CHANCELLOR'S LETTER
I extend greetings to the UAPB/AM&N National Alumni Association, stakeholders and friends of this institution. We are excited and honored to be here to usher in a new era for the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff. We have a great history as a university, filled with proud moments and milestones, noted alumni, and outstanding staff, faculty and students. We also have a great history as an alumni association, and we are anticipating that this organization will become even greater. I look forward to the opportunity to greet all of you, but first let me introduce myself. I am an educator, teacher-scholar, administrator, and lawyer. In my 26 years in higher education, I have spent more than half that time in administrative leadership positions. As a Professor of Journalism, I have taught more than 10,000 students. As a former journalist, I have worked professionally for the Houma Courier, the New Orleans Times Picayune, and the Philadelphia Inquirer. I grew up in the Desire Housing Project in the 9th Ward of New Orleans and was educated in public schools in Orleans and Jefferson Parishes and began my academic career after finishing law school. Since then, I have worked at three institutions—the University of New Orleans, Temple University and the University of Florida. At UF, I worked closely with the Alumni Association and served as Director of the Office of Graduate Minority Programs, directing the McKnight Doctoral Fellowship Program, the McNair Scholars Program, and the NSF Bridge to the Doctorate Program through an alliance partnership with Florida A&M University, among other roles. In 2001, I was selected as the 12th UF Distinguished Alumni Professor. As part of the prize for winning, I was awarded a seat on the university’s National Alumni Board and on the University Athletic Association Board. In those roles, I worked closely with the leadership, staff
and membership of the Alumni Association, engaging and interacting frequently with the UF Foundation and speaking to Gator Clubs throughout the state of Florida. My wife, Veronica, worked for the UF Foundation for 21 years as the Director of Human Resources. We have three sons—the oldest is a graduate of the University of Central Florida, married with two children, and the two youngest are students at UF and Morehouse College. As we begin a new era in leadership at UAPB, I look forward to working with the Alumni Association and its affiliates to maintain close ties and connections between the membership and the university. Moreover, I will be working with each of you as you help our institution reach the highest ranks possible through giving back to the university. It’s the beginning of a new era for the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, and we believe it will be an Era of Excellence for the UAPB/AM&N National Alumni Association, the community and the State of Arkansas.
Dr. Laurence B. Alexander Chancellor
Summer 2013
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