Congratulations to the CLASS OF 2027 ASALH EXECUTIVE COUNCIL

Current Employer: Loyola University Maryland

Professional Background:

2023 Professor of Communication and African and African American Studies, Department of Communication, Loyola University Maryland
2020 Founding Executive Director, The Karson Institute for Race, Peace, & Social Justice, Loyola University Maryland
2017 Radio Host, Today with Dr. Kaye, WEAA 88.9 FM, Morgan State University
2017-2022 Opinion Editorial Columnist, Conversations with Dr. Kaye, Baltimore Afro-American Newspaper

Major Accomplishments:

2024 Nominee:

• Nominee, Outstanding Editorial and Commentary, Chesapeake Associated Press
• Nominee, Outstanding Talk Show, Chesapeake Associated Press
• Nominee, Outstanding Enterprise Reporting, Chesapeake Associated Press

2023 Recipient:

• First Place, Outstanding Editorial and Commentary, Chesapeake Associated Press

2022 Recipient:

• Rev. John LaFarge Award, S.J. Award, Fairfield University
• Outstanding Alumna in Humanities, University of Maryland, Baltimore County
• Vernon Jarrett Medal for Journalistic Excellence, School of Global Journalism of Communication, Morgan State University
• Best Talk Show, Chesapeake Associated Press Association
• Second Place, Outstanding Editorial and Commentary, Chesapeake Associated Press
• Leaders in Diversity Award, Baltimore Business Journal

2021 Recipient:

• “Newsmaker of the Year,” Afro newspaper
• Edward R. Murrow Regional Award, Excellence in Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion
• The Amistad Award in recognition of Outstanding Contribution to the Struggle for Human Rights and Social Justice, The Amistad Committee, Central Connecticut State University
• 10 Incredible Women Leaders from Baltimore, Women of the World Foundation, Google Arts & Culture

2020 Recipient:

• First Place, Outstanding Editorial and Commentary, Chesapeake Associated Press
• Baltimore’s “Best Radio Host,” The Baltimore Sun
• “Top 100 Women” in Maryland, The Daily Record

2019 Recipient:

• “Woke 100 List,” Essence Magazine
• “25 Women to Watch in 2019,” The Baltimore Sun
• Exceptional Merit in Media, National Women’s Political Caucus, “BlackGirlActivism: Exploring the Ways that We Keep Coming through the Storm,” The Work of Karsonya Wise Whitehead, Magazine: Meridians
• Outstanding Talk Show, Chesapeake Associated Press Association
• Second Place, Outstanding Editorial and Commentary, Chesapeake Associated Press
• Collegium Visionary Award, Collegium: A Colloquy on Faith and Intellectual Live

Previous Service to ASALH: 

2024 National Secretary
2022 Guest Co-Editor, Black History Bulletin 85th Anniversary. “Historical Trauma: Past Pains, Future Promise”
2016-21 National Secretary
2016 Black History Month Keynote Speaker
2012-2016 Panelist, ASALH Black History Month Panel at the White House
2013 Guest Editor, Black History Bulletin 76, #2. “The Golden Jubilee of the Civil Rights Act”
2013 Keynote Address, Woodson Lecture

What I Hope to Accomplish as an Executive Council Member of ASALH: 

It was my privilege to serve ASALH’s National Secretary for six years as it provided me with an opportunity to study and learn how the Association worked and what issues needed to be addressed. After six years, building upon what I had learned from ASALH, I served as the president of the National Women’s Studies Association for three years. I like to believe that based upon my service in both ASALH and NWSA that I have learned how to bridge the gap between the work that associations are called to do and the issues that they are called to address. During my service to NWSA, I wrote and released over 23 statements using my presidential platform to address issues ranging from the July 6th Insurrection to the SCOTUS Dobbs decision. I was able to leverage my Association’s network to bring attention to issues that were of great concern to our members. I also planned NWSA’s involvement in the May 3rd National Day of Action, mobilizing our membership to participate in Teach-Ins and Workshop across the country (as a result NWSA was included in the 2023 GLSEN Award).
I am committed to ensuring the success of ASALH by continuing to build upon the vision set forth by Dr. Carter G. Woodson. ASALH has always been the keeper of our collective history, my goal, if elected as the president of ASALH, would be to position ASALH as the voice of our community–which includes more direct involvement with the community, mobilizing and building our membership base (through direct outreach, collaborative networking, and hosting community meetings), and releasing presidential statements addressing political and social issues that directly impact our community.

