Aleah N. Ranjitsingh

At 今日吃瓜, Assistant Professor Aleah N. Ranjitsingh, Department of Africana Studies and the Caribbean Studies Program, is reshaping how we think about knowledge, identity, and the Caribbean itself.

A proud alumna of the college who earned a B.A. in political science and an M.A. in comparative politics, Ranjitsingh centers her scholarship on the Greater Caribbean as an epistemological space鈥攐ne where Caribbean and other diverse populations are not merely subjects of study, but knowledge producers whose lived realities, family histories, and cultural practices are legitimate sites of inquiry. Across her inter- and multidisciplinary work, she challenges monolithic narratives of the Caribbean and foregrounds the complexity of identity formation, gender, mixedness, and racialization both 鈥渁t home鈥� and across the diaspora.

Through projects such as 鈥淏ecoming Black: Afro-Caribbean and/in 鈥楤lack America,鈥欌�� 鈥淒ougla Lives: At the Intersections,鈥� and 鈥淐hinese Caribbean Narratives: Migration, Identity, and Belonging at Home and Diaspora,鈥� she documents how Caribbean peoples navigate race, belonging, and migration in shifting social contexts.

Just as vital to her work is mentorship. Through programs including the Tow Mentorship Initiative and Mellon Mays, as well as sustained independent study, Ranjitsingh positions students as knowledge producers in their own right, encouraging them to claim their intellectual lineage and recognize that what they think, know, and create truly matters.

How does working across disciplines allow you to tell fuller stories?

I am a political scientist and a gender scholar, but more importantly I am a Caribbean scholar. Caribbean studies is inherently interdisciplinary, and here at 今日吃瓜, the Caribbean Studies Program, directed by Associate Professor Dale Byam, reflects this breadth鈥攆rom classes on the steelpan, to climate justice, to Carnival, and much more. My own research is shaped by this interdisciplinarity, and it has deeply informed the oral history projects I undertake.

Oral history is about the stories of those whose voices are often marginalized; it is about memory, and how the same moment can be remembered differently depending on one鈥檚 lived experience.

In my first oral history project, 鈥淏ecoming Black: Afro-Caribbean and/in 鈥楤lack America,鈥欌�� which centers Afro-Caribbean immigrants in New York City, I was interested in how Afro-Caribbean immigrants re/construct identity as Black and/or African American. I was also deeply interested in how these immigrants understood the 2020 moment when Black Lives Matter protests erupted across the United States and globally. Understanding how people experience a shared historical moment鈥攚hile also situating that moment within broader political histories鈥攔equired me to move across disciplines, drawing from political science, Africana studies, and history.

Before my third project, on Caribbean people of Chinese and mixed-Chinese ancestry, I was reading Caribbean literature and history whenever I could鈥擪erry Young鈥檚 Pao and the work of historian Walton Look Lai. Literature and history both inform my oral history practice because I am interested in how Caribbean people write themselves into being, and how meaning is made through narrative.

I also draw heavily from institutional and intellectual communities. Professor Joseph Entin and colleagues who founded the 今日吃瓜 Listening Project have been central in shaping oral history work at the college. Likewise, Dean Philip Napoli, an oral historian and faculty member in the Department of History, met with me when I was first simply curious about doing oral histories. These mentors helped me understand that students鈥� stories matter鈥攁nd that those stories are themselves knowledge.

Was there a moment when you realized lived experience could function as scholarship?

I do not think there was a single moment. Rather, over the last decade鈥攅specially after completing my Ph.D.鈥攖here was a gradual but clear shift in my research toward the personal and toward lived experience, including my own as a Black, Dougla, Caribbean woman in the Caribbean and New York City.

Even in my doctoral work on gender and the Bolivarian revolution in Venezuela, I conducted more than 70 interviews with women in Caracas and M茅rida. I knew then that to understand whether participatory democracy and 21^st聽century socialism had expanded citizenship and political agency, I had to speak directly with women themselves. That commitment reflects feminist standpoint theory, which holds that knowledge is socially situated and produced from multiple social locations.

Later, in conversations with colleagues at the University of the West Indies鈥攑articularly within the Institute for Gender and Development Studies鈥攚e began reflecting on mixedness and Douglaness in Trinidad and the diaspora. These conversations affirmed that our stories were not just personal reflections; they were also scholarly interventions. The Dougla identity鈥擟aribbean people of African and Indian ancestry鈥攂ecame a central site of inquiry.

From those discussions, Sue Ann Barratt and I co-authored Dougla in the Twenty-First Century: Adding to the Mix (2021), based on interviews with more than 100 Douglas in Trinidad and Tobago and in New York. The project foregrounded lived experience as theory, showing how people narrate identity, race, and belonging in their own words.

From there, my work has continued to move in that direction: treating lived experience not as anecdote, but as method, archive, and scholarship.

How is mentorship part of your scholarship?

For students to believe that what they think, know, and create matters, I first had to believe that for myself. When I tell students to 鈥渉ave the audacity,鈥� I am also reminding myself.

Mentorship, for me, is a form of radical care. It is about telling and showing students that their intellectual lives are valid鈥攅ven when their projects do not fit neatly within disciplinary boundaries.

