Group Presentations

When the group presentation was first assigned to us I can honestly say that I was the least bit enthused. I don't like group work. Never have, never will. I always feel as though the work is not distributed evenly and a group member or two end up picking up the slack. However this was far from the truth with the group I was in. I was very appreciative that they were understanding of me being out due to illness. When it came down to it and time to work everything flowed. We were able to buckle down for a few hours every time we met and stayed focus long enough to get the work completed. When the day of the presentation came I'd lost my voice and was quite upset. Even though I wasn't fully able to project I spoke as loud as I could. When we were finish I was thoroughly pleased with the presentation that we'd given.

First Semester

Now that I've practically completed my first semester I think about the goals I originally set, and my expectations of myself and school. Overall I can say that I did well with both my course load and my social life. In high school I had a hard time managing the two simultaneously. So its good to see I've grown in the sense of being able to balance the two. When I first got here I was nervous and insecure about myself, my work ability and social skills. I can confidently say that after the last ten weeks I've become a better person. Not in a serious life changing way, but i can tell that I've grown up some since leaving home. When you think about it that's apart of the college experience. Not just getting a degree and making connects, but growing as an individual in a different environment.

When I ran into my first bump in the road at Howard I briefly reconsidered if this was really the school for me. Now that I've become acclimated to school and slightly acclimated to D.C as a whole I'm pretty sure that I made a good decision. Yes there are some days where I wish I would have attended a state university, but then I think about how many more opportunities I will have because I chose Howard over Georgia State.

Warmth of Other Suns

   Isabel Wilkins made an appearance at Howard a few weeks back to discuss her book, Warmth of Other Suns. Three points she made during the discussion included: many of us would not be where we were had the great migration never happened, the great migration was the first time that African Americans decided that they had other options and that they would persue them, and in the making of this book Wilkins interviewed over 1200 people.
  Two things that Ms. Wilkins said that peaked my interest was that 6 million African Americans fled the south during the Great Migration and African Americans would be arrested if they were caught leaving. This was astonishing to see how a society that degraded African Americans so much actually needed them to keep society afloat.
   Her talk made the Great Migration more tangible to me. Normally we learn about these things through text books; however, she presented this topic through real experiences. It proves that the Great Migration isn't just a part of history but it lives it's legacy through African American's daily.

Kristen Bailey

Fall 2011

   My first semester of Howard University was filled with success both academically and socially. I feel like I adjusted very well to college life and I have become very well rounded. Many people talk about coming to DC and getting lost in the "Howard Bubble". I would say that this is very true and I have seen it happen; however, I feel like I've remained true to myself over the past few months. I would say that the most necessary part to overcoming this is knowing who you are. Although many people come to college to find themselves, one must have already discovered the foundation of who they are or else college will mold you into something completely different. Every experience should have an impact but should never fully change you as a person.
   Academically my first semester has been very successful. It has been a struggle with some classes, especially calculus, but I have overcome these obstacles. Starting classes right after the craze of freshman week did require an adjustment period; however, I learned to manage my time very wisely.
   Overall my first semester has been one of the most memorable four months of my life. I cannot wait to see what the rest of my college career will bring.

Kristen Bailey

Group Presentations

The group presentation project started off slowly. I was nervous about doing a group project, because I was unfamiliar with all of my group members, and I had no knowledge of their work ethic. My goal is to pass this class and get credit for it, and I was unsure of how focused and determined my other group members were. I also didn't know if we would work well together as a team, because no chemistry had been established.

The first day the group was scheduled to meet, I could only locate one of my fellow members. I was originally convinced that the other members just didn't come to class. Eventually I learned that they had been coming to class the entire time, but because neither me nor my other group member knew who they were, we couldn' identify them. Once we did, we all came together and began to work on the project. Once we got the ball rolling and became familiar with one another, the project began to come together. We decided to focus our presentation on George Washington Carver and Charles Drew.

We met up several times, and got the project completed in well enough time to be prepared for our presentation. On presentation day, everyone showed up and participated in the presentation. There wasn't much of an audience, but that was perfect for me. At the conclusion, we were told that we did well. After presenting we sat back down to watch the only remaining group present, but they didn't want an audience, so we left and went our separate ways. Overall, I feel that our group presentation was a success.

GROUP PRESENTATIONS

When I first heard about doing a group presentation I really didn’t want to do it. The reason why I felt this way was because of experiences that I had during my years in high school. I thought that getting together was going to be hard because everyone had different schedule. What I can say is that we made it happen. Although we did it very fast I think we still did a great job on answering the overall freshmen seminar question. I actually enjoyed my group members and the little time that we got to know each other. On the actual day of the presentation my group was the only ones prepared other than the group that didn’t want anyone in there. We felt that the project would be hard but once we all got together and started talking about what we knew then it was easier. I think I couldn’t of had any better group members than GROUP 16!!!

First Semester Experience

Wow! I can’t believe that my first semester is all most over. Overall Freshmen Seminar is my favorite class of the semester. The class gave me new insight on my heritage and culture. Several things that I didn’t know I learned during this class. Although it was hard for me to get use to the college life Freshmen Seminar made things easier because I was surrounded by other students that were going through the same thing that I was. The opportunities that I have at Howard I don’t think I could have got it from another historical black university. From the very beginning of class all the way to the end I was learning something new. What I enjoyed most from the class was actual learning how each lecture had something to do with the previous lecture and then how they all tied together at the end. At first I was wondering why I had to take this class although I didn’t get the answer directly I ended up finding out by myself. Also this semester I really realized that you really have to study because test are challenging. From now on I will study weeks ahead.

Isabel Wilkerson

Isabel Wilkerson, the author if this year's common text The Warmth of Other Suns visited Howard University on November 14, 2011. She discussed her book in detail and talked about how people of the south fled the Jim Crow laws and moved to the north,west and mid-west. She told of the petty crimes that whites would charge blacks with simply to keep them in submission to the whites. I appreciated Mrs. Wilkerson's visit to Howard, which is her alma mater. I enjoyed reading her book also. I was quite disappointed in my classmates and their conduct during her visit. Many students were talking and not taking the advantage of hearing a wonderful writer take the time out of her schedule to visit us. I feel embarrassed because although I was not engaged in this conduct, it was my class so inevitably it also includes me. I really hope that Mrs. Wilkerson did not feel insulted by the way we behaved. I feel as though we acted in an immature way, as high schoolers instead of the college students which we are. I hope in the future when we are privileged to have a speaker come to Howard we act in a more respectful manner.

