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Ernest Owens and Amanda VanAllen are sharing their experience with communications students

 In their day jobs, Ernest Owens is Editor at Large at Philadelphia Magazine and Amanda VanAllen anchors the morning news on WPHL-TV. Both award-winning African American journalists have now brought their talent and experience to Cheyney University of Pennsylvania to share with students in the classroom.

Assistant Professor of Communication Arts Dr. Gooyong Kim said he wanted to bring in two active, accomplished professionals to provide a current perspective to the classroom.

“The mass media industry moves fast so we need to have not only the textbook perspective in the classroom, but we also need to have an up-to-date trend about the industry,” said Dr. Kim. “These two individuals are dynamic and energetic and use real-world current topics to keep students engaged. I believe this experience will motivate our students to pursue their academic and professional careers in this booming industry.”

VanAllen graduated from Oberlin College with a degree in African American Studies and English and earned her master’s degree in Broadcast Journalism/Reporting from New York University. She has worked professionally for ABC’s “World News Now” and in Long Island, Allentown, and Cleveland before coming to Philadelphia. VanAllen is teaching a broadcast news reporting course.

Owens earned his undergraduate degree in Communications from the University of Pennsylvania and recently completed a master’s degree from the University of Southern California in Communication Management. He frequently writes commentaries on timely pop culture issues impacting the Black community for TheGrio. He is teaching writing for print media.

Both agree that having working journalists who are also people of color in the classroom carries advantages for students.

“I am treating my classroom as a newsroom in the 21^st century,” Owens says. “My students are encouraged to embrace social media. I have them using their phones and laptops in class. They’re discussing timely, relevant issues, and of course, mixing in academic theory. But they’re getting hands-on experience and real-life training to become journalists. This course is showing them how they can apply those skills in the most practical and impactful way.”

As president of the Philadelphia Association of Black Journalists, Owens is often pushing for diversity in newsrooms, but he says he realizes that is only part of the issue.

“The other part is who’s educating our students, and representation matters in that regard. So, I’m happy to be part of the solution both outside and inside the classroom.”

VanAllen noticed that none of the college students applying for internships at her TV station were from HBCUs. She contacted Dr. Kim to ask him to encourage Cheyney students to apply. Two months later, Kim called VanAllen to say her mission of lifting other people of color aligns with Cheyney’s mission and offered her the teaching opportunity.

“I think students can see through me that people are doing this work and it’s not just a concept; it’s a real job and real people do it, and it is attainable,” she said. “By having one of their professors say, ‘I just did this story this morning’ makes it feel more tangible and I think it gives them a little more authentic experience, knowing that they’re being taught by somebody who lives this experience every single day.”

VanAllen points to the term ‘Diversity and Inclusion’ as one that people throw around in journalism but have not fully understood. She thinks that is changing and that more people are starting to get it.

“It doesn’t just mean that we are putting people of color on the news; it also means that people of color need to be represented by the news. Their stories need to be told, but also people of color need to be the ones making decisions as producers, managers, and general managers of news stations. I think we’re starting to understand that a little bit more. And when we finally get it right, we will see better newscasts that actually give a sense of what these communities really look like.”

VanAllen, like Owens, believes incremental progress has been made but she said the industry has a long way to go, noting that the way the news business works now, Black and brown people are often depicted in negative ways.

“If someone is just bashing you all the time and somebody’s making you feel bad when you read or watch something, why would you ever want to be part of that industry? As a news business, we must do a better job of telling the full story of communities of color, and once we do that, we will start to bring in people who look like everyone. I hope to play a small part in that by being a professor at Cheyney, where most students are people of color. In my class, I think they will see that they can make a difference by telling stories of their communities, stories that are important and aren’t being told and that really matter,” VanAllen said.

Both Owens and VanAllen say while diversity in the newsroom is important, it is also important in academia. In fact, Owens said he had no Black journalism professors in college. He wants to be part of the change.

“To me, coming back as a practitioner in journalism and communications, I hope to be one of these students’ first Black male journalism professors,” Owens said. “I think our being in the classroom is already having a profound effect on how they envision their role in the field. Increasing diverse representation of journalism professors is going to have a lasting impact on the students.”

In addition to the courses, Owens and VanAllen are teaching, Cheyney added a new course this semester on the history of hip hop music. Dr. Kim created the course and is teaching it himself. He says hip hop, in the beginning, provided a means to protest the lingering societal problems in the U.S, such as poverty, racism, and violence, but as he teaches in his course, hip hop has moved a long way from its roots.

