The
Department of Black American Studies has invited five members from the Delaware
community to serve on their newly formed Advisory Board. The board was formed to strengthen ties
between the University of Delaware, Africana Studies, and the greater
Newark-Wilmington-Dover area. Board members will 1) provide important linkage
between the African American community and the translational
scholarship/research the Department of Black American Studies is engaged in; 2)
assist our department in identifying issues/concerns in the community that we
can respond to productively either through cultural programming; internships;
mentoring; or other agreed upon collaborative means; 3) serve in an advisory
capacity to the Chair of the department and the AFRA Executive Committee. Board
members will serve a two year term. The 2012-2014 Board Members are:
Kim Graham
is Family Services Director,
and is active in teaching acting and spoken word at the Christina Cultural Arts
Center in Wilmington, DE. She
holds a BA degree from University of Delaware in Psychology. Ms. Graham is
Co-Director of the Paul Robeson Ensemble and a member of Fruits of the Spirit.
Ms. Graham has managed the Arts & Education Professional Training Institute
for public school and early childhood educators. In addition, she provides
outreach services to youth of promise attending the Delaware Adolescent Program
and Kingswood Academy.
Rev. Dr. Lawrence Livingston has been in mini-stry for over 28 years
and has been the senior pastor of Mother African Union Church in Wilmington, DE
for over 13 years. A native Wilming-tonian, Rev. Dr. Livingston started an
African American history museum/gallery in the church building, and has added a
number of programs to Mother African Union’s community outreach services
including the Kwanzaa Summer Camp, Ujima After-School Program, and the
Harambee Rites of Passage Program for Boys.
Rev. Dr. Livingston
holds a BA degree in Journalism, a Master of Divinity, and a Doctor of Ministry
from Howard University.
Dr. James E. Newton is Emeritus Professor of Black American
Studies, and served as the director of BAMS for over two decades. Dr. Newton
retired from his full-time faculty position in 2005 after a 33-year career at
UD. Besides his teaching and directing duties, Dr. Newton acted as chair of the
Commission to Promote Racial and Cultural Diversity and served as a member of
the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights Delaware State Advisory Committee. He also has a commitment to
community service that included membership on the boards of the Walnut Street
YMCA, Delaware State Arts Council, Delaware Art Museum, Tatnall School, YMCA of
Delaware and Public Allies.
Dr.
Jeanne Nutter is a professor at Bloomfield
College and an oral historian who has produced five documentary films on
African Americans in Delaware including an hour long documentary film with
Hagley Museum and Library entitled A
Separate Place: The Schools P.S. duPont Built. She is currently the State
President of AARP Delaware and serves on the Board of Overseers for the
Delaware College of Art and Design, the board of the Delaware Art Alliance, and
the board of Trustees of Color. She has also served on the boards of the Oral
History Association of the Mid-Atlantic Region, Preservation Delaware and Christina Cultural Arts Center . Dr. Nutter
was a member of the 1991 class of Leadership America, was inducted in the Hall
of Fame of Delaware Women and received the Civil Rights and Humanitarian Award
from the Delaware Education Association.
AliShah
(Jones) Watson, a
Wilmington, Delaware native, is a 2009 graduate of the University of Delaware
with degrees in Black American Studies and English, with a concentration in Ethnic
and Cultural Studies. Currently,
Mrs. Watson works with the youth supplemental education company, Educate to
Innovate, where she helps to develop multicultural reading materials for
children. She also works as an event planner and cultural consultant for
Culture Restoration Project, a company she started with her husband in 2011. As
an event planner, Mrs. Watson coordinates cultural community events in the City
of Wilmington.
We
thank each of these individuals for their service to AFRA and the Delaware
community at large.
