Page 7 - Florida Sentinel 4-3-18

Students In Action
Howard University Students Occupy School’s Admin. Office For 5th Day; Demand Changes
HU Resist student organ- izer Alexis McKenney said Sunday afternoon that stu- dents would meet with trustees again at 9 p.m. Sun- day. She said the students plan to occupy the adminis- tration building on Monday.
The HU students gathered in protest Thursday, a day after the school confirmed the financial aid scandal that saw six employees fired.
The student protest fol- lowed university President Wayne A.I. Frederick’s statement Wednesday, in which he confirmed that he was alerted to a “misappropri- ation of university-provided financial aid funds” in Decem- ber 2016. Outside auditor RSM investigated and re- ported the results to Frederick in May 2017, he said.
The university didn’t make the audit findings public until a recent anonymous post on Medium.com brought the scandal to light.
The alumni and the board want to make this about num- bers, but this is really about people, and about how they’ve been abused,” said Veritas, one of the leaders of the protest said on Sunday. “[Frederick] is a bully who intimidates people.”
Veritas confirmed that at least one of the students’ de- mands had been met, with the administration extending the housing application deadline to May 1. They also confirmed that students planned to meet again with the administration on Sunday evening.
Frederick responded with a statement on Howard
Spurred to action by the re- cent allegations of the misap- propriation of nearly $1 million in financial aid funds, and other demands: changes to housing deadline, changes to the sexual harassment policy, disarming campus police; a tu- ition freeze and President Wayne Frederick’s resignation, hundreds of Howard Univer- sity students have occupied the school’s administrative build- ing for the fifth day.
University’s website early Thursday morning.
“I am listening to you and I am challenging my team to make the changes you are ex- pressing a dire need to see,” the statement said.
The Howard University Alumni Association released a statement Sunday expressing support for President Fred- erick and the Board of Trustees.
Association president Nadia Pinto said there have been many advancements under the leadership of Fred- erick, including four consec- utive years of faculty salary increases and the university’s partnership with Google. Pinto said in the statement it is important that the univer- sity address the issues brought by students.
Mississippi Teens Marching From Hometown To Memphis To Commemorate 50th Anniversary Of Dr. King’s Death
The group is walking 50-miles to Memphis, TN.
DUNDEE, MI — On the 50th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s death, a group of Mississippi teens are paying homage to the civil rights icon by march- ing from North Mississippi to Memphis, Tenn.
According to the Clarion Ledger, the six participating teens vary in age from 14- 19 and consist of middle school, high school and col-
lege students. They are es- corted by two adult mentors, police cars, support vans and a portable restroom as they make the 50-mile trudge from Highway 61 to the Mis- sissippi-Memphis border.
They plan to meet friends and family at the Mississippi- Tennessee state line Tuesday and will attend events com- memorating King’s death Wednesday.
Dr. King was fatally shot at the Lorraine Hotel in Memphis on April 4, 1968.
The teens say they’re making the journey to learn about civil rights and racial justice.
The group wore aqua T- shirts and hydration back- packs as they started the first leg of their march along Highway 61 in the Missis- sippi Delta.
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