 National Association of African-American Honors Programs Conference Saturday, Oct. 29 at the Nashville Airport Marriott Hotel.

The three-day conference will include a gala on Monday, Oct. 31 in the Howard C. Gentry Complex on TSU’s main campus.

img_1734-2-872x1024
TSU President Glenda Glover, left, receives an award from NAAAHP President Coreen Jackson following Dr. Glover’s keynote address at the organization’s 2015 conference at the Gaylord Opryland Resort and Conference Center. (Photo by Emmanuel Freeman, TSU Media Relations)

More than 400 of the nation’s best and brightest students and representatives from 31 historically black colleges and universities will network, debate, participate in academic competitions, and present scholarly research. A graduate and career fair with representatives from more than 40 top graduate schools and companies from across the country will also be held for participants.

This is the second consecutive conference being held in Nashville. It marks the 25th anniversary of the NAAAHP, founded in 1990 to address the “specific needs” of honors education for African-American students. Last year’s conference was held in partnership with Fisk University.

“We are excited to once again bring the national conference to Nashville,” said Dr. Coreen Jackson, president of the NAAAHP, who is interim dean of the TSU Honors College. “We are indeed grateful to President Glenda Glover and Tennessee State University for hosting the 25th anniversary.”

Under the theme, “Celebrating 25 Sterling Years of Academic Distinction,” Jackson said Honors directors, deans and faculty at the conference will also engage in roundtable and panel discussions about best practices in Honors administration.

“This year’s theme is designed to commemorate the vital role NAAAHP has played in supporting Honors education within HBCUs and Predominantly Black Colleges and Universities for 25 years,” Jackson said.

To register or to obtain more information about the conference, visit  www.naaahp.org. Tickets for the gala are $85 per person and $25 for students with ID can be purchased at www.naaahp.org or at the Eventbrite link https://www.eventbrite.com/e/naaahp-2016-25th-anniversary-gala-tickets-28406159588?aff=erelpanelorg.

Department of Media Relations

Tennessee State University
3500 John Merritt Boulevard
Nashville, Tennessee 37209
615.963.5331

About Tennessee State University

With more than 9,000 students, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university, and is a comprehensive, urban, co-educational, land-grant university offering 38 undergraduate, 25 graduate and seven doctoral programs. 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.

NEWS

National Honors Organization Names TSU Director to Top Spot

Dr. Coreen Jackson
Dr. Coreen Jackson

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Service) – The director of the Tennessee State University Honors Program has added yet another title to her resume. Dr. Coreen Jackson is now President of the National Association of African American Honors Programs.

Jackson, who served as the vice president of the NAAHP since October 2013, was appointed president October 10 at the organization’s annual convention in Jackson, Mississippi.

NAAAHP encourages students from HBCUs around the country to engage in scholarly research, network, debate and academic competitions. Moreover, NAAAPH helps students hone their leadership skills, as well as encourage them to participate in community service, cultural enrichment activities, annual career fairs and graduate school expos.

logoEach year the NAAAPH annual conference brings together honors students, faculty, staff and professionals from member institutions to engage in discussions and activities on career development and academic enhancement. The organization also fosters students’ development in an undergraduate environment that promotes scholarship and an appreciation for African American culture.

As the new president of the organization, Jackson hopes to bring the NAAAHP annual conference to TSU in October of next year, in collaboration with Fisk University.

Jackson, a longtime professor of communications at TSU, also holds several national offices including chair of the Multi-Cultural Research Division of the Broadcast Education Association. As director of the Honors Program, she envisions transitioning the program to an Honors College, while increasing the amount of Honors courses in STEM, Social Sciences, Business and Liberal Arts. She also wants to provide students additional opportunities for study abroad, summer research programs, internships, leadership management, and professional development.

 

 

Department of Media Relations
Tennessee State University
3500 John Merritt Boulevard
Nashville, Tennessee 37209
615.963.5331

About Tennessee State University

With nearly 9,000 students, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university, and is a comprehensive, urban, co-educational, land-grant university offering 42 undergraduate, 24 graduate and seven doctoral programs. 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.

EVENTS, NEWS

University’s Honors Program Celebrates 50 Years of Excellence

Former CNN news anchor and award-winning journalist Soledad O’Brien featured speaker March 26 during Honors Program Convocation

 

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Service) – This academic year the Honors Program at Tennessee State University will celebrate 50 years of positive and life-long learning, scholarly inquiry, and a commitment to service.

Award-winning journalist Soledad O'Brien will be the featured speaker March 26 during the Honors program Convocation.
Award-winning journalist Soledad O’Brien will be the featured speaker March 26 during the Honors program Convocation.

The yearlong celebration will commemorate the program’s journey throughout the years, and will be capped by a visit to campus on March 26 by award-winning broadcast journalist Soledad O’Brien. The former CNN anchor will be the featured speaker at the Honors Anniversary Luncheon at 11 a.m. that will honor Dr. McDonald Williams, the first Director of the Honors Program. O’Brien will also be the featured keynote speaker during the Honors Day Convocation beginning at 1 p.m.

