Morgan Magazine 2012 Vol. 1

V O L U M E I 2 0 1 2 M A G A Z I N E

Spicing-upHollywood

Doreen Spicer-Dannelly, ’93

Mag Vol I 2012 v03.3 dec:Mag Vol I 2010 v0.1 12/3/12 5:30 PM Page C1

For generations of individuals who have studied, taught andworked at Morgan State University, Dr. Ruthe T. Sheffey standsout as a distinguished alumna, scholar and master teacher,loved by all for her passion and commitment to education.

As iconic as the Holmes Hall clock tower, Dr. Sheffey, Professorof English, has positively impacted many students throughouther long and productive career. Pulitzer-Prize-winning shortstory writer James Alan McPherson; presidential speechwriter,Terry Edmonds; corporate lawyer and philanthropist, the lateJames Gilliam, and countless other Morgan graduatesattribute their love of language and literature to theunmatched tutelage of Dr. Ruthe T. Sheffey.

“I believe strongly in the mission of Morgan State Universityand the important role that we play in preparing students forleadership and life after graduation,” Dr. Sheffey says. “I’vebeen a longtime supporter of Morgan, and when I was askedto consider a bequest, I saw it as an opportunity to supportmy faith in Morgan students now and in the future.”

Dr. Sheffey’s bequest to the Morgan State University Founda-tion will benefit the Ruthe T. Sheffey Endowed ScholarshipFund, which will support English students based on academicachievement and demonstrated financial need.

Whether teaching Freshman English, Humanities, AdvancedComposition or Shakespeare, for more than a half-century, Dr.Ruthe T. Sheffey has been one who, like Chaucer’s clerk,“would gladly learn and gladly teach.” The impact of herscholarship and philanthropic legacy will be immeasurable inthe lives of individuals and communities for generations tocome.

For more information about remembering Morgan State Uni-versity in your will, or if you would like to learn more abouthow a planned gift or life-income vehicle can benefit you andsupport Morgan, please contact:

Donna HowardDirector of Development(443) 885-4680 oronline at [email protected]

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Fulfilling a Unique Legacy

The Legacy Council was established by the Morgan State University Foundation tohonor alumni and friends who have made a bequest or other deferred gift commitmentto the Morgan State University Foundation.

LEGACY COUNCIL

Morgan State University Foundation


M O R G A N M A G A Z I N E

V O L U M E I 2 0 1 21

Four years ago, as I considered becoming a candidate for pres-ident of Morgan, one of the many things that impressed memost about this great university was the breadth and depthof its positive influence. The two years I have spent as a mem-ber of the Morgan family have only enhanced that originalimpression. And the articles in this magazine demonstrate theabove-mentioned influence clearly.

Look at the many areas in which Morgan alumni have madeand are making their mark. Writer/producer Doreen Spicer-Dannelly — protégé of playwright and Morgan alumnusSamm Art-Williams — has beaten very long odds to becomea popular success in Hollywood. But she is also carryingMorgan’s torch of social activism by fighting for greater eth-nic diversity in the offerings of the TV broadcast and film in-dustries. As Baltimore Ravens cheerleaders, Will S.,Keishawna G. and NaShanta E. are using their athleticismand showmanship to support an institution that binds theBaltimore community and brings joy to many. But in thesejobs, as well as in their professional careers, they also use theintellect, self-confidence and social poise that they developedas Morgan students. Lonnie Liston Smith, a musical icon as-sociated with names such as Pharoah Sanders, Art Blakeyand Miles Davis, maintains his youth with the habits of life-long learning and teaching that he gained in Morgan’s mu-sic education program. Another Morgan artist, Iantha L.Tucker, Ed.D., has made the University’s Modern DanceEnsemble an institution that encourages lifelong success inits participants.

President’s Letter

Alumni and Friends,

Sincerely,

David WilsonPresident

In Corporate America, Morgan has produced starssuch as William R. Roberts, now aMorgan regent, whorose from humble beginnings onMaryland’s Eastern Shoreto become president of three Verizon regions. In gov-ernment, Maryland State Sen. Catherine E. Pugh, anotherformer Morgan cheerleader, has long been one of Balti-more’s most effective boosters.

And it’s not just our alumni who are making an impact.Professor MBare N’Gom, Ph.D., acting dean of the Col-lege of Liberal Arts, is leading Morgan’s initiative to in-ternationalize its programs and prepare students and fac-ulty for global citizenship. Biology professors Gloria E.Hoffman, Ph.D. and Michael Koban, Ph.D., are per-forming cutting-edge research in reproductive neuro-science and, in the process, helping a new generation ofstudents learn to lead the world with their knowledge ofscience, technology, engineering and math.

In this era of great change, the challenges facing Morganstudents are growing, andMorgan must continue to growin kind. For this reason, you will read about the expan-sion of the Office of Development and about the manycampus and off-campus improvements that are beingmade.

To the furtherance of all of these good works of the Uni-versity, Morgan alumni are critical. And I thank you foryour continued support as I present this issue of MorganMagazine.

Mag Vol I 2012 v03.3 dec:Mag Vol I 2010 v0.1 12/3/12 5:30 PM Page 1


V O L U M E I 2 0 1 22

MORGANADMINISTRATION

Vice Presidentfor Institutional Advancement

Cheryl Y. HitchcockDirector of Public Relations

and CommunicationsClinton R. Coleman

Assoc. Directorof PR and CommunicationsJarrett L. Carter Sr.

Asst. Directorof Web CommunicationsHenry McEachnie

Asst. Director of MarketingKelvin JenkinsMORGAN

MAGAZINE STAFFPublications ManagerFerdinand MehlingerContributing Editor

Eric AddisonArt Director

David E. RicardoSr. Graphic DesignerAndre BarnettGraphic DesignerKirian VillaltaPhotographersP. A. GreeneJohn Moore

Contributing WritersKevin M. Briscoe

James Michael BrodieDonna M. OwensPeter Slavin

Jannette J. WitmyerContributing Photographers

Joe Lopez c.s.c.s.Clay Shaw

Morgan Magazine is publishedby the Division of Institutional

Advancement of MSU foralumni, parents, faculty,

students, prospective studentsand friends. Morgan Magazineis designed and edited by theOffice of Public Relations andCommunications. Opinions

expressed in MorganMagazine are those of the

individual authors and are notnecessarily those of theUniversity. Unsolicited

manuscripts and photos arewelcome but only with astamped, self-addressedenvelope. Letters are also

welcome.Correspondence directly to:

Morgan Magazine, MSU OPRC1700 E. Cold Spring Lane

109 Truth Hall, Balto., MD 21251443-885-3022 office

[email protected]

T a b l e o f C o n t e n t s — V o l I , 2 0 1 2

Honoring‘Mama’ PayneA legendary coachinspires alumni tolaunch a scholarshipfund

Fueling the Firefor the RavensMorgan alumni anchorBaltimore’s NFL cheersquad

Celebrating 35Years of DanceModern DanceEnsemble directorinspires

MarathonWomanSen. Catherine Pugh,’75, ’77, boosts heradopted city

20 22 24 26

A CorporateWinner Deliversfor MorganRegent William R.Roberts, ’77, worksharder in retirement

MorganDevelopmentOffice GainsCapacity andStaffAcquiring greatersupport to advance themission

Lonnie ListonSmith, ’61A jazz legendcontinues

PursuingMysteries ofReproductionMorgan biologists’neuroscience researchis cutting-edge, sociallyrelevant

12 14 16 18

Letter fromthe PresidentDr. David Wilson

HollywoodTrailblazerWriter/producerDoreen Spicer-Dannelly, ’93

CampusImprovementsNew facilities,renovations reflectMorgan’s growth

MorganPartners withHubeiUniversityExpanding MSU’sinternational initiative

1 3 Cover Story 8 10Morgan Magazine

Hermes GoldAward for

Overall Designfor a Publication

Hermes PlatinumAward forMagazine/Publication

Morgan Magazine – Winner of Two International Awards

Vol. 1 2011First in Freedom –How Morgan Students Sparkedthe U.S. Sit-in Movement

MORGANM A G A Z I N EMORGAN

www.hermesawards.com • 2012 Platinum Winner • 2012 Gold Winner



V O L U M E I 2 0 1 23

HollywoodTrailblazerWriter Doreen Spicer-Dannelly, ’93, AddsEthnic Urbanism toFamily Entertainment

By Ferdinand Mehlinger

Doreen Spicer-Dannelly, ’93, hasestablished herself in Hollywood withmajor credits in television, animationand film production. As founder andCEO of her own company, SpicerackProductions Inc., Spicer-Dannelly iscontinually developing innovative,multicultural projects for familyentertainment.

continued on page 4


continued from page 3

Her current hit, The Wannabes StarringSavvy, is a musically driven televisionseries that follows six teens who wantto be pop stars.

