CONGRESSIONAL BLACK CAUCUS FOUNDATION ESSAY CONTEST WINNER SHINES AT NATIONAL BROWN vs. BOARD OF EDUCATION 50th ANNIVESARY CELEBRATION IN TOPEKA, KS

(Topeka, KS) The Kansas sky opened up its arms and welcomed the multitudes that descended upon the small Midwestern town of Topeka on May 17th. It must have known that this day was special. On a hastily-assembled set of bleachers and a platform for dignitaries, hundreds of people waited while the president of the United States and a presidential hopeful both came calling. Brown vs. Board of Education, a case that forever changed the course of education in America, was celebrating its 50th birthday!

In the celebration leading up to Brown’s 50th Anniversary commemoration, the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, Inc., and its partners conducted a National Essay Contest on behalf of the NAACP Brown v. Board of Education 50th Anniversary Commission. It was an extraordinary success! The leadership, students, and faculty advisors at America’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities marked this historic event with their participation in the essay contest. “The intent of this activity was to stimulate the minds of young people who are directly impacted by the decision, and to have them evaluate the state of education in America based on the unfulfilled promise of Brown,” said CBCF President Weldon J. Rougeau.

The CBCF received more than 170 entries from 40 colleges and universities all over America. “We were surprised to learn that even high school students were focused on this issue and six of them, one from Topeka High School, were brave enough to submit very comprehensive documents for consideration. Unfortunately, we were unable to count their entries, but we salute them for their conscientious efforts,” said Janice R. Crump, CBCF’s Director of Media Relations and Communications.

The top winner in the contest was Alexander Hamilton, a student at the Howard University School of Law, who felt his work was a tribute to the tremendous legacy left by the late Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall. As an attorney, Marshall led the team that drove the fight for equal opportunity in education all the way to the steps of the United States Supreme Court.
“The judges felt Mr. Hamilton’s essay was certainly a tribute to this giant among legal minds. In fact, this essay contest was a tribute to the late Justice Marshall and to the other esteemed attorneys who took a whole race upon their shoulders and marched into the Supreme Court to demand “Equal protection of the laws,” said President Rougeau.

CBCF salutes all of the future lawyers, business leaders, and public servants who stepped up to the plate as when we issued our call for essays. They are: Second Place Winner- Tiffany D. Pogue, Fort Valley State University; Third Place winner - Sonya L. Clark, Alabama State University, and ten students who received Honorable Mention. They are: Stephanie NaTasha Allen, Alabama A & M University; Kendrah L. Davis, Howard University School of Law Student; Bobbi Jo Ferguson, Lincoln University; Marcus T. Foxx Howard University School of Law; Christie Noel Hamilton, Alabama A & M University; Luedelia L. Jackson, Stillman College; Christy L. Jones, Southern University Law Center; Jennifer Mayberry, Tennessee State University; Bethel Mulugeta, University of Missouri; and Yanille M. Scott, Benedict College. The winners are listed on the CBCF Web site.

The NAACP’s National Director of Education, Dr. John H. Jackson, embraced this project on behalf of the Commission, and CBCF’s partners: Marilyn Hutton, Esquire of the National Education Association, Barry Hudson of the 100 Black Men of America; and Dr. Frederick Humphries of the National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education also worked to make it a success. State Farm Insurance sponsored the CBCF Brown Web site and Essay Contest, and the team of judges spent countless hours carefully scrutinizing each entry.
While in Topeka, Congressional Black Caucus Chairman Elijah E. Cummings was a featured speaker at the Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site dedication ceremony. The national historic site is located on the grounds of Monroe Elementary School, one of the formerly segregated public schools in Topeka, Kansas. Additionally, Chairman Cummings delivered remarks at an event to unveil the State of Kansas Brown. v. Board of Education Proclamation, presented by Kansas Governor Kathleen Sibelius. U.S. Senator John Kerry (D-Mass.) also participated in the proclamation ceremony.

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The CBCF serves as a nonpartisan, policy-oriented catalyst to educate future leaders and promote collaboration among community and business leaders, minority-focused organizational leaders, and organized labor to effect positive and substantive change in the African American community.