125 Copies of Borrowing While Black Delivered to University of Maryland Eastern Shore

I am so late sharing but back in June I made it to Princess Anne with a special delivery to the University of Maryland Eastern Shore. 125 copies of Borrowing While Black will be given to incoming freshmen!

The weather was beautiful and it was great to see parts of Maryland that I have not seen before including UMES!

Sending a special thank you to Latoya Jenkins, VP of Enrollment Management and Student Experience, for showing me around UMES and Princess Anne. She has a heart for students and service and it shines.

I had such a good time I forgot to take pictures. The only one I captured was that of a doorway with the word “Opportunity” above the entrance. It caught my eye as I was walking from the parking lot to enter the Student Services Center. It made me think of a quote I saw on Instagram recently:

"Today is your opportunity to build the tomorrow you want."

Let's get to building! #HBCU #GoHawks

P.S. Enjoy some pics of my UMES “swag”! I am building up quite a collection as a result of my campus visits.

200 Copies of Borrowing While Black Delivered to Morgan State

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On March 31, I was heading to Baltimore to deliver 200 books to Morgan State University. It was drizzling when I hit the highway but the storm picked up so I decided to turn around near the halfway point. As I watched the opposing traffic I couldn’t help but think about how long it would take to get home and I did not want that commute!

The delivery was rescheduled for April 7 and I could not have asked for a more beautiful day. Sunshine, warmth, and virtually no traffic. It was my first time seeing Calvin and Tina Tyler Hall, the new home to Morgan’s student services. It was also my first time meeting Ms. Keisha Campbell, the university’s registrar. As it turns out, Ms. Campbell signed my diploma. It was nice to put a face with the name I see every time I walk into my office.

I must thank Dr. Phyllis Keys, professor at Morgan State University, for introducing me to Ms. Campbell. Dr. Keys was my finance professor when I was an undergraduate student at the University of Delaware.

The trip included another memory from Delaware. An old familiar song came on the radio during the ride home. Years ago, I played and sang this song with my piano teacher and the sister of a dear friend. That dear friend passed away on April 7, 2006 and the last time I presented a gift of this size was in his memory.

It felt good to deliver this gift. Looking forward to delivering many more...200 down, 430 to go.

Learn more about Dr. Keys and the namesakes of the new student services building, Calvin and Tina Tyler.

Welcome to the Maryland HBCU Challenge Blog

Welcome to the Maryland HBCU Challenge Blog! I decided to create a new space to share my progress toward getting copies of Borrowing While Black into the hands of 600+ students who attend Maryland’s four historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs):

• Bowie State University

• Coppin State University

• Morgan State University

• University of Maryland Eastern Shore

The text below shares a bit of background on the challenge. Looking forward to sharing updates about the gift-giving process in the near future!

In November 2020, Dr. Silver Canady started the Maryland HBCU Challenge, a giving campaign to provide free copies of her book, Borrowing While Black, to 500 students who attend Maryland’s HBCUs. The campaign exceeded the goal and as a result, more than 600 students will receive a free book.

Bowie State University has been selected as the first institution for distribution. Dr. Silver Canady has presented two students, Danae Stewart and Olubukola Alana, with a $500 scholarship to serve as “Student Ambassadors” for the Spring 2021 semester. Danae and Olubukola will develop and execute a plan to spread the word about Borrowing While Black and distribute the books on their campus.