Harvey Scores 27 to Lead Gold Rush Past No. 25 Tougaloo
New Orleans LA - Michael Harvey scored a career-high 27 points Monday to lead Xavier University of Louisiana to a 79-68 Gulf Coast Athletic Conference men's basketball victory over NAIA No. 25 Tougaloo.
It was the third victory of the season for the Gold Rush (14-10 overall, 5-7 GCAC) against a ranked opponent.
Harvey scored 17 points in the first half and put Xavier ahead to stay, 32-30, with a 3-pointer with 1:26 remaining in the period. He then made three free throws with nine seconds remaining to give Xavier a 35-31 halftime lead.
Xavier's biggest lead was 75-56 in the final 90 seconds.
Ryan DeRousselle had 13 points and a career-best nine assists for Xavier.
Keith Fisher scored 22 points and Deshun Carter 15 for Tougaloo (16-6, 7-5), and Sylvester Collins had 13 points and 13 rebounds. The Bulldogs have lost three in a row and five of seven since a 14-1 start.
Gold Nuggets Rally Late for 12th Consecutive Victory
New Orleans LA - Brittany Powell scored 12 points Monday and started a late rally which lifted NAIA No. 21 Xavier University of Louisiana to a 51-44 Gulf Coast Athletic Conference women's basketball victory over Tougaloo.
The victory was the 12th in a row for the Gold Nuggets (19-5, 12-0), who snapped the three-game winning streak of the Lady Bulldogs (11-12, 7-5).
Tougaloo didn't score again after Jerrica Williams made the first of two free throws with 2:48 remaining to give the Lady Bulldogs a 44-43 lead. Xavier scored the final eight points and went ahead to stay on Powell's three-point play at 1:56.
Tougaloo committed six turnovers during its late drought.
Jasmine Grant and Christina Warren added 10 points apiece for Xavier, which has won 54 of its last 56 GCAC games at The Barn.
Xavier set a school record by allowing less than 50 points for the fifth consecutive game. The previous record was four consecutive games during the 1995-96 season.
Applications for Fall 2010 Continue Upward Swing
New Orleans LA - As the University's priority deadline of March 1 fast approaches, the Xavier University of Louisiana Office of Admissions reports that applications for the fall 2010 semester are running 15 percent higher than last year.
That’s music to the ears of XU Dean of Admissions Winston Brown, who attributes much of the increase to a growing national interest in the University’s varied offerings.
“Applications from local students remain steady, but we are seeing additional interest from prospects from throughout our region and across the country,” said Brown. “That makes it more important than ever for high school students who are serious about attending Xavier to apply as early as possible.”
Some of the increase can also be directly credited to Xavier’s enhanced marketing strategies, including a refined website that offers complete admissions information to prospective students and allows them to take advantage of the University’s preferred online application process.
Brown said the Office of Admissions has also been aggressive in distributing marketing materials and making personal visits to traditionally-strong recruiting areas throughout the country, as well expanding into other areas.
Meanwhile, enrollment at the University continues to hold steady in the present academic year with a total enrollment of 3,190 attending classes in Spring 2010 semester. This represents an increase over last spring’s enrollment.
Brown said this is evidence that enrollment is expanding in spite of the uncertain economic times. “A Xavier education remains an excellent value,” he said.
Black History Month Events Announced
New Orleans LA – A number of activities have been scheduled for students during the February 2010 Black History Month celebration at Xavier University of Louisiana.
The University will present the annual Black History Convocation for all
students on Feb. 23. That same week the Youth Motivational Task Force/Black Executive Exchange Program will be on campus giving presentations to classes and meeting one on one with students.
Other events include a panel discussion for “Journey for Justice: The A.P. Tureaud
Story on Feb. 3 at 6:30 p.m. in the University Ballroom; a performance by the
Casa Samba Dance company on Feb. 11, the Thinkfast Black History game on Feb 22 and Black History movie night on Feb. 25.
For more information on Black History Month activities, visit
www.xula.edu.
Xavier LA Campus Responds to Crisis in Haiti
New Orleans LA - The Xavier University of Louisiana campus community continues its fundraising efforts for the “HAITI CHERIE” campaign to benefit the victims of the Haitian earthquake with regular donation collections, payroll deduction options for faculty and staff and a “Help Haiti” campus blood drive.
In response to the devastation caused by the massive January earthquake in Haiti, the XU community launched its HAITI CHERIE ("Dearest Haiti") campaign encouraging all students, faculty and staff to donate toward ongoing relief efforts.
A special university fund has been established for donations from the campus community, with all funds raised being distributed equally to three separate relief organizations. [visit HERE for details]
The XU community's relief efforts have been ongoing since the disaster with campus donations being collected every Tuesday & Friday at the University Center lobby.
As of Jan. 29 the campaign had already collected $10,893 in donations and pledges. Dr. Pamela Franco, executive assistant for Academic Affairs and the university’s Haiti Cherie committee chair, says more will be done to help the Haitian people throughout the Spring 2010 semester.
