The 2024 cohort of inductees epitomizes excellence and resilience, embodying the essence of role models for their peers. Let’s meet some of the outstanding individuals who have earned their place in this prestigious group:

This diverse group of inductees represents civic leaders, technical innovators, public health champions, artists, entrepreneurs, and community activists. They are symbols of inspiration to those around them, while drawing on the lessons of the rich legacy of their community and history, passed down by countless trailblazers who came before them.

For instance, Toacca Bailey Rutherford, a product owner at JPMorgan Chase, draws inspiration from her mother’s journey of overcoming barriers in the segregated South to earn a PhD. Motivated by her mother’s resilience, Toacca generously gives back by volunteering her time with professional societies and as a mentor.

Katrina T. McCombs, born into a Camden family of educators, has dedicated over 30 years to the Camden City School District. Holding a B.A. from Lehigh University, two Masters Degrees from Teachers College, Columbia University, and Masters of Public Administration from Rutgers University, she has served in various roles including teacher, principal, Director of Early Childhood, Deputy Superintendent, and now, State District Superintendent. Superintendent McCombs believes in the importance of developing key partnerships to support the district’s mission of Putting Students First by expanding opportunities for Camden students. Outside of her professional role, she is a wife, mother, mentor, and active community and church member.

Lorgia Garcia-Peña‘s parents immigrated to the United States to provide opportunities for her. In turn, she co-founded Freedom University Georgia, which offers tuition-free college instruction and support networks for undocumented students, showcasing her commitment to educational equity and access.

Medical doctors Pamela Brug and Talya K. Fleming have made significant contributions to their fields, advocating for equity, inclusion, and justice for underserved communities. Dr. Brug is the founder and president of the New Jersey Black Women Physicians Association, while Dr. Fleming received the 2023 Distinguished Public Service, Health Equity, and Advocacy Award from the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.

William Michael Barbee, a multi-talented individual as a filmmaker, director, author, entrepreneur, and philanthropist, channels his early life experiences to advocate for community transformation. Similarly, Assemblyman William (Bill) Spearman is recognized in New Jersey as a troubleshooter and problem-solver, known for his ability to develop solutions that benefit the public good.

Donita Devance and Patricia A. Fields are esteemed community builders at the forefront of positive change. Leveraging their experiences within major organizations, they have worked tirelessly to effect change at the grassroots level. Both are passionate about connecting young people to the arts and serving as strong role models in their communities.

Monica Weeks’ career spans two distinct paths, with a successful tenure in publishing/media followed by her current roles as the Director of Operations and Marketing at Crossroads Theatre Company and Executive Director of Hub City Jazz. Her dedication to the arts has led to the evolution of Hub City Jazz into a nonprofit organization providing valuable master classes and improvisation training to students in the New Brunswick District schools.

Jennifer Webb-McRae, the first African American and female Cumberland County prosecutor, has made significant strides in the field of criminal justice, focusing on intervention and rehabilitation strategies that have led to a substantial decrease in juvenile arrests. Her visionary leadership has garnered recognition and respect, serving under her third New Jersey governor.

Sandrine Desamours Esq., a protection officer at the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, has dedicated her life to advocating for humanitarian causes and alleviating human suffering globally. Her work in forced displacement, humanitarian and refugee law showcases her commitment to positively impact the world.

The induction ceremony for the Hall of Fame will take place on Saturday, October 5th, 2024, at the Hyatt Regency in New Brunswick, NJ. Interested individuals can purchase tickets through the RAAA website or by contacting RAAA. Event sponsorships and opportunities for space in a program journal are also available, providing a chance to support and celebrate these remarkable individuals.

Community groups will once more bring an exciting lineup of events to the City of New Brunswick, NJ celebrating the 159th Anniversary of Juneteenth—a day that commemorates the end of slavery throughout the United States.

The Juneteenth Planning Coalition brings together a wide variety of community groups for an exciting series of events to make this year’s Juneteenth celebration one of the most outstanding and impactful period of the year.

The 𝗡𝗲𝘄 𝗕𝗿𝘂𝗻𝘀𝘄𝗶𝗰𝗸 𝗔𝗿𝗲𝗮 𝗕𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗵 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗡𝗔𝗔𝗖𝗣 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗼𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗮𝗴𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗮 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗰𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗯𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺 𝗼𝗻 𝗝𝘂𝗻𝗲 𝟭𝟵𝘁𝗵 (which falls on Wednesday in 2024) in front of the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center. There will also be a New Jersey Symphony’s Women in the Arts Juneteenth Event at the State Theater on that day and the New Brunswick Free Public Library will have a read-in for young people. The public is then invited to participate in the popular 𝗝𝘂𝗻𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗵 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗳𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗮𝗹 𝗼𝗻 𝗦𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗱𝗮𝘆, 𝗝𝘂𝗻𝗲 𝟮𝟮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗩𝘂𝗹𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗣𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗡𝗲𝘄 𝗕𝗿𝘂𝗻𝘀𝘄𝗶𝗰𝗸!

The parade starts from George Street and Remsen Avenue, promenading down Remsen Avenue then onto Sanford Street, then to Pine Street, ending at Recreation Park (the edge of the Douglass Campus at 7 Pine Street). The festival occurs at the park kicking off at the end of the parade.

JOIN IN THE PARADE & FESTIVAL!
Parade Participants/Tabling (Saturday 6/22)
https://tinyurl.com/Juneteenth2024newbrunswick

FESTIVAL VENDORS:
https://tinyurl.com/2024Juneteenthvendors

While its roots are in Texas, Juneteenth has become a day to celebrate freedom all over the United States. Public Juneteenth celebrations have been held in the City of New Brunswick since 2014 with the wonderful annual community parade and festival hosted by the Vulcan Pioneers (the Black Firefighters of New Brunswick) and their community partners—The New Brunswick Area NAACP, the Rutgers African-American Alumni Alliance, Zakee Bowser Enrichment Foundation, Sharpened Mindz, and the New Brunswick Cultural Center. The New Brunswick African American Heritage Committee, Inc., New Brunswick Performing Arts Center (NBPAC), The Arts Institute of Middlesex County and Crossroads Theatre Company have been proud to help build this tradition.

Juneteenth achieved federal recognition on the 17th of June 2021, when President Biden signed the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act, establishing the 19th of June as a federal holiday to commemorate the end of slavery in the United States.

BRING YOUR LAWN CHAIRS AND SUN UMBRELLAS AND ENJOY THE AFTERNOON FESTIVAL

Vendors (including many food offerings!) and community groups tabling will be set up by midday in Recreation Park, with cultural performances and community presentations on the main stage from 1 PM. 

There are activities areas for young children as well as for teenagers. The Zakee Bowser Enrichment Foundation and Sharpened Mindz have a number of gift certificate prizes as well as other items for the winners in a rap contest spelling bee, as well as Double Dutch competitions for parents versus youth in an old school/new school face-off. A high point of the main stage presentations will be an “old school” versus “young ‘uns” step/stroll showcase by Black fraternity members!

FAQS about the 2024 Juneteenth Parade and Festival

Events will proceed, rain or shine!