“Hip hop was co-opted and commercialized,” he said. “Unfortunately, most current hip hop perpetuates negative images and themes. This course chronicles the 40-year history of the genre, how it developed from the underground of New York City and how it became tainted, and the related problems in the hip hop culture.”

Cheyney University alum Joyce Abbott is passionate about teaching. Perhaps that explains why Quinta Brunson, creator, and star of the hit sitcom series Abbott Elementary chose to name the fictional school in the program after her. Abbott, who has been an educator since September 1996, believes the profession of teaching is far more than just a job. It’s a calling that comes from deep within the heart.

“I believe you have to be prepared to go above and beyond in order to be an effective teacher,” she said. “You have to give up your own time and understand you must build relationships with the parents, and that’s not always easy. I’ve visited homes in my efforts to understand my students.”

There have been times when Abbott has bought groceries for the family of a student or paid to have their lights turned back on. She’s had students come back to her later in life and tell her what these efforts meant to them.

“That means a lot, and it’s confirmation that I was successful in what I do.”

Abbott has an impressive list of credentials, accolades, and experiences that lend credence to her successful approach to education. She is currently the climate manager at Andrew Hamilton School, a K-8 school in West Philadelphia, where she is responsible for ensuring the school’s environment is safe and conducive to learning. Her inspiration has been her mother, who she said will celebrate her 100^th birthday in March.

She served in the United States Army for 10 years, which included a ten-month tour in The Persian Gulf War. She earned the rank of staff sergeant. Abbott has a Bachelor of Science in business and economics from the University of Maryland Eastern Shore and a Master of Education from Cheyney University. In 2004, 2005, and 2007 she was listed in the Who’s Who Among America’s Finest Teachers. She will be retiring from the Philadelphia School District at the end of the year.

“When I first started at Cheyney University I was studying business administration because I wanted to go into business. However, I then decided to pursue my teacher’s certification because teaching was in my heart,” she said. “It was the best decision I made. I started with the School District of Philadelphia at the Shaw Middle School before I went to Andrew Hamilton Elementary.”

Abbott has been interviewed several times by the news media because of her perspectives on education, but most recently she has been in the news because of her connection to the hit television series Abbott Elementary. Brunson, the series creator, and star, was a student of Joyce Abbott when she was in the sixth grade.

“I actually learned about it watching 6ABC one night and I felt honored that Quinta named the series after me,” said Abbott. “Quinta was a shy student at first and gradually she came out of her shell. She was driven to excel, always striving for A’s. She wouldn’t accept a B and if she got a B she always said, ‘Next time I’ll get an A,’ and she would.”

In Abbott Elementary Brunson plays the role of Janine Teagues, an energetic and socially optimistic second-grade teacher. The show reflects the realities of modern urban public education, where teachers and school administrators are often challenged by a lack of funding. According to news coverage, the series is loosely based on the experiences of Brunson’s mother, who taught for 40 years in Philadelphia.

“She was working at an Apple store in Philadelphia and then transferred to an Apple store in Los Angeles,” Abbott said. “She was determined to be successful, and she was like that as a student. She refused to quit or give up. I’m so proud of her and honored to have played a role in the woman she has become.”

Delco Times: Cheyney professor joins FCC group to provide equal internet access as part of $65B infrastructure plan

A goal is to make broadband more affordable for lower-income households across the country.

By DAILY TIMES | PUBLISHED: January 26, 2022

https://www.delcotimes.com/2022/01/26/cheyney-professor-joins-fcc-group-to-provide-equal-internet-access-as-part-of-65b-infrastructure-plan/

Cheyney University of Pennsylvania professor Dr. Gooyong Kim has been appointed to a working group on the Federal Communications Commission’s Communications Equity and Diversity Council.

FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel appointed Kim, an assistant professor of communication arts to the group which will make recommendations on the most effective way to spend $65 billion under the Infrastructure and Investment Jobs Act signed into law by President Biden in November.

“More than ever before, having reliable, fast internet is basically the lifeblood of everyday activity,” Kim said in a press release announcing his appointment. “If you look at the national statistics, access to reliable high-speed internet is unequal, based upon race, class, and even gender. If we don’t provide universal high-speed internet to every person in the country, we cannot guarantee equal footing for their lives. This project is one step forward toward bringing equality in that regard.”

