Dr Boyce Watkins Gives a Warning to College Students

As a college professor for the past 16 years, I’ve noticed two things about college: It can be a place to make your dreams come true, and it can also be a breeding ground for your worst nightmares. So, I thought I would compile a list of things that I’ve seen college students do to ruin their lives over the years. Hopefully, you and your child can learn from what I am about to share.

1) Sex, drugs, alcohol and gambling
College is a great place to pick up a lot of really bad habits. The worst part is that people tell you that these things are ok. It’s not that all of these are bad things to do, but at the very least, they should be done in moderation. It doesn’t matter if you are in college: If you have sex with too many people, you are going to catch a disease or get pregnant. If you use drugs, you are going to become a drug addict. If you drink too much, you will become an alcoholic. Gambling can also ruin your life as much as drugs or alcohol. I have several dozen friends with really messed up lives to this day, all of whom started their downward spiral on a college campus. You should not think that because you are in college, you are immune to these problems. If something doesn’t feel right, then you shouldn’t do it. Be mature enough to make smart decisions.

2) Falling for the credit card scams and ruining your credit
There are no serious credit card scams in college, only the little people who stand out in front of the bookstore trying to get you to take their "free money". Credit cards are very tempting when you are in school, especially since you are broke. If you decide to take one, make sure that you are very careful with how much you buy with the card, and that you have a careful plan to pay it all back. Putting yourself in over your head can easily destroy your credit. That is not a good cycle to get into. Not taking care of your student loan obligations can ruin your credit as well. You should manage your debt as best you can, because if you don’t, it can take decades to fix the problems that are created.

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Alphas Speak on Stress

Two educated Alpha Men break it down for the world to see.  Dr Wilmer Leon and Dr. Robert Brown discuss how to cope with the stress of a changing environment.  Click here to listen!

The Angry AKA Defends Her Sorors

In the past two weeks, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. has been the subject of intense media scrutiny as a result of a damaging civil lawsuit that was filed by some members who call themselves “Friends of the Weeping Ivy.” The news was picked up by the mass media and all hell has rained down on dear old AKA, my beloved sorority, ever since.

We have been called “Criminal girls with 20 pearls,” “She say she say,” “AKA’s money gone funny,” “Sorority girls gone rogue” and worse. To be candid, it has been embarrassing for all of us to endure the negative publicity surrounding the lawsuit filed against our international president, Barbara A. McKenzie, just one year after our centennial celebration in Washington, D.C., last July. And it has been downright heart wrenching to watch our sisters fight each other publicly with lawsuits and harsh indictments instead of finding a way to talk to one another directly and allowing our bylaws and internal oversight processes to deal with this matter privately.

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Dr. Boyce Watkins: Why We All Need to Go to College

by Dr. Boyce Watkins, Syracuse University 

The following is an exerpt from the book, "Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about College."

Before I tell you all the great things about college, and all the things that are going to happen before, during and after, we should start with a very basic question: why do you want to go to college anyway? I mean, you could be doing a lot of things: playing in the NBA, bustin rhymes with your boys on stage, acting in Hollywood, or just plain old "kickin it". More realistically, you could also just jump right out and get a job after high school. There was a time when that wasn’t such a bad thing. My grandmother always tells me stories about the days when a high school diploma went a long way, when a house cost 8 cents, when dogs didn’t bite and you could leave your front door open at night. But a lot of things have definitely changed since then, and a person must adjust to the times.

If you want to increase your chances to getting a good job one day, then getting a solid education under your belt is a great place to start. Once, I asked a friend if she was going to college. I think that she was the kind of person that wanted to make the quick money, rather than spend 4 years investing in her education. In her mind, it was all about making money right away, and college would be a waste of 4 years for her. When I asked her if she was going to go to college, she said "I like money too much to go to college". I said to her "I like money too much not to go to college!" So the fact is this: you need degrees to get to the cheese! To lay it down in concrete terms, a census bureau survey showed that college graduates earn nearly one million dollars more during their lifetime than people with high school diplomas. What would you do with your extra million?

Sure there are exceptions. I went to college with guys who never graduated and left early for the NBA to make more money than most of us will ever make. However, this is clearly the exception. For every Kobe Bryant or Allen Iverson, there are literally millions of other students who are not quite good enough to make the big money. For every Vivica Fox or Jenifer Aniston, there are a lot of women out there in Hollywood with roaches crawling across the bathroom floor. I am not saying this to stamp out the dreams you may have, it’s a reminder that you should pursue higher education no matter what you decide you want to do. This guarantees that you will have something to fall back on in case your plans don’t turn out quite the way you thought they would.

