Page 7 - Florida Sentinel 2-7-17

HBCU News
55,000 Attend Honda HBCU Battle Of The Bands In ATL
On January 28, amid the rush of fans purchasing At- lanta Falcons gear and pa- rades being held before the beloved football team’s first Super Bowl appearance since 1999, another party was brewing inside the Georgia Dome.
Members of 8 historically black college and university (HBCU) bands took their places in the stadium, antic- ipating the arrival of band heads who would cheer them on during the 15th an- nual Honda Battle of the Bands.
More than 55,000 fans of the featured colleges and universities packed the Georgia Dome for the last time to support their fa- vorite bands. Up first was newcomer Benedict College, which would be performing for the first time at the showcase.
This year’s Honda Battle of the Bands Invitational Showcase participants in- cluded:
◦ Alabama A&M Univer- sity, Marching Maroon & White (Southwestern Ath-
The Marching Wildcats were the largest band represented with 300 band members. This was BC-U’s 12th appearance in the battle.
1,600 musicians from the 8 HBCUs played a medley composed by FAMU music professor and guest conductor Lindsey Sarjeant.
letic Conference) – 4th ap- pearance
◦ Alabama State Univer- sity, Mighty Marching Hor- nets (Southwestern Athletic Conference) – 5th appear- ance
◦ Alcorn State University, Sounds of Dyn-O-Mite (Southwestern Athletic Con- ference) – 3rd appearance
◦ Benedict College, March- ing Band of Distinction (Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference) – 1st appearance
◦ Bethune-Cookman Uni-
versity, Marching Wildcats (Mid-Eastern Athletic Con- ference) – 12th appearance BCU had the largest band with 300 taking the field.
◦ North Carolina A&T State University, Blue and Gold Marching Machine (Mid-Eastern Athletic Con- ference) – 5th appearance
◦ Texas Southern Univer- sity, Ocean of Soul (South- western Athletic Conference) – 2nd appear- ance
◦ Winston-Salem State University, Red Sea of
Sound (Central Intercolle- giate Athletic Association) – 6th appearance
FAMU Music Professor Directs Mass Band Finale All bands came together
on the field to perform a four-minute medley written by Florida A&M University’s professor of music and Bat- tle of the Bands’ guest con- ductor Lindsey Sarjeant.
Over 1,600 musicians deep, captivated the crowd in the grand finale mass band medley.
The 2017 champion will be
crowned at the National Championship Tournament in April. Visit www.hcasc.com for more details.
Fans can check out HBOB’s 15th anniversary journey and highlights from the Invita- tional Showcase on the official HBOB social media channels:
◦ Facebook – Face- book.com/HondaBattleofthe- Bands
◦ Twitter – @The_Honda / Twitter.com/The_Honda
◦ Instagram – @the_honda / Instagram.com/the_honda.
President Of Morehouse College Is Fired
John S. Wilson will be done as president of More- house College after his four- year term ends in June. The school’s board of trustees de- cided not to renew his con- tract.
The vote apparently took place at the historically black, all-male college on Jan. 13, when the trustees last met.
The 3 student members weren’t allowed to attend, which drew criticism and calls for protest.
No explanation was given for why the board decided to part ways with Wilson.
A 1979 graduate of More- house, Wilson was named the college’s 11th president in November 2012.
His goals included improv- ing faculty pay, advancing in science, technology, engi-
John Wilson, president of Morehouse College did not have his contract renewed.
neering and mathematics (STEM) and student aid. To that end, he received $1 mil- lion grant to build up More- house’s STEM programs.
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