The goal of the new law, among other things, is to make broadband more affordable for lower-income households across the country. The legislation extends a federal discount on broadband service for low-income families. It also requires internet providers that receive federal grant money to offer low-cost service to eligible low-income households. States will receive large grants to pay for internet improvements. Broadband industry representatives support the new law which makes internet discounts permanent for low-income families. So do consumer advocacy organizations.

Kim now serves on the CEDC’s Digital Empowerment and Inclusion Working Group which will address digital redlining and other barriers that impact equitable access to emerging technology in under-served and under-connected communities. He is one of four independent subject matter experts appointed to the group that will make recommendations by July. Kim and his fellow council members will serve for two years.

The FCC had contacted Cheyney last summer to make the university aware of the opportunity to serve. The provost’s office reached out to Kim who applied, and after thorough vetting, was appointed.

“We are very proud to have a member of our Cheyney faculty contributing to federal policy, especially because advancing equity is a big part of our mission,” said Cheyney Provost and Chief Academic Officer Kizzy Morris. “Dr. Kim has been a communication innovator, and issues of equity, diversity, justice, and empowerment have been a backbone of his research and teaching. We believe his input in this process will prove invaluable in addressing the broadband inequalities we all know exist. I am grateful that federal infrastructure dollars are being invested in this way.”

Two other working groups will have a hand in the recommendations:

The Innovation and Access Working Group will recommend solutions to reduce entry barriers and encourage ownership and management of media, digital, communications services and next-generation technology properties and start-ups to encourage viewpoint diversity by a broad range of voices.

The Diversity and Equity Working Group will propose solutions and approaches on how the FCC can affirmatively advance equity, civil rights, racial justice, and equal opportunity in the telecommunications industry to address inequalities in workplace employment policies and programs.

Once the working groups complete the report this July, it will move for discussion and final recommendations before the FCC sends it to the Biden administration for implementation over the next several years.

“The Marathon Continues.” These three words are the title of 2021 Cheyney University of Pennsylvania graduate David Birts’ essay featuring his perspective on modern social activism and why it is important to focus on the long game when it comes to social justice.

Birts’ words, along with his passion and vision, earned him a United Negro College Fund (UNCF) Capstone Scholarship, which will allow him to further his education and pursue a graduate degree. Birts, who graduated in May 2021 and was valedictorian, wrote the essay last June and was recently notified that he was selected to be a recipient of the scholarship. It provides at minimum a $3,000 merit-based award to pay outstanding undergraduate expenses or fund subsequent educational pursuits.

“The premise of my essay was my perspective on modern social activism as it ties into the Civil Rights Movement and why it’s important to focus on the long game when it comes to social justice,” said Birts. “Change doesn’t happen overnight. Freedom isn’t achieved overnight.”

Birts continued, “The Civil Rights Movement isn’t just history to me. My grandfather Donald Birts has always been active in social justice circles. He met Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X and he’s still quite active through the Ducky Birts Foundation.”

Cheyney nominated Birts for consideration of the UNCF scholarship. Candidates must have demonstrated high academic achievement and earned the distinction of cum laude or above by close of Fall 2020 Semester and have graduated during the Spring 2021 commencement ceremonies.

Kizzy Morris, Cheyney’s Provost and Chief Academic Officer said Birts’ selection for the scholarship was easy.

“David exemplified all aspects of the eligibility components based on his excellent academic progress, student-peer leadership and his commitment to serving others within the community,” said Morris. “He also exhibited impactful leadership on campus throughout his educational career at Cheyney.”

Birts pursued a degree in business administration with a minor in hotel, restaurant, and tourism. He maintained a 4.0 GPA every semester, set a high standard for his fellow students as Chair of the Cheyney Honors Council, and is a Thurgood Marshall College Fund scholar. During his time at Cheyney, he assisted his peers and professors as a resident assistant, a CARES Mentor, and a peer tutor.

Birts is currently a supplier diversity analyst for Ally Financial Inc., a leader in digital financial services. He is weighing his options and exploring academic opportunities. He is considering law school or pursing an MBA program.

When asked what he would say to new Cheyney students and young Black Americans in general, he said young people have to know their own worth.

