Alum Establishes Psychology Scholarship at Radio Program Anniversary

WJOU's 2nd Chance Radio Show, hosted by Kenny Anderson '83, (second left), celebrated 25 years of being on air, with a live broadcast on November 1, 2015. In honor of this celebration, Anderson established a $25,000 scholarship for psychology students at Oakwood University. Pictured here with Anderson are President Leslie Pollard, Ph.D., Kisha Norris, CFRE, executive director of Advancement and Development, and Martin Hodnett, Psy.D., '00, chair of the department of Psychological Sciences, a former student of Anderson's.

Oakwood University Police Presents Kasey Program to Elementary Students

On November 10, OUPD partnered with Koorsens Fire & Security to bring the Kasey Program to the students at Oakwood Adventist Elementary School. The Kasey Program is a unique program that teaches children fire and life safety skills. In this program Kasey, a black labrador retriever, helps demonstrate stop, drop and roll, checking the door to see if it's hot, knowing two ways out, etc. Established in 1995, the non-profit program is geared for children preschool through sixth grade. The program is sponsored by Koorsen Fire & Security and is run by retired firefighter, Jeff Owens. It is the only full time, nationally touring, fire prevention program in the country, and was recently featured in a segment on NBC News.

Oakwood's CIO Attends Technology Meeting

On October 26-27, Oakwood's new Chief Information Officer, Kirk Nugent, (front row, second from left), attended the yearly meeting of Seventh-day Adventist technology leaders from institutions of higher education. The group met on the campus of Andrews University to discuss the progress and challenges of incorporating technology into the lives of students and employees. One of the major points of interest was a discussion about the General Conference wanting to identify talented student programmers they could train and pay to work on various programming projects for the World Church.

Chemistry Club Attends American Chemical Society Meeting

by Naomi Coggs, student writer

(L-R) Hernandy Ulsaint, '18; Minnie Tangasi '16; Cheri Freeman; Sasha Savage '18; Jonae Wood '19, pause for a photo opportunity during the meetings. More photos are available on flickr.

From November 4 to 7, six students in the chemistry department accompanied by Cheri Freeman, '10, chemistry lab coordinator, attended the 2015 Combined Southwest Region Meeting and the Southeastern Regional Meeting of the American Chemical Society in Memphis, Tennessee. The event gave students a chance to participate in workshops, have their resumes reviewed, and network with various graduate schools.

Oakwood students were sponsored by the chair of the conference, Dennis Merat, Ph.D., of Christian Brothers University. As a thank you to Dr. Merat, students volunteered, helped with registration, and answered questions at the information table. During the three-day conference, several students became American Chemical Society ambassadors.

Senior chemistry major, Avery Blockmon, presented his summer research from the University of Pennsylvania titled "Molecular Dynamic of Excimer Formation." This was no small feat as Blockmon stepped up to the plate and presented on the spot, filling in for a presenter at the last minute.

The Oakwoodites showcased their knowledge even further, winning third place during a trivia contest during a meal at a local restaurant.

As a result of the conference and networking, Dr. AL Hazari of University of Tennessee, Knoxville, the 2000 Helen M. Free Award for Public Outreach recipient, will be coming to Oakwood to speak on November 13.

While in Memphis, the group also took the opportunity to tour the Civil Rights Museum.

OU Drum Line Plays at OAA PEP RALLY

by Naomi Coggs, student writer

On November 6, Oakwood University's drum line brought a little flare and snare to the Oakwood University Adventist Academy pep rally. Elementary, middle school, and high school students gathered in the gym in anticipation of the Academy's 2015-2016 basketball season. Students were excited while holding colorful glow sticks that lit up the gym.

During the pep rally, members of the Academy's other sports teams (soccer, volleyball, and basketball) were acknowledged and students were encouraged to attend the upcoming basketball games. The university drum line continued to pump students up with drum rolls during the introduction of the basketball teams. Additionally, Ron Gilbert, sales director at Praise 90.1 FM WJOU, encouraged students to tune in to the radio station.

