BlackPressUSA
The way Sacramento pays for arts education is broken. Here’s what could help.
By Srishti Prabha | CapRadio | Special to the OBSERVER
A 2019 report by Create CA found that 89% of public schools in California were not meeting the state standards for arts education. Lack of accountability compounded by the incremental loss of funding has contributed to many school districts having a fragmented landscape where funding for the arts is coming from obscure sources. In Sacramento, the hardest hit regions were those with Black and brown students.
Spanglish chatter is followed by giggles as students walk from their first-grade classroom to the art room at Glenwood Elementary School in North Sacramento.
At the back of the line, 7–year-old Salvador Vasquez exclaims, “I’m so excited!”
Once a week, the first graders at Glenwood Elementary get access to arts education and they are buzzing with energy.
“I like to learn new things in art,” says student Cardiair Potts.
His friend Lizandro Zepeda thinks art class is unlike his normal class where they focus on math and reading: “It makes me happy because, with the projects, we bring them in our house, we can show them to our family.”
Stevie Wonder songs set the mood in the classroom, as the first-graders gossip, color and cut butterfly shapes.
Andrea Rodriguez, the visual arts enrichment teacher, develops and runs all the arts programming for Glenwood Elementary. She sees 450 students for 40 minutes a week.
The Robla Unified School District, a majority Black and brown district with 84% of its families lower-income, provides visual arts education for every student once a week. Surprisingly, this is more than what many other students in Sacramento County receive. A year-long program committed to any type of arts education at the elementary school level is not standard practice for all districts, and Robla Unified is ahead of the curve, even without a theater, music and dance curriculum.
California’s state-mandated arts framework requires that students from grades first through sixth receive instruction in dance, music, theater and visual arts in each grade level. And from grades seventh to 12th, to have the choice from these four buckets of arts education.
Yet, a 2019 report by Create CA — the most recent available — found that 89% of public schools in California were not meeting the state standards for arts education. Lack of accountability compounded by the incremental loss of funding has contributed to many school districts having a fragmented landscape where funding for the arts is coming from obscure sources. In Sacramento, the hardest hit regions were those with Black and Brown students.
The passing of Proposition 28 in 2022 marked a historic investment of money for arts education. That, along with an arts block grant issued the same year, were to be the panacea for three decades of non-existent arts education. However, Gov. Gavin Newson’s proposed budget will decrease funding for the arts, and the limitations of this funding prompt more questions than solutions.
“Scarcity mindset … making do with whatever you had”
Allison Cagley, executive director of Friends of Sacramento Arts, said in Sacramento County most of the losses in arts education are seen in the years before high school, impacting young students of color and students from socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds. Accounting for students from underserved regions requires intentionality, said Cagley, and incorporating arts education into the school day.
“It can’t be an after-school program only because that builds inequitable access. Art needs to be consistent in terms of hands-on experience, as well as exposure,” said Cagley, who facilitates arts programming in local schools. “And [we need] to build out a diverse body of art forms and [teaching] artists that accurately reflect the demographics of schools.”
The benefits of arts education for youth — better social and emotional health, improved test scores, less truancy — are more prevalent in the public education space than before.
“I know it helps with attendance because [when] they know they have art that day, they tend to come to school because they look forward to your class,” Rodriguez said of her students.
Rodriguez began her journey as a visual arts teacher at Natomas High School in 2007 before becoming the sole arts educator at Glenwood Elementary.
“When I started, we had lab fees, so kids used to have to pay. It’s now illegal, but they had to pay $15 a semester,” said Rodriguez. “My entire budget came out of kids paying their lab fees. And I felt horrible because some kids were like, ‘I don’t have the money.’ I used to spend thousands upon thousands of dollars as a brand-new teacher in my 20s, trying to make my curriculum and classroom work.”
Once the state outlawed fees for arts education in 2012, Rodriguez’s budget was around $12 per pupil. Ten years later, she is spending about $15 per student in a well-resourced district. However, if the amount spent in 2012, when arts education was not prioritized, was adjusted for inflation, schools should be spending $16 per student to provide the same services.