Current Employer: Retired

Professional Background:

• Ordained Minister in the African Methodist Episcopal Church
• Executive Council member since 2018
• National Membership Committee, 2011 – 2024
• Retired Human Resources Professional from AT&T
• Bank of America/Merrill Lynch, Wealth Mgt., Wealth Management Financial Advisor Wealth Support Associate, 2011-2021
• James Weldon Johnson Branch ASALH (JWJ), Past President (7 years),
• JWJ Local Arrangements Committee (LAC) Chair Annual Conference (2013)
• JWJ LAC Member, Jacksonville Annual Conference 2023
• United Way Loaned Executive

Major Accomplishments:

Actively serving on the Executive Council (EC) for the past six years; three years as a corporate member representing Bank of America. Presently serving as the chair of the Audit and Finance Committee (A&F), co-chair of the Membership Support and Enhancement Committee, and Regional Coordinator for the Florida and Georgia branches. As a member of the Strategic Planning (SPC), helped to develop the decision-making model to expedite project approvals by the EC. The A&F committee reviewed all financial reports and statements to ensure sound accounting practices, adherence to the annual budgets, and oversight of ASALH’s financial picture to minimize risks. Evaluated the need to raise the dues because of the economic environment and the increasing cost of running ASALH’s business. Collaborated in the development of the A&F section of the EC Handbook and the overview of the Roles of Committee Chairs and Cluster Members. Engaged with the leadership team of the Planning Committee to ensure transparency and organizational constructive interaction. Other committee experiences include Governance and Nominating. Membership on the National Membership Committee (NMC) spans more than 11 years.

Previous Service to ASALH: 

Contributed to the review and creation of resources for the development of the Branch Procedural Handbook. Gained operational and relational experiences by serving in distinct roles in the local James Weldon Johnson ASALH Branch; Past President (7 years), Vice President of Membership, Treasurer, and Correspondence Secretary to support the ongoing development of a strong branch. Facilitated the branch’s establishment as a 501 3C non-profit organization. Served as the Local Arrangements Committee Chair (LAC) for the 2013 annual conference in Jacksonville, FL, and as a LAC member for the 2023 annual conference held in Jacksonville. Currently serving on the Florida ASALH Coalition of Branches and as the regional coordinator for the ASALH Branches in FL and GA. Kept branches informed on national actions and membership updates, responded to branch concerns, and helped to address issues for the success of the 2023 annual conference. Helped to support the Cincinnati and Charleston branches as needed. Sponsored an oratorical contest which was open to all branches to participate. A youth member in the JWJ Branch won the $1,000 prize and a member of the Charleston Branch won the $500.00 prize. Supported local youth members who participated in the Malcolm X Festival hosted by the Atlanta Branch.

What I Hope to Accomplish as an Executive Council Member of ASALH: 

ASALH is a membership organization that needs to have dedicated support, tools, and resources. The attack on the teaching of Black History and Black life in the national climate requires ASALH’s members to remain on the front lines and committed to social justice. The network of branches and the national office provide informative programs to increase awareness and educate communities-at-large about broader issues, as well as local and family histories. My Executive Council and branch experiences have provided insight into the operational structures, and relational dynamics of members to provide support and address concerns.

The development of the Branch Procedural Handbook was the result of suggestions from the membership to enable strong branches. It provides information in simple one-page topics to address most questions. The Membership Support and Enhancement Committee will continue to make the website easier to navigate. It will also focus on improving the timeliness and flow of communication for better transparency between the membership, national office, EC, and officers for responsiveness and accountability. Lastly, efforts will focus on developing strategies to promote ASALH’s growth.

Current Employer: Emory University

Professional Background:

Crystal R. Sanders, an award-winning historian of the United States in the twentieth century, is an Associate Professor of African American Studies at Emory University. Previously, she was an Associate Professor of History and the Director of the Africana Research Center at Pennsylvania State University.

Professor Sanders is the author of A Chance for Change: Head Start and Mississippi’s Black Freedom Struggle published by the University of North Carolina Press in 2016 as part of the John Hope Franklin Series in African American History and Culture. The book won the 2017 Critics Choice Award from the American Educational Studies Association and the 2017 New Scholar’s Book Award from Division F of the American Educational Research Association. The book was also a finalist for the 2016 Hooks National Book Award. Sanders’s work can also be found in many of the leading history journals including the Journal of Southern History, the North Carolina Historical Review, and the Journal of African American History. Sanders’s next book, America’s Forgotten Migration: Black Southerners, Segregation Scholarships, and the Debt Owned to Public HBCUs, will be published by UNC Press in Fall 2024.

