Breanna Stewart
MC Contributor/Staff Writer
The atmosphere surrounding Jackson State University’s 138th annual Founders Day Convocation was eclectic.
As current faculty, students, and alumni of the university convened on the Gibbs-Green Pedestrian Walkway, the spirit of of JSU’s forefathers, who founded the university in 1877, for the purpose of educating African-Americans, many of whom were former slaves, was felt by all who attended Thursday’s ceremony.
“Today, we support the foundation that has been built at this university,” said Kayfond Wilder, an academic advisor for the Department of Undergraduate Studies. “We’re here to give back to the current students, as we continue this legacy.”
With the Sonic Boom of the South ushering in a sea of current instructors and administrators, followed by prominent members of Mississippi’s public office, including Senator and keynote speaker, Derrick T. Simmons, along with the Mayor of Jackson, Tony Yarber, the underlining mission statement of the day’s event was clear: to know your future, you first must acknowledge your past.
Charence Higgins, the reigning 2015 Miss Jackson State University, and Rashad Moore, President of the Student Government Association, as future scholars, greeted the crowd of spectators, while acknowledging the rich history and culture that is Jackson State University.
JSU President, Dr. Carolyn Meyers, touched on how Jackson State’s initial founders “dared to dream big,” in an era in history where the consequences for people of color gaining an education, could host a myriad of ramifications.
Today, Jackson State University has an enrollment of 10,000, offering a higher education to not just African-Americans, but to a student body that has diversified in recent years. Carla Roma, 19, a social work major from Texas City, Texas, spoke about what Founders’ Day meant to her.
“I feel like we are all interconnected,” Roma said. “I feel like what the founders started, it has grown exponentially. It has evolved from what their grand vision was at that time, so it’s only fitting that we celebrate this occasion every year.”
Mayor Yarber, also a JSU graduate, briefly recounted his tenure as a student, before regaling how, when even in only a t-shirt displaying the school’s logo, he is recognized more, not so much for being the Mayor of the city of Jackson, but more so for being an alumnus. As Mayor Yarber comically stated, “membership has its privileges.”
Introduced by his twin brother, Vice Mayor of Greenville, Miss., Errick Simmons, Senator Derrick Simmons, while overlooking the crowded plaza, spoke in depth about the lengths the university has succeeded in taking in order to become a “greater JSU”.
Senator Simmons then paid tribute to Jackson State, recognizing how the school has risen from its humble beginnings as the Natchez Seminary in 1877, to becoming the Jackson State University of today, along with praising the arrival of the new Downtown JSU campus.
While also challenging current professors to take greater strides in the enrichment of their students’ academic careers, by pushing future graduates to become the best that they can be during their matriculation, Senator Simmons also called on students to never give up in their quest for success, to not allow themselves to waste given opportunities, nor to allow themselves to rest solely on their laurels.
As the JSU Chorale sang a soulful rendition of Margaret Walker’s “For My People”, and the ringing of the bell signaled the end of the convocation, the message of togetherness, and making tomorrow today, was ever prevalent.
University College faculty member and current doctorate of Urban Higher Education student, MeShonya Wren-Coleman, felt that the 138th Founders’ Day Convocation was a much needed moment in the history of the university, for both former and current Jackson State students alike.
“It was a privilege and an honor to have alums, such as the Simmons twins, to come and to speak to our students today and to our previous alums,” Wren-Coleman said. “Once we see those who have already walked the grounds, who have paved the way for other students to come, it is always an honor.”
Fran Bridges, Assistant Director of the Executive Ph.D. Program and the Jake Ayers Institute for Research in Urban Higher Education at Jackson State , echoed Senator Simmons’ words of encouragement to the staff, as the 138th Founders’ Day Convocation drew to a close.
“Don’t forget to pull somebody up with you. The celebration of the alumni, as they interact with students, is important. We need that for the university,” said Bridges.
Photos: William H. Kelly III