“Since I adopted a new classroom and somebody else’s idea of curriculum, my budget eats into my new ideas,” Rodriguez said. “I try to use a lot of what I have and try to be very creative with what I can do here.”
Rodriguez is not alone in her struggle to conform curriculum to available funds. The malleability of the budget is entirely dependent on the priorities of the principal, and the championing from teachers and parents. In some cases, the departure or retirement of an arts teacher or supportive principal may lead to the ending of an arts program.
CLARA, a nonprofit organization based in Midtown Sacramento, works with Sacramento County’s schools to deliver dance classes on-site. Executive Director Megan Wygant said their programming has been subject to the changing whims of the administration and teachers this past year.
“We had a contract to start at a new school or to come back, and we walked in on the first day and were like, ‘You’re not the principal we used to work with,’” said Wygant on not having the buy-in on the programs from new school officials. “Principals were saying, ‘I don’t know if I want my teachers losing an hour of classroom time every week.’”
Programming run by CLARA can be funded by the districts or PTAs, but this varies from school to school and district to district.
Sources of funding for arts education in the county are haphazardly drawn from different pools of money, and the transparency around the amount, the rationale, and the outcomes are disparate and opaque.
When Rodriguez wanted to do a 3D cultural food project, appealing to the diverse classrooms she educates, she asked her principal, “Is there money?” He told her “Yeah, whatever you need. We’ll get it out of a different budget.”
Rodriguez said was not entirely sure how the arts education budget in her district was determined, but knew she was receiving $7,000 a year.
Before Proposition 13 was enacted in 1978, property taxes funded California’s public schools, and there was much more discretionary local control of the education budget. The Public Policy Institute suggests that “between 1970 and 1997, spending per pupil in California fell more than 15 percent relative to spending in the rest of the country” because of Prop 13. Though the state tried to match the lost funding, slashes in education were inevitable, and arts education took the brunt of the cuts.
Prop 13 diminished access to arts education, said Cagley: “The arts were obliterated from public education, and now in California, 1 in 5 school children receive any arts education, despite the fact that it is regulated in the California Department of Education framework.”
In 2010, the Local Control Funding Formula, or LCFF, the state’s method of allocating funds to districts based on economic disparity, once again shifted the landscape of public education — and hurt arts education.
“The visual and performing arts in California have been challenged in the local education funding formula,” said Tom DeCaigny, executive director of Create CA. “So, they’ve not risen to the priority of local districts or the State Department of Education.”
The LCFF model accommodates schools in high- and low-income neighborhoods with more resources, but the void is exasperated for schools in neighborhoods at the cusp of low-income, Cagley said: “What’s interesting about the funding of arts education is that sometimes Title I schools, because they are Title I, get more money than schools that are on the border of Title I.”
Title I schools are defined by the economic need of their student population. And the LCFF model accounts for the needs of high-poverty areas with Title 1 schools in the County.
But the design of this model is a myth, as observed at Glenwood Elementary — a Title 1 school — which is still not meeting the state standards or the comprehensive needs of the students.
Mollie Morrison, the visual and performing arts coordinator at C.K. McClatchy High School in Sacramento’s Land Park neighborhood, said she finds that when students come to her arts classroom, they are unprepared. McClatchy High, as a Title I school, receives extra funds and has a robust theater, visual arts and dance program.
But to get into this program, students have to submit a portfolio to Morrison, which can be an obstacle for the 66% of students at the high school coming from disadvantaged socioeconomic backgrounds, and who likely did not get adequate arts education at the elementary level.
“There is no art right now in elementary schools because it’s not required. It just depends on what school you go to, whether or not you touch the arts,” Morrison said. “You have to think about how intimidated [students are] by the time they finally hit one of these classrooms. It’s very hard to win them back over at 16 or 17.”
“It’s exciting … But we don’t even generate that many teachers”
In the last two years, two potentially big advancements have happened in the area of arts funding for California students.