First Semester at Howard University

What to say about my first semester at Howard University? It has indeed been an experience. This is the first time I have ever lived on my own and also outside of the state of Tennessee, so personally it has been a change in scenery. In Tennessee I live in the suburbs of majorly white people so being at Howard in D.C. has also been a culture shock , but I am glad that Howard is teaching me more about my culture. Academic wise, I feel that I am doing pretty well. For the most part I enjoy my professors, some aren't perfect, but they do their best. Some students complain about Howard and I ask them " do you know where you are?"I appreciate being at this historical landmark. I agree that Howard truly is "the Mecca". Before coming to Howard I didn't know all the historical events that took place on its campus. I honestly didn't know a thing about Howard. I'm glad that I chose to come Howard. Don't get me wrong, Howard is not perfect, but what school is? I feel Howard does what it was meant for; it empowers blacks to accomplish their goals while also becoming enriched in their culture which a lot of us seem to lose sight of, living in a world that is not focused on African-Americans. I would definitely recommend high school seniors to apply to Howard and experience "the Mecca".

Group Presentations

To be honest, the groups in our cohorts were really unorganized. Not saying the individual groups were unorganized, but there were groups in our cohort who were not supposed to be in our cohort so I did not get to see them present. On the day of my group presentation, my group presented and the only group there to present after us asked that we not stay and watch their presentation so I did not get to view any presentations in my cohort. In the beginning, I actually did not appreciate this project. I didn't want to work with a group or have to do extra work. I was just being lazy, but after actually meeting with my group and getting to know each of my group members, each of them I had never met before, I became engaged in the project. I don't think the point of the project was to simply present information,but in reality we acted out what we were trying to present. The members of my group and I took on a communal responsibility and took knowledge we already knew and transformed into information that those who saw our presentation might not have known. Overall, I appreciate Freshman Seminar as a whole. Although some Tuesday mornings I didn't want to come to class, every week I was, as Dr. Gbadagesin says," In for a treat".

Homecoming 2011

As a freshman I know that I personally had A LOT of high expectations as far as the events and activities that surrounded homecoming. After being told endlessly by other students, family friends, and older alum about the "great HU homecoming" I was slightly disappointed. I did have my share of fun however nothing really lived up to its hype. It may be because I had a lot of preconceived notions, or because I've been told about the grandeur of homecoming since I told people I was applying for school.

To start most of the ticket prices were out of my budgeted range. Fifty dollars for a step show plus transportation there seemed unrealistic. One because I am a (relatively) broke college student, and two because I could just wait for my classmates to buy the tickets and then resale them, which is what I did in most cases. Another reason homecoming wasn't as spectacular as expected was the celebrities. Yes they were great however they weren't the ones I grew up with nor were they in the limelight currently with the exception of two or three. Once I got passed that and realized that homecoming is what you make of it I enjoyed myself. Homecoming left a lot to be desired but all in all I wouldn't say that the prestige team failed (they just need a little improvement).

My First Homecoming..

   My first Howard Homecoming... It was exciting and at some points anticlimactic, but overall it was a well appreciated experience. My best friend from home, Sabrina, flew in to help me celebrate. It has been months since I've seen her so her presence alone was enough to make my weekend enjoyable. I didn't attend any events during the week so homecoming truly started on Friday for me.
   Yardfest was more than expected. Not because of the performances but because of the abundance of food. The multiple options left me in a gluttonous bliss. Although Jeezy and Wale are great performance I didn't have the opportunity to see them because we had to leave early to make it to the r&b concert.
   The R&B concert of course didn't start on time; however, I know from the experience that I will be purchasing Melanie Fiona's CD when it's released. Friday night after the concert was an experience to say the least; but not an enjoyable one.
   Saturday's events topped those of the night before and my entire day was filled with entertainment. There was never a dull moment from 9AM Saturday morning to 5AM Sunday morning. Overall my weekend was more than fun and I am overjoyed for next year's homecoming.
Kristen Bailey

HOMECOMING!!!!

The only thing I can say is WOW!!!! I have never been apart of something so marvelous. This was a different experience for me because college homecoming is on a whole nother level than high school. I really did not know what to expect because this was my first college homecoming experience. It was like a festival. People were everywhere and the traffic was ridiculous. Although I did not get the entire experience it still was something new. I was excited because my family came and I have not seen them in about four months. We all just hung out in the yard and enjoyed the food and the music. We also got up early on Saturday and went to the parade. The parade was like the start of the day. It got us excited for what was to come later on in the day. The students that participated in the parade did a wonderful job. They were excited and they danced and marched with everything they had and I applaud them for a great show. That was basically all I did at Howard for homecoming because I decided to go to my brothers homecoming at the Naval Academy. Maybe next year I can get the full experience.

Niesha Bush

Freshman Seminar Overview

My overview of Freshman Seminar as a course is a positive one. I feel that freshman seminar has opened my eyes to be a more well- rounded African- American. Just a few days ago, I was having a conversation with a friend and I began to go into detail of how every individual has a communal responsibility.

Freshman Seminar has shown me a different view of how I should see how I fit into the world. I should expect out of myself, not only for myself to succeed, but the community around me to succeed with me because it is my responsibility to give back to the environment from which I came.

I have grown a respect and appreciation for Freshman Seminar and now when I look back, I am glad that it is a required course for all COAS students. Even doing these blogs every week was a good experience. These blogs allow for a reflection of how you actually felt about the lectures and your interpretations. I'm curious to see how my group project turns out, but nonetheless excited.

Jesseca Farr

iPhone 4S Rush!

Friday, October 14th was the day that the new iPhone was released. I had been planning on receiving one of these iphones but I'd missed the presale date, so my plan was to get up early Friday morning and try to get in line for one. I worked late Thursday night and had uncompleted homework due Friday, but I was determined to get my phone.

After work, I got back to my dorm around 1am Friday and began doing my homework. The apple store informed me the previous day that in order to get a phone, my best bet would be to be at the store (which opens at 8am) by 6am. I ended up doing my homework until 4am, taking a shower, and hopping on the bus (skipping sleep) just to make sure I didn't oversleep. Dozing off on the bus, I make it to Georgetown around 6:10am. There's already a line! I thought that by getting to the store before the sun even came up, I'd be at least waiting in front of the store. No dice.

News cameras and police were on the scene as well. I ended up in line about 200 yards away from the store, standing beside a lady and her canine companion. I was tired and bored, so to occupy myself I ended up playing with her dog to pass the time. Eventually Apple employees came out and started taking questions from consumers, streamlining the process which would allow us to get in and out the store faster. Apple employees also began passing out free coffee, water and donuts, which was a nice touch. Eventually, the clock struck eight and it was on!

Customers started filing into the store and making their purchases, finding their time and money well spent. After waiting about 5 minutes I was allowed into the store, and I bought my 16gb black iPhone4s! Its been 2 days, and I must say I'm in love with this phone. The rest of my weekend was spent playing with my new phone, which i thoroughly enjoyed.

