Making It on Broken Promises : African American Male Scholars Confront the Culture of Higher Education

225 Pages·2002·5.81 MB·English

by  Lee Jones

MAKING IT ON
BROKEN PROMISES

MAKING IT ON
BROKEN PROMISES
Leading African American Male Scholars
Confront the Culture of Higher Education
Edited by Lee Jones
FOREWORD BY
Cornel West
STERLING, VIRGINIA
Stylus Publishing, LLC
22883 Quicksilver Drive
Sterling, Virginia 20166
Copyright © 2002 by Stylus Publishing, LLC
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced in
any form or by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or
hereafter invented, including photocopying, recording and information
storage and retrieval, without permission in writing from the publishers.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Making it on broken promises: African American male scholars confront the
culture of higher education / edited by Lee Jones; with a foreword by Cornel
West.—1st ed.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 1-57922-050-9 (hard: alk. paper)
1. African American men—Education (Higher) 2. African American
men—Social conditions. 3. African American college students.
4. College integration—United States. I. Jones, Lee, 1965–
LC2781 .M15 2002
378.1'982996'073—dc21 2002001126
Printed in the United States of America
All first editions printed on acid free paper
First edition, 2002
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
First giving full honor to God, who serves as my
strength and help . . . This book is dedicated to
the millions of African people who died so that
we might have a seat at the table to ensure that
we will fully participate in our social, political,
economic, moral, and educational pursuits.
I dedicate this book to my dad and mom, the
late Levi and Carrie Jones, without whom
I would not be the person I am and will become.
Every positive step I take is guided by their
wisdom and unyielding sacrifices they made
on my behalf. I can only pray that every step
I take is ordered by God!

CONTENTS
FOREWORD xi
Cornel West
PREFACE xiii
Lee Jones
1. A MESSAGE FROM OUR ELDERS 1
Lee Jones
2. THE DATA SPEAK: NO REST FOR THE WEARY 15
William B. Harvey
3.
THE PSYCHOLOGICAL DILEMMA OF AFRICAN AMERICAN
ACADEMICIANS 31
Na’im Akbar
4. ONE BY ONE, OR ONE: AFRICANS AND THE ACADEMY 43
Asa G. Hilliard III
5. EXAMINING THE PITFALLS FACING AFRICAN AMERICAN MALES 61
Cyrus Marcellus Ellis
6.
EQUITY AND EXCELLENCE: IS THERE ROOM
FOR AFRICAN AMERICAN PH.D.S? 73
Charles Rankin
viii
CONTENTS
7.
COME SO FAR, BUT SO FAR TO GO:
INTERVIEW WITH DR. JOSEPH WHITE 79
Joseph White and Kamau Siwatu
8. UNDERSTANDING THE SOCIALIZATION PROCESS 99
William H. Watkins
9.
CULTURE, STYLE, AND COGNITION: EXPANDING THE BOUNDARIES
OF THE LEARNING PARADIGM FOR AFRICAN AMERICAN LEARNERS
IN THE COMMUNITY COLLEGE 107
Irving Pressley McPhail
10.
THE ROLE OF BLACK COLLEGES IN EDUCATING AFRICAN AMERICAN
MEN: AN INTERVIEW WITH NATHAN McCALL 133
Nathan McCall and Tony Anderson
11. AFROCENTRICITY AND THE AFRICAN AMERICAN MALE IN COLLEGE 141
Molefi Kete Asante
12. AFFECTIVE COMPUTING: THE REVERSE DIGITAL DIVIDE 149
Clarence “Skip” Ellis
13.
VISUALIZING THE FRAMEWORK FOR ACCESS AND SUCCESS:
DEMOCRACY DEMANDS THAT WE CARE 161
Frank W. Hale, Jr.
14.
FROM NA EZALELI TO THE JEGNOCH: THE FORCE OF THE AFRICAN
FAMILY FOR BLACK MEN IN HIGHER EDUCATION 173
Wade W. Nobles (Nana Kwaku Berko I aka Ifagbemi Sangodare)
15. THE PREREQUISITES FOR ACADEMIC LEADERSHIP 189
Charlie Nelms
INDEX 195