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D.C. Area HBCUs Create Home Base for Student Veterans and Dependents

THE AFRO — The University of the District of Columbia (UDC) offers its 100 close-knit veteran dependents and families an experience on a culturally diverse urban campus right in the heart of the District. UDC is also the only urban land grant university in the United States, offering students a unique experience.

Published

2 years ago

November 14, 2024

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By Deborah Bailey
AFRO Contributing Editor
dbailey@afro.com

Veterans and their dependents are flocking to college classrooms after enlistment days are over, thanks to educational benefits available to most veterans and their families after honorable discharge from military service. The Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act of 2007 is sending veterans and their families to college in record numbers.

The Washington, D.C. region’s three historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) have rolled out the welcome mat to hundreds of veterans and dependents this fall, with specialized outreach to and services for those honorably discharged men and women and their families.

Only one in three veterans holds a bachelor’s degree, a ratio lower than the national average for persons 25 and older, according to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Moreover, Black female military spouses are three times more likely to be unemployed in comparison to their civilian counterparts.

Bowie State University, University of the District of Columbia and Howard University have each developed specialized programs and services for veterans and their families. Each campus offers the support of trained veterans’ affairs and counseling staff with the skills to help student veterans and their dependents take the journey from active military service to the classroom and success in civilian life.

“Most of our student veterans are a little older than the traditional college student,” said Andre Clayton, director of Bowie State University’s Veteran Resource Center. Clayton said the 350 veterans, dependents and active-duty students who utilize services through the Veterans Resource Center are primarily from Maryland, but he gets many calls from students across the nation interested in using GI benefits to attend classes at the suburban Maryland school.

“We are seeing students from as far away as Georgia, Texas and California,” Clayton continued.

Veterans receiving educational benefits can use them at any campus in the U.S. for classes and activities allowable by the Veterans Administration (VA), Clayton said.

Black service members like Assata Ward, a member of the U.S. Coast Guard, and their families are returning to college after enlistment with the help of Post 9/11 educational benefits. (courtesy photo)

“We are considered a Yellow Ribbon institution,” Clayton continued, citing one of the reasons students are attracted to Bowie State University. Yellow Ribbon colleges and universities partner with the VA to keep college costs affordable for post-9/11 G.I. bill students.

The University of the District of Columbia (UDC) offers its 100 close-knit veteran dependents and families an experience on a culturally diverse urban campus right in the heart of the District. UDC is also the only urban land grant university in the United States, offering students a unique experience.

“Students are surprised that we offer academic programs in popular fields for veterans like engineering, homeland security and urban sustainability,” said Veterans Affairs Director Sequoyah Adebayo.

Adebayo is herself the daughter of two veterans and knows first-hand the importance of attending a campus with a family-like atmosphere, affordability, support and legacy. UDC, like Bowie State and Howard University, offers both counseling and academic support services to all student veterans and their dependents.

Adebayo just completed her dissertation on student veterans and said that in her current role, she observed that her younger female veterans and veteran dependents sometimes avoid being known as veterans on campus. Her male students proudly identify and even wear fatigues on campus, but “female student veterans at times find themselves struggling to identify as veterans. The younger women veterans especially tend to shy away,” she said.

Howard University has the largest formal veterans resource center and a full complement of services and supports for the campus’ 500-plus “military connected” students, according to Adon Paris, the school’s director of Student Services.

Sequoyah Adebayo is the Veterans Affairs director at the University of the District of Columbia and the daughter of former service members. She advises all campus veterans and their dependents to take advantage of the full range of benefits available on college campuses. (courtesy photo).

“Seventy-five percent of our military-connected students are military dependents. Their parents served and are passing benefits to their children. When their parents come through the door of our center, they are wowed. We have the premier veterans center in the United States,” Paris said confidently.

Howard’s Veterans Resource Center’s five full-time staff members work with students from the beginning of the process of securing benefits from the VA through the admissions process.

Once students are on campus, they have access to VA work study, special military-connected scholarship opportunities and internships, mental health professionals, study space, television, a pool table, snacks and a place that is their own.

Howard University also supports a Student Veterans of America chapter on campus to get students involved in campus life with terrain they are familiar with.

A welcoming university experience is especially pivotal for student veterans and military dependents because it provides a break from the transient life that defines military service.

