A&M Alum Nichelle Gainey, president and CEO of SilverStone International, will be a featured speaker at the NBA's Basketball Without Borders' Africa

24-7PressRelease/ - BIRMINGHAM, AL, August 29, 2008 - Nichelle Gainey, president and CEO of SilverStone International, will be a featured speaker at the NBA's Basketball Without Borders' Africa Stopover in Senegal with legendary basketball player and HBCU coach Ben Jobe, a prominent figure in the ESPN documentary film, "Black Magic."

The Stopover, from August 30 to Sept. 2, benefits the SEEDS Foundation, an educational and athletic training program started by Amadou Gallo Fall, Senior Vice President of International Affairs for the Dallas Mavericks, whose basketball skills won him a U.S. scholarship to the University of the District of Columbia.

SEEDS (Sports for Education and Economic Development in Senegal) Academy furthers the foundation's goals by providing a boarding school for Senegalese boys ages 19 and below to live, study and train in basketball year round. Basketball Without Borders is an instructional basketball camp for young people that utilizes the sport as a vehicle to influence positive social change. The camp features dozens of current and former NBA players and team personnel as camp coaches for 100 young athletes.

"We are excited to have someone with Ms. Gainey's sports background working with us to take SEEDS' mission beyond Senegal's borders," Fall said. "SSI's strategic role in improving soccer programs in the U.S. and her relationships with national sports leaders throughout Africa makes her a key player in spreading SEEDS' educational and athletic opportunities to youths in other African countries, so they can develop to their fullest potential."

Ben Jobe - the legendary basketball player and renowned coach at Historically Black Colleges and Universities including AMU (Alabama A&M University), ASU (Alabama State University) and Tuskegee University - will host a basketball clinic at the camp for local Senegalese coaches.

Gainey reconnected with Jobe during SSI's marketing efforts for the ESPN documentary "Black Magic," in which Jobe was prominently featured. For Jobe, who retired and lives in Montgomery, AL, the trip marks his first return to western Africa since 1961, when he first exposed its youths to his unique style of basketball.

Both Jobe and Gainey will speak during events that include dedication of new basketball courts, and a tournament sponsored by SEEDS Foundation Board member and NBA star DeSagana Diop, a native of Senegal. The Stopover in Dakar, Senegal's capital city, will also benefit LeDantec Hospital, West Africa's pediatric cancer treatment facility.

"Mr. Jobe and I are honored to be part of such a historic event in the life of Senegal's evolving basketball program," Gainey said. "The hope is that, by developing life skills as well as athleticism in African youths, SEEDS can offer them yet another road for success, like soccer does for many youths throughout the world."

Ms. Gainey just returned from the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing, China, where she was the guest of leaders of CAF (the Confederation of African Football) and FIFA (F d ration Internationale de Football Association), which organized Olympic soccer events in Beijing.

About SilverStone International

SilverStone International (SSI) is a results-oriented, full-service corporate consulting firm dedicated to enhancing the capacity of non-profit and for-profit organizations, with a special emphasis in the area of sports management and marketing. SSI's lead consultant is President/CEO Nichelle Gainey, who has a 15-year background in sports management, marketing and consulting. The company is based in Birmingham, Alabama with offices located currently in New York and South Africa.

Tavis Smily's Talented Tenth tour comes to A&M

Radio and television talk personality Tavis Smiley will bring his "Talented Tenth HBCU Tour" to Alabama A&M University next month, September 19, 2008.

An Aug. 4 New Yorker magazine profile summarized Smiley's "Talented Tenth" initiative this way. "(Smiley) calls his black-college tours 'Talented Tenth,' after W. E. B. Du Bois's famous essay from 1903, which began with a ringing proclamation: 'The Negro race, like all races, is going to be saved by its exceptional men....'

HBCUs are "historically black colleges and universities," and Smiley's goal is "to enlighten, encourage and empower students to think about what their own leadership legacy will be."

At A&M Sept. 19, Smiley will lead a two-hour discussion open to students on the campus. The program, beginning at 6 p.m. is sponsored by the U.S. Navy. Smiley is, among other things, the host of "Tavis Smiley," a weeknight half-hour talk show on PBS.

Historic Funding Increases for Historically Black Colleges and Universities This Fall

As a result of the College Cost Reduction and Access Act, enacted into law last year, historically black colleges and universities across America will begin to receive record increases in new funding for the coming school year. The U.S. Department of Education will start awarding the grants to schools tomorrow.