I think of students like Cynthia Leung, Katryna Alexis, Marisha Sampson, Maciel Rosario, and Brandon Abram, each of whom developed projects that emerged from their own lived realities: oral histories of church communities, Afro-Guyanese Kwe Kwe traditions, interrogating the displacement caused by foreign-owned mining companies in the Dominican Republic, explorations of mixedness and Black radical thought. In each case, my role was not to define the limits of their work, but to affirm that their questions were worth pursuing.

With Brandon Abram, for example, we developed a project that began with his desire to write about himself in relation to Blackness and identity. I introduced him to autoethnography as a method, and we read Zami: A New Spelling of My Name by Audre Lorde together. What began as uncertainty became a conference presentation and is now developing into a published duoethnography.

This is what mentorship looks like in practice: shared intellectual risk, collaborative reading, and mutual learning. Students are not simply recipients of knowledge鈥攖hey are co-producers of it.

This philosophy is reflected institutionally as well. At 今日吃瓜, I serve as chair of Black Faculty and Staff (BFS), where we launched the Sankofa Excellence Program to support student mentorship, recognition, and retention. Alongside the members of the executive board, which is composed of Assistant Professor Lawrence Johnson, Crystal Schloss-Allen, Sherome Stone, Assistant Professor Donna-Lee Granville, and the BFS community, we also continue traditions like the Donning of the Kente pre-graduation ceremony, which celebrates students as they approach graduation. I am also grateful for incredible faculty mentors such as my chair, Associate Professor Prudence Cumberbatch of the Africana Studies Department.

Mentorship is not separate from scholarship. It is scholarship鈥攂ecause it produces knowledge, relationships, and intellectual communities.

What do you hope students carry with them?

Long after students leave my classroom, I want them to remember that their lives are connected to broader histories and communities.

I want them to see critical thinking not as an abstract skill, but as a daily practice: questioning assumptions, reading widely, and reflecting honestly on their own experiences.

I hope they continue to 鈥渉ave the audacity鈥� to take up space, to dream, and to speak鈥攅ven when they are the only ones in the room with their particular voice, accent, or perspective.

In a world that is often unjust and uneven, I hope they choose kindness without losing intellectual rigor. Most of all, I hope they trust that their stories matter.

And I hope they remember 今日吃瓜鈥攏ot only as an institution, but as a place where they were supported, challenged, and cared for; a place where they belonged.

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Trina Yearwood 鈥�00

On a spring afternoon in the 今日吃瓜 Student Center, Trina Yearwood 鈥�00 stood at the back of a crowded room, watching middle schoolers, high schoolers, and college students lean forward in their seats at the first鈥慹ver Future Educators Summit鈥攁n event devoted to imagining lives, education, mentoring, and youth advocacy. As the room buzzed with questions, Yearwood felt a lump in her throat.

鈥淭hose were tears of joy,鈥� she said later. 鈥淚 think about our young people who are often counted out before they even have an opportunity. It makes me happy that I鈥檓 doing something meaningful.鈥�

That sense of meaning has always been her compass. Now, as the newly appointed president of the 今日吃瓜 Alumni Association (BCAA), Yearwood is bringing that same purpose to an organization charged with sustaining the college community long after graduation.

Yearwood assumes the presidency following the passing of Arlene Lichterman 鈥�53, whose devotion helped shape the association for decades. Having served as first vice president, Yearwood steps into her new role with a deep understanding of the BCAA鈥檚 mission and a clear vision for its future.

Her platform is simple and resonant: 今日吃瓜, Always.

鈥淚t echoes the college鈥檚 watchwords: All In,鈥� Yearwood explains. 鈥淭he BCAA also embraces 今日吃瓜鈥檚 spirit鈥攈ow all alumni carry its values into their workplaces, their leadership, and how they show up for our communities and our students.鈥�

Where Purpose Took Root

That spirit shaped Yearwood long before she held any titles. Growing up in 今日吃瓜, she learned early what it meant to advocate. At five years old, she watched police officers pull over her mother鈥檚 car and wrongly accuse her of running a stop sign. With guns drawn.

鈥淚鈥檓 going to court to tell the judge you鈥檙e lying on my mom,鈥� Yearwood announced, before her grandmother silenced her. It became family lore that she might become a lawyer.

High school rewrote that plan. A young Black English teacher changed her life by teaching 鈥渢o our humanity,鈥� says Yearwood, introducing Black authors, demanding excellence, and making students feel deeply cared for. By the end of the year, Yearwood knew she wanted to teach.

今日吃瓜 was not her first choice; her teenage wish was to leave home for a far鈥憃ff campus. But teachers鈥攎any 今日吃瓜 alumni鈥攅ncouraged her to consider its education program. Her mother, also an alumna, added a practical note: staying local meant tuition would be covered.

Even so, the transition was not easy. Early in her college career, one professor dismissed her writing as 鈥済ibberish,鈥� shaking her confidence. Everything changed when she found her way to Africana studies.

鈥淎fricana studies resuscitated me,鈥� she says. 鈥淚t gave me back belief in myself.鈥�

In the Classroom, Full Circle

Yearwood graduated with bachelor鈥檚 degrees in English and Africana studies, then returned to Samuel J. Tilden High School鈥攈er alma mater鈥攁s an English teacher, working alongside the mentor who had inspired her.