“It is sort of Hannah Montana meetsSaved by the Bell,” she says.

After debuting in Australia in March2010, The Wannabes Starring Savvy hasbeen licensed internationally in morethan 100 countries. The show beganairing in the U.S. on Starz network in2011.

In 2007, Spicer-Dannelly developed andwrote the musically driven film “JumpIn!” which broke a Disney Channel

record with 8.2 million viewers and wasnominated for a Humanitas Prize.

“The idea for ‘Jump In’ came from mychildhood — from double dutch jumprope. It was my favorite pastime as achild, and I said, ‘I’m going to write astory about that,’ ” she explains.“People always associate it with beinginner city, but it is international! Japanis actually the jump rope capital of theworld.

After “Jump In!” she developed and pro-duced another highly acclaimed DisneyChannel animated series, The ProudFamily.

Spicer-Dannelly’s path to success wasnot an easy one, but she effortlessly

recounts how it all started from humblebeginnings on a hope and prayer: “I’llgive you a story of a black Puerto Ricankid growing up in Brooklyn who made itto Hollywood.” She smiles contentedly.“Where I lived, there were a lot of mixedkids, so I always felt like I had some ofthe greatest blood rushing through myveins from Africa and Puerto Rico.”

Discovered at Morgan“Learning to be an actor at PerformingArts High School in New York, I didn’tthink I was academically well-preparedfor college, and my parents barelymade it through high school, so educa-tion was minimal in my household….”she says. “I wanted a successful future.


V O L U M E I 2 0 1 24

United Arab Emirates

Central America

Europe

Asia

Australia

The WannabesStarring Savvy

USA

Proud Family

The Wannabes Starring Savvy, a show produced by Morgan graduateDoreen Spicer-Dannelly, has been licensed internationally in more than 100countries. The show stars the teenage pop music group Savvy.


Spicer-Dannelly’s first networking con-nection with Hollywood was throughTony- and Emmy-nominated writer,actor and producer Samm-Art Williams,MSU ’68, a producer on several TVshows, including The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Martin and Hangin’ with Mr. Cooper.He had also appeared in several films,including the Cohen Brothers’ “BloodSimple.”

“I first met Doreen when I was workingon (Hangin’ with Mr. Cooper) as producer,and she was a student at Morgan,” saysWilliams, who has always maintainedhis Morgan connections. He was aformer writer in residence at MSU andhas consistently mentored new talentat the University. “I let them (Morganstudents) come out and hang out withme. Doreen was always writing thingsdown. I thought to myself that thisperson here is going to be something!She always had an inner strength thatwas not always verbal. She alwaysstood out, because she had the ambi-tion to make it happen. ‘No’ was notthe word to give her.”

Giving BackSpicer-Dannelly began her Hollywoodcareer as a writer’s intern on the pop-ular ABC sitcom Hangin’ with Mr. Cooper,which led to a permanent position as aproduction assistant. It almost didn’t

happen though. Just six months aftergraduating from Morgan and with only$200 left in her pocket, she had bookeda flight back to New York, feeling shewasn’t making any progress with herjob search in Hollywood.

“Two days before my flight, I got a callfrom Samm-Art Williams and two otherproducers of Hangin’ with Mr. Coopertelling me that if I wanted the job as awriter’s production assistant then thejob was mine,” she says. “I was bright-eyed and bushy-tailed every day! Thatwas the beginning of my forward stepin Hollywood.”

After Cooper, she followed Williams toMartin as a freelance writer, thenworked as executive assistant on TheFresh Prince of Bel-Air. Ground-levelwriting jobs with Cosby and The JamieFoxx Show came next.

“While working at Jamie Foxx, a call camein from a student at Lincoln Universityin Pennsylvania who wanted to knowabout Hollywood,” she recalls. “So Iventured to Lincoln to speak about myexperiences of working in Hollywood. Itwas through this engagement that Imet an animator, Bruce Smith, whoasked me if I could write a pilot scriptfor him. He gave me two weeks, and I

I knew I had to continue my education.So when I learned that a friend of minewas going to Morgan, I asked her mom(a Morgan alum) to help me with myapplication. Once I was accepted, I feltlike it was the best decision I made.And it turned out fantastic.”

Fantastic, that is, after a lot of work andsacrifice.

“My abuela (grandmother), TomasitaRosario, put a second mortgage on herhouse to secure my first semester atMorgan,” she says. “Oncethere, I ended up taking ajob, then two more jobsplus an academic loadat Morgan my first year.It was tough but soworth it.”

Events unfurled for Spicer-Dannelly asthey typically do during a freshmanyear, until one day when destiny tookover in a very unexpected way.

“I was a communications major, but(that) wasn’t enough for me to flex mycreative muscle. It just so happenedone day, I was crossing the quad on myway to class when, literally, a flyer hitmy feet. The flyer said, ‘Warner Bros.Brings Sitcom Writing to MSU’. Bellswent off, and I immediately enrolled inthe classes.”


V O L U M E I 2 0 1 25

“The approach I used with Doreenwas the same one that Morganteachers used withme: It is notnecessarily what you know. It iswhat you are willing to know.”—Samm-Art Williams (’68)

continued on page 6

Tony- and Emmy-nominatedwriter, actor and producerSamm-Art Williams (’68)


wrote it in two hours. But the wait tohear back was a very long time.”

Two years later, missing her family inNew York, she was about to go home,when she got a call from Smith.

“ ‘Doreen I hope you are sitting down,’ ”she remembers him saying. “ ‘We gotpicked up by Disney for 22 episodes ofThe Proud Family. You can’t go back toNew York. You have to stay!’ We did 52episodes of The Proud Family. Disneythen tapped me for other projects: Iwrote ‘Jump In!’, which broke recordsfor Disney Channel, and Variety deemedit ‘the highest rated cable movie, ever.’ ”

Spicer-Dannelly has tapped her PuertoRican heritage to create another ani-mated series, Coqui Loco. The pilot fea-tured Rosie Perez as a rambunctiousPuerto Rican frog desperately seekingfame. In addition to writing and pro-ducing The Wannabes Starring Savvy,Spicer-Dannelly is also developing afeature film, “Forever My Lady,” a melo-dramatic urban Latino love story basedon the novel by Jeff Rivera.

“Hollywood is still geared to one audi-ence,” she says. “The powers that beclaim multicultural stories are hard to

market, but I proved with The WannabesStarring Savvy that there is a large,worldwide, untapped multiculturalaudience out there looking for more.”

Like her mentor, Samm-Art Williams,Spicer-Dannelly gives back to Morgan.She frequently visits the campus andrecently delivered the keynote addressat the 2012 Women’s History MonthConvocation. During the visit, she wasalso a guest lecturer for Morgan’sScreenwriting and Animation program(SWAN), which evolved from the sitcomwriting classes that launched her televi-sion career.

“Know what you really want. Stayfocused, believe in yourself, and leaveno stone unturned.” That’s the adviceDoreen Spicer-Dannelly gives toaspiring writers and directors who wantto make it in Hollywood. “You will workin the business if you show determina-tion, gratitude and excellence. Successwill be yours.”

