The Morgan community of students, staff, and faculty gathered in the Student Center theatre on Wednesday night for the fall 2021 Town Hall meeting.Morgan State University PresidentDavid Wilson provided updates on COVID-19 vaccination rates, student success and achievements, building construction updates, and student housing.
Wilson said:
The Grand Opening of the Calvin and Tina Tyler Hall will be on Friday, Oct 22 at 10 a.m. The celebration will be held during Homecoming, which is expected to resume after shutting down last year because of the coronavirus pandemic. Furthermore, The Presidential Distinguished Speaker Series returns with Cornel West in the Student Center theatre on Thursday, Oct 21 at 11 a.m. The topic of the talk will be “The Tasks of Black Intellectuals in Our Times.” https://kpnarch.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/tylerhall-26-scaled.jpg
New faculty leadership roles were announced: Jacqueline Jones is dean of the School of Global Journalism and Communication. Hongtao Yu is the new provost and senior vice president for Academic Affairs. Yu previously was the dean of Morgan’s School of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences.
Student achievements were highlighted: Morgan Scholar Mikayla Harris earned a $15,000 astronaut scholarship. Chloe Johnson of the School of Global Journalism and Communication earned the Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Award. https://cms.afrotech.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Mikayla-Harris_BlackvNews-1568x882.jpg and https://news.morgan.edu/wp-content/uploads/ChloeJohnson-660x330.jpg
The new Health and Human Services building will be on the site of the demolished military armory. The new building will house the School of Social Work, School of Community Health, and Policy and Counseling Center. The building is scheduled for completion in summer 2024.
The new Science complex will be at the site of Washington Service Center. The Washington Service Center will be torn down, and the science complex is slated to open in late 2026 or mid-2027. Meanwhile, the Montebello complex – the former student services center – will be torn down and replaced with a new building housing the College of Osteopathic medicine, which will train medical students. The first class of students is set to enter in fall 2024.
Morgan State University endowment value has increased from $15 million in 2010 to $101.3 million in 2021.
Furthermore, there was an update on student housing. The new Thurgood Marshall Hall is slated to open in fall 2022. Also, fall 2021 additional housing plans revealed 3,101 students were assigned housing, 376 were housed off-campus and 95 percent of students were assigned housing as of Sept 7. Current plans are underway to house up to 270 more students at the Altus apartments, HH Midtown, and Delta Marriott Hotel.
The COVID -19 measures at Morgan State University for fall 2021 were also discussed. All students, staff, and faculty were required to be vaccinated prior to the start of the fall 2021 semester. Morgan State served as a community vaccination site where 5,000 people were vaccinated in the student center ballroom. Masks are mandatory indoors for all Morgan students, faculty, and staff per CDC guidance.
The writer is a graduate student in the School of Global Journalism and Communication