“These students are so used to being in transit that for many, this is the first time they will remain in the same place for four years,” Paris said. “We have the opportunity to support our military connected students and make these years ones they will never forget.

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Jovita Moore Mural Still Has Not Been Repainted in Grant Park

ATLANTA VOICE — A mural depicting late journalist Jovita Moore, painted on the exterior wall of a building now occupied by Bellwood Coffee in Grant Park, was painted over in April. Moore passed away in 2021 after decades of working in Atlanta television news. Bellwood Coffee owners stated in May they were unaware of Moore’s identity or significance to the community before painting over the mural.
The post Jovita Moore Mural Still Has Not Been Repainted in Grant Park appeared first on BlackPressUSA.

Published

1 week ago

July 8, 2026

Oakland Post

At the corner of Boulevard, SE. and Rosalia St., SE., directly across the street from an abandoned home and a Methodist Church, is Bellwood Coffee. One of hundreds of coffee shops in Atlanta, this place of business would not be worth a solitary discussion if not for the way its exterior walls are currently painted. There was once a mural depicting the late Jovita Moore, a beloved journalist who worked in Atlanta for decades. Moore, who passed away in 2021, mentored many of the people you see on television newscasts today. Though her legacy will never be forgotten, it was the mural of her image that was erased.

In April, members of the Grant Park community voiced their disgust at the mural, which graced a side wall of the building now occupied by Bellwood Coffee’s Grant Park location, before it was painted over. In its place are the words “Bellwood Coffee; Cocktails, Biscuits, Dry Goods, Air Conditioning. *Heat Too”. In May, the business owners responded to the community pushback on social media by acknowledging they did not know who Moore was before painting over her image. And later admitted that they did not attempt to find out what she meant to the community.

On May 21, the Bellwood Coffee Instagram account had a post about being “in close contact with Jovita’s family and are actively working on next steps in this process.” Two months later, the mural has not been replaced, repainted, or repositioned on the property. Nothing has been done. Black history is often erased, most recently by the current Presidential administration, but oftentimes on a smaller, quieter scale. The mural was originally painted by muralist Tommy Bronx, who had been in contact with the business owners about repainting it. As of July 6, Tommy Bronx had responded to a direct message via his Instagram account from The Atlanta Voice about any updates on his plans to repaint the mural.

“We’re currently working on it. You should see some movement in the weeks to come,” he wrote in a response.

On Monday, July 6, the business had several patrons inside and was running smoothly with three employees manning the counter. The Atlanta Voice dropped by Bellwood Coffee to get a look at the exterior wall where the mural once stood as a memorial to a journalist and mother who lost her life to brain cancer at the young age of 54. Moore’s image added some color to the block. The grey wall in its place does not.

A direct message was sent to the Bellwood Coffee Instagram account, and there hasn’t been a response as of 7 p.m. on Monday.

The post Jovita Moore Mural Still Has Not Been Repainted in Grant Park appeared first on The Atlanta Voice.

Based on reporting by Atlanta Voice.

The post Jovita Moore Mural Still Has Not Been Repainted in Grant Park appeared first on BlackPressUSA.

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‘Proud to Hang Her from a Tree’: Man Arrested for Threatening Black Senator

ATLANTA DAILY WORLD — A New York man faces felony hate crime charges for allegedly posting a threat against New York State Senator Lea Webb. James A. Crosby, 49, of Binghamton, was arrested by New York State Police after investigators determined he posted a threatening comment on a social media news post about a Juneteenth celebration.
The post ‘Proud to Hang Her from a Tree’: Man Arrested for Threatening Black Senator appeared first on BlackPressUSA.

Published

1 week ago

July 8, 2026

Oakland Post

A New York man is facing felony hate crime charges after allegedly posting that he’d be “proud to hang” New York State Senator Lea Webb from a tree in response to a news story about a Juneteenth celebration.

James A. Crosby, 49, of Binghamton, was arrested June 23 by New York State Police after investigators determined he posted a threatening comment on a WBNG 12 News Facebook post. “I’d be proud to hang her from a tree,” Crosby wrote, according to WBNG.

Crosby was charged with making a terroristic threat as a hate crime, a class C felony, per the New York State Police. He is currently being held at Broome County Jail.