Assembly Bill 181, a novel discretionary arts, music and instructional material block grant of $3.6 billion, was included in Newsom’s 2022-2023 budget, and is to be used by 2025-2026 fiscal year. The funding is for materials, curriculum development, professional development and COVID aid.
Then in November 2022, Prop 28 passed with an approval rating of 65%. The measure would dedicate $990 million to arts and music education in the state — the most money ever allocated. But the lofty goals of both the block grant and Prop 28 aren’t necessarily panning out as promised.
Many schools had distributed their portion of the block grant money over the next few years, but then the grant funding was cut to $1.8 billion in Newsom’s proposed 2023-2024 budget, under the premise that this money would be offset by Prop 28 funding.
Prop 28 was also subject to cuts and reduced to $940 million, with a one-time fund of $100 million to cover the deficit. The Legislative Analyst’s Office confirms that the one-time amount will not cover the deficit of arts funds assumed by the Newsom’s slashes.
“Prop 28 funding should supplement current arts funding, not supplant,” Cagley said. That’s because these two pools of money from the block grant and the proposition serve different purposes. The block grant is to be used for materials, supplies and programs. Prop 28, on the other hand, is intended primarily to be used to hire more arts teachers.
Letty Kraus, director of the California County Superintendents Arts Initiative, and Cagley both expressed concern over how the Prop 28 funds are to be used: 80% on credentialed teachers and pipelines, 18% on teaching artists and partnerships with local arts organizations, and 2% on materials. “The conundrum is there is a huge hole of qualified arts teachers,” Cagely said.
The Sacramento County Office of Education’s Assistant Superintendent Jackie White estimates the need for over 200 art teachers in the county, and a total 15,000 arts teachers in the state. “We don’t even generate that many teachers,” said White.
But that’s not the only problem, said Kraus. Working with Sacramento County’s superintendents, she said that the language of the block grant is ambiguous, which could lead to funding not necessarily being used for arts or music.
Measuring arts education progress is tenuous, considering the California Department of Education has not released current arts education data since 2019 to track improvements, or the lack thereof, in the state. (CDE did not return requests for comment.)
“Part of what has to happen is that the California Department of Education has to come through with guidance,” Kraus said. “But they’re not funded with staff for Prop 28.”
Still, Kraus, Cagley and White are cautiously optimistic about Prop 28, but said that the implementation requires dedicated attention to equitable and culturally competent curriculum.
“This Prop 28 money, it’s really exciting,” White said. “I’m glad it got voted in. We need money for arts education.”
Rodriguez witnesses the direct impact culturally-reflective arts education has had on her former students. Kimberly Jackson, now in her early 20s, is a working professional, but makes time once a week to volunteer in Rodriquez’s classroom.
“Dr. Dre has been in my life for almost a decade,” she said about Rodriguez. “As an educator, she made me more open to [art] and really challenged me because she’s always elevating and incorporating the identities of her students.”
Jackson said she wants elementary school students to see reflective arts education and is confident that Rodriguez’s teachings bolster a future where students of all backgrounds are empowered. Having students like Jackson has been a driver in Rodriguez’s pursuits to provide comprehensive visual arts programming, she said.
“It’s that sense of community that I’m so in love with,” expressed Rodriguez. “And seeing kids love themselves because of what they are able to achieve is so priceless. And not every student gets that luxury — that’s what has kept me in education.”
Srishti Prabha is a Report For America corps member and Education Reporter in collaboration with The Sacramento Observer and CapRadio. Their focus is on K-12 education in Black communities.
The post The way Sacramento pays for arts education is broken. Here’s what could help. appeared first on The Sacramento Observer.
This article originally appeared in the Sacramento Observer.
By Fred Redmond
Everywhere you look, everything costs too much. Families are stretching every paycheck to cover soaring grocery bills. Too many are struggling to make rent. Child care, health care and gas bills continue to strain household budgets. Working people are doing everything right, yet too many are still falling behind.
