2008 Woodie Awards
Minority conferences aim to educate and empower men
Ron Gamble
Issue date: 10/31/07 Section: Commentary
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The conference was comprised of Keynote Speakers; actor Morris Chestnut, Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick of Detroit and Dr. Howard Fuller, founder of the Black Alliance for Educational Opportunities (BAEO). Workshops included topics that touched on just about anything that could possibly be related to the demise of the African American community.
The main goal of this conference, I believe, was to give our young brothers some sort of guidance and direction, in addition a bit of encouragement in their quest for higher education and a brighter future.
During the conference, I could not help but to think how everything we were discussing might relate to myself as well as other members of society. Even if none of these topics affects me directly now, there still may be a chance that I will have to face them in the future, and if that isn't the case, with this knowledge and the influence that I possess with others I may be able to aid someone who is in their time of despondency.
Dr. Fred A. Bonner is an Associate Professor of higher education administration in the Educational Administration & Human Resource Development Department at Texas A&M University-College Station. I had the opportunity to hear Dr. Fred Bonner's workshop, "Enhancing the Academic and Social Climate for African American Men," which confirmed some of my current ideologies about being a successful black male in a university, while bringing up new, illuminating concepts.
Primarily, Dr. Bonner's focus was on promoting a healthy academic and social environment for black males. Racial identity is something that every student has to come to terms with and embrace, in order to find their place on and off campus.
This is just one area in which we, as African Americans, have to make an adjustment, especially those who are subjected to cultural shock because they were not exposed to any kind of diversity academically or socially.
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