Oakwood University Serves by Fighting for Social Justice (5166 hits)
by Lauren Harksen | WHNT.com
This year, Oakwood University answered a call to action.
The death of George Floyd started a chain reaction across the country of protests, social media outcry, and conversation, but Oakwood went a step beyond by providing the gift of education in Floyd’s memory.
“The mission of Oakwood University is to transform students through biblically-based education for service to God and humanity,” said Dr. David Richardson, Oakwood’s vice president for mission, enrollment services, and retention. One way the serve humanity is by fighting for social justice.
“Oakwood University has always had that mindset… to be engaged as it relates to social justice issues,” said Dr. Richardson. While the death of George Floyd sparked an outcry for change, he says the university became more focused in the fight for equality. They established a scholarship fund in memory of George Floyd.
This comes after the president of North Central University in Minneapolis challenged universities across the nation to establish a scholarship fund in Floyd’s honor. The university says the proceeds from the fund will be used to help educate black men attending Oakwood University.
Oakwood’s president, Dr. Leslie Pollard, said the scholarship is meant to bless a young man with the gift of education. “What better way to memorialize Mr. George Floyd than to rally donors to his memory and bless some young man with the gift of education! Oakwood accepts the responsibility for guaranteeing that Mr. Floyd did not die in vain.”
Dr. Richardson says $10,000 has been raised for the scholarship so far, but that’s not the only way the school has incorporated a focus on inspiring growth and change. “We have had mentorship opportunities,” said Dr. Richardson. “Workshops, we’ve brought in Eric Thomas, Jeremy Anderson, and different folks as we’ve had workshops to address black men and their development and their growth.”
Just as Oakwood University answered the call to action, they now have a challenge for you, to help make the world a better place. Dr. Richardson says people should follow the advice of Michelle Obama, to ‘go high!’ “When folks are treating you a certain way, you need to go high,” he said. “We got to stop trying to figure out ways to go low, we got to go high!”
If you feel called to donate to the George Floyd Memorial Scholarship Fund to help support students pursuing a higher education, you can donate here.