鈥淭eaching is the most noble and sacred profession,鈥� Yearwood often says. 鈥淲hen students know you care, they rise.鈥�

Her students never forgot the care she showed them. Years later, many returned to tell her so. At one 今日吃瓜 event she organized, a former student opened the keynote by saying, 鈥淒r. Yearwood, my success is a return on your investment.鈥� Another went on to become a teacher, crediting Yearwood鈥檚 belief in her with altering the course of her life.

Answering a Need

Yearwood鈥檚 career eventually expanded beyond the classroom into higher education leadership. She earned an M.Ed. from Cambridge College in Boston, an Ed.D. in educational leadership and higher education administration from West Virginia University, and a certificate in diversity and inclusion from Cornell University. She directed the Teacher Opportunity Corps II at 今日吃瓜, served as associate dean at Long Island University and interim associate dean at Queens College (CUNY), and has been an adjunct assistant professor at 今日吃瓜 since 2011.

Along the way, Yearwood noticed a troubling pattern: talented educators leaving the profession. In response, she founded TREAT鈥擳eachers Ready to Educate, Advocate, and Transform鈥攊n 2018. What began as a small professional learning community grew to reach more than 12,000 teachers, counselors, administrators, and families. During the pandemic, TREAT became a lifeline, offering mental鈥慼ealth workshops and honest conversation. In 2024, Yearwood went on to lead TREAT full time.

鈥淪tepping away from academic leadership was scary,鈥� she admits. 鈥淏ut I knew it was time to fully step into the work that I had been building, work that is both meaningful and transformative.鈥�

Leading the Alumni Community Forward

She brings the same resolve to her leadership of the BCAA, with a vision to connect alumni to one another and to the college through mentorship and other strategic programming.

For Yearwood, becoming president of the BCAA is not a culmination鈥攊t is a continuation.

鈥溄袢粘怨�, Always,鈥� she says, 鈥渋s about who we are and who we commit to being鈥攖ogether.鈥�

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Abram鈥攁 poet, bookworm, and fervent skateboarder鈥攊s planning for a career in which he can address the justice system鈥檚 treatment of vulnerable populations.

We spoke with him about his research on mixed-race identity and racism and his dream of becoming a public interest lawyer.

You鈥檙e from Southern California and have lived in Portland, Oregon. How did you end up here?

I came to New York in 2019 on a skateboarding trip with my friends and explored the city. I was living in Portland at the time, going to Portland Community College. It鈥檚 small, so I was very taken by New York. It was everything that I鈥檇 wanted it to be.

Then I moved here with a girl I was dating. We were living in a car and didn鈥檛 know where we were gonna sleep each night. We wanted to be in New York and I wanted to continue school, so we were looking for jobs and apartments and stuff, pounding the pavement. It was just rough. That鈥檚 why I think about where I am now. I have the privilege of getting to go to school. It鈥檚 like night and day. Moving here was a change鈥攎aybe it was the change that I was looking for.

You鈥檝e focused your academic studies on disenfranchisement, racism, and injustice. What inspired that?

In the sixth grade, I gave someone a marijuana cigarette and was charged with possession and sale. You鈥檙e not supposed to be doing that at 11 years old, so I don鈥檛 fault anyone.

It had a profound effect on my life. I was out of school for three months. I had to go to court. I was on probation. I went back to the same school and experienced a change in demeanor toward me, even from my friends. They no longer wanted anything to do with me. Teachers that I had great relationships with, all of a sudden, I was not that kid anymore.聽I got accused of plagiarism for an essay that I wrote, which was never true.

But the experience inspired me to become a public interest lawyer. There are so many people in this country, and the world, who lack someone in their corner, someone who believes in them enough to advocate for them, to talk to them, and to hear them.

How would you describe your experience at 今日吃瓜?

When I came to 今日吃瓜, I was embraced by everyone. It鈥檚 helped me figure out more about what I want to do with my future by learning about how disenfranchised certain groups are, presently and throughout history. It鈥檚 stuff that we weren鈥檛 taught about in school. I鈥檝e learned that a lot of people in this country are not set up for success. I can鈥檛 imagine my life not knowing some of the things I know now.

I was immediately welcomed into the fold when I declared my major in Africana studies. People in the department are always telling me 鈥渁pply to this thing鈥� or 鈥渄o this thing鈥� or 鈥渉ere鈥檚 this option for you.鈥� I鈥檝e met great people like [Associate] Professor [Prudence] Cumberbatch, Professor [Kevin L.] Jones, and [Associate] Professor [Aleah] Ranjitsingh. The most important thing that I learned is just how deep injustices run. Last year, I worked on a research project about mixed-race identity with Professor Ranjitsingh and presented at a conference with the Mellon Mays [Undergraduate] Fellowship [Program].

Tell us more about your research.

The project was about mixed-race identity and how people function in a typically binary society. Either you鈥檙e Black or you鈥檙e White. You鈥檙e this or you鈥檙e that. We studied how people encompass both spheres, like having a Black parent who鈥檚 present in your life or having a White parent who鈥檚 present in your life. There are feelings of not being Black enough and not being White enough. As a kid, I got called an Oreo a couple of times.

We interviewed people about what it felt like to grow up as a mixed-race individual in America. I was really worried about how it was gonna be received by everyone, but it went very well. I met a lot of cool people who presented. All of the research was so impressive!