THE PARADE

• The Parade begins at 11 am from the intersection of Remsen Avenue and George Street. We will line up on Remsen Avenue between George Street and Welton Street, and proceed up Remsen Ave. to Sanford St. Turn left onto Sanford St. stay on Sanford St. then George’s Rd. until Pine St then Recreation Park, located at 7 Pine Street, New Brunswick.
• 
• Lining up for the parade. You should plan to arrive by around 10:00 am (no later than 10:30 am). Based on our experiences in past years, we will make a final determination of where to place participating groups (to be closer to the head of the parade), depending on who we see actually makes it out on Saturday morning. We will contact those who will be on the floats beforehand.
• Parking for the parade. There will marked parking lots at Recreation Park/Pine Street and 
• 
  The Vulcan Pioneers will be running a shuttle, from 9:30 am, between the festival grounds (the front of Recreation Park) and the start of the parade (George Street & Remsen Ave.). 
  • If you want to park your car at the starting point of the parade, there is on-street parking and there are several parking decks close by, however, you will then end up walking back to New Brunswick if you stay at the festival. 

THE FESTIVAL

FESTIVAL PROGRAM

12:15 pm ​Drumming Interlude – Black Circle Symphony

12:45 – 1:15 pm​ Co-Hosts Baruti Miller & Lana Whitehead

​Welcome(s): Robert Rawls & Eddie Lee (Vulcan Pioneers)

​Group Photo: Vulcan Pioneers & Planning Committee 

​Invocation

​Libation Ceremony – Bill Davis

​Lift Every Voice

1:20 pm​ Remarks & Acknowledgement of Visiting Dignitaries

​Mayor Jim Cahill

​NB City Council Member Petra Gaskins

​(Double Dutch Competition Begins Offstage)

1:30 pm​ General Order #3 – Al’Jawan Woods Jones & Joel Moody 

​​(5th grade, Blanquita B. Valenti School)

​Rev. Tommy Miles – Ebenezer Baptist Church

​Drill Team (Dazzling Doodles)

​Kendall Thompson – Poem (8th Grade) 

​Michael Richards – “Bright” by Kehlani

​2024 Juneteenth Festival Poet – Herrin Fontenette

2 pm​ Positive Affirmation, Lana Whitehead

​Stroll Exhibition – Rutgers Student Groups

​​Iota Phi Theta & Lambda Sigma Upsilon/Brandon Fernandez

​Line Dancing (Crystal Balaam)

2:30 pm​ Sharpened Mindz/Zakee Bowser Foundation Youth Showcase

​​Joani Blue, Gooseygangkay

​Spoken Word: Charlene Bush, Mt. Zion Ministries

​Rahway Dance Theatre

3:15 pm​ Exit 9 Reunion

Exit 9 is a legendary New Brunswick band—local heroes of the music scene. Last year’s Juneteenth concert sparked a reunion that continues today! They are an eight piece band with a horn section and also feature a female drummer and a driving rhythm section. E9B for life!

• Organizations/vendors and other participating individuals are welcome to load-in as early as 9:30 am and should be set up by 11:30 am.
• TABLING GROUPS (Community groups and non-profits)
• Tabling groups can pull up to the front parking lot of Recreation Park (7 Pine Street) to drop off their tabling supplies, then you can drive around to the rear parking lot after unloading your supplies.
• VENDORS
• Vendors can load-in as early as 9 AM – Vendors should have communicated, with Vulcan Pioneers representative Robert Rawls, about their placement prior to arrival. You will find a welcome team in the front parking lot on arrival where you can reconfirm if needed. Robert Rawls and Traci Cole will be on-site to facilitate. 
  
• There is on-street parking around Pine Street in front of Recreation Park. There is also a parking lot in the rear of the park, where vendors can park and unload if they prefer. THERE WILL ALSO BE A RUTGERS LOT AVAILABLE NEXT TO THE PARK–Look for the signs. 
• You will find a welcome team in the front parking lot on arrival to assist you. 
• Tables will be set up along the walkway connecting the front parking lot to where the main stage will be set up (in the recreation area between the basketball courts and the bathrooms). 

RSVP LINK: http://tinyurl.com/raaabhmshowcase2024rsvp

PARKING LINK (You must register your vehicle): http://tinyurl.com/raaabhmparkingregistration

TABLING: Are you an artist, author, nonprofit or other entity that connects with our theme? Interested in having tabling space at our event? Then SIGN UP HERE (Bring your own 6-foot table or there is $20 fee after February 26th to cover rental and delivery costs) –> http://tinyurl.com/raaa-bhm-showcase-vendor

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 2nd (5pm): Join with the Rutgers African-American Alumni Alliance (RAAA), Inc., along with campus and community partners, to celebrate Black History Month by marking the struggle for human rights encapsulated by the 220th anniversary of the declaration of Haitian independence as well as the impact of Africans on Latin America with a variety of cultural performances! The evening culminates in a talk and panel featuring widely known icon, Ras Baraka, mayor of Newark, New Jersey.

The acknowledgement of Haiti’s Declaration of Independence allows us to speak to a wider history of Africans transforming the cultural and political terrain of the Americas. Through the work of various artistic offerings this year’s showcase will examine the  impact Africans made on the histories and cultures of Latin America as well as the USA.

Finally, drawing on this history of claiming a space and leveraging the Black Arts Movement legacy of his father, mayor Ras Baraka will engage in a multigenerational conversation to ask what members of the community are looking for from their political leaders in the run up to a historic national election.

Venue and Parking Info

The event will take place at the Rutgers Academic Building, located on Rutgers’ College Avenue Campus at 15 Seminary Place, New Brunswick, NJ.  A printable map of the Rutgers College Avenue Campus is available HERE.

Transit: The Rutgers Academic Building is a 10-minute walk from the New Brunswick Train Station, which can be reached on New Jersey Transit’s Northeast Corridor line. Cabs are available at the train station.

Parking: Visitors may park in Lots 26, 30 and the College Avenue Deck.

Showcasing the continuum of Rutgers excellence, the 20^th-anniversary class includes civic leaders, technical innovators, public health leaders, artists, entrepreneurs, and community activists—All exemplars, the class includes dynamic young executive Ukachi Anonyuo, who showcases the impact of having both a Rutgers Engineering degree and a Rutgers Business School MBA; Chuck Chaplin, product of a diehard Rutgers family tradition, who has been profiled as one of the individuals who literally helped transform the face of corporate America (Executive Leadership Council’s “Cracking the Corporate Code”) as well as Rutgers (serving on the Board of Directors of the Rutgers University Foundation and then the Board of Trustees); to Darrell K. Terry, Sr., leader of Newark Beth Israel Medical Center, an institution that Newark’s mayor has said is critical to the Newark community’s health, and essential to its quality of life and sense of security.

Their ongoing impact on the communities around them reflects the societal transformations that Rutgers alumni are participating in across the board—from Tennille Robbs in the USA’s Space Force to three-time mayor and planning professional Michèle Delisfort and thought leader Mimi Dixon, as well as Corinne Bradley-Powers, founder of a Camden destination famous for its soul food. Corinne’s Place won a 2022 James Beard Foundation America’s Classics Award, one of only six presented nationwide and Bradley-Powers has leveraged her success to employ hundreds of young people whom she has mentored. Mentoring and the importance and impact of artists in our community is reflected in the life contributions of Claudio Mir and Christopher Muhammad who are simultaneously artists, activists, and teachers/mentors on the front lines of engaging with young people in our communities.

There will be a special honorary lifetime membership induction of community activists, Bruce and Deborah Morgan, and the rare Keeper of the Legacy Medal is being awarded to Jim Savage for his outstanding contributions to the RAAA as well as to spreading knowledge and educating community members about Paul Robeson. Past RAAA president Dwayne Middleton is being inducted posthumously in recognition for his longtime community service and activism.

