Lincoln University Steppin in the Cafe - A Fraternity Step Show Tradition

Lincoln University has a main area called the cafe. And the stepping tradition has always been that the fraternities will stroll into the cafe. The crowd of students gather and circle around the fraternity steppers and watch the free show. The crowd will scream, the girls will squeal and the fellas will bark. The performances are intimate and full of energy.
Check out a few of the videos of the Lincoln University Cafe.

Beta Chapter Que’s Part One Steppin in the Lincoln University Cafe

Beta Chapter Que’s Part Three Steppin the Lincoln University Cafe

Alpha Phi Alpha Steppin in the Lincoln University Cafe, Jefferson City, Missouri

Popularity: 12% [?]

Lincoln University (Lincoln Institute) Built and Paid For By the Money of Former Slaves

Lincoln University has a rich story.  At the close of the Civil War, soldiers and officers of the 62nd United States Colored Infantry, stationed at Fort McIntosh, Texas, but composed primarily of Missourians, took steps to establish an educational institution in Jefferson City, Missouri, which they named Lincoln Institute.

They were compelled to do this because many of them had never received education as slaves.  So when they got into the military, many had learned to write their names for the first time.  If you can imagine how slavery was a way to keep you dumb and uninformed.  And even in that environment, there were Black men and women who were conscious enough to know that they should escape their slave masters to join the military so that they could gain freedom.

Sadly, some of the conscious black men and women were killed in the Civil War.  They gave their lives so that others, the ones too afraid to see a better future, could be free.  But the ones who made it, knew that after the war, they should have a plan and they knew that education must be included into that plan.

 The following stipulations were set for the school:
1. The institution shall be designed for the special benefit of the freed African-Americans; 2. It shall be located in the state of Missouri; 3. Its fundamental idea shall be to combine study and labor. Members of the 62nd Colored Infantry contributed $5,000; this was supplemented by approximately $1,400, given by the 65th Colored Infantry.

They knew that they could not setup the school themselves.  Imagine being black and rolling back into Missouri triumphant.  The southern empathizers would be quick to kill you.  So they entrusted one white man who toured with them with the money and the quest to find land to build this school. 

This goes to show you that we have to work together to make a better way. 

On January 14, 1866, Lincoln Institute was formally established under an organization committee.

By June of the same year, it incorporated and the committee became a Board of Trustees. Richard Baxter Foster, a former first lieutenant in the 62nd Infantry, was named first principal of Lincoln Institute. On September 17, 1866, the school opened its doors to the first class in an old frame building in Jefferson City. In 1869, Lincoln Institute moved to the present campus, and in 1870 it began to receive aid from the state of Missouri for teacher training. College-level work was added to the curriculum in 1877, and passage of the Normal School Law permitted Lincoln graduates to teach for life in Missouri without further examination. Lincoln Institute formally became a state institution in 1879 with the deeding of the property to the state.

Under the second Morrill Act of 1890, Lincoln became a land grant institution, and the following year industrial and agricultural courses were added to the curriculum. In 1921, the Missouri Legislature passed a bill introduced by Walthall M. Moore, the first black American to serve in that body, which changed the name from Lincoln Institute to Lincoln University and created a Board of Curators to govern the University. The North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools accredited the high school division in 1925, the teacher-training program in 1926, and the four-year college of arts and sciences in 1934.

Graduate instruction was begun in the summer session of 1940, with majors in education and history and minors in English, history, and sociology. A School of Journalism was established in February 1942. Twelve years later, the United States Supreme Court handed down its ruling in Brown v. Board of Education, and Lincoln University responded by opening its doors to all applicably meeting its entrance criteria.

Today, Lincoln University serves a diverse student clientèle, both residential and non-residential, engages in a variety of research projects, and offers numerous public service programs in addition to providing an array of academic programs.

Lincoln University is a historical school and monumental feat for the former slaves, Civil War heroes and men whose names, they learned to write for the first time, but names we will never know.

Popularity: 6% [?]

Mervyn Dymally Inducted into Lincoln University (Missouri) National Alumni Hall of Fame

Mervyn Dymally a Lincoln University Success - Lincoln University, the Historically Black College and University (HBCU) located in Jefferson City, Missouri has many Black graduates who have gone on to be extremely sucessful.  Recently, Lincoln recognized one of its famous graduates by inducting him into the National Alyumni Association Hall of Fame.  His name is Mervyn Dymally.

Dymally Inducted Into Lincoln University (MO) National Alumni Association Hall Of Fame 
 
 Assemblymember Mervyn M. Dymally, Chair of the Legislative Black Caucus was inducted into the Lincoln University (MO) National Alumni Association’s Hall of Fame.  The event took place on Saturday, July 21, 2007 in Chicago, Illinois at the Hyatt Regency McCormick Place.  After immigrating to the United States in 1946 from Trinidad, at the age of 19, Dymally attended Lincoln University in Jefferson City and majored in journalism.

“Tuition was $50 and I thought, I couldn’t beat that,” commented Dymally.  “Without that acceptance from Lincoln, I don’t know what my life would have been like.”

After a cold winter in Missouri, Dymally decided to head for warmer weather and transferred to California State University, Los Angeles and earned a Bachelor’s degree in Education.  He has a Master’s degree in Government from the California State University, Sacramento and a Ph.D. in Human Behavior from the United States International University, San Diego.

A teacher before entering the political arena, Dymally’s career began with teaching handicapped children in the Los Angeles Unified School District. He was a lecturer at various universities, including posts at Central State University, Ohio and the Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science in Los Angeles.

