April 27: Spelman Announces Recipients of Inaugural Faculty Development Award

Spelman Announces Recipients of Inaugural Faculty Development Award

Four Spelman College faculty members are the inaugural recipients of the Carnegie Corporation of New York and Rockefeller Foundation Distinguished Research/ Creative Scholars award. Supported by a $1 million grant from the Carnegie Corporation of New York and The Rockefeller Foundation, the award inspires the growth of talented faculty members with a $10,000 stipend and fewer teaching responsibilities in order to focus on writing and research projects. "There are outstanding scholars in our midst," said Mary Schmidt Campbell, Ph.D., president of Spelman. "It’s our hope that this award allows them to develop stellar research that will help them advance as academics and professionals." The recipients, selected from each of the College’s divisions, for the 2020-2021 academic year include Abayomi Ola, Ph.D., associate professor of art history, Division of Arts; Tiffany Oliver, Ph.D., associate professor of biology, Division of Natural Sciences and Mathematics; Shay Welch, Ph.D., associate professor of philosophy and religious studies, Division of Humanities; and Erica Williams, Ph.D., associate professor of sociology and anthropology, Division of Social Sciences and Education.

Spelman President Reflects on the Effect of COVID-19
Administrators in higher education like Mary Schmidt Campbell, Ph.D., president of Spelman, are considering the ways colleges and universities will have to adapt to a post-COVID-19 environment. Dr. Campbell shared her thoughts on how she and the College's administrative team are rethinking Spelman's identity during an interview on WABE’s Closer Look with Rose Scott, Thursday, April 23. In an op-ed penned for The New York Times, Dr. Campbell shared her reflections on the College's virtual Founders Day and the importance of tradition during times of change. "Overnight, our small liberal arts college, designed exclusively for the success of Black women, which cherishes close relationships among its Spelman Sisters and between students and faculty, had become a bastion of distance and separation," she wrote. "COVID-19 is a new reality for everyone."

Senior to Work for Deloitte Consulting
Upon graduation, Jada Booker, C'2020, plans to work with Deloitte Consulting as a business technology analyst. Through several internship opportunities, the economics major has benefitted from real world professional experience. During her tenure at Spelman she gained experience through various internships, including positions with Moody's Investors Service in New York, and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and Deloitte Consulting service in Atlanta. On campus, Booker served as a Student Government Association intern, Junior Class Council treasurer, Gifted Girls of Grace Inc., e-Board member and vice president of SKIRTS Inc., all while maintaining a spot on the Dean's List. In 2019, the McDonough, Georgia, native was inducted into Omicron Delta Epsilon, one of the world's largest academic honor societies.

Alumna Works to Change the Diversity Perception of the NHL
For a little over two years, Kim Davis, C’81, has had the huge task of attracting a new and more diverse fan base to the game of hockey. In Nov. 2017, Davis was named executive vice president of social impact, growth initiatives and legislative affairs for the National Hockey League. In that role, she has taken on the mandate to help make the game and the league more welcoming to all fans and players. "I think there's this perception that because our sport is a very white sport, it's not welcoming," Davis told ESPN. "And, I'm not sure that's necessarily correct." To combat the effort, she has enacted initiatives like taking street hockey to an African American beach party, as well as presenting the NHL's inclusivity plan to 3,000 attendees at the 2019 National Association of Black Journalists conference.