The induction will occur on Saturday, October 7th at the Hyatt Regency in New Brunswick, NJ and interested persons can purchase tickets via the RAAA website or by contacting RAAA. Event sponsorships and space in a program journal are also available.

TICKETS: Award Tickets – Rutgers African American Alumni Alliance (rutgersblackalumni.org)

Below are short profiles of this year’s inductees.

Ukachi Anonyuo ENG’01, RBS’15

For over 20 years Ukachi has held various Engineering, Development and Leadership roles with increasing responsibility throughout her career for several companies including Coty and Avon Products, Inc. In her current role as Global Vice President, Packaging Innovation Strategy & Portfolio Management for the Estee Lauder Companies, Ukachi leads the end-to-end strategic and critical Packaging driven enterprise initiatives as well as KPIs impacting pipeline innovation, sufficiency, and efficiency for the company’s full portfolio of prestige brands.

She serves on various boards ranging from education, beauty, and community-based organizations including the Cosmetics Industry of Buyers & Sellers (CIBS), CHIEF and One X League–networks focused on connecting and supporting women executive leaders, such as the Black Alumni Collective–an organization established to unify and empower Black Alumni through civic engagement, economics and advocacy, as well as several Rutgers University Advisory Boards and Alumni organizations.

Ukachi continues to value the importance of paying her efforts forward by volunteering and mentoring with several organizations including Rutgers University School of Packaging, The Young Women’s Leadership School in East Harlem, NY, the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE), and her sorority, Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc. Ukachi has a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial and Systems Engineering as well as an MBA with a concentration in Marketing from Rutgers University. She has received several award recognitions over the years including The BIG10 Black Alumni Award, Rutgers Business School’s Alumni Rising Star Award, the Universal Women’s Network International Authentic Leader Award, the Institute of Packaging Professionals College of Fellows Award, America On Tech’s Innovator and Disruptor Award, The Network Journal’s “40 under Forty” Award, and has been featured in Essence Magazine as well as several leading Beauty industry publications.

Corinne Bradley-Powers CCAS’79

Corinne Bradley-Powers, is a Camden native and lifelong resident. After graduating from Camden High School, Bradley-Powers worked for several years as a bookkeeper for the Camden County probation office. She subsequently enrolled at Rutgers–Camden and graduated in 1979. While studying, she worked on campus in the Educational Opportunity Fund (EOF) office as a counselor, and later as a peer counselor on campus. .

After graduation she worked as a social worker and then in October 1989, she and her family joined forces to open a full-service restaurant—combining hard work and extremely long hours to create the renowned restaurant Corinne’s Place. Bradley-Powers has successfully owned and operated Corinne’s Place for more than 30 years.

Corinne was often joined in the kitchen by her mother, Fannie Anderson, who taught her how to cook, while her daughter worked as a waitress. Her customers come from far and wide to dine in and also to experience her southern soul food cuisine through catering. Corinne’s Place has received praise throughout New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, and Delaware. Bradley-Powers has utilized her platform to help her community–she has worked with high school students to provide co-op opportunities for youth considering the culinary arts as a profession and support Camden’s sports teams by providing free meals as a reward for victories on the field. She has provided “second chances” for men and women who may have been deemed by others as unemployable.

Her commitment to service has been recognized by many organizations, most notably she was a recipient of the highly coveted 2022 James Beard Foundation America’s Classics Award, one of six presented nationwide that year honoring “locally owned restaurants that have timeless appeal and are beloved regionally for quality food that reflects the character of its community.” In March 2023, she was inducted into the Camden School Foundation Hall of Fame. She received the key to the City of Camden from Camden Mayor Victor Carstarphen in 2022.

C. Edward (Chuck) Chaplin RC’78

C. Edward (Chuck) Chaplin is the Chairman of the Board of Brighthouse Financial, one of the largest providers of life insurance and annuities in the USA. Brighthouse was created by Met Life and was spun off to its shareholders in 2017. He also is a director of MGIC Investment Corp, one of the nation’s largest mortgage insurers, where he chairs the Audit Committee and serves on the Securities and Investment Committee.  Finally, he served on the Board of Directors of the Rutgers University Foundation for over 12 years and was elected to the Board of Trustees of the University in 2022.  

Chuck is a graduate of Rutgers College Class of 1978 but he is also from a Rutgers family. His mother, Dr. Miriam T. Chaplin, was a professor and department head in the English Department at Rutgers Camden for 25 years, and his sister Philippa graduated from Rutgers College in 1981. He established the Miriam T. Chaplin Endowed Scholarship at Rutgers Camden in 2003, and it has approximately 40 alumni today. 

While Chuck earned a master’s degree in urban planning at Harvard University and later earned the Chartered Financial Analyst (“CFA”) designation, he credits Rutgers with launching his career. He worked as a planner for the state of NJ from 1980 – 1983 and attended Rutgers Business School from 1983 – 1986. Rutgers filled out his skill set and connection set, facilitating his joining Prudential Financial’s Real Estate Investment Division in August of 1983.

After some 23 years at Prudential, he retired but then became part of the leadership MBIA Inc during the turbulent stock crash period and was elected co-President of the firm in 2008. After helping the company regain an AA credit rating, he retired from MBIA in 2017.

Michèle Delisfort LC’92, EJB’95

Michèle S. Delisfort is a Haitian American daughter of the Township of Union. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Rutgers University and later earned a Master’s’ Degree in City and Regional Planning from the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy, also at Rutgers.

Michèle is a Principal and Managing partner at the Nishuane Group, an urban planning consultancy firm and has 30 years of professional experience in land use planning, redevelopment planning, and community development. She is a three-term mayor of the Township of Union, where she has also served as a Committeewoman, and on the Planning Board as a member and Vice-Chairperson. She served as Mayor through 2021 and was successful in leading the Township through a natural disaster (Hurricane Ida) and the precarious years of the Covid-19 Pandemic. During her tenure she leveraged resources to promote Economic Development in the Township, updated policies and Plans and worked with the Administration and Township Committee to spearhead and implement redevelopment initiatives throughout the Township.

Michèle is a licensed professional planner and nationally certified by the American Institute of Certified Planners. She also serves as Chairperson of the New Jersey Chapter of the American Planning Association’s Redevelopment Planning Committee. She has also expanded her passion for planning and community transformation abroad. Following the devastating earthquake experienced by Haiti in 2012, she provided redevelopment and public engagement assistance to the recovery in Haiti, where she was able to bring her unique perspective as a Professional Planner and a Haitian American to bear.

Michèle credits her strong industry and community roots to her education and guidance at the Edward J. Bloustein School and the immersive practical experience gained in the Real Estate Development, Government and Urban Planning industries.

Mimi Dixon RC’95

Mimi Dixon is a highly motivated and dynamic thought leader with +20 years of expertise in Integrated, Shopper & Sports marketing for leading global brands. Currently, she is Director – Brand Activation & Content at Crayola. In this role, she spearheads advertising, public relations, shopper marketing, national marketing campaigns social media & influencer marketing and digital & content imagery. Most recently, she led the development & activation of Crayola’s 2020 Colors of the World skin tone crayon launch which garnered over six billion impressions to date and has gone on to win various marketing, diversity & inclusion & product industry awards.