M.L.K Memorial Dedication

The Martin Luther King Jr., Memorial Dedication is one of the best ways to celebrate a person of life, dreams, and legacy. This is a way that we as African Americans can show our appreciation to a man of integrity. What makes this moment so historical is that the memorial is the first in Washington, D.C to be dedicated to a person of color. King was a man of hope, love, justice, peace, and democracy.

President Obama spoke so well of King. He mentioned the things that we have overcome and yet more to come. It’s not about what we haven’t overcome but what we will overcome. Its time for us to stop complaining and get out and do what is right for African American rights. One of the things that we have to understand is there were people that paid the way for us. So what we have to do is work and fight for the things that will help the generations to come.

Niesha S.Bush

Passing Time...

With midterms finally here I've been reflecting heavily on my past few months here at Howard University. In high school, we often hear about and experience friends going to college and changing. A year ago I thought of this change in a negative light; however, after experiencing it personally I've realized change is a necessary part of life and isn't always negative. College students are forced to embrace a new lifestyle, new friends, and a new environment. It is human nature to adapt to new surroundings. While I try my hardest to keep up with people and friends back home, I find myself drowning in time conflicts. Here at Howard University there is never a dull moment. Being my first year I want to experience everything I can here and keep up with my schoolwork but I always feel as though I am being suspended between two worlds: my roots in California and my new life in DC. With the time change and schedule conflicts I am never able to have a full conversation with absent friends. Although I know I have not fully mastered this feat, I am trying hard to keep up with everything.
   One thing I know that will bring me back to the sanity I felt in California is my best friend coming to visit for homecoming. She goes to Xavier in Louisiana and I feel as though there is never enough time for us to talk anymore. Through everything she would always keep me sane and I am beyond elated that we will be able to reunite this weekend. Thinking about it makes me want to cry. I know through everything, even though we are not able to talk everyday and most times every week, she will always be my best friend.

Kristen Bailey

Practices of Freedom and Justice: A Charge to Keep

The speaker of this week's class presentation was Ms. Kimberly Worthy. She is a renowned educator, who's received "Teacher of the Year" awards at every school she's been to. Her topic for this week was "Practices of Freedom and Justice: A Charge to Keep" During this lecture, Ms. Worthy discussed the importance of teaching, as well as the various ways teaching is executed. She compared the way that students are taught in American schools with the way African students are taught. In America, we are taught information in a compartmentalized fashion, grouping and learning information by subjects. African students are taught information collectively, at the same time.

African students learn how everything is connected, and it's importance in society as a whole. African students seem more eager to learn than American students, because they understand how much of a privilege the opportunity to receive an education is. Another thing taught in African classrooms, is the importance of culture. In America, we learn very little about our own people in Africa. One of the reasons there is a disconnect between African-Americans and Africa is because of ignorance. Our school books contain very little of our heritage and culture.

I thoroughly enjoyed this class lecture, and it made me realize that our way may not necessarily be the best way. I believe that if we were taught similarly to how African students are taught, collectively we would be able to grasp real-world concepts and apply the knowledge we gain to tasks in our everyday lives. It also made me realize how much we as African-Americans take for granted. We should want to know more about our history, and take the steps necessary to make that a reality.

Miss Evers' Boys

The play titled "Miss Evers' Boys" was about a group of blacks who were selected to participate in a study for syphilis. This was known as the Tuskegee Experiments, and went on in the 1930s'. The government deceived the participants by leading to believe that they were being treated for the disease, when in reality they were not. The main characters of the play all had the disease, and one even had HIV/AIDS. They start off receiving "treatment" as normal, but after a while the funding for the program is cut short. The subjects are proposed the idea of allowing the doctors to monitor the effects of the disease, and compensating them for it later. Two of the main characters end up dying, and one has suffered greatly from the effects of not receiving treatment for the syphilis. The other main character was treated effectively.

This play made me think about how unfairly african-americans were treated in this country, even after slavery. It was later declared that conducting human experiments is illegal, but for them to even attempt to try using us as guinea pigs is degrading. The case of Troy Davis is a more recent example of the unfair treatment we as african-americans receive. We are fed misinformation and lies all the time, just as the black men of the Tuskegee experiments were then, as displayed in Miss Evers' Boys. These thoughts were accompanied by the thought that we as African-Americans have to be strong-willed and determined, because everything is shifted away from our favor. We have to work twice as hard to achieve the success and/or recognition of our white counterparts, which has made us stronger individuals. I believe that if we could come together as a unit, as we have in the past, we can put a stop to this type of treatment.

Miss Evers' Boys

Miss Evers' Boys tells the story of four men who instill their trust in a nurse from a similar background as them as they receive "free doctoring" if they take place in a government study of Negroes . This particular crew of men are chosen because they have what is known to them as "bad blood". After a few mere blood test their "bad blood" is diagnosed as syphilis. The men then decide it is in their best interest to take part in the study. At first the studies intentions are well, they treat the men with care in efforts to cure the growing syphilis epidemic. Once funding runs short the team of doctors decide that they will continue to study the men but instead of trying to cure them they will monitor the damaging effects of syphilis in black men. The study keeps the men by promising them life insurance and keeping them around with false pretenses like "back shots". Forty years later two of the men have died, and the other two have survived. One of which has suffered greatly from not being administered penicillin when it became readily available.

After watching the play I thought about other times in African-American history where as a people we were lied to, mistreated, and abused only to be made examples out of. It would be nice to say that racism like this doesn't still exist. However it does. Instances like "Jena 6", Troy Davis, and many more happen all the time sadly. Some go unreported, others receive national response. And though it seems as if we keep fighting for causes like this we cant stop there. We as a people shouldn't have to wait until its too late to step in and protest. Stories like "Miss Evers' Boys" angers me because the government would never (in a hundred years) allow that to happen to a group of country white men. All of these examples are reasons why as a people we need to come together. As its been said many times African Americans must stop acting like crabs in a barrel.

10.4.11

This lecture actually indirectly discussed the topic it was scheduled to teach. The subject at hand was culturally relevant teaching. Our speaker did not necessarily discussed culturally relevant thinking directly ,but told us about an amazing school in Africa called L.E.A.P. The L.E.A.P. school is an institution that is student ran and provides a kind of safe haven for its students. The students at this school were the first generation to actually have the freedom to practice their own culture in school and give themselves an education level higher than sixth grade.

These students were the true definition of "Ubuntu". Ubuntu means humanity and that " a person is a person through other persons". These kids not only relied on the responsibility of each other inside the walls of the school, but also in their poverty stricken communities. With the support of each other, the students are able to receive an education everyday of the week and build up the community around them.

I feel that culturally relevant teaching should be more prominent in the United States. Growing up in the South, a lot of information about my culture was held from me in school. I was only taught the white traditions of education. Our speaker really showed me the importance of learning, at a young age, what it truly means to be an African first and an African- American second.