Major Accomplishments:

Sanders is the recipient of a host of fellowships and prizes. These honors include the C. Vann Woodward Prize from the Southern Historical Association, the Huggins-Quarles Award from the Organization of American Historians, and the Equity Award from the American Historical Association. The latter honor was given in recognition of Professor Sanders’s work in creating the Emerging Scholars Summer Mentoring Program at Penn State to expose undergraduate students from historically underrepresented backgrounds to doctoral study in the discipline of history. During a one-week summer residential program funded by the Richards Civil War Era Center, Penn State faculty and staff demystify the graduate school admissions process and educate participants about the academic profession. Students participate in a simulated doctoral seminar and attend workshops on a variety of topics, including writing, digital research, and graduate student life. The program, which started in 2016, is still in operation.

In 2018, Professor Sanders wrote and secured a six-figure grant to begin a pilot program targeted at associate professors of color at Penn State. The program, called the Midcareer Diversity Faculty Advancement Program, aims to help associate professors from underrepresented backgrounds achieve the rank of full professor.

A firm believer in to whom much is given, much is required, Professor Sanders considers one of the greatest honors of her life to be having the opportunity to collaborate with Black churches, sororities, and other civic groups to support the dissemination of African American history. Given our current political climate and attack on accurate and inclusive accounts of history, we must all put boots on the ground and partner with people in and beyond the academy.

Previous Service to ASALH: 

Member, Academic Programming Committee, 2014, 2015, and 2016 Annual Meetings of the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (in 2015 and 2016, I co-chaired the ASALH Film Festival with Michelle Duster)

Current Assistant Editor of the Journal of African American History

I regular attend, present at, and moderate panels at the Annual Meeting. I served as a plenary speaker at the 104th Annual Meeting.

What I Hope to Accomplish as an Executive Council Member of ASALH: 

If elected to serve on the Executive Council of ASALH, I would pursue opportunities to work with local branches to create and/or continue programming focused on exposing young people to African American history. I believe the time is ripe for a new iteration of Freedom Schools that might meet once a month to ensure that no matter what happens in public schools with current curriculum battles, children (especially Black children) would still have meaningful opportunities to study their past.

I would also hope that we might create a membership campaign targeting undergraduate and graduate students. I envision some type of challenge where we ask current members to sponsor a student membership and regularly disseminate an “honor roll list” that recognizes members who have paid it forward by sponsoring the membership of a student. I think we might also officially reach out to History, Black Studies, and other appropriate departments at universities to ask them to partner with ASALH by ensuring that there are funds set aside for their students to attend our meetings and events.

Current Employer: Obama Foundation

Professional Background:

Dr. Crystal M. Moten is a public historian, curator and writer who focuses on the intersection of race, class and gender to uncover the hidden histories of Black people in the Midwest. In October 2022, Crystal M. Moten joined the Obama Foundation as Curator of Collections and Exhibitions on the Presidential Center Museum team.

She plays a key role in the collaborative effort to complete the design and implementation of the inaugural exhibits while also serving as the primary steward and subject matter expert of the Obama Foundation Museum Collection. Dr. Moten supervises and manages the curatorial team and its activities.

Prior to joining the Obama Foundation, Dr. Moten served as Curator of African American History in the Division of Work and Industry at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History in Washington, DC. In this capacity she stewarded collections as they related to the history of African Americans in business and labor; collaborated on several exhibitions; wrote for the Museum’s blog; and helped start, produce, and host Collected, a Smithsonian Podcast on African American History. She also reviewed and appeared on documentaries for the Smithsonian Channel including, She the People: Votes for Women.

The recipient of numerous awards and honors, her research has appeared in books, journals, documentaries, and other media. Dr. Moten has taught at colleges and universities across the country including University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee; Dickinson College; Macalester College; and American University. Her most recent book is Continually Working: Black Women, Community Intellectualism and Economic Justice in Postwar Milwaukee (Vanderbilt University Press, 2023).

Major Accomplishments:

The recipient of numerous awards and honors, her research has appeared in books, journals, documentaries, and other media. Dr. Moten has taught at colleges and universities across the country including University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee; Dickinson College; Macalester College; and American University. Her most recent book is Continually Working: Black Women, Community Intellectualism and Economic Justice in Postwar Milwaukee (Vanderbilt University Press, 2023).