The law provides $170 million in new funding for HBCUs over the next two years to help expand college access, strengthen support services that focus on helping low-income and minority students stay in school and graduate, and renovate campuses in need of improvement. The grants provided under the law are mandatory funding, meaning schools will receive them in addition to any funding that is appropriated annually by the Congress. All 99 HBCUs that currently receive federal funds will benefit from this increase.HBCUs play a significant role in helping African American students succeed in college and the workforce. Although they represent only 3 percent of all colleges and universities, they enroll close to a third of all African-American students. Forty percent of their students pursue four-year degrees in science, technology, engineering and math, and about half of all African-American students in teaching fields attend HBCUs.

Despite this progress, HBCUs continue to face a unique set of financial challenges, including balancing limited resources and endowments with a deep commitment to serving students with fewer financial resources. Many schools are in dire need of repair, especially Gulf Coast schools that are still feeling the devastating effects of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Sadly, federal support for HBCUs and other minority-serving schools has dwindled under the Bush administration. In his most recent budget for the fiscal year 2009, President Bush proposed cutting funding for HBCUs and other minority-serving institutions by $85 million, a 35 percent decrease from the previous year’s budget.In addition to the funding provided by the College Cost Reduction and Access Act, Democrats are also working to boost support for HBCUs by enacting the Higher Education Opportunity Act, which would strengthen and reauthorize the nation’s higher education programs. That bill, which Congress is working to finalize this week, would increase the amount of funding HBCUs could receive for capital projects, expand funding eligibility for graduate student programs at HBCUs and other minority serving-institutions and would address the challenges of starting and growing endowments at these schools. “This landmark investment in HBCUs will strengthen college opportunities for millions of talented students. HBCUs are a vital part of America’s higher education and economic framework, and have a long history of producing some of our nation’s greatest leaders, innovators, and thinkers.

By providing HBCUs with these much-needed federal resources, we are saying that the needs of these vital institutions and their students can no longer go ignored.” -- Chairman George Miller, author of the law “HBCUs have played and continue to play an integral role in furthering the education of Black students in America. Unfortunately, these institutions face increasing challenges and have limited resources. I am very pleased with the historical investment to HBCUs that the College Cost Reduction and Access Act will provide. It is a much-needed step in the right direction and will go a long way toward helping HBCUs continue to provide a quality education to our nation's youth.” -- Rep. Robert C. “Bobby” Scott, Co-Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus Education Taskforce“As a graduate of the University of Arkansas Pine Bluff, I and my brothers, sisters, nephews, cousins and friends know firsthand the opportunities provided by HBCUs, especially to low-income African American students. Chairman George Miller and the Committee on Education and Labor are to be commended for this outstanding bill.” -- Rep. Danny K. Davis, Co-Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus Education Taskforce
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Source: By Kittredge, Betsy Miller on July 30, 2008 Committee on Education and Labor, House of Representatives

2cd Annual AAMU National Alumni Association Scholarship Golf Tournament Friday October 24, 2008

Letter from the desk of the AAMU National Alumni Association
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ANNUAL SCHOLARSHIP GOLF TOURNAMENT
Post Office Box 550395
Birmingham, Alabama 35255

Dear Normalites:

We seek your cooperation in making the AAMU Alumni Association’s Second Annual Scholarship Golf Tournament bigger and better. This scholarship fundraiser is sponsored by your national alumni association and we need full cooperation from all entities: members, chapters, and regions.

Kick start your Magic City Classic festivities by joining your national alumni officers and members of the Birmingham/Jefferso n County Alumni Chapter at the historical Roebuck Golf Course on Friday, October 24, 2008. There are several opportunities for you to support this scholarship tournament:

Bulldog Sponsor at $3,000
(includes 3 teams, 1 tee box sign, 4 Magic City Classic tickets & Print Advertisement)

Eagle Sponsor at $2,000
(includes 2 teams, 1 tee box sign, 4 Magic City Classic tickets & Print Advertisement)

Birdie Sponsor at $1,000
(includes 1 team, 1 tee box sign, 4 Magic City Classic tickets & Print Advertisement)

Golf Team (4 person scramble) at $400

Hole Sponsor at $200
Information and electronic registration is available at

www.bhambulldogeven ts.com

For more information, please contact Clarence Horton at 205/791-0005, John Hackett at 205/305-1449, Samuel Moore at 205/925-0860 or Simpson Berry at 205/942-6025.