Jesseca Farr

Miss Evers' Boys

The play Miss Evers’ Boys took place in the 1930s Alabama. This was a time when racism still existed especially in the southern states. The play is about the consequences of the Tuskegee syphilis experiment. There where hundreds of black men that were misled by the government into believing that they were undergoing treatment for syphilis. These men were lured into a “Medicaid” type program. They were only being allowed to die. If they died then the deterioration would be documented. When they first started this experimentation they knew first hand that it was immoral and illegal.

The government plays a big part in this because they actually misled illiterate black men who didn’t know any better. One of the most horrible things about this play is that this went on for forty years before it was investigated. Even though this is hard to watch, it's an important part of American history and shows how people's ignorance can harm others. From this I started thinking about European diseases and how the purpose was to kill the African American Race. One of the main ones are HIV/AIDS. From seeing this play it makes me think about all the things that have happened to African Americans and how the government went all long with it such as slavery. One thing I know is anger will not solve anything we as blacks need to come together to make a change.

Niesha S.Bush

Practices of Freedom and Justice: A Charge to Keep

Who ever came up with the idea of the Leap program did an awesome job because Ms. Kimberly Worthy talked about how the school creates an empowering educational environment that enables each learner to develop fully as a human being with a positive caring lifestyle, and healthy work ethic. This is very important because each student has the opportunity to open up and not be afraid of what the world has to offer. The purpose of the school was mainly to ensure each student academic success but it also helps socially and emotionally.

The effort to live by “Ubuntu” can enhance teaching, learning, and the overall quality of life of the community because it’s a code of good deeds. The codes are things like being honest, look good, never give up, etc. These are the things that make a great community long as the people follow the code, “Ubuntu”.

Although places in Africa are not safe the students are inspiring because they score off the charts on test. From this I get the idea that they don’t let their circumstances defeat them in getting an education. Another important thing about the Leap Program is the validation of cultural experiences. It is a place of not being ashamed, as they say abandon all fears. This is great thing because having fear can actually harm a person in the long run. Also Ms. Kimberly talked about how they correct each other when they are wrong. This only allow them to become better people. One of the things that really caught me was the part about not having clocks. Africans feel that clocks are an European thing. With a clock I think it actually stop the learning process which is like breaking a bond or separation. Just by the results from the students test shows how powerful the Leap program is.

Niesha S. Bush

Miss Evers' Boys

   Miss Evers' Boys is a play about the very essence of racism. Not the classic form of racism that we see every day-the product of classic Jim Crow-but racism as more than just a social function. The scene was set in the 1930's. Slavery had ended but there still lived a large number of uneducated African Americans undergoing numerous social issues. The main issue of the play was the spread of syphilis; primarily in African Americans. The government played a large part in this social injustice by permitting doctors to deceive illiterate African Americans in order to use their bodies for an unsafe experiment.
  What is most angering about this play was the audacity of the American government to blatantly lie to African Americans to use them for experiments. They subjected them to harmful treatments such as back shots and mercury rubs to attempt to cure them; however, even after a safe, effective cure had been discovered they would not make it available to the patients.
   These misgivings continued all the way until the 1970's, and the debt against African Americans involved amounted to a measly $10 million settlement. Just 40 years ago, America was still committing inhumane transgressions against the oppressed.
    Although unjust experiments aren't being held on African American's today, a lot of underprivileged are still not receiving adequate health care. How is this not another form of modern racism?
    In conclusion, this play successfully ignited an unforgiving anger within me. Not anger for revenge, but anger to make a change.

Kristen Bailey

Practices of Freedom and Justice: A Change To Keep

   This week's lecture focused on the functionality of teaching; more specifically the many effective techniques of teaching children of different races. One main point is the five main tenets of teaching African Americans. These include African logic, African epistemological styles (symbols, images, rhythm), African axiology (values/relationships), and cultural visibility in the curriculum. All these factors naturally play an important role in the education of African American's. If we are not able to relate to the material how would we be able to value it.
   Another key point was culturally relevant teaching. The school systems must teach children from an alternative paradigm, one that validates and exalts culture. The days of forced assimilation and the colonial classroom are long gone; thus, we must make it a priority to teach the youth to value their culture as well as the culture of others. Instead of tearing the culture down and degrading traditions as we have done in the past, we must now use facets of these cultures to educate.
   A third point was communal responsibility. As we have learned in previous lectures, this is a big part of what Howard tries to endure in its students. With these three initiatives, America can make a huge impact in educating its disadvantaged.

Kristen Bailey

The Eloquence of the Scribes

This week's presentation, led by Dr. Thornton, was about self-actualization and recognizing our past in order to effectively plan for our future. He elaborated on how history repeats itself, and that in order to be successful in the future we have to strive for excellence.

Here at Howard University, we have an excellent staff, full of top-rate professors. The game plan is drawn out for us, we just have to create our own lane and work hard to achieve the goals that we set for ourselves. Being that we are already climbing the ladder of success by attending a university, we owe it to those that came before us, and those to come after us to succeed in our endeavors. As African-American students, it is important to give back to our community.

I feel that if I had to choose a profound representative thinker of Howard University, I would pick Dr. Carr. Dr. Carr is not only an a profound professor, but an excellent motivator. He has the ability to make a 50 minute class feel like 15 minutes. Aside from being a great professor inside of the classroom, Dr. Carr also participates in numerous community service activities and organizations. He has inspired so many Howard University students with his teachings, and I am honored to have listened to him speak. My wish is that I can be an influential member of our society, so that I can give back to my school and my community.

The Eloquence of the Scribes

   This weeks lecture focused around the concept of Self-Actualization. Self-actualization can be described as the search for truth and service. This topic required introspection of the part of the audience.
   What can I do to be a part of the best and the brightest at Howard? Being a university, striving academically is an obvious prerequisite for being part of the "best and the brightest", but there are also other facets of life at a university that students should excel in. These include community service and extracurricular activities. Community service is not only a leisurely activity, but a requirement for educated African Americans. It is our responsibility to attempt to better the African American community as a whole. We can do this by joining organizations based on improving important issues and spreading awareness.
   To be a citizen of the world means to be socially and politically responsible; not only for oneself but also the surrounding community by making ones voice heard. It means being informed about issues the affect the world as a whole and working to improve them.
   Representative thinkers of Howard University who have impacted me most would be the professors in the chemistry department; more specifically Dr. Hosten and Dr. Raghavan. This is because they are truly invested in the education of their students. They go above and beyond to provide extra resources for their students success while at the same time the take on a somewhat parental role by standing back and letting us learn by making mistakes in the lab. Their approach for teaching is helpful guidance. They offer key advice, but let us take the reigns in our learning.

Kristen Bailey

The Eloquence of the Scribes

I found this week's lecture very interesting. Dr. Alvin Thornton is a very powerful speaker and is very engaging to listen to. To be the best and brightest at Howard University we must prepare ourselves for the future and confront what lies ahead of us. Dr. Thornton stressed the aspect that history repeats itself so with that being said we already know what's going to take place and can equip ourselves to take on the future.

