Alumni Reflections

DOI

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At Tougaloo, I established a sense of self-worth and confidence that led me to believe ‘I can do whatever I dream.

At Tougaloo, I established a sense of self-worth and confidence that led me to believe ‘I can do whatever I dream.’ While enrolled at Brown, I learned to win with the best and enjoyed the seemingly endless resources bestowed upon me, never making excuses but turning challenges into opportunities for impact.

Spending a semester at Brown provided me with an opportunity to combine my credentials as a budding teacher-scholar with the educational resources available at an Ivy League university.

In studying African American literature at an HBCU, I was introduced to a body of intellectual work by Black scholars that demonstrated how Black life and culture could be examined, theorized, and taught perceptively and intelligently, and I was trained to discover the voices, writings, and activist efforts of Black Americans in settings and texts that are not always known or widely considered. Given this scholarly background that I had developed at Tougaloo, spending a semester at Brown provided me with an opportunity to combine my credentials as a budding teacher-scholar with the educational resources available at an Ivy League university, therefore supporting my interests as a literary and cultural critic and strengthening my capabilities as both a consumer and producer of knowledge.

The Brown-Tougaloo Partnership is woven into the fabric of my being.

The Brown-Tougaloo Partnership is woven into the fabric of my being. From the cultural experiences and exchanges to the acquisition of knowledge through time spent with Drs. Stanley Aronson, Richard McGinnis, and so many others, the Partnership has impacted my character, how I convey compassion when I seek wisdom from life’s circumstances. It has also substantially influenced who I am professionally as I strive  to learn from all those around me, how I see the capabilities of ambitious students,  and how I strive to leave an indelible mark on those I mentor.

This experience allowed me to conduct biomedical research at Rhode Island Hospital/Brown during the summer prior to the final year of my undergraduate studies. The nurturing environment I experienced through this experience was my catalyst.

The faculty, staff, and administrators at Tougaloo were instrumental in leveraging the network of the Partnership and recommended my participation in The Leadership Alliance Summer Research Early Identification Program (SR-EIP). This experience allowed me to conduct biomedical research at Rhode Island Hospital/Brown during the summer prior to the final year of my undergraduate studies. The nurturing environment I experienced through this experience was my catalyst to establishing a network of supporters in Rhode Island.

One of the highlights of my time at Brown was participating in a creative writing workshop . . . This experience ignited a passion for writing and storytelling that has stayed with me throughout my life.

One of the highlights of my time at Brown was participating in a creative writing workshop. This workshop not only honed my writing skills but also provided me with the opportunity to write my first stage play. The culmination of this experience was the performance of my play as part of at the Rites and Reason Theatre, an achievement that filled me with immense pride. This experience ignited a passion for writing and storytelling that has stayed with me throughout my life.

Brown Students reflect on their time at Tougaloo as part of Professor Françoise Hamlin’s course on African-American civil rights in the US.

The Civil Rights tour we did in the [Mississippi] Delta is seared in my memory in a way that most history I read isn’t.

As much as I love history books, I think that when I learn history from books, there’s a way that the history seems far removed from my reality . . . But reading about history and then going to the place where the events took place makes history inextricable from the every day. The Civil Rights tour we did in the [Mississippi] Delta is seared in my memory in a way that most history I read isn’t.

Although quite brief, the week I spent in Mississippi not only revealed the incredible tasks people undertake to make sense of their world. It confirmed my belief that history and understanding the world in historical terms provides a necessary framework for imagining a different kind of future.

The Mississippi Delta is an important geopolitical site. The people who live there and the conditions of their living help us understand America, its history, and the contradictions of our democracy. Although quite brief, the week I spent in Mississippi not only revealed the incredible tasks people undertake to make sense of their world. It confirmed my belief that history and understanding the world in historical terms provides a necessary framework for imagining a different kind of future: a future where white supremacy, patriarchy, colonialism, or the valuing of heterosexual bodies over all others does not define and limit access to power.

To “go” somewhere, to map knowledge onto geography and onto real bodies, is another level of learning. . . .

The trip to Mississippi really helped me visualize the curriculum I had been crafting at Brown. Focused on American empire and the Black freedom struggle, I only knew the events or people I learned about in class on paper. Sometimes, professors would show us a movie or explicate a photograph and it would help me to “see” the information on screen. But to “go” somewhere, to map knowledge onto geography and onto real bodies, is another level of learning. . . . ”