President Adams-Gaston Recent Events and Honors

10/12/2022

NSU President pose for a picture at the Opening Event of Black Orpheus

Vice President Cliff Porter, Mr. Dmitri Gaston, President Javaune Adams-Gaston, Professor April Woodard, and Professor Isekeije Soloman had a great time at the Chrysler Museum's Members' Exhibition Preview on Thursday, Oct. 6., celebrating the art and culture of West Africa. This event served as a kick-off of the museum’s “Black Orpheus: Jacob Lawrence and the Mbari Club” exhibition running from Oct. 7 through Jan. 8, 2023. The exhibition explores the connection between African American artist Jacob Lawrence and his contemporaries based in the Global South through the Nigerian journal Black Orpheus. Read more at the Chrysler Museum website.

NSU President at an Excellence in Teaching Awards event

President Adams Gaston received an “Excellence in Education Award” at The Norfolk Branch of the NAACP’s 63rd Banquet held on the NSU campus with over 250 participants. In addition, the NAACP NSU Student chapter received awards. The students honored were (left to right) Latonya Ezeala, Teraeon Jones, Quamain Knight, Jaylin Drewery, and Jailin Livatt. Dr. Robert Perkins is the advisor to the students. Keep up with the Norfolk Branch of the NAACP at Norfolk NAACP Facebook page.

Economic Accelerator Day made for an exciting and insightful first day of the UEDA Annual Summit in San Antonio on October 9.

The keynote address from Dr. Rhonda Vonshay Sharpe of WISER was a reminder that innovators are everywhere. As Dr. Sharpe stated that calling something a best practice means perpetuating the status quo. Confining people to what we might consider “best practices” can stifle creativity and be unwelcoming to potentially groundbreaking ideas.

Our panel of HBCU leaders featured Norfolk State University President Dr. Javaune Adams-Gaston; Stillman College President and Executive Vice President, Dr. Cynthia Warrick and Dr. Derrick Gilmore; and Dr. Teresa Merriweather Orok, the Executive Director of the Center for Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Economic Development, at Alabama A&M University. A theme of the panel was exploring potential of partnerships between larger universities and HBCUs to building connections for their student and bridging them to graduate programs of their interest that may not be available at HBCUs.

There was also a listening session hosted by Bernadette Grafton that centered around University Centers. One important question stuck out from the session: how might University Centers collaborate to ensure that a state’s needs are more fully served? ARENI hopes to address this question and others like it in future University Center convenings.

EA day programming concluded with a panel of Federal representatives exploring the Federal Lab to Market landscape moderated by Brittany Sickler from EDA. Jennifer Shieh from the SBA, Rukmani Vijayaraghavan, from DOE, and Thyaga Nandagopal from NSF discussed how university economic development professionals can connect with key programs that can help to accelerate innovation and broaden the reach of lab to market programs.

Economic Accelerator Day overall was a success. Making connections and having conversations are what drive the efforts to ensure opportunities are available to everyone. ARENI hopes to see you at future events!

From the ARENI Newsletter
10-20-22 | Beyond Best Practices – Innovation for Everyone

image says: Trailblazers of Title IX: Lunch with Legends. Women Leaders in College Sports

NSU President Dr. Javaune Adams-Gaston was honored to be a “Trailblazer of Title IX” at the “Lunch with Legends” event during the Women Leaders in College Sports National Convention on Tuesday, Oct. 11, in Kansas City, MO. Each of the 56 Trailblazers hosted a table during the luncheon offering attendees “the opportunity to hear firsthand the history and impact Trailblazers have had on the industry during the first 50 years of Title IX.” The convention is a best-in-class leadership event designed to develop the professional journeys of women working in sports, supporting career advancement through a connection with a powerful community. The conference referenced Dr. Adams-Gaston as a member of the NCAA Board of Governors.

Learn more at the Women Leaders in College Sports website.

See MEAC Conference coverage.

Norfolk State University President Dr. Javaune Adams-Gaston, Provost DoVeanna Fulton, and other NSU administrators met with Commonwealth of Virginia legislators on Tuesday, Oct. 11, to talk about the increasing needs of Norfolk State University as new and transfer students come in and looking toward projected student growth in the coming years. Administrators chimed in on the discussion offering legislators detailed facts to address their questions and move the conversation forward as NSU and the Commonwealth work together to provide students with all they need for a well-rounded and comprehensive education.

In 2022 the NSU Athletics Foundation launched the inaugural Ms. Athletics Foundation initiative to raise funds for the Fifth Year Scholarship fund for student-athletes. Four ladies aggressively campaigned to support this new initiative. The participants were Brenda Betts, Phyllis Coley, Willie Freeman, and Kim McEachin, all of whom collectively raised $25,000. All four contestants are long-time members and supporters of the Athletics Foundation. The campaign culminated in a crowning ceremony Oct. 12 in the Lyman Beecher Brooks Library rotunda, where Ms. Freeman was crowned as the inaugural Ms. Athletics Foundation. Remarks on the significance of the event were offered by NSU President Javaune Adams-Gaston, Vice President Clifford Porter, and Dr. Ivana Rich. The crowning was presided over by NSUAF President William Sivels.