The Honors Convocation in Kean Hall is free and open to the public. The Honors Anniversary Luncheon is $50 per person and takes place in the Gentry Center.

O’Brien’s appearance is sponsored by the Office of Student Affairs as part of the Distinguished Lecture Speaker series.

At the convocation, notable Honors alumni will address the student body, Honors societies, Honors alumni and community members.

According to Dr. Coreen Jackson, director of the Honors Program, the primary goal of the program is to create and maintain a community of academically bright and talented students who serve as campus leaders and role models.

“The key objective is the academic enrichment of our students and working with them to achieve their goals,” she added. “We have the opportunity to teach students who are excited about learning and have the freedom to explore issues from multiple points of view. The program not only impacts the students but also the entire University.”

Other events planned for the celebration include an Honors Research Symposium to coincide with the University-wide Research Symposium March 31 through April 5. During the fall, the celebration will culminate with a special 50th Anniversary cake-cutting ceremony and an Honors Week observance.

Jackson added that the jubilee celebration kicks off with an “Honors 50 for 50” campaign to raise funds to help the program transition to an Honors College. The new college, she said, will encourage interdisciplinary programs, enhance undergraduate research in all disciplines, advising for prestigious fellowships and scholarships, develop a mentoring program to make our students more competitive, encourage lifelong learning, including a global perspective through study abroad.

“We are attempting to raise $500,000 to offset the cost of transitioning the program to a full-fledge Honors College,” added Jackson. “As a College, we will be able to highlight the importance of offering an enriched honors curriculum and to increase the University’s ability to recruit and retain high-ability students. We have a program that has a national reputation that has exceeded the basic characteristics of honors program and already meets the characteristics of an Honors College, as recommended by the National Collegiate Honors Council, the recognized leader in undergraduate honor education.”

In 1963, Dr. Walter S. Davis, then President of Tennessee State University, appointed a committee that was charged with studying honors programs and determining the feasibility of establishing one at the University. The committee recommended that TSU keep pace with other institutions throughout the country. As a result, an honors program for freshman students started in the fall of 1964. Sophomore through senior level course work was added yearly throughout 1968.

During the years since 1964, the Honors Program has continued to develop and grow, moving from a converted classroom in the Agricultural Building to the present Honors Center, located on the first floor of the Student Success Center. The center includes study areas, a computer room, conference room, classroom, multipurpose /lounge, and offices of director, associate director and the administrative assistant. Phi Kappa Phi, Golden Key and Alpha Kappa Mu Honor Societies are also housed in the Honors Center.

More important than the physical changes that have taken place, according to Jackson, are the increasingly large number of students entering the program and the achievements they are making.

“They come from many different states and countries and have a variety of majors,” she said. “Consistent with honors objectives, honors students continue to be admitted to prestigious graduate and professional schools.”

For more information on the anniversary activities or Honors Convocation featuring Soledad O’Brien, contact the Honors Program at 615.963.5731.

 

 

 

Department of Media Relations
Tennessee State University
3500 John Merritt Boulevard
Nashville, Tennessee 37209
615.963.5331

 

 

About Tennessee State University

With nearly 9,000 students, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university, and is a comprehensive, urban, co-educational, land-grant university offering 38 undergraduate, 22 graduate and seven doctoral programs. 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.

FACULTY, NEWS

National Organization Appoints TSU Honors Program Director to Top Office

Dr. Coreen Jackson
Dr. Coreen Jackson

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Service) – The Director of the Tennessee State University Honors Program has another job title to add to her already building resume. Dr. Coreen Jackson can now add Vice President and President of the National Association of African American Honors Programs.

Jackson assumed the new roles of the NAAAHP when she was appointed as vice president for 2013-2014 and president-elect for 2014-2015 during the annual conference held Oct. 31 through Nov. 2 at Bethune-Cookman University in Daytona Beach, Fla.

“I am extremely proud and grateful for the vision the group of Honors Directors from 20 Historically Black and Predominantly Black Colleges and Universities had more than 22 years ago, as they met at Morehouse College in Atlanta, to discuss plans for a national organization of honors programs designed to address the needs of honors education for African Americans,” Jackson told the audience of more than 200 honors scholars, honors directors, faculty and staff.

Jackson echoed the recent remarks made by Dr. Glenda Baskin Glover’s during the president’s inauguration address in which she acknowledged the TSU Honors Program for giving her roots and wings. Jackson explained that honors colleges and programs are laying the strong roots of excellence, while the NAAAHP can aid scholars in the honors program by helping them expand their wings.

“These early visionaries saw the awesome potential and possibilities of what we could accomplish through giving our Honors scholars ‘roots and wings.’  Roots to lay a sound academic foundation of excellence in research, scholarship, leadership and service, and wings to soar beyond our imagination to impact communities, the nation and the global marketplace,” Jackson said.