For more information about DoreenSpicer-Dannelly, “Like” Spicerack Pro-ductions Inc. on Facebook, and visit herwebsites: www.spicerackproduction-sinc.com and www.doreenspicer.com. �


V O L U M E I 2 0 1 26

“Hollywood is stillgeared to oneaudience.”

—Doreen Spicer-Dannelly

Doreen Spicer-Dannelly delivering thekeynote address at Morgan’s 2012Women’s History Month Convocation

continued from page 5


“If this is what youreally want to do,leave no stoneunturned.”

—Doreen Spicer-Dannelly


V O L U M E I 2 0 1 27

Coqui Loco (in development)

Featuring: An animated series about a rambunctiousPuerto Rican frog desperately seeking fame

Forever My Lady (in development)

Synopsis: A young Latino learns thatlove begins with self

Coqui & friend in Coqui Loco

Doreen Spicer-Dannelly • www.spicerackproductionsinc.com • www.doreenspicer.com


Campus Improvements

Recently CompletedAcademic Quad LandscapingThis project has put an elegant new faceon the oldest portion of Morgan’scampus. Grass and trees were planted,and an irrigation system, stone seatwalls, seat benches, pedestrian lightingand other amenities were installed, toimprove the aesthetics and functionalityof the quad. Budget: $3.5 million.

CBEIS Facility and GarageThe new, 125,000-square-foot Center forthe Built Environment and InfrastructureStudies provides state-of-the-art facilitiesfor Morgan’s School of Architecture andPlanning, Civil Engineering programs,and Transportation and Urban Infrastruc-ture Studies programs. The garage pro-

vides approximately 500 on-site parkingspaces. Budget: $69.6 million.

North Chiller PlantThe plant provides for the air condi-tioning needs of the North campus,including the Mitchell EngineeringBuilding, CBEIS and, eventually, theSchaefer Engineering Building. Budget:$7.48 million.

Northwood DemolitionFuture site of the new Earl G. GravesSchool of Business and Management.Budget: $1.5 million.

In ProcessEarl G. Graves School of Businessand ManagementThe facility is now in design, as the Uni-versity seeks funds for its construction atNorthwood Shopping Center. AnticipatedCompletion: 2015. Budget: $71.4 million.The Graves School of Business and Man-agement will be the first building con-structed on Morgan’s new West Campus,a nine-acre site made available by theUniversity’s purchase of the Hechinger’sand Burlington Coat Factory buildings inNorthwood Shopping Center, in 2004.

Morgan’s tremendous growthand progress are reflected inthe continued expansion and im-provement of the University’sphysical infrastructure. Amongthe many notable developments,a West Campus is being cre-ated. The capital projects underway or being planned aregeared toward meeting the Uni-versity’s main goal: the develop-ment of citizens who areprepared to lead and thrive inthe 21st century. A few of themany highlights of the Univer-sity’s campus and off-campusimprovements follow.

CBEIS Building

School of Business and Management North-South Elevation

New Academic Quad Landscaping



V O L U M E I 2 0 1 29

Other buildings to be located on the WestCampus are a new Jenkins Behavioral andSocial Sciences facility and a Health andHuman Services building. These build-ings will form a landscaped quad areawith a pedestrian spine, which will con-nect the quad to the adjacent shoppingcenter and the main campus.

Lillie Carroll Jackson MuseumThe building, now being renovated, willserve as an extension of the University’sMuseum Program. Located in the BoltonHill area of Baltimore City, the museumwill house drawings, paintings, letters,photographs and other historical docu-ments related to the Civil Rights Move-ment. Anticipated Completion: 2012.Budget: $3 million.

Softball StadiumThis project, now in design, will turn aplain softball field into a stadium withdugouts, lockers, training areas, andseating for approximately 200. Antici-pated Completion: 2014. Budget: $4.1million.

Campus-Wide Site ImprovementsThis title covers a variety of projectsaround campus, including but not limitedto the Softball Stadium project and theAcademic Quad Landscaping projectsmentioned above. Also included areimprovements along Hillen Road and thereplacement of the tennis and volleyballcourts.

Campus-Wide Utilities UpgradeA number of utilities will be expanded,upgraded, replaced or newly built oncampus. The current plan includes com-pleting the utility tunnel in the MorganCommons area and improving the utili-ties in the Morgan Commons and SouthCampus areas. Design of the utilitytunnel is scheduled to start in FY 2012.

Campus-Wide SignageThis project entails redoing the way-finding signs on campus and providingseveral electronic information signs instrategic locations at the campusperimeter. Design is scheduled to start inFY 2012/13.

Planned• MSU West Campus• Jenkins Behavioral and SocialSciences Center

• Student Services Building• School of Graduate Studies• Administration Building• School of Computer, Mathematicaland Natural Sciences

• McMechen Hall• Incubator Center for TechnologyTransfer

• Public Safety and FacilitiesManagement Building

• Health and Human Services Facility �



V O L U M E I 2 0 1 210

Morgan President David Wilson and XiongJianmin, president of Hubei University,formalized a plan last spring to establish adual-degree program between the twoinstitutions. Hubei is in the HubeiProvince of the People’s Republic ofChina. The program calls for the exchangeof up to five undergraduate and two grad-uate students from each school to earndegrees from both MSU and Hubei. It alsoprovides for faculty and administrationexchange research opportunities.

“Over the last several months, MorganState University has been working with thepresident and his team from Hubei Uni-versity to establish a formal partnershipbetween these two great institutions,”said Dr. Wilson at an April 19 ceremony onMorgan’s campus. “Today, we’ve signed amemorandum of understanding that willenable students from Morgan and Hubeito participate in some very unique oppor-tunities.”

As part of a major push beyond U.S. bor-ders, Morgan now has or is exploring stu-dent exchange agreements with universi-

ties in Brazil, Finland and India.

“We are rebranding as a global institu-tion,” Dr. Wilson said in preparedremarks to a sparse crowd of students,faculty, administrators and media.“We’re committed to bringing the worldto you, so you can experience the worldbeyond our campus, our city, our stateand our country.”

Citing China’s emerging economy,Brazil’s standing in the world’s energymarket and India’s strides in stem-cellresearch, Dr. Wilson added that, “Wemust educate our students to take onthe world, to be competitive in theworld. They can’t do that competingonly with local institutions.”

The exchange program will also includethe establishment of the ConfuciusInstitute on Morgan’s campus as avenue for Morgan students to learnabout Chinese history, culture and lan-guage, Dr. Wilson told Morgan Magazine.Students will pay tuition to their homeinstitution and will cover their own inci-

Morgan President David Wilson(left) with Xiong Jianmin, Presidentof Hubei University in China

Shanghai

China

Hubei University

dental expenses during their stay at theforeign institution, which will last fromone semester to a full year.

“We hope this collaboration will pro-mote more collaboration between thetwo universities,” said Jianmin through atranslator, “and have a long-term friend-ship and relationship.”

Located in central China, about 500miles west of Shanghai, Hubei Universitywas founded in 1931 as the HubeiProvincial College of Education.According to its website, “Huda,” as it iscolloquially known, has establishedinternational student exchange pro-grams with nearly 70 universities.

Last year, Dr. Wilson led a delegation toHubei to commemorate Huda’s 80thanniversary and talk about launching theexchange program. These initial talkswere followed by a performance at theMurphy Fine Arts Center by the HubeiUniversity Dragon and Lion Dance ArtTroupe in February. �

Morgan Partners withHubei UniversityBy Kevin M. Briscoe



V O L U M E I 2 0 1 211

Expanding InternationalEducation at MSU

Morgan’s new program with Hubei Uni-versity is part of a much broader initia-tive to internationalize the University.Through its new Center for GlobalStudies and Exchange, Morgan isworking “collaboratively with academicdepartments to enhance student andfaculty development through work-shops, study abroad, internships,exchanges and other relevant interna-tional education programs.”

“Experiential learning” is a big part ofthe process, and these learning experi-ences occur within as well as beyondU.S. borders, says Mbare N’Gom, Ph.D.,acting dean of Morgan’s College of Lib-eral Arts.

