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Page 6 • SPELMAN SPOTLIGHT November, 1986
Student is proud to attend a black college
by Sherri A. McGee
Three short years ago, I
decided to do something that
was quite important to me and
also quite vogue in my com
munity to attend a black college
in the south.
when he was unable to obtain a
transfusion.
Upon my graduation from the
predominately white Beverly
Hills High School, I matriculated
to Spelman College in Atlanta,
Ga. Little did I know that this ex
perience would grow into one
that would prove invaluable for
the remainder of my life.
I did not know what to expect
from the southern lifestyle or this
black college. What I got was the
unexpected, a greater
knowledge of who and what I
have come from as a black per
son. I have learned that it is a
generation of strong black peo
ple who have acheived pro
minence in all facets of this
world and what it has to offer.
In addition to seeing these
motivated people who
motivated me, I was being in
troduced to black scholars who
took time out to speak to the
students. I never dreamed I
would learn about people such
as Madame C. J. Walker, who is
responsible for the ad
vancements in black haircare,
or, Dr. Charles Drew who was
the pioneer of blood preserva
tion, but who ironically died
As I sat in Martin Luther King
Chapel once in my freshman
year and watched Yolanda King
and Attallah Shabazz, two
women whose fathers I have
long admired, I thought to
myself, “If I had not come to a
black college, when would I
have learned about so many
black scholars, astronauts,
organizations, and programs of
my race?” I came to the sad con
clusion, probably never. This
shocked me greatly and quickly
woke me up to all that I had to
learn.
Black colleges have existed
for over a hundred years and I,
like so many others, feel for
tunate that they are still in ex
istence today so that I could
have the opportunity to see
what the experience is all about.
In this day when so many young
black adults my age are opting
to continue their higher educa
tion at more prestigious schools
known throughout the world, it
is nice to see there are some
who are giving the schools our
parents attended a chance.
While I can understand the ad
vantages of Ivy League schools,
I am also aware of the advan
tages the 43 predominately
black colleges have to offer. I
must say that it is an experience
that far surpasses what I learn in
the classroom Monday through
Friday from nine to five. The
cultures are diverse and all the
students have one thing in com
mon — to be successful in the
future.
Awareness also plays a large
part in my attendance at
Spelman College because for
years I was doing somebody
else’s thing and thinking that it
was my own. I was wearing
what I thought looked nice on
me, but indeed, was simply
what was fashionable at the
time. I was listening to
somebody else’s music
unbeknownst to me that I had a
whole culture of music to learn
about. Until I learned about peo
ple like Count Basie, Billie Holi
day, Duke Ellington, Marian
Anderson and Grover
Washington Jr., I did not know
what music really was. Of
course there are countless
others, but the shock came
when I looked around and I was
still learning.
Obviously, there are those
that do not see the black college
issue as I do. I am sure there are
also some who do not feel that
to pursue four years in a black
college is worthwhile or produc
tive. I must ask these people,
“Isn’t it quality, not quantity, that
is the name of the game?” These
schools have done more than
their share of educating some of
the most well-known blacks in
society today, as well as those
who have died trying to improve
it. People like Dr. Martin Luther
King, Jr., U.S. Supreme Court
Judge Thurgood Marshall,
scholar and past president of
Morehouse College Benjamin
E. Mays, novelist Alice Walker
, and past Congresswoman Dr.
Shirley Chisholm.
To these people I also ask,
“Where are black children going
to learn about themselves and
their past?” I certainly do not
think much emphasis will be
given at these Ivy League
schools. I think that is it impor
tant for us to understand
ourselves before we can begin to
accept and understand others
and whatr more appropriate
place than a black college to do
this? By opting for an environ
ment of my black counterparts,
I can begin to analyze instead of
criticize why we as blacks do
some of the things we do. I can
also begin to develop a positive
self-concept which is very im
portant, especially for the black
youth today. In this environ
ment I feel that what I think is
important and will be listened to
seriously. I also will develop an
interest for things that I consider
MOREHOUSE
COLLEGE
ENOUGH
SAID
2473 Chapman Springs Rd.
(Jamestown Plaza)
College Park, GA 30337
Good Luck In Your
Homecoming Game.
O
Motto:
Your Beauty
is Our Business
768-8955
College World Bookstore
Spelman College
Open 9-5 M-F
10-2 Saturday
personally.
As I think of all of the Afro-
Americans I have learned about
since my initiation into the
Spelman community, I become
sad when I realize that it is all
about to end. My attitude now
is to try to learn as much as
possible my last year'here and
go out into the community an
pass the learning on. As I look
at the environment around the
campus, I am motivated to want
to help. I think that the surroun
ding environment is the perfect
one to help students to see what
the “real world” can look like
without a college education.
I have to say that coming to
the south has certainly been
more than an experience. It has
also been an awakening that I
would have been sorry if I had
not undertaken it.
Once you have recovered
from the positive qualities
nothing can stop you, nothing
can stand in your way and
nothing can slow you down.
You will leave with the keys to
what it takes to become a suc
cess. Like the United Negro Col
lege Funds slogan says, “A Mind
Is A Terrible Thing To Waste.”
After these four years have gone
at Spelman College, I will know
that I did not waste my mind nor
my time.
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