Black History Month to feature cultural performances, food

Black History Month is a time to celebrate a part of American history and culture, with plenty of activities planned by the Minority Student Affairs Office and the Black Cultural Center.
There is a list of varied events including a Center Stage Event called “Def Poetry Jam” for anyone who enjoys rhythmic spoken language, and students will have the opportunity to perform on stage with J. Ivy and Dana Gilmore. There is also a Soul Food Dinner afterwards. There is a schedule of the activities planned in the BCC.
Dr. Robert Owens II, director of the Office of Minority Affairs, welcomes the campus to celebrate African American history this month. “I wasn’t exposed to a lot of history in general until after I was working on my teacher certification at MTSU.” He said “I took a course that highlighted black history as being a part of American History. I wish that Black History Month was not necessary, but the amount of information learned because of this month is so important to understanding our culture as a whole. Our nation still needs Black History Month because an important part of our history is not covered in most K-12 textbooks.”
Not only is the department planning campus activities for the month of February, they are investing in all minority student success with the mentoring group, RACE. The mentoring group has been on campus for years and has recently changed its name to the acronym: Reaching Achievement and Committed to Excellence. RACE’s goals are to help freshman minority students transition from high school to college with the help of more experienced students.
The department also has two programs called the Professional Development Series, and the Academic Success Workshops Series. With the former series, alumni are invited back to campus to share their experiences through speeches and lectures while the latter has scheduled events to insure   the success of the students.