MacKenzie Dayne Hall

Black History Month celebrates, educates

STAFF WRITER: MACKENZIE HALL

 For the first three years of his schooling, he was surrounded by a close-knit community of faculty and staff. It was a nurturing environment where everyone knew each other. However, when it was time for him to start the fourth grade, he entered a new school— an integrated one. As he looked around, he noticed the only staff members that came with him from his all-Black school were the bus drivers and cafeteria workers. The rest of the faculty was deemed “unqualified” to teach at the newly-integrated school.

This is a small piece of Special Assistant to the President Dr. Lewis Shepherd’s story. February is Black History Month, a time to celebrate and honor Black Americans’s impact. It is also a time to reflect on the past and remember stories like Dr. Shepherd’s.

Throughout the month of February, Ouachita’s Multicultural Organization Reaching Equality (MORE) is hosting events for students, faculty and staff to engage with Black history.

MORE has adapted this year’s Black History Month celebrations to comply with COVID-19 guidelines. Students can expect smaller, socially distanced events instead of the larger celebrations they may be used to.

A few of these events include a different African American author spotlight every week in the library, a prayer gathering at the Flag Plaza on Feb. 16 and music and dessert during Friday at Dr. Jack’s on Feb. 26 to end the month’s festivities.

Students can also participate in the game night that MORE is hosting in the student center on Feb. 11 at 6 p.m. There is a month-long scavenger hunt happening each Friday that students can be a part of, too. The last day for Val-A-Gram pick-up is Friday, Feb. 12.

MORE is a part of the Multicultural Student Programs (MSP).  MSP also consists of La Fuerza, an organization supporting Latino and Hispanic students at Ouachita. While La Fuerza celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month in the fall, it also helps with Black History Month events as part of MSP. For Monica Rutledge, Multicultural Support Specialist, MSP is about motivation, education and celebration.

 “It is designed to support students of color that may or may not feel naturally involved or connected,” Rutledge said. “We want students to know that they are more than just a number on the roster and more than just a warm body on campus. We are committed to their overall success on campus, off campus and even after their college days have ended.”

MORE’s Vice President Tyrese Allen sees the organization as a way to create a safe space to educate others about the importance of Black history and culture.

“We have to teach, we have to educate, we have to let them know,” Allen said. “Who better to tell our story than us?”

Dr. Shepherd hopes that participants of all racial and cultural backgrounds know they are welcome to join the celebrations that MSP and MORE facilitate during this month.

“I hope that people can step back and see the larger picture of how African Americans through history made an impact in American culture,” Shepherd said. “It’s OK to celebrate not just Black culture, but it’s OK to celebrate everybody’s culture because everyone has something to contribute. Everyone deserves to experience a sense of belonging.”