Our Campaign

The moment has arrived, More African Americans are choosing to pursue science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) careers and fields of study than at anytime before. The Year of Blacks in science is a collaborative campaign, with three primary objectives: to commemorate black heritage in the sciences; to celebrate contemporary STEM achievement; and to reinvigorate and galvanize communities into future investment in this area.

Inaugurated by the Benjamin Banneker Institute for Science and Technology (BBIST), the movement will focus on reading, organizing and sustaining locally-driven, action-oriented agendas designed to stock and replenish the academic pipeline with black students pursuing STEM. Your engagement is mission critical. We hope you'll review the following pages, explore our website (thebannekerinstitute.org) and join our efforts.

Welcome

Thank you for joining us. The journey we have embarked on together today is toward power, responsibility, accountability, and excellence. Many of us have been on this journey as individuals all along. Our objective today is to galvanize our entire community toward this pursuit - to recognize and affirm a culture of achievement as an integral part of our heritage.

We share a history of struggle for survival against all odds. That gives rise to a problem oriented language and discourse among us that tends to focus on trials and tribulations. That language and discourse are legitimate and still needed, because the struggle is by no means over. But there vast arenas within the African American experience where they have been successful and have built a platform on which to support and sustain the language of soaring intellect, unbounded energy, and joyful spirit! We seek to make explicit room for these voices as we expand what is to become the heritage we leave for future generations, and hold them out as powerful statements of our possibilities.

I want to make a personal expression of gratitude to Dr. Bill Cosby for selflessly setting himself up as a lightning rod for this conversation and I look forward to his remarks later this evening. The corner that he has invited us to turn i in a direction that reclaims the cornerstones of our character. Power, responsibility, accountability, and experience are not new to the African American experience. Too often, however, we have allowed them to be covered up, squelched, appropriated, ignored, denied, co-opted and dismissed as we have made our way. Our strength for the future requires that we own our heritage in its entirely: where we come from, who we are, what we have accomplished. how far we have yet to go. Our program this evening begins to weave that story in the area o=f science and technology, and to recognize and celebrate those on whose shoulders we stand.

African Americans are a vibrant part of the fabric of this great nation. in America, the name of the game is diversity. It could very well fall to us to determine wether that game plays out in harmony or discord. Our experience is unique and our country needs us to make our unique contribution to the fulfillment of its great promise. To accomplish this, we must speak with our own voice. This requires that we be our best selves and that we know, acknowledge celebrate and embrace our own so that we can then turn around and hand that to the nation as an example of the best that humanity has to offer. Here's to African American voices in the great symphony that is the United States of America!

Enjoy the evening!

Claudia C. Pharis
Founder and CEO
Catalyst

Keynote Speaker Bill Cosby

Bill Cosby is, by any standards, on of the most influential stars in America today. Wether it be through concert appearances or recordings, television or films, commercials or education, Bill Cosby has the ability to touch people's lives. His humor often centers on the basic cornerstones of our existence, seeking to provide an insight into our roles as parents, children, family members, and men and women. Without resorting to gimmickry or lowbrow humor, Bill Cosby's comedy has a point of reference and respect for the trappings and traditions of the great American humorists such as Charlie Chaplin, Will rogers, W.C. Fields and Groucho Marx.

The 1984-92 run of The Cosby Show and his books Fatherhood and Times Flies established new benchmarks on how success is measured. His status at the top of the TVQ survey year after year continues to confirm his appeal as one of the most popular personalities in America. Cosby's believability and humor makes him most effective as the spokesman for Jell-O. His lifelong contributions to American culture were recognized with a Kennedy Center honor in 1998 and the presidential Medal of Freedom in July 2002, America's highest civilian honor.

Today, Cosby has touched the hearts of a new generation of young children with his Little Bill animated series, which airs daily on Nickelodeon and Saturday mornings on CBS. The show is based on Cosby's popular children's books. his interest in young people also spawned his best-selling book, Congratulations! Now What?, published by Hyperion. The book contains his amusing yet wise take on college life and what lies ahead for the new graduate in the real world.

