The John D. O'Bryant African American Institute/Northeastern University 2020-2021 Annual Report

JOHN D. O'BRYANT AFRICAN AMERICAN INSTITUTE NORTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY

ANNUAL REPORT 2020 - 2021

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2020-2021 REPRESENTED "THE INSTITUTE'S RESILIENCE" Legacy, Excellence, Culture, Community, Success, Service - these words define the John D. O'Bryant African American Institute at Northeastern University. In 2020, for the first time in the Institute's 50 year history, the space so many us love went silent. As with Northeastern, the country and the world the pandemic changed everything for the Institute. 2020 and 2021 demanded the most of everyone in higher education who care about student's well-being and success. The Institute exercised all available methods to outreach, engage, support, advocate and program with the students it serves. At the beginning of this challenging year we produced an inspirational video - "The Institute's Resilience"

The silent halls of THE INSTITUTE

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Positive relationships and consistent engagement with students is the foundation of the John D. O’Bryant African American Institute’s student development legacy and success. The targeted programs such as Ujima Global Leaders (200), Legacy Mentoring and Leadership Program (100), the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Graduate Fellowship (15), the Graduate Student of Color Collective (GSCC) (200) and the bi-weekly Black Student Organization meetings (15 leaders representing several hundred student members) all have served as natural and substantive points of contact and engagement over the years.

For 2020-2021, as everyone did, we relied heavily on our electronic communications utilities - Teams/Zoom, Constant Contact, TikTok, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, etc.

With more than 34,000 subscribers or contacts, our Constant Contact membership allowed us to make nearly 3 million contacts of our subscribers this past year. We were able to effectively promote the Institute activities, student organization events, university happenings and community highlights.

Outreach and Engagement

OVERVIEW

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PROGRAMS UJIMA Global Leaders (UGL) - From the evolution to UGL in 2016 (5 cohorts) we have engaged nearly 200 students in leadership development. The 2020 Ujima class was marked by the pandemic. The 2020 early virtual arrival program included Institute’s history, community speakers, and familiarization with campus resources.

Legacy Mentoring and Leadership Program (LMLP) - The mentees and mentors combined total of nearly 70 participants still had a wonderful year of relationship building, learning and artistic opportunities and fun through JDOAAI virtual cultural programming.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Graduate Fellowship Program- The program annually provides six graduate student scholarships, covering full tuition and fees (insurance not included) for the student’s graduate program. This year's class, Zoé Harris, Sydney Peterson, Taylor Smith,

Where we are

TODAY

Gabriela Tavares, Justin Montgomery, Amira Nwokeji-Lwual were active this year with our virtual programs and were engaged with the Graduate Students of Color Collective (GSCC).

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"Black Student Organization Leaders Leading" #BlackVoicesMatter and #BlackAtNU One week after the brutal killing of George Floyd in 2020, President Aoun hosted several meetings with Black student leaders, faculty, staff, administrators and alumni to hear deep and honest feedback about ways that Northeastern could confront anti-black discrimination. All of the student groups and leaders got together and presented a series of demands speaking to the concerns of the student body.

The Institute worked closely with the Black student leaders as they lead the effort. Their work became the impetus for much more of the student movements that happened on campus this year! As a result of the work that the students and NU administration did together, President Aoun focused the university on increasing diversity representation, student support, NUPD Advisory Board establishment, cultural competency and antiracism training, university-wide accountability and so much more. Workstreams were created and the summer of 2020 was full of activity that involved staff, faculty and administrators from every area of the Boston campus. In October of 2020, President Aoun updated the Northeastern community on the progress being made in all of the workstream areas and more.

Additional BSO orgs include Graduate Students of Color Collective (GSCC), Afro Spectrum, Black Law Students Association (BLSA), Delta Sigma Theta, Inc., and Phi Beta Sigma, Inc.

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GEORGE FLOYD TO CELEBRATING JUNETEENTH When George Floyd was killed on video on May 25, 2020 the world witnessed an event that would forever change the public discussion about policing in America. However, little did anyone know at the time, it would ultimately substantially impact the public discussion about race, equity and diversity.

Northeastern embraced the movement and positively At the start of 2021, the fatigue of the past year's COVID-19 pandemic had become all too real. Northeastern did not lose focus on the commitments of 2020. As the year started, every effort was made to return to in-person engagement while continuing to keep the campus safe as the pandemic slowly subsided. The Institute worked hard at adjusting to having a presence on campus while engaging with students both in-person and virtually.

Moreover, we remained involved with the student organizations and supported their efforts to continue programming and working with the administration. As always, we supported the campus Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration and activities. We held a robust series of Black History Month events and activities. The appointment of Dr. Karl Reid as the Chief of Diversity and Inclusion was strongly supported by the Institute. While adhering to all of the university's Covid-19 protocols, we held an incredibly successful annual baccalaureate ceremony for the graduating class of 2021. Finally, the Institute was intimately involved in the planning and implementations of the 2021 campus wide Juneteenth celebration that included the historic announcement that Northeastern would recognize it as a university holiday.

responded to student demands and general public sentiment.

On June 15th President Aoun made a call to action for our university to "address the scourge of systemic racism especially anti-Black discrimination - and advance our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion." The John D. O'Bryant African American Institute continues to be an integral part of implementing Northeastern's call to action.

We participated in discussions, gatherings and other forms of feedback. We were also involved in several of the workstreams that lead to concrete plans to, as President Aoun stated, "turn aspirations into reality." An investment was made in student support and strengthening the links between the colleges and our cultural centers. We participated in the campus-wide expansion of the Summer Bridge Program. The Institute was intimately involved in the successful establishment and implementation of the NUPD Community Advisory Board. We were also very much involved with the cultural competency and Anti-Racism Training, the university-wide accountability through the campus climate survey, Northeastern's community engagement efforts, and amplifying Northeastern's impact through employer partners with NU PLACE and Professional Leadership and Career Engagement Program.

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NU CELEBRATES AS JUNETEENTH BECOMES A UNIVERSITY HOLIDAY "Music filled the air, the Juneteenth flag flew, and members of the university community discussed the significance of the day that commemorates the end of slavery in the United States." News@Northeastern

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CONGRATULATIONS, 2021 GRADUATES "Take Pride ... show the world that you matter. That we matter .... That Black Lives Matter!" - Dr. O'Bryant

Where we are

TODAY

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HIGHLIGHTS AND NOTABLES Hearing from some

Afternoons with

Distinguished Alums

the Words of Some of Our Leaders

Active in our Community Discussions with Important Figures

2020-2021

HISTORICAL

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THE BLOG SPACE

Covid-19 Stories from the Community

Discussion about the Institute's Founding

Reflections from our Graduates

IN MEMORIUM ...

Dean Gregory Ricks

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Superintendent Clifford Janey

Professor Leonard Brown

Ms. Doris Bunté

Mrs. Dionne Hughes-Everett

Brother Umar Knox

REMEMBERING

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WELCOME 2021-2022 Campus-Wide Summer Bridge Program Summer Outreach for Students full return to campus Ujima Global Leaders Pre-arrival Program Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Graduate Fellows Selection Welcoming our largest in-coming class of Black students in recent memory Culturitual Festival Annual JDOAAI Open House Bi-weekly meetings with Black Student Organization Leaders Planning for re-instituting of the Community Development Task Force Continue working with NUPD Advisory Board Planning has begun for Kwanzaa, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration, Black History Month, the Roland E Latham Oratory Competition and the 2021 Homecoming

RETURNING TO TOMMORROW

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JOHN D. O'BRYANT AFRICAN AMERICAN INSTITUTE NORTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY ANNUAL REPORT

Copyright 2021