Internationalization means travel forU.S.-born students and faculty, cer-tainly, but it also means “(bringing)other students to our campus so thatthey can interact with our students andexpose them to other cultures,” Dr.N’Gom says. “…It’s not enough to trainour students and prepare them for theinternational arena. We also need toprovide them with the tools that willenable them to communicate cross-cul-

turally, to be able to go into anotherculture and feel at ease.

Internationalization is both policy andpassion for Dr. N’Gom, who was born inGuinea, raised in Senegal, earneddegrees from universities in Senegal,France and Spain, and received formaltraining in international relations anddiplomacy. He sees himself as “a gen-uine product of international educa-tion.” His experience and outlook fitwell with Morgan President DavidWilson’s vision for the University as aninstitution that “grows the future andleads the world.”

Dr. N’Gom admits that implementingMorgan’s global vision remains a chal-lenge on the grassroots level.

“We need to get students more inter-ested in international education…. Weneed to show them how relevant it isand also show them that it’s an invest-ment,” he says. “Many students are justlooking at that finish line of graduation.But if you graduate with only what youlearned in the classroom, that mightnot cut it. If you build capacity on topof what you learned in the classroom,

with international experiences, thatputs you ahead of the bunch.”

Morgan has the resources to succeed inits international mission, Dr. N’Gomsays.

“We have strong and solid institutionalcontacts in Spain, France, Senegal,Equatorial Guinea, Cameroon, Gabon,Latin America,” and elsewhere, he says.

Dr. N’Gom points to individual successstories, such as Katherine Lloyd, a doc-toral student and Fulbright-HaysScholar who traveled with him and 14other Morgan faculty to Peru in 2011.Lloyd blogged about the five-week tripand is now working to establish a part-nership with a shelter for women inPeru who are victims of domestic vio-lence. A Morgan professor of communi-cation studies, Umaru Bah, Ph.D., isnow working as a Fulbright Scholar inSierra Leone. And Morgan gained greatpublicity during Dr. N’Gom’s recenttrips to Colombia as a member of dis-sertation committees.

“We are becoming ambassadors,” hesays. �

‘Leading the World’ghai

Mbare N’Gom, Ph.D.

“We have strong andsolid institutionalcontacts in Spain,France, Senegal,Equatorial Guinea,Cameroon, Gabon,Latin America,” andelsewhere.

—Mbare N’Gom, Ph.D., acting dean ofMorgan’s College of Liberal Arts


A CorporateWinnerDelivers forMorganWilliam R. Roberts, ’77

Morgan Regent William R. Roberts, ’77 (left), with Dallas R. Evans, Morgan Board of Regents chairman,during Roberts’ induction into the Maryland Chamber of Commerce Business Hall of Fame (April 2012)

The Roberts family athome: (left to right)Hilary, William andCherie



V O L U M E I 2 0 1 213

William R. Roberts, ’77, is a busy manthese days. Each morning, he risesearly to drive to his office in downtownWashington, D.C., where he runs hisown company.

“I serve on boards,” he says. “I do somelobbying and consulting, businessdevelopment, and I am researchinghow to revitalize cities and neighbor-hoods by building affordable housing.”

Roberts has served on Morgan’s Boardof Regents since 2001, a position thathe calls “a lot of work, but good, mean-ingful work.”

With all of his activity, it’s hard to tellthat he is officially retired from Verizon,after a stellar, 32-year career with thetelecommunications powerhouse andits predecessor companies. Before heleft the company last December,Roberts was president of three Verizonregions: Maryland, which he hadheaded since 2000; Washington, D.C.,where he took the helm in 2007; andVirginia, where he assumed the toppost in 2011.

Between his start as a business officemanager for C&P Telephone Companyin 1980, and his retirement, Robertshad many outstanding professionalaccomplishments, but, he says, “I ammost proud of balancing family andhome life while running one of thelargest, most profitable and toughestregulated businesses in the state.”

***

Roberts grew up in a rural communityon Maryland’s Eastern Shore, in TalbotCounty, where he was nurtured by deeproots. His ancestors were slaves on theWye Plantation, alongside FrederickDouglass, and were among the buildersof Roberts’ hometown of Unionville,just after the Civil War. Roberts’ father,who was a truck driver, and his mother,a domestic worker, raised him and hisseven siblings in their poor but strongand self-reliant community.

Roberts was a very good student — “Ican’t say that I ever liked school, but Iwas good at school,” he says — and atthe end of his 5th grade year, he wasgiven the choice to attend the town’selementary school for whites. Heagreed to do so after finding out that

the school had a gymnasium andshowers, unlike the segregated schoolfor blacks that he was leaving.

By his senior year in high school, “I hadmade up my mind that I wanted to goto a historically black college,” Robertssays, “because I’d been with themajority from sixth grade on, and Iwanted to go where I could be withsome other smart black people.… So Ivisited Morgan, and I liked it. It feltright for me.”

In the business administration programat Morgan, Roberts says he felt nur-tured by professors who cared abouthis academic success. He also becamea member of Omega Psi Phi Fraternityand joined the business club, Societyfor Advanced Management (SAM). Butmainly, he says, he was focused ongraduating and getting a good job.

From his junior year on, he spent muchof his spare time in Morgan’s Careerand Placement Center. There, hebefriended the center’s director, JamesRoberts (no relation), who introducedhim to recruiters and pointed himtoward many other opportunities, suchas his internship with IBM Corporation.In February of his senior year, heaccepted a job offer in Detroit fromFord Motor Company, to join its leader-ship development program.

***

After three successful years with Ford,Roberts was recruited by C&P, wherehis meteoric rise to the executive corpsbegan. Twenty years into the business,he was appointed president, at age 44.He also gained the opportunity to helphis alma mater.

“One of the first things I did was to

organize a reception for Morgan gradu-ates who were working at Verizon inMaryland, where I thanked them fortheir work and also thanked them inadvance for being generous in givingback to Morgan,” he recalls.

Roberts has received many awards andhonors. He has two honorary doctor-ates and was the 2004 Business Leaderof the Year. He was also inducted intothe 2012 Maryland Chamber of Com-merce Business Hall of Fame and theBeta Gamma Sigma International Busi-ness Honor Society, and is a member ofSigma Pi Phi, Beta Mu Boulé. He livesin Chevy Chase, Md., with his wife,Cherie, who is also a member ofMorgan’s Class of ’77. Their daughter,Hilary, is a Hampton University grad-uate and a community health specialistfor MedStar Health.

Cherie, a personal trainer, says she isproud of what her husband has accom-plished, but not surprised.

“I saw greatness in him when we weresophomores at Morgan,” she says. “Thetype of person he is now is the type ofperson he was as a 19-year-old.” As forhis retirement, she says, “He’s reallynot retired. He works just as hard as hedid when he was president of Verizon,but now it’s what he’s always wanted todo. Now he’s able to really go after hisown dream.”

Hilary says her high-achieving fatheralways put the time in to make theirhome life “normal.”

“At the end of the day, he was a goodfather first,” she says. “I’m always veryappreciative of the sacrifices my fathermade for me. And I hope that one daywhen I become a parent, I will be halfas good of a parent as he is to me.”

Roberts says his past still motivateshim.

“The Eastern Shore, even today, is avery, very racially polarized place,” hesays. “However, that’s what drives me.”

“…In business, nobody cares what youlook like,” he adds. “They care abouthow you perform. And I always deliv-ered results.” �

Before he retiredfrom the company inDecember 2011, Robertswas president of three

Verizon regions.


“The department expansion is a tribute tothe Institutional Advancement Division,which has been successfully raisingmoneywith limited resources for years.”

— Donna Howard, Director, Morgan Office of Development

With the University’s enhanced focus on private giving,Morgan’s new development director, Donna Howard, has hadan opportunity to build her own team. Four new develop-ment positions have been filled in the past year, and theOffice of Development has expanded to newly renovatedspace on the second floor of Alumni House.

