Payne Theological Seminary 2015 Commencement: Processing with the Faculty

Selfie with Dean Michael J. Brown, new Interim President

Momma I made it! 

A Great Shot taken by my Colleague, Dr. Betty Holley

I was humbled and excited by the invitation of the Dean and members of the faculty to process for the first time at the 2015 Commencement Ceremony. It was my first time donning the lemon yellow hood for Library Science as I chose not to attend my MLS graduation exercises. After a hurried purchase from Herf Jones Express, I was happy to add the unique coloring of the MLS regalia (it would have been in poor fashion to don the MDiv hood at the same time) to the processional and advocate for the role of the library in theological education.

The commencement address was delivered by Cornell Williams Brooks, Esquire, President and CEO  of the NAACP. His message to the seniors was superb. I especially enjoyed his interpretation of the conversation between Esther and Mordecai in Esther 4:16 and his call for the senior class to go forward in their ministries with Esther's gumption, "And if I perish, I perish".

Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters were awarded to Cornell William Brooks, Esquire, Dr. Gayraud Wilmore, Distinguished African American Theologian and Scholar, and Mrs. Vivienne Anderson, retired Episcopal Supervisor and widow to the former beloved Chairman of the Board at Payne Seminary, Bishop Vinton R. Anderson.

In addition to being delighted by the joy and thankfulness expressed by the seniors as I overheard their prayers and shouts just over my shoulder, the 18 members of the graduating class also nearly knocked my heels off with their pledge to purchase new computers for the library! The senior gift will give me the leverage to order a KIC Scanner machine and implement a printing system in the library for student use.

Speaking of library use, the Bishop Reverdy C. Ransom Library was packed out for the 5th Annual Bishop Vinton R. Anderson Ecumenical Institute on The Life and Work of the Late Bishop Vinton R. Anderson and His Impact on the Legacy on the Ecumenical Movement on May 20th as part of Commencement Week Activities. The keynote was Dr. Gayraud Wilmore, Internationally acclaimed scholar and theologian of the history of the African-American church and black theology, The lecture respondents were Rev. Dr. Louis-Charles Harvey, Presiding Elder of the Potomac District, Washington Annual Conference and  Mr. John Thomas III, Coordinator of Youth and Young Adults for the World Methodist Council.

We had not had an opportunity to see how the library functioned as large public meeting space until the lecture. Professors and students regularly use the library's two group meeting rooms for class and intensives but the open meeting area just in front the stacks normally doesn't get much play. It was extremely fulfilling to see the space filled and hear lecture guests gushing over how complimentary the library was to the "feel" of the event due to Bishop Anderson's work to get the library built in 2009. I will absolutely be working on public programming to bring more people (Friends of Payne, Wilberforce University Students and community groups) into the space. In my development of a library and archives policy I created a meeting space policy and form (more on writing policies and procedures in another post).

Dr. Wilmore

Packed House!!!

Dr. Harvey