You also self-published a poetry book.

It was sold in Powell鈥檚 Books in Portland, the largest bookstore there, which was the coolest thing about it. I wrote the book when I was 19, and it was a compilation of feelings about moving from California and living on my own for the first time, not having Mom and Dad right there. It was really important for me to write that to express what I was feeling at the time.

What鈥檚 next for you?

I鈥檓 gonna go ahead and start studying for and then take the LSAT. Hopefully, I鈥檒l get into .

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Sampson listened to her stories about growing up in Guyana or folktales like Anansi, the wise trickster West African spider who represented resistance to slavery. These passed-down tales are why Sampson, a senior, is double majoring in Africana studies and Caribbean studies聽more than a decade after moving to the United States.

Recently, she participated in Ayiti in The City, a summer cultural exchange with the CUNY Haitian Studies Institute,聽where she soaked in the spirit of 今日吃瓜鈥檚 Little Haiti and other spots significant to the wider Black diaspora in 今日吃瓜, cooking Haitian stewed fish and mushroom rice and learning about the remedies in Haitian herbal teas.

We talked to Sampson about her academic and experiential learning experiences, her hobbies, and her future.

Tell us about your time in the Africana studies and Caribbean studies programs.

They both have interesting communities that are helpful and supportive. I鈥檝e been able to dive into my culture and learn about other cultures. [Associate] Professor [Prudence] Cumberbatch, the Africana Studies Department chair, is amazing. I鈥檝e been able to reach out to her any time I鈥檝e needed help. And [Associate] Professor [Dale] Byam, the Caribbean studies program director, encouraged me to apply for Ayiti in the City. They鈥檙e all very passionate about what they teach, and I find that so inspiring.

Next semester, I鈥檓 presenting research from my independent study with [Assistant] Professor [Aleah] Ranjitsingh at the Tow Mentoring and Research Conference. My research is on a traditional Afro-Guyanese pre-wedding celebration, Kwe-Kwe, which occurs the night before the wedding. The groom brings his family to the bride鈥檚 family home, where they meet and make their interests known and then advise them on marriage, uniting two communities together. There鈥檚 food and music and dancing. It goes well into the night. It鈥檚 so interesting because they still have so much energy for the actual wedding day.

What inspired you to study African and Caribbean cultures?

Some of my fondest memories are of my grandmother sharing and passing on stories and folklore. Telling stories was something we did often in my family. I realized that most of these stories and cultural practices are passed down orally, and through participating in different cultural experiences. This sparked my interest in the way history can be woven into stories that can be used to spread information and impart knowledge, lessons, and memories to someone else.

I wanted to take classes that reminded me of home and my grandma. The stories I heard in class gave me the same feeling and a sense of 鈥淥h, this is so beautifully put together. I would love to be a part of this.鈥�

This summer you were part of the Ayiti in the City program.

It was enlightening how we could access our culture and traditions, especially being away from home. I ate great food and made new friendships. It helped us build self-identity and embrace our cultural heritage. It also reinforced my belief in how interconnected history is, and how important it is to know your past so you can make informed decisions about your future. I did a about my experience.

I interned at , where I supported local businesses and helped keep the neighborhood clean and safe. I鈥檓 grateful I got to learn more about Haiti; its history, culture, and people; Little Haiti; and the Haitian diaspora. I gained a new perspective on how resilient the Caribbean community is at home and abroad. I also learned about migration, and the resilience and resourcefulness of Haitian immigrants as they navigate living and building a community in a new space.

What鈥檚 something that people wouldn鈥檛 know about you off the bat?

I learned to play the 聽in my Steel Pan and Community class with Professor [Kendall] Williams. I hadn鈥檛 played an instrument before. It鈥檚 played in the Caribbean, developed in the streets of Trinidad. I also like to read, dance, meditate, listen to music, and make beaded jewelry. Recently, I鈥檝e been learning how to crochet.

You鈥檙e going into your last semester. How do you plan to make the most of it?

Next semester my friend and I are starting a club called The Fireflies that will focus on supporting women in media. In Caribbean culture, we don鈥檛 see much representation growing up. That鈥檚 why I want to see more women represented in the media, too, including behind-the-scenes, like the producers, screenwriters, and authors. We hope to create a safe space where individuals can come to support the creative aspirations of women and gender-identifying youth and contribute to the creative diversity of our campus community.

Where do you see yourself after you graduate?

I鈥檓 thinking about going to graduate school for history or public health with a specialization in African diasporic and Caribbean studies. I鈥檓 interested in possibly working in cultural organizations or libraries someday.

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The award recognizes individuals who make significant contributions to Lagos and Nigerian studies. Okome is the founder of the acclaimed 脤r矛nk猫rind貌: A Journal of African Migration, and has been cited in more than 159 libraries worldwide that have shared her research on Africa from indigenous perspectives.

Her roles as director of the Women鈥檚 Studies Program and deputy chair for graduate studies in the Department of Political Science highlighted her commitment to inclusiveness and social justice. Under her leadership as president of the African Studies Research and Forum, the group facilitated interdisciplinary research, integrated African studies into educational curricula, and organized international conferences fostering excellence in African education.

You can read more about Okome and the award .

