Fayetteville State University News June 4, 2012 The LINKS, Inc. HBCU- Community College Collaborative to Meet in Fayetteville The Links, Incorporated, one of the nation's largest organizations of professional women, is working with community colleges and historically black colleges and universities (HBCU) to build strong ties between the schools and enhance college completion rates. In an effort to demonstrate its dedication to this cause, The Links. Inc. National HBCU Committee will host the Links HBCU- Community College Collaborative Orientation at Fayetteville State University (FSU) and Fayetteville Technical Community College (FTCC), respectively on June 12-13, 2012. The HBCU Community College Collaborative is made possible by a grant from USA Funds, with additional funding from the Lumina Foundation for Education. The grant was authored by Shaw University President Dr. Dorothy Yancy and Dr. Jacqueline Madrey-Taylor, Program Director at UNCF-Special Programs. Both are members of the LINKS National HBCU Committee. Other members include Fayetteville resident, Dr. Marye Jeffries; Dr. Mary Evans Sias, President of Kentucky State University; Beverly Hogan, President of Tougaloo College; and Annie Whatley, Deputy Director, Office of Minority Economic Impact, United States Department of Energy. During the five-year program, members of The Links, Incorporated, will work with faculty and staff from selected institutions to ensure that at least 50 percent of the participating community college students complete transfers to HBCUs and receive bachelor's degrees. The initial year has focused on planning and recruiting schools and students. Each selected community college is paired with a nearby HBCU and chapter of The Links, Incorporated. The following are the community college-HBCU partnerships in each of the five targeted states: Bluegrass Community and Technical College and Kentucky State University (Kentucky) Hinds Community College-Utica campus and Tougaloo College and Jackson State University (Mississippi) Fayetteville Technical Community College and Fayetteville State University (North Carolina). Austin Community College and Houston-Tillotson University (Texas) Tidewater Community College and Norfolk State University and Hampton University (Virginia) J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College and Virginia Union University (Virginia) The board meeting will be held June 12, at 4 p.m. in the J.C. Jones Board Room in Charles W. Chesnutt Library on the FSU campus. The HBCU Community College Collaborative Orientation will be held June 13, in the Tony Rand Student Center at FTCC. Attendees include members of the Links National HBCU Committee and representatives from each of the participating schools. The local chair for this event is Dr. Marye Jeffries. The opening speaker will be Dr. Belle Wheelan, chief executive officer for the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACS). The luncheon speaker will be Lezlie Baskerville, chief executive officer of National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education (NAFEO). Jeffries is the former Associate Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs and Director of Summer School at FSU. At the time of her retirement, she held the rank of Associate Professor of Education. During her 25-year tenure at FSU, in addition to teaching undergraduate and graduate courses in Education, Jeffries held the positions of Director of Continuing Education, Director the Weekend and Evening College, and Director of the Early Childhood Learning Center. Jeffries is the past chairperson and current member of the Board of Trustees at Fayetteville Technical Community College. She is a life member of the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc, and served as Mid-Atlantic Regional Director from 1986-1990. Jeffries is a member of the Fayetteville Chapter of The Links, Incorporated and is a Past President of the Fayetteville Chapter. She held the positions of Southern Area Protocol Chairperson as well as the National Protocol Chairperson. Presently, she is a member of The Links, Incorporated National Historically Black Colleges and Universities Initiative. Jeffries received her Bachelor of Arts Degree in Sociology from Samuel Huston College in Austin, Texas, and her Masters of Education and Doctor of Education from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Wheelan is the first African American and the first woman to serve in this capacity. Her career spans over 30 years and includes the roles of faculty member, chief student services officer, campus provost, college president and Secretary of Education. In several of those roles she was the first African American and/or woman to serve in those capacities. Wheelan received her bachelor's degree from Trinity University in Texas (1972) with a double major in Psychology and Sociology; her master's from Louisiana State University (1974) in Developmental Educational Psychology; and her doctorate from the University of Texas at Austin (1984) in Educational Administration with a special concentration in community college leadership. She has received numerous awards and recognition including four honorary degrees; the Distinguished Graduate Award from Trinity University (2002), and from the College of Education at the University of Texas at Austin (1992); Washingtonian Magazine's 100 Most Powerful Women in Washington, DC (2001); the AAUW Woman of Distinction Award (2002); the Suanne Davis Roueche National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development's Distinguished Lecturer Award (2007); and the John E. Roueche National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development's International Leadership Award (2010). Baskerville is the fifth and first female president and chief executive officer of NAFEO, the umbrella membership association for the presidents and chancellors of the nation's 120 historically and predominately black colleges and universities. She is a seasoned lawyer, government relations and equity professional, association and small business senior executive, who is a recognized expert on equal educational and employment opportunity, education access, affirmative action and diversity issues. Prior to her work at NAFEO, Baskerville served as Vice President for Government Relations for The College Board. In that capacity, Baskerville was responsible for shaping and advancing the legislative agenda of The College Board, providing leadership to The Board's Upward Bound program and Educational Opportunity Center. Baskerville received a Bachelor of Arts Degree, with honors from Douglass College, Rutgers University and in 1998, was inducted into The Douglass Society (the College's Hall of Fame) in recognition of her unstinting commitment to improving the quality of life of vulnerable populations. She holds a juris doctorate degree with honors from Howard University School of Law, and an Honorary Doctorate of Laws from Benedict College. Baskerville is also a graduate of the Executive Management Program for Minority Directors at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Business. She is the recipient of numerous awards and citations. She was named by AOL Black Voices as one of the nation's "Top 10 Black Women in Higher Education;" and by Ebony Magazine in two succeeding years as one of America's Top 100 Most Influential Association Leaders. Founded in 1946, The Links, Incorporated is an organization of 12,000 professional women of color who work to promote educational, civic, and intercultural activities to enrich the lives of African-Americans and members of the larger community. Through 274 chapters in 42 states, the organization's members contribute more than 500,000 hours of service to the community annually. USA Funds is a nonprofit corporation that works to enhance postsecondary education preparedness, access and success by providing and supporting financial and other valued services. USA Funds was established in Indianapolis in 1960 to help families finance rising college costs. During the past 50 years, USA Funds has supported a total of $247 billion in financial aid for higher education. USA Funds has served approximately 22.4 million students and parents, as well as thousands of educational and financial institutions. FSU is the second-oldest public institution in North Carolina. A member of the University of North Carolina System, FSU has nearly 6,000 students and offers degrees in more than 60 undergraduate and graduate degree programs. Fayetteville Technical Community College was established in 1961 and serves over 40,000 students annually by providing over 150 affordable occupational, technical, general education, college transfer, and continuing education programs to meet students' needs and desires as well as the community. For more information, call (910) 672-1474 or (910) 678-8203. SANDRA M. PHOENIX Executive Director HBCU Library Alliance sphoenix@hbculibraries.org<mailto:sphoenix@hbculibraries.org> www.hbculibraries.org<http://www.hbculibraries.org/> 800-999-8558, ext. 4820 404-520-0593 Skype:sandra.phoenix1 1438 West Peachtree Street NW Suite 200 Atlanta, GA 30309 Toll Free: 1.800.999.8558 (Lyrasis) Fax: 404.892.7879 www.lyrasis.org<http://www.lyrasis.org/> Honor the ancestors, honor the children. Register now http://www.hbculibraries.org/html/2012meeting-form.html for the October 21-23, 2012 HBCU Library Alliance 5th Membership Meeting and the Photographic Preservation Pre-Conference in New Orleans, LA. The Pre-Conference and Membership meeting are open to directors and other librarians.