Friends of a Feather, a HarperCollins book released in May 2003, is Cosby's most recent children's book. Illustrated by his daughter, erika, it is beautiful story that explores the them of being true to yourself.

I Am What I Ate ... and I'm frightened!!!, Cosby's newest book published by HarperCollins was released at the end of October and entered the New York Times best Seller List at #5. It offers a hip, humorous, hard earned wisdom on the healthy lifestyle and the behavior behind it.

His best seller Fatherhood was launched appropriately enough on Father's Day as an animated series on Nick at Nite.

Bill and Camille Cosby in conjunction with fos Studios premiered a live action/animated Fat Albert motion picture. It has been a box office success. The Fat Albert television show is now available on DVD and is selling briskly.

Cosby's initial immediate success began with Bill Cosby Is A Very Funny Fellow, Right? and continued with many other comedy albums. He also has released a number of jazz recordings, including hello, friend: to ennis with love (released in 1997). Cosby has earned five Grammy Awards for best comedy album.

He often neglected his studies for athletics and, after repeating the tenth grade, he left school to join the Navy. He finished high school via a correspondence course while still in the service. When he was discharged, he enrolled at Temple University as the result of an athletic scholarship where he earned academic honors. His goal was to become a physical education teacher. he probably could have made it as a professional football player, but the world is richer in laughter because he decided on show business.

As busy as he is with his many ventures, Cosby has been a crusader throughout his career for a better world and for better understanding between people. Besides his involvement with a host of charity organizations, Cosby is also an active trustee of his alma mater, Temple University of Philadelphia. As philanthropists Bill and Camille Cosby have made substantial gifts in support of education (most notably to predominantly African American colleges) and to various social service and civil rights organizations.

In addition, Cosby earned a masters Degree in Education (M.Ed.) in 1972 and his Doctorate in Education (Ed.D.) in 1977 form the University of Massachusetts. His doctoral thesis was titled "The integration of Visual Media Via Fat Albert and the Cosby kids Into the Elementary Schools Culminating as a Teacher Aid to Achieve Increased Learning."

Cosby's been busy raising a family, too. He married the former Camille Hanks on January 25, 1964, while she was still a student at the University of Maryland. They raised four daughters (Erika, Erinn, Ensa and Evin) and one son (Ennis Cosby). The family resides in New England.

When speaking of Camille, Cosby has urged and amendment to the saying, "Behind every good man there's a good woman." He suggests that "behind" should be substituted by "Three miles ahead." Camille has not only raised five children, but has also been totally involved in her husband's career. She produced his last album and taped two concerts over the past few years. She has received her doctorate in education and plays and active role in an number of important national organizations.

Camille has enjoyed great success with the best-selling book Having Our Say: The Delany Sisters' First 100 Years. First she produced the property as a Broadway play and then as a television movie. The play was nominated for three Tony Awards and the television film won a Peabody Award. Camille also produced a one hour sociological documentary film No dreams Deferred, which aired on over 150 public television stations. When Oprah Winfrey debuted her new magazine in April 2000, she chose Camille Cosby as her very first interview.

Master of Ceremonies Leon Harris

Award winning journalist Leon Harris anchors the 5 p.m. and 11 p.m. newscasts for ABC7/WJLA-TV and co-hosts Capital sunday. He came to Washington after 20 years at CNN's Atlanta Headquarters, where he co-anchored CNN Live Today and Prime News, and hosted CNN Presents and American Stories.

Harris has covered a wide variety of stories including the September 11th terror strikes, the Oklahoma City bombing, the Asian Tsunami of 2004, the explosion and crash of TWA Flight 800 and the Los Angeles riots. He has interviewed presidential candidates, and reported live from both the Republican and Democratic National Conventions.

Harris's work has earned him a number of honors, among them multiple CableAce awards for Best Newscaster, and National Emmy Awards for coverage of the September 11th terror strikes, the Oklahoma City bombing and the 200 presidential election. He was honored, too, with a National Headliner Award and More recently with a National Capital Area Emmy Award for Best Anchor.

A Cum Laude and honorary doctorate recipient from Ohio University, Leon Harris is passionate about improving the lives of children and serves on numerous charitable boards including those of For the Love of Children, Junior Achievement of the National Capital Area, and MenzFit.