Previous Service to ASALH: 

My primary service to ASALH has been through membership and participation in annual conferences over the years. I look forward to deepening my commitment and service to the organization through potential service on the executive council.

What I Hope to Accomplish as an Executive Council Member of ASALH: 

As a nominee and potential member of the Executive Council of ASALH, I hope to use my professional skills and networks in service of the organization. As a public historian, I would like to foster connections with and advocate for the work of historians who situate themselves within public spaces, such as museums, historic sites, monuments, etc.

Current Employer: North Carolina Central University

Professional Background:

I have served as dean of three colleges and chair of the department of History at North Carolina Central University. I have served on several boards and executive councils including chair of the Board of the Durham Museum of History and a member of the Board of Governors of the University of North Carolina Press. I earned the PhD in British History from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, a MA from The Ohio State University, and the BA from North Carolina Central University.

Major Accomplishments:

I am tenured member of the faculty in the department of History at North Carolina Central University. As a university administrator I have been successful in recruiting, retaining and graduating students. I have developed curricular and new degree programs in the Humanities and Social Sciences. As an academic dean I have experience in successful fundraising and working with academic and professional organizations, advisory boards, review boards, and program accreditations.

Previous Service to ASALH: 

I am a lifetime member of ASALH and North Carolina Central University is an institutional member of ASALH. I have served as a member of the Executive Council and Vice President for Programs.

What I Hope to Accomplish as an Executive Council Member of ASALH: 

As a proposed nominee for the Executive Council of ASALH, I would like to place an emphasis on ensuring the sustainability of the organization by stabilizing the membership, acquiring additional resources, fortifying the organization’s impact on African American life and History, providing excellent service and programming for its members, and implementing and practicing a true culture of collegial shared governance.

Current Employer: University of Illinois-Urbana-Champaign

Professional Background:

• BA, Tougaloo College, Political Science, 1977
• MA, Sangamon State University, 1983, Political Studies
• Ph.D. University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana, 1993, History
• Advanced Certificate in Black Studies, Northeastern University, 1992
• Advanced Certificate in Black Studies, Black Studies Director’s Institute, National Council for Black Studies, University of West Virginia, 1994
•Instructor, Richland Community College, 1977-1983
• Instructor, African American History, University of Missouri at Columbia, 1988-91
• Director of Black Studies Program & Assistant Professor of History, University of Missouri at Columbia, 1991-94
• Assistant Professor of African & African American Studies, Pennsylvania State University, 1994-95
• Associate Professor Department of History, University of Southern Illinois at Edwardsville, 1995 (tenure, 1998)-2001
• Director of the African American Studies and Research Program, University of Illinois at Urbana, 2001-2008
• Associate Professor Departments of African American Studies & History, University of Illinois at Urbana, 2001-Present.

Major Accomplishments:

• Herf Jones Award, Outstanding Political Science Student, Tougaloo College, 1977
• Council of Institutional Cooperation (CIC), Minority Fellowship, 1983-88
• The Frederick Douglass Distinguished African American Citizenship Award, Ruby Cook, Mayor of Brooklyn, Illinois, July 8, 2000.
• Superior Scholarship Award, Illinois State Historical Society, for America’s First Black Town, 2001
• William Bradley Scholar Award, The Counseling Psychology Program at Temple University, 2004
• Visiting Scholar, Barstow Excellence in Teaching in Humanities Seminar at Saginaw Valley State University, Saginaw, Michigan, February 9-10, 2006
Co-winner of the 2009 OAH EBSCOhost America: History and Life Award for the best article in United States history, 2007-2009.
• Fellowship, Center for Advanced Study, University of Illinois, 2010-11
• Organization of American Historians, OAH Distinguished Lectureship Program, 2010-2013
• Nancy Schaenen Endowed Visiting Scholar at the Janet Prindle Institute for Ethics, De Pauw University, February 4-8, 2013.
• List of UIUC Teachers Rated Excellent By Their Students, Fall 2006, AFRO 490. Spring 2010, HIST 575. Fall 2013, AFRO 101. Spring 2014, HIST 300 & HIST 575. Fall 2014, AFRO 474. Spring 2015, HIST 300 & HIST 575. Spring 2016, AFRO 474/HIST 478. Spring 2017, AFRO 474/HIST 478. Fall 2018, AFRO 474/HIST 478.
• Vice President of the National Council for Black Studies, 2006-2008; 2008-2010.
• President of the National Council for Black Studies, 2010-2012; 2012-2014.
• America’s First Black Town, Brooklyn, Illinois, 1830-1915. (Urbana, University of Illinois Press, 2000).
• Sankofa: Racial Formation and Transformation, Toward a Theory of African American History (Pullman, WA, Comparative Ethic Studies, Washington State University, 2000).
Race Struggles. Edited by Ted Koditsheck, Sundiata Keita Cha-Jua, and Helen Neville.
University of Illinois Press, Fall 2009.
Sundiata Keita Cha-Jua, Mary Frances Berry and V.P. Franklin (Eds.), Reparations and Reparatory Justice: Past, Present and Future (University of Illinois Press, April 2024).
• Senior Editor, The Black Scholar 2011-2015
• Associate Editor, Journal of African American History, 2015-2018.
• Editor of 5 special issues of The Black Scholar
• Editor of 1 special issue of the Journal of African American History
• Author/coauthor of 60 scholarly articles
• Bi-weekly Colunmist, RealTalk: A Black Perspective , News Gazette, 2015-Present
• Bi-weekly Podcast, RealTalk: History as a Weapon for Black Liberation, Black Power Media, 2021-P

