Winter 2006 (PDF - Spelman College

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TWO TIMES THREE Class of 2009 Boasts Three Sets of Twin Biology Majors A ll Spelman women are sisters in spirit. Some Spelman women are sisters by birth. However, for a select few Spelman freshmen women, sisterhood has become something exponential, transcending body and spirit. These would be three sets of twins. Fall semester, these three sets of twins presented Spelman College with a unique equation – all of these freshmen siblings are biology majors. It would take a geneticist, a mathematician, and a genealogist working together to calculate the odds of this happening at a small, private, historically Black, women’s college in the laboratories of the Albro- Manley-Falconer Science Center. Indeed, Sasha and Asia Curry, Britney and Whitney Hale, and Megan and Morgan Hall are excited to be at Spelman and glad to share the experience with a twin sister. Although none of the girls has close friends or family members who are alumnae, they were all drawn to Spelman for the same reasons. Attending a historically Black college was high on their list. Experiencing life in Atlanta was a close second. “We wanted to go away to college, without being too far from home,” explained fraternal twins Asia and Sasha Curry, from Columbus, Georgia. They felt that Spelman would give them the right balance of independence and security as they transitioned from adolescence to adulthood. The sisters share a dormitory room – and the same class schedule. Fraternal twins Whitney and Britney Hale live with a bit more autonomy, as they were frequently placed in separate classes while growing up. One year, they even attended separate schools, but they were clear about attending the same college. Of all the colleges that accepted both girls, Spelman was tops. While attending Spelbound, they were drawn to campus life and recognized the value of attending an HBCU. “Even though we share a room, it’s not like we just have to be together all the time, ’cause we 4 I NSIDE S PELMAN Three sets of twins, all Spelman biology majors, are pictured left to right: Britney Hale, Asia Curry, Megan Hall, Morgan Hall, Sasha Curry and Whitney Hale. Fraternal twins Asia and Sasha Curry are from Columbus, Ga., and Whitney and Britney Hale come from Lilburn, Ga. Morgan and Megan Hall are identical twins from Charlotte, N.C. All of the students are contemplating medical careers. don’t,” said Britney . “I think we each feel very much like individuals. But we’re still sisters, and we’re really close.” Staying close to their Lilburn, Georgia, home was another advantage. Identical twins Morgan and Megan Hall had relocated from Phoenix, Arizona, to Charlotte, North Carolina, when it was time to choose a college. The sisters visited Spelman during a college weekend and immediately fell in love with the campus. “This was the place,” said Morgan. “We like Atlanta, too, and Charlotte is not too far away,” echoes Megan. Like any sisters, the twins talk about having typical sibling rivalries – which one is smarter, who has the best hair, and which is the shy one and who’s more outgoing – but their loyalty to one another is abundantly clear. And, while they each possess a sense of individuality, there’s no denying their special bond. Get them all talking together, and you’ll witness communication on a uniquely shared wavelength. The subject of biology invariably comes up. Multiple births are, after all, on the rise. Between 1980 and 1999, the overall multiple birth ratio increased 59 percent, according to the March of Dimes. The highest rate of fraternal twins, at about one in 70, occurs among African Americans. The Yoruba tribe of Nigeria has the highest twinning rate in the world, with one set of twins in every 24 births. Among our Get them all talking together, and you’ll witness communication on a uniquely shared wavelength. own twins, only the Curry family has an extensive family history of multiple births. None of their mothers took fertility drugs. Is all this what inspired our twins to study zygotes, genomes and nature vs. nurture? They would say not really – at least, not yet. For now, Asia and Sasha want to work with infants or young children as nurse practitioners or pediatricians. Britney and Whitney would like to be physicians, and Morgan and Megan would like to study obstetrics and gynecology at Emory University School of Medicine. After school, each expects to share a practice with her twin.