“Our campus student organizations are busy planning special fund raising activities," she said. " A tee-shirt sale and a benefit concert are some of those planned events. Students have also inquired about visiting Haiti to help with recovery and rebuilding of the capital city.”
Franco adds that faculty and staff members have begun exploring ways to make Xavier students more engaged, adding that, “We hope to see the introduction of new courses and service learning projects that focus on Haiti and the rebuilding efforts.”
A special "Help for Haiti" campus blood drive, sponsored by the Resident Assistants of XU, was held with all donors that day receiving a free N.O. Saints T-shirt identifying them as a "Who Dat for Life."
In addition, the Office of Human Resources has established a special employee payroll deduction option for staff and faculty members who wish to use that option to donate to the campus Haitian earthquake relief fund. [see HERE for details]
For more information on the Xavier University community's response to the Haiti earthquake disaster visit HERE.
YMTF/BEEP Welcomes Black Professionals to Campus
New Orleans LA - Accomplished professionals from the public and private sectors will visit the Xavier University of Louisiana campus Feb. 21-23 to participate in the Office of Career Service’s annual Youth Motivation Task Force/Black Executive Exchange Program (YMTF/BEEP).
A team of 55 African American professionals from fields including government, business, education, law, medicine, insurance, social work, military and entrepreneurship will be visiting classes to discuss with students the realities of life after college. The team will include 23 alumni.
Other activities scheduled include lunch with faculty from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., on Feb. 21 and a networking mixer with students at 4:00 p.m. on that same day.
XU alumni participating in this year’s program are Ambassador Charles Baquet III ‘63, Chad Broussard ‘99, Dr. Lynette Smith Causey ‘72, Clover Davis ‘76, Charles Donaldson Jr. ’06, Danyale Ellis ‘97, Dr. Pamela Payne Foster, Dr. Raquel Harris ‘92, Keith Hill ‘75, Kristi Hubbard ‘78, Dr. Adrienne Johnson ‘95, Frank Joshua Sr. ‘84, Todd Keller ’85, Kenneth Loyd ‘86, Dr. Ambrose Martin III ‘76, Vernon Martin Jr. ‘73, Willie J. McKinney ‘90, Giovanni Morris ‘90, Donald Naylor Jr. ‘96, Shondra Patterson ‘97, Randall Schexnayder ‘80, Tamara Thomas ‘98, Dr. Kyshun Webster ’99, and Vernon Williams ‘85.
Carolyn Thomas ’71, XU Director of Career Services, serves as Program Chair.
LEH Names Dr. Michael White "Humanist of the Year"
New Orleans LA - Dr. Michael White ’76, celebrated jazz musician/historian and professor music and Spanish at Xavier University of Louisiana, has been named "2010 Humanist of the Year" by the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities.
Each year, the LEH honors Louisianians who have made outstanding contributions to the study and understanding of the humanities. White, a renowned jazz clarinetist, bandleader, composer, jazz historian and Xavier University music and Spanish educator, will receive the organization’s top honor at the 2010 awards ceremony March 6 at Houmas House Plantation and Gardens in Darrow LA.
When nominating White for the award, Nick Spitzer, producer and host of the American Routes syndicated radio broadcast and Tulane University professor of American studies and anthropology, described White as the “foremost player of traditional New Orleans jazz clarinet alive today.”
In addition to having revived, performed and recorded important original repertoire and arrangements by Jelly Roll Morton and the late clarinetist George Lewis, White has created, performed and recorded new songs in traditional style.
“White is also known in the community as a great artist and humanist, always ready to lend his clarinet to a second-line parade, jazz funeral or other occasion; always ready to speak out on the meaning of traditional New Orleans jazz music in our lives and in the recovery of New Orleans culture post-catastrophe,” said Spitzer.
The LEH is the state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. It’s a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing educational opportunities. For more info contact Brian Boyles at the LEH 504-620-2632.
Dr. John Ware to Receive Big Easy Lifetime Achievement Award
New Orleans LA - Dr. John Ware ’77, a professor of music at Xavier University of Louisiana and conductor/music director of the New Orleans Black Chorale, has been selected to receive the Big Easy Entertainment Award’s 2010 Lifetime Achievement Award.
He will be honored at the organization’s 16th annual Tribute to the Classical Arts benefit gala March 9 at the Hotel Monteleone in New Orleans. The benefit supports the Foundation for Entertainment Development and Education.
The designated Rosa Keller Endowed Chair in Music at Xavier, Ware teaches voice, conducting, vocal diction, vocal literature and pedagogy as well as serving as conductor of the XU Concert Choir and Opera Theater. He has served as the department chairman since 1995.