The West Philadelphia High School electric Vehicle Team

As the WPEVP has grown and enjoyed outstanding levels of success, we are continually looking for ways to challenge our students as well as ourselves. In attempting to do so, the students created a unique application of hybrid technology as the result of an intensive summer research program. In their research they found that hybrid electric vehicles have already proven that they can achieve great fuel economy, but this technology had not been used for increased perform-ance. Therefore, the WPEVP students created design plans for the world's first hybrid supercar.

Modern supercars currently rely on huge engines to produce the power required to propel their occupants to breathtaking speeds. The students found that coupling a high efficiency engine with a high out-put electric motor packaged in a light-weight body would exceed the accelera-tion of all supercars presently available. To achieve this, the students used the K1 Attack as a platform (only 1800lbs) with a VW turbo diesel (200hp) powering the rear wheels, and AC Propulsions electric motor (200hp) pow-ering the front wheels. To keep the weight low, the electric motor is powered by a 450 volt ultra-capacitor pack (weighing only 200lbs). This configuration allows the super hybrid to attain an impressive fuel economy of 50mpg and a zero to sixty acceleration under 4 seconds. Under normal driving conditions, the vehicle is solely powered by the diesel engine, so, the ultra-capacitor pack stores only enough energy for a few minutes of blazing acceleration.

Just imagine, a group of inner-city high school students teaming up with a few University of Pennsylvania Engineering students to create the world's first hybrid supercar. Their supercar demonstrates the next step in hybrid technology - excellent fuel economy and blazing fast acceleration. We hope that you can help them make their dream come true.

Evening Program

DINNER

6:00 Ms. Claudia Pharis Introductory Remarks Rev.
Dr. Lewis Anthony Invocation Metropolitan Wesley AME Zion Church
7:15 African Drums Call to Assembly

AWARDS CEREMONY

7:30 Ms. Claudia Pharis Welcome
Mr. Leon Harris, Master of Ceremonies The Story Begins News Anchor, ABC News Channel 7

The Envelope Please . . .
The Spirit Of Black Scientists During Slavery – Irrepressible Genius
Award Presented by Dr. Ronald Mickens, Clark Atlanta University

The Spirit Of Black Scientists During Reconstruction – Like A Phoenix
Award Presented by Dr. William Lester, UCLA Berkeley

The Spirit Of Black Scientists During Jim Crow – Indomitable Spirit
Award Presented by Dr. Luther Williams, Tuskegee University

The Spirit Of Black Scientists During Civil Rights – Passionate Commitment
Award Presented by Dr. Charlene Drew Jarvis, Southeastern University

The Spirit Of Black Scientists During The Urban Era -- Against All Odds
Award Presented by Dr. Trachette Jackson, University of Michigan

8:30 Dr. William H. Cosby Keynote Address
9:45 Mr. Leon Harris The Story Continues

The Spirit Of Black Scientists Into the Future -- My Name is Greatness
Award Presented by Dr. Chad Womack, National Institutes of Health

Ms. Claudia Pharis Call to Action
Rev. Dr. Lewis Anthony Benediction

ADJOURN FOR DESSERT COCKTAIL JAZZ RECEPTION

Invocation & Benediction Rev. Dr. Lewis Anthony

Pastor Anthony serves as the senior pastor of Washington’s his-toric Metropolitan Wesley African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church. Founded in 1832, the Metropolitan Wesley AME Zion Church served as a station on the famed “Underground Railroad,” and was the birthplace of the first public school for Washington’s African-American children. Pastor Anthony has a long and distinguished history of public ser-vice and advocacy, serving in the administrations of Washington, DC’s, first two elected Mayors, and as the director of the Con-gressional District Office of the District of Columbia’s first elected representative to the United States House of Representatives. On April 30, 2000, Rev. Dr. Anthony was inducted into the inaugural class of the Washington, DC, Hall of Fame, receiving the Legacy Award for Religion. He received degrees from Columbia and Harvard Universities. Pastor Anthony is a native of Washington, DC, and a graduate of Anacostia Senior High School.