“(President Wilson) is committed to providing the resourcesnecessary to build an effective development team accordingto industry best practices,” notes Cheryl Hitchcock, Morganvice president for Institutional Advancement. For his part, Dr.Wilson says that “increases in staffing and volunteer engage-ment are necessary to help build broad levels of institutionalawareness and philanthropic support for Morgan, on aregional and national basis.”

Howard came to Morgan in 2011, after serving as thenational director of Individual and Planned Giving at theUnited Negro College Fund, as director of development atthe University of Maryland School of Social Work and, mostrecently, as director of annual giving at Cheyney University.She holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Massa-chusetts with a concentration in nonprofit marketing.

Morgan alumnus Mike Lynn (Class of 1990) joined the devel-opment team in July, 2011. Lynn is the development officerfor the Schools of Education and Urban Studies, SocialWork, and Graduate Studies. He joins Morgan from the Uni-versity of Maryland, College Park, where he was assistanthead football coach. Before his tenure at the University ofMaryland, Lynn served as director of football operations andassistant coach at Morgan. He holds a B.A. degree in polit-ical science.

Henri Banks joined Morgan in August, 2011, after a suc-cessful career in marketing and fundraising at The JohnsHopkins University. Banks serves as the development officerfor the Schools of Business and Management; Engineering;Architecture and Planning; and Computer, Mathematical andNatural Sciences. Before her work at Johns Hopkins, sheserved as communications director for the Maryland Men-toring Partnership. Banks holds a B.A. degree from BethanyCollege in elementary education.

Morgan alumnus Denise Smith (Class of ’73) joined thedevelopment team in August, 2011, after a long and accom-plished career at Radio One, Baltimore, where she served assenior account manager. Smith is the development officer forthe College of Liberal Arts and the School of CommunityHealth and Policy. She holds a B.S. degree in businessadministration.

Barbara Blount Armstrong joined Morgan in January, 2012, asthe corporations and foundations development officer forthe University. Her portfolio includes local and national pri-vate institutional donors. Before coming to Morgan, BlountArmstrong served as interim president and chief programofficer at Associated Black Charities and, most recently, asan education and fundraising consultant. She holds a B.Adegree in elementary education from the former GlassboroState University and an M.Ed. degree in counseling andguidance from Howard University.

The Office of Development’s mission is to engage individ-uals, corporations and foundations in the transformativemission of Morgan State University. �

Morgan DevelopmentOffice Gains Capacityand Staff


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(clockwise from left) Denise Smith, Mike Lynn, Henri Banks,Barbara Blount Armstrong and Donna Howard

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jazz

“When I hear youngmusicians, I hearthe potential forgreat music.”

LEGEND



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Pennsylvania Avenue in the late 1950sand early 1960s was a mecca for jazz thatrivaled club scenes anywhere. There wasthe Old Mill, where going to jam ses-sions with some of the legends of thegenre was commonplace. There wereGamby’s, the Sphinx Club, the AvenueClub, the Fireside and the Red Fox.

And there was the legendary Royal The-ater, where singer Pearl Bailey onceworked as a chorus girl, where the stagecame alive with the sounds of trumpeterLouis Armstrong, vocalist Nat King Cole,band leader/composer Duke Ellingtonand saxophonist Charlie Parker. Balti-more stalwarts such as tenor men EdWiley, Wilbur Phillips and Bill Swindell,alto player Jimmy Gholston, trombonistHoward “Popeye” Wayman, drummerHoward Washington and vocalists EthelEnnis and Patricia Allen also held courton the Avenue stages.

These venues were also fertile ground fora cadre of aspiring Morgan State playerssuch as keyboardist Lonnie ListonSmith, Class of ’61, who frequented theclubs while studying music education atMorgan.

“People don’t realize that PennsylvaniaAvenue was just as big as anything inNew York City,” says Smith, who earned aBachelor of Science degree and now livesin Glen Allen, Va. While a student atMorgan, he joined the Omega Psi PhiFraternity and became a member of thePhi Mu Alpha Sinfonia music fraternity.

For an aspiring, young jazz musician,there was nothing to beat the culture ofMorgan and the jazz scene of the city.

“By day, I sang bass in the choir, playedtuba in the marching band, and I hadgreat teachers like Dr. Hill and Dr. Diggs.Dr. Strider was our band director,” heremembers. “We had music all day, andthen we had opportunities to go and jam

at night in clubs. It was a well-roundededucation.”

At night, Smith performed in the Balti-more clubs, donning the purple sun-glasses that would become iconic amongjazz aficionados. He became adept atbacking vocalists such as Ennis andguest dignitaries such as Betty Carter. AtMorgan, he teamed with peers such astrombonist Grachan Moncur, bass manMickey Bass and saxophonist Gary Bartz.

Smith came by his love of music hon-estly, growing up in a gospel musicfamily in Richmond, Va. There, at hisfamily’s home, having as visitors gospelstars such as The Dixie Hummingbirds,The Blind Boys of Alabama and The SoulStirrers (featuring a young Sam Cooke)was a natural part of life. His father wasa member of the gospel group The Har-monizing Four, which in 1945 was invitedto sing at the White House by First LadyEleanor Roosevelt, after the death ofPresident Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Connected with YouthSmith started on the piano at a youngage and discovered modern jazz by lis-tening to Parker, trumpet player MilesDavis and sax man John Coltrane. But itwould be the sounds of pianists Art

Tatum, Oscar Peterson, Bud Powell, Earl“Fatha” Hines and Erroll Garner thatwould pull Smith to the keys.

After cutting his teeth with saxophonistPharoah Sanders, drummer Art Blakeyand Davis, Smith formed Lonnie ListonSmith and the Cosmic Echoes in 1973.This group blended atmospheric fusion,soul and funk into a sound that pro-pelled him to stardom a year later withthe album “Expansions,” which wasinspired by his time with Davis. In the1990s, Smith connected with a new,young audience. Jay-Z sampled his com-position “A Garden of Peace” in the hitsong “Dead Presidents.” Later, Mary J.Blige sampled “A Garden of Peace” in herGrammy-winning single “Take Me As IAm.”

Smith says he enjoys returning to hisalma mater and meeting a new genera-tion of jazz players.

“When I hear young musicians, I hear thepotential for great music,” he says. “Ihave a new, young drummer from Balti-more playing with me now. He got me intouch with the Morgan radio station for afundraiser. I told the listeners that youreally need to support the station,because a lot of jazz radio stations aredisappearing, which means a lot ofyoung jazz musicians are not beingheard.”

Smith took a few years off from per-forming but is back on the scene, touringand recording. Recently, he played thePrime Smokehouse in Raleigh, N.C., avenue owned by Baltimore native EdWiley III, son of the former Baltimore saxman.

“I still enjoy playing, especially wheneverything is right and the music justflows,” he says. “That’s the object of themusic: to have these beautifully creativeperformances. That’s what you want.” �

Morgan Grad Continues Expanding His Jazz MindBy James Michael Brodie

Lonnie Liston Smith, ’61



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Pursuing Mysteries of Reproduction


Not long ago, puberty usually began atage 14 or 15 among girls in the UnitedStates. Today, the average age is drop-ping fast, and puberty at 9 is notuncommon. Finding out why is onepossible result of research being con-ducted by undergraduates at MorganState University and The Johns HopkinsUniversity, under a five-year, $3.1-mil-lion grant from the National Institutesof Health (NIH). The program fundedby the grant is part of an NIH study ofhow the brain regulates reproduction, atopic that falls into a highly specializedarea called “reproductive neuro-science.”

How and when do our bodies “knowwhen to go through puberty?” asksMorgan Professor of Biology Gloria E.Hoffman, Ph.D., the program’s prin-cipal investigator, who is trying to findthe triggering mechanism. She andMichael Koban, Ph.D., Morgan asso-ciate professor of biology, are trainingthe students.

“We know from studies of neurons inthe brain that regulate reproductionthat they become very active rightaround the time of puberty,” Dr.Hoffman explains, “and that’s whatcauses hormones to be released thatcause all the secondary sex changes:hair growth and testicular growth andpenile growth, and prompt the begin-nings of cycles in females and spermproduction in males. All of that isstarted by waking up this neuronsystem in the brain, but we don’t knowwhy it wakes up.”