In anticipation of your positive response,

Robert Crenshaw, General President Donetta Brown, President
AAMU Alumni Association, Inc. Birmingham/ Jefferson Co. Chapter
205/957-2584 205/856-4423

AAMU ALUMNI ASSOCIATION, INC.
P.O. Box 1717
Normal, Alabama, 35762

Grant boosts A&M health careers program

U.S. Senator Richard Shelby, R-Ala., a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, announced today that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services will award $639,992 to Alabama A&M University for the Health Careers Opportunity Program.
"It is important that we continue to create the conditions that will allow hard-working students to succeed in the professional field of their choice," said Shelby. "This grant will help Alabama's students enhance their academic skills so that they may enter and graduate from a health professional training program."

Source: Submitted by Eric Wagner on Eric's Spot, BlackCollegeLiveNetwork.com, Serving Alabama A&M univeristy Students and Alumni

Dr. Susan Brown, AAMU Professor DNC Delegate

Huntsville, Ala. — An Alabama A&M University professor will represent the 5th Congressional District at the Democratic National Convention in Denver, Colo., August 25-28. Dr. Susan C. Brown, who also serves as assistant to the dean of the School of Arts and Sciences, was elected to the State Democratic Executive Committee (District 20) in 2006. She is a member of the Madison County Democratic Executive Committee and was selected as the Madison County Democratic Women’s Division’s “Woman of the Year” in 2004.
Brown was a member of the Huntsville/Madison County Leadership’s Focus (Class 14) and Leadership (Class 20).

Source: Submitted by Eric Wagner on Eric's Spot, BlackCollegeLiveNetwork.com, Serving Alabama A&M univeristy Students and Alumni

Dean Taylor has been appointed to the Editorial Board of the Soil Science Society of America Journal

Dr. Robert W. Taylor, dean of the School of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, has been appointed to the Editorial Board of the Soil Science Society of America Journal (SSSAJ), beginning January 1, 2009 for a three year term. Dr. Taylor will also serve as an associate editor of the organization’s division on soil chemistry.

SSSAJ is a reputable international research journal published through Stanford University. SSAJ publishes Papers on original research, issue papers, reviews, comments and letters to the editor, and book reviews by soil subject matter experts.

Alabama A&M University has one of the leading Agricultural and Environmental Sciences programs in the country. Dr. Taylor is a well respected soil chemist who has received many honors for his research. Hence, Dean Taylor will be an equitable contributor to the Journal.

Dr. Taylor entered the AAMU deanship as a Fellow in two leading international professional societies. He also served as a program officer for the National Science Foundation, considered one of the most prestigious peer review funding agencies in the world. He was elevated to the senior management when in the second year he served as Acting Deputy Division Director of the Division of Biological Infrastructure. Upon returning to AAMU, the Division presented Taylor with the Distinguished Service Award.

Taylor earned the B.S. degree from Tuskegee University in 1970. He pursued his postgraduate studies at Michigan State University, obtaining a M.S. degree in soil microbiology in 1973 and a Ph.D. in soil chemistry in 1977.

Alabama A&M: Former Bulldog Augustin Headed to Hungary to Play Hoops Professionally

Aug. 5, 2008


Former Alabama A&M University basketball student-athlete Tamisha Augustin has signed a contract to play pro basketball for the Atomeromu-Szekszard team in Hungary for the 2008-09 season. Augustin, who has been playing semipro ball in Atlanta and across the United States, recently averaging 16 points, six assists and five rebounds with the Atlanta Jaguars.

The 5-foot-8 guard will be the first American to play for the Hungarian squad, which is eager to have her become a point guard around whom to build. She will leave in mid-August for Hungary . Augustin graduated from Alabama A&M and last played for the Bulldogs in the 2005-06 season where she averaged 8.1 points per game. She now owns a master's degree in microbiology.

At a recent AAU tournament, she was coaching an Atlanta girls team. Augustin graduated from Bethel High, where she was a second-team Daily Press All-Star in basketball in 2001, as well as a standout cross-country runner. When she arrived at A&M she made an immediate contribution as a freshman, averaging a team-high 10.1 points per game.

Augustin injured her knee before her sophomore season but bounced back enough to contribute averages of 3.8 points, 1.9 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 18 games. As a junior, she played 29 minutes per game, averaging 8.8 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.0 assists in 25 contests. Twice she was named second-team all-SWAC, and she garned conference player of the week.

Source: NCAA Womens Basket ball