Awards Presenters

Dr. Charlene Drew Jarvis

Dr. Charlene Drew Jarvis is the ninth President of Southeastern University and is the first woman to hold this position, where she has strengthened the curriculum in order to produce critical thinkers with exit competencies to meet challenges in today's marketplace society. She earned a BA from Oberlin College, a MS from Howard University and a Ph.D. in Neuropsychology from the University of Maryland. Dr. Jarvis has received more than 100 awards for her professional and civic accomplishments and her outstanding leadership. Dr. Jarvis's is the daughter of Dr. Charles R. Drew, the noted blood bank pioneer, has given her special perspective as an advocate for science and health education.

Dr. Trachette l. Jackson

Dr. Trachette l. Jackson is an Associate Professor of Mathematics at the University of Michigan. She graduated Summa Cum Laude with a BS is Mathematics from Arizona State University and earned her Ph.D. in Applied Mathematics at the University of Washington. Dr. Jackson is an award-winning teacher and mathematical scientist. Her research focuses on developing mathematical tools that assist in the understanding of the cellular and molecular events associated with tumor growth and vascular development. She is the co-founder and Director of the Mathematical Biology Research Group at the University of Michigan and is a recipient of the prestigious Alfred P. Sloan Fellowship as well as the James S. McDonnell 21st Century Scientist Award.

Dr. Williaam A. Lester Jr.

Dr. Williaam A. Lester Jr. is Professor of Chemistry, UC, Berkeley and Faculty Senior Scientist at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. He earned BS and MS degrees from the University of Chicago, and a PhD from The Catholic University of America, all in chemistry. He joined the IBM Research Division, served on the Technical Planning staff of the Research Division and as a research group manager, and led the first national research organization in the field of chemistry. Dr. Lester's research interests are in electronic structure and collision dynamics of atomic and molecular systems. He has published over 200 scientific articles and a book, and is editor or co-editor of four other volumes.

Dr. Ronald Elbert Mickens

Dr. Ronald Elbert Mickens earned a B.S. in mathematics and physics from Fisk University, a Ph.D. in Theoretical Physics from Vanderbilt University, and held a postdoctoral position at M.I.T. Dr. Mickens was a professor of Physics and Fisk University and at Clark Atlanta University, and has done research in Mathematics and Physics. His efforts to open Physics to Blacks are very important and he serves as Historian for the National Society of Black Physicists. Recently, Dr. Mickens was honored with an election to Fellowship in the Ameri-can Physical Society. In addition to his scientific accomplishments, Dr. Mickens has published two books on the history of African American involvement in science.

Dr. Luthar Williams

Dr. Luthar Williams earned a B.A. in biology from Miles College, an M.S. degree from Atlanta University, and a Ph.D. degree in microbial physiology from Purdue University. He currently serves as Provost at Tuskegee University. Prior to this, he served as Director of Education and Interpretation at the Missouri Botanical Garden, which has a strong commitment to encouraging participation and high achievement by minority students in mathematics, engineering, and science. He designed the program of the Garden Education Compact, which uses the Garden’s educational resources to help create a challenging pro-gram of teaching and learning instruction in science and math through incorporating technology into hands-on learning. Dr. Williams has received numerous awards.

Dr. Chad Womack

Dr. Chad Womack is the CEO and chief scientific officer of NanoVec, a privately held biotechnology company that develops novel gene delivery vectors for the next generation of vaccines and immunotherapeutics, and previously was a senior research fellow at the NIH Vaccine Research Center His research at the VRC concerned the immunopathogenesis of HIV/AIDS in developing countries and HIV/AIDS vaccine development. Dr. Womack earned his Ph.D at the Morehouse School of Medicine, and received his B.S. degree in biology at Morehouse College. Dr. Womack is a past president of the NIH Black Scientists Association (BSA), and cofounder of the National Association for Blacks in BIO (NABB).

