Brother ANTHONY CRAWLEY, a junior Philosophy major at Mississippi State University, recently won the title of Mississippi Chess Champion, 197677. At 19, Brother Crawley is both the youngest person and the first Black ever to capture this coveted title. In competition at the Sheraton Motor Inn in Jackson, Brother Crawley won four of five rounds, played in accordance with the Swiss System. A native of Meridian, Mississippi, Brother Crawley is currently Vice President of Kappa Beta Chapter at MSU and formerly served as the chapter's historian. He is also a Dean's List Student and a member of the S. D. Lee Honors Program. Upon graduation Brother Crawley plans to receive his commission as a Second Lieutenant in the United States Army (through the ROTC program) and to pursue a law degree. Breaking new ground in the Magnolia State — Anthony Crawley is an Alpha Man!
Brother Anthony
"Communication is the foundation upon which understanding is built. We communicate everyday, whether we are aware of it or not. It may be verbal or non-verbal, but in all instances we should use it to build a greater understanding of ourselves and the things around us," said Brother RONALD CAIN. Brother Cain is presently Editor-inChief of the Clark College Panther, the school newspaper. He began striving to be editor in his sophomore year, when he joined the staff as a reporter. "The media is an involvement field, it branches out to cover everything. That's why I chose print journalism as a career. I plan to be an editor someday, therefore I felt that being editor of the school newspaper would give me some insight and experience in that area." Because of his work on the staff, Cain was chosen Associate Editor in his junior year. Stating that "to be an Alpha Man is to be involved," he also served 4
Tucked away in a northern part of California's capitol city is a unique and dynamic school district whose superintendent is Brother CHARLES W. TOWNSEL of Zeta Beta Lambda Chapter. Under the leadership of Brother Townsel, this highly unique and innovative school district has embarked upon an educational improvement process called COSMOS — Cognitive Style Mapping of Students. This process is designed specifically to meet the educational needs of children by first recognizing how the student seeks meaning. Following this, the process continues to include an adjustment of the curriculum of each child as a unique individual in an experimental and environmental search for meaning. This is the educational approach in use in the Del Paso Heights School District in Sacramento, California. The district is applying the concept of each student as a unique individual with needs, desires, hopes, behaviors, interests and attitudes. All too often, in the pursuit to individualize, educators have accommodated only the time fac-
Crawley
Brother Ronald Cain
as Vice President of the Clark College Mass Communications Club, member of the Clark Publications Board, Greek Editor for the Clark Yearbook, and an English tutor for the Metro-Atlanta Trio Program. Upon being chosen Editor of the Panther at the end of his junior year, he stated, "Clark is being smothered by apathy. It is my job as Editor to further communication among the students and to try to displace that feeling." He feels that the paper belongs to the students and, therefore, carries a great responsibility to them. Brother Cain, the youngest of eleven children, is a native of Bessemer, Alabama. He is a past president of Alpha Phi Chapter at Clark and presently serves as Editor-to-the-Sphinx. Now in his senior year, Brother Cain is one of the Senior Class Representatives to the Pre-Alumni Council and is in training in Graphic Art with the Federal Aviation Administration in Atlanta, Georgia. The Sphinx/February 1977
tor in the student's learning habits. Methods of presentation remained uniform for all students. In many instances, the instructional approaches designed to individualize failed to recognize that some students learn best in small groups, others by themselves. In other words, each student's cognitive style was overlooked. A student's cognitive style is a composite of identifiable human traits, abilities, characteristics, interests, and skills. Family background, life experiences, influences in decisionmaking and talents are some of the elements of the cognitive style. Each individual derives meaning many ways. Total surroundings are noted diversely. Some students become informed by listening. Still others by reading. An individual may be influenced in decision-making by family or associates. Yet another may respond with only his own point of view. One person may derive meaning by The Sphinx/February 1977
reasoning as a mathematician, yet another may follow the pattern of a social scientist, or perhaps an automotive mechanic. The students' cognitive style map includes elements from four sets, in varying degrees. This is called a profile and is to the teacher what an x-ray is to a doctor. For example, a student who comes to school with a "love of eating" may build reading skills through eating. Reading lessons may be in the form of recipes which the student reads and follows. The student then eats the prepared food right in the classroom. Upon profiling a student's cognitive style, the teacher analyzes it in relation to the instructional objectives and then develops an instructional program to match the student. The student's own individualized program will indicate the appropriate teachers, processes and properties necessary to that particular individualized approach. A student's strengths as well as weaknesses will be considered and accommodated in this approach. Doers are never to be found involved in one activity. And because Brother Townsel is a doer, he is presently Program Chairman of Zeta Beta Lambda; a member of the National Council of Teachers of English, American Association of School Administrators, Association of California School Administrators, Association for the Study
of Negro Life and History; and, on the Board of Directors of the Sacramento Urban League and United Christian Centers. Brother Townsel's dedication to academic excellence goes back many years. He has been a classroom teacher at the elementary and secondary level; a high school counselor; an elementary school principal; an associate superintendent, and a college professor. He was the first educator to come out of the Rockefeller Foundation's Minority Training Program at the Superintendent's level to ascend immediately to the superintendency. He serves on numerous education committees and most recently catapulted the National Alliance of Black School Educator's into national prominence as its President. A life member of Alpha Phi Alpha, Brother Townsel is a native of Birmingham, Alabama, and is married to Ophelia Kynard of Marion, Alabama. The two met at Alabama State College where he received a B.S. degree. Further study awarded Brother Townsel an M.A. degree from the University of Michigan, and a Ph.D. degree from Michigan State University. Brothers of Zeta Beta Lambda are proud of Dr. Townsel and awarded to him their highest honor — The Outstanding Alpha Man of the Year - 1974. He also was the 1976 recipient of the Outstanding Alumni Award from Michigan State University.