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CSUCI President to Speak During Sunday Service at African American Church in Los Angeles
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More from CamarilloCamarillo, Calif., Feb. 14, 2008-California State University Channel Islands President Richard R. Rush will be one of many CSU officials to bring the college message to thousands of prospective students and their families during the Third Annual CSU Super Sunday.
This year's Super Sunday event will take place at 22 African American churches in the Los Angeles Area on Sunday, Feb. 24. CSUCI President Rush will address the congregation of the Bryant Temple AME Church at both the 8 a.m. and 11 a.m. services. Bryant Temple is located at 2525 West Vernon Ave., Los Angeles, 90008.
Rush and other CSU presidents, trustees, the chancellor, and officials participating in Super Sunday will address the congregations to engage the community by encouraging students to go to college.
"At Super Sunday, thousands of students and their families learn that planning for college starts in the sixth grade. We hope to make communities aware of the steps that students need to complete each year to get to college," said CSU Chancellor Charles B. Reed. "We are pleased to say that these efforts are paying off. In recent years we have noticed an increase in African American applications and enrollment. In Fall 2007, African American enrollment increased by 6.5 percent at CSU campuses."
Following the services, CSU outreach staff and church education counselors will provide information about college applications and financial aid. Students will also be introduced to CSU Mentor, the Web site that prospective students use to get information and apply to a CSU.
Other outreach efforts to be conducted by the CSU with the African American churches include financial aid workshops, expanded distribution of college materials to sixth-12th grade students and their parents. The CSU has also developed a how-to guide for church educational advisers who work directly with families within these communities.
One of the informational pieces that will be distributed during Super Sunday is the "How to Get to College" poster. The poster provides middle and high school students and their parents step-by-step information regarding staying on the path to college, such as the classes they need to take, the importance of good grades, and how to apply for financial aid.
For media inquiries about President Rush's involvement in Super Sunday contact Ceal Potts, Communications Specialist at CSUCI, (805) 437-8940 or cecilia.potts@csuci.edu.
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CSU Channel Islands is accredited by the Accrediting Commission for Senior Colleges and Universities of the Western Association of Schools and Colleges.
Posted by UniTeeDesign on February 14, 2008 at 6:09 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I applaud this initiative to better propel academic successes for our youth . . .
UniTee Design, Inc (UDI), an ethnic empowerment enterprise with offices in Detroit, Atlanta and New York plans to celebrate Black history every day, 365 days a year, as a way to promote the education of Black youth to their rich heritage and the many achievements of African-Americans.
The “Make Black History Every Day – 365” initiative will be featured on www.uniteedesign.com, where daily motivational quotes, photos and stories will be featured honoring Black history to educate and inspire children (and adults) every day of the year.
UDI Founder R. Lee Gordon funds, develops and delivers educational programs that motivate children to want to learn and succeed by leveraging their common interests in video games, music, sports, fashion, etc. Current programs include a self-defense and safety awareness workshop for grade school students, a summer camp that teaches creative arts and merchandising to inner-city youth, and a high school fashion career development program.
Gordon generates revenue for these and other programs by selling designer T-shirts that bear the red, black and green colors of African-American culture. Several of the stylish shirts also incorporate positive principles that Black culture represents: a “pride” in heritage and history; the “power to overcome negative circumstances and / or environments; and, a “purpose” he believes every child needs to inspire love of self, and to flourish to his or her fullest potential. Gordon also encourages youth (and adults) to serve one another and their communities as “Purpose Providers, advocates who further instill pride of Black culture.
“We need to uplift our young generation through knowledge of their culture and develop opportunities to better their academic and professional successes,” says Gordon. “Our clothing helps them, and all of us, to appreciate and be proud of our culture and history.”
Gordon has designed a new tee-shirt incorporating the “365” theme which he plans to promote at live events throughout the country.
In addition to developing a student outreach program with Eastern Michigan University that will forge stronger partnerships between colleges and not-for-profit community agencies in the same locales, UDI is establishing a national peer mentor initiative to match college students with high school students, and high school students with grade school students, and empower Black youth to strive for and achieve higher education goals that will result in improved academic and professional outcomes.
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