Page 13 - Florida Sentinel 9-4-18

State News
HBCU News
North Carolina A&T Gets No. 1 Ranking After Win Over Jacksonville State
First Generation College Student Earns Ph.D.
Only 2 games among HBCU’s last weekend
North Carolina A&T’s 20- 17 victory over FCS No. 6 ranked Jacksonville State put FCS on notice that the Aggies are for real. The Aggies, ranked No. 14 in FCS, is a unanimous No. 1 in the open- ing weekend of the BOX- TOROW Coaches and Media Polls.
The Coaches Poll order re- mained essentially the same as the preseason poll which was released earlier in the month, except that the Prairie View A&M Panthers moved up one spot to No. 8, despite its 31-28 loss to FBS oppo- nent Rice.
The Aggies and the Pan- thers were the only two
HBCU teams that played last Saturday.
This was the first media poll release of the year. PV came in at No. 9 in the poll.
The BOXTOROW HBCU FCS Coaches Poll and the Media Poll is administered by FROM THE PRESS BOX TO PRESS ROW. (box- torow.com).
Weekend Televised Game
On Sunday, September 2, 2018, ESPN2 will air the game between Prairie View A&M and North Carolina Central. Game time is 12 noon. Tiffany Greene (Berry) will be the play-by- play announcer, with Jay Walker (analyst) by her side.
GAINESVILLE — For first-generation college stu- dent Sheldon Lawrence, earning a Ph.D. in plant mo- lecular and cellular biology from the University of Florida means opportunity.
Dr. Lawrence joined nearly 350 students graduat- ing with their undergraduate and graduate degrees from the UF/IFAS College of Agri- cultural and Life Sciences (CALS). The graduation was held at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center.
While working on his bachelor’s degree in biology at Hampton University, Lawrence was a partici- pant in the Howard Hughes Medical Institute Pre-Ph.D. Program. The native of Charleston, South Carolina discovered his interest in plant biology and pathology after working in a biotech- nology lab under Edison Fowlks, a plant pathologist. Fowlks mentored Lawrence while he com- pleted the pre-Ph.D. pro- gram.
The support Fowlks pro- vided Lawrence inspired him to pursue his Ph.D. in a plants-related field. At UF, Lawrence’s research fo- cused on plant stomata func- tion. He studied how the stomata are regulated to help plants defend them- selves against bacteria that cause plant disease. During his time at UF, he received a UF Graduate School Fund- ing Award and a National Science Foundation Bridge to the Doctorate fellowship.
“Plants have been around longer than humans,” Lawrence said. “There’s a lot we can learn and have learned from plants. The more we learn about them, the more we learn about our- selves, and that is very excit- ing to me.”
As a minority in the plant biology field, Lawrence often finds himself to be the only African American in the room at conferences and other professional meetings. Even while working on his Ph.D. program at UF, people mistook him for a mainte- nance technician or other oc- cupation. He views being the first African American to earn a Ph.D. from the plant molecular and cellular biol- ogy program at UF as an op- portunity to engage fellow
DR. SHELDON LAWRENCE
... Graduates from the University of Florida
Attorney Praises Historically Black Colleges And Universities
minorities in the sciences. “This says a lot about his determination, dedication and passion for science,” said Eliana Kampf, aca- demic program specialist for the UF/IFAS plant molecu- lar and cellular biology pro- gram. “Because of Sheldon, we were able to recruit more minorities into this STEM field that has very few un- derrepresented students. We can expect great things from Sheldon as he progresses in
his career.”
While at UF, Lawrence
served in several leadership capacities through the Black Graduate Student Organiza- tion and the Nu Eta Lambda Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. Through his graduate program and ex- tracurricular activities, Lawrence visited local schools to present his re- search and share what it takes to earn a Ph.D.
“Whenever I visit schools, it reminds me that the journey is not about me but who I can help,” Lawrence said. “It warms my heart to see [the stu- dents’] minds working. The middle and high school stu- dents ask more questions about what it takes to get to college, whereas the elemen- tary school students get ex- cited to ask me general questions about my research with plants.”
Lawrence said it is im- portant to nurture students to pursue careers in science, no matter their ethnicity. He said his network of support in the plant molecular and cellular biology program has done this for him and his fel- low classmates.
“Eliana Kampf is like the mother of the program,” Lawrence said. “Any time I
needed anything, she was there with a personal note or email. My advisor Sixue Chen [UF biology professor] is one of the kindest people I have ever met. His motto is to work harder. He always makes himself available for personal and professional is- sues. It makes my colleagues and me happy to work with him in the lab.”
After graduation, Lawrence will begin a pres- tigious Seeding Postdoctoral Innovators in Research and Education (SPIRE) fellow- ship program funded through the National Insti- tutes of Health to conduct research at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. He will be working in the chemistry department iden- tifying plant proteins that are useful in the creation of novel medicines.
Lawrence plans to teach at a historically black college or university in North Carolina while con- ducting postdoctoral re- search. For his long-term career, he aims to become a university professor in the field of biology.
He encourages future sci- entists to soak up as much knowledge as they can in school and to be open to new ideas and career paths.
“Be driven by the desire to learn,” Lawrence said. “Explore – don’t be afraid to venture into a new field, be- cause you will be able to apply the knowledge and skills you learn to areas you love. Take advantage of all the opportunities that are presented to you. Enjoy the process and learn from the process. Most importantly, lift others up along the way as you climb the ladder of success.”
ATTORNEY CLINTON PARIS
BY IRIS B. HOLTON Sentinel City Editor
Last week, history was made when Andrew Gillum captured the most votes for the Democratic gubernatorial candidate. History was also made with the win Attorney Sean Shaw captured in the Attorney General race.
Both men will become part of the history of the state as the first Black men to win in either race. When the Sen- tinel reached out to members of the community about the historic events, many people shared their opinions.
Without taking anything from the historic dual win of Andrew Gillum and Sean Shaw, Attorney Clinton Paris also praised the institu- tion where Mayor Gillum received his education.
“My real winner is Florida A & M University and all the
ANDREW GILLUM
Historically Black Colleges and Universities that remain a bastion of opportunity for the majority of African American students desiring to develop their talents.
“At a time when the major- ity of universities continue to give excuses for the failing African American student ad- missions, and while the African American students at these schools admit struggling to overcome an environment hostile to their presence and indifferent to their struggle; it’s still HBCUs that willingly admit, educate, and produce the majority of African Amer- ican college graduates.”
“Let’s take a moment to recognize and celebrate the exceptional culture and cli- mate at FAMU that developed Andrew Gillum, and let’s renew our commitment to supporting all the HCBUs around the country.”
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2018 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY PAGE 13