“I would tell them to realize they have a purpose, and they must have faith in themselves and in God,” said Birts. “Do everything out of love because that’s when good things happen. In pursuing your goals understand that life is not a free ride. Success isn’t going to be handed to you, you must persevere. Never be afraid to ask questions because that’s how we learn and lastly,

“Cheyney University is going to be the greatest experience of your life. An education at an HBCU opens doors.”

The United Negro College Fund is the largest private scholarship provider to minority group members in the United States. Every year more than $100 million in scholarships are awarded to students attending more than 1,100 schools across the country and that of course includes HBCU’s. The scholarship program was established to mark the 50-year anniversary of the National Merit Scholarship Corporation’s National Achievement Scholarship Program.

 

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THORNBURY  –  Getting vaccinated is about love for others. That was the message organizers at Cheyney University had for their  Martin Luther King,Jr. Day of Service event Monday.

To encourage vaccinations among communities of color the school held a Keep Black Love Alive campaign, one of over 50 events across the United States in the past three days in honor of Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday and to promote the creative cultural response to the COVID-19 pandemic and social inequities.

The keynote speaker was West Chester Mayor Lillian DeBaptiste, the borough’s first Black female mayor.

“Until you help yourself and get yourself help … you’re no good for nobody. That’s what in my mind, Keeping Black Love is about,” said DeBaptiste. “It’s about love that we get vaccinated, it’s about love for our community, it’s about love for ourselves, it’s about love so we can take care of others,”

DeBaptiste said as a funeral director she has seen the devastation when COVID spreads through families.

“I have been on the front lines and I have seen the families’ loss, first the mother, then the father, and you end up having a double service,” DeBaptiste said. “I’ve witnessed the stories, I’ve witnessed the tears, and I can tell you it is important that we show that self-love.”

A main component of the day was a vaccination clinic in which over 200 students lined up to get shots of Pfizer, Moderna and booster vaccines.

DeBaptiste said she would like to see the community take care of their own health and while disparities in the country have caused minorities to not always and have equal access to health care, it’s important that each and every one of them take care of their own lives.

DeBaptiste told the students they represent the best and brightest of the future and getting there requires taking care of their minds and bodies through eating right, staying away from things that are destructive such as cigarettes as well as  being aware of the pre-existing conditions that are in the Black community such as diabetes.

“We cannot afford to dismiss this COVID vaccine,” DeBaptiste said. “This COVID and Omicron and all the other variants does not discriminate. It comes after you, it comes after me, and it comes after us all.”

She reminded students that while they recover from the virus, they do not want to bring it back to elders who may not be able to outrun the disease.

“So you’re not the carrier taking it back to your aunty, or your grandmother, or your brother or your elder mother or father, ”DeBaptiste said.  “We live in multi-generational homes and there are other people impacted by your choices. You have the capability of fighting the virus but there are others around you who don’t have the same capability, so it’s their lives you have to protect as well.”

“Taking care of your own home is where love starts, loving yourself enough to take care of yourself to love others in your family or in your friends circle is what real love is all about,” she said.

DeBaptiste spoke about the suspicion some have about what is in the vaccine.

“I’m sorry if you’re going to McDonald’s, Wendy’s and Burger King, I’m sorry you don’t know what is in that food,” she said. “If you’re a vegan and eating Beyond Burgers, that’s GMO modified, that’s man-made, that’s not plant based, so you don’t know what’s in it unless you are a purest. And if you are my hat’s off to you.”

Lankenau Medical Center physician Sophia Panaccione seconded DeBaptiste’s comments.

“We know that minorities are uniquely affected by COVID, by the illnesses that come because of COVID. The most important thing right now is that everybody is as educated as possible,” Panaccione said. “

Panaccione presented an enlightening discussion looking at the origins of the vaccines that have been known in the medical community for over 50 years.  She busted some of the myths that have caused hesitancy in getting the vaccine.

“Fact or fiction, these vaccines can give you COVID?” Panaccione asked. “Fiction. The vaccine is a copy of the mRNA… it’s not the whole virus. We engineer this process, take a piece of a virus and use it to transport material. We started that in 2014, all the way through 2019  in making a vaccine for Ebola with this same exact technology. We have tons of studies that show that viral vector vaccines are safe … and effective.”

Panaccione said that used that technology to make the COVID-19 vaccines in 2019-20 for COVID-19.

“What the most important thing you guys can do is educate yourselves and know you can best protect yourself and then you can protect others and help others,” she said.

In addition to the featured speakers a number of students and alumni presented creative works at the event.