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Dr. Wilmer Leon Interviews Suzanne Simons

Dr Wilmer Leon interviews Suzanne Simons about her book “Master of War: Blackwater USA’s Erik Prince and the Business of War".  Click here to listen!

Shanelle Walker: The Dopest Poet in America?

Shanelle Walker is the former student body President at Kentucky State University. She wrote this amazing poem to encourage African American youth to get out and vote for President Barack Obama. Not only is she a political activist, she is a writer, leader and emerging media personality. Is she one of the dopest young black poets in America? You be the judge! Rather than reading the poem, I recommend that you watch her perform it. The performance is on the video link below.

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Dr. Stroman Questions Black Leadership: While Barb’s In Charge — Should You Watch Your Wallet?

By Dr. Debbie Stroman

As a leadership scholar and proud member of the Black Greek Nation, I find it quite appropriate to comment on the sad state of affairs regarding the recently filed Alpha Kappa Alpha (AKA) Sorority lawsuit. President Barbara McKinzie and the executive director are being charged by eight sorority members of financial impropriety to the extent they want them removed immediately from leadership. Since the case has not been heard in a court of law, one should only share opinions (humor permitted) on the specifics of the allegations. However, since this latest announcement seems to suggest a pattern of inadequate leadership in some of our most cherished Black non-profit organizations, I write because I am very concerned about why our community continues to cling on to leaders who repeatedly demonstrate an inability to be accountable, effective and in touch with today’s reality. A few years ago another Barbara, Zeta Phi Beta Sorority’s president Barbara Moore, was charged with similar activities and the smoke has yet to clear on the internal damages inflicted on the organization. Moore did finally admit to using the sorority’s funds for her own needs though. Both sororities are purposed as charitable organizations to foster sisterly love and service to others yet find themselves dedicating dollars and time to legal matters and media hysteria. Sisters are blogging and posting vitriolic comments about who’s to blame, why the organizations are even relevant and necessary, other sorority options and even thoughts of why the lawsuit doesn’t even matter. If only we can generate this type of intense dialogue to find practical solutions to important matters like our educational needs in the Black community.

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Black News: AKA President Accused of Misallocating Funds

Members of the country’s oldest black sorority are suing to remove their president, alleging that she spent hundreds of thousands of dollars of the group’s money on herself — some of it to pay for a wax statue in her own likeness.

In the suit filed in Washington, D.C., the Alpha Kappa Alpha members also alleged that international President Barbara McKinzie bought designer clothing, jewelry and lingerie with the sorority credit card. She then redeemed points the purchases earned on the card to buy a big-screen television and gym equipment, the lawsuit said.

"This is extraordinarily shocking if not illegal conduct," Edward W. Gray Jr., an attorney representing the plaintiffs suing the Chicago-based sorority, said Wednesday.

McKinzie denied what she called the lawsuit’s "malicious allegations," saying they were "based on mischaracterizations and fabrications … not befitting our ideals of sisterhood, ethics and service," according to a statement issued this week by the sorority.

The lawsuit also accused the sorority’s board of directors of signing off on spending funds on McKinzie without the required approval by the group’s membership. For example, the lawsuit says the board approved a monthly "pension stipend" of $4,000 for four years after she leaves office and purchased a $1 million life insurance policy for her. The suit demands McKinzie be fired and return money to the sorority.

 

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NCAA Finally Gets Sued

LAS VEGAS — Lawyers for the former U.C.L.A. basketball star Ed O’Bannon filed a class-action lawsuit against the N.C.A.A. on Tuesday, claiming former athletes should be compensated for the use of their images and likenesses in television advertisements, video games and apparel.

The lawsuit, which did not include a dollar amount sought, will bring into focus how the N.C.A.A. handles player images, especially after players leave college and are no longer bound by N.C.A.A. rules, and its vast licensing deals, which are estimated at about $4 billion. None of that money goes to the former players whose images, jersey numbers and likenesses are used.

“We really couldn’t believe that these compensation practices still existed in any kind of industry,” said Jon T. King, a partner at Hausfeld, a Washington-based law firm that is representing O’Bannon. “We do antitrust cases in all sorts of industries, and when we learned about this disparity, it was literally shocking to us.”

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Black Money: Young Black Entrepreneurs Win Big Prize

Awarded 25K Grant in National Business Plan Competition

After competing against hundreds of minority owned businesses across the country, dangerousNEGRO Black Empowerment Apparel (dN|Be Apparel) was recently awarded $25,000 at the culmination of MillerCoors’ Urban Entrepreneur Series (MUES). Owners Tre Baker, Justin Giboney, Sebastine Ujereh, and Demetrius Walker were on hand to accept the prize at Chicago’s Blackstone Hotel. Known for being an edgy, yet socially conscious streetwear line, dN|Be Apparel has proven that it has a profitable business concept, which will undoubtedly expand as the company continues to accept new capital from enthusiastic investors this summer.

