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Africana Center celebrates 40th reunion
January 13, 2010
For Kristen Johnson, A12, the Africana Center has become like a second family at Tufts University. Through the Center, her freshman year she was assigned a peer advisor, who not only helped Johnson plan out her academics and extra-curricular activities, but also became one of her good friends. Now, Johnson, an advisor herself, is helping the new class find their way. “We make the center feel like a home away from home,” she says. This feeling of belonging has been a constant theme for the Africana Center since its inception.
This year, the Africana Center celebrates its 40th anniversary. The Center, together with the Tufts University Alumni Association and the Tufts University Black Alumni Association, will be hosting a 40th Anniversary Gala on February 20 at the Charles Hotel in Cambridge. Celebrated with the theme “Our Past, Our Future: Honoring Forty Years of Leadership and Service,” the event will recognize the university’s longstanding commitment to diversity, while honoring students, faculty, staff, alumni, and local community partners who have supported the center and contributed to raising the social consciousness of the Africana community at Tufts.
To further mark this historic moment, the center will begin the anniversary celebration with “40 Days to 40 Years,” a 40-day snapshot of alumni and events that will be posted on the Africana Center’s website and displayed around campus.
“It’s really exciting to be on campus while this is all happening,” says Johnson. “It’s an honor to celebrate all the people I’ve never met, like Professor Gerald Gill, who have really been an important part of black history at Tufts.”
Dr. Charlene Desir, J95, AG96, AG99, says being a part of the Africana Center had a tremendous impact on her development at Tufts. “The Center acted as a shelter and a home to me; I formed life relationships with several women who became my sisters,” says Desir. “I came to Tufts as a naïve Haitian student, became a militant black student, and emerged as a committed global citizen.”
The celebration, which will include dinner, dancing, and an award ceremony, will be a great networking opportunity for students and alumni to continue strengthening the Tufts Black Alumni Association.
Katrina Moore, director, says, “The Center has stood as a pillar for not just students of African descent, but all students at the university. Students are encouraged to be leaders and mentors, and to be engaged in a variety of activities on campus.”
For more information on attending The Africana Center’s 40th Anniversary Gala, click here or contact Jonathan Kaplan at jonathan.kaplan@tufts.edu at the Office of Alumni Relations or Katrina Moore Katrina Moore at katrina.moore@tufts.edu at the Africana Center
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