For Latina workers, this crisis is compounded by a persistent and unjust pay gap. That’s why we observe Latina Equal Pay Day on Oct. 8 this year. It brings attention to the fact that among full-time, year-round workers, Latinas earned just 60 cents in 2025 for every dollar earned by white men. That wage gap isn’t just a statistic—it means smaller paychecks, fewer opportunities to build wealth, less financial security and harder choices about how to provide for their families.
Latinas deserve equal pay for equal work. Full stop. Anything less hurts working families and weakens our economy. A union contract can help level the playing field.
The evidence is clear. Hispanic workers overall receive a large wage boost from union membership, with a 16.4% wage premium compared with nonunion Latino workers. Latinas in a union earn about $15,288 more per year than Latinas who are not in a union. Most importantly, union contracts also help narrow the gender pay gap: Women working full time in union jobs earn 86.2 cents for every dollar earned by men who are union members—a significantly smaller gap than among nonunion workers.
Negotiated contracts replace arbitrary decisions with clear wage scales, transparent pay systems and enforceable workplace standards. Instead of leaving pay to bias or favoritism, union contracts establish fair standards that workers can enforce.
A report from the Economic Policy Institute finds that strengthening workers’ rights to organize and increasing union density would significantly reduce racial wage gaps while strengthening our economy and our democracy. Communities with higher union membership invest more in public education, are more likely to expand access to health care and provide stronger unemployment protections when people lose their jobs.
Our labor movement has always understood that civil rights and workers’ rights are inseparable. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. recognized that truth when he stood with striking sanitation workers in Memphis, Tennessee. Today, we carry that legacy forward by fighting for workplaces where every worker is respected, protected and paid fairly.
Latina Equal Pay Day should not simply remind us how far we still have to go. It should remind us that we already know how to make progress. Progress happens when workers organize. It happens when we bargain together. And it happens when we stand in solidarity with one another. That’s why we must elect leaders who will fight to protect workers’ rights, strengthen unions and defend our democracy.
We must recommit ourselves to building an economy where every worker is valued, every paycheck reflects the dignity of work and every Latina receives the equal pay she has long deserved. Because when Latinas are paid fairly, every family can afford to build a better future.
Fred Redmond, the highest-ranking African American labor official in history, is the secretary-treasurer of the AFL-CIO, the nation’s largest labor federation representing 65 unions and nearly 15 million workers.
Art
Houston’s ‘call Me Mother’ Exhibit Opens Today, Spotlighting Black Maternal Health
AFRICAN-AMERICAN NEWS AND ISSUES – DALLAS — The Health Museum in Houston today opens “The Call Me Mother Experience,” an exhibition spotlighting Black maternal health through art and personal storytelling. Curated by Houston’s first Black poet laureate, Deborah D.E.E.P. Mouton, the project originated from her own poem written during a miscarriage.
HOUSTON — A new exhibition opening Sunday, Oct. 4, at The Health Museum is bringing Black maternal health into public view through art and personal storytelling.
The Call Me Mother Experience will be on display through Feb. 28, 2027. The museum lists a preview reception today from 3 to 5 p.m. at 1515 Hermann Drive, with tickets priced at $5 for members and $15 for nonmembers.
A personal story becomes a community conversation
According to the museum, founder, curator and lead artist Deborah D.E.E.P. Mouton developed the project from a poem she wrote during a miscarriage. The installation combines films, recorded interviews, visual artwork and contributions created with community members.
Mouton, Houston’s first Black poet laureate, discussed the exhibition and her connection to its subject in an Oct. 1 appearance on KPRC’s Houston Life. The station described the project as addressing the unequal burden of pregnancy-related illness and death faced by Black women in Harris County.
An announcement distributed by the Call Me Mother Experience says the initiative will also reach community locations and faith-based organizations across Greater Houston. Those additional settings are intended to extend the conversation beyond a museum visit.
What visitors can expect
The museum says reception guests can explore the exhibit, hear the curator and meet participating artists. Reception admission includes general museum entry; refreshments are available while supplies last.
