The Rutgers African American Alumni Alliance is proud to introduce the 2023 inductees of their 20th Anniversary Hall of Fame. Since it began in 2004, the RAAA Hall of Fame has honored more than 100 alumni; celebrating and honoring the accomplishments of Rutgers University graduates who have distinguished themselves through contributions made to their communities, to the University, or in their fields of endeavor. The leadership they have exhibited has greatly benefitted their communities. The ceremony also provides our students with a glimpse of the endless possibilities their futures hold. It affords them the opportunity to network and connect with their extended family, namely Rutgers Alumni.
Showcasing the continuum of Rutgers excellence, the 20th-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.