OU USM President Attends Year-End Meetings at NAD

(L-R) Nic Miller (PUC), Dan Jackson (NAD president), Tania Acuna (LSU), Henry Huynh (SWAU), Kyle Smith (Oakwood), Nisha Johnny (Burman), and Debbie Pinto (Union) pose for a selfie after a business session. Photo courtesy of Debbie Pinto.

During the 2015 North American Division (NAD) Year-end Meetings at the General Conference headquarters, NAD President Dan Jackson met with the student presidents of the Adventist colleges and universities in the NAD that make up the Adventist Intercollegiate Association (AIA). They participated as members of the division's Executive Committee, representing their schools' student bodies. They engaged in the work of the Executive Committee, spoke from the floor, served on sub-committees, offered prayers for the governing body, and took the occasional selfie with division leaders.

Oakwood's student president, Kyle Smith, commented about his experience at the meetings to Spectrum Magazine. He said: "In general, I don't believe the youth are integrated as well as they could be or should be into leadership of the church. I don't think there are set proportions of how many adults need to be on the executive committees of various conferences and unions, or even the division. I think the church is improving in general, though, just with the invitation of us, as AIA leaders, and the inclusion of some younger pastors who are present here. In general I think our voices are being heard, and they're being weighed and respected. But when the majority of voices in a conversation are 50, 60+, it's naturally going to be a lot harder to weigh the voices of 20-year-olds and 30-year-olds...even 40-year-olds. We wouldn't necessarily consider them to be young, but in comparison to the leadership of our church, if you just get someone who's 40-years-old at the table, you're going to have a much younger perspective than currently [exists]."

Click here here to read comments from student leaders at other AIA institutions, as reported by Spectrum Magazine.

CAMROU Director Presents at the Parliament of the World's Religions

On October 16, CAMR-OU's Keith Augustus Burton, Ph.D., presented a paper at the Parliament of the World's Religion in Salt Lake City, Utah. Dr. Burton's paper was a part of a section on "Confronting Ideological Violence and Hate Speech." It was titled, "Honesty and Healing: Democratic Delusions and Imperial Agendas," and used the current conflict with radical Islam to show how free speech can lead to hate speech, which in turn can incite ideological violence.

"Operation Safe Travel, Safe Return" - Returns

For the ninth consecutive year, Oakwood University Police will be sponsoring the annual "Operation Safe Travel, Safe Return" on Thursday, November 19, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. on the campus of Oakwood University. This annual event is held each year to provide vehicle inspections and fluid topoffs for students who will be traveling during the Thanksgiving holiday.

Partners in the event are Express Oil Change, NAPA Auto Parts, and Thompson Hospitality. "Operation Safe Travel, Safe Return" is held each year to provide vehicle inspections and fluid topoffs for students who will be traveling during the Thanksgiving holiday. The program has been such a huge success that faculty, staff, and community friends have been invited to participate in recent years.

Parents have expressed overwhelming appreciation for this annual service. Melvin Harris, chief of OUPD, states that the institution is "not only concerned with the safety of our students on campus, but off campus as well as they travel over the holiday season." OUPD officers are present and go from car to car passing out travel safety brochures, giving advice on getting plenty of rest, and having prayer with participants.

Alumni Notes

On November 16, at 10:00 a.m. ET, Zsakeba Watkins Henderson, M.D., '95, is scheduled to be one of the presenters during a Centers for Disease Control Public Health Grand Rounds Session on "Public Health Strategies to Prevent Preterm Birth." This monthly live webcast is in recognition of Premature Awareness Month, and is open to the public, to foster discussion on major public health issues.

Would you like to share Alumni news with us? Please send to pr@oakwood.edu.

Picture of the Week

Oakwood's Administrators took advantage of today's beautiful weather to hold a "walking meeting," as they reviewed the location of the proposed exercise area near the Unity Pond. Pictured, left to right, are Leslie Pollard, Kirk Nugent, Howard Weems, Sabrina Cotton, David Knight, Tricia Penniecook, Prudence Pollard and Kisha Norris. Photo by Anthony Chornes II

About Oakwood

The mission of Oakwood University, a historically black, Seventh-day Adventist institution, is to transform students through biblically-based education for service to God and humanity.