While teaching he joined the Young Democrats and served as State Treasurer. In 1960 he was actively involved in the Democratic National Convention in Los Angeles. Later he was chosen Field Coordinator for the John F. Kennedy Campaign for President. Two years later he successfully ran for the State Assembly. In 1966, he became the first African American to serve in the State Senate and was soon elected as Chairman of the Senate Majority Caucus.

In 1974, he made history when he was elected the first of two African American Lieutenant Governors in the United States. Later, he was elected Congressman from South Los Angeles County, making him the first foreign-born Black to be elected as a Member of the US Congress. During this time he also served as Chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus and Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa.

Dymally retired from Congress in 1992. During his retirement he traveled extensively including trips to Africa, Asia, and the Caribbean as a foreign affairs consultant. He currently serves as Honorary Consul to the Republic of Benin in West Africa and Chief Protocol Officer of the California Assembly.

In 2002, Dymally returned to where he began his political career in the State Assembly representing the 52nd district which includes: South Los Angeles, Watts, Compton, Paramount and North Long Beach.  He is Chair of both the Assembly Health Committee and the Legislative Black Caucus.

The Lincoln University (MO) National Alumni Association’s Hall of Fame was established to recognize alumni both living and deceased who have distinguished themselves by outstanding achievements in their chosen field of endeavor.  Individuals selected have distinguished themselves by their pioneering efforts, innovation and/or uniqueness.  They have been recognized in their local community, nationally and sometimes internationally for their work.

The Lincoln University Alumni Hall of Fame Room housed in Memorial Hall on the campus of Lincoln University is reserved for the distinct purpose of displaying the plaques honoring the inductees on the “Wall of Fame.” Artifacts and memorabilia belonging to honorees may also be exhibited in this room.

Popularity: 3% [?]

Newsletter for the Association of Black Culture Centers Features MU’s Center

This PDF document of “Nommo,” the newsletter for the Association of Black Culture Centers has done a great job detailing the history of the Gaines-Oldham Black Culture Center, a photo of the original center and the current building, as well as, a welcome from Nate Stephens, BCC’s Director.

View the document here:  http://www.blackmissouri.com/pdf/association_of_black_culture_centers.pdf

Popularity: 19% [?]

Arvarh E. Strickland Is Honored with the Naming of A Building in His Honor at MU

COLUMBIA, Mo. – Teaching history was Arvarh E. Strickland’s passion. Making history – particularly at the University of Missouri-Columbia – became his reality. Today, school administrators and state education leaders celebrated the accomplishments of MU’s first African-American professor by naming an academic building in his honor.

The former General Classroom Building (GCB), located in front of the Brady Commons Mall, is now Arvarh E. Strickland Hall – the first building on campus named for an African American. Humbled by the occasion, Strickland said the recognition is the result of pursuing his life-long passion – teaching students.

“As far as I was concerned, I was doing what I was here to do – that was to teach and add to our historical knowledge and understanding,” he said. “I was simply trying to get historical knowledge to my students.”

 Strickland arrived at MU in 1969 as a full tenured professor of history in the College of Arts and Science. In addition to teaching, he helped create the Black Studies Program, for which he twice served as interim director. He also served as associate vice president of academic affairs and as a special assistant to the chancellor. After 26 years, Strickland retired in ‘95 and was honored with an endowed professorship.

  Among his fondest memories are the students. Although he arrived during a time of racial tension in the United States, Strickland said he was well received by the students.

“The students are what made it a good place. I came at the height of the Civil Rights Movement and the students at Missouri, like in other places, thought they could make the world a better place,” Strickland said. “They were a joy to teach.”

The initiative to make Strickland Hall a reality was approved by the Curators of the University of Missouri in April. Numerous student organizations, including the Missouri Students Association (MSA), Residence Halls Association and Legion of Black Collegians, led the effort. Strickland said that he’s most proud of the fact that students started the campaign to have a campus building named in his honor.

 “They wanted something tangible to symbolize the presence of African Americans on campus. I think of myself really as being symbolic of that purpose,” he said. “I’m a symbol of something a bit larger than anything I’ve accomplished.”

 Achievements by Strickland have been widely recognized at MU. A room in Memorial Union also is named after him. During his tenure, Strickland received MU’s William H. Byler Distinguished Professor Award, the Mizzou Alumni Association Distinguished Faculty Award and service awards from the State Historical Society of Missouri and Phi Alpha Theta Honor Society in history. In 1999, he was the recipient of the Carter G. Woodson Medal from the Association for the Study of African-American History and Culture.

Oct. 19, 2007

Story Contact:  Bryan C. Daniels, (573) 882-9144

Popularity: 10% [?]

Marian O’Fallon Oldham

Marian O’Fallon Oldham was rejected from attending the University of Missouri because she was Black.  It did not stop her as she instead attended Harris-Stowe in St. Louis. She later got her master’s from the University of Michigan. She then became a teacher and counselor in St. Louis Public Schools, a civil rights activist and a member of various charitable boards in St. Louis. In 1977, Oldham became the University of Missouri’s first Black female curator, and she served for eight years. The university’s St. Louis campus later gave her an honorary doctorate and set up a scholarship in her name. She died in 1994 at 66.

Today, the University of Missouri has named the Mu’s Black Culture system in her owner and that of Lloyd Gaines who was also denied admission for being Black.  The center is names the Lloyd Gaines-Oldham Black Culture Center.

Popularity: 15% [?]

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