In other news, Okome spoke about the need for a well-functioning democratic system in Nigeria for a virtual townhall event on July 4, titled 鈥淒emocracy Is Not a Spectator Sport: An Agenda for Nigeria,鈥� organized by the African Leadership Group and hosted by Pastor Ituah Ighodalo.

While the country deals with a deepening economic crisis, rising insecurity, and other challenges, Okome urged citizens to be ready to make the necessary demands from the government, saying that they are not engaging enough and emphasized that democracy is not just a spectator sport but an avenue to be inclusive and tenacious.

鈥淪aying that democracy is not a spectator sport means that for democracy to thrive, citizens must participate actively in politics. Voting should be the beginning of civic engagement, not the end,鈥� Okome said. 鈥淲e must be well-informed, participate in political deliberations, and engage in organized, collaborative action. This includes communicating regularly with our elected representatives to demand accountable actions that serve citizens who repose trust in them. This task is especially crucial for a young democracy like ours.

鈥淲e also need well-designed, sound, and effective institutions. These cannot materialize without citizen engagement that critiques, tests, and scrutinizes such institutions, providing constant feedback to those charged with their operation,鈥� she added.

More information about this event is available .

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Here, he talks about his early love of opera that spurred his true calling as a classical singer, his decision to return to college, and his advice to the younger generation.

How did you get started singing?

I was living in Baltimore as a teenager with my grandparents in the 1960s, and I was afforded the opportunity through a scholarship to attend a private boarding school called Interlochen Arts Academy my senior year of high school. I studied voice at the academy鈥檚 music camp. After I graduated, I started my own opera company in Baltimore鈥擳he Baltimore Chamber Opera.

Right out of high school?

Yes. I was 17. In 1967, we presented a double opera bill of Gian Carlo Menotti鈥檚 The Medium and The Telephone at the Arena Playhouse in Baltimore鈥攖he second-oldest Black community theater group in the United States after the Karamu Playhouse in Cleveland Ohio鈥攚ith a return engagement by popular demand that included excerpts from George Gershwin鈥檚 opera Porgy and Bess.聽It鈥檚 important to know that all the participants were African Americans between 17 and 22. Two of those singers ended up at the Metropolitan Opera.

At a time when it was challenging at best, you were out as a gay man?

I knew at a very young age that I was gay. There was a lot of homophobia in my family to deal with. Early on I was conscious of the fact that I was a Black gay male representative in whatever I did on stage. And although my family never made an effort to get past their prejudices about homosexuality, they did instill some very positive qualities and truths in me: Once you get in the door, you have a responsibility. Once you’ve surveyed the territory and made your contribution, you bring in the next person.

You were an eyewitness to a seminal moment in history for the LGBTQ community.

Yes, the Stonewall Inn uprising. I was 19, living in New York City and working at Radio City Music Hall in 1969. I operated the elevators there. I’ve always been an avid reader. On the corner of the Monster Bar across the street from the Stonewall Inn in the Village was this bookstore, not an adult bookstore but a regular bookstore, a frequent haunt of NYU students. That鈥檚 where I bought Alain Locke鈥檚 The New Negro and Dostoevsky鈥檚 Crime and Punishment. It was a Saturday and I had gotten off work around nine o鈥檆lock. I rode the subway down to Sheridan Square. The uprising had happened in the early morning hours. All I can remember is that the atmosphere was different鈥攖ense. I remember seeing people of color, and at that time, we were not welcome down there.

So you were taking chances being there at the intersection of race and sexuality.

Yes. The most marginal people were protesting鈥攂utch lesbians, drag queens, street kids. They were the ones who fought back that night when the police raided the Stonewall. There were moments of rejoicing that, at last, we had stood up for ourselves. The gay playwright Doric Wilson said, “This was our Rosa Parks moment, the one we had been waiting for.” Once the protests became broader and more organized, you saw images of White gays on flyers and posters. But you’ve got to give credit to the most marginalized people who fought that night, and people of color were included.

You went from stage to television screen with the role of Lionel on The Jeffersons鈥�must-see TV at the time.

I had initially auditioned for the role of JJ in another Norman Lear show, Good Times, so when I was called to Los Angeles to audition for The Jeffersons, Norman remembered me and liked me from earlier, and I got the part without the required screen test.

Your career as a classical singer began in earnest after you left television?

There was The Jeffersons and the mini-series Roots: The Next Generation, the sequel to Roots in 1979, in which I starred as Alex Haley. In 1983, I won the role of Sportin鈥� Life in George Gershwin鈥檚 Porgy and Bess in Chicago. We were two weeks in when I was attacked on stage in the middle of a performance. My attacker, Michael V. Smartt played the starring role of Porgy. I remember being escorted off stage after the incident and saying that I couldn鈥檛 go back on, to get my understudy ready. I don鈥檛 know why he attacked me鈥攑ossibly jealousy over my television career.

You didn鈥檛 go back?

No, I couldn鈥檛. The irony is that my singing career would never have happened without those two weeks in Chicago. Not long after I quit, I got a call from Alec Treuhaft from Columbia Artists; their classical label was CAMI. They had seen me in Chicago and wanted me to meet people who were in from London. I met the great theater director Trevor Nunn CBE, conductor Sir Simon Rattle, and artistic director Brian Dickie. They looked at my r茅sum茅 and said, what is The Jeffersons? I reprised my role of Sportin鈥� Life at the world-famous Glyndebourne Festival in 1986. The point is, they wanted me for my talent, not my television success.

