EASTON, Pa., April 20 -- Lafayette College issued the following news release: Art expert Robert Steele will give a lecture about collecting African American artwork at 12:15 p.m. Tuesday, April 27 in the Williams Center for the Arts room 108. The talk, "Evolution of an Art Collection," is free and open to the public. Steele will discuss collecting African American art and his work at the University of Maryland, where he serves as executive director of the David C. Driskell Center for the S  more

YPSILANTI, Mich., April 20 -- Eastern Michigan University issued the following news release: The Eastern Michigan University Board of Regents approved the appointments of 17 new staff at its regular meeting April 20. Of the 17 appointments, six (35 percent) are females and 11 (65 percent) are males. The group includes 11 Caucasians (65 percent), three African Americans (17 percent), two Asian (12 percent) and one Pacific Islander (6 percent). Those receiving appointments are: * Jason  more

WASHINGTON, April 20 -- The U.S. Census Bureau issued the following facts for features news release: The idea of Father's Day was conceived slightly more than a century ago by Sonora Dodd of Spokane, Wash., while she listened to a Mother's Day sermon in 1909. Dodd wanted a special day to honor her father, William Smart, a widowed Civil War veteran who was left to raise his six children on a farm. A day in June was chosen for the first Father's Day celebration -- 100 years ago, June 19, 1910,   more

DURHAM, N.C., April 21 -- North Carolina Central University issued the following news release: The little stone church on Alston Avenue, the longtime home of one of the oldest African-American Catholic congregations in the state, will soon be on the move. In the morning of Friday April 23, 96 wheels will start to turn and the Holy Cross Catholic Church building will begin a slow procession across the campus of North Carolina Central University toward the historic corridor along Fayettevil  more

NEW YORK, April 21 -- Pace University issued the following news release: Influential leaders in environmental affairs, financial media, corporate information technology, and the psychology of women and gender are this year's commencement speakers at Pace University. Media admission is by press pass. Westchester Ceremonies Law School Sunday, May 16, 10:00 a.m. Pace University Law School, 78 North Broadway, White Plains, NY Lisa P. Jackson, Administrator, U.S. Environmental Pr  more

CHARLOTTE, N.C., April 21 -- Johnson C. Smith University issued the following news release: Johnson C. Smith University now has an official YouTube channel - JohnsonCSmithU! The channel is a collaboration between the JCSU Public Relations Department and the James B. Duke Memorial Library. JohnsonCSmithU is a place for us to display campus events, lectures, and to share with the world all the opportunities that JCSU has to offer. Among the videos available on our site include: the new JCSU   more

WASHINGTON, April 21 -- Rep. Dennis J. Kucinich, D-Ohio (10th CD), issued the following news release: Congressman Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) joined southern Black farmers and the Network of Black Farm Groups today to highlight the need for Congressional action to appropriate funds to pay a court settlement for racially discriminatory practices by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. After decades of racially discriminatory practices at the USDA, the government settled with Black farmers in 1  more

WASHINGTON, April 21 -- The National Gay & Lesbian Task Force issued the following news release: Today, the nation's leading lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) organizations, along with allies in the faith, labor and civil rights communities, issued the following statement to members of the United States Congress: "Pass the Employment Non-Discrimination Act NOW." Equality Federation, Toni Broaddus, Executive Director Family Equality Council, Jennifer Chrisler, Executive Di  more

BIRMINGHAM, Ala., April 21 -- The University of Alabama at Birmingham issued the following news release: The chief medical officer of the United States Navy will tour the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Hospital May 6 and address faculty, students and staff during Birmingham Navy Week, May 2-9. Vice Admiral Adam M. Robinson Jr. is the 36th Surgeon General of the Navy and chief of the Navy's Bureau of Medicine and Surgery. Robinson, in town for Navy Week activities, will tour the   more