Dr. Thornton stated a quote that was very powerful, "It is out of truth we get freedom." We gain our citizenship through knowledge. We become citizens of the world when we open to ourselves to not only what is in front of us, but what is around us also. Through knowledge we are free. We must make our own definitions of certain morals or someone will soon make them for us. Ignorance will only cause us to lose all freedoms.

Dr. Carr is a perfect example of someone at Howard who is a representative thinker. Dr. Carr empowers all he speaks to with the motivation to reach back in time and discover themselves so that they can transform the future. When Dr. Carr spoke to my freshman seminar class, I was instantly interested in finding more information about my ancestors and my history and not only being a student at Howard ,but a student who will transform Howard.

Out of all the lectures we have had thus far, I find Dr. Carr and Dr. Thornton's lectures most interesting. I leave having a feeling of wanting to be something bigger than myself. I really enjoy that feeling. :-)

Jesseca Farr

"The Eloquence of the Scribes": Initiation,Expectations, and Mastery-Continuing the Legacy of Howard University

First and foremost, I just want to say that I’m honored to be apart of Howard University. There are several people that wish they could be where I’m at, but couldn’t because of personal reasons. What I can do to be apart of the “best and brightest” of Howard University is study and to be involved. I understand that studying is the most important thing in college but being involved lets you loosen up a little bit. I take pride into studying because it makes me feel like I have a certain strength that I know no one can take away from me. One of the best things about Howard is that there are several different programs that keep students active in the important things that go on in the community. Being a citizen of the world means being apart of the world. Not only do you worry about what’s going on in your community but also the importance of the world. My citizenship is important to me because I’m given certain freedoms to do things in the world such as voting. Not everyone in the world has that opportunity.
The person I think is a representative thinker of Howard is Dr. Greg Carr. His inspiration makes me want to do more in the community and to love anything that I do for my community. Each Howard student after graduation should have given back to their school because someone had to pay the way for us to attend college. African Americans haven’t always had this opportunity so we should learn, teach, and offer more to the world from what was handed down to us students.

Niesha Bush

African Burial Grounds

This week's lecture dealt with the African burial grounds in New York. Dr. Mac talked about how the gravesite for these Africans have been violated and disrespected; how Howard University was tasked with taking care of the remains. I believe Howard University was chosen to restore and preserve the remains because of our historical background, as well as the fact that we had competent, passionate students and faculty more than welcome to take on the task.

The bones were in bad shape, but the Howard students revitalized them and did the remains justice. During the lecture Dr. Mac discussed the various rituals that our African ancestors had. These rituals ranged from teeth filing, to ceremonial beads. These types of rituals were viewed as rites of passage, and were very important to their culture. It was amazing to see how much information could be gathered simply by studying the remains of these Africans. Each set of skeletal remains told a story, and displayed the struggle and pain that our ancestors had to go through. It also showed their pride.

I liked how importantly Dr. Mac viewed these remains, and stressed that they should be given as much respect as you would give someone living today. His pride and passion for the preservation of these African remains was inspiring, and I feel that his presentation displayed that. I know that my fellow Howard students are excited to view the African burial ground for themselves, and learn even more information about our ancestors.

Opening Convocation

Opening convocation was definitely an experience to behold. This was my first time going to convocation, and I didn't really know what to expect. I was moved by Dr. Lomax's speech; he talked about how we are the future, and that He also hit on several points, stressing on the fact that we as a university have to come together to work as a cohesive unit in order to continue to succeed. We hold a responsibility to our community, our legacy, and those to come later to be the best university that we can be.

Dr. Lomax also touched on the importance of HBCUs as a whole, and what they mean to our community. HBCUs need to be preserved; they provide outstanding institutions for us to be educated, not only in the conventional sense, but about our own history. Howard University as well as other HBCUs aren't just learning institutions, but launchpads for us as african-americans to strive and thrive in the world that we live in. HBCUs not only stress advancement, they also stress giving back and paying homage to those that came before us.

Dr. Lomax's message motivated me to look at my tenure at Howard University as an honor and a privilege, something that shouldn't be taken for granted. I also left the auditorium feeling that I owe it to myself, to Howard, and my community to strive for excellence, and to reach a hand back to those coming behind me to help them better themselves.

Opening Convocation

At first I really didn’t have any idea what was “Opening Convocation”, until Dr. Lomax started his speech. First off I think this was one of the best opportunities that I’ve ever had. What Dr. Lomax stressed was the importance of historical black colleges and universities. At first I was struggling to adapt to the college life but with this presentation it gave me an opportunity to get a broader understanding why African Americans, Latinos, Asians, and Native Americans should seek accomplishments further than a high school education. The importance was that most people who don’t have a college degree seem to struggle more with keeping a job and surviving. Another thing that was important that Dr. Lomax said was that we need to work on getting more males into college. I think it’s important because we have more males in jail rather than out in the community doing something positive.
Dr. Lomax’s speech gave me the insight to think beyond just going to college. The class of 2015 is the future for new beginnings. We should work harder and be able to accomplish much more than what pass generations have done and we should give back. He spoke so highly of Howard University that it made me stick my chest out and say that I’m glad to be apart of a highly respected institution of African Americans.

Niesha S. Bush

The African Burial Ground

My overall impression of the lecture that Professor Mack brought forth to the class of 2015 gave me a vivid understanding of the African Burial Ground. From the lecture I learned that many Americans didn’t know or didn’t want to know how important the sacred grounds were to the African American culture.

From the pictures that I seen from the lecture gave me a basic understanding of what my ancestors went through and why the life expectancy was so low. Although I try not to dwell on the past but the pain that my people went through was just unbearable. Several of the pictures that were shown during the presentation were of skeletal remains. Also some of the pictures showed African culture for example; one picture had the skeletal remains of an adult but also buried with the body were babies. The significance of this was that Africans felt that the child shouldn’t go on to a higher power with out its guardian. The sad thing is that majority of the bodies that were buried were of children.

The monument is so important because both free and enslaved Africans were buried in a 6.6-acre burial ground. I think it’s a place that should be highly respected because of its significance. If I chose to attend the African Burial Ground Monument I think I would be very quiet and attentive. The reason why I would act like this is because it’s similar to a cemetery where you pay respect to the ones that have gone on.

I think Howard University has chosen to study the remains because they know the importance of our culture and our heritage. I think it’s a way to give back to the people that made it possible so that they can study things at a higher level. Just by this huge satisfaction I’m honored to be apart of the Howard University legacy. This gives me the urge to want to give back to my community and to my school because other people did the same thing to make it possible so that I could attend college.