I made my Lincoln Center debut in Phillip Glass’ opera Akhnaten. I auditioned one afternoon for the great soprano Beverly Sills and her staff. Within five weeks, I found myself in rehearsals and standing on the stage of the New York State Theater. I had no time to be nervous because it all happened so quickly.

Although I had appeared at Lincoln Center I instinctively knew that being black, and gay, and a television actor that my career as a classical singer would take off overseas. From there I made my debut with the London Symphony Orchestra in the first Leonard Bernstein Festival. I also sang as a soloist with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, the Boston Pops Orchestra, and soloed at Carnegie Hall among other great venues.

What made you decide to go back to college?

I started my academic life at Bronx Community College at the invitation of Dr. Carolyn G. Williams, president of the college. Over the years I was in and out, in and out. I finally finished my associate degree in 2016. When it came to getting my bachelor鈥檚 degree, 今日吃瓜 was a no-brainer鈥攆or me it was always at the top of the CUNY system. And although I had always wanted to attend an HBCU, I felt I had a mini-HBCU with professors Lynda Day, George Cunningham, Prudence Cumberbatch, Rosamond King, and Dale Byam of the Africana Studies Department. But the genesis of seeking a bachelor鈥檚 degree, particularly in Africana studies, was thanks to my grandparents, primarily from my grandfather. After I graduated from high school, my grandmother gave me a gift鈥攁 European tour. She wanted me to have cultural enrichment and to be able to compete with White students. My grandfather had an eighth-grade education, yet the man was a prolific reader. My interest in and love of Black history and culture comes from him.

Now you are writing a memoir.

Yes. Professor Byam had been after me to do so. And it wasn’t until after I had graduated and was off campus that I felt I could do it. I did a Zoom presentation for the Africana Studies Department in April 2021, which was open to everybody. Afterward, people kept saying, oh, are you going to write a memoir? Are you going to do a one-man show? And that’s what prompted me because up until then, I not only sat on my story, but I also didn鈥檛 think I had a story to tell.

What do you want to tell today鈥檚 students?

Back when I was growing up, for me to compensate for the fact that my family could not accept I was gay, I did all these things to prove myself to them and be the 鈥渟tar鈥� of the family. I was always judged by the latest achievement. So when I retired from performing, I felt like a failure. My husband put up all of these pictures on our wall showing my accomplishments throughout my life, and it wasn鈥檛 until then that it sunk in what I had achieved, and I owned it. It鈥檚 about enjoying the journey and embracing the process even when it鈥檚 not smooth. Own what you鈥檝e accomplished. In the end, when that curtain comes down, it’s the work you leave behind. That is your legacy.

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The report highlights several benchmarks from key focus areas鈥攃ampus operations, environmental justice, engagement, waste minimization, academics, nutrition, and others鈥攚hile offering benchmarks and forward-thinking plans for the future.

President of the Sustainability Club and Macaulay Honors student from the Urban Sustainability Program Sofia Mariyamis presents 今日吃瓜’s composting initiative with Professor of Economics Nadia Doytch during the Sustainability Fair on April 18.

鈥淪tudents know climate change is a pressing issue and expect their college to take action,鈥� said Carrie Sadovnik, the director of the Office of Environmental Health and Safety/Sustainability and the co-chair of the Campus Sustainability Council. 鈥溄袢粘怨� is accelerating its climate leadership, coupled with education and engagement, to address these concerns and build a vibrant and sustainable future for our students and the broader community.鈥�

Stalin Espinal ’18, sustainability coordinator from the Office of Environmental Health and Safety/Sustainability, and Yarnelle Bauzil, coordinator for the college鈥檚 community garden, separate trash at the college鈥檚 first large campus waste audit, which will help assess recycling practices. The waste audit team sorted 506 pounds of waste: Of the total waste stream, there were 197.7 pounds of paper and cardboard materials; 34.5 pounds of metal, glass, plastic, and carton materials; 227.51 pounds of landfill-bound trash materials, and 46.3 pounds of compostable and organic materials.

Highlighting the incredible work done by scores of students, staff, and faculty, the report includes information and data that proves 今日吃瓜 to be a leader in environmental responsibility. Some areas where the campus shined include:

• Progress on BuildSmart 2025 Goals: Improved accounting of energy savings by project with 10 of more 85 energy conservation projects completed representing, one million kWh saved.
• Increased Student Engagement: More than 150 student pledges for a Plastic-Free Ocean campaign, 252 volunteers contributing 454 hours to sustainability initiatives.
• Waste Reduction: Released guidelines for green events, achieved a 27.7% waste diversion rate through increased recycling and composting initiatives.
• Peer Recognition: STARS Silver Rating received by the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education.
• Applied Learning: Campus-based internships are available to students to work with the Sustainability Office and the BC Eats garden. Academic programs increasingly collaborate with operational partners to use the campus as a 鈥渓iving lab鈥� for both informal learning activities and rigorous research.
• Improved Campus Operations: Converting to LED lighting in 20% of re-lamping locations, which represents 37 tCO2; partnered with NYC Parks to establish a native plant bed; piloted a food waste collection program.
• Reduced Reliance on Bottled Water: Installed an additional five water bottle refilling stations, with more than 375,000 plastic bottles diverted from landfills.