Award Finalists

Earlene Armstrong

Earlene Armstrong is an Associate Professor with the Department of Entomology and director of the Pre-freshman Academic Enrichment Program, for which she received the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Mentoring from the Bush administration. This program, which began in 1995, significantly in-creases the number of students who stay in the life sciences and has been considered as a model for other institutions. She has designated strategies and implemented pro-grams to enhance the participation and success of students (especially members from the underrepresented groups) in science and other related careers. She has received numerous awards and citations recognizing her superior commitment and support for undergraduate education at the University, including being honored as a National Role Model. Dr. Armstrong graduated from Cornell University and works with protozoa pathogens of insects. She has published papers on her research and on mentoring.

Dr. Idris Assani

Dr. Idris Assani is originally from Benin, in West Africa. He completed most of his stud-ies in France, and obtained a Bachelor of Commerce at the University of Paris Dau-phine, and the Doctorat 3eme cycle in Pure Mathematics and the Doctorat es Sciences in Pure Math at the University Pierre et Marie Curie. He was a postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Toronto, and has been teaching and doing research at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is the first full time Black mathematician to be granted tenure at the oldest public university in this country, but had to fight in court to be tenured. His current work is in Dynamical Systems and Ergodic Theory, and has published several papers. Dr. Assani organizes a workshop in his research area that is supported by The National Science Foundation, the Mathematical Sciences Research Institute at Berkeley and UNC. One of the objectives of these workshops is to interest and familiarize young and interested black mathematicians to research in Mathematics.

Ben Carson, M.D

Today Ben Carson, M.D., operates on more than 300 children every year at Johns Hopkins Children's Center in Baltimore, Maryland. He is sought out around the world for his expertise in separating conjoined twins and conducting brain surgery to control seizures, with an emphasis on the use of cerebral hemispherectomies, in which half of the brain is removed to stop intractable seizures. A recipient of numerous awards and honors, the author of three popular books, and the co-founder, with his wife Candy, of a non-profit organization to help hard-working youth fund a college education, he en-joys a life rich in accomplishments and deep satisfaction. His life today is far removed from its beginning in the inner cities of Detroit and Boston. It has been of his own mak-ing, thanks to a mother and a host of individuals who expected the very best from him.

Stephen R. Cox

Stephen R. Cox is co-principal investigator and project director of the Greater Philadel-phia Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (Philadelphia AMP). The Philadel-phia AMP is a nine university consortium, funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF), whose mission is to double the number of underrepresented students receiving bachelor's degrees in STEM disciplines and to encourage enrollment in graduate school. During its 13-year history, the Philadelphia AMP has graduated more than 6,000 minor-ity engineers and scientists and produced 17 Ph.D.s. In addition to Drexel, the mem-bers of the Philadelphia AMP are Cheyney University of Pennsylvania, College of Phila-delphia, Delaware State University, Lincoln University, New Jersey Institute of Technol-ogy, Temple University, University of Delaware and Penn.

Dr. Njema Frazier

Dr. Njema Frazier is a Program Manager for the Department of Energy's National Nu-clear Security Administration (NNSA) in the Office of Advanced Simulation and Comput-ing, overseeing and coordinating the weapons simulation and modeling activities of the three DOE defense laboratories. Prior to joining the NNSA, she spent four years as a professional Democratic Staff Member for the U.S. House of Representatives Commit-tee on Science, where she assisted and advised on policy, budget, and technical mat-ters. Dr. Frazier has served as both a Chapter and Regional Officer. At the Regional level she was a R2AE Administrative Director and Chair-Elect. At the Chapter level she was a member of the DC Alumni Extension Board, serving as both a publicity co-chair and a NSBE Jr. Advisor. Dr. Frazier earned a Ph.D. in Nuclear Physics from Michigan State University, conducting her doctoral research at the National Superconducting Cy-clotron Lab (NSCL) in Michigan, and a BS in Physics from Carnegie Mellon University.

Dr. William Anthony Hawkins

Dr. William Anthony Hawkins earned his bachelor's degree in mathematics and a mas-ter's degree in physics from Howard University, and a master's and doctorate in mathe-matics from the University of Michigan. He has been involved in the teaching of minor-ity students for over 36 years, including a short stint as a high school teacher. He was chairperson of the Mathematics Department of the University of the District of Colum-bia for five years. He now holds the rank of Associate Professor, and is interested in researching Arithmetic Analytical Geometry. Dr. Hawkins took a five-year leave from UDC to work for the Mathematical Association of America as Director of the Strength-ening Underrepresented Minority Mathematics Achievement (SUMMA) Program. He has returned to teaching at UDC, and continues to direct the SUMMA Program which has raised more than $3 million to increase the representation of minorities in mathemat-ics, science, and engineering and to improve the mathematics education of minorities.