DURHAM, N.C., April 21 -- North Carolina Central University issued the following news release: North Carolina Central University tied for the third place in the 21st Annual Honda Campus All-Star Challenge National Championship Tournament on April 10 in Orlando, Fla. NCCU's performance in the quiz bowl competition earned the team $17,000. Competition began with 48 schools, divided into eight divisions named for a color and a prominent African-American from history. The NCCU team competed i  more

EDWARDSVILLE, Ill., April 21 -- Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville issued the following news release: Leonard Pitts, Pulitzer Prize-winning syndicated columnist for the Miami Herald, will be the keynote speaker at The 2010 St. Louis Regional Neighborhoods Conference on Saturday, May 1, co-sponsored by the Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Institute for Urban Research. Pitts, who won a Pulitzer for Commentary in 2004, will speak about urban issues at 9 a.m. that Saturday in H  more

WASHINGTON, April 20 -- Rep. Hank Johnson, D-Ga. (4th CD), has issued the following news release: As the country marks Equal Pay Day on April 20, Rep. Hank Johnson (D-GA) says that more must be done to close the wage gap that still exists between women and men. "Forty-seven years have passed since President John F. Kennedy signed the Equal Pay Act into law in 1963," said Rep. Johnson. "And yet, in many cases, there is still not equal pay for equal work in this country." In 1963, when   more

WASHINGTON, April 20 -- Rep. Edolphus Towns, D-N.Y. (10th CD), issued the following news release: U.S. Rep. Edolphus "Ed" Towns (NY-10) released the following statement today in memory of the passing of Dr. Dorothy Irene Height, former president of the National Council of Negro Women and legendary female leader of the civil rights movement: "Today, we mourn the passing of a legendary hero of the civil rights movement, Dr. Dorothy I. Height. "Dr. Height devoted her life to breaking dow  more

CHICAGO, April 21 -- The Rainbow PUSH Coalition issued the following news release: Rev. Jesse L. Jackson Sr. Speech: Dream Where the Big Boats Are First I'd like to thank the University of Kwazulu-Natal for inviting me to Durban, South Africa and bestowing this honorary degree of literature upon me. As this honor highlights and continues the legacy of a century long relationship founded on shared kinship and a common struggle to overcome inequalities. I want to thank my good friends:   more

WAUKESHA, Wis., April 21 -- Carrol University issued the following news release: Gregg Steinhafel, chairman of the board, president and chief executive officer of Target Corporation, will be the keynote speaker at Carroll University's Commencement ceremony on Sunday, May 9, 2010. Steinhafel, a 1977 Carroll graduate, was named Target's president in 1999, following a 20-year career with the company, during which he held numerous merchandising and operating positions. Target, a Minneapolis  more

CLINTON, N.Y., April 21 -- Hamilton College issued the following news release by Pat Dunn: Baratunde Thurston, equal parts comedian and political commentator, filled the Kirner-Johnson Red Pit with his lecture on progressive activism in new media. Thurston's lecture, organized by the College Democrats and sponsored by Student Assembly and the Office of the President, was as interactive as it was informative, with Thurston joking with audience members and employing the sense of humor that has   more

LOS ANGELES, April 21 -- The University of California at Los Angeles issued the following news by Letisia Marquez: California's anti-gay marriage intitiative Proposition 8 ignited a debate within Los Angeles' African American gay and lesbian communities: Should black same-sex couples come out to family and friends to help garner support for gay marriage, or should they continue to take a "don't ask, don't tell" approach? "Some in the community were becoming more supportive of gay sexuality  more

RICHLAND, Wash., April 20 -- Washington State University-Tri-Cities issued the following news release: About 160 middle and high school students from the Pasco, Sunnyside, Granger and Wapato school districts will showcase team design, problem solving, mathematical know-how and communication skills in a Windmill Challenge at MESA Day. The Math, Engineering and Science Achievement program (MESA) of Yakima Valley/Tri-Cities is holding its annual MESA Day from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursday, Apri  more