BETTYE FOSTER BAKER
508-696-9983
Peter Norton sat on his porch at the historic Corbin–Norton house, dapperly dressed in coat and tie, waiting patiently for guests arriving for an Evening in the Garden, celebrating Spelman College, with special guest, college president Dr. Beverly Daniel Tatum. As guests approached, he gave each a heartwarming greeting while his wife, Gwen Adams Norton, engagingly welcomed them into those beautiful side gardens, now at their peak of summer glory, an explosion of purples, pinks, whites — hydrangeas, daisies, waving grasses, black-eyed Susans and hostas that we have all come to love and admire overlooking Ocean Park.
This is an extraordinary couple, the Nortons. They hosted this lovely gathering of Islanders and friends to meet president Tatum, trustees and key staff, but most importantly to build awareness of Spelman College and its work with young women, primarily African American, its extraordinary program offerings, and its need for broader support to continue the outstanding work. Spelman, founded in 1881, is significant in the historical narrative of post-high school educational opportunities for African Americans. To this day, the historical black college serves an important educational resource. From these institutions have come some of the greatest achievers and thinkers of our time.
For those affluent Islanders who worry little about funding college for their children, who take for granted that college follows high school, and graduate or professional schooling follows the bachelor degree: that is not reality for most African American high school graduates, regardless of grades or talent. Many will never see the inside of a college classroom, not because they can’t qualify, but because they lack funding resources. Yet more devastating is the fact that, contrary to the belief that Spelman houses an affluent student body, most come from modest or low-income backgrounds, on family incomes of $40,000 a year or less. Getting into Spelman is one thing; being able to stay is entirely another matter. Those who manage to secure initial funding through federal Pell Grants and complete their freshman or sophomore years may not complete college due to a lack of funds. The saddest story revealed during an interview with Dr. Tatum was the plight of those students who are left with loans to pay and no degree, young women who have to cope with economic hardship, discrimination, and at times deterioration of family life as they strive to improve their own lives and future. Dr. Tatum has an unyielding commitment to increasing the school’s capacity to support these students, and Spelman’s programs, through sponsorships and fundraising.
This is a matter of concern for two very generous and highly involved members of our summer community, Peter and his wife, Gwen, who is a Spelman trustee. What they understand is that an investment in our historically black colleges, and young African American women, is a fundamental investment in America. The Nortons manifest this day in and day out with little fanfare, loads of commitment to nonprofits, and much joy. This gathering represented such an effort. The Norton Foundation continues to build a tradition of public service; it’s an example for others to give of time and resources, to make public service a part of our family life, and to understand we have a shared responsibility to one another.
Many may be unaware, but according to a National Science Foundation study over a 10-year period, Spelman is the number one producer of African American women going on to obtain PhDs in the sciences — more than Harvard, Yale, Stanford and other comparable institutions.
Dr. Tatum is a tower of strength, constantly seeking opportunities to advance the competitiveness of her students, ever aware that the bottom line is preparation to compete in the world of work and find success. Her brainchild, the CEO Roundtable, she launched in the fall of 2008. Her mission was to bring together senior corporate leaders and successful black senior corporate women who graduated from Spelman to discuss what companies require in the development, recruitment and retention of African American women — and to determine how Spelman might create an environment to help in this effort.
In May of 2009, she added a panel of graduating seniors who shared expectations with those senior leaders from such local corporations as Coca Cola, General Electric, Home Depot and banks. They were so impressed with the quality of the students that they asked Spelman to partner with them in November this year to explore opportunities for these women and continue the roundtable model. The common thread that coursed through the discussions was the need for mentoring within the corporate organization. Mentoring allows neophyte recruits to learn the rules of the corporate culture; how to tap into informal networks so one’s name can be brought up; and, when opportunities arise, for someone to advocate for the newcomer.
A few of the guests and houseguests were Spelman alumnae: Yvonne R. Jackson, president of the board of trustees and senior vice president, global human resources at Pfizer, and her husband, Fred Jackson, both seasonal Oak Bluffs residents; trustees vice chairman and chairman-elect, alumnae Jerri DeVard, former senior vice president for global marketing at Verizon, now principal of DeVard Marketing Group. Spelman staff included Cathy Daniels, chief of staff and secretary of the college, and Kassandra Jolley, vice president for development. Former Spelman trustee Veronica Biggins and her husband, Franklin Biggins, former magistrate judge of Atlanta, were there as well. It was an extraordinary evening.
At the Tabernacle: the Rev. Carl Gray, pastor of Fox Valley Presbyterian Church in Geneva, Ill., graduate of Westminster College and Princeton Theological Seminary will speak at the Sunday 9:30 a.m. service.
Here is a sampling of activities in Oak Bluffs: Featherstone Center for the Arts hosts Ann Tanksley’s Retrospective Show, Visual Voices, today through August 12, noon to 4 p.m. The opening reception will be held Sunday, August 2, from 4 to 6 p.m.
Friday, July 31, from 6 to 8 p.m: Cottagers African American Festival. Jill Nelson will discuss her latest novel, Let’s Get It On, which was released in June, at Cottagers’ Corner, 57 Pequot avenue.
Also today in the festival, at 11:30 a.m. Islander Karen Finley gives a workshop, Using Decoupage in Creating Africana Motifs at Cottagers’ Corner. Also there at 3:30 p.m. is Robert Jones, Esq., nephew and curator for the works of renowned artist, the late Lois Mailou Jones, to give a mini-talk titled, A Martha’s Vineyard Family Story.
Saturday, August 1, from 7 to 9 p.m. at Cousen Rose Gallery is a reception for acrylic on canvas by Randy Coleman and Stephen D. Rose. Call 508-693-6656 for details.
On August 3 and 4, the All Island Art Show and Junior Art Show hits the Tabernacle: Monday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. is the adult artwork display, and on Tuesday 10 a.m. to noon, it’s art created by children through age 15. There is a limit of two entries per child. Cost is 50 cents per entry. Art will be accepted between 9 and 10 a.m. There will be prizes for winners in all age groups.
Next Friday, August 7, at 7 p.m. at the Tabernacle, author Patricia Sullivan will debut her new book, Lift Every Voice: The NAACP and the Making of the Civil Rights Movement. Proceeds will benefit the Martha’s Vineyard Museum. Special guests panelists will be Henry Louis Gates Jr., Charlayne Hunter-Gault, Clark Johnson, and Margaret Burnham, who will discuss the book and the epochal story of the struggle for civil rights told through the stories of men and women who fought racial barriers in the North as well as the South, on the street, in the courtroom and in the halls of Congress. Sheldon Hackney will moderate the panel discussion and panelists will read excerpts from the book. A question and answer session will follow.
On Tuesday, August 4, at 6 p.m. at the Niantic Park basketball courts, Nancy Phillips, chairman of the Oak Bluffs park and recreation department and the Williams’ family and friends are hosting Legacies of Love, Living Tributes, an event dedicating a bench in memory of their 18-year-old son, Gilbert J.T. Williams, who recently died in a car accident, near the park where he loved playing basketball in the summer. The Rev. Judith Campbell, former minister of Martha’s Vineyard Unitarian Church, will preside over part of the ceremony. The Jim Thomas Spirituals Choir will sing. Those interested in contributing $10 for a remembrance candle to honor their family members are invited to do so. Funds will be used to support a scholarship in Gilbert’s name for needy youths. This ceremony will also be the kickoff for the Niantic Park restoration project to improve park conditions and amenities.
Whatever you do, don’t forget to open your gifts.
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