During the subsequent investigation, state police found Crosby was in illegal possession of firearms despite being prohibited from owning them due to a prior felony conviction. Investigators recovered a rifle, a large-capacity ammunition feeding device, and a firearm suppressor — all prohibited under New York state law, per the NYSP.

Crosby was charged with four additional counts of criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree, all class D felonies.

Webb, who represents New York’s 52nd Senate District, had been a featured speaker at a Juneteenth flag-raising ceremony at Binghamton City Hall, where the celebration included prayers and the singing of the Black national anthem.

Police said Crosby’s comment was posted in response to a WBNG news story covering the event.

The day before his arrest, Crosby posted a Facebook apology claiming the comment “was not intended to be racial in any way” and was made in reference to what he described as a “criminal,” citing criticism of Webb over her use of nonprofit legal aid in a foreclosure case — a matter state watchdogs said created an appearance of a conflict of interest, per the Ithaca Voice. He was arrested the following day.

Webb issued a public statement June 25 condemning the threat.

“It was extremely disappointing and hurtful to see the now-deleted threat and attacks on my life in response to a story about Juneteenth, a national holiday that recognizes the ending of slavery in America,” she said. “Feedback and thoughts on policy are one thing, but to make a public call for lethal violence is absolutely unacceptable and dangerous. We must recognize our shared humanity and reject violence in all forms.”

She thanked Gov. Kathy Hochul, Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, and law enforcement for their “swift response.”

Following Crosby’s comments, social media users called for a boycott of his contracting business, Crosby Home Improvements.

The Binghamton City Democratic Committee also called for an investigation into the incident before his arrest.

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The post ‘Proud to hang her from a tree’: Man arrested for threatening Black Senator appeared first on Atlanta Daily World.

Based on reporting by Atlanta Daily World.

The post ‘Proud to Hang Her from a Tree’: Man Arrested for Threatening Black Senator appeared first on BlackPressUSA.

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CARICOM: Strengthen Integration for Future Generations

NEW YORK CARIB NEWS — Outgoing CARICOM Chairman Terrance Drew called on regional leaders to build a stronger and more effective Caribbean Community that benefits future generations. Speaking at the 51st Regular Meeting, Drew urged modernization of governance structures and improved implementation of Community decisions to make CARICOM safer and more prosperous.
The post CARICOM: Strengthen Integration for Future Generations appeared first on BlackPressUSA.

Published

1 week ago

July 8, 2026

Oakland Post

Speaking Sunday at the opening of the 51st Regular Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government in Saint Lucia, Dr. Terrance Drew said the region must modernize its governance structures, improve the implementation of Community decisions, and ensure CARICOM becomes safer, more prosperous, and more relevant to the lives of its citizens.

The meeting, being held under the theme “CARICOM: From Resilience to Renewal in a Changing World,” coincides with the Community’s 53rd anniversary. During the ceremony, Dr. Drew formally handed over the rotating CARICOM chairmanship to Saint Lucia’s Prime Minister, Philip J. Pierre.

Reflecting on his six-month tenure as chairman, Drew praised fellow regional leaders for maintaining their commitment to democracy, good governance, unity, and the rule of law despite mounting global economic and geopolitical challenges.

“Throughout these challenges, CARICOM chose engagement over isolation. Together, we reaffirmed our commitment to a fair and rules-based international trading system and ensured that the interests of small developing states continued to be heard.”
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He highlighted progress made in strengthening the CARICOM Single Market and Economy, including deeper trade cooperation, expanded labour mobility, and efforts to lay the foundation for long-term economic growth. Drew also noted the Community’s growing partnerships beyond the Caribbean, particularly with the African Union, while stressing that every international partnership should advance the interests of all parties involved.

The outgoing chairman also expressed appreciation to Dr. Carla Barnett and the CARICOM Secretariat for their professionalism and unwavering support during his tenure.

“Whenever I called, you answered. Whenever support was required, you and your team responded with diligence, competence, and excellence.”

Dr. Drew urged the Secretariat to continue preserving its impartiality while faithfully implementing decisions made by Heads of Government, saying that balance has helped strengthen the regional integration movement.

The conference continues in Saint Lucia with regional leaders expected to deliberate on key issues including regional security, climate resilience, trade, economic integration, food security, Haiti, reparations, and strengthening the CSME.

Based on reporting by New York Carib News.

The post CARICOM: Strengthen Integration for Future Generations appeared first on BlackPressUSA.