HBCU

Florida A&M University and the Medical Marijuana Education and Research Initiative announce Recipients of Medical Marijuana Research Grants

THE WESTSIDE GAZETTE — Florida A&M University (FAMU) today awarded 14 grants totaling $98,000 to more than 20 faculty members to conduct research on marijuana as it impacts diverse minority communities. This research is a component of the University’s Medical Marijuana Education and Research Initiative (MMERI), which was launched in response to the Florida Legislature’s funding allocation to educate “minorities about marijuana for medical use and the impact of the unlawful use of marijuana on minority communities.”

Published

5 years ago

May 5, 2019

Oakland Post

By Carma Henry

TALLAHASSEE, FLA. – Florida A&M University (FAMU) today awarded 14 grants totaling $98,000 to more than 20 faculty members to conduct research on marijuana as it impacts diverse minority communities. This research is a component of the University’s Medical Marijuana Education and Research Initiative (MMERI), which was launched in response to the Florida Legislature’s funding allocation to educate “minorities about marijuana for medical use and the impact of the unlawful use of marijuana on minority communities.” As part of the 2017 legislation, FAMU receives $10 for every $75 identification card purchased by individuals approved to buy medical marijuana.

MMERI Director Peter Harris, JD. says, “when it comes to Florida’s diverse minority communities, this is a critical initiative. FAMU is unique in this space and our research will guide policy in Florida. We are fortunate that the Florida Legislature understands the vital role FAMU can play.”

MMERI Research Chair and Dean of the School of Allied Health Sciences, Cynthia Hughes-Harris, Ph.D. says, “As the use of both prescribed and illegal marijuana becomes more prevalent in our society, many questions have arisen as to how marijuana can and should be used. These questions are particularly important to marijuana use in minority communities. The primary approach to answering these questions is through formal research processes conducted by experienced researchers. FAMU is particularly qualified to address these issues due to the talents and skills of FAMU faculty, as researchers and as educators, combined with our understanding of the target communities throughout the state of Florida.”

This first round of research funding will enable FAMU to build a repository of information for medical marijuana education and research. Among the objectives of the repository are to establish the University as a touchstone center for marijuana information, fill in the gaps in medical marijuana research particularly as it relates to diverse communities and to inform public policy, in Florida and beyond, about the impact and issues presented by the developing marijuana industry.

Faculty members from such disciplines as agriculture, allied health, architecture, law, pharmacy, business, and social sciences will conduct funded research. The grantees were selected by an impartial panel of experienced FAMU researchers and content experts who rated each application on objective criteria appropriate to the goals of the grant. Each grant award is $7,000. The research projects are expected to be completed by June 30, 2020.

The research focus and the awardees are:

Knowledge and Perception of Pediatric Cancer Patients and Caregivers on Medical Marijuana, Aksal Ali, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, College of Pharmacy.
Assessing Disparate Impacts: The Legalization of Medical Marijuana in Florida and the Legal Implications for Florida’s African American Communities, Jeffrey Brown, J.D., Associate Professor, College of Law.
Marijuana, Mental Health, and FAMU, DeAnna Burney, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Psychology and Huijin Li, Ph.D., Associate Professor and Assistant Director, Center for Ethnic Psychological Research and Application, Department of Psychology.