Hatched from President Woodrow Wilson’s 1919 characterization of A. Phillip Randolph as “America’s most dangerous Negro,” the company is best known for promoting positive messages and social awareness through its graphic tee shirts and school lectures. With tees carrying clever, universal messages like “Smart is the New Gangsta,” dN|Be Apparel is winning over those concerned with the deterioration of social values in their community. Supporters sharing dangerousNEGRO’s rejection of the victim mentality have not only purchased shirts in mass quantities, but have also participated in discussions with company lecturers Justin Giboney and Demetrius Walker across college campuses.

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Are you Kidding?

Phi Beta Sigma is allegedly inducting Bill Clinton and Al Sharpton into their frats.  Isn’t Bill already in one of those skull and crossbones frats at Yale, along with George W. Bush?

Great Sites for African American Bloggers

 

Your Black World

Your Black Money

Your Black Woman

Your Black News

Your Black Politics

Your Black Health

AOL Black Voices

The Grio

Technorati Tags: black bloggers,black news,african american news,african american bloggers

Time to Hold Fraternities and Sororities Accountable

by Lester Spence

Since Alpha Phi Alpha was founded in 1906 the nine major black fraternities (Alpha Phi Alpha, Kappa Alpha Psi, Phi Beta Sigma, Iota Phi Theta, Omega Psi Phi) and sororities (Alpha Kappa Alpha, Delta Sigma Theta. Zeta Phi Beta, Sigma Gamma Rho) have been trailblazers, at the forefront of the fight against racism and at the forefront of the fight for African American empowerment. But over 100 years after their founding, are these organizations still doing the work that they set out to do?

To the extent that individuals have criticized these organizations from without they’ve attacked their membership practices–more specifically the practice of hazing. Almost all of the “Divine Nine” have had to deal with not only hazing allegations, but hazing related deaths over the past few decades.

But more recently members have severely criticized their organizations for their financial practices.

Most recently a case filed by a member is wending its way through the Nebraska courts alleging that the executive board of Alpha Kappa Alpha gave its International President an illegal stipend in the amount of $250,000, in violation of its Constitution and Bylaws, and without consulting the membership.

The case has not been decided, and the sorority is countersuing the plaintiff. However, this is not the first time in recent years that allegations of financial impropriety have been made against one of the “Divine Nine”.

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Dr. Jeremiah Wright: The Man Behind the Sound bites

Rather than letting Fox News sound bites define Jeremiah Wright for you, take a look at his bio.

Life, Love and Legacy

Rev. Dr. Jeremiah A. Wright, Jr.

The Rev. Dr. Jeremiah A. Wright, Jr. is a man of faith, a homiletic genius, a theological scholar and a pastor’s pastor. He is a family man who enjoys spending quality time with his wife, children, grandchildren, extended family and friends.

Steeped in Family Tradition and Educational Achievements

Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Dr. Wright is a son of the parsonage and hails from a family steeped in educational achievements. A third generation family member to matriculate at Virginia Union University, Dr. Wright followed in the footsteps of his maternal grandfather, Dr. Hamilton Martin Henderson who graduated from Virginia Union with a Bachelor of Arts degree in the late 1800s and finished seminary at Virginia Union in 1902. His father, Dr. Jeremiah A. Wright, Sr., also graduated from Virginia Union with two undergraduate degrees and from the seminary with a Master of Divinity degree in 1938. The senior Wright also received a Master of Sacred Theology degree (S.T.M.) from the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia.

Dr. Wright’s mother, Dr. Mary Henderson Wright, also graduated from Virginia Union and earned her first master’s degree before age 19 from the University of Chicago. She also earned a second master’s degree and her doctorate in education from the University of Pennsylvania.

Foundational Strengths

With four earned degrees, a Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts in English from Howard University, a Master of Divinity from the University of Chicago Divinity School and a Doctor of Ministry from the United Theological Seminary, Dr. Jeremiah A. Wright, Jr. grew up in a home where reading books was a daily way of life. Wright read a wide range of sources from the Greek philosophers and Shakespeare to African American authors such as Carter G. Woodson (the Father of African American History) to Sterling Brown (one of the Harlem Renaissance artists), as well as one of Dr. Wright’s college professors.