Spelman Salutes Academics Achievements & Awards Ms. Barbara Nesin, associate professor of art, made a presentation titled “Art in Times of Trouble” at the annual conference of the Haitian Studies Association in October 2005. The research of Dr. Marshalita Sims Peterson, associate professor of education, facilitated the opening of University Community Academy charter school (Atlanta Public Schools) located in the Atlanta West End community in August 2002. She continues to work with the academy through the Charter School Initiative that includes professional development activities and after-school programming. The current enrollment of the charter school, serving children in grades K–8, is 360. Also, Dr. Peterson serves as co-advisor for the “Beyond the Gates Reading Enrichment Program” sponsored by Ms. Spelman College and The Spelman Court. The program provides Saturday enrichment activities in the areas of literacy and integrated content for children in grades K–5. Also, Dr. Peterson has established a partnership with the DeKalb County School System through a Teacher & Student Support Initiative. In addition to working directly with three high schools in DeKalb County, Dr. Peterson has initiated a Junior Teacher Academy that provides professional development/instructional support activities and college-bound activities for students in DeKalb County. Dr. Colm Mulcahy, associate professor of mathematics, was the banquet speaker at the Mathematical Association of America Seaway Section meeting at the State University of New York Geneseo on October 28, 2005, in Geneseo, New York. The title of his speech was “Eine Kleine Nachtmagie.” Professor Ayoka Chenzira, director of the Digital Moving Image Salon at Spelman, spent the week of December 6–13, 2005, in Rouen, France. She was invited to participate as a panelist in the “Corps de Textes” (“Bodies of Text”) Festival dedicated to contemporary creation in North America. Professor Chenzira screened several of her films at the University of Rouen and engaged in discussion after the screenings. Ms. Sheilaree McDaniel, administrative assistant for Career Planning and Development, received a master of education in instructional technology from American Intercontinental University on June 18, 2005. Clayton State technology management major Ms. Katina Henderson- Hawkins, research analyst for Spelman Institutional Advancement, received a $3,000 scholarship from the Georgia Executive Women’s Network. She graduated with an associate of applied technology degree in criminal justice from DeKalb Technical College and transferred to the Clayton School of Technology bachelor of applied science program. She plans to attend law school upon completion of her bachelor’s degree. Shevann Monet Culmer, a junior with a double major in international studies and Spanish, will spend spring semester 2006 in Seville, Spain, thanks to an International Studies Program Scholarship from the Council on International Educational Exchange. Junior drama major Keosha Y. Thomas will have the opportunity to spend an entire semester in the United Kingdom thanks to the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program. She recently won the $5,000 Gilman Scholarship to study at Goldsmith College of the University of London through Arcadia University. This fall at Spelman, Ms. Thomas appeared in the drama State of Mind and worked behind the scenes as the costume coordinator for the play Blues for an Alabama Sky by Pearl Cleage, C’71, playwright, novelist and Spelman’s 2005–2006 Cosby endowed professor in the humanities. Appointments Dr. Sherry L. Turner, former assistant to the president and secretary of the College, has been appointed to serve as interim vice president for Student Development. A. Michelle Smith, C’69, has been appointed assistant to the president and interim secretary of the College. In November 2005, Ms. Olivia Scriven, special adviser to Institutional Advancement, was invited to serve on the Steering Committee of the Pfizer Women’s Health Initiative. Pfizer awarded the College $300,000 for a three-year project that includes the Pfizer Lecture Series. The series features prominent Black women physicians and researchers. Ms. Tomika DePriest, C’89, executive director of public relations/communications has been selected to represent the College in the Metro Atlanta Arts Coalition Leadership Development Program, the first-ever collaboration among local governments, companies, foundations and arts organizations to support arts and culture in the Atlanta region. The mission of MAAC? is to make the Atlanta region a premier center for the arts and have it recognized as such. Dr. Desiree Pedescleaux, dean of undergraduate studies, was elected president of the National Conference of Black Political Scientists and will assume her office in Atlanta at the annual