Medical Marijuana Dispensary Locations and Neighborhood Crime, Andrew Chin, Interim Dean, School of Architecture and Engineering Technology.
Exploring Black Entrepreneurs’ Access to Opportunities in the Medical Marijuana Industry, Jennifer Collins, Ph.D., Assistant Dean and Associate Professor, School of Business and Industry and LaTanya White, MBA, Instructor, School of Business and Industry.
The Effects of Medical Marijuana Use by Multiple Sclerosis Patients on Select Measures of Muscular Strength and Endurance, Dr. Brian Hickey, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Health and Physical Education.
Assessing the Knowledge and Perceptions of Community Members Specific to the Compassionate Use of Marijuana, Marisa Lewis, Pharm.D., MPH, Associate Professor, School of Allied Health Sciences and Lon’Tejuana Cooper, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, School of Allied Health Sciences.
Mixed Methods Study of Medical Marijuana Use Among Minority Patients, John Luque, Ph.D., MPH, Associate Professor, College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences and Arinzechukwu Okere, PharmD, MS, MBA, BPCS, Associate Professor, College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences.
Assessing African Americans Preference and Willingness to Pay Values for Medical Marijuana as a Treatment for Cancer…a Minority Perspective, Carmen Lyttle-Nguessa, Ph.D., College of Agriculture and Food Sciences, Gilbert Queely, Ph.D., Research Associate, College of Agriculture and Food Sciences and Cassel Gardner, Ph.D., Professor, College of Agriculture and Food Sciences.
Increasing Minority Access to Medical Marijuana (MM): Simplifying the Process Through Research, Outreach, and Education, Gilbert Queely, Ph.D., Research Associate, College of Agriculture and Food Sciences
An Investigation on Marijuana Consumption in the Construction Industry in Florida, Behnam Shadravan, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, School of Architecture and Engineering Technology
To What Extent Do Mental Health and Psychosocial Factors Predict Risk for Misuse and Neuropsychological Impairment in African American Marijuana Users, Gwendolyn Singleton, Ph.D., Associate Professor and Chair, Department of Psychology.
Marijuana Wellness Intervention for Community, Coping, Substance-Awareness, Self-Efficacy, and Self-Regulation Enhancement via Education, Novell Tani, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology and Arie Christon, Department of Psychology.
Investigating Levels of Awareness of Medical Marijuana and the Correlation to Post Traumatic Stress Symptoms Within the Criminal Justice System, Gari Tookes, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Social Work.

This article originally appeared in The Westside Gazette.

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Laphonza Butler Becomes California’s Newest U.S. Senator

Two days after California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced that Laphonza Butler would fill the U.S. Senate seat of the late Dianne Feinstein, the new senator was sworn in on Capitol Hill by U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris.

Published

7 months ago

October 10, 2023

Oakland Post

Laphonza Bulter was the president of Emily’s List. Wikimedia Commons photo.

Replacing the Late Sen. Dianne Feinstein, Butler Becomes the 3^rd Black Woman to Serve in Upper Chamber

By Lauren Victoria Burke,

NNPA Newswire contributor

Flanked by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and California Sen. Alex Padilla as she took the oath, Butler than received a round of applause by senators of both parties.

After the swearing-in, President Joe Biden called Butler to congratulate her, the White House said.

“I am honored to accept Gov. Newsom’s nomination to be a U.S. Senator for a state I have long called home,” Butler said in a statement Monday. “I am humbled by the Governor’s trust. Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s leadership and legacy are immeasurable. I will do my best to honor her by devoting my time and energy to serving the people of California and the people of this great nation.”

She will be the third Black woman to serve in the U.S. Senate, preceded by Illinois’s Carol Mosely Braun, and current V.P. Kamala Harris. Butler is also the first openly lesbian Black U.S. senator: Her wife, Neneki Lee, held the Bible during Butler’s swearing-in.

Since 2021, Butler has been serving as the president of EMILY’s List. The fundraising platform supports and funds women candidates and amplifies issues that disproportionately impact women.

Before that she was involved in labor organizing, elected president of California’s largest union, Service Employees International Union (SEIU).

“As the president of SEIU 2015, Laphonza Butler led the fight for fair wages and respect for home care workers,” said Mary Kay Henry, current SEIU president, in a statement Monday. “As president of SEIU California, she was a driving force in winning the first statewide $15 an hour minimum wage in the nation. She has been a strong ally electing pro-women candidates as president of Emily’s List.”

Fellow California Sen. Alex Padilla also expressed strong support for Butler. “Throughout her career, Laphonza Butler has been a strong voice for working families, LGBTQ rights, and a champion for increasing women’s representation in politics. I’m honored to welcome her to the United States Senate,” Padilla wrote in a statement. “Governor Newsom’s swift action ensures that Californians maintain full representation in the Senate as we navigate a narrow Democratic majority. I look forward to working together to deliver for the people of California.”