Mimi Dixon was the oldest of four children and grew up in Camden, New Jersey. She was the first in her family to attend college. Mimi has a Bachelor of Arts from Rutgers University and a Master’s in Public Administration from the University of Delaware.

Prior to joining Crayola, Mimi held various roles with increasing responsibility at Campbell Soup Company over a tenure of 16 years. During this time, Mimi executed copious national marketing campaigns and activated numerous brand & celebrity partnerships including producing the Chunky Soup “Mama’s Boy’s” advertising campaign featuring key NFL players & their real moms.

Mimi enjoys traveling, music, binge-watching true crime shows, shoe shopping and spending time with family and friends. Mimi is a proud member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated.

Dwayne Middleton R-NB SAS’2019

Dwayne J. Middleton was a 2019 graduate of School of Arts and Science. At the time of his passing, he worked for the City of Newark, Department of Economic and Housing Development as manager of Special Projects with the Office of Affordability and Sustainable Housing.  He was a manager for twenty years of a multi-million-dollar food industry retail establishment.  Always striving to improve his skills, he completed the Rutgers Leadership Development Program as well as management certificates from Cornell University. 

With over 30 years’ experience dedicated to community involvement, community engagement, and non-profit organizations Dwayne truly demonstrated a commitment towards helping his community. He volunteered with such organizations as the American Cancer Society and Making Strides Against Breast Cancer and, along with his wife Sharon, was well known for supporting and participating in various charities and social causes. He had extensive experience in Newark grassroots organizing and neighborhood policy development and was a graduate of the Newark DoSomething program.  

He was the producer for the POWER Hour which was a cablevision series that spotlighted Mayor Ras J. Baraka. He served in support role for the Newark Equitable Growth Advisory Commission for the City of Newark. He is a LIFE member of the Newark Chapter of NAACP. He was a board member of LaMonica McIver Civic Association.  

He was blessed with his wife of 23 years, Sharon, and his two children.

Claudio Mir MGSA’99, UCN’12

Claudio Mir is as an educator, theater professional, filmmaker, visual artist and musician. He holds a MFA in creative writing from Rutgers Newark, a BFA in visual arts from Mason Gross, and a BFA in acting from the National School of Theater in the Fine Arts Palace of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic—Claudio received the El Dorado Award for Best Dominican Actor of the Year for his performance in the play version of Regina Express—The 1988 film is a fictional retelling of the Regina Express tragedy, in which 22 Dominican stowaways died from suffocation during an attempt to gain a better life in September 1981.

He has also studied theater direction at the International School of Latin American and Caribbean Theater in Bologna, Italy, and earned his Associate Degree in Professional and Commercial Photography from Middlesex County College in New Jersey.

Currently, Claudio is Senior Program Coordinator for Community Outreach in the Rutgers-New Brunswick Collaborative Center for Community Engagement and previously was co-director of the Rutgers Bonner Leader Program.

Claudio was recognized as a NJ Governor’s Awards in Arts Education Award Recipient, in May 2004, following his 2003 selection to serve as a New Jersey State Arts Council Artist in the Schools. He conducted school residencies for Paper Mill Playhouse’s “Adopt a School” program in Asbury Park, East Orange and Middletown. Through Playwrights Theatre of New Jersey, Claudio directed a playwriting program for Latino boys and girls, grades three through six, whose families have recently arrived in this country. The program was located in Camden and North Plainfield.

His impact on the arts as well as on young people through exposing them to the arts is incalculable. Claudio Mir has created theater projects to help educate New Brunswick’s Latino population about breast cancer survival, prostate cancer and domestic violence. He has been the artistic director of Artist Mentoring Against Racism Drugs and Violence Summer Camp (AMARD&V) since 1997. The program encourages healthy relationships among local youths by focusing on themes such as building hope, resilience, and self-esteem. The purpose of the program is to provide youth with exposure to art as an alternative to violence and a way to increase self-esteem, community connections, hope for the future, resiliency, teamwork and other life skills. 

The AMARD&V program has up to five dozen New Brunswick Area high school students, who, under the direction of Claudio, attend daily workshops in digital photography, visual arts, theater, vocals and Bomba, an Afro-Puerto Rican Cultural Dance.  It culminates in an outdoor carnival parade, theater skits, music and dance performances, and an exhibition displaying the full range of artwork produced by the youths participating over the summer.

At the Rutgers Collaborative Center, he has been instrumental in working with the Rutgers academic departments to place students in community organizations and provide orientation and guidance throughout the semester.

During the COVID-19 pandemic Claudio worked with his community contacts to facilitate mobile food pantry deliveries to families in need is critical sections of communities of color in New Brunswick. He also worked with the Community Health Outreach Department of Robert Wood Johnson to facilitate free vaccination clinics in these same communities.

Bruce and Deborah Morgan (Honorary Lifetime Members)

Bruce Morgan, president of the New Brunswick Area Branch NAACP along with Deborah Morgan, Secretary of the New Brunswick NAACP (and 2021 Rosa Parks Award recipient), together are deemed one of RAAA’s most valued and influential community partners. RAAA’s influence, reach, and impact continues to expand in part due to the collaborative spirit and generosity routinely displayed and shared by this dynamic and powerful duo.

Bruce worked in the oil industry and was a training/safety coordinator overseeing safe loading/off-loading of petroleum products from/onto tankers (and creating training manuals for the process), as well as overseeing pipeline shipments across the country. However, his life has definitely been shaped by his activism and especially his involvement in the NAACP. Beyond serving as the President of the New Brunswick Area Branch NAACP, he is currently 1st Vice President of the New Jersey State Conference of NAACP as well as the Region II representative to the NAACP National Resolutions Committee. His work on the resolutions committee has a national impact on NAACP policy.

The Morgans moved to New Jersey some thirty-seven years ago. Debora held several senior positions in places such as the National Council for Crime & Delinquency and the University of Medicine and Dentistry before joining Johnson and Johnson. In the community, Bruce served on the Highland Park Police Activities League Board, coached softball and basketball with the Highland Park Recreation Department and was a member of the Parents Advisory Committee on Diversity. He served on the Highland Park Committee on Race Relations Task Force, and organized forums on racial profiling, voter education as well as candidate forums. He was Chairman, of the Middlesex County Human Relations Committee and member of the Highland Park Human Relations Commission. His community involvement encompassed highlighting the contributions of African Americans and led the effort for the naming of several streets in Highland Park to honor African Americans.

Bruce served on the Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital’s Independent Review Board Executive Committee. He joined the Mt. Zion AME Church Community Development Corporation that built over 25 affordable homes in New Brunswick. He served as the Chairman of the Highland Park Democratic Committee for 20 years.

Deborah Morgan grew up in New York City, in Harlem (with a brief period in the Bronx), during a turbulent period that shaped her activism. She would meet Bruce while in Harlem. After a number of years in a variety of increasingly senior roles in a number of organizations, she joined Johnson & Johnson and would eventually rise to become a project manager and information systems administrator. She received numerous leadership service awards during her career, including the highly coveted Pinnacle Award. She was the first Black employee to win this award. Even before diversity initiatives were formalized at J&J, she was a member of the first employee resource group called the Cultural Heritage Committee. They received the J&J Equal Opportunity Award for work on fostering diversity & inclusion. She retired from Johnson & Johnson after more than 31 years of service.

