Oakwood University Alumni Homecoming Weekend

The complete schedule of Alumni Homecoming Weekend activities is available on the Oakwood University Alumni Association's website, at www.oakwoodalumni.org/schedule.html.

We are looking forward to celebrating with the honored classes -- 1956, 1966, 1976, 1986, 1991, 1996, 2006 and 2011 - the milestones that have been accomplished since graduation from Oakwood.

We pray that one day soon, we will reunite with each other on that great "Homecoming Day" when we will see our Jesus face to face.

Cynthia Powell-Hicks, '76, M.A., Ph.D.

President, Oakwood University Alumni Association

Richard Hodnett, '07, MBA

Assistant Director of Alumni Relations and Marketing

Oakwood University

38th Annual UNCF Gala to Feature Unknown Lyric

The 38th Annual UNCF Gala will feature the music of Unknown Lyric, and guest speaker will be Dr. Michael Lomax, CEO of the United Negro College Fund.

The event is scheduled for Thursday, March 24, at 6:30 p.m., at the North Hall of Huntsville's Von Braun Center.

Online ticket sales are closed. Tickets will be available at the door for $75 and $35.

Oakwoodites Attend UNICEF Student Summit

Social work students LaKeisha Howard, fourth from left, and Lauretta Smith, second from right, recently attended the 2016 UNICEF Student Summit in Washington, DC. They represented the Social Work Department's UNICEF Club.

LaKeisha and Lauretta learned advocacy skills, specifically, how to make their voices heard in government on behalf of vulnerable children worldwide. Both students gained insightful information from speakers such as Marty Rendon (VP of Public Policy), U.S. Ambassador Samantha Powers, Caryl Stern (UNICEF President & Chief Executive Officer), and many more. The students also participated in Hill Day which aimed at connecting students with Congress. Lakeisha was appointed as a student leader where she learned how to arrange appointments and meetings with Georgia Senators and Legislators such as Senators Perdue and Isakson. These meetings covered UNICEF goals of maintaining U.S. Government's contributions for the fiscal 2017 year, and sponsoring H.R. Bill 3706, entitled: "The Reach Every Mother and Child Act."

Help Us Win the Home Depot Competition - Again!

With your help, for the past three years*, Oakwood has won top prizes in Home Depot's Retool Your School Campus Improvement Grant Program. The Retool Your School Program was established in 2010 to provide support for campus improvement projects to the nation's HBCUs. Since the program's inception, over one million dollars in grant money has been awarded.

Participating schools have submitted grants for campus improvement. Schools are judged on the creativity of their grant proposal as well as by the number of online votes and social media activity. Oakwood's three proposals highlight how each project will make a lasting, positive impact on the campus. The three projects are:

$50,000 (Tier 1) - Outdoor bathroom facility by the Unity Pond

$20,000 (Tier 2) - Seating (bleachers) for soccer field

$30,000 (Campus Pride) - Outdoor picnic/study area in between Blake Center and Library

Help support Oakwood now in the Retool Your School by clicking here and voting for Oakwood. You can vote on all of your devices including desktop, laptop, tablet, smart phone - daily. Oakwood will also be judged on social media activity. Help us acquire high votes by also using #Oakwood_RYS16 in all of your social media communication. Online voting will take place until April 24, 2016. The winners will be announced on May 18, 2016, in Atlanta.

Team Oakwood - we did this (and won) for the past three years. Let's show them we can do this again. We thank you for your support!

*FYI - Oakwood's past winnings:

2013 - $50,000 Tier 1 prize

2014 - $25,000 Campus Pride prize

2015 - $50,000 Tier 1 prize

Social Work Students Certify in Suicide Prevention and Intervention

by Naomi Coggs, student writer

On February 21, the Social Work Department hosted its first Suicide Prevention Seminar presented by the SafeTalk Organization. The 26 students in attendance, along with a staff member, Cheryl Sherard, were certified in suicide prevention and intervention.