Niesha S. Bush

African Burial Ground

 This weeks lecture was both visually and intellectually pleasing. It's focus was the African Burial Ground which we will be visiting in the upcoming weeks. This lecture began with Professor Mack addressing the four research questions which are the origins of the remains, the quality of life of the people, the biological and cultural transformation, as well ass the modes of resistance.
  Archeologist uncovered many hidden mysteries when recovering the remains. One of the most interesting is that Africans filed their teeth as a write of passage and ethnic identifier. This tradition was said to be esthetically pleasing in African culture. This answers the question of biological and cultural transformation.
  Another, somewhat upsetting, discovery about this burial ground was that doctors from a nearby hospital would steal remains to use them as cadavers. In the 1700s it was illegal to use cadavers for experiments unless they were criminally insane. In attempt to manuever around this law, doctors would steal remains from the burial ground. In retaliation to this. slaves burnt down the hospital. This addresses the question of modes of resistance.
  There are many mysteries surrounding the African Burial ground that I have yet to uncover; However, I am hoping during the visit to learn much more about my ancestors.

Convocation

   Convocation.What I intially thought would be hours worth of lecturing and leisurely rituals turned into something that further expanded my view of Howard and my place here. This assembly served its purpose in truly welcoming me into this great institution.
    Dr. Lomax's speech reminded me of one of the points Dr. Carr made in his lecture; that is that we, as students of Howard, have a responsibility to uphold the legacy of educating our surrounding community. Dr. Lomax noted that HBCU's have an obligation to keep striving for excellence and educating minorities. This message motivated me to strive for more than I previously have and to value my community and dedicate time and effort to giving back and continuing the legacy

Convocation

I had been hearing of a thing called "convocation" and I had no clue what it was. Honestly, in my head I thought, "Why are they making me go to this? This is going to be a waste of time." What I didn't know was that I was going to be dead wrong.

As I walked into the auditorium, I still did not quite understand what was about to take place. I thought maybe they're going to preach to us and bless us into the school. Well that didn't quite happen. Convocation was the official welcome into Howard University and this year was honored to have Dr. Lomax as the orator.

Dr. Lomax gave a powerful and inspiring speech. We all hear that "you are the future", but we don't necessarily believe it , but Dr. Lomax confirmed that this quote is in fact true. Dr. Lomax spoke on how in order for an institution to operate as successfully as Howard does and to remain and institution of higher learning for over 100 years as Howard has, it takes a team effort. Deans, professors,alumni, sponsors, and most importantly students have to work as a team to maintain the reputation of the school.

Dr. Lomax stressed the importance of HBCU's in America claiming that they must remain in an abundance. I believe that that statement is entirely true. Blacks in America are often stereotyped and often times are still seen to be lower than a white individual. HBCU's are needed to further the education of blacks and provide them with the tools of professionalism to prove not only to themselves but to the world that blacks have come a long way in history and can perform at the same level or higher than individuals of another color.

I was truly enriched by the convocation and I'm glad that I attended and plan to attend in the years to come.

African Burial Grounds

This week Dr. Mark Mac came and spoke with us about the African Burial Grounds in New York , in which we are to be visiting. I truly enjoyed how he did not just speak of these people as former slaves who died and were buried in this area and then were found years later; he told their stories. He spoke of the people there and described each one with their personal story and what might of happened to them causing their death.

I feel as though this monument was made to acknowledge those who would otherwise go unknown. Our American history only speaks of blacks who did extraordinary acts, but fails to mention those who suffered through the torture of slavery and were savagely murdered, which in itself is an extraordinary act. These are people who lived day by day working themselves literally down to the bone. This monument tells the stories of these individuals and allows the African American generation of today to learn about their ancestors.

Howard University was chosen to uncover the remains because no other school would have been suffice. Howard is an institution that radiates the true meaning of what it means to be a African American. In the uncovering of the remains, it would only be proper if the same kind of bones that are buried uncover them. I really would like to attend the trip to the grounds and believe that it would really change my view point on my ancestral history. Simply hearing this lecture from Dr. Mac opened my eyes to see how my people once lived.

Abandonment and Dismemberment: something torn and new

This lecture was about the slave trade, and how our ancestors were ripped from our homeland and abandoned in an unfamiliar land. The speaker went into detail about these two topics, elaborating on how the slaves were uprooted from their homes, treated as mere property, and shipped across the ocean. They were socially and mentally dismembered, and many physically dismembered. Various parts of what made Africans were stolen from them, aside from their humanity. Those shipped across the ocean were torn from their families, their religion, and culture. After being torn from everything they knew, the Africans were then abandoned in a new world, bought, sold and worked as chattel, and supplied with the bare minimum to live. Many of the Africans were also ripped of their will to fight. The sense of abandonment loomed large over the slaves, and suppressed their resistance. Being stranded in unfamiliar lands, the slaves were unable to do much to improve their situation. I feel as though the Africans remaining in Africa also felt a sense of dismemberment, having their brothers and sisters shipped across the Atlantic. All in all, the lecture was about how the slaves were forcibly removed from their homeland, and forced to adapt to a hostile environment in unfamiliar lands.

Jonathan Newton

Abandonment and Dismemberment

   This weeks seminar focused on Abandonment and Dismemberment. Dr. Beatty started his lecture by further describing the Abandonment and Dismemberment of Africans and "something torn and new". The first key point is that of abandonment. The abandonment of African's from their home was brought by the middle passage of slaves. The middle passage is the process of taking Africans and dispersing them to the new world. The new world includes Brazil, the European and French Caribbean and North America. During this process more than 16 million Africans were stripped from their roots.
   The second key topic of the lecture was the assimilation of Africans to their new homes and cultures. Victims of the middle passage were forced to participate in and learn a new culture. From social structures, to family patterns, to languages and many more, Africans abandoned what they knew and what defined them as a people to learn the culture of their slave masters.
    The resistance of slaves was also a distinguished topic in the lecture. Runaway slaves established maroon societies apart from the plantations. Many were developed in remote areas and new communities were built where African's could create a "home away from home" which was self governed and cultured to their liking.
    Along with the resistance of slaves back then comes the resistance of ignorance in modern times. Dr. Beatty says that it is imperative to rewrite the history of the Americas emphasizing African presence and impact. Many aren't aware of how critical a role Africans have played in molding the Americas in what they are today. We, as students of Howard, have the responsibility to resist this ignorance and spread the knowledge throughout the community.

Kristen Bailey

Abandoment and Dismemberment: Something torn and new

As I stated in my first blog entry, I was really anticipating this lecture and indeed the lecture exceeded my expectations. Dr. Mario Beatty discussed with us the asepct of the Africans being torn away from Africa and what they carried with them to the new land that they were thrown in. He opened the lecture with a question, " Does physical abandonment directly correspond to mental abandonment?" The answer to this question was revealed by the end of the lecture.