Newsom’s decision was not on the political radar screen of most prognosticators.

With the selection of Butler, the decision by California’s Governor did not include any of the currently announced candidates for U.S. Senate in 2024 in California. Those current candidates include veteran members of Congress Barbara Lee and Adam Schiff and relative newcomer Katie Porter.

“As we mourn the enormous loss of Senator Feinstein, the very freedoms she fought for — reproductive freedom, equal protection, and safety from gun violence — have never been under greater assault. Laphonza will carry the baton left by Senator Feinstein, continue to break glass ceilings, and fight for all Californians in Washington, D.C.,” wrote Gov. Newsom in a statement released on the evening of October 1 announcing Butler’s appointment.

Butler will be the only Black woman in the Senate. But Delaware Congresswoman Lisa Blunt Rochester is expected to win the Senate seat vacated by Senator Tom Carper. Carper announced he would not run for re-election in 2024 and Rochester announced shortly afterwards that she would run for Carper’s seat.

Butler formally became another addition to the Congressional Black Caucus when she was welcomed with a swearing in by those members later on Tuesday.

Butler grew up in Magnolia, Miss., one of four siblings raised by a single mother. Her father, who suffered from heart disease, passed away when Butler was 16. She attended Jackson State University, an HBCU, graduating in 2001.

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Historic Black University: Multiple Suspects Sought After Shooting Incident at Morgan State University

Baltimore Police Commissioner Richard Worley and Morgan State University Police Chief Lance Hatcher told reporters that the incident happened around 9:25 p.m. when university police officers, on their regular patrol, detected gunfire from the campus. The victims, aged between 18 and 22, which include four men and a woman, sustained injuries that are reported to be non-life-threatening.

Published

7 months ago

October 10, 2023

Oakland Post

Tyler Hall, Morgan State University campus. Morgan State is one of the few historically Black institutions nationally to offer a comprehensive range of academic programs, in business, engineering, education, architecture, social work, and hospitality management. Photo courtesy morgan.edu

By Stacy M. Brown
NNPA Newswire

Baltimore police are intensifying their search for multiple suspects involved in a shooting incident that occurred on the campus of Morgan State University, leaving five individuals injured. Among the victims, four are students of the historically Black institution.

“The entire city of Baltimore’s heart aches for the Morgan community, for the victims and their families, and for our city as a whole,” Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott stated.

Multiple windows were shattered during the incident, and school officials said they immediately began active shooter response protocols. Worley said police systematically cleared buildings in pursuit of those responsible. While there are indications that it could have been more than one shooter, authorities could not confirm whether multiple assailants were involved.

Hatcher said university police received notification of the shooting at approximately 9:27 p.m. and sent the first public safety alert to the community at 9:30 p.m., followed by four other notifications.

At approximately 11:45 p.m., city police announced via Twitter that the incident was no longer an “active shooter situation.” University officials announced via social media that the shelter-in-place order had been lifted, and shuttle services resumed at around 12:30 a.m.

Worley emphasized that SWAT officers meticulously combed through every floor of the buildings they searched, conducting two sweeps, before lifting the shelter-in-place order.

Authorities are urging anyone with information to come forward and assist in their efforts to bring those responsible to justice.

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Acting President of Temple University Dies Suddenly After Memorial Service

“President Epps was a devoted servant and friend who represented the best parts of Temple,” the university said in a statement. “She spent nearly 40 years of her life serving this university, and it goes without saying her loss will reverberate through the community for years to come.”

Published

7 months ago

October 3, 2023

Oakland Post

JoAnne A. Epps had served Temple University for 40 years. Courtesy photo via NBC News.

NBC News

Referred to by a colleague as a ‘calm force in troubled waters,’ Temple University Acting President suddenly died Tuesday after falling ill at a memorial service, officials at the Philadelphia school said.

While attending a memorial for Charles L. Blockson, JoAnne A. Epps, 72, slumped in her chair onstage while someone else was speaking and was taken to the hospital where she was pronounced dead.