African American students honored for academic achievement
Thirty-six Jefferson Community and Technical College students were honored March 25 during the annual African American Students of Excellence Awards program on the college's Downtown Campus. More than 200 attended the ceremony, which recognizes African American students who have 30 credit hours at Jefferson and a minimum 3.5 GPA.
This ceremony is among the most special for the college, said Dr. Tony Newberry, president of the college, because we set aside the time to honor students for their hard work, dedication, creativity and spirit.
The program, sponsored by the college's Black Affairs Advisory Committee, also honored Harlina Churn-Diallo, founding artistic director of Imani Dance and Drum Company, with its Community Service Award. Churn-Diallo has degrees in Pan-African studies and cultural anthropology from the University of Louisville and has studied and performed in Africa, Japan and Paris as well as throughout the United States. She has choreographed for Stage One children's theater in Louisville and for the Experimental Black Actors Guild of Chicago. She teaches African dance at U of L, has taught dance at the Youth Performing Arts School in Louisville, and has served as arts and education director for youth outreach programs at Louisville's Chestnut Street YMCA.
Rhonda Gummer, a counselor on the Downtown Campus and adviser to the Single Parent Student Organization, was honored with the Institutional Service Award for her commitment as a faculty advisor and for her work coordinating an annual Student Resource Fair of college and community resources.
John Faulkner, Community Relations Manager for the Muhammad Ali Center, was the guest speaker.
The honored students were:
- Hazel Bartlett
- Keneshia Berkley
- Nicole Bibbs
- Gadira Blakely
- Kenneth Boone
- Theresa Boyd
- Shalonda Brashear
- Terrance Brasher
- Eric Burns
- Dominic Campbell
- Janzael Covington
- Rashanna Duke
- Robert Gray
- Jocelyn Hammonds
- Emmett Hathaway
- Abdullahi Hassan
- Kimberly Judkins
- Andrea King
- Dreva Kirkwood
- Fenta Mekonen
- Glenn Moore
- Whitney Myers
- Debra O'Bannon
- Linda Radford
- Christopher Smith
- Odessa Smith
- Dedra Stallings
- Janie Stewart
- Don Unseld
- Jewel Vasser
- Dominique Vaughn
- Charmaine Webster
- Laneka Williams
- Jeanette Williams
- Maria Wilson
- Lakita Young
