Good morning Sandra, I wanted to take a moment to let you know about the Black History month events that will be taking place at Gadsden State Community College and specifically our HBCU campus at Valley Street. I am forwarding the press announcement the our legal department released yesterday to share with the rest of the HBCUs we are affiliated with. Regards, Pam Hill - Librarian Gadsden State Community College Valley Street Campus (256) 439-6887 phill@gadsdenstate.edu ________________________________ From: Michelle Bradford Sent: Tuesday, February 4, 2014 3:04 PM To: All Employees Subject: Black History Month Events and Activities Gadsden State Celebrates Black History Month Gadsden State Community College will celebrate Black History Month with a number of events this February. General community events being offered this month will include two Rèsumè Writing/ Interview Skills Workshops on February 5 at 1:00 p.m. in Inzer Hall and February 19 at 3:00 p.m. in Ayers LRC. The workshops, sponsored by the Veterans Upward Bound Program, are free and open to all veterans. The TRIO Programs will host two free Financial Aid Workshops in conjunction with the Gadsden State Financial Aid Office Thursday, February 13 on the Wallace Drive Campus at noon and 6:00 p.m. Earthquake 101: An Introduction to Seismology seminar will be held in Browder Hall Auditorium from 12:00 to 1:00 p.m. on February 13 featuring speaker Steve Jones with AlabamaQuake in Huntsville. Homecoming will also be celebrated February 13 with the crowning of the 2014 queen/favorites and half time activities as the Cardinal basketball teams face Shelton State at Beck Field House beginning at 5:30 p.m. The Realtime Reporting Program will observe National Court Reporting and Captioning Week February 16-22. The Language & Fine Arts Department will host the ACETA Conference February 21-22 with Rick Bragg as the keynote speaker on February 21 at Wallace Hall Fine Arts Center. The Office of Career Services will host a Health Sciences Employment Opportunity Fair Wednesday, February 26. Several events will be held on the Valley Street Campus including 3-on-3 intramural basketball games each Wednesday during the month beginning at 3:00 p.m. in the Gadsden Job Corps Center gymnasium. Birmingham City Council member and former Gadsden native Steven W. Hoyt will be the featured speaker at a program planned for Thursday, February 6 at noon in the Learning Resource Center Media Room. An American Red Cross blood drive will be held on Tuesday, February 11 from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. The annual “Black History Reading Tour” is scheduled for Wednesday, February 12 in the eight elementary schools within the Gadsden City School System. Gadsden State staff members will visit 3rd grade students in each of the schools to share the significance of Black History through selected books. Gadsden City Council District 3 representative Robert Avery will be the featured speaker on February 20 in “A Journey to Washington with Robert Avery” highlighting the film documentary commemorating the 1963 March on Washington in which he participated as a teenager. A first time event for the campus will be “The Flavors of Soul Summit” on Thursday, February 27 beginning at 8:00 a.m. in the Valley Street Campus Student Center Building. This event co-sponsored by Title III/HBCUs and the Office of Legal Affairs will feature a soul food tasting, Central-Carver Legacy Museum exhibits, information on community services, and presentations on how the state of Alabama and city of Gadsden impacted the Civil Rights Movement. The Gadsden State Cherokee Campus will host the 3rd Annual Traditions: A Black History Celebration Thursday, February 20 at 6:00 p.m. in the Community Meeting Room. The program will include the MLK Jr. Community Choir (comprised of various churches in the Cherokee County area) singing traditional gospel songs, step routines, and readings from community members. This community event is free and the program is appropriate for any age group. The Campus will also host two free Financial Aid Workshops for all seniors at Cherokee County high schools February 25 at 11:00 a.m. and February 27 at 6:00 p.m. in room 130. The McClellan Center will observe the month with several activities as the library book selections will be set up for Black History Month. During the week of February 10 – 14, students in history courses will be studying the “Bus Burning” that took place in Calhoun County in 1961 in which a Greyhound bus carrying members of the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) was attacked and burned a few miles outside of Anniston. The Bookworms Book Club will meet Friday, February 28, at 10:00 a.m. in the McClellan Center Conference Room in celebration of Black History Month to discuss