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INSIDE MOREHOUSE, OCTOBER 2009
PREPARING FOR THE POSSIBILITY
Campus Prepares for H1N1, Flu Season
NEWS BRIEFS
TRIO Director Rubye Byrd
Receives Service Award
During HBCU Week
Rubye Byrd, director of
the TRIO programs at More
house, received a Special
TRIO Service Honor for her
leadership of five outreach
and support programs at the
College during the 2009
National Historically Black
Colleges and Univer-sities
Week Conference, held from
Aug. 30 to Sept. 2 in Washin
gton, D.C.
Byrd was just one of sev
eral Morehouse persons
prominently featured during
the three-day conference.
President Robert M.
Franklin ’75, who served as
a panelist during a work
shop focused on the benefits
of the Federal TRIO Prog
ram, urged attendees to fol
low the College’s lead in
“building a culture of high
expectation” for young men
at their institutions. He also
promoted holistic develop
ment of students through
group mentoring, intrusive
counseling and exposure to
examples of success.
David Morrow, director
of the Morehouse College
Glee Club, was again select
ed as one of only four con
ductors of the famed 105
Voices of History, the
HBCU National Concert
Choir that represents each of
the HBCUs in the country.
Finally, Morehouse al
umnus John S. Wilson Jr.
’79, was introduced as the
newly appointed executive
director of the White House
Initiative on Historically
Black Colleges and Univer
sities, the organization that
sponsored the conference.
Robert W. Woodruff Library
to Display Tupac Shakur
Collection in 2010
Poetry and other writ
ings by one of rap music’s
most noted performers will
join papers by Martin Luther
King Jr. ’48 as collections
that will be on display at the
Robert W. Woodruff Library.
The library, in collabora
tion with the Tupac Shakur
Foundation, will display the
Tupac Shakur Collection, a
cadre of the slain rapper’s
handwritten lyrics, notes and
other writings. Shakur’s
works will be available for
scholarly research in fall 2010.
The rapper’s papers join
the Morehouse College
Martin Luther King Jr.
Collection and other pieces
in the Library’s Archives and
Special Collections.
By KAI JACKSON ISSA
With the H1N1 virus a major
concern for colleges and universi
ties nationwide, Morehouse has
put measures in place to ensure
the College is prepared to combat
the spread of the virus and safe
guard the College community.
The College acted as early as
2008 by establishing an Emerg
ency Preparedness Program,
which includes a web page,
www.morehouse.edu/emergencv.
The site contains up-to-the-
minute information on the virus,
as well as other important infor
mation about campus safety.
“The Morehouse College
Emergency Preparedness Team,
led by [vice president for Campus
Operations] Andre Bertrand ‘76
and myself, has finalized its
Pandemic Influenza Emergency
Plan,” said William Bynum, vice
president for Student Services.
“Dr. Joe Williams [infirmary
physician], [director of the
Morehouse Public Health Science
Institute] Dr. Cynthia Trawick
and I have stayed abreast of the
latest developments and apprised
the College community and stu
dents accordingly.”
By ADD SEYMOUR JR.
Harold Ford Jr. recalled being
a young congressional candidate
in his hometown of Memphis,
Tenn., with the only groups will
ing to listen to his plans being
kindergarteners.
But after a grandparent of a stu
dent called a local radio show to tell
the world about the way Ford spoke,
the aspiring politician’s entire cam
paign took an upward swing.
It is the kind of moment that
Ford, who went on to serve 10 years
in Congress, urged students during
the Conversations on Leadership
lecture in the Bank of America
Auditorium to ready themselves for.
“Anytime in life, there’s going
to be that turning point,” he said.
“For me, that was my turning
The College’s Emergency
Management Team, which is also
led by Bynum, also has initiated a
system of email, voicemail and
text messaging has also been put
in place to alert everyone in the
event of an emergency.
Regarding H1N1, Morehouse
is following recommendations
from the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention (CDC)
for college and university envi
ronments. The CDC says college
campuses are particularly vul
nerable as points of spread for
the virus.
“Students in general think
they're invincible,” Trawick said.
That attitude, she added, com
bined with the continuous inter
action among students in build
ings throughout the day, makes
for a dangerous combination.
There has been only one con
firmed case of the H1N1 among
the Morehouse student body,
with that student being seen by
his personal family physician and
treated at home. The College's
Emergency Management Team,
the Office of Student Services,
and the Student Health Center
are in close contact with the
Fulton County Health Depar-
point... And the great lesson about
leadership that I learned from my
dad was very simple: Every oppor
tunity you have to show that you
are a leader, do it... If you believe
it’s right and you believe it’s the
right thing to do, be a leader and it
will pay off in the long run.”