Click to read more about Jeremiah Wright

Ryan Mack: The Alpha Man with Alpha Male Money

Black finance expert Ryan Mack brings us advice from a place of real heart to help hard-working Americans deal with the mortgage mess. With his warm brand of personal finance advice, Mack’s strongest words to the community are: "If you are having problems paying your mortgage DO NOT WALK AWAY FROM YOUR HOME!" In part one of our two-part interview, learn more about how we got into this housing crisis, how it has affected the general economy and what you should do now to protect your home.
How did you become a finance expert? What inspired you to pursue this goal?
When I was on Wall Street making great money I felt empty, because I was not an effective contributor to my community. I knew that finance was my passion, but I also knew that sitting in a cubicle making money only for the sake of self-empowerment was not my purpose.
Like too many families in America, many people in my family were not financially literate. My passion was to change that. In addition, I was always getting asked personal finance questions from peers who knew I was a stock trader. But trading is different from personal finance. To address these questions, I began to study personal finance and started a Yahoo group called MakingMoneyWork, which provided tips and strategies to over 200 members through weekly newsletters.

Click to read more on the African American Money blog.

Technorati Tags: ryan mack,black financial experts,black money,african american money,black wealth,african american wealth,black news,african american news

Woman Gets Beaten in a Beauty Salon!

 

From Lady Drama at www.YourBlackGossip.com. 

Click here to watch a woman get beat down something terrible in a beauty salon!  This video is all over the net and after seeing it, all you’ll be able to say is “hayell nawwwwww!”

Technorati Tags: black women,black news,black celebrity gossip,black bloggers,beauty salon

Bow Wow Tweets on his chicks

This is what happens when Twitter gets into the hands of the wrong celebs! Bow Wow decided to comment on what it feels like when two women he’s had sex with become good friends! Read below for his insight:
Fellas, don’t you feel like a G when ya ex and another girl u banged or f*cked around with r now friends? boosts my ego up! like daaaayum ima pimp
wat makes it funny i dont think she knows! ha! im laughn lol….
I mean…he could be talking about someone else but…Timing is everything!
Update from Bow Wow:
deez blogs r funny. y err time i say my ex people think ciara? yall kno how many girlfriends ive had. maybe cuz dats da only 1 yall kno bout. Yall gotta stop assuming. those r assumptions. and clearly im not talkn bout dem. they r 2 great people. but im not referring to dem

Technorati Tags: black celebrity gossip,bow wow

Black Campus News: White HBCU Queen Takes Haters in Stride

Kentucky State University is an HBCU which lies next to my heart. My sister, who just finished medical school, spent her undergraduate career there, so I was kept in the loop when the world seemed to flip on its head regarding who the students chose to hold the title of Miss Kentucky State University. As you can see, she’s not exactly what one would expect an HBCU Homecoming Queen to look like, but Elisabeth Martin’s skin color likely reflects one of the many faces that define Historically Black colleges in the new millennium. So, while I was personally dismayed that Kentucky State University (along with many HBCUs around the nation) seems to be forgetting about the importance of having African American faculty, the truth is that we are in an era in which one needs to determine what it means to be an HBCU.

Personally, I love the fact that the students at Kentucky State chose Elisabeth Martin as their homecoming queen. Martin, a 21-year old International Studies major, won the crown by a landslide, dominating the competition. It has been her race, however, that has sent shock waves through the Kentucky State University community. But Martin takes the heat in stride and carries herself with a grace and class that should make the campus proud. The fact that the students love her so much is verified by her love for the campus and commitment to school spirit. She has also handled the national media attention like a true queen should.

AOL Black Voices had the chance to catch up with Elisabeth Martin:

Click to read.

Technorati Tags: black news,white hbcu homecoming queen,hbcus,historically black colleges and universities,black women,african american women,black people

Lady Drama: Has Kelis Lost her Damn Mind?

In the latest episode of “YourBlackGossip with Lady Drama”, Lady Drama breaks down Bobby Brown’s latest stunt, why in the world Beyonce would want to be Jay Z and why Kelis has just lost her damn mind.

Click here to watch!

Technorati Tags: lady drama,black celebrity gossip,black news headlines,african american news,black news,bobby brown,whitney houston,jay z,nas and kelis divorce,beyonce

Michael Eric Dyson v. Barack Obama

Is Michael Eric Dyson being critical Obama, loving him, hating him, or holding him accountable?  Dyson has joined a chorus of individuals in the black community asking for the President to show some love to his community.  Click the image to watch his interview!