Dr.Robert L. Howard, Jr.

Dr.Robert L. Howard, Jr. is a Space Human Factors Analyst and the manager of the Habitability Design Center at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. He is responsi-ble for multiple components of NASA’s new initiative to return to the moon and go to Mars. He has served on multiple design teams for the NASA Crew Exploration Vehicle, Lunar Surface Access Module, Lunar Outpost, and Lunar Pressurized Rover. He has also served as a NASA human factors point of contact under a Space Act Agreement to Bigelow Aerospace for work related to their BA-330 orbital habitat. Dr. Howard has re-ceived numerous awards from NASA, NSBE, and other organizations for his career and volunteer work. Dr. Howard holds degrees from Morehouse College, Georgia Institute of Technology, North Carolina A&T State University, and the University of Tennessee Space Institute. Dr. Howard has received numerous awards from NASA, NSBE, and other or-ganizations for his career and volunteer work.

Dr. Roosvelt Y. Johnson

Dr. Roosvelt Y. Johnson received his baccalaureate degree in Zoology from Howard University and his doctorate in Microbiology from Indiana University. As a NIH Fellow, Dr. Johnson engaged in postdoctoral research at the University of Washington. Dr. Johnson has been a member of the faculty at Howard University and has served as an official collaborator at the Los Alamos National Laboratories. Dr. Johnson is currently Program Director for the Alliances for Graduate Education and the Professoriate (AGEP) program at the National Science Foundation. The primary goal of the AGEP program is to increase the number of underrepresented minority students pursuing advanced study, obtaining doctoral degrees, and entering the professoriate in STEM disciplines. Dr. Johnson recently received Science Spectrum Magazine’s prestigious Emerald Hon-ors Award for achievements in Affirmative Action, for his 30-year career of effectively championing efforts to broaden participation in STEM disciplines.

Thurman D. Jones, Jr.

Thurman D. Jones, Jr.founded and leads a technology training and awareness organi-zation whose mission is to address the “digital divide” by promoting technology training to residents of Prince George’s County inner beltway communities. Patriots Technology Training Center (PTTC) is a nonprofit community-based organization located in the city of Seat Pleasant of Prince George’s County, Maryland that provides technical training and outreach to residents of the Washington D.C. Metropolitan area. Although their focus is on the youth of the community, they offer programs that upgrade the technical skills of adults. In the past nine years, they have developed programs that have re-sulted in providing technical training, computer literacy and career motivation to over 3,500 community residents. The mission of the PTTC is to generate interest, education, jobs and careers for all ages and for those at present who may not have close or con-venient means to access or experience today’s technology.

Hildreth (Hal) Walker, Jr.

Hildreth (Hal) Wal;ker, Jr. an electro-optical laser systems engineer, traveled around the world introducing advanced laser technologies to the fields of scientific laser sys-tems research, military and industrial applications. Walker led the manufacturing, test-ing and operation of the ruby laser system utilized in the Apollo 11 Moon landing Lunar Laser Ranging experiment. A veteran of 35 years in the aerospace industry, he is hon-ored in a permanent exhibition “Science in American Life”, which opened in 1994 at the Smithsonian Institution National Museum of American History. Walker is board chair-man of the African-American Male Achievers Network, Inc. (A-MAN) International Sci-ence Discovery & Learning Center, a non-profit corporation, which he and his wife, Dr. Bettye Walker founded 15 years ago. The purpose of A-MAN is to increase the number of African-Americans involved in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics. Walker was appointed a NASA/JPL Solar System Ambassador in 2000.