The Morgans routinely provide financial and mentoring support for students in the community and more often than not, you will find them an appreciated constant at many of our Rutgers events and initiatives. The RAAA Paul Robeson Plaza campaign was a major initiative for which they readily provided support. The Morgans were instrumental in the RU Chapter of the NAACP securing a paver on the Paul Robeson Plaza.

Deborah has twice received the Secretary of the Year Award from the NAACP State Conference of New Jersey as well as earning awards for her contributions to the Rutgers University Scarlet NAACP Chapter.

Some of Bruce’s awards include the Highland Park Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Award, the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Award for Community Service, from H.O.N.O.R., an affinity group of Johnson & Johnson, the Paul Harris Award from Rotary International, Vulcan Pioneers of NB Community Service Award and jointly with his wife, the Metuchen-Edison Area Branch NAACP Ozzie Davis & Ruby Dee Award. He has received citations from US Congressman Frank Pallone, the NJ Senate and General Assembly and the Middlesex County Board of Chosen Freeholders.

The Morgans have been married for 44 years and are the proud parents of Bruce Jr. (fiancé Naomi) and daughter Danelle (husband Edouard). 

Christopher Fabor Muhammad aka “Juice” MGSA’95

Christopher Fabor Muhammad is a Paterson native who overcame the challenging environment of an upbringing in an urban city housing development, growing up in the city’s Christopher Columbus housing projects of the 1st Ward. After graduating from Rutgers-New Brunswick he started teaching art in schools winning Teacher of the Year and Who’s Who in America’s Teachers twice. His initial intent was to become a guidance counselor but fell in love with teaching students in the classroom! After several years of teaching art, the Paterson-born Christopher asked himself why his own art work shouldn’t be up in galleries and on art lovers’ walls, and once he took that step there was no turning back!

Muhammad attended Rutgers’ Mason Gross School of the Arts in New Brunswick and New Jersey Institute of Technology, where he studied architecture, however, his commitment to making a difference back in his community made him more desirous of building people than buildings! In 2001, his teaching career started at Paterson’s International High School. In 2008, he moved to John F. Kennedy High School and then to P.S. # 5 in 2010. He currently has returned full circle back to International High School. He obtained a Masters in Education from Caldwell University in 2008 and started teaching as a professor at William Paterson University in 2018.

His company, Creative Force, Inc. also produces After-School Programs, Paint & Sip parties, and a Single Panel Cartoon (SPC) called the Amerikids, which addresses illiteracy and miseducation through self-knowledge with whimsical humor and imagery. It is now a fast-growing SEL tool for educators and parents alike. His commitment to community building sees him also leading annual small Black-owned Business Bazaars, Youth Entrepreneurship Contests and a Specialized museum for the history & culture of Black Patersonians . He is also the director of a nonprofit “Arts Reforming Communities” that focuses on creative placemaking via beautification projects such as wall murals and gardens!

Already well recognized in Paterson, and across New Jersey, he has now also achieved nationwide attention with projects such as murals for educational institutions in Los Angeles, California. Muhammad hopes to continue his global Creative Placemaking mission and expanding the Amerikids brand into other areas of media, culture and merchandise.

Tennille Robbs DC’00

MSgt Tennille Robbs is the Collections Flight Chief, 72d Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance Squadron, Detachment 7, Buckley Space Force Base, Aurora, Colorado. In other words, She in the U.S. Space Force working in intelligence. The U.S. Space Force is a military service that organizes, trains and equips space forces in order to protect U.S. and allied interests in space and to provide space capabilities to the joint force. There, she is part of a team that provides timely space intelligence reconnaissance and surveillance to the joint warfighters, enabling decision-making advantages to dominate across the spectrum of conflict in all domains.

Tennille was born and raised in South Orange, New Jersey. After her graduation from Rutgers University 2000 with a Bachelor of Arts in Urban Studies, Tennille couldn’t find a role in urban planning, so she shifted into the financial sector, initially in banking, then the mortgage industry and, lastly, the brokerage firm Merrill Lynch. After the market crash of 2008 and hitting a plateau in her career trajectory, Robbs decided that was the perfect time to make the leap—her enlistment in the United States Army.

Her service in the military has been filled with variety, from a first duty station in Hawaii, then to Afghanistan on a tour for eight months during heightened tensions in the region. She then returned to the USA and traveled to her new duty station in San Antonio, Texas, before the opportunity of a lifetime at the Space Force opened.

She is married to her husband Gregory Robbs and they have three children. She is also a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha, Sorority, Incorporated, since the fall of 1998.

James C. Savage, Sr. CAES’71 (Keeper of the Legacy Medal)

Jim Savage is 74 years old, the proud dad of two daughters and two sons along with being the proud grandpa of four grands (with one more on the way).

He graduated from Rutgers University, College of Agriculture and Environmental Science in 1971 with a BS in Business.  

He has had a rich and varied career—early on he ran two social service/healthcare programs in Newark, NJ for University Hospital, then spent 12 years as the Director of Administration with New Jersey Medical School’s Department of Neurosciences before retiring from state government to become the Founding Business/Operations Manager of a new charter school of Newark’s South Ward, KIPP TEAM Academy. From 2007 – 2014 Jim finished his career as the Research Administrator at the VA Medical Center in East Orange, NJ.

Jim has been an active volunteer at Rutgers for over 45 years.  It was in 2014, as his class’s agent, that Jim proposed to his fellow officers of the Class of 1971, that they gift to Rutgers a monument in tribute to Paul Robeson. While some at Rutgers proclaimed that a bronze statue would be most appropriate, Jim and his committee members stayed true to the original vision that black granite panels with laser-etched images of iconic photographs of Paul be used along with headings and quotes. The class of 1971 and the Rutgers African-American Alumni Alliance (RAAA), Inc. would unite to complete the project which had come to be known as Paul Robeson Plaza.

Jim became a member of the RAAA in 2017 and has been working with the RAAA leadership ever since on events honoring Paul Robeson. Other projects include:  The Tallest Tree in the Forest; Walking in His Footsteps; The Paul Robeson Poetry Contest; The Paul Robeson Essay Contest involving students from the Paul Robeson elementary school in New Brunswick; Rutgers Day and more.  Jim is proud of past recognitions such as the Rutgers Excellence in Alumni Leadership Award; the 2017 Rutgers Volunteer of the Year Award; the Rutgers Loyal Son Award; the Committee to Advance our Common Purposes Award and now the prestigious RAAA Keepers of the Legacy Award.  Jim is credited with reconnecting Susan Robeson to Rutgers; for introducing the idea of having the 2019 Year of Robeson celebration and serving as the Rutgers Community coordinator of events in celebration of the 125th anniversary of Paul’s birth. Jim considers himself blessed to have had the opportunity to serve Rutgers in so many ways. 

Darrell K. Terry, Sr. RBS’83

Darrell K. Terry, Sr., MHA, MPH, FACHE, FHELA is President and Chief Executive Officer Newark Beth Israel Medical Center and Children’s Hospital of New Jersey. A 26-year employee of RWJBarnabas Health he has more than 36 years of experience in healthcare administration at three major New Jersey Health care organizations. He began his career at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center and Children’s Hospital of New Jersey in Operations Management in 1997. He was named Senior Vice President of Operations in 2006, became Chief Operating Officer in 2011 and in May 2016 he assumed his current position as President and Chief Executive Officer.

