LINCOLN UNIVERSITY, PA -- Lincoln University, America's
first Historically Black University, which has earned
academic distinctions throughout its 147-year history,
and President Ivory V. Nelson, who has achieved a national
reputation for his distinguished leadership in higher
education, will be honored with a Resolution for their
accomplishments by the City Council of Philadelphia on
Thursday, December 13, 2001.
The Resolution, which is being introduced by Councilwoman
and Majority Whip Marian B. Tasco, pays tribute to Lincoln
and President Nelson for their contributions to excellence
in the region and nation. It will be presented during
the City Council session at 10 a.m., in the City Council
Chambers, Room 400 of City Hall, in Center City Philadelphia*.
"I am very honored and, of course, very pleased that
the City Council of the City of Philadelphia is recognizing
the outstanding achievements of Lincoln University," President
Nelson said. "In honoring this venerable institution,
City Council is also paying tribute to the Lincoln Legacy
of excellence and dedication to its historic mission of
successfully preparing generations of learners and producing
leaders for their communities and professions.
"As Lincoln University prepares to celebrate its sesquicentennial
--150th anniversary -- in 2004, my role as president is
to build on the Lincoln Legacy and continue to lead Lincoln
University to greater heights."
Founded in 1854, Lincoln University provides 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. Besides its main campus in southern
Chester County, Lincoln also operates the Center for Graduate
and Continuing Education in Philadelphia. The University
enrolls 1,871 undergraduate and graduate students. The
University has achieved several recent national distinctions.
Lincoln University is:
· ranked 2nd in the nation in graduating African Americans
with baccalaureate degrees in the physical sciences.
· ranked 12th in the nation in graduating all minorities
with baccalaureate degrees in the physical sciences.
· ranked in the top 2% in the nation in graduating African
Americans with baccalaureate degrees in computer and information
sciences. ranked in the top 2% in the nation in graduating
African Americans with baccalaureate degrees in biological/life
sciences.
· ranked in the top 3% in the nation in graduating African
Americans in all academic disciplines.
· one of 20 universities nationwide where 40% or more
of its physics graduates are women.
· noted for graduating 7% of African American physics
majors in the U.S. in 1999.
· ranked first in Pennsylvania in graduating African Americans
with baccalaureate degrees in the physical sciences.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------(*Please
Note: All guests of the University, particularly Lincoln
trustees and alumni, should first convene in the office
of Councilwoman Marian B. Tasco at 9:30 a.m., in Room
577 of City Hall. Councilwoman Tasco will be introducing
the Resolution honoring both Lincoln University and President
Nelson. Once Councilwoman Tasco makes the presentation,
Council President Anna Verna will introduce President
Nelson for his remarks.)
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These national distinctions are continuations of the Lincoln
University tradition of educating an impressive list of
African Americans who have distinguished themselves as
doctors, lawyers, educators, businesspersons, theologians
and heads of state. Fifty-five of the 315 graduating seniors
in May 2000 were admitted to graduate schools. Between
1989 and 1998, sixteen (16) Lincoln University chemistry
majors earned Ph.D. degrees in chemistry and related fields.
Lincoln University is one of the largest employers in
southern Chester County with 450 full and part-time employees.
Seventy-two percent (72%) of Lincoln's employees are Pennsylvania
residents. Fifty-four percent (54%) of the University's
alumni reside in the state.
President Ivory V. Nelson, Ph.D., who has achieved a
national reputation for his distinguished leadership in
higher education, became the twelfth president of Lincoln
University on August 15, 1999. Before coming to Lincoln,
he had served as the president of Central Washington University
(CWU) for more than seven years. He was formally inaugurated
as Lincoln's president on April 14, 2000. A trained chemist,
President Nelson is listed among the world's top scientists.
Under President Nelson's leadership, Lincoln University
-- America's first Historically Black University -- is
being restored as the institution of choice for students
seeking a world-class higher education. President Nelson
has a record of active community and professional involvement
throughout his 30-plus years in higher education.
He is a member of the Oxford (Pa.) Mainstreet, Inc. Board
of Directors; YMCA of the Brandywine Valley Board of Directors;
Regional College and University Presidents Council; and
the NCAA Division III Presidents Council. He served on
the board of directors of Key Bank of Washington and was
a member of the Washington State Commission on Student
Learning, by gubernatorial appointment. He also was a
member of the Governor's Blue Ribbon Task Force on the
Arts, State of Washington.
President Nelson's career in higher education includes
receiving the Fulbright Lectureship, teaching graduate
and undergraduate chemistry, and serving as department
head, assistant dean of academic affairs, and vice president
for research. President Nelson has been inducted into
Phi Beta Kappa, Sigma Xi, Kappa Delta Phi education honor
society, Phi Kappa Phi, and Sigma Phi Sigma physics honor
society.
He has authored eleven technical publications in the
field of analytical chemistry, a chapter in one book and
a chapter in a monograph. He has secured extensive outside
funding through grants and proposal writing. In addition,
he has acquired significant funding from state legislatures
to construct major academic facilities. His career in
the corporate sector includes assignments as a research
chemist for both Union Carbide and American Oil Company.
President Nelson is profiled in a book entitled, Distinguished
African American Scientists of the 20th Century.
The Central Washington University Foundation honored
President Nelson by establishing a $50,000 Ivory V. Nelson
Endowed Graduate Fellowship in Chemistry, and the Board
of Trustees of CWU passed a Resolution in August 1999
conferring on him the title of President Emeritus.
He graduated magna cum laude from Grambling State University,
in Louisiana, in 1959, with a bachelor's degree in secondary
education, chemistry. He immediately entered the University
of Kansas, Lawrence, where he graduated with the Doctor
of Philosophy degree in analytical chemistry with high
departmental honors. * * * *