Jackson, a native of Jamaica, is a veteran professor of 19 years, holding several national offices including chair of the Multi-Cultural Research Division of the Broadcast Education Association.

 

 

Department of Media Relations
Tennessee State University
3500 John Merritt Boulevard
Nashville, Tennessee 37209
615.963.5331

 

 

About Tennessee State University

With nearly 9,000 students, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university, and is a comprehensive, urban, co-educational, land-grant university offering 38 undergraduate, 22 graduate and seven doctoral programs. 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.

FACULTY, NEWS

Tennessee State University Welcomes Honors Program Founder

University Honors Program founder, Dr. McDonald Williams (third from left) recently returned to campus to attend the Presidential Inauguration and to meet with current honors students. Joining his visit was (L-R) Dr. Sandra Holt, the fourth director of the program, Williams' wife, Dr. Jaime Williams, and Dr. Coreen Jackson, current director of the program. (photo by John Cross, TSU Media Relations)
University Honors Program founder, Dr. McDonald Williams (third from left) recently returned to campus to attend the Presidential Inauguration and to meet with current honors students. Joining his visit was (L-R) Dr. Sandra Holt, the fourth director of the program, Williams’ wife, Dr. Jaime Williams, and Dr. Coreen Jackson, current director of the program. (photos by Dr. Lee McGahey, associate director, TSU Honors Program)

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Service) – In her recent inaugural address, Dr. Glenda Baskin Glover welcomed many of the special people in her life that helped her become the person she is today and obtain the position as the first female president of the University.

One of those in attendance was Dr. McDonald Williams, the first director of the University Honors Program, who she credited with helping to keep her in school.

Williams stood to a round of applause as Dr. Glover told the crowd that he was one of the many people who gave her “roots and wings.” Dr. Glover, a graduate of the Honors Program, was a student during Williams’ tenure as director from 1966 to 1988.

“Roots and wings are the greatest gift a university can give to its students,” Dr. Glover said, adding that roots can help a student lay the foundation of success, while wings can help them to soar as high as possible.

Williams is credited with helping develop the program after the University saw the need in 1964 to keep up with other institutions, and to offer a rich and challenging set of academic offerings to talented and highly motivated students through special courses, research and a vigorous intellectual community. In 1995, the honors center was named the McDonald Williams Honors Center due to his dedication and commitment to the program.

Following the presidential inauguration ceremony, Dr. Coreen Jackson, the current director of the program, hosted a Meet & Greet reception in Williams’ honor. Those attending the special reception included honors alumni, former director, Dr. Sandra Holt and current honor students. Also attending was Williams’ wife, Dr. Jaime Williams, former TSU Communications Chair, and their daughter, Donna.

“This was history in the making,” said Jackson. “We may never have this awesome opportunity again to have our Honors students celebrate and be inspired by the first director of the Honors program as he recounted history, achievement and success.”

During his visit to campus, Williams and his wife, Dr. Jaime Williams, former TSU Communications Chair, met with current honors program students.
During his visit to campus, Williams and his wife, Dr. Jaime Williams, former TSU Communications Chair, met with current Honors Program students.

Williams shared what life was like as the first director of the University Honors Program with the eager crowd. He recounted the small beginnings, the tenacity of his students, the successes and achievements accomplished.

“He told the current students to appreciate all the opportunities they have today because during his time they did not have the space and excellent facilities they are enjoying today,” added Jackson.

After motivating the students and congratulating the Honors Alumni, his wife, Dr. Jaime Williams, recounted her time at TSU, and shared a unique story about Oprah Winfrey, who at the time was only three hours away from graduating from the Speech & Theatre Department.

“Oprah was offered a job with a TV station in Baltimore which later led to another television job in Chicago,” added Jamie Williams.  “I later contacted Oprah and invited her to be the commencement speaker but told her she needed to complete a documentary to satisfy her three hours so that she could graduate, which she did. The day of the commencement she flew in a private jet to deliver her commencement address and to graduate.”

Jackson also recognized and invited Dr. Sandra Holt, the fourth director of the Honors Program the opportunity to address students and Alumni. Holt, who retired from the program the beginning of the year, expressed her appreciation to Drs. Williams, Dr. Jackson, and encouraged the current students to continue to strive towards excellence.

“I am very happy to know that the Honors Program is in good hands,” McDonald Williams told Jackson as they walked later to the Inaugural luncheon. “I know Dr. Glover will take good care of you and the program. I am very pleased to see the beautiful facility Dr. Glover has given you.”

With a note of assurance in his voice, a twinkle in his eyes and a smile on his lips, Dr. Williams remarked, “the future for Honors is bright.”

 

 

 

 

 

Department of Media Relations
Tennessee State University
3500 John Merritt Boulevard
Nashville, Tennessee 37209
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About Tennessee State University

With nearly 9,000 students, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university, and is a comprehensive, urban, co-educational, land-grant university offering 38 undergraduate, 22 graduate and seven doctoral programs. 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.