As the Africans were taken from their homeland, everything was loss or so was to be believed. The whitemen that took the Africans expected that the Africans would have nothing to give to the generations in the future, but indeed they were wrong. Africans carried with them the art of music, speech,religion,cuisine, and song along with them. Even to this day we see evidence of these traditions in our everyday jargon and simple actions.

Dr. Beatty, in my opinion, challegened us to transform knowledge by asking us to think about what is considered the norm and what makes it the norm. Are we to conform to what is normal because it is the standard or should we go beyond that and challenge the status quo?

So in correlation to the question stated at the beginning of the lecture, the answer is no. Physical abandonment does not correspond to mental abandonment. The Africans proved that by retaining their african heritage and bringing it with them to the new land and teaching their traditions to the younger generations.

Dr. Beatty presented an excellent lecture. I'm looking forward to the lectures ahead and visiting the African Burial Grounds soon.


Jesseca Farr

Abandonment and Dismemberment"Something Torn and New"

This weeks lecture about, Abandonment and Dismemberment:"Something Torn and New"; put several things in prospective for me. The lecture gave an understanding about the way African Americans were forced from their native lands to other places. From all the things that our ancestors went through our heritage still goes on. Even though our ancestors were treated badly they remained strong through it all.
One of the things that was discussed during this lecture was the dismemberment of our African American peoples. A basic definition of dismemberment is suffering of a person or a group of people. What Africans suffered from was the forcing of them from their native land. Many of the slaves would never see their homeland again. The reason why Africans were used as slaves because their bodies were immuned to diseases and they were much stronger. They new how to cultivate rice which was a major thing during slavery. Dismemberment makes it seem like everything was lost but it wasn't. Traditions were kept alive and their lives still continued only under someone elses authority. The moving of the Africans was known as the middle passage. The Middle Passage also consisted of the triangular trade in which millions of people from Africa were taken to the New World. This was organized by groups of investors rather than an individual alone. This was a loss of emptiness.
Although Africans were forced from their homelands they didn't lose everything. Their culture still went on. Their beliefs and behaviors stayed the same. Several of their traditions are still apart of the Americas now. Such as the modeling of families with the dad always being at the top. With out African Americans several things wouldn't be going on in America today.What if there wasn't a such thing as medicine men and women? The development of cures wouldn't probably have been in existence. From my own experiences with making baskets and chairs this still goes on in my family and has been passed down for generations. One of the important things that still goes on today is agricultural cultivation.
One of the ways that scholars have tended to explain African dismemberment is how Africans suffered but they remained strong through the rough times. Like I mentioned earlier about the medicine men and women they paid the way for other people. Now we have technology to help make things much easier and we also have research facilities to make the job easier. Back during the days of slavery people worked hard and wasn't able to have short cuts to get the job done. Now we have anything you can think of to help with cures and other things that help the nation.

Niesha Bush

Omoluabi: Self Actualization and Communal Responsibility

The lecture about " Omoluabi: Self Actualization and Communal Responsibility" is self-explanatory, in my opinion. Self actualization is about realizing who one is within themselves. During the lecture, Dr. Gbadesgesin went on to break down the concept of self actualization. I took it to mean that self actualization is to recognize one's own strengths and weaknessesHe talked about Ijuba, which means homage. Paying homage is important, because it is shapes how the future is molded. By paying homage, you give respect and honor to your ancestors, as well as guidelines to keep those to come after you on the right path. When you don't pay homage, it is very easy to forget where you came from; my interpretation is that if you forget where you come from, you have no identity.

Dr. Gbadesgesin also discussed "Omoluabi," which gets into what are duties are as individuals. The research question was about transforming knowledge, and in doing so creating ideas and innovations to better the future. This is our responsibility to ourselves, as well as to our community. We build upon the traditions of our ancestors, create our own, and leave it all for the future generation to follow and build upon. This is both our communal responsibility, as well as what we owe to ourselves and those before us. Overall, the lecture was very interesting and i enjoyed it.

Omoluabi: Self Actualization and Communal Responsiblity

Just by reading the title for this weeks lecture gave me an idea of what would be covered in class. "Self Actualization and Communal Responsibility", is deep to one's own definition and personal feelings. Personally, it means to achieve one's full potential.Further more it's not always one person that's responsible but something the entire community has to do together. The lecture was broken down in different categories to help answer the research question,"How have scholars across the various fields of study advanced and transformed academic knowledge related to enduring problems of the human condition".
One of the things that was discussed was Ijuba, meaning homage. My understanding from this was that you have to give back or give honor to the ones before us and the ones after to keep traditions alive. One of the things that people forget about when they become successful is where they come from. Some times we get so caught up in our personal lives and forget about what we left behind. Its our responsibility to never forget because if we don't keep our "homage" alive, who will? That's where the title plays part in the lecture. Omoluabi, tells us our duties. We all know that we shoud be people of character who are disciplined to self improving. If we hold ourselves up to a certain standard our peers will began to gain the respect for us. We should use our wisdom and spread it through our communities so that they can gain knowledge from our eduacation. With that being said we should never get to caught up in ourselves because others need help too.
Another thing that Dr. Gbadegesin mentioned was acknowledging the human condition. What fell under this was racism and poverty. Racism and poverty are two things that we deal with daily. Dr. G mentioned that whites say that we as Africans don't have any history but what they didn't realize is that you have to have history before you can write it. So first thing is that we have to go through different situations until it can be apart of our history.
Dr.G and Dr.Carr's lecture relates because each gives us ideas about the research question. Each lecture feeds off each other giving us a better understanding in how to answer the question. The lecture for this week gave us an understanding for useful learning. I think we should all play apart in our society to be enthused to learn and maintain the developement of our society.

Omoluabi: Self Actualization and Communal Responsibility

This lecture struck me, right off the top, as being a lecture that would require me to look deeply within myself. I greatly appreciated how the lecture started, with Ijuba ( homage). We payed homage to anything and everything that we should be grateful for. Dr. G. explained that " not paying homage will cause you to get tied up." I took that , not in it's literal meaning, but being tied up in life. We often times get caught up in our fast pace lives and forget to give thanks to where we come from. So before anything and everything we do we should stop and give homage.

This lecture discussed a topic we often do not think about, transforming knowledge. The majority of the time we think that merely gaining knowledge is what we should aim for in our lives, but why do we cut ourselves short? Dr. G. discussed in this lecture how simply acquiring knowledge is not what we should settle for. Knowledge is meant to be transformed and drawn away from the orthodoxy. He taught that in the past the Africans were seen to have no history because there was no writing history when in actuality there was history all along. "History must be lived before it can be written." He stated that there was thought to be "no black philosophy" when originally all knowledge and philosophy began in Africa with Africans. As a generation in today's world we are expected to go to the source of knowledge then transform it.

