Howard University News November 15, 2016 Howard Remembers Gwen Ifill's Life and Legacy "No excuses," Gwen Ifill told the audience congregated in the Upper Quadrangle of Howard University on May 9, 2009. "God opens doors in different ways, but once you get through, it is all on you," she said. Ifill, the co-anchor of the "PBS NewsHour" and long-running host of "Washington Week," died on Monday, Nov. 14, 2016, at the age of 61. Few before her have had such as distinguished, pioneering career in journalism. Before moving to PBS in 1999, she worked at NBC News as a political correspondent and at The New York Times, where she covered the White House and national politics. Earlier in her career, Ifill worked at The Washington Post, the Baltimore Evening Sun and the Boston Herald American. In 2004 and 2008, she moderated the U.S. vice presidential debates. Her 2009 book, "The Breakthrough: Politics in the Age of Obama," was a bestseller. At the 2009 Howard Commencement, the respected journalist and broadcaster shared her inspiring wisdom on life, work and the evolving state of the world. "I do not wake up every morning and say, 'Darn, I'm Black again,'" she said, "I wake up every morning glad to have another day to be me again, and to do something with it." Ifill spoke about experiencing racism in her career, about when and how to stand up for what is right and about accepting what she called a "responsibility to excel" when opportunities opened -a responsibility she encouraged Howard graduates to take up as well. Reflecting on a career spent breaking barriers - and the scars incurred in doing so - she left the new graduates with this mandate: "Be a breakthrough. . . . Be big." Tributes to the late newscaster came pouring in on Monday afternoon, including from President Obama. "Gwen was a friend of ours," the president said. "She was an extraordinary journalist. She always kept faith with the fundamental responsibilities of her profession, asking tough questions, holding people in power accountable and defending a strong and free press that makes our democracy work." SANDRA M. PHOENIX HBCU Library Alliance Executive Director Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library 111 James P. Brawley Drive SW Atlanta, GA 30314 404-978-2118 (office) 404-702-5854 (cell) http://www.hbculibraries.org/ sphoenix@hbculibraries.org<mailto:sphoenix@hbculibraries.org<mailto:sphoenix@hbculibraries.org%3cmailto:sphoenix@hbculibraries.org>> Honor the ancestors, honor the children. Follow us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hbculibraryalliance1/ and Twitter https://twitter.com/HBCULibAlliance Check out "PULSE!" The HBCU Library Alliance's News Source! - https://hbculibraryalliance.wordpress.com/