A graduate of Rutgers University, with a concentration in business management, Darrell received his Masters in Healthcare Administration from Seton Hall University and an M.P.H. from the Mailman School of Public Health at Columbia University. He is Board Certified in Healthcare Administration and a Fellow in the American College of Healthcare Executives. Darrell is a distinguished Paul Harris Fellow, and a fellow of the New Jersey Healthcare Executive Leadership Academy. He sits on several boards and has received numerous awards throughout his career, including numerous community service awards and recognitions.

The Vulcans of New Brunswick are a historic organization of African American Firefighters from the New Brunswick Fire Department. They have partnered with local community groups to develop the parade and festival committee, which includes: the New Brunswick Area Branch of the NAACP, the Rutgers African-American Alumni Alliance, the New Brunswick Cultural Center, Zakee Bowser Enrichment Foundation, Sharpened Mindz and the New Brunswick African American Heritage Committee, Inc.

Community members of all ages are invited to “celebrate freedom,” the central theme of Juneteenth. In the lead-up to the Juneteenth weekend, celebrations abound in New Brunswick. There are special programs on community heroes such as the “Walking in His Footsteps” program on Paul Robeson, scheduled for June 9th (Starting at Rutgers Kirkpatrick Chapel, College Avenue Campus and ending with a reception at Alumni House). There is also a special spotlight program remembering local icon, William Louis Dunbar at 7 pm in the New Brunswick High School Auditorium on Thursday, June 15th. 

New Brunswick Juneteenth Flag Raising & Commemoration Program With Block Party

On Monday, June 19th there will be a Juneteenth flag raising at 3 pm, The commemoration continues from 3:30 pm – 6 pm in front of the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center at 11 Livingston Avenue, New Brunswick. [UPDATED 6/14 TO REFLECT RESCHEDULING DUE TO RAIN] 

Annual Juneteenth Parade & Festival (Vulcan Pioneers of New Brunswick & Partners)

The Saturday activities kick off once again with our Juneteenth Parade, starting at George Street and Remsen Avenue. The parade will include community clubs, various non-profit organizations, dancers, stilt walkers, and many others, marching from George Street and Remsen Avenue, cutting through the city until ending at Recreation Park (the edge of the Douglass Campus at 7 Pine Street). This year’s grand marshall is local icon, Ms. Maurice M. Williams.

The festival occurs at the park after the end of the parade and will feature games, face painting, raffles, various vendors, and giant inflatables.

BRING YOUR LAWN CHAIRS AND SUN UMBRELLAS AND ENJOY THE AFTERNOON

Vendors (including many food offerings!) and community groups tabling will be set up by midday in Recreation Park, with cultural performances and community presentations on the main stage from 1 PM. 

There are activities areas for young children as well as for teenagers. The Zakee Bowser Enrichment Foundation and Sharpened Mindz have a number of gift certificate prizes as well as other items for the winners in a rap contest spelling bee, as well as Double Dutch competitions for parents versus youth in an old school/new school face-off. A high point of the main stage presentations will be an “old school” versus “young ‘uns” step/stroll showcase by Black fraternity members!

This year includes a special culminating celebration including “50 Years of Hip Hop” where young people from the wards of New Brunswick will cover classic hip-hop songs and then there will also be a 40-year reunion of the “EXIT 9 Band,” along with Melvin McKnight of “BLAQMEL and the PROBLEM.”

FAQS about the 2023 Juneteenth Parade and Festival

Less than 0.1 inch of rain is predicted for New Brunswick on Saturday, therefore we have decided that the events will proceed, rain or shine!

THE PARADE

• The Parade begins at 11 am from the intersection of Remsen Avenue and George Street. We will line up on Remsen Avenue between George Street and Weldon Street, and proceed to Recreation Park, located at 7 Pine Street, New Brunswick.
• Lining up for the parade. You should plan to arrive by around 10:00 am (no later than 10:30 am). Based on our experiences in past years, we will make a final determination of where to place participating groups (to be closer to the head of the parade), depending on who we see actually makes it out on Saturday morning. We will contact those who will be on the floats beforehand.
• Parking for the parade. There will marked parking lots at Recreation Park/Pine Street and the Vulcan Pioneers will be running a shuttle, from 9:30 am, between the festival grounds (the front of Recreation Park) and the start of the parade (George Street & Remsen Ave.). 
• If you want to park your car at the starting point of the parade, there is on-street parking and there are several parking decks close by, however, you will then end up walking back to New Brunswick if you stay at the festival. 

THE FESTIVAL

• Tabling organizations are welcome to load-in as early as 10 am and should be set up by 12 pm.
• Tabling groups (community groups and non-profits) can pull up to the front parking lot of Recreation Park (7 Pine Street) to drop off their tabling supplies, then you can drive around to the rear parking lot after unloading your supplies. 
  • You will find a welcome team in the front parking lot on arrival to assist you. 
  • Tables will be set up along the walkway connecting the front parking lot to where the main stage will be set up (in the recreation area between the basketball courts and the bathrooms). 
• Vendors can load-in as early as 9 AM – Vendors should have communicated, with Vulcan Pioneers representative Robert Rawls, about their placement prior to arrival. You will find a welcome team in the front parking lot on arrival where you can reconfirm if needed. Robert Rawls and Jackie Livas will be on-site to facilitate. 
• There is on-street parking around Pine Street in front of Recreation Park. There is also a parking lot in the rear of the park, where vendors can park and unload if they prefer. THERE WILL ALSO BE A RUTGERS LOT AVAILABLE NEXT TO THE PARK–Look for the signs. 

• The Festival starts at approximately 12 pm although the main stage welcomes and performances will begin at 1 pm.
• There will be live music and dance performances, spoken word, giveaways, food and nonfood vendors.
• The culmination will be the “50 Years of Hip-Hop” young artists presentation and then the R&B hour featuring the Exit 9 reunion, along with Blaqmel and the Problem reunion. 
• The event should run until around 4 pm.

We are currently accepting nominations (Electronic Submissions Only!) for the Class of 2023. The deadline for nomination submissions is April 30, 2023. Please send all inquiries to hof@rutgersblackalumni.org.

Special Guest

Dr. Jeffrey Robinson

Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor, Rutgers-Newark

Rutgers Business School professor Jeffrey Robinson is an internationally known author and co-founder of the Center for Urban Entrepreneurship and Economic Development. He was named Rutgers University—Newark’s new provost and executive vice chancellor in 2022.

Robinson, who started the Provost position on July 1, holds the Prudential Chair in Business and is Professor of Management and Global Business at Rutgers Business School (RBS). He joined Rutgers-Newark in 2008, where he specialized in management and entrepreneurship.

Robinson has extensive experience in major grant writing and management, including multimillion-dollar support from the National Science Foundation aimed at building and broadening inclusive pathways in STEM. He has also received funding from numerous federal, state, and private agencies and organizations to cultivate entrepreneurs from diverse backgrounds.

With a broad academic and professional background spanning business, the social sciences, public policy, and engineering, Robinson has been quoted by PBS, NPR, NJ PBS, The New York Times, The Washington Post, Marketplace, Public Radio International, and NJ Biz.

Alumni Perspectives

Anthony Covington

Anthony is a leader at Microsoft focusing on Tech Strategy. He is a technology investor and strategist; considered a thought leader and skilled professional. Anthony also serves on two boards; the Governing Board of Trustees for Rutgers University and the Camden Board of Directors, where he has fought to increase access to higher education for all students. In June of 2021, he became Curator/President of the Global Shapers Hub in Washington, DC where he has consistently advocated for change through diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in the community.