Her team, which includes seven stu-dents from Morgan and Johns Hopkins,is looking for the neuron connectionthat determines the start of puberty.Understanding how the brain controlsreproduction, adds Dr. Hoffman, mayalso help girls whose lifestyle preventsor delays them from going throughpuberty. She’s referring to anorexicsand some athletes and ballerinas,among others.

“Kids who stop eating (will) never gothrough puberty until they have enough

food,” she says, explaining that thebrain, sensing a challenge to the body,shuts down the reproductive system.She wonders whether the inverse ofthis process is what advances puberty.

Likewise, Dr. Hoffman says, theresearch may have implications forwomen who are frustrated in theirattempts to get pregnant. Stress ofmany types affects reproduction. Theremay be implications for sleep, too. Theconnections in the brain that regulatesleep also regulate reproduction, sheexplains.

‘Best of Both Worlds’The research grant, awarded by theEunice Kennedy Shiver National Insti-tute of Child Health and Human Devel-opment at NIH, is unusual in severalrespects. For one thing, it is designedto train undergraduates who areminorities: low-income or handicappedstudents or members of racial or ethnicgroups underrepresented in reproduc-tive neuroscience. The students faceheavy demands. Besides attending lec-tures and doing lab work, they areexpected to present papers at two con-ferences, coauthor at least one peer-reviewed paper for a top journal and beaccepted into a Ph.D. program. Theaim, says Dr. Hoffman, is to start themon a track that eventually leads tocareers in reproductive research.

The grant also established a partner-ship between a majority institution,Johns Hopkins, and a minority one,Morgan, in hopes of furthering collabo-ration between the schools. That hasalready occurred on another project,notes Dr. Hoffman. The seven under-graduates are dividing their researchtime between the two campuses and soare exposed to two different facultiesand the techniques of two labs.

“Biomedical research is hideouslyexpensive,” says Dr. Koban, and Dr.Hoffman adds that NIH grants usuallypermit faculty either to do research ortrain students. This grant “offers thebest of both worlds,” Dr. Hoffman says.

Dr. Koban knows what it’s like for stu-dents to struggle in a biology lab.When he was a graduate student at theUniversity of Illinois, his advisor, famedscientist C. Ladd Prosser, Ph.D., warnedhim that, “unless I started workingharder, he was going to kick me out ofhis lab.”

Dr. Koban, who spent 24 of his first 25years in Japan, came to greatly admireDr. Prosser for his high standards andmultiple biological pursuits. Dr. Kobanwound up earning his Ph.D. and doingpostdoctoral work. His experienceincludes a job in industry in humandiagnostics, trying to form his ownresearch and development service com-pany and rising at Morgan from a con-tractual faculty position to the tenuretrack.

As for Dr. Hoffman, researching themysteries of the brain allows her topursue two things she loves to do:solve puzzles and train students. Giveher a jigsaw puzzle, she says, and “Ican’t go to sleep until I place one morepiece.”

As a child, Dr. Hoffman wanted to be anartist, but her mother told her artistssometimes starve. Still, her artistic sen-sibility never left her. In 1983, she tooka microscope photo that won secondprize in Nikon’s Small World contest.The subject of the photo was a group ofneurons containing a molecule thatRoger Guillemin, M.D., Ph.D. had wonthe Nobel Prize for discovering. Dr.Hoffman gave her photo to Dr.Guillemin, who gave her a modernpainting he had done, in return. Thepainting hangs in Dr. Hoffman’s livingroom.

As for her photo, “It’s the molecule thatwe’re studying (under the NIH grant),”she explains “…the ultimate regulatorof reproduction.”

Dr. Hoffman wears her intellectualheart on her sleeve. When she lived inPennsylvania, her car’s license platewas LHRH, the abbreviated name ofthat same molecule. �


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ResearchSpotlight By Peter Slavin



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What’s in a Name?

Honoring‘Mama’ PayneFormer Morgan athletesdedicate a scholarship totheir legendary coach

As seen from the perspective of Baltimore City, women aremaking tremendous progress against gender discrimination.Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake became the city’s secondelected female mayor in December 2011. Nancy Pelosi,another politico born and raised in Baltimore, is speaker ofthe House, the first woman to hold that position in the 223-year history of the U.S. Congress.

Quiet as it’s often kept, these woman and many others in pow-erful positions owe some of their success to the lives and workof an earlier generation, one that includes yet another Balti-more great: the late Effietee M. Payne, P.E.D., advocate forwomen’s rights; role model and mentor for generations ofMorgan students; and the University’s first female head coach.

Dr. Payne was one of the first African Americans to earn a doc-torate from Indiana University, where she wrote her thesis, “ACritical Evaluation of Selected Physical Education Films forUse with Girls and Women,” in 1952. And she is still known asthe matriarch of the women’s basketball, softball and tennisteams at Morgan.

“She was a pioneer at Morgan, an absolute champion for Mor-ganites, especially women,” says Elaine Proctor Blackwell ofBrandywine, Md. (Morgan ’49), who was Dr. Payne's first var-sity basketball captain.

DDrriivveenn ttoo LLeeaaddDr. Payne, whose career at Morgan spanned from 1946 to1973, was a no-nonsense kind of coach who was known forbeing fair but tough with her female student-athletes. Shedemanded good grades off the court and a never-say-die atti-tude on the court from all of her varsity women. She person-ally drove her teams up and down the East Coast, even as faras Minnesota, just to show them that a woman was capable ofleading all aspects of an organization.

Effietee M. Payne, P.E.D.

By Rasheim T. Freeman



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Morgan Majorettes Hurt Gymnasium

And in an era when women wereexpected to defer to the crowd and totheir male counterparts, Dr. Paynedemanded respect. Her son, Tom Payne,recalls his mother literally fighting for aseat at the table for women’s athletics.

“I was told about one year when Momtook the entire (women’s) basketballteam to sit-in at an athletics awards ban-quet that they were not invited to. Shejust took them and sat-in,” he says.

Another time, during his frequent travelswith the team, “a group of fans started toget out of hand in either jeering orcheering the ladies’ basketball teamduring a tight game,” Tom Payne remem-bers. “And my mom told the referee tostop the game, cleared the gym andstarted the game again. Most peoplecouldn't believe it.”

But, despite her strict coaching style, Dr.Payne saw the need for more entertain-ment at Morgan athletic events, whichled her to create the now famous“Morgan Majorettes.” However, in typi-cally atypical Dr. Payne fashion, her girlswould have no part of what is now con-sidered modern-day cheerleading.

“My mother was very sensitive about thepublic display of women and the pro-tocol of marching and entertainment,”Tom Payne says with a laugh.

PPaassssiinngg tthhee BBaattoonnIn her later years, she became known as “Mama” Payne, as her legend grew com-mensurate with those of the other great Morgan coaches of the day, Eddie Hurtand Earl “Papa” Banks. The Morgan matriarch’s fight for full female participation inall varsity sports, a goal realized by Title IX in 1972; her advocacy for the buildingof Morgan’s first all-purpose gymnasium, later named Hurt Gymnasium; and hercontinuing struggle for women’s rights made her a larger-than-life figure to herplayers and all who bore witness to her work.

Her efforts, which took place mainly in the 1950s and ’60s, still echo today on thecampus where her once booming voice dominated.

“To me, when you say names like Mama Payne and Papa Banks and Papa Hurt, youare talking about legends that put the old Morgan on the map by winning so manychampionships,” says MSU’s head football coach, Donald Hill-Eley. “I am honoredjust to be passed the baton by (these) Morgan greats (who were) greats of collegesports (in general).”

“Mama” Payne passed away in 1977, but her legacy is being officially honored nowby her former student-athletes. Two of them, Elaine Proctor Blackwell, ’49, andBeulah Wallace, ’53, have established the Effietee M. Payne Scholarship Fund.

