NIU Today

Today is an important one in the history of the United States, because it is the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington, which was the culmination of decades of struggle for human dignity and civil rights in this country.

Candidates for the position of associate director for the NIU Center for Black Studies will take questions at a series of open forums planned Monday, June 3, through Wednesday, June 5. Finalists are Joy Coates, Nicholas Creary and Toni Sims Muhammad. The center is an interdisciplinary academic program that offers undergraduate courses relating to African...

The NIU Center for Black Studies has scheduled a full slate of events for Black Heritage Month, which this year will observe the 150th anniversary of the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation and the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington. La Vonne I. Neal, dean of NIU’s College of Education, will explore these central...

Monday, Jan. 21, is Martin Luther King Jr. Day, a federal holiday that closes schools and other government offices. But several groups on campus are working to make sure that the annual commemoration of the famed civil rights leader’s birthday is not just a day off but a call to action. From Tuesday, Jan. 22,...

As the Latino Resource Center’s Adela de la Torre Honor Society (ATHS) enters its second year, the focus continues to be on the academic advancement as well as professional development of its members. ATHS, in collaboration with the Center for Black Studies’ John Henrik Clarke Honor Society, traveled Oct. 4 to the University of Chicago (UIC)...

Since it was created four decades ago, the Center for Black Studies has woven itself tightly into NIU’s fabric. It started as a place where students and faculty can develop courses for the new minor, Black Studies. It also was a place for students and faculty to discuss issues that were going on both on-...

De Mujer a Mujer: Latina Assistance Program, part of the Latino Resource Center, will host the “Latinas Rompiendo Barreras, Becoming Tomorrow’s Leaders” conference from 11 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Friday, March 30. The conference, which takes place in the Regency Room of the Holmes Student Center, is aimed at providing young Latina students with the...

“Storming the Gates: The Struggle for Access to Higher Education in Illinois,” a powerful documentary which chronicles the ongoing history of blacks and Latinos in Illinois higher education, will screen at NIU. The screening begins at 4:30 p.m. Monday, Feb. 27, inside the Carl Sandburg Auditorium of the Holmes Student Center. The film features trailblazers...

With 2012 being a leap year, the NIU community will have an extra day in February to revel in, learn about and focus on Black Heritage Month. Organizers say they will need every hour of that day to remind students and faculty of the national and international contributions African-Americans have made to politics, the arts,...

As a result of a site visit to Inner Mongolia and Beijing, China, this past summer, Michelle Bringas will lead a Study Abroad trip to summer to Beijing, China. Bringas, director of the NIU Asian American Center, will travel from Wednesday, June 14, through Saturday, June 30. The program takes an innovative, collaborative approach for...

Gloria Ladson-Billings, chair of the Department of Curriculum & Instruction at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, will speak Thursday, Oct. 20, at NIU on “Pushing Past the Achievement Gap.” Despite the intense focus on the achievement disparities between African-American and Latino students and their White counterparts, Billings posits that the achievement gap discourse keeps academics locked...

World-renowned gospel singer Fred Hammond will help the NIU community celebrate Black Heritage Month when he performs at 6:30 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 13, with the NIU Black Choir. The event will take place at the NIU Convocation Center. Hammond, known as “Babyface of Gospel,” has been a legendary performer since he began entertaining audiences globally more...