His major commitment to the Greater New Orleans community has been through his work with the New Orleans Black Chorale, which is dedicated to preserving and performing the American Negro Spiritual and the art music of African American composers. In addition to its annual season of concerts, The Black Chorale has performed for New Orleans Mayoral inaugurations, several state and national conventions, Habitat for Humanity, a national meeting of the Red Cross and the 1984 World’s Fair.
Ware has been honored for his community work by the Friends of the Amistad Research Center, the local Links Chapter and Delta Sigma Theta Sorority
Ware has composed a number of choral works for his group at Xavier and for the New Orleans Black Chorale. In March of 2009, Ware premiered “Virtue on the Mountain Top,” music and text written by him in honor of the newly elected President, Barack Obama.
Political Science Major Receives MLK Service Award
New Orleans LA - Edward Jenkins III, a Xavier University of Louisiana senior political science major from New Orleans (De La Salle High School), was honored for his community service during the 24th annual Martin Luther Ling, Jr., Week for Peace Celebration.
He was recognized for embodying the true spirit of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. as a community leader and a spirit for change in various efforts to restore, rebuild and renew the New Orleans community.
A member of the student-led organization Mobilization at Xavier (M.A.X), Jenkins is a project coordinator for Outreach Day, a program designed to enhance the educational, cultural and social enrichment of young students. He is also active in the Student Government Association (SGA) and numerous other campus organizations. He has served as vice president of Phi Alpha Delta Pre Law Fraternity and vice president of the Xavier Activity Board, as well as on the SGA Election Board. He is also a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity and a mentor in the XU LOVE mentoring program.
Jenkins was one of the four students from the MLK Week-sponsoring local institutions (XU, Tulane, Dillard and Loyola) to receive a community service award during the convocation. Civic leader and businessman, Charles Teamer, a nationally-recognized expert in the field of higher education and financial management, was presented the Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award during the same event.
Author, TV commentator and syndicated columnist Roland Martin delivered the keynote address at the convocation. Other MLK Week for Peace events included a community service day and expressions of unity celebration.
Faculty Member in Concert
New Orleans LA – Xavier University of Louisiana faculty member and pianist Dr. Wilfred Delphin ‘71 joins soprano Valerie Anne Jones-Francis and baritone David Dillard for a free concert Jan. 31 at 2:00 p.m. at the UNO Performing Arts Center Recital Hall.
The concert, presented by the University of New Orleans Musical Excursions Series, will feature arias, art songs, opera duets and spirituals by Barber, Brahms, Boatner, Carter, Copland, Duparc, Hogan, Johnson, Mozart, Verdi and Wagner.
Delphin, an emeritus professor of Southern Illinois University and currently Artist-in-Residence at Xavier, is a musician of international renown. Jones-Francis, who has a master's from UNO, a bachelor's degree from Dillard University and a Ph.D. from the University of Oklahoma, performs locally, nationally and internationally; while Dillard, professor of voice at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, has sung operatic roles with such companies as the Austin Lyric Opera, Florida Grand Opera, Lake George Opera Festival, DiCapo Opera Theater, Union Avenue Opera Theatre and the Tanglewood Music Center.
Roland Martin to Highlight MLK Week Celebration
New Orleans, LA - Author and syndicated columnist Roland Martin will be the keynote speaker for the 24th annual Martin Luther King Jr. Week for Peace, Jan. 18-22, 2010.
The Martin Luther King Week for Peace is presented by Xavier, Tulane, Loyola and Dillard Universities. This year’s theme is “Change: from Rhetoric to Action.”
In addition to the featured Wednesday night lecture – at which Lifetime Achievement and Student Community Service awards will be presented – other MLK week activities include a community day of service and the Expressions of Unity celebration. All events are free.
A nationally syndicated columnist and sought-after political analyst, Martin hosts his own one-hour Sunday morning news show, "Washington Watch with Roland Martin," and serves as a commentator for the TV One Cable Network and an analyst for CNN, appearing on a variety of shows. He has authored two books, Listening to the Spirit Within: 50 Perspectives on Faith and Speak, Brother! A Black Man's View of America.
He was named one of the 150 Most Influential African Americans by Ebony Magazine in both 2008 and 2009.
A graduate of Texas A&M and Louisiana Baptist University, Martin got his start in print journalism, serving as executive editor/general manager of the Chicago Defender, the nation's most historic Black newspaper, and as owner/publisher of Dallas-Fort Worth Heritage, a Christian monthly newspaper. He has won more than 30 professional awards for journalistic excellence, including a regional Edward R. Murrow Award.
The complete calendar of MLK events follows:
Monday, Jan. 18
- Community Service Day, 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Staging at Xavier University Center
Wednesday, Jan. 20
- MLK Convocation: Reception 5:30 to 6:15 p.m.; Convocation 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Presentation of Lifetime Achievement Award, Student Community Service Awards
and speaker Roland Martin
Tulane McAlister Auditorium
Friday, Jan. 22
- Expressions of Unity, 7:00 p.m.
Dillard University
