spelman Archives - Rolling Out

As the shopping landscape has undergone a major shift during the COVID-19 pandemic, many companies have been forced to adapt their business models to address customer needs. Aisha Griffin, founder of online retailer Coil Beauty, remains undeterred by the challenge. The Detroit native and Spelman College graduate launched the online company in 2018 after years…

Nothing brings a smile to Johnnetta Betsch Cole‘s face or joy to her heart faster than encountering women who study at Spelman College, where she served as president from 1987 to 1997. On Jan. 1, 2020, the dress rehearsal for the 2020 Rose Parade in Pasadena, California, was long and tiring, but that did not…

It’s no secret that the YouTube platform has birthed a new generation of stars who’ve become some of the most impactful influencers in the world. YouTubeBlack partnered with Walmart to celebrate the success and creativity of some of their biggest Black stars to kick off homecoming week at Morehouse and Spelman colleges in Atlanta. #YouTubeBlackFanfest…

Sydney Wilson was living a normal teenage life when she got the news. The 14-year-old played elite soccer, ran track and was the captain of her school’s robotics team. But instead of preparing to attend high school in the fall like most kids her age, Wilson will make history by becoming the youngest student to…

Michelle Obama recently surprised the students at Spelman College. The students were given the opportunity to greet and receive guidance from one of the most powerful persons of this generation. For the past semester, a select group of students from Spelman and Morehouse had studied her memoir as a foundational text of their political science class, “Black…

Over the past four years students of Morehouse College, Spelman College, and Clark-Atlanta University have labored for educational and personal development in pursuit of their degrees. But this year the upcoming commencement and baccalaureate ceremonies at these Atlanta HBCUs have been targeted for a hateful protest by the religious hate group known as the Westboro…

Moments before Michelle Obama entered Giles Hall at Spelman College in Atlanta, students who attend the prominent HBCU for women and their male counterparts from nearby Morehouse College discussed how their lives were inspired by her memoir, Becoming. Obama snuck into the room shortly after 1 p.m. and surprised the students, who were given the…

Skye Johnson beautifully playing Arabesque by F. Burgmüller Spelman College’s Sisters Chapel was filled with proud parents, friends and family and talent scouts in anticipation of hearing Atlanta’s young artists display their musical genius during the spring 2019 recital. Sisters Chapel provided a beautiful backdrop for the recital as it embodies a historic and contemporary spirituality…

Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms will serve as the 2019 commencement speaker at Spelman College. The Atlanta-based HBCU for women announced on Tuesday, April 23, 2019, that Bottoms, a graduate of Florida A&M University, will speak at the college’s 132nd commencement ceremony on May 19. Serving in her first term as Atlanta’s mayor, Bottoms received national attention in 2017…

HBCU giant Morehouse College announced over the weekend that it will begin matriculating transgender men through their legendary college in the fall of 2020, following in the footsteps of its sister school, Spelman College, which has already implemented the historic measure. The Atlanta-based institution, a historically Black male college, said in a statement that the…

Spelman College ended its 10-day, start-up competition with a pitch night for teams of aspiring female entrepreneurs. This pitch night, held Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2019, consisted of nine groups of aspiring entrepreneurs who presented what they’ve been learning during 10 days in the Spelpreneur program to a “Shark Tank”-style panel of judges. During the program, the student…

Dr. Roderick Edmond is the distinguished founding and managing partner of Edmond Lindsay & Atkins LLP, an Atlanta law firm specializing in wrongful death and catastrophic personal injury cases. He has a bachelor’s degree in biology from Morehouse College, a medical degree from Duke University, and a Juris Doctor degree from Georgetown University. Throughout his…

It’s noon on a Saturday at B.T. Harvey Stadium, and the Morehouse College Maroon Tigers are playing the Albany State University Golden Rams. Twenty young women on Morehouse’s cheerleading team run onto the track brimming with game day excitement. Dressed in maroon and white uniforms, they line up in formation, ready to cheer their team to victory. Kickoff…

On May 29, Starbucks shut down all of its stores nationwide for diversity training. The decision came after two Black males were racially profiled and arrested while waiting for a business meeting in the Philadelphia area. During the training, employees and executive members of Starbucks were introduced to the company’s mission and value statements. This…

Karen Meyers is the managing partner at the Meyers Group in the Washington, D.C., area, which is a full-service government relations and business development firm providing a broad range of consulting services to clients looking to influence public policy and create new business opportunities. Meyers is a Spelman College graduate and has 16 years of…

Makeba Dixon-Hill’s love for museums started at a very young age when she would visit the High Museum of Fine Art and have lunch on the lawn with her mother on a monthly basis. She recalls these early experiences as being amazing. “I was spending time with one of my favorite people, surrounded by art…

It’s been six months since Rosalind Brewer was appointed to the role of group president and chief operating officer of Starbucks, making her the first African American and the first woman to hold the position at the company. For those of us who have been following her career, this savvy corporate superhero has always worn an…

Stephanie Scott is a renowned publicist and branding guru who always has her thumb on the pulse of the beauty industry. Small in stature but with a large presence, Scott has worked with some of the beauty industry’s most influential, including Creme of Nature and Kimble Beauty. Though now she is one of the top…

This past week, HBCU powerhouse Spelman College announced that it would be creating two scholarships to award to LGBTQ students. The Levi Watkins Jr. Scholars Program “will call attention to the importance of making visible the courageous and significant work of LGBTQ scholar activists within and beyond the academy, especially at HBCUs,” Spelman Professor Beverly Guy-Sheftall said in a…

MC Lyte discusses Chevrolet’s Discover the Unexpected fellowship launch in Atlanta. Edit: Robert Williams III