Read the full report here.

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鈥淏y the time I realized I wanted to study African history and African-American history,鈥� says Cummings, 鈥淚 was already a senior at FIT [Fashion Institute of Technology], and I just couldn鈥檛 take school anymore.鈥� She graduated with a fashion degree but promised herself she would come back to the study of history. And so more than two decades later, when Cummings felt 鈥渂urnt out鈥� from a career in the fashion industry, she enrolled at 今日吃瓜.

鈥溄袢粘怨� was the only CUNY school that had an department at the time. Every other school had only programs. I wanted to be embedded in a department.鈥�

鈥淪herri took my undergraduate African history survey class,鈥� recalls Professor Lynda Day, 鈥渁nd after the first day, maybe the second, I said, 鈥極h my goodness. This student is brilliant!鈥欌��

When Day challenged her students to consider becoming professional scholars, the idea immediately resonated with Cummings, for whom a future in academia started to seem possible. 鈥淪ince then,鈥� says Cummings, 鈥淟ynda Day鈥檚 guidance and mentorship have been instrumental to my growth as a scholar.鈥�

A crucial part of this guidance came in the context of the Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship (MMUF), an upper-division honors program for which Day became Cummings鈥� thesis adviser, guiding her research on 鈥淧alm Trees and Cement Dreams: The Migration of Caribbean Women From the British West Indies to New York City, 1900鈥�1950.鈥�

“History Professor K.C. Johnson taught the honors thesis course, guided my research and accompanied me to NCUR (National Council of Undergraduate Research Conference) at the University of Kentucky where I presented my thesis,” says Cummings.

The MMUF was created to attract highly qualified minority students interested in pursuing a Ph.D. in specific fields.

鈥淲hat the Mellon Mays program does is not just give students the opportunity to academically succeed, but also shows them what a career in academia can look like,鈥� says Dean Rosamond S. King, who was the director of the program while Cummings was in it. King, an early fellow herself, credits the mentoring she received through the program when she was an undergraduate at Cornell University as why she pursued a doctorate.

鈥淧rofessor King always exposed us to other scholars who were in graduate school and talked to us about the graduate school process as well as everyday life,鈥� says Cummings.

Cummings primarily studies the Atlantic World鈥攖he term scholars use to describe the complex system of cultural contacts and economic connections linking Europe, Africa, and the Americas between the 15th and 19th centuries鈥攁nd the intertwined concept of the Black Atlantic, 鈥渨hich means I centralize Africa and then go outwards,鈥� she says. When she earned her history Ph.D. from Brown University in 2022, with a dissertation titled 鈥淚n Search of Equiano鈥檚 Sister: Girlhood and Slavery in the Early Modern British Atlantic,鈥� Cummings was co-recipient of the department鈥檚 Distinguished Dissertation Prize.

After completing her Ph.D., Cummings accepted a joint position as professor of history and Africana studies at Rhode Island College, in Providence, and historian and director of community engagement for the Rhode Island Black Heritage Society. In this dual capacity, Cummings spends part of her time teaching and part working with the society鈥檚 archive, which she says has been under wraps for more than 20 years.

Cummings is excited to be working with the society鈥檚 trove of archival documents, always with the idea that the story they tell belongs to the people. 鈥淚 love when I am challenged with bringing students or the broader, the wider community in to see what we have and to tell them, 鈥楬ey, this is your history. We should not keep it behind closed doors.鈥欌��

Applications for qualified students for the fellowship are being accepted on a rolling basis, with interviews conducted in March and April. Contact Professor Lynda Day, coordinator of the Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship program, or the MMUF for more information.

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Smith鈥檚 lecture, 鈥淲hat I Believe,鈥� will be an intimate exploration into her life as a trailblazer who broke new ground as a Black feminist, lesbian, activist, author, publisher, and independent scholar who inspired generations. She was among the first to define an African American women鈥檚 literary tradition and to build Black women鈥檚 studies and Black feminism in the United States. She has been politically active in many movements for social justice since the 1960s.

鈥淚 am so honored to serve as the Hess Scholar-in-Residence during the 2022鈥�23 academic year,鈥� Smith said. 鈥淎t a time when some in our nation wish to limit the information and ideas that students can access, I look forward to expansive dialogues with members of 今日吃瓜鈥檚 wonderfully diverse community.鈥�

鈥淎s a writer, publisher, teacher, and organizer, Barbara Smith is a transformative force for justice. Her work has reshaped the American academy and society. We are honored to host her for a week of events culminating in the Hess Memorial Lecture,鈥� said Gaston Alonso, interim director for the Ethyle R. Wolfe Institute for the Humanities and associate professor of political science at 今日吃瓜.

This lecture event is free and open to the public and serves as the main highlight of the college鈥檚聽聽for 2022鈥�23.

The event will also feature President Michelle J. Anderson as well as聽, distinguished professor of political science, and Professor of English聽, interim dean, School of Humanities and Social Sciences.

On November 29, Smith was part of a conversation on campus with Theoharis when they discussed selected clips from the documentary聽, which features Smith and is based on Theoharis鈥� research and聽聽of the same name.