Technorati Tags: michael eric dyson,barack obama,black scholars,black news headlines,african american news,black news

Lady Drama: WTF? Canadian Girl is an AMAZING Beat Boxer

You think the Human Beat Box was the best ever?  Think again.  Check out this SICK girl from Canada throwing down in ways that have never been seen on the internet.

click the image to watch the video:

 

Technorati Tags: hip hop,rap,rappers,black celebrity gossip

Hampton University Shooting Incident

A former Hampton University student armed with three guns followed a pizza delivery man into the student’s former dorm early Sunday, shot the delivery man and a dorm monitor, then turned the gun on himself, university officials said. All three survived.

No current students were injured and both victims and the alleged shooter were expected to recover. Officials could offer no motive for the shooting.

Hampton President William R. Harvey, who said he arrived within 15 minutes of the shooting, told a news conference the campus shooting could have been much worse.

"I think we are very, very fortunate. This could have been another — you fill in the blank," Harvey said.

The 18-year-old former student, who is from New York City, apparently parked his car off campus to avoid a vehicle checkpoint at Hampton’s main gate, then followed the pizza delivery man on foot and inside a freshman dormitory, Harkness Hall. Once inside, he shot the pizza man and entered the monitor’s office and fired three shots at him, then shot himself, Hampton University Police Chief Leroy Crosby said.

Crosby said he didn’t know what prompted the shooting.

The monitor, who suffered two gunshot wounds in his arms and a third in the leg, has been released from the hospital, Harvey said.

 

Click to read.

Technorati Tags: hampton university,hbcus,black news headlines,african american news,black scholars

Black News: White Rapper Asher Roth Calls Black Women “Nappy Headed Hoes”

White rapper Asher Roth chose to put his foot in his mouth on Twitter:

“At rutgers stirring up a suckus,” Roth tweeted. Okay, not bad.

Then: “At rutgers stirring up a ruckus.” Oh no, is he tweet-rapping?

“Been a day of rest and relaxation, sorry twitter – hanging out with nappy headed hoes.” Boom.

Click to read.

Technorati Tags: asher roth,black women,nappy headed hoes

Russell Simmons Should Stop Selling the Rush Card

Dear Mr. Simmons:
My name is Ryan Mack and I have followed your career for most of my life. I have been a long-time admirer of your work, a tremendous fan, and believe that millions are inspired by the paths that you have created in the field of Hip-Hop. More importantly, as an advocate for financial literacy myself, I believe that the work that you have been doing through the Hip-Hop Summit Action Network as it relates to financial literacy has been second to none. However, I must admit to being somewhat disappointed with your recent pre-paid debit card venture – the "Rushcard."

The pre-paid debit card industry has always been an industry that is built upon a lack of knowledge within the community. It is an industry based upon the legal phrase which demonstrates that "false imprisonment is an intentional tort." In other words, if I put someone in a room and do not lock the door but tell them that the door is locked, they will remain in the room because they believe the door is locked. As a result of my action, I have committed a punishable crime. I view pre-paid debit cards in the same light. Those who know the strategies to empower the community have a moral obligation to those, who may not be as knowledgeable, to fully inform them. There are other more efficient means to empower those in our communities than pre-paid debit cards and other financially destructive establishments such as check cashing facilities. The typical bank offers free debit cards that if used properly do not have any fees affiliated with them and can be used for the same purpose as the pre-paid debit cards.

If we compare the fees affiliated with the Rushcard compared to the typical bank offered debit card, we can clearly see the advantage of the cards offered by the banking institutions.

Rushcard vs. Typical Bank Card
Activation Fee: Rushcard = $19.95 Typical Bank Card = Free
Convenience Fee: Rushcard = $1.00 Typical Bank Card = Free
ATM Cash Withdrawal: Rushcard = $1.95 Typical Bank Card = Free (At Branch)
ATM Balance Inquiry: Rushcard = $.50 Typical Bank Card = Free
Bill Payment: Rushcard = $1.00 Typical Bank Card = Free
Inactivity: Rushcard = $2.95 Typical Bank Card = Free
Refund of Rushcard/Bank Card via Check: Rushcard = $5.00 Typical Bank Card = Free

Click to read.

Technorati Tags: russell simmons,rushcard,rush card,black money,african american money,black finances,black wealth,black enterprise report,african american wealth,black enterprise

BET’s Gospel Show to Get Cancelled

BET’s 106 and Gospel has been officially canceled.  But please tell me this:  Why in the “hayell” would you air a gospel show at 12 noon on Sundays?  Aren’t people in church at that time?

I swear…..some people can’t get a damn clue without the intervention of the Lord.

Technorati Tags: BET,106 and gospel,black news,black celebrity gossip