Previous Service to ASALH: 

• I have been a life member since 2001. I have only missed one in-person conference since 1992. I had COVID during the 2022 annual conference in Montgomery, Alabama. I have presented on and chaired scores of panels.
• I cochaired the Academic Program Committee for three years, from 2016-2018.
• I have been a member of the Executive Council for the last 8 years, since 2016.
• I served on the Strategic Planning Committee in 2016, cochaired it from 2017-2018 and have chaired it since 2019-P.
• Since being elected to the Executive Committee I also have served on the Public Commentary Committee (2019-P), being the lead author of many of our statements; the Executive Planning Committee (2018-P); The Links Initiative (2023-P); and the President’s Advisory Committee (2024-P).
• As chair of the Strategic Planning Committee, I chaired ASALH’s social justice initiative for the 108th Annual Conference in Jacksonville, Florida. For that conference, we organized ASALH’s first community forum (200 people attended) and a Banned Book Readout (over 400 attended). I would like to continue ASALH’s movement toward advocacy and activism for the expansion of the teaching of Black history in the public schools and in the Black community.

As chair of Startegic Planning, I lead ASALH’s Freedom School Initiative.

What I Hope to Accomplish as an Executive Council Member of ASALH: 

During my tenure as cochair or chair of the Startegic Planning Committee at the initiative of former Executive Council member Gladys Mack, we developed the Organizational Chart which defines ASALH’s structure and directs the flow of policy. We also developed ASALH’s handbook on the the responsibilites and powers of ASALH officers, chairpersons, and clusters and committees. I want to continue to the work of better organizing and making ASALH’s infrastructure more efficient and effective.

If given the opportunity to continue serving ASALH, I hope to bring our Freedom School Initiative to fruition next fall and grow it significantly beyond the branches that comprise the Florida Coalition. We have engaged ASALH members from Jaksonville, Tamba, Manasota, St. Petersburgh, Orlando, South Florida, Miami, Indianapolis, Champaign-Urbana, Illinois. We have created three subcommittees: (1) Curriculum; (2) Pedagogy/Teaching Strategies; and (3) Fundraising.

I also want to complete the launch of ASALH’s blog, The Woodsonian. This will be a public-facing vehicle to disseminate Black Historical Knowledge and to stimulate a broad based discussion of the Black sociohistorical experience.

Current Employer: 

DC Office of Public Records and Archives

Professional Background:

Lopez D. Matthews Jr., Ph.D., is the State Archivist and Public Records Administrator for the District of Columbia. In this capacity, he serves as the Historian of the District of Columbia, Chair of the D.C. Historical Records Advisory Board, and Director of the DC Office of Public Records and Archives. A native of Baltimore, Maryland, he earned a BS in History from Coppin State University in 2004. He then earned a master’s degree in Public History and Archival Administration from Howard University in 2006 and a Ph.D. in United States History from Howard University in 2009.​

Currently, he is a member of the Council of State Archivists and an Executive Council Member of the Association for the Study of African American Life and History. He has published several articles and is the author of Howard University in the World Wars: Men and Women Serving the Nation. He is the host of In Retrospect and Prospect where he interviews practitioners about African American history projects for ASALH TV. In 2020, he became a Senior Advisor to the US Truth, Healing, and Transformation Leadership Group. In 2023, he was appointed by the Secretary of the Interior to the Mary McLeod Bethune Historic Site Federal Advisory Committee as an expert in Digital Archives.