Previously, Anthony worked at the White House in the executive office of the President under the Obama Administration focusing on community engagement and development.

Maurice Russell Grey

Maurice is Chief Executive Officer at Esra Holdings LLC. He is a 4th generation real estate broker, who has worked in his family business for the last 23 years. The parent company, Edwards Sisters Realty, was founded in 1929, by his grandmother and two of her sisters who emigrated from Guyana, West Indies, and is currently the oldest Black-owned real estate firm in NY state. For 90 years, Edwards Sisters Realty has provided affordable housing to the Harlem community.

Russell has a belief that financial education at a young age is a key to closing the racial wealth gap, and has gone around the city speaking at schools and at events on the value of financial education and acquiring real estate. 

Tashna Lilly Grey

Tashna is a Senior Leader, Sales Enablement (Go To Market Onboarding and Productivity) at Zoom. She has many years of experience and a reputation as someone who is passionate about delivering business impact and optimizing sales performance through effective program development and management. Having worked with companies such as ADP, IBM and Avaya, she has implemented global sales enablement and communications programs in a wide variety of settings and directed strategy for revenue growth and sales development.

Javid Louis

Javid Louis is a Senior Brand Strategist at Twitter, responsible for helping Fortune 100 brands unlock the power of Twitter to drive conversation and connect to consumers in an authentic way.

Javid started his career in entertainment marketing, working at then Jay Z owned marketing firm Translation, where he helped execute experiential marketing campaigns for brands looking to be culturally relevant through pop culture and music. Javid and his former Rutgers college roommate then went on to form a content creation company, developing online video and managing social media accounts for a variety of music artists. Most notably, he produced a PSA starring Justin Bieber about the dangers of cyberbullying. 

Now over 15 years into his career, he has worked with brands from Deloitte to Dr. Seuss, helping implement both C-suite executive and brand digital strategies. 

Larry Traylor

Larry is currently the Aide for Mercer County Commissioner Samuel T Frisby Sr. Before joining the Commissioner Board, Larry worked on the Murphy 2021 Reelection Campaign as a Compliance Associate and volunteered with Assemblyman Dan Benson’s office. His future goals are to write policies and research socio-economic inequalities that can help improve the conditions of the most marginalized within our society. Larry graduated from Rutgers University-New Brunswick in 2020, where he studied Political Science and African American Studies.

Ma’isha L. Aziz has been a trailblazer her whole life, having graduated from high school at the age of 16, college at 20, law school at 23, and the owner of her own law firm by the age of 27. Fourteen years later, in 2014, she was elected as a Judge to the Municipal Court of Lawnside, which she served until 2021. Ms. Aziz is licensed to practice law in Maryland and New Jersey.

Ma’isha is very active in the community—she is the Region 2 Adult Representative for the National Youth Works Committee of the NAACP. A member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated for over 25 years, she is the Social Action chair of the New Jersey Garden City Alumnae chapter. She is also the NAACP NJ State Conference and NAACP Camden County East Youth Works Chair, and the advisor for the award-winning NAACP Camden County East Youth Council.

Amina Bey has decades of experience leading community organizations and governmental entities dedicated to safety, well-being, and self-determination in communities of people of color. She is currently the Executive Director of Newark Emergency Services for Families, Inc. (NESF), a 501c3 non-profit organization in Newark, New Jersey providing emergency services for individuals and families in crisis throughout Essex County.  She is also responsible for the Weequahic Family Success Center.

Prior to NESF, Amina spent five years as the Executive Director of the Newark Workforce Development Board (NWDB) under Mayor Ras J. Baraka. Before the City of Newark, Amina worked for the County of Essex for 15 years developing and managing multimillion-dollar workforce development, welfare-to-work, and social service support systems.

Amina was born, raised and educated in Newark, NJ, where she currently resides.  She graduated with a BA in Criminal Justice from Stockton State College (now Stockton University) in Pomona, NJ.  Amina received her Master’s in Public Administration from Rutgers University – Newark School of Public Affairs and Administration, where she currently serves on the Alumni Board, and is also a Part-Time Lecturer and Professor with the Rutgers-Newark School of Public Affairs and Administration (SPAA).

Clive Davis began his professional career as a corporate transactional lawyer with a Wall Street law firm headquartered in NY, with assignments in Menlo Park, CA and Hong Kong, China. He spent six years as in-house counsel, in a variety of roles, with the then biggest pharmaceutical company in the world, before transitioning into the compliance space where he ultimately served as the chief compliance officer for a Belgian biopharma’s Americas business. Clive has been investing in and self-managing his real estate investments since 1999 and is currently invested in over 2,000 multifamily doors and 317 hotel keys.

Clive is a National Apartment Association (NAA) certified apartment manager (CAM). He holds a Juris Doctorate from the Columbia University School of Law and is admitted to practice in New Jersey, New York, and before the Court of International Trade. He holds a M.A. from SUNY at Albany and a B.A., with high honors, Rutgers University.

Sandra Dieudonne is known as a knowledgeable, resourceful Immigration attorney who has been practicing for some 15 years and is the Supervising attorney of the Haitian Refugee Project at Catholic Charities in NY. She is also the cofounder and Head of Content of TENOIR TV, a diversity and culture streaming platform. After graduating from Rutgers College, Rutgers University in New Brunswick (BA in English and Africana Studies), she attended Thurgood Marshall School of Law in Houston, Texas and then was a Federal clerk for the Honorable Judge Kenneth M. Hoyt, in the Southern District of Texas. She went on to open her law firm, which focused on Family Law.

In 2010, Sandra returned to New Jersey and started her career in Public Relations in 2013 with YAC Radio. In March of 2016, she started SK Public Relations, where she has worked with celebrities such as Roxanne Shante and Kangol Kid. She represented clients such as executive producer of Real Housewives of New Jersey Dorothy Toran. Sandra was also the host of The Sitdown an all-woman show discussing various topics. As a publicist, Sandra has worked with many small businesses and brands to garner them attention in the global market. She mainly focused on Haitian companies that seek an international appeal.

Kendall Hall is past president of the Rutgers African-American Alumni Alliance, Inc. , She is one of five co-founders of RAAA, Inc. As one of the most tenured and dedicated RAAA volunteers, she has worked tirelessly to help build and nurture many facets of the RAAA community. Under her leadership, the RAAA brand expanded its footprint across the three campuses of Rutgers University and beyond. She was the initiator of an endowed scholarship which would later be used as the base for the RAAA Rites of Passage scholarships now delivered to all three campuses.  Leading RAAA’s effort to support the Class of 1971 Milestone Committee, she was the co-chair of the RAAA’c committee supporting the campaign to build the Paul Robeson Plaza– one of the most successful Rutgers University crowdfunding campaigns ever! 

In 2015, Kendall was bestowed the RAA Loyal Sons and Daughters award which honors individuals who have made a significant contribution of service to our alma mater. The RAAA organization recognized her contributions in 2017 when she was awarded the RAAA Keepers of the Legacy award.

Phoebe Haddon, University Professor of Law and past chancellor of Rutgers University–Camden (2014-2020). She was the first Black woman to serve as chancellor of any Rutgers campus. Under her leadership, Rutgers–Camden widened affordable access to students through the introduction of the landmark Bridging the Gap program, which continues to provide full or significant tuition coverage for New Jersey’s working families. Rutgers–Camden’s student profile became appreciably more diverse due to these efforts, laying the foundation for the institution to eventually earn national recognition as a Minority Serving Institution (MSI).