The featured image accompanying this article is an original illustrative concept, not a photograph of the exhibition or its artwork.
Sources and visitor information:The Health Museum exhibition listing; preview reception details and tickets; KPRC Houston Life; organizer announcement.
The post Houston’s ‘Call Me Mother’ Exhibit Opens Today, Spotlighting Black Maternal Health appeared first on African American News and Issues.
Based on reporting by African-American News and Issues – Dallas.
Black Press
Should You Have to Pay to Hear the Gospel?
ST. LOUIS AMERICAN — Pastor Philip Anthony Mitchell of Atlanta’s 2819 CHURCH and Tim Timberlake of Celebration Church in Jacksonville, Florida, are at the center of a social media debate. The controversy stems from ticket prices for their “Street Preachers” podcast tour, with general admission tickets reportedly costing around $60 and VIP options up to $200.
For generations, the Black church has passed the offering plate to keep the lights on, pay the preacher, help the poor and carry the Gospel beyond its walls. But what happens when the preacher leaves the sanctuary, takes a popular Christian podcast on tour — and charges admission?
That question has placed Pastor Philip Anthony Mitchell, founder and lead pastor of Atlanta’s fast-growing 2819 CHURCH, at the center of a heated social media debate.
Mitchell and Tim Timberlake, senior pastor of Celebration Church in Jacksonville, Florida, host “Street Preachers,” which its official website describes as a “raw, unfiltered podcast” committed to spreading the Gospel.
‘A brood of vipers’
The controversy began after ticket prices for the podcast’s 2026 tour circulated online. General admission tickets reportedly cost about $60 before fees, with premium options, including a VIP meet-and-greet package, priced at $200. Critics questioned whether ministers should charge people to hear the Gospel.
Others defended the pastors, arguing that Christian events require venues, transportation, security, equipment and staff.
Mitchell answered critics from the pulpit last month, calling them “a brood of vipers.” He said the podcast is a separate, personal project and that neither his church nor Timberlake’s is bankrolling it.
“Now we have decided to go on a tour to take the gospel to cities, and because that’s not funded by 2819, and it’s not funded by Celebration Church, Tim and I gotta do that with our own pockets,” Mitchell said. “It’s why there is tickets. We have to pay for venues and security and productions and staff from our own pockets.”
Mitchell called some critics “ignorant” and said they did not know that a child was healed through faith during one of the events.
“And you want to complain about a 60 ticket?” he said. “So hate on!”
Worship service vs. media event
Mitchell maintains that “Street Preachers” is an independently produced podcast tour, not a worship service, and that ticket revenue helps cover production costs.
Yet the presence of pastors, Scripture and Gospel language makes the distinction less clear to some believers.
The official tour website lists all eight 2026 stops as sold out. Promotional material announcing additional dates promised, “Better ticket options. Same Gospel. Same move of God.”
Corporate prayer gathering
The language gets to the heart of the dispute. Some Christians argue that no one should be kept outside because they cannot afford a ticket. Others say the Gospel remains free even when people pay for the venue and experience surrounding its presentation.
The paid podcast tour, however, is not Mitchell’s only large-scale gathering. On Oct. 10, 2819 CHURCH will host “ACCESS — That Powerful Hour of Prayer” at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Admission is free.
2819 CHURCH has said 80,000 free tickets were claimed before registration reopened.
The contrast raises another question: What makes one Gospel-centered event a ministry supported by donors and another a production supported by customers?
Unfiltered preaching, youth appeal
Mitchell’s congregation, composed largely of young Black adults, grew from fewer than 200 weekly worshippers in 2023 to about 6,000, according to the church. Some worshippers arrive before sunrise to secure a place inside.
His appeal rests partly in an intense, vulnerable and raw preaching style.
“I’m preaching without watering that down, without filtering out things that we think might be too controversial,” Mitchell told The Associated Press.
That visibility has also brought scrutiny of his theology, associations, travel, security and the businesses surrounding his ministry.