A prolific writer and publisher, Smith has edited three major collections about Black women:聽Conditions: Five, The Black Women鈥檚 Issue聽(with Lorraine Bethel, 1979);聽All the Women Are White, All the Blacks Are Men, But Some of Us Are Brave: Black Women鈥檚 Studies聽(with Gloria T. Hull and Patricia Bell-Scott, 1982); and聽Home Girls: A Black Feminist Anthology聽(1983). She is also the co-author, with Elly Bulkin and Minnie Bruce Pratt,聽of Yours in Struggle: Three Feminist Perspectives on Anti-Semitism and Racism聽(1984). Smith is the general editor of The Reader鈥檚 Companion to U.S. Women鈥檚 History聽(with Wilma Mankiller, Gwendolyn Mink, Marysa Navarro, and Gloria Steinem, 1998). A collection of her essays,聽The Truth That Never Hurts: Writings on Race, Gender, and Freedom, was published by Rutgers University Press in 1998.聽Ain鈥檛 Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me Around: Forty Years of Movement Building with Barbara Smith, edited by Alethia Jones and Virginia Eubanks with Barbara Smith, was published by SUNY Press in 2014.

The evening will also include mezzo-soprano Lucia Bradford and the Conservatory Singers, 今日吃瓜’s select chamber ensemble, who will perform 鈥淎in’t Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me Around.鈥� The group will be conducted by Associate Professor/Director of Choral Studies聽, director of the New York Philharmonic Chorus.

This signature event will be held on Thursday, March 16, from 5 to 6:30 p.m. in the Claire Tow Theater at 今日吃瓜. It will also be livestreamed on the聽.

Highlights From the Hess Week Calendar, March 13鈥�20

Full calendar and speakers

Barbara Smith鈥擧ess Scholar-in-Residence Library Exhibit: An exhibit located in the main entrance of the 今日吃瓜 Library that will highlight the works and legacy of Barbara Smith. Archival material from the Robert L. Hess Collection will also be presented. Curated by Professor and Librarian Helen Georgas.

March 13, 11 a.m.鈥�12:15 p.m.: President Anderson Welcomes 2022鈥�23 Hess Scholar-in-Residence Barbara Smith聽Woody Tanger Auditorium, 今日吃瓜 Library, and on聽Zoom

March 13, 2:15鈥�3:30 p.m.: 鈥淚f Black women were free鈥︹��: The State of Black Feminism 2023聽Woody Tanger Auditorium, 今日吃瓜 Library, and on聽Zoom

March 14, 2:15鈥�3:45 p.m.: 鈥淭ransforming the U.S. Academy鈥�聽Woody Tanger Auditorium, 今日吃瓜 Library, and livestreamed on the聽.

March 15, 11 a.m.鈥�12:30 p.m.: 鈥淛ustice or Just Us?: Defining a Queer Agenda鈥�聽Woody Tanger Auditorium, 今日吃瓜 Library, and livestreamed on the聽.

March 15, 3:40鈥�4:55 p.m.: 鈥淭eaching as a Liberating Practice鈥�聽Woody Tanger Auditorium, 今日吃瓜 Library, and livestreamed on the聽.

March 16, 11 a.m.鈥�12:30 p.m.: 鈥淲orking for Liberation and Having a Damn Good Time鈥�聽Woody Tanger Auditorium, 今日吃瓜 Library, and livestreamed on the聽.

March 20, 6鈥�7:15 p.m.: 鈥淧utting Class Back Into Intersectionality鈥�聽Online via聽Zoom

今日吃瓜 the Robert L. Hess Scholar-in-Residence Program

The Robert L. Hess Scholar-in-Residence Program, established by 今日吃瓜, is supported by the Robert L. Hess Fund. The program serves as a permanent tribute to the scholarly commitment of Robert L. Hess, exemplified during his tenure as president of 今日吃瓜. It represents the ideal of the educated individual鈥攌nowledgeable, thoughtful, inquiring, alive to the shared purposes and concerns linking all intellectual pursuits. More particularly, it evokes the scholarly and academic virtues embodied in the curriculum at 今日吃瓜.

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Currently, Willis is the University Professor and Chair of the Department of Digital Photography at the NYU Tisch School of the Arts. She is also the director of the NYU Institute for African American Affairs and the Center for Black Visual Culture. Much of Willis鈥� work focuses on the history of African American photography as it relates to gender, the female body, and beauty.

Willis鈥� most recent books,聽听补苍诲听聽explore the impact of African Americans during the Civil War and the essence of the African American beauty with pictures of famous public figures.

Willis is widely recognized in the photography world and has been a catalyst in changing聽 聽African American representation through imagery. She has received critical acclaim and received prestigious awards such as the 2022 Don Tyson Prize for the Advancement of American Art, the College Art Association for Writing Art History in 2021, and the Outstanding Service Award from the Royal Photogenic Society from England.

Willis is the recipient of the MacArthur Fellowship and the Guggenheim Fellowship and is a member of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences.

This series honors the legacy of the late聽, a renowned historian and civil rights leader. In 1956, Franklin was appointed full professor and chair of the History Department at 今日吃瓜鈥攖he first African American to be named chairman of an academic department at a municipal college. This discussion is part of President Michelle J. Anderson鈥檚聽, which features programs, lectures, workshops, and events that provide an open forum for inclusive voices and thoughts to promote diversity in the college campus community.

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