NSU Celebrates Black History Month - Speaker Series with Vanessa Williams

January 31, 2006

NSU Celebrates Black History Month
Highlights include Film Series, Rock My Soul Art Exhibit and Speaker Series with Vanessa Williams

FORT LAUDERDALE, FL— Nova Southeastern University (NSU) will honor Black History Month with a variety of special events and activities that include the Inaugural February Film Series beginning on Friday, February 3, the opening reception of the art exhibition, “Rock My Soul, the Black Legacy of Rock & Roll,” on Thursday, February 9, and Life 101...Personally Speaking with special guest actress/singer Vanessa Williams on Tuesday, February 28. The events are free and open to the public.

February Film Series is open to the general public and will feature a motion picture or documentary on important moments in Black History. Discussions will be moderated by experts in film, law and history. All films will be screened at 6:30 p.m. in the Knight Auditorium of the Carl DeSantis Building on NSU’s main campus. Films to be screened:

Friday, February 3
The Long Walk Home (1990) — Featuring nuanced performances by Sissy Spacek (Coal Miner's Daughter) and Whoopi Goldberg (Ghost) in a story set against the backdrop of the emerging civil rights movement of the 1950’s South.
Friday, February 17
BaadAsssss Cinema (2002) — Isaac Julien's documentary examines the short-lived, but deeply influential, flourishing of commercial Black independent filmmaking in the early 1970s which became known as "blaxploitation."
Friday, February 24
The Challenge of Freedom (2004) — Episode Four in the acclaimed PBS documentary series Slavery and the Making of America, shows the transformation of the war from a struggle for union to a battle over slavery and examines the black contribution to the war effort. It also traces the gains and losses of newly freed African Americans during Reconstruction.

“Rock My Soul: The Black Legacy of Rock and Roll,” part of the university’s African Presence 2006 Third Annual Art Exhibition, is a traveling exhibit from the Arts League of Michigan, and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame & Museum. The exhibition will be on display February 10 – March 31, 2006. 6:30 p.m. The exhibitfeatures the commissioned work of 10 Detroit-based black artists, each inspired by and representing genres of black music that have formed the development and definition of rock and roll. The exhibit will be on display in the Alvin Sherman Library, Research, and Information Technology Center on NSU’s main campus.

Life 101...Personally Speaking will welcome guest Vanessa Williams, actress/singer and former Ms. America on Tuesday, February 28 at 7:00 p.m. in the Rose & Alfred Miniaci Performing Arts Center on NSU’s main campus. A limited number of tickets will become available on February 14 and are available on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Other events and activities taking place at NSU during the month include:

Literary Explosion, a literature share, panel discussion and “open mic” session for spoken word artists and storytellers on Wednesday, Feb. 8, 6-9:00 p.m. in the Alvin Sherman Library on NSU’s main campus. Call (954) 262-5476 for more information.
Lecture—“For Race and Country: The Role of African Americans in the U.S. Military and the Life of Charles Young.” David P. Kilroy, Ph.D., associate professor of history in the Farquhar College of Arts and Sciences Division of Humanities, will lecture on the role of African Americans in the U.S. Military, Thursday, February 16, noon–1:00 p.m. in the Parker Building, rm. 123C on NSU’s main campus. Refreshments will be served. In his presentation, Kilroy will focus on the subject of his 2003 book, For Race and Country: The Life and Career of Colonel Charles Young, who served at the turn of the 19th century until 1917 was the highest-ranking African American officer in the U.S. Army. For more information, call (954) 262-8208.
NSU to Provide Health Screenings at Sistrunk Festival - NSU's Health Professions Division and the North Broward Hospital District will partner to provide health related screenings at the annual Sistrunk Festival on Saturday, February 18. Screenings will be provided throughout the day at the African American Research Library and Cultural Center, Fort Lauderdale. Contact Sandee Dunbar at 954-262-1223 for more information.
Minority Law Day - NSU’s Shepard Broad Law Center will present Minority Law Day beginning at 9:00 a.m., on Saturday, February 25 at the Law Center on NSU’s main campus. The free event includes a workshop addressing the State of Black Families in Florida. The forum will also include a luncheon, and an afternoon devoted to giving high school and undergraduates a taste of what it’s like to attend law school. For more information, please contact Beth Hall, (954) 262-6117.
3rd Annual Carrie P. Meek Achievement Award Ceremony - NSU’s Fischler School of Education and Human Services will sponsor the 3rd Annual Carrie P. Meek Outstanding Education Leadership Achievement Award Ceremony on Saturday, February 25, at the African-American Research Library and Cultural Center, Fort Lauderdale. The program, hosted by the Black Heritage Council of Fischler School, will begin at 6:30 p.m. and the guest speaker will be attorney Daryl L. Jones. For more information, please call (954) 262-8866 or visit www.schoolofed.nova.edu/oceda.

For more information about Black History Month activities at NSU, call (954) 262-5350.