Major Accomplishments:

Built the Digitization program and digital archive for the Moorland-Spingarn Research Center, Curated the exhibit ASALH at 100 for the Banneker- Douglass Museum in Annapolis, MD, winner of the ASALH Mary McLeod Bethune Service Award from ASALH in 2022.

Previous Service to ASALH: 

I have served on the ASALH Luncheon Committee from 2002 – 2010, Chair of the ASALH Publications Committee, Developed the ASALH Black History Month Kit from 2006 – 2009, an Executive Council member from 2009 – 2012, and 2022 – 2024; Developed ASALH-TV with Zebulon Miletsky and Chair of the ASALH-TV Committee from 2022 – 2024.

What I Hope to Accomplish as an Executive Council Member of ASALH: 

As a member of the Executive Council of ASALH, I want to develop further digital programming for ASALH and ASALH-TV. This programming will promote the study of African American history, projects focused on African American history, and tell stories of the African American journey.

Current Employer: Central Connecticut State University

Professional Background:

History PhD in 2023 from University of Massachusetts Amherst

Major Accomplishments:

No information given.

Previous Service to ASALH: 

My service to ASALH include a term as Executive Council Student Member. Additionally, I have served as vice -chair of the Awards Committee. Also, I have served as session panelist and session chair at ASALH annual conferences.

What I Hope to Accomplish as an Executive Council Member of ASALH: 

I hope to bring the needs and amplify the voices of junior scholars to ASALH . Additionally, assist with recruiting undergraduate and graduate students to become involved with ASALH. Continue the work of ASALH to educate others of accomplishemnts by people of the African diaspora.

Current Employer: 

Stony Brook University

Professional Background:

Zebulon Vance Miletsky, Ph. D. is an Associate Professor in the Department of Africana Studies and History at Stony Brook University (SUNY) specializing in recent African-American History, the Civil Rights and Black Power movements, Urban History, Mixed Race, and Biracial Identity. In addition to his earlier work on Mixed Race, Miletsky’s major project has been the Boston School Desegregation Crisis and the parent-led civil rights movement in Boston. His book Before Busing: A History of Boston’s Long Black Freedom Struggle was published by the University of North Carolina Press in December of 2022. It has been well received and was featured in the Journal of Blacks in Higher Education as a book “of interest to African American scholars.” He is also the author of numerous articles, reviews, essays and book chapters. His articles have appeared in the Trotter Review, the Historical Journal of Massachusetts, the Journal of Civil and Human Rights and the Journal of Urban History. He has been a regular contributor to the award-winning blog Black Perspectives, hosted by the African American Intellectual Historical Society (AAIHS) for which he co-authored “How Displacement and Gentrification are Remaking Boston” (2017) among other pieces. He has written op-eds for Diverse Issues in Higher Education, BK Nation and the BK Reader. Originally from Boston, Miletsky received his Ph.D. in African American Studies with a concentration in History from the W.E.B. Du Bois Department of Afro-American Studies at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst in 2008. There, he was trained as a historian by some of the best thinkers in the field of African American Studies, many of whom are veterans of the Civil Rights and Black Power movements of the 1960s, 70s and beyond.

Major Accomplishments:

He has received fellowships from the Northeast Consortium for Faculty Diversity and Case Western Reserve University, where he was, respectively, a Minority Dissertation Fellow at Monmouth University and a Post-Doctoral Fellow in African American Studies in the Department of History. He has made appearances on NBC4 New York, the PBS show American Experience and has been quoted by NBC News, TheRoot.com, and many others. Miletsky was awarded a “Game Changer Award” from the Long Island Area NAACP branches at their Annual Freedom Luncheon in 2020 for his “work in Civil Rights in Long Island.” He is a voting member of the Citywide Education Council (CEC) for District 32 in Bushwick, Brooklyn, the school board for the City of New York, for which he was appointed by the Brooklyn Borough President. In 2021 he was honored by the Town of Brookhaven Black History Commission “for leadership and service to the community as a role model to the next generation.” A proclamation to this effect was read in which February 5th was declared “Dr. Zebulon Miletsky Day” in the Town of Brookhaven, New York. Dr. Miletsky was selected to give the annual John Hope Franklin Lecture at Adelphi University for Black History Month of 2023 for which he also received several proclamations. He has also been chosen as an honoree and recipient of the “Humanitarian and Civil Rights Award” for the upcoming Black Authors Festival in August 2024. He lives in Brooklyn.

