In sad Black News ... UC's 1st Black Dean

EVENDALE - Dr. Lawrence Charles Hawkins Sr., son of a South Carolina sharecropper, was the first African-American to serve as a dean and a senior vice president at the University of Cincinnati.
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Hawkins was also an original Tuskegee Airman, a teacher and administrator for the Cincinnati Public Schools for more than 40 years, a leader in race relations in Cincinnati and a founder of the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center.

His accomplishments prove to young men - especially young black men - that it can be done, he told The Enquirer in 1995.

"I guess if I had go say something about myself it is that I love a challenge," he said.

Hawkins, 90, died Saturday at his home in Evendale.

"All of us who knew Larry admired him tremendously," said Joe Pichler, who was a co-founder with Hawkins of the Greater Cincinnati Scholarship Association, which provides 1,000 college scholarships a year to high school students. "He was well known and highly respected by everyone who has been involved in race relations within Cincinnati."

In 1979, Hawkins was named chairman of the Mayor's Police Community Relations Panel and led creation of a paper on police-community relations. In 1984, he received the Charles P. Taft Civic Gumption Award for his contributions to race relations.

He was born in Greenville, S.C., on March 20, 1919. He graduated from Walnut Hills High School and went on to the University of Cincinnati, where he received two bachelor's, a master's and a doctorate degree. The university later bestowed on him an honorary doctor of literature degree.

At UC, Hawkins was a founder of the Beta Eta Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity.

"During the time of the riots in Cincinnati - we call them the revolutions in Cincinnati - he took part in trying to settle some of the uprisings that occurred," said Donald A. Spencer of Avondale, a fraternity brother.

"I would say his major contribution's been to accept responsibilities to make a way for the better positioning of African-American leaders in the city. He made it possible for others to come behind him."

After college, Hawkins served as a lieutenant in the infantry and a pilot in the Army Air Force during World War II. He was one of the few black pilots that got to fly missions, Spencer said.

Hawkins went on to become a teacher at Cincinnati Public Schools' 12th District School. In 1957, he was appointed principal of Samuel Ach Junior High School in Avondale.

"I was told that this would be an experiment to see if blacks could serve as school principals," he told The Enquirer. "I was also told that it was impossible to do anything with Samuel Ach because the students were too dumb and too unruly to learn anything."

He was known for providing structure and stability in a nurturing environment. He retired from CPS as assistant superintendent.

In 1969, Hawkins was named dean of the UC College of Community Services, becoming the first African-American dean at the university. He became vice president and vice provost for continuing education and metropolitan affairs in 1973, and senior vice president for administration, secretary of the board of trustees and professor of education and community services in 1977.

Hawkins was vice chairman of the board of trustees of KnowledgeWorks Foundation and chairman of the Citizen's Cable Communications Board. He was a director of Ohio Citizens Council for Health and Welfare, Western & Southern Financial Group, the Cincinnati branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, WCET-TV, Bethesda Hospital and the Deaconess Association.

He was a 33rd-degree Mason and a member of Sigma Pi fraternity, Alpha Delta Boule.

Hawkins was named a Greatest Living Cincinnatian by the Greater Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce in 1989.

Survivors include his wife of 66 years, Earline T. Hawkins; a son, Lawrence C. Hawkins Jr. of Evendale; two brothers, Arsby Hawkins and Theodore Hawkins of Dayton, Ohio; a sister, Laura Lorene Robbins; and two grandchildren.

Visitation: 9 a.m.-noon Saturday followed by the service at Gaines United Methodist Church, 5707 Madison Road, Madisonville. Interment: Spring Grove Cemetery.

First Bush, Now Zimpher??

With the fate of the nation now being passed off to the newly-elected President Barack Obama; maybe it truly has catalyzed a time for change. A time to rid ourselves of political figures that don't work to our benefit... With that said, I present to you, news that many students may (or may not) be excited about:

Zimpher looking at N.Y. job

University of Cincinnati President Nancy Zimpher has talked with the State University of New York about its vacant chancellor's position but has not been offered the job, UC's board chairman confirmed Friday.
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Chairman Jeff Wyler said Zimpher has had several conversations with SUNY officials.

"She's had plenty of people pursuing her with things like this," said Wyler, who was in Florida and said he talked to Zimpher Friday. "She told me, 'If something comes of it, I'll let you know.' "

The Albany Times-Union has reported that SUNY would like to wrap up its presidential search as soon as next week.

A spokesman said the board would update the search Tuesday at a regularly scheduled board meeting.

UC trustees, including Enquirer Publisher and President Margaret E. Buchanan, also are scheduled to meet that day.

The SUNY chancellor supervises the entire system, which includes more than 427,000 students on 64 campuses, from community colleges to comprehensive research universities. It enrolls 40 percent of all high school graduates in New York.

"It would be a totally different job than what she's doing now," Wyler said.

Efforts to reach Zimpher were unsuccessful Friday.

Zimpher, 62, has been at UC for more than five years, and earns about $510,000 in salary and bonuses.

She has presided over significant changes at the university, including major construction projects, higher admission standards and, most recently, a plan announced last fall to restructure the curriculum and implement a new budget process. The plan would reward growing programs, eliminate some of the 15,000 courses that exist now and integrate the main campus with regional campuses in Batavia and Blue Ash.

UC also will change from quarters to semesters by 2012.

UC has grown to about 37,000 students, making it both the region's largest university and its largest employer.

The university is conducting a $1 billion capital campaign that will include as much as $300 million in student aid.

Zimpher has weathered the controversy over the departure of basketball coach Bob Huggins as well as a financial crisis that launched several waves of budget cutting on the UC campus.

Story courtesy of cincinnati.com:
By Cliff Peale • cpeale@enquirer.com • January 24, 2009

Just a thought: Post your comments, questions, and concerns.

Best,
"DP the VP"

History from My Seat

Yes I was in attendance Sunday night, accompanied by 27,000 other delightful souls to see the man of the hour (if not the century) Barack Obama. The atmosphere at Nippert Stadium was simply thrilling as a crowd of all different cultures and creeds yelled and hollered for one purpose, one reason. It honestly spoke to the underlying, yet never dying potential of this country to unite. By the time Barack got to stage a regular UC spectator would have thought the Bearcat Football team just scored the game-winning touchdown.




Barack would go on to give a simple yet breath-taking speech that captivated the audience and made the three and a half hour wait all worth it. The more he talked the more I was convinced he was just a regular guy from Chi-town. Saying statements such as “America has been hoodwinked” made think that he might just be a little cooler than me. After he concluded his speech it hit me that Barack and I are one in the same. We both see the world in a similar fashion. We both are committed to not just change, but to progress. Our common ancestry speaks volumes to that progression and to resiliency. Sunday night wasn’t just a night to see Barack, it was a moment in time that will forever be engrained in our national and ancestral history and I was blessed enough to have a seat.
~Smooth News