Part of the SafeTALK acronym stands for Tell, Ask, Listen, and Keep safe. The training prepares attendees to identify persons with suicidal thoughts and connect them to suicide first-aid resources. Last summer, Abigail Caesar, vice president of the Social Work Club, was trained in ASIST (Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training). She realized that suicide is a real issue, yet it is often overlooked in the African American community. "I decided to find a way to share some knowledge with the people in my department because our major is about helping others with real issues," explained Caesar.

One participant shared that "The seminar on suicide awareness changed my life forever. It opened my eyes to the severity of suicide and how common it is in our world today. Our trainer honestly touched my heart and helped me realize that just being there gives me the opportunity to save lives. It inspired me how the presenter used her pain and turned it into a legacy to help prevent others from experiencing what she experienced."

If you are having thoughts of suicide or know someone that is having thoughts of suicide, call the Crisis (Distress) Center 256-716-1000 or the Suicide Prevention Center 800-273-8255.

Note: Lenae Lewis and Esther Dormeus also contributed to this article. They are pictured with other students who completed the training, including, Imani Parker, Kaela Levinson, Najama Calhoun, Vivian Bartholomew, Evonne Norman, Alexis Cooper, Jodianne Gilling, Kiea Mosley, Petra Scavella, Queanna Osborne, Camilla Ahmed, Brianna Lindsay, Jamie Parker, Adam Turner, Meghan Catchings, and Camille Bell.

Employee News

On March 16, Makeda Hampton, '07, assistant professor of voice, received the top graduate prize at the 11th annual Alltech Voice Competition at the University of Kentucky's Singletary Center for the Arts. The prize was $12,000 plus a 3-year tuition waiver worth more than $100,000 and a graduate assistantship to complete her doctoral studies. Hampton is pictured (l-r) with Dr. Everett McCorvery of the University of Kentucky, and Pearse Lyons, founder of Alltech, Inc.

"Receiving this prize was the culmination of a lot of years of dedication, hard work and prayer," Hampton said. She is "thankful to the Alltech Corporation and the University of Kentucky's Opera Theater for providing this opportunity for singers to engage in and complete their higher education."

Jeffrey Brown, Ph.D., professor of religion and director of the Bradford Cleveland Brooks Leadership Center, has been elected associate secretary of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists Ministerial Association. Dr. Brown, a graduate of Newbold College, England, and Andrews University, Michigan, previously served as president and Family Ministries director of the Bermuda Conference of Seventh-day Adventists Dr. Brown will focus on theological education, clergy leadership development, and clergy families. He will also serve as associate editor of Ministry Magazine.

Alumni Notes

Kesslyn Brade Stennis, PhD, MSW, MDiv, '95, has been elected to serve a three-year term as president of the board for the North American Association of Christians in Social Work. She is also chair of the Department of Social Work at Coppin State University in Baltimore, Maryland, and Founder/CEO of The Ph.D. Consultants,which is committed to providing support for students who are in doctoral programs. She also serves as an ordained elder, and is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. In those roles, she has mentored girls and young women, developed the "Healing for Silent Sufferers Ministry" which addresses issues of abuse and maltreatment, worked to alleviate violence and abuse, coordinated women's ministry programs at various churches, conducted community training and ministry initiatives and traveled nationally and internationally as a public speaker and musician.

Juleun Johnson, '01, graduated from Claremont School of Theology, in Claremont, California, with a D.Min. in Spiritual Care and Counseling, in May 2015. His dissertation, titled "Pastors as Caring Bridge Builders in Healthcare Settings," focused on End-of-Life care education for pastors and community leaders. He was president of the class of 2001, and currently serves as a chaplain at Florida Hospital in Orlando, Florida.

Jessica Wilson, '11, and Andrew Lee, '08, were married at Marie Gabrielle Restaurant & Gardens in Dallas, Texas, on October 11, 2015.

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

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.