“We are calling on all of Dr. Payne’s former players to help us set up a scholarshipthat shows the hard work, dedication and commitment to excellence that Dr.Payne showed us,” Blackwell says. “We want to give the next generation this gift inher name.”

“(EFFIETEE M. PAYNE) WAS A PIONEER ATMORGAN, AN ABSOLUTE CHAMPION FOR

MORGANITES, ESPECIALLY WOMEN.”— Elaine Proctor Blackwell, ’49


The Baltimore Ravens are best known fortheir high-octane, high-impact defenseand offense, here in Charm City. Rollingback the clock to 2001, when the Ravensdecimated the New York Giants, 34-7, inSuper Bowl XXXV, three future Morgangraduates were poised to become asintegral to the team as the purple, black,gold and white colors that mark theRavens’ uniforms. Their contribution,however, would bring a different kind ofperformance to the gridiron. Organizingand performing highly orchestratedstunts, spins, cheers and dances on theRavens Cheerleading Squad, they helpedspark the fans’ collective frenzy ofsupport.

These MSU alumni are quintessentialscholar-athletes: well-dressed, good citi-zens, articulate speakers, with a whole-some charm that says “all-American.”

Morgan holds a special place on theRavens Cheerleading Squad lineup, withseveral distinctive graduates who haveearned their way to veteran status withthe team. In addition to its live perform-ances at M&T Bank Stadium in front of71,000-plus fans, the squad has its ownfollowing on Facebook. It also generatessales for the team by publishing anannual swimsuit calendar, produced with

fans who make the trip for the photoshoot in Grand Lucayan, Bahamas.

Spots on the Ravens cheer squad rosterdon’t come with automatic renewals.They have to be earned each yearthrough a rigorous tryout process inwhich only the best are chosen andthose who don’t make the cut don’tcome back. For Morgan graduates WillS., Keishawna G. and NaShanta E.(Ravens rules require that their lastnames not be published), the mark hasalways been set high, and they havealways achieved their goals. In additionto being Ravens Cheerleaders, these out-standing Morgan graduates in engi-neering and business have intellectuallychallenging careers as demanding astheir physically strenuous jobs with theRavens.

Will S.Will S., ’02, graduated from Morgan ayear after the Ravens’ Super Bowl victoryand went on to become head stuntcoach for the cheerleaders.

“I was a gymnast in high school and(cheered) at Morgan during my freshmanand sophomore years,” he recalls. Hisseven years in gymnastics gave him anadvantage in his first Ravens try out, in

1998. “I was able to tumble and performstunts,” he says, “and that got my foot inthe door.”

At Morgan, Will majored in civil engi-neering, then took his bachelor’s degreeto The Whiting-Turner Contracting Com-pany, where he is a project manager.

After seven years on the team, Will waspromoted to head coach of the stuntteam, the only co-ed stunt team in theNFL, according to the Ravens’ website.As a part of the coaching staff, Will is akey member of the judges’ panel.

“There is an interview process to makethe team, and we ask questions abouttheir lives,” he explains. “So it’s morethan just cheerleading: We have to sendthem to black-tie affairs to meet withvice presidents and presidents of com-panies, which requires the cheerleadersto be articulate and interact as well-rounded individuals.”

The “characteristics we look for in ourcheerleaders you can learn at Morgan,”he says. “Morgan gives you the tools tobe successful, but you have to be aggres-sive in making sure that you are gettingthe best out of those programs.”

Will was just 26 when he took on thecoaching position.


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Fueling the Firefor the RavensBy Ferdinand Mehlinger

(left to right) Morgan graduates NaShanta E., Will S. and Keishawna G.

You can follow Will, Keishawna and NaShanta on Facebook and the Ravens website, http://www.baltimoreravens.com/ravenstown/cheerleaders/index.html



V O L U M E I 2 0 1 223

“I wanted to be able to give back to theteam and to other people. I have anopportunity here to enhance otherpeople’s lives through a sports leader-ship position.”

Keishawna G.A native of Maryland, Keishawna G., ’08,has been on the Ravens cheer squad fortwo years. She graduated from Morganwith a Bachelor of Science degree inbusiness administration and is now afinancial administrator for a leadingconstruction firm in Maryland.

“While growing up in Parkville (Md.), Icheered in high school but had no ideathat I would eventually become a Ravenscheerleader,” she says. “I graduated fromParkville High School in BaltimoreCounty and always wanted to go to anHBCU. I also knew that Morgan had abusiness degree program, and that iswhat I wanted to concentrate in. I hadphenomenal professors in the businessschool who went beyond the call of dutyto help us.”

“Morgan gave me a lot of confidence,and the cheerleaders at Morgan werephenomenal,” she says.

Her advice for current undergraduatesseeking success: “Stay focused, and stay

committed to your goals. It’s all aboutbalancing your family life, personal lifeand career. Have a plan and people inyour plan to assist you who are alreadyin places where you want to be. Andnever give up!”

“I have found Morgan alum and studentsare very supportive and loving, and theywrite and encourage me on my Facebookpage,” says Keishawna, after giving somelove and support of her own to Morgan’scurrent cheerleaders. “They are so awe-some. Just keep it up!” she tells the CheerBears, who won their second straightMEAC Championship this year. “Morganis indeed my extended family. A lot of(Morganites) e-mail us and commentthrough the Ravens fan page that westarted last year (on Facebook)… I loveit!”

NaShanta E.NaShanta E., ’04, earned her bachelor’sdegree from Morgan in electrical engi-neering and works as an informationtechnology specialist for the U.S. CensusBureau. She is from Silver Spring, Md.,and joined the Ravens in 2002. She real-ized that she wanted to be a Ravenscheerleader after going to her firstRavens game.

Although many outside of the sport seethe glamour and fun of cheerleading,NaShanta, a stunt specialist, highlights amore serious side.

“Everything we do is potentially dan-gerous. Cheerleading is a very dangeroussport,” she says. “There is always thatthought of what if one of the guys dropsus, but we have confidence in our teamand our stunts.”

Commenting on the squad’s socialmedia presence, NaShanta says, “We(each) have a personal Facebook page,as well as an athletic fan page which weupdate to keep fans informed on eventsthey can show up for.”

“We appear at charity events (and) fea-ture an Ocean City trip and a trip to theBahamas where the fans can see us,” sheadds. “This year was my second timegoing to the Bahamas for the Ravensswimsuit calendar, which will be avail-able in August.” The 18-month calendarwill include all of 2013.

Looking forward as a seasoned veteran,NaShanta says, “I’ve been in this quite awhile now, so hopefully I can make my11th season. But the time is eventuallycoming for me to hang up my pom-poms.” �

Morgan Alumni Anchor Baltimore’s NFL Cheerleading Squad

(left to right) Morgan graduates NaShanta E., Will S. and Keishawna G.

You can follow Will, Keishawna and NaShanta on Facebook and the Ravens website, http://www.baltimoreravens.com/ravenstown/cheerleaders/index.html



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Celebrating 35 Years of DanceBy Jannette J. Witmyer

“I love what I do…. It’s what gives me my spirit.”— Dr. Iantha L. Tucker, Director, Morgan State University Modern DanceEnsemble

Merriam-webster.com defines a legacyas “something transmitted by orreceived from an ancestor or prede-cessor.” Dancers and others who havebeen touched by Iantha L. Tucker, Ed.D.identify her legacy as a gift of love andthe love of dance. That’s why dancersfrom throughout her 35-year tenure ashead of Morgan’s Modern DanceEnsemble returned to the University’scampus in February to dance and tohonor their “mother” with a LegacyConcert.

Dr. Tucker’s long and storied relation-ship with the Ensemble began in 1976,shortly after she received her master’sdegree in physical education fromMorgan. By then, she had already beenengaged for decades in a love affairwith dance, having first studied the artat age 4, at the YWCA. Later, she tookclasses offered by Syvilla Fort andBuddy Phillips in New York City —alongside another aspiring dancer,Alvin Ailey — while she earned an R.N.degree. Upon her return to Baltimore,

she continued to dance, joined JohnTaylor’s dance company and enrolled atMorgan as a physical education major,with an area of concentration in dance.After earning her master’s, she wasasked to take over the dance group.