But the controversy reaches beyond Mitchell and Timberlake. Christian music concerts charge admission. Seminaries charge tuition. Religious publishers sell Bibles, books and devotionals. Churches pay musicians, media teams and guest preachers. Money becomes particularly uncomfortable, however, when an event is presented simultaneously as ministry and entertainment.
Ministry vs. entertainment
Supporters should not assume every dollar collected becomes personal profit. Critics, however, question whether lower-cost seats, sponsored tickets or free admission for people who cannot pay should be part of a Gospel-centered event.
The Black church always has required resources for ministry. It also has carried a sacred responsibility to make room for people with little or nothing to give.
The sold-out “Street Preachers” tour shows people are willing to pay to attend. The free ACCESS gathering offers a different model. The challenge is preserving that open door as Christian ministry increasingly adopts the machinery — and economics — of popular entertainment.
The post Should you have to pay to hear the Gospel? appeared first on St. Louis American.
Based on reporting by St. Louis American.
Black Press
NCCU Ramping up for the 89th Ultimate Homecoming Experience
NORTH CAROLINA CENTRAL UNIVERSITY – CAMPUS ECHO — N.C. Central University is preparing for its 89th Ultimate Homecoming Experience, a week-long celebration. Thousands of students, family, friends, and alumni are expected to gather on campus for festivities including the Homecoming Countdown, parade, Miss and Mister NCCU Coronation, concerts, and the football game.
This Saturday N.C. Central University will kick off its 89th Ultimate Homecoming Experience — a week-long celebration bringing thousands of students, family, friends and alumni to campus.
This year’s festivities include the Homecoming Countdown, parade, Miss and Mister NCCU Coronation, concerts and the football game.
The number of visitors to the football game on Saturday, Oct. 10 is expected to reach at least 10,000 — O’Kelly Riddick Stadium’s capacity, with NCCU’s recent enrollment increase of more than 10,000 students.
The Eagles will face William & Mary after playing against the Campbell University’s Fighting Camels on Oct 3.
Students are already expressing excitement for the upcoming festivities.
“I’m excited for homecoming because I can meet alumni and go outside and party with my fellow eagles,” Digital Filmmaking junior Rhese Gardner said. “I’m also really looking forward to the Greek Bowl because there’s a lot going on.”
He added that even though he’s disappointed this semester’s Oil Spill was canceled, he’s still excited for the other events like the parade and concerts.
Here is a list of the week’s on-campus events:
- Oct. 3 – Homecoming Countdown
- Oct. 4 – Gospel Concert
- Oct. 5 – Coronation of Miss and Mister NCCU
- Oct. 6 – 10:40 Break
- Oct. 6 – Homecoming Experience Showcase
- Oct. 7 – Fried Chicken Wednesday
- Oct. 7 – Festival Block Party
- Oct. 7 – Late Night Breakfast
- Oct. 8 – Back to the Nest Young Alumni Mixer
- Oct. 8 – Old School Greek Stroll Off
- Oct. 8 – Hip-Hop Concert
- Oct. 9 – Step Show
- Oct. 10 – Football Game
The post NCCU ramping up for the 89th Ultimate Homecoming Experience first appeared on Campus Echo Online.
Based on reporting by North Carolina Central University – Campus Echo.
Black Press
Botham Jean’s Killer Granted Parole 7 Years After His Murder
MICHIGAN CHRONICLE — Former Dallas police officer Amber Guyger has been granted parole, seven years after her conviction for murdering Botham Jean inside his Dallas apartment. The Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles approved her release on October 1, seven years to the day after her murder conviction. Guyger was convicted in 2019 and sentenced to 10 years in prison for Jean’s 2018 death.
Former Dallas police officerAmber Guyger has been granted parole seven years after she was convicted of murdering her neighbor,Botham Jean, inside his Dallas apartment.
The Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles approved Guyger’s release Thursday (October 1), seven years to the day after Guyger was convicted of Jean’s murder, according to NBC News.