meeting in March 2006. Performances & Published Works Dr. Karen Brakke, assistant professor of psychology, has two upcoming publications. The first is a peer-reviewed article by Brakke, K.; Fragaszy, D.M.; Simpson, K.; Hoy, E. & Cummins Sebree, S. (in press). The article, “The Production of Bimanual Percussion ih2 to 24 Month-Old Children,” will appear in Infant Behavior and Development. The second is a book chapter by Brakke, K.; Wilson, J.H., & Bradley, D.V. (in press), “Beyond Basics: Enhancing Undergraduate Statistics Education,” in Best Practices in Teaching Research Methods and Statistics in Psychology, edited by D. Dunn, R. Smith & B. Beins. From November 2005 through April 2006, the Spelman College music department is presenting the Harreld-James Organ Recital Series to showcase the recently refurbished Holtkamp pipe organ in the newly renovated historic Sisters Chapel. The recitals will include Dr. Joyce F. Johnson, Spelman professor of music and college organist for more than 50 years, on January 22, 2006, at 4 p.m. and Spelman alumna Rebecca Hull Brown, C’75, organist at St. John The Evangelist Catholic Church, on April 22, 2006, at 12 p.m. The recitals are free and open to the public. Dr. Marshalita Sims Peterson, associate professor of education, has published the following articles: (1) “The Ethical Dilemmas of High Stakes Testing and Issues for Teacher Preparation Programs,” which appeared in the Journal of College and Character of October 2005; (2) “No Child Left Behind and the Mixed Mechanism of Culture, Curriculum and Pedagogy,” which appeared in the September 2005 issue of MultiCultural Review, and (3) “Peer Victimization: Creating a Culture for Learning and Safe Classroom Communities,” which appeared in the August 2005 Special Issue of Journal of Social Sciences. In addition, Dr. Peterson is the author and coeditor of the book Instructing and Mentoring the African American College Student: Strategies for Success in Higher Education. In October 2005, she appeared on the Connect With Kids Network, which feeds to 70 affiliate stations throughout the United States, discussing the importance of classroom size in the primary years. Ms. Laura English-Robinson, C’69, lecturer of music, has released a CD project, Great Day, a recording of Negro spirituals arranged for solo voice by Uzee Brown Jr. Published by Roger Dean Publishing Company (The Lorenz Corporation), this collaborative project features Ms. English-Robinson, soprano, as well as bass baritone Uzee Brown Jr. and mezzo-soprano Crystal Harris, C’91. Ms. English Robinson has five songs on the CD, including the first one, her rendition of “Ain’t That Good News!” Ms. Barbara Nesin, associate professor of art, was a participating visual artist in “Café Medusa,” a female-centered evening of performance, visual art, spoken word, drama, poetry, fiction, food, books, music, dance, song and film/video. The event was held at 7 Stages Theatre on November 19, 2005, in Atlanta. Ms. Nesin’s article “The Influence of Native American and African American Encounters on Haitian Art,” was published in the Journal of Haitian Studies (University of California, Santa Barbara). Dr. Beatriz Cardelino, professor of chemistry, has published the following article: “Advanced Computational Modeling for Growing III-V Materials in a High-Pressure Chemical Vapor-Deposition Reactor;” B.H. Cardelino, C.E. Moore, C.A. Cardelino, N. Dietz; in “Operational Characteristics and Crystal Growth of Nonlinear Optical Materials II,” R. B. Lal and D. O. Frazier, editors; Proceedings of the International Society for Optical Engineering (SPIE) Vol. 5912, 59120F1-14 (2005). Dr. Marta Dark McNeese, assistant professor of physics, has published an article, “Using Science Fiction Movies in Introductory Physics,” in the October 2005 issue of The Physics Teacher. On November 8, 2005, Dr. Harry G. Lefever, professor emeritus of sociology, was invited by the Association of Emory Alumni (AEA) Book Club and the Caucus of Emory Black Alumni (CEBA) to discuss his book, Undaunted by the Fight: Spelman College and the Civil Rights Movement 1957–1967. W INTER/SPRING 2006 5
Page 1 and 2: SPELMAN I n s i d e Spelman Names B
Page 3: Hip Hop Week at Spelman College A C
Page 7 and 8: Spelman College Annual Report 2004-
Page 9 and 10: Statement of Financial Position Yea
Page 11 and 12: Greetings: The generosity of the do
Page 13 and 14: Audrey Irvin Johnson, C’63 Hester
Page 15 and 16: Kelly-Ann Iola Henry, C’96 Robin
Page 17 and 18: Alumnae Giving by Class Alumnae sup
Page 19 and 20: Nelwyn McDuffie Mpare * Lynn Pride
Page 21 and 22: REUNION 2005 EXCEEDS $500,000 GOAL
Page 23 and 24: Aziza Asha Belcher Rayna Nichelle B
Page 25 and 26: Citigroup Foundation * Clement & Wy
Page 27 and 28: Emma Stone Jeffries, C’49 Kenneth

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