She also led Rutgers University–Camden to secure classification as a Carnegie R2 Research University and as a Carnegie civically engaged university, both indicators of how the institution’s national stature expanded under her guidance. During her time as chancellor, Rutgers University–Camden achieved its highest enrollment in the history of the campus while opening new facilities and spaces to accommodate its commitment to student success.

Among other awards and recognitions, Haddon received the 2019 Ruth Bader Ginsburg Lifetime Achievement Award from the Association of American Law Schools and the 2019 Smith College Medal. In 2011, Haddon received the Great Teacher Award from the Society of American Law Teachers, and in 2015, she received the Trailblazer’s Award from the New Jersey Women Lawyer’s Association.

Joshua W. Martin, III was born in Columbia, South Carolina. He holds a bachelor’s degree in physics from Case Institute of Technology, and received his Juris Doctorate from Rutgers Law School. His career has been remarkable—he was a physicist for a Fortune 500 company, a Superior Court judge, CEO of a telecommunications giant, and the first black partner at the oldest law firm in Delaware and one of the ten oldest firms in the United States.

In November, 1999, The News Journal in Wilmington nominated him as Delawarean of the Century in Business. He received the Arthur E. Armitage Sr., Distinguished Alumni Award from Rutgers School of Law in 1998 for service to the community and contributions to the legal profession. He has been included in The Best Lawyers in America publication for 2007-2022 and was selected in 2013 and 2017 as Lawyer of the Year for Arbitration in Wilmington, Delaware and as Lawyer of the Year for Mediation in 2019 and 2022, by The Best Lawyers in America. He was awarded the First State Distinguished Service Award in 2013 by the Delaware State Bar Association and the Josiah Marvel Cup, with his wife Cynthia, by the Delaware Chamber of Commerce in 2019.

Edward Ramsamy, Ph.D. is Associate Professor of Africana Studies where he is the current Chair of the department. He is also a member of the graduate faculty of Geography, and the graduate faculty of Urban Planning and Policy Development at the Bloustein School. He is the author of the book The World Bank and Urban Development: From Projects to Policy (Routledge, 2006).  In addition to his research in international development planning and geographies of globalization, Dr. Ramsamy’s fields of study include the political economy of transition and nation-building in post-colonial/developing societies, as well as the comparative politics of identity and race relations in South Africa and the United States. 

Shalonda Tanner currently serves as the Rutgers University Coordinator of Educational Opportunity Fund (EOF) Applicant Evaluation and Assistant Director in Rutgers University Undergraduate Admissions (Division of Enrollment Management in Piscataway, NJ).

Recognized for her service, dedication, and commitment to the community, in March 2005, she was nominated for the “Divine Inspiration Award” for Outstanding Female Administrator at Rutgers. In March 2006, the NJ Commission on Higher Education and EOF Shalonda Tanner Douglass College Board of Directors presented her with the “EOF Champion Award”. In March 2007, she received the NAACP Roselle Branch “Role Model Award” with a special resolution from the Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders. In October 2008, Shalonda, as the seated President of the Roselle Board of Education, received “Board Certification” from the NJ School Boards Association. In November 2008, Shalonda received a “Role Model Award” from the ACHS Marine Corps Junior ROTC Cadets and was guest of honor and keynote speaker at the Marine Corps Military Birthday Ball. On May 4, 2009, she received the “Distinguished Board Member” award for service as a Roselle Board of Education member (2006-2009) and Board President (2008-2009) when she completed her first and only full term and retired as an elected Board member.

RAAA presented a check to Dr. Ilene Rosen in the amount of $5,700.00 in support of the RAAA Nasir R. Shakir Memorial Endowed Scholarship. 

In December 2020, RAAA set its sight on creating a scholarship to honor the Late Nasir Shakir (ENG ’98) who passed away unexpectedly in November 2020. After a very successful debut during the 2021 Rutgers Giving day, RAAA worked with Dean Rosen’s office, RAAA Life member Ukachi Anonyuo, the Rutgers University Foundation along with family members of Nasir to formally create an endowed scholarship to honor, in perpetuity, his rich legacy of generosity and paying it forward.

With RU Giving Day 2022 just around the corner, RAAA’s initial goal of $50,000 is clearly in sight!   It is their ultimate goal to establish a $100,000+ endowed scholarship to match Nasir’s generosity to provide for  2+ annual scholarships to NSBE/MEET students.

The RAAA Nasir R. Shakir Memorial Endowed Scholarship was created in remembrance and reflection of Nasir’s generous spirit. He mentored many of the young men and women he encountered. He also supported and sponsored college students through the National Society of Black Engineers as a means to pay forward the guidance and support his mentor, Rutgers University Dean Donald Brown gave to him. As he was an Engineering and EOF student as well as very active in the MEET/NSBE organization at Rutgers, the scholarship is directed towards undergraduate students in these spaces.

#RAAA Keepers of the Legacy

The RAAA Executive Board is tasked with making the bittersweet announcement that co-founder and long-time volunteer, Kendall Hall will be stepping down as President of RAAA, Inc. effective February 28, 2022. We will hold a special leadership transition session on February 28 at 7:30 pm to mark the end of her tenure.

Kendall has played an integral role in the growth of RAAA since 2001. She has worked tirelessly over the last twenty-one years to help build and nurture many facets of the RAAA community. Under her leadership, the RAAA brand has expanded its footprint across the three campuses of Rutgers University and beyond. Now in its second year, RAAA, Inc. is associated with the Black Alumni Collective as a Partner School making it the only alumni organization in the Big10 and in the Northeast.  Taking on the position as Hall of Fame Chair in 2008, she has taken the annual event from the Busch faculty dining hall to its semi-permanent location at the Hyatt Regency Hotel/Grand Ballroom. In 2017, with support from the Chancellor’s Office, RAAA hosted its 16^th Hall of Fame at the Great Hall on the Newark campus. Our annual Hall of Fame Ceremony is now considered one of the premier alumni recognition programs.

Our philanthropic profile was elevated when she led RAAA’s efforts to assist the Class of 1971 Milestone Committee to build the Paul Robeson Plaza as well as our participation in the annual Rutgers University Giving day initiative. The RAAA PRP campaign was one of the most successful Rutgers University crowdfunding campaigns ever! Kendall was recently recognized for her efforts and was made an honorary member of the Class of 1971.   In 2015, Kendall was bestowed the RAA Loyal Sons and Daughters award which honors individuals who have made a significant contribution of service to our alma mater. The Loyal Son and Loyal Daughter awards represents the highest recognition of service to alumni volunteers. The RAAA organization recognized her contributions in 2017 when she was awarded the RAAA Keepers of the Legacy award.

With her departure, Dwayne Middleton will resume the position of President through the end of the term June 2023. Kendall will lead the 2022 HOF Selection Committee. Through completion, she will lead the RAAA Timeline project as a mechanism for institutional knowledge transfer along with the Tallest Tree Project in conjunction with the Class of 1971. She has also committed to assist Dwayne in an advisory capacity for a period of time, if needed. We are forever grateful for her passionate energy and fierce commitment to our community, and we wish her tremendous success in her future endeavors.
In the midst of this change in leadership, we ask our member base, campus and community partners for their patience and continued support as we continue the great work before us.