The House Girl, the historical fiction debut by Tara Conklin. It is an unforgettable story of love, history, and a search for justice, set in modern-day New York and 1852 Virginia as it weaves together the story of an escaped slave in the pre–Civil War South and a determined junior lawyer. To find out more about the book visit http://gadsdenstate.libguides.com/mcclellanbookworms. For more information about Black History Month events contact Dr. Michele Bradford, director of legal affairs at mbradford@gadsdenstate.edu<mailto:mbradford@gadsdenstate.edu> or 256-439-6822. Visit the News & Events section on the Gadsden State homepage at www.gadsdenstate.edu<http://www.gadsdenstate.edu> for additional information about other events to be announced later. -more- Black History Month Celebrations to Feature Two Gadsden Natives The Black History Month celebration hosted by the Valley Street Campus and Title III Program of Gadsden State Community College will feature two of Gadsden’s native sons. Former Gadsden resident Steven W. Hoyt (Birmingham City Council, District 8) will be the featured speaker on Thursday, February 6 at noon in the Learning Resource Center. On Thursday, February 20 at 10:30 a.m. “A Journey to Washington with Robert Avery” will be held in the Gadsden Job Corps Gymnasium. Both events are open to the public. Councilman Avery is serving his sixth term on the Gadsden City Council representing District 3 and currently serves as chairman of the Finance Committee. He served from 1986 to 2002, and again from 2006 to 2014. Avery is an advanced CMO (Certified Municipal Official) and he retired from Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company after 30 years. He was educated in the Gadsden public school system and is a graduate of Carver High School and also attended Gadsden State Community College. Avery has served on and chaired numerous city, county, and national boards ranging from the Alabama League of Municipalities to the National Black Caucus of Local Elected Officials. Avery’s interest in activism and civil rights began many years ago as a teenager growing up in Gadsden. He was 15 years old when he hitchhiked from Gadsden to Washington D.C. along with several friends to take part in the historic March on Washington in 1963. Avery was interviewed by several news organizations about his trip and is seen briefly in “The March,” a documentary film made by filmmaker James Blue for the United States Information Agency. The film aired on CNN in August 2013 in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the event. Councilman Steven W. Hoyt was elected to the Birmingham City Council in 2005. He chairs the Budget and Finance Committee and serves on the Administration, Economic Development, and Utilities Committees. Hoyt, a dedicated community leader, has worked for more than twenty years to impact change that will yield positive results for the community of Birmingham. His efforts have earned numerous honors and awards including; 2005 City of Birmingham, Minority Business Advocate of the year and 2005 Central Alabama Region, Alabama Community Education Association Volunteer of the Year. Hoyt was educated in the Gadsden public school system and graduated from Miles College in 1985, with a B.A. Degree in Social Science and a minor in Sociology. His post graduate work was completed at Alabama A&M University in Urban and Regional Planning. He serves on several boards including the Jefferson County Economic Development and Industrial Authority. Hoyt also serves as the pastor of West Princeton C.M.E. Church in Birmingham. The Valley Street Campus, the second oldest component of Gadsden State Community College dating back to 1960, was founded by the late Eugene N. Prater as the Gadsden Vocational Trade School— a private training facility for Black veterans in Etowah County. For ten years, until desegregation in 1970, the Trade School was the only local technical institution of higher learning enrolling Black Americans in the Gadsden area. Gadsden State honors Prater each year by presenting an award named in his honor to a technical faculty member teaching at the campus who displays excellence, dedication, and a commitment to teaching. In 1997, the Valley Street Campus was designated by the U.S. Department of Education as a Historically Black College or University (HBCU). For more information contact Carl Byers, campus director at 256-549-8670 or cbyers@gadsdenstate.edu<mailto:cbyers@gadsdenstate.edu>. For more information about the Title III Program contact Kassie Mathis, program director at kmathis@gadsdenstate.edu<mailto:kmathis@gadsdenstate.edu> or 256-549-8679. -end- [cid:image001.png@01CF21BA.644C9D50] Michele G. Bradford, J.D. Director of Legal Affairs P. O. Box 227 Gadsden, AL 35902-0227 (256) 439-6822 (256) 439-6812 Fax