Ford, now chairman of the
Democratic Leadership Council,
spoke to a capacity audience as part
of the Leadership Center at
Morehouse College’s Bank of
America Lecture Series, which has
featured speakers such as talk show
host Tavis Smiley, Princeton pro
fessor Cornel West and CARE CEO
Helene Gayle.
“Indeed, they have demon
strated themselves to be Renais
sance women and Renaissance
tment and the CDC in monitor
ing flu conditions.
The Student Health Center
hasn’t confirmed any H1N1 cases
on campus, but as a precaution,
students with symptoms of the flu
are sent isolation area in Mays Hall
where they are monitored closely
by the Center medical staff.
“Right now, we are very early
in the flu season,” said Harry
Wright, associate vice president
for Student Services. “The num
ber one action to protect ourselves
is self care - wash your hands.” He
also encourages everyone to use
the hand sanitizers that have been
placed around campus and in the
common areas.”
Seasonal flu and H1N1 have
identical symptoms which
include fever, sore throat, muscle
aches, cough, runny nose and
fatigue. Other symptoms may
include nausea, vomiting and
diarrhea. The virus is typically
spread from person to person
when an infected person coughs
or sneezes.
Free flu shots are available to
members of the College commu
nity. For more information
about shots or the flu in general,
www.morehouse.edu/emergency.
men with social conscience and
global perspective,” said President
Robert M. Franklin Jr. ’75.
“That certainly is the case for
today’s speaker, Chairman Ford,
one who I have admired a great
deal over the years. He’s an extraor
dinary leader, leader of dynamism,
a leader committed to integrity and
excellence.”
Ford talked about the many les
sons in leadership he learned from
his father, Harold Ford Sr., who in
1975 became the first African
American to represent Tennessee in
the U.S. Congress. They are many of
the same words of advice he had for
Morehouse students.
“Do not be afraid to rally
around an idea or set of ideas and
not be afraid to fail,” he said. “You
have to be bold and willing to
embark and put yourself out there
in order to have a chance to do
well. And three, as my dad always
told me, in every situation you’re
in, always lead. That doesn’t mean
to be bossy and be arrogant, but to
be a leader. Sometimes being a
leader means helping a person
who’s in charge to do better.”
Ford served in Congress from
1997 until 2006 when he decided to
nan for the U.S. Senate. He lost a
contentious, but close, race.
“I think I could have run a
smarter campaign,” Ford said. “But
what really drives me is I love pub
lic service and I can’t give that up.
Harold Ford Jr. Tells Students to Lead at Every Opportunity
Harold Ford Jr., chairman of the Democratic Leadership Council, speaks to students
at the Bank of America Auditorium.
PASSAGES
Robert A. Clark '59 Worked
40 Years for His Beloved
Alma Mater
Robert Alexander Clark '59
held a variety of prestigious
positions during his 44-year
career in higher education,
including the last 40 at
Morehouse. But it was his final
job at the College that became
one of his favorites: van driver
for the Bonner Office of
Community Service.
"We'd leave our service
sites after long hours and we'd
sometimes be frustrated and
tired," said sophomore psychol
ogy major Richard Williams.
"But he would always remind us
why we were doing our service.
He always had a bright perspec
tive on everything."
Clark passed away suddenly
on Sept. 19. He was 74. Services
were held on Sept. 25 at the
Martin Luther King Jr. Intern
ational Chapel.
Clark, a native of Mershon,
Ga., lettered in football and track
as a student at Morehouse,
where he earned a degree in
business administration and
economics. After graduation, he
served in the U.S. Army and later
earned a Master’s of Business
Administration degree from
Atlanta University, now Clark
Atlanta University.
After stints as the registrar
and director of admissions at
Barber-Scotia College in
Concord, N.C. and as a business
professor at Alcorn State
University in Alcorn State, Miss.,
Clark was personally recruited
by President Benjamin E. Mays
to return to his alma mater in
1969. He held several positions
in the Office of Fiscal Affairs and
the Office of Campus Operations.
But as a van driver, he loved
talking to students about their
community service projects,
debating about issues and sto
ries and talking about politics
and current affairs.
Williams added: "He would
keep you abreast of the news.
He would always keep the AJC,
the New York Times and The
Maroon Tiger in the van. He was
an awesome guy." ■