The Official Newsletter for the

Greater Los Angeles

North Carolina A&T State University

Alumni Chapter

Letter from the President
Show your Aggie Pride through giving

NCA&TSU is once again making history by initiating one of the largest Capital Campaigns in the country. Chancellor James Renick has set a goal of $100 million and two years into the campaign we are half way there.

HBCU’s all over the country are suffering from severe budget cuts and the lack of Alumni giving. A&T receives roughly 20% of its donations from Alumni gifts, leaving approximately 80% of the funds coming from corporate donors and sponsors. For years A&T has flourished under these grim circumstances and has managed to become a distinguished university that produces cultured, educated and responsible graduates. Just imagine the great things that A&T could accomplish if 40% or 50% of us give back!

The time is now to do your part and give back to A&T. Every donation counts no matter how big or small. Take advantage of corporate gift matching programs, donate a gift in honor of a loved one or establish a trust or insurance policy that names A&T as the benefactor. There are numerous ways to contribute, for more information please visit http://www.ncat.edu/%7ecapcamp/.

Jasmine Watlington

Greater LA Alumni Chapter President

Calendar

2/22 Tax Tips for 2004 Round Table Discussion with Jackie Jones of Jax Tax and Legal Documents. General Body Meeting immediately following. Lucy Florence Coffee House 3pm – 5pm

2/26 You are invited to join LA’s Public Forum (www.laspublicforum.org) for its inaugural program – “Images in Color: News Media Decisions & Their Impact on the African American Community.” A distinguished panel of veterans will take a critical look at how media organizations make critical decisions, their portrayal of African Americans, and the subsequent impact. This event is free to the public. See Anthony Dicks (dadii02@yahoo.com) for more information.

3/21 Executive Board Meeting

4/18 Aggie Pride Community Service Project

4/24 We will Co-host the LA Inter-Alumni Council meeting. More information forthcoming.

Black College Expo Recap

On January 24, 2004 the LA Alumni participated in the 5th Annual Black College Expo. A&T was one of only a few schools that have participated in the Expo all five years. Thanks to the hard work of the volunteers and the A&T Admissions Office, we were able to inform thousands of teachers, counselors, parents and young people about A&T’s academic, historical and social achievements.

Our booth was filled with information for anyone interested in learning more about A&T. Students could stop by and view pages of the A&T yearbook, ask questions about campus life and view the A&T display board filled with photographs and pertinent information about the university. Blue and gold balloons bearing the letters “A&T” flanked the sides of our booth and could be seen from across the convention center. A special thank you to everyone who helped make this a successful endeavor for the chapter.

Pictures from this event are posted on the chapter website. www.loasangelesaggies.com.

Aggie Spotlight

Congratulations to Mr. Jerry Woods. Jerry is embarking on a new journey and making a career change. He is hosting an Open House on March 2, 2004, 7:15PM at 20 East Foothill Blvd., Suite 228 Arcadia, Ca 91006. Call Jerry to RSVP. (B) 626 445 3643 (H) 310 216-0511

It is reunion time at A&T for graduates in years ending in 4 and 9. Reunion weekend will take place on May 7-9, 2004 in Greensboro, NC. Coordinators are busily planning this year’s reunions and they need your help and input. Please call the alumni office for more information. (336) 334-7583

Later this month Mr. Byron Simpson Jr. will receive an award recognizing him as a Modern-day Technology Leader at the 18th Annual Black Engineer of the Year Awards in Baltimore. Modern-day Technical Leaders are men and women of color who are demonstrating outstanding performance and will shape the course of engineering, science, and technology in the future. Congratulations Byron!!!

What’s Hot

The National Alumni Chapter has declared the month of April to Aggie Pride month. A&T Alumni chapters across the country are asked to participate in at least one community service project during the month of April to show our Aggie Pride!

The Black College Expo volunteers were featured on the front page of the Pasadena Journal (Jan. 29th issue) an African-American owned newspaper. The article accompanying the photograph was written by Xavier Higgs and graduate of Florida A&M University and mentioned the importance of attending an HBCU and A&T’s ambitious $100 million Capital Campaign. Call (626) 798-3972 for your copy today.

We can all make a difference by voting. Please register to vote. Applications can be downloaded from the Secretary of State’s election website. http://www.ss.ca.gov/elections/votereg1.html or call 1-800-345-VOTE

Ms. Kendra Rawls, an Aggie teaching at Rand Road Elementary is involved in a fundraiser for her school. One of the items for sell is an Aggie Mailbox. The cost of this $10.00 and all orders need to PRE-PAID by March 2, 2004. Make checks payable to Rand Road PTA. Please contact Kendra for more information. kkrawls@aol.com or (919) 661-9538

Celebrate Black history
Check out these web sites!

http://www.blackhistory.com/cgi-bin/webc.cgi/home.html

http://www.knowyourblackhistory.com/

Take the Black History Quiz

GAME 12 – For answers go to http://www.toptags.com/aama/trivia/game12/game12.htm

1. Who was the first African-American to dine at the White House?

Marcus Garvey
Martin Luther King
Booker T. Washington

2. In what year was the first public slave auction held in America?

1638
1690
1725

3. During the summer of 1919, 26 race riots broke out. What was this summer known as?

Red Summer
Riot Summer
Black Summer

4. The list of African-Americans claiming their service in the British Army during the American Revolution, and thus their right to freedom, became known as what?

The Black List
The Black Book
The Book of Negroes

5. The term "Jim Crow" was made famous by whom?

John Brown
Thomas Rice
Samuel Lewis

6. Tommie Smith and John Carlos made the "fist in the air" symbol of black power globally famous during which event?

A Rock concert
The World Series
The Summer Olympics

7. An invention of Elijah McCoy began the use of what term?

Hot Dog
The Real McCoy
As strong as steel

8. What were the names of the two Blacks who accompanied George Washington during his famous trip across the Delaware?

Sam Oliver and John Brown
Washington Smith and Salem Poor
Prince Whipple and Oliver Cromwell

Contact Us
Greater Los Angeles

NCA&TSU Alumni Chapter

PO Box 642672

Los Angeles, CA 90064-2672
www.losangelesaggies.com