To progressively move forward, many believe that you must remember your past. The University of Pittsburgh’s African American Alumni Council thinks no differently and during last month’s Homecoming celebration, the AAAC honored seven distinguished alumni for their trailblazing accomplishments.

Robert Hill, vice chancellor for Public Affairs, relayed a series of historical firsts—door openers—related to the African-American experience at the university. He told of the first African-American admitted to the university in 1829, known then as the Western University of Pennsylvania.

DISTINQUISHED ALUMNI—Back row, from left: Robert Agbede, Bernard Mack, Bill E. Strickland, Gregory Randall Spencer and Mark A. Nordenberg. Front, from left: Rachel Poole, Dr. Linda Warton-Boyd, Norma Bennett Anderson and Nadine Frye.

He wasn’t permitted to sit in the classroom, but had to sit outside the classroom. Hill mentioned the take over of the computer center by members of the Black Action Society in 1969, and what doors that action opened, paving the way for the thousands who have since graduated from the university and the appointment of many Black faculty and development of the Africana Studies Department.

The three-month long battle over the 2009-2010 Pennsylvania budget left some early childhood education centers without funding and has made others afraid of harmful cuts in the future. Days after some pre-kindergarten programs reopened their doors, after having been delayed by the budget, the Heinz Foundation released a state-wide study demonstrating the benefits of these programs for at-risk children.

ENDING THE DEBATE—Theresa Heinz says she hopes this study will convince government of the importance of early childhood education.

As the mythical Sankofa bird of Africa flies forward while looking behind, Pitt’s African-American alumni remembered the past—40 years of the past to be exact—demanding equality and diversity throughout the hallowed halls of the University of Pittsburgh.

Under the theme of “Blue, Gold and Black: The Colors of Celebration” the African-American Alumni Council commemorated African-American pride, progress and partnership with the university during the Oct. 22 through 25 homecoming weekend program.

PITT PANEL—From left: Renee Clark, Sala Udin, Wajihah Abdullah, Marvin Greer and Curtiss Porter formed a panel that spoke on diversity and the history of Blacks at Pitt to a packed house.

The weekend was dedicated to celebrating the progress in diversity initiatives made by the university since the late 1960s. While much time was allotted over the busy weekend for networking and reminiscing about the days of college life, there was also time for lessons in history and for the elders to reach back and aid their younger Pitt cohorts.

Iowa City, Iowa—The latest edition of the ACT Parent Newsletter is now available online. ACT’s annual College Readiness Report shows the level of student college readiness for the most recent graduating high school class.

Read “Learning from the Class of 2009” at www.act.org/path/parent/news.

Measuring college readiness is just one of the ways ACT helps people achieve education and workplace success. In “Four Reasons Your Teen Should Attend College,” you’ll learn the value of a college degree and how it impacts lifetime earnings and employment prospects.