Monday,
November 4, 2002
Lincoln
University Presents All-University Convocation on November
6; Event to Focus on Student Pursuit of Goals Keynote
Speaker to Use Lincoln Alum Langston Hughes’ Poem
as Theme
Lincoln
University, PA --- Lincoln University,
the nation’s first Historically Black University,
will hold a University-wide Convocation on Wednesday,
November 6 at 4 p.m. The event will take place at Lincoln’s
historic Mary Dod Brown Memorial Chapel.
Following
the traditional processional of University faculty and
opening remarks from Lincoln President Ivory V. Nelson,
Ph.D., Dr. Jackie Thomas, professor of English and director
of university scholars program, University of Maryland
Eastern Shore, will make the keynote address. Appropriately,
Dr. Thomas’ theme for the Convocation is “Hold
Fast to Your Dreams,” the first line from Dreams,
a 1932 poem by Lincoln alum and famed poet Langston Hughes
’29. The poem appeared in Hughes’ book, Dream
Keeper. Dr. Thomas will also address the ancestral
significance of attending an Historically Black University
as well as student responsibility, the socialization aspects
of college life and how students can receive “the
right peer pressure.”
“I
really want to encourage students to hold fast to their
dreams and pursue their education,” stated Dr. Thomas.
The
University-wide Convocation comes at a key time in Lincoln’s
history. Lincoln, which has an enrollment of 1,998 students,
is in the midst of a resurgence that is returning the
University to its long-time position of academic prominence
among the nation’s premier universities.
This
fall, Lincoln received more than 4,000 admission applications,
the highest number of student applications in the University’s
149-year history. Lincoln is also poised to celebrate
its sesquicentennial, or 150th anniversary during 2003-2004
with a wide array of initiatives and events that capture
the University’s rich history and strategic enrollment
management plan to proactively market the University as
a “world-class” higher education institution,
and “Institution of Choice” for students, staff
and contributors.
For
the current 2002-2003 school year, Lincoln saw improvement
in the SAT scores and grade point averages among its first-year
students. The average SAT score for incoming Lincoln students
was 864---26 points above the University’s average
last year and 31 points higher than the national average
for African Americans.
The
University has long been recognized as a major producer
of African Americans with undergraduate degrees in the
physical sciences (biology, chemistry and physics); computer
and information sciences; and biological and life sciences.
The Lincoln legacy also includes a long list of influential
and famous graduates, including world-acclaimed poet Langston
Hughes ’29; and Thurgood Marshall ’30, a renowned
civil rights attorney and the first African American U.S.
Supreme Court Justice. Hughes and Marshall have the distinction
of being honored with U.S. commemorative stamps.
Founded
in 1854, Lincoln University is a premier, Historically
Black University that combines the best elements of a
liberal arts and sciences-based undergraduate core curriculum
and selected graduate programs to meet the needs of students
living in a highly technological and global society. In
addition, Lincoln is ranked first in Pennsylvania in the
same categories.
From
April 2003 through May 2004, the University will celebrate
its 150th anniversary, with an array of campus and external
events, activities and announcements. For more information
about Lincoln University, please visit us on the Web at
www.lincoln.edu