Dr. Isiah M. Warner

Dr. Isiah M. Warner received his B.S. in chemistry from Southern University, and his Ph.D. from the University of Washington. He has been a professor at Texas A&M Uni-versity, Emory University, and Louisiana University. Dr. Warner has worked at the Na-tional Science Foundation as Program Officer for Analytical and Surface Chemistry, and has been issued five patents for his work three others are pending. The primary re-search emphasis of Dr. Warner’s research group is the development and application of improved methodology (chemical, mathematical, and instrumental) for studies of com-plex chemical systems. His research interests include (1) fluorescence spectroscopy, (2) guest/host interactions, (3) studies in organized media, (4) chromatography, (5) environmental analyses and (6) mathematical analyses and interpretation of chemical data using chemometrics (chemical data analyses techniques). Dr. Warner has earned numerous awards in the almost four decades he has been researching.

Year of Blacks in Science and The Banneker Institute

The moment has arrived. More African Americans are choosing to pursue science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) careers and fields of study than at anytime before. The Year of Blacks in Science is a collaborative campaign with three primary objectives: to commemorate black heritage in the sciences; to celebrate contemporary STEM achievement; and to reinvigorate and galvanize communities into future investment in this area. Inaugurated by the Benjamin Banneker Institute for Science and Technology (BBIST), the movement will focus on creating, organizing and sustaining locally-driven, action-oriented agendas designed to stock and replenish the academic pipeline with black students pursuing STEM.

The black community has made and continues to make landmark contributions in the fields of STEM but there is no time for complacency. The highly-competitive nature of todays industrial climate is defined by superior technology, constant innovation and an educated workforce. Accordingly, continued American economic growth and prosperity require an abundant supply of highly-qualified, STEM graduates to assume these vital roles. Black youth must be wellprepared to compete in this environment, not only against other Americans, but also against throngs of formidable international recruits.

To jump-start the campaign, BBIST will support the chartering of at least ten new Junior chapters of the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) in ten major cities nationwide. These chapters provide exactly the hands-on, outside-the-classroom, real-world STEM experiences that recruit, inspire and retain our young people in these essential fields. However, BBIST constitutes only one player in a vast and vibrant network of similarly-minded individuals and organizations.

The Banneker Institute of Science and Technology was founded, with support from Congress, to combine many of the existing initiatives addressing low performance and participation rates of African Americans in science and math related studies and professions. The Institute works to identify, create, and support pilot projects designed to demonstrate the effectiveness of the most promising approaches.

The mission includes the following elements:

• "To cause African Americans to identify with, to see themselves as excellent in, and to choose to pur-sue science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) careers and fields of study.
• "To increase resource availability so that all African Americans who aspire to pursue STEM careers will have sufficient support.
• "To identify and take to scale programs with demonstrated success at increasing the number of African Americans who choose to pursue STEM careers and fields of study.
• "To identify, assemble, and promulgate information about individuals, institutions, and programs in-volved in increasing the number of African Americans who choose to pursue STEM careers and fields of study.
• "To ensure that the educational pipeline is adequately populated at all levels with African American students preparing to pursue STEM careers and fields of study.

The Banneker Institute does not develop, implement, nor operate hands on programs, or engage in ser-vice delivery of any kind. The Banneker Institute exists to build capacity, create networks, and expand available resources in a manner designed to increase the effectiveness and/or scale of operation of proven programs already in place.

For more information on the Year of Blacks in Sciences or The Banneker Institute for Science and Technology, visit www.thebannekerinstitute.org.

Catalyst Solutions for Complex Social Systems

Catalyst is a group of experts in education, housing and community development, economic strat-egy, and public policy. We bring to the table years of experience in the operational techniques of business, government, academia, and non-profit organizations. More importantly, we employ an approach to systems analysis, problem solving, and development which is based on the system's possibilities, not on its limitations or its past performance.

Our commitment is to assist our clients in identifying, and then in creating the conditions necessary to realize those possibilities. Our techniques involve generating new partnerships and new ways of thinking, while build-ing on what is, with the intention that solutions will be taken to scale. Our focus is on large systems to which the resources of government, business, foundations, and community institutions can cooperatively be brought to bear.

For more information about Catalyst, please visit our website at www.catalystdc.org.

The Benjamin Banneker Institute for Science and Technology Advisory Committee