June 14: Spelman College Announces Endowed Professorship and Scholarship in The Arts

Spelman College Announces Endowed Professorship and Scholarship in The Arts

Spelman College has named Ayoka Chenzira, Ph.D., professor and division chair for the arts, and Julie Dash, distinguished professor of documentary filmmaking in the Department of Art & Visual Culture, inaugural Diana King Endowed Professors in Film and Filmmaking, Television and Related Media.

The endowed professorships are made possible by a $7.5 million gift from The Charles and Lucille King Family Foundation.

"Ayoka Chenzira and Julie Dash are pioneers in the arts and beyond. Their scholarship and leadership at Spelman and continued excellence through their current contributions to the film industry provide students with real world examples of how they can succeed as creative storytellers and change agents. We are grateful for this generous gift from The Charles and Lucille King Family Foundation that honors these luminaries and supports the arts at Spelman," said Mary Schmidt Campbell, Ph.D., president of Spelman. "This gift comes to the College as we celebrate the success of new art programs in documentary filmmaking and photography, as well as the forthcoming development of the new Center for Innovation & the Arts. Through this gift Spelman will continue to encourage students to be innovative risk-takers, inventive creators and artistic collaborators."

The gift will also underwrite the Diana King Endowed Scholarship Fund in the Arts, open to junior applicants and rising seniors enrolled in Spelman’s documentary film program.

"It is an honor to commit these gifts to Spelman College. For more than 25 years, Spelman President Mary Schmidt Campbell shared an enduring friendship with our generous benefactor and original president and chair Diana King," said Eugene V. Kokot, trustee, president and chair of The Charles and Lucille King Family Foundation. "These gifts are to honor, in a meaningful way, the relationship shared between Diana King and Dr. Campbell, by helping to underwrite Spelman’s mission of preparing its students to be innovative and creative social change agents."

Spelman President Included on List of Top College and University Leaders

Spelman’s President Mary Schmidt Campbell, Ph.D. is among the country’s most renowned college and university presidents in the nation, according to College Cliffs, a free online resource for prospective college students.

In its Top 50 College and University Presidents list, College Cliffs highlights an array of college and university leaders who represent diversity in higher education.

Leaders on the list were selected for their administrative and financial astuteness, fundraising expertise and political skill.

"A president’s vision is crucial since it conveys a message of the institution’s journey from then on and where it’s headed," wrote College Cliffs. "Spelman College has been in the top tier of liberal arts institutions since the leadership of Mary Schmidt Campbell, Ph.D., started in 2015. She is the 10th president of the college and has successfully given the school the reputation as the nation’s top producer of Black women scientists."

The Spelman College Museum of Fine Art Shares Collection on Google Arts & Culture Platform

Global art enthusiasts will have an opportunity to view a breadth of original work curated by the Spelman College Museum of Fine Art thanks to a new collaboration with Google Arts & Culture.

The Museum is featured among 30 Atlanta institutions selected for "Atlanta: Bold and Beautiful - from hip-hop to fine art, street art to high fashion." Including hundreds of digitized works of fine art, photography, sculpture, murals and more, the online gallery brings together world-class Atlanta institutions that showcase the city’s culture – past and present – on the Google Arts & Culture platform and app at g.co/exploreatlanta.

More than a dozen images from "The Arc of the Collection," which traces the Museum’s collection through the lineage of its works, beginning in 1899 and incorporating four pivotal moments, will be included in the Google project.

"The Arc of the Spelman College Museum of Fine Art Collection uplifts an extraordinary community of artists, alumnae, arts leaders, students, and supporters of Spelman. Interwoven within this exhibition are the efforts, spirits, scholarship and voices that have helped to shape the Museum’s collection," said Mary Schmidt Campbell, Ph.D., president of Spelman. "We are excited for this opportunity to share our collection with a broader arts community."

New Scholarship to Help Students Reach Graduation

Lou Taylor, CEO of Tri Star Sports & Entertainment Group, recently announced a scholarship for Spelman graduates in need of financial support to reach graduation.

Tri Star decided to create the Finish Line Scholarship in the summer of 2020 in support of the Black Lives Matter Movement.

"When we announced the scholarship to staff, many shared personal success stories about how receiving financial support made a difference for them and their families," said Taylor. "Even our Spelman team member had a success story to share. We knew then that we made the right choice by partnering with the College for this opportunity."

Tri Star hopes to be able to grow the scholarship program, providing more funds to more students in the years to come.

Alumna Credits Spelman with Helping Her Find Her Calling

In her new role at the Coca-Cola Company, Alison "A.P." Chaney, C’2011, has one goal – to bring value to the everyday lives of their consumers in real ways.

In March 2021, Chaney became director of creative strategy for Sparkling Flavors in North America for the bottling company. In this role, she is responsible for optimizing and ensuring creative excellence for popular brands including Sprite, Fanta and others.

Inspired by her mother’s successes, and the seeds planted while at Spelman, Chaney learned that career choices and passions are an evolution and it is possible to become the things we have not imagined.

"My mom’s career path inspired me because she lived by the sentiment of Spelman alumna, Marian Wright Edelman, C'60, ‘You can't be what you can't see,’ which is something I have always taken to heart and try to reflect on every day in my career," said Chaney. "At Spelman, I was able to carve out an identity beyond my achievements. I grew into the person I was called to be. Spelman encouraged me to explore. In that process I found my appreciation for exploration, creativity, a love of words, a passion for volunteerism and my sense of humor."