Cheyney alumni Amir Campbell was working on one of his series of paintings focusing on comfort.

“This is expressing the comfort of children getting their vaccine, the comfort of their doctor, the comfort of their mom and the comfort of their security blanket which here is a Teddy bear,” Campbell said as he explained his work. “It’s showing this tough process of getting the vaccine, how the comfort is there.”

Madeson-Paiyge Colbert, a junior at Cheyney, said her work was about the feeling of quarantine.

“Being isolated,” she said. “Figuring out what people need to do better in their life or more of. It’s sad but healing because you have to figure out what to do when the world was shut down.”

Poetry from graduate student Mik Ponds was a variation of Dr. Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech.

It read in part: “I had a dream, that one day unconditioned love for thy neighbor would reign,  one day …we press on, we stay the course, as one world, divided never again.”

 

On MLK Day of Service, Cheyney students reminded ‘Getting vaccinated is about love for others’

 

Can art be used as a tool for emotional healing? Cheyney University’s Dr. Marietta Dantonio-Madsen believes it can, and she was in Washington last month to show evidence through her film You Are Not Alone.

Dr. Madsen, who has been at Cheyney for 21 years, and received her doctorate from Wilmington University, says such work is one of her passions.

“I love helping communities and people heal spiritually, physically and emotionally through art,” she said. “I’ve done at least 100 projects around the world focused on healing. The film showcases one of these important projects. It was a three-day journey for the children at the Main Street Counseling Center in Stroudsburg (Pennsylvania) to rediscover their self-esteem and to learn to love themselves.”

You Are Not Alone is a documentary produced in 2008 about art therapy by Leslye Abby-Snowflake Video Productions. The film follows a three-day project of students creating a painted mural of a six-by-six-foot sculpted turtle developed by Madsen. The purpose was to allow the students to use art to express their deepest emotions to aid in their recovery from trauma. The remarkable mural project uses traditional colors and symbols influenced by Native American, African, and Asian cultures. The colors and symbols of the mural are meant to depict the intense emotions of the children.

The film was shot at the Main Street Counseling Center in Stroudsburg, headed by psychotherapist Dr. Paul Boggia.

“Paul has such a passion for helping young people through their traumas and I was very impressed with his goals. In the documentary, the children talk about their progress in expressing their emotions. The purpose was to allow them the total freedom of expression and reflection through art,” Dr Madsen said. “If you watch the video, the growth of these children is so beautiful, and I utilize this in every one of my projects. It has to be a moment of sharing.”

Artist and Cheyney University alum Amir Campbell assisted Dr. Madsen in the You Are Not Alone project and remarked as to why he became involved in this healing through murals project and the benefits such projects offer to urban communities.

“I became involved because of the compassion, care and commitment Dr. Madsen has for culture and the arts,” Campbell said. “She intertwines these two worlds to express the genealogy and untold stories that is the very essence of the children that this particular mural was about. Dr. Madsen showed me the world of art which is why Cheyney University Arts will always have a special place in my heart.”

Dr. Madsen’s impressive credentials of International Art Exhibitions include shows across the globe: Ireland, Egypt, Russia, India, Germany, Spain, and South Africa. She is the founder and president of Totem Rhythms, an organization that strives to build self-esteem and cultural awareness of the heritage of Native Americans and indigenous people. Her artwork “Prayer Circle” was aired on the TV show White House Chronicle where she was recognized as the leading Healing Art expert in the United States.

Her most recent Healing Arts projects includes the Stop the Violence Mural, designed by Jazmyn Robinson, for Cheyney University, the Lenape Tribe of Delaware Family History Mural and the All as One mural at Ferris School for Boys, in Wilmington.

The Ferris School is a secure care treatment facility providing services for up to 72 court committed boys, ages 13 to 18. The average length of stay is six months, followed by a six-week transition program. Madsen said her experience with the group was amazing.

“I worked with 72 incarcerated youths but before the project began, I had to prove to the administrators how it would help. I asked them to give me two weeks and they agreed,” she said. “When I went into the area where I would be working with the boys, I saw a bunch of guards. I gave the boys a choice; they could either keep the guards or have them leave and work with me. One day during those two weeks, the superintendent came in and was shocked to see them working in teams. See, I told them the truth and they knew that. The lesson is if you don’t believe what you’re saying, they won’t believe it. That’s how I was able to reach them. Freedom comes from within.”