Healthy Campus 2020 (HC2020) is Oakwood University's organized and focused plan to study, track, and enrich the health status of the Oakwood study body.  "HC2020 represents the culmination of years of conversation and concern over how our educational activity is impacting the health choices of Oakwood students," said Prudence Pollard, Ph.D., MPH, RD, SPHR, principal investigator and study design author.

Although various entities on campus were, in their own areas, trying to bring about greater health awareness about various elements of wellness, a centralized effort did not exist. In 2012, President Leslie Pollard learned that former U.S. Surgeon General Regina Benjamin was "fully aware of the health commitments of the Seventh-day Adventist Church.  Dr. Benjamin's observation caused me to contemplate how we could crystallize years of conversation into a specific, measurable, scientific study about student health practices and how we can impact those practices," President Pollard said.

HC2020 is a longitudinal plan of 10 years. The first cohort will finish in four years, the average time it takes a student to complete their studies at Oakwood University.  However, the University will continue to track information on the students after they leave the University, to see if the practices they learned were continued.

Oakwood administrators plan to officially launch HC2020 this August, during its Colloquium session, to begin the 2-015-2016 school year.  "It is important that our faculty and staff fully understand what is involved. "We can't teach it to the students unless we are modeling it, ourselves," Pollard said.

The United Negro College Fund (UNCF) hosted its 36th annual "An Evening of Stars" event to celebrate and support higher education. Some of entertainment industry's biggest names gathered at the Boisfeuillet Jones Atlanta Civic Center in Atlanta on April 12, 2015, for the organization's premiere fundraising event.

During the ceremony, scholarships were awarded to students from UNCF schools, including one to Oakwood sophomore theology and psychology major Jajuan Sanders, from Baltimore, Maryland. 

Oakwood was well represented in the audience by the presence of Drs. Leslie and Prudence Pollard, Kisha Norris, George Johnson, Raymond King, and several Oakwood students, and on stage, by alumnus Jonathan Slocumb.

Watch for the UNCF's "An Evening of Stars" on Sunday, April 26, at 10:00 PM (EDT) on BET.

All are invited to attend the Fourth Annual Faculty Research Symposium at Oakwood University, on Tuesday, April 21, from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., at the McKee Business and Technology Complex. Scholarly research and academic posters will be presented, and  recipients of the Oakwood's Faculty Development and Research Grant will be introduced.

The keynote address will be given by Dr. Milton Brown, '87, associate professor, Edwin H. Richard and Elisabeth Richard von Matsch Endowed Chair in Experimental Therapeutics, Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center (LCCC), Georgetown University.

Online voting continues through midnight Monday, April 20, at www.retoolyourschool.com/vote-now in The Home Depot's Retool Your School grant program. You can help us during this last week by voting once per day, per electronic device (computer, smart phone, laptop, tablet). Also remember to frequently use Oakwood's designated hashtag #Oakwood_RYS15  on all social media. 

Oakwood's three proposals highlight how each project will make a lasting, positive impact on the campus. The three projects are: 

• $50,000 - Mile-long circuit of outdoor exercise stations emphasizing the laws of health 
• $25,000 - Fruit trees and an outdoor screen and projector near the Unity Pond
• $10,000 - Bleachers for fans and seating for players on the soccer field  

More voting, more tweeting - let's show them the power of the Oakwood network! 

4801 Governors House Drive Huntsville, AL 35805 256-430-1788

The Hilton Garden Inn/Space Center in Huntsville has partnered with Oakwood University to provide a special rate for your lodging needs in Huntsville during the 2015 Commencement Weekend:

$115/night Monday through Thursday

$89/night - Friday-Sunday

On Sunday evening, we had the pleasure of attending the UNCF Evening of Stars taping in Atlanta, Georgia. One of our students, sophomore Jajuan Sanders, was blessed to receive a major scholarship from the UNCF. The group pictured here attended the event in support of Jajuan and the UNCF. We were happily surprised that Oakwood alumnus Jonathan Slocumb was one of the entertainers for the evening. We felt humbly proud of these gentlemen's achievements. We are pictured with (L-R) Raymond King, director of Student Activities, OU; Kyle Smith, executive vice president USM, OU;  Dr. Michael Lomax, CEO, UNCF; Jameela Hall, Miss UNCF OU 2015; Tahjai Conkerite,  president USM, OU; and Monica Spencer, Miss UNCF OU 2014. (Photo: Kisha Norris)