“When I took over, I changed the scopeof it. I changed the name. I gave it a dif-ferent focal point,” she recalls. “Before,it was just a dance group, primarilygirls, and there were new dances thatwere done every year. I changed it tothe Modern Dance Ensemble, and Iencouraged young men to becomemembers, as well. I made it a repertorycompany, where we do certain dances,and then we add to those dances. Andit has maintained that establishednorm over the last 35 years,” Dr. Tuckerexplains.

In revamping the dance group, she alsobegan using professionals and giftedstudents as choreographers, in addi-tion to using her own choreography,and she opened auditions to all stu-

dents — undergraduate and graduate— as well as members of the commu-nity, including students from other col-leges and universities.

These were all major changes andmajor accomplishments, but Dr. Tuckerdownplays her role, saying, “Little bylittle, things have grown and developedand continued, and we’ve become moresuccessful and gotten more recognitionand been able to attract better andbetter and better dancers.”

The students and professional dancersof whom she speaks have all benefitedgreatly from her drive, determinationand innovative approach, and areproud to acknowledge it. Ashley Burtonand Heinz Adjakwah, both currentundergraduate students, were electedby their peers to serve as Miss and Mr.Modern Dance Ensemble 2012 inMorgan’s Homecoming Court. Theycredit Dr. Tucker with being a majorinfluence in dance and in their lives, in general.



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“Dr. Tucker is the reason I stayed inschool,” says Burton. “I just really wantto dance, and she gave me a chance.She always pushes me to do better ineverything. If I miss a class, she asksand wants to know why I didn’t go. Weare really a family-oriented group, andDr. Tucker has been like the mom….”

Adjakwah also describes Dr. Tucker as“a mother figure, not just about dancebut also about life.” He feels that herencouragement and advice led him tosecure the Dorothy P. StanleyScholarship, which enabled him totravel to Atlanta and dance in asummer intensive program with aprofessional company.

“Being a part of the ensemble showedme that I had to work harder than I did

in high school to call myself a dancer.She helped me to understand that youhave to work hard to get whatever youwant in life,” he says in praise of hersupport.

Organized by Aaron Lewis, a longtimefixture in the Ensemble family, theLegacy Concert was a huge success. Itbrought back former students andassociates, such as Ronnie Duncan, theformer announcer for the Ensemble, aswell as dance professionals such asAllyne D. Gartrell, Charise Byers, AngelChinn, Torens L. Johnson, Toni Baxter,Kitoh Grey, Freddie Moore and manyothers, too numerous to mention. And,with a bit of practice, past Ensemblemembers filled the stage with memo-rable performances of repertory pieces,

including “Genesis II,” “AVO Dancing”and “Religious Suite.”

Dr. Tucker was deeply touched by theoutpouring of love that went into cre-ating such an expansive event.Although the concert brought her greatjoy, she says she also felt bittersweetemotions.

“I love what I do…. It’s what gives memy spirit,” she says. “…I don't want itto ever just fade into the woodwork,which means I’ve got to keep workingto make sure that it will live.” �

Celebrating 35 Years of DanceBy Jannette J. Witmyer

“I love what I do…. It’s what gives me my spirit.”— Dr. Iantha L. Tucker, Director, Morgan State University Modern DanceEnsemble

Iantha L. Tucker, Ed.D.



V O L U M E I 2 0 1 226

Maryland State Sen. Catherine E. Pugh spends her days jug-gling multiple roles as a lawmaker, educator, entrepreneur andcommunity advocate. But when the busy Morgan alumna hasdown time, she can often be found lacing up her sneakers andrunning for miles.

“I’ve been a runner for a long time,” says Pugh, a Pennsylvanianative who adopted Baltimore as her home after college. “Ilove what it does for my body and spirit.”

Indeed, the passion Pugh has for the sport provided the inspi-ration for what’s become a nationally and globally knownevent: the Under Armour Baltimore Running Festival, which

marked its 12th anniversary in October.Pugh conceived of the race — originallydubbed the Baltimore Marathon — morethan a decade ago, while serving on Balti-more’s City Council.

At the time, she says, Martin O’Malley, who was then mayor ofBaltimore and is now Maryland’s governor, mentioned that hiswife was training for a Marine Corps race. The city had previ-ously hosted annual marathons, but that 17-year series hadended in 1989

“I said, ‘The city should have its own marathon,’ ” recalls Pugh.“He told me to go for it. I wrote the initial proposal, and thatstarted the ball rolling.”

That first year, 2001, the marathon drew about 6,000 runners,who made their way through the city’s neighborhoods and pasthistoric sites. By year two, Under Armour —the Baltimore-based sporting apparel company — had signed on as asponsor.

The rest, as they say, is history.

Since its inception, nearly half a million visitors have traveledto Baltimore either to participate in the annual Running Fes-tival or to cheer on their favorite runners. Last year, the compe-tition attracted a record 25,000 runners — including many eliteathletes — representing all 50 states and some two dozencountries. The local economic impact of the event was morethan $30 million last year, according to the Regional EconomicStudies Institute, an economic research and consulting firmbased in Maryland. The total estimated economic impact sincethe event was founded exceeds $193 million, according to thefestival organizer, Corrigan Sports Enterprises. Meanwhile, thecharitable proceeds for such groups as Special Olympics Mary-land and The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society have been closeto $1 million.

Pugh admits to feeling proud of her part in this success.

“I believe that good ideas become great ideas when you sharethem with other people,” she says.

MarathonWomanSen. Catherine Pugh, ’75, ’77, Maintains a Winning Pace

By Donna M. Owens

Photo Credit: Clay Shaw, Sports35 Photography

“I believe that good ideasbecome great ideas

when you share themwith other people.”

®



V O L U M E I 2 0 1 227

Opportunity BrokerOne might think that with a feather like the marathon in hercap, Pugh would rest on her laurels. Instead, she seems per-petually in motion.

“I believe you must do everything you can, if the opportunitypresents itself,” she says.

Pugh holds a bachelor’s degree in business and an M.B.A.from Morgan, but her career path has been anything but pre-dictable. At various times in her life, she has been a banker,corporate director, TV talk show host, newspaper editor andpublisher, and a dean at Strayer Business College. Along theway, she entered politics.

By 2010, Pugh had been elected to her second four-year termas a Maryland state senator, representing the 40th LegislativeDistrict. Today, she holds several leadership roles, includingchair of the state Legislative Black Caucus.

“I’m passionate about public service,” says Pugh, who hasauthored 70 pieces of legislation that have been codified.“Economic development, education, making government moreefficient” are among her priorities.

‘Get Up and Move On’

Besides pushing for better education policies, Pugh has longbeen engaged in efforts to help young people more directly.Years ago, she conceived Baltimore’s Fish Out of Water series,which went on display in 2005. These colorful fish sculptureswere created by local artists and sponsored by organizationsand individuals to raise funds for school improvements andmusical instruments for kids, among other causes.

She is also the founder and chair of the Baltimore DesignSchool, a public school launched in fall 2011 to train studentsfor careers in fashion, architecture and design. It now hasabout 130 middle school-aged students and will eventuallyoffer classes through the 12th grade. As her latest businessventure, Pugh has launched a series of children’s books titledHealthy Holly, which urges exercise and good diet.

Despite her hectic schedule of serving her constituents and onvarious boards, Pugh hasn’t forgotten her beloved alma mater.She can be found on Morgan’s campus for Homecoming, orspeaking to business students about what it takes to succeed.

“I tell them, ‘The world is your stage. You have the opportunityto be engaged,’ ” she says. “ ‘Failure is an option…. But so isthe ability to get up and move on. Do everything you can.’ ” �

Pugh conceived of the race now dubbed the Baltimore Running Festivalmore than a decade ago, while serving on Baltimore’s City Council.

Photo Credit: Clay Shaw, Sports35 Photography Photos credit: Joe Lopez c.s.c.s., M

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