In 2019, a jury convicted Guyger of murder and she was sentenced to 10 years in prison for Jean’s 2018 death. Her conviction and 10-year sentence were upheld on appeal in 2022.
Geyger’s first parole request was denied in 2024, NBC Dallas-Fort Worth reported.
The Dallas Police Department fired her after the shooting. During her trial, Guyger testified that she mistakenly entered Jean’s apartment after returning home from work, believing it was her own apartment one floor below.
She said she saw Jean inside and fired her weapon because she believed he was an intruder, according to NBC News.
Jean was a 26-year-old Black man from St. Lucia who worked as an accountant. He was inside his home eating ice cream when Guyger entered and shot him, NBC DFW reported.
The parole board cited Guyger’s prison record in approving her release. According to NBC DFW, officials said she did not have a documented pattern of violent or assaultive arrests or convictions, maintained a satisfactory adjustment while incarcerated, and completed programs intended to help her obtain and maintain employment.
Jean’s family opposed the parole decision and had asked that Guyger serve her full 10-year sentence, according to NBC DFW.
Civil rights attorney Lee Merritt, who represents the family, told NBC DFW that the decision was deeply disappointing.
“They stood up again and again to ask that the full sentence be served,” Merritt said.
The Dallas Police Department told NBC DFW that the parole decision was outside its authority and that the department had no role in determining whether Guyger would be released. The department said its thoughts remained with Jean’s family and others affected by his death.
Guyger’s conviction and 10-year sentence were upheld on appeal in 2022.
A civil jury ordered Guyger to pay Jean’s family $98.6 million in damages in 2024, according to NBC DFW.
Guyger’s release date has not been announced. NBC News reported that the Texas Department of Criminal Justice will determine when she is released.
The Black Information Network is your source for Black News! Get the latest news 24/7 on The Black Information Network. Listen now on the iHeartRadio app or click HEREto tune in live.
Based on reporting by Michigan Chronicle.
Black History
Morehouse School of Medicine Fall Convocation Has Strong Ties to Nashville
TENNESSEE TRIBUNE — Morehouse School of Medicine recently held its 42nd Fall Convocation and White Coat and Pinning Ceremony, which highlighted strong connections to Nashville. Dr. Valerie Montgomery Rice, in her 12th year as president and CEO, leads the institution, which welcomed 355 new students.
Morehouse School of Medicine held its 42nd Fall Convocation and White Coat and Pinning Ceremony on September 18, and it featured strong ties to Nashville. Dr. Valerie Montgomery Rice is completing her 12th year as president and CEO of Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM). The school boasts 355 students seeking degrees and certificates in the medical field.
“This entering class represents the future of medicine, science, public health and health care leadership,” said Valerie Montgomery Rice, MD, and FACOG. “As these students begin their journeys at Morehouse School of Medicine, they join a community grounded in excellence, service and our shared commitment to advancing health equity. We look forward to supporting their development as leaders who will transform the health and well-being of the communities they serve.”
Infectious diseases physician and scientist Dr. Barney S. Graham, MD, and PhD, served as the keynote speaker. He serves as the director of the David Satcher Global Health Equity Institute, professor of Medicine and Microbiology, Biochemistry and Immunology at Morehouse School of Medicine. He is an inventor of vaccines and monoclonal antibodies approved for human use to prevent or treat RSV, COVID-19 and Ebola. He joined MSM in 2022. He served in various positions at Vanderbilt University for 21 years.
Dr. Graham told the audience to “Embrace the Unseen” and focused on three points: Do the Best You can with what’s in front of you, Do what makes you come alive and Do the right thing even when no one is looking. He added, “Anything you do to improve mental and physical wellness and promote disease prevention will reduce health disparity by reducing the resources needed for treatment.”
His remarks commanded a roaring applause from the audience, which included his wife, Dr. Cynthia Turner Graham, and the former First Lady of Tennessee State University, Mrs. Edwina Hefner, a close friend to the family.
Based on reporting by Tennessee Tribune.
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