Newspaper Page Text
Volume 46 No. 4
Atlanta, Ga. 30314
Morris Brown College Nov. 11, 1978
Above, James McPherson receives 1978 Brownite from Wanda R. Stans-
bury, editor Wolverine Observer. The 1978 Brownite was dedicated to
Mr. McPherson. Below, Norman Harrington, president SGA, presents a
plaque to Mr. McPherson for his literary accomplishments.
NOBUCS
By Michael Roland
The National Organization of
Black University and College Stu
dents (NOBUCS) has selected
Atlanta University Center, as the
site of its 3rd Annual National
Conference on November 16-19,
1978.
NOBUCS; a national alliance of
student leaders and campus edi
tors, purpose is to coordinate the
countinuing struggle to preserve
and enhance black institutions of
higher education.
During the course of this four
day conference national strategy
shall be developed to respond to
the crisis facing black colleges, as
well as the means of advancing our
institutions.
This year’s conference will fea
ture noted speakers, Lerone Ben
nett, Senior Editor, Ebony
Magazine; Kalamu Salaam, Edi
tor, Black Collegiate Magazine;
Benjamin Mays,- President Emeri-
tas, Morehouse College; Rev.
James Lowrey, Director, Southern
Christian Leadership Conference;
and Benjamin Hooks, Director,
National Association for the
Advancement of Colored People.
Luther Brown, who is a graduate
student at Howard University is
the 1978 Chairman of NOBUCS.
Brown said that this year’s con
ference will feature the formula
tion of council of campus editors.
“This council will spearhead the
development of a comprehensive,
(continued on page 4)
McPherson Speaks At
Honors Day
By Joyce James
James Alan McPherson, winner
of the 1978 Pulitzer Prize Award
for Fiction, was the guest speaker
for the Fall Honors Day Program
held in the John Henry Lewis
Health and P.E. Building Thurs
day morning, October 26, 1978 at
11:00 a.m.
A native of Savannah, Georgia,
Mr. McPherson graduated from
Morris Brown in 1965 with a dou
ble major in History and English
and a minor in Political Science.
He is also a 1968 graduate of the
Harvard Law School and a 1969
graduate of the University of Iowa.
Mr. McPherson taught at the
University of Iowa; University of
California at Santa Cruz; Howard
University; Morgan State Univer
sity; and is presently employed as
an Associate Professor of English
at the University of Virginia.
As well as winning numerous
awards, Mr. McPherson’s writings
have been anthologized in various
works including Black Voices. He
is also a contributing editor of the
Atlantic Monthly and has written
for the New York Time Magazine,
Playboy and other publications.
Mr. McPherson spoke of value’s
that students should keep in mind
while traveling the road to success.
He admitted that at first it can be
frustrating but chaos and disor
ganization can be a positive thing
because it fosters “self-discipline
and hard work.”
Mr. McPherson also emphas
ized the need on the part of stu
dents, to “dedicate” themselves to
their goals and objectives and to
“take chances.”
Much of his dedication was
learned from Dr. Payne, Mrs. Ben
ton, Dr. Rowley and Mr. Murchi
son during his college days at MBC
“Faith and optimism”, said Mr.
McPherson, “should never be
given up because it is a source of
respect.”
One must condition himself to
positive values and no matter what
happens to you—you have those
values to help put you back on the
road, concluded Mr. McPherson.
Norman Harrington, 1978-79
SGA President, presented Mr.
McPerson with a plaque on
behalf of the MBC student body,
and Wanda Stansbury, Editor of
the Wolverine Observer, presented
him the 1977-78 Brownite which
had been dedicated to him.
On hand to witness the Honors
Day event were the Uncle and
brother of Mr. McPherson, MBC
Alumni, faculty and various ele
mentary and high school students.
Deep gratitude goes out to the
Concert Band, choir and many
others who helped make the event
possible.
Grand Performance
By Darcei Parnell
Morris Brown College was
honored and privileged to welcome
Mary Lou Williams, a native of
Atlanta, the only living jazz artist
who has explored and played in
every era of jazz history. Miss Wil
liams pianist-composer-arranger-
capitvated her audience with
musical selections from the four
great areas of jazz; spiritual, rag
time, Kansas City Swing, and bop.
Miss Williams, an authority and
creator of jazz, possesses an
untouchable talent and remarka
ble knowledge of the essence of
jazz. She describes blues as “the
spiritual feeling that heals the
soul.” Her music contains an uni
que fashion and style that gives her
audience a renewed awareness and
deep appreciation for the creation
of music. She describes her music
as God’s music and stated “music
can’t be taught out of books it
comes from the mind and heart.”
Her performance arranged from
the 1930 entertainment demon
strating the strong swinging left
hand to boogie woogie music.
She encouraged young people to
get away from the commercial
sounds saying, “Jazz has a conver
sation, and nobody’s saying any
thing today.” Miss Williams
definitely knows how to make her
music talk to you for her and jazz
are one.
Miss Williams has a number of
applaudable achievements. She’s
founders and president of the Bel
Canto foundation for needy musi
cians. She is also the composer of
350 compostions. Miss Williams
has demonstrated the versatility of
jazz in her composition “Hymn in
Honor of St. Martin de Porres”
introducing the role of jazz for
sacred services and also composed
the “Zodiac Suite” for the New
York Philharmonic and performed
with the orchestra in 1946 intro
ducing Jazz and the Symphony for
the first time.
Miss Williams is the recipient of
a grant for musicial composition
by the Guggenheim foundation
and the National Endowment fpr
the Arts. She also received Honor
ary Doctorates from Fordham
University, N. Y. Loyola Univer
sity, and five other colleges and
universities. She conducts classes
at Duke University and has per
formed in Europe among many
places.
Mary Lou Williams, guest of Music Department