Previous Service to ASALH: 

I have served in many capacities for the Association for the Study of African-American Life and History (ASALH) for several years, including Chair of the Academic Program Committee, in which I helped plan of the 2019 Conference which took place in Charleston, South Carolina, and was very successful both in terms of attendance as well as financially. I have also served and currently serve as Chair of the Marketing and Public Relations Committee for ASALH. In addition to bringing national and international exposure to the association through marketing efforts, Marketing and PR was also the committee in which ASALH TV was originally created. Having served as the “incubator” of ASALH TV, Marketing and PR, under Miletsky’s leadership (along with ex-co Chair of that committee, Dr. Lopez Matthews) developed and proposed the original plan for ASALH TV. Marketing and PR was proud to serve as a space for “innovation and research” which has enabled ASALH TV to be monetized and now able to “walk on its own” under the leadership of the ASALH TV Committee.

What I Hope to Accomplish as an Executive Council Member of ASALH: 

Being a part of the “Program Cluster” and having now chaired two committees under that umbrella–Academic Program and Marketing and PR–I have a good sense of how we can continue to bring even greater attention, dollars and amazing programming for this noble and grand association. I believe one very important direction to go in would be establishing greater visibility for ASALH. This is the major focus and promise of my candidacy for this position. We will achieve this goal, while we balance the ongoing grant programs and critical programming that have made ASALH the preeminent Black History professional organization in the world and the oldest Black learned society in America. We have a high standard to continue with the phenomenal success of the Black History Month Festival–with ASALH TV and our social media platforms, which we will also expand–as well as tie ins and large scale cross promotional opportunities which can and will result in dollars for the coffers of ASALH–so that we can continue to let our light shine–without the added burden of a lack of funds. I believe because of experience “under the hood”–with ASALH TV, Marketing and PR, as well as the APC–that I can “tighten down the bolts” that will ensure that ASALH’s economic and programming engine will run for a long, long time. Nothing could make me prouder than to work with the amazingly talented, gifted and motivated volunteers of ASALH. Thank you for this opportunity explain why I would like to be nominated.

Current Employer: federal government, U.S. copyright office

Professional Background:

Research Associate, U.S. Conference of Mayors.
Adjunct undergraduate Teaching Economics, Political Science, Legal History.
Adjunct Professor of Law.
History of successful fundraising for nonprofits.
History of successfully serving nonprofit tutoring and mentoring organizations.
Currently, seeking certification as Parliamentarian.

Major Accomplishments:

Lifetime ASALH member. Member Bethel Dukes ASALH Branch. Former ECouncil member, with some highlights: attended and participated in all Annual Conferences and ECouncil meetings; served on several committees; donated monthly rentals for ASALH Headquarters; annually, donated Luncheon tickets for local HBCU students and faculty; sponsored donations to five (5) HBCUs for students and faculty to attend Annual Conferences; annually, recruited bulk of paid advertisements for Luncheon’s Program booklet.

Previous Service to ASALH: 

See “Major Accomplishment” above. In addition: joined a Branch and then worked to grow and develop it, which benefitted ASALH because many of the local volunteers in Headquarters throughout the year and during February’s Luncheon activities have Branch members or associated with Branch’s Institutional members.

What I Hope to Accomplish as an Executive Council Member of ASALH: 

All EC Member’s first priority: fundraise, fundraise, fundraise.
All EC Member’s second priority: govern, even when I disagree or dissent.
Third Priority: Join and work for committees. Nomination/Elections; Governance (Constitution/Bylaws); and Fiscal, Financial Management.

Current Employer: University of Alabama Birmimgham

Professional Background:

Chadra’s work is published in Transforming Anthropology, The Feminist Wire, with a notable mention in “A Joyous Revolt: Toni Cade Bambara” by Linda J. Holmes and “The African Burial Ground in New York City: Memory, Spirituality, and Space” by Andrea Frohne. She is featured in Scalawag Magazine, Urban Intellectual, Chicago Tribune, the Baltimore Sun, The Los Angeles Times, the Daily Press, the Virginia Pilot, USA Today, on WHRO/NPR and she has appeared on C-SPAN Books, ABC Nightline, MTV & Al-Jazeera. Chadra has been a guest lecturer at Columbia University, Brandeis University, William and Mary’s Africana House, Hampton University, Association for the Study of African American Life and History, (ASALH), Long Beach City College, and the College of Charleston, the Institute for Human Rights, and the Unity Commission at Hampton’s Diversity College. She was the Public Relations strategist for NASA Pioneer Dr. Katherine G. Johnson and has worked with Ta-Nehisi Coates, Dr. Carol Anderson, Dr. Lee Baker, Dr. Warren Perry, Dr. Michael Blakey, and Dr. Mae Carol Jemison over the course of her career.