Dr. G. also told us the story of Iwa. he explained how Iwa was a wife who then left her husband and after her retreat his life was meaningless and everything went wrong. Although this was a story, we all have an Iwa that lives within us and when we lose our Iwa we are nothing. Our Iwa is our character and our being. Without those two things we merely are shells of human beings taking up space in the world.

In the end of the lecture Dr. G. discussed the importance of responsibility. First we have a responsibility to ourselves. That responsibility is to first remake ourselves through education. This means to gain all the knowledge we can possibly hold in our minds and use it to transform ourselves to be better, educated , and well rounded individuals. Our second responsibility is the to the community. We are to serve our community with education. What good is knowledge if it can not be shared? We must give back to the community what the community gave us and pay our homage.

Overall, I enjoyed this lecture and I am looking forward to the lectures ahead.

Jesseca Farr

Omoluabi: Self Actualization and Communal Responsibility

    The main topic of the lecture this week is answering the research question of how various fields have transformed academic knowledge of the human condition. To approach this issue, Dr. Gbadegesin broke down the into three main parts.
    The first part is addressing the human condition. The human condition can relate to many things throughout our society; from our individual condition, to our communal or national condition. This question specifically relates to our social, moral, economic, cultural, political, etc. condition as a whole. Not just the state of our immediate community, but the entire world.
    Secondly, the topic of academic knowledge was specified. The question addresses how different academic field have transformed knowledge. The fields cover a broad spectrum including fine arts, humanities, natural sciences, social sciences and so on. All the fields have produced research and new knowledge which has influenced collective knowledge of the human condition.
     Lastly, Dr. Gbadegesin defined exactly what constitutes a transformation. He described this as a challenged to orthodoxy and societal norms. Also, a new paradigm for the world to look through. In essence, it is a shift from one was of thinking, into a new, broader range of thought.
    Dr. Gbadegesin and Carr's lecture related by taking the Mbongi, the place where knowledge is shared, and relating that knowledge to the transformation of thought. These Mbongi forums serve as a melting pot of new ideas which contributes to the defining and changing of the human condition.

Kristen Bailey

Learning, Wisdom,and The African World Experience

The first lecture that was brought before my class this week was the best lecture I've ever heard. From one lecture my eyes were open to a broader knowledge of my culture and the African tradition. But one thing that I can talk about all day is Dr. Greg Carr. He's an amazing professor that had me engaged throughout the entire lecture. Dr.Carr made me feel amazing because I knew that my work is not done when I finish college. It's a must that I give back to the black community because we lack in so many areas.
One of the key points was the description of the "Mbongi".Since there isn't much time in class to discuss our feelings on a particular point, the Mbongi allows us students to elaborate on several ideas and questions from the lecture. The word Mbongi is not a word that I was familar with until I started Freshman Seminar. I think the creation of the Mbongi is one of the greatest creations ever made. Like I mentioned earlier the Mbongi gives everyone the opportunity to participate and give their opinions.
Also we examined the contribution to global traditions and innvotions in teaching and learning from the classical, medieval, and contempory African experience. This section gave the class the insight about inventions made centuries ago. One thing I noticed was that African Americans don't get enough credit for the inventions they made that changed the world. An example was the creation of hierglyphics which began as an African symbol for writing. This was another way that they learned to communicate with other people. The greatest words used was the word "amen", which mean the unseen one. As I started thinking about innovations and other things similar to that I was informed that all things weren't invented by whites. They fed off the African experience. From this lecture African Americans should have a push to keep creating because our ancestors started it. Things are so much easier for us because they paid the way for us. Now that we have so much technology we have no excuse to keep the innovations going.
Another thing was call to action. This gave us the insight to help others and to keep our heritage and traditions alive. We should spread our wisdom to help others in places that they are lacking. One of the main things is to pass down the tradition down to the youger generations. Passing down our heritage and tradition down helps keep the African experience alive. And this isn't something that we want to ever die. With out this we can't strive to better ourselves or our people.
I'm glad that the Freshman Seminar class exists because it's going to help us all the way through college. It allows us to be more open to ideas and discuss things that are important to us students. While some people may think the class is pointless I see it as an creation to better our African tradition.

Niesha Bush

Learning,Wisdom,and the African World Experience: An Mbongi

First and foremost, I must say that this lecture exceeded my expectations to the fullest. Dr. Carr is a very powerful speaker and just in this one lecture alone, opened my eyes and mind to want to explore my culture in a more deeper and serious manner. Dr. Carr explained to us how everything we are ever taught traces back to our African roots. Many people place ideals in the hands of the British or the Greek when in actuality they start in Africa.

Dr. Carr stressed the ideal of the Mbongi. In our introduction to Freshman Seminar, Dr. Williams explained that " Mbongi" meant a house with no rooms, meaning that we are to be open with our surroundings and our people. Dr. Carr opened this definition to a more deeper explanation. Mbongi is not solely about being open with the people around you, but it is a force. It is a force that can not be broken nor challenged. When a group of people are gathered in a mbongi they are one, no matter the number. At that particular time, no matter where they have come from they all share one common bond and mind. Mbongi doesn't have to always be a spoken gathering. Body language can also be included in a mbongi.

I really enjoyed how Dr. Carr spoke about intelligence in the African American community. We as blacks must be proud to be intelligent individuals in a society that expects us to be uneducated, not wealthy, and quite frankly unidentified as human beings.

This lecture has me pumped for the lectures to come. I want to study more on my culture and make an impact on the world as an African American woman.

Jesseca Farr

The African World Experience

   This week's freshman seminar lecture explored the concept of the Mbongi. My initial impressions were that a Mbongi is simply a discussion among a group; however, after participating in this lecture I find that it is not only just a gathering, but a strong-held tradition in which brothers and sisters come together to exchange knowledge.
   The first point of this lecture is exploring how the world has progressed in teaching and learning through multiple facets of the African experience. To examine this we pondered classical, medieval, and contemporary African tradition and how each of them has affected the way we learn and teach today. What surprised me most is seeing how prevalent ancient Africans are in the sciences of mathematics, writing, astronomy and much more. It also saddens me that many don't give African's due credit for these innovations.
    A second key concept of this Mbongi is self-actualization.  In essence, once cannot truly learn and teach unless he or she is aware of his or herself as a person. This comes down to character and civil duties to the community. At Howard university it is our civil duty to participate in deep learning and with that learning to educate and share knowledge with others.
    A third point of discussion of this lecture is a call to action. In order to keep learning and teaching, we as African American students must continue to grow and share our wisdom with others. The Students of Howard University carry a grave tradition and without our sharing of knowledge with others, this tradition will die. The best forum for distributing this knowledge would be by keeping the Mbongi alive.
    In all, this Mbongi has defined our responsibilities and growth of knowledge for all future Mbongi's and has called us to action to take what we learn in this forum and share it with the community.

Kristen Bailey