African Americans Who Forever Changed Academia
Dr. Cornel West
Black History Month is celebrated every February as a time to recognize and honor African-Americans who made great contributions to some aspect of life in this country. Major figures like Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks are often honored, but many lesser-known men and women made impacts on society by working through the channels of academia, breaking barriers for future African-Americans, or creating opportunities for children that they never had before.
Cornell West: West is redefining what it means to be a professor. As a political activist going back to the '70s, he continues to encourage his colleagues to lead by example by participating in civic discourse and protesting unjust policies.
Bobby Austin: Austin serves as the head of the Village Foundation, an organization he founded in 1997 to engage young African-American men in society, through events like Give a Boy a Book Day.
Michael Carter: In 1971, Carter's parents founded V.E. Carter Development Center for children. Carter later worked there teaching the African language Swahili to children.
Robert Hill: In a long career of researching African-American life, Hill's greatest contribution to academia was his book The Strengths of Black Families, and its follow-up 25 years later, which fought negative stereotypes of blacks.
Joe Louis Clark: Clark changed the way many people think of disciplining in schools. The former drill sergeant's tough style captured national attention when it was chronicled in the movie Lean On Me.
Ramona Edelin: With her direction, the National Urban Coalition started the "Say Yes to A Youngster's Future" program to provide educational help to black teachers and youth in America, eventually teaming with the Department of Education.
Nathan Hare: The first university Black Studies program in the country was directed by Hare, and when his administration attempted to cut the program by half, he protested with students for five months.
Katherine Butler Jones: The Metropolitan Council for Educational Opportunities was the brainchild of Jones, and it still works to educate black youth in Boston.
Aaron Lloyd Dixon: Dixon's contribution to academia came in the form of a program called Free Breakfast for School Children, which he helped launch as the founding member of Seattle's Black Panther chapter.
Carlotta Walls LaNier: After the Supreme Court ruled in Brown v. Board of Education, the Little Rock Nine students braved much harassment and integrated a high school in 1957. LaNier was the youngest member.
by Online College Org