After more than half a century, the music of Motown not only thrives, it transcends generations. The iconic sound of Motown has led a handful of scholars to write, teach, lecture and share the music, history and business of Motown on their campuses. In its golden age, from 1959 to 1972, the sound Berry Gordy pioneered at Motown Records in Detroit…

This article presents an interview with Dr. Marc Nivet. Dr. Nivet joined the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) in June as the chief diversity officer, tasked with developing a strategic vision for AAMC's diversity efforts and overseeing programs designed to improve diversity in medical education and promote equity in health care. In…

This article profiles Dr. Norman Francis and describes how his longevity, strategic planning and vision as president of Xavier University bring academic and financial success. Higher education leaders say his 43 years at the Catholic HBCU in New Orleans is an increasingly rare example of the benefits possible from a lengthy presidency. It takes…

The author interviews four presidents of historically Black institutions, two public and two private: (1) Dr. James Ammons, of Florida A&M University in Tallahassee; (2) Beverly Wade Hogan, of Tougaloo College in Jackson, Mississippi; (3) Dr. Marvalene Hughes, of Dillard University in New Orleans, Louisiana; and (4) Dr. Melvin Johnson, of…

Senator Barack Obama's historic candidacy for president of the United States has generated an intense and thoughtful national discussion within Black America. His campaign has brought several issues to the fore. Recently, the author spoke with five of the most preeminent Black scholars in the nation to search out some of their thoughts on five key…

Dr. Jane Buck, who spent almost her entire career teaching psychology at Delaware State University, the only historically Black college in Delaware, is the outgoing president of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP). Having grown up in a family of civil rights activists in Reading, Pennsylvania, it seems appropriate that Buck…

This article reports on a research authored by University of Pennsylvania's Dr. Shaun Harper that sought answers on how Black males adapt and succeed in college. Harper's National Black Male College Achievement Study is the largest-ever empirical study of Black male undergraduates. Partly launched when he was a Ph.D. student at Indiana University…