As a Remembrance expert, Chadra has orchestrated ceremonies for the 1619 Project book launch for Nikole Hannah-Jones at Fort Monroe, the 400th African Landing Healing Day Commemoration, and for William & Mary’s Law School. She orchestrated the Inaugural Juneteenth Remembrance commemoration, ceremonies for the Association for the Study of the Worldwide African Diaspora, (ASWAD) conference in Charleston, SC, the Jamestown Settlement, and the excavation site of Angela, the first documented enslaved woman recorded in the colony of Virginia in 1619. Chadra orchestrated the Opening Remembrance ceremony for those who perished due to racial violence and COVID for the 43rd Annual Association for African American Museums (AAAM) conference in 2021, the inaugural “Take Back the Night” rally in Newport News, Virginia, spearheaded the United Nations International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, hosted the Trans Day of Remembrance, #BlackLivesMatter Community Conversations and Day of Unity, to honor women and children who have been killed due to patriarchal, racial and gendered violence.
Chadra is a Social Justice Expert with the Unity Commission, served as Keynote Speaker for the Science Educators for Equity, Diversity & Social Justice (SEEDS) Conference, Fort Monroe Camp Fire and Port Hampton Lecture Series, panelist for the WNBA Atlanta Dream & Atlanta Pride Social Justice platform, Weyanoke’s Black History & Native American History Month celebrations, curator for Sankofa’s Remembrance Media Exhibit at the Slover Library, host of ASWAD’s 2019 Film Festival, REEL IT OUT LGBT Film Festival, Panelist for MILK & United in Anger: ACT UP Against AIDS and Project Manager for Film Festivals honoring Audre Lorde and James Baldwin.

Major Accomplishments:

Chadra is a member of The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi, with a 4.0 GPA, is the recipient of ASWAD’s Presidential Award in Accra, Ghana (2023), UAB’s National Alumni Society Dean’s Graduate Award (2023), Intersectional Feminism and Social Justice award from the Organization for the Study of Communication, Language, and Gender (2021), City of Hampton Spotlight Citizen’s Award (2019), Proclamations from the City of Hampton, for her work with Remembrance (2019, 2013), Norfolk Botanical Garden’s Groundbreakers Award (2019), Weyanoke Association Service Award (2018), Barrett Peake Foundation Distinguished Award for Service (2017), Promoter of Excellence for Hampton City Schools, (2015 & 2014). Chadra served on the Board of Directors for the Norfolk Botanical Garden (NBG), President’s Council for Inclusion and Diversity for the NBG, the Southeast CARE Coalition for Environmental Justice, and was most recently, appointed as Student Representative for the General Anthropology Division for the American Anthropological Association.
She was the Public Relations strategist for NASA Pioneer Dr. Katherine G. Johnson and has worked with Ta-Nehisi Coates, Dr. Carol Anderson, Dr. Lee Baker, Dr. Warren Perry, Dr. Michael Blakey, and Dr. Mae Carol Jemison over the course of her career.
Native of the Bronx, New York, Chadra Pittman is a Former Public Educator & Media Coordinator for the world-renowned 17th century New York African Burial Ground, creator of Sankofa’s International Day of Remembrance, the only Middle Passage ceremony in Coastal Virginia, now in its 13th year and co-creator of a Global Remembrance ceremony template to be utilized in 175 countries worldwide.

Chadra is a Feminist Anthropologist, the Founder and Executive Director of The Sankofa Projects, an educational, cultural, social justice organization, which is centered on the African Diaspora, and 4 E.V.E.R. (End Violence End Rape), an educational, activist organization that seeks to end global sexual violence, eradicate rape culture and advocates for deaf and LGBTQIA+ inclusion into these typically hearing and heteronormative spaces.

Previous Service to ASALH: 

Guest Lectured for Hampton Roads, Virginia Branch of ASALH.

What I Hope to Accomplish as an Executive Council Member of ASALH: 

I would like to assist in broadening the reach of ASALH worldwide and create opportunities for ASALH’s growth as an organization.