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This version of NSU News has been archived as of February 28, 2019. To search through archived articles, visit nova.edu/search. To access the new version of NSU News, visit news.nova.edu.
This version of SharkBytes has been archived as of February 28, 2019. To search through archived articles, visit nova.edu/search. To access the new version of SharkBytes, visit sharkbytes.nova.edu.
Author, Musician James McBride to Give Keynote at Convocation Ceremony, Aug. 22
Author and musician James McBride will serve as keynote speaker at this year’s Convocation ceremony, celebrating the start of the academic year.
To celebrate the new academic year, the Farquhar College of Arts and Sciences will host the 2014 Undergraduate Convocation ceremony at NSU, featuring a keynote talk by bestselling author and musician James McBride.
Part of NSU’s Orientation for incoming students, Convocation will also include a welcome by NSU President George Hanbury II, Ph.D., and an introduction to the 2014–2015 academic theme, “Identity,” which will influence undergraduate course topics, presentations, and events throughout the year.
Undergraduate Convocation
Friday, Aug. 22
10:00–11:00 a.m.
Arena at the Don Taft University Center
McBride is the author of several bestselling and award-winning books, including The Color of Water: A Black Man’s Tribute to His White Mother, Song Yet Sung, The Good Lord Bird, and Miracle at St. Anna, which became a film directed by Spike Lee. McBride also co-wrote the film Red Hook Summer with Lee, probing issues of race, neighborhood gentrification, and the effects of drugs and gang violence on the African-American community.
A graduate of Oberlin College and the Columbia School of Journalism, McBride has written for The Boston Globe, People magazine, and The Washington Post. Also an award-winning composer and saxophonist, McBride has written music and lyrics for Anita Baker, Grover Washington, Jr., Gary Burton, and the PBS character “Barney.” Through his public speaking engagements, McBride explores issues of identity, race, and heritage.
First-Year Reading Program
Hosted by the Farquhar College of Arts and Sciences, the First-Year Reading Program is an opportunity for new NSU undergraduate students to read the Convocation speaker’s selected book and meet in small, faculty-led discussion groups to explore the text’s message and themes. This year’s participants will receive a copy of McBride’s The Color of Water and may also have a chance to speak with the author.
The Color of Water retraces the footsteps of Ruth McBride Jordan, the author’s mother, and recreates Ruth’s story through her searing and spirited voice. Interspersed throughout Ruth’s story, James shares candid recollections of his own experiences as a mixed-race child of poverty, his experiences with drugs and violence, and his eventual self-realization and professional success.
Convocation is open to new NSU undergraduate students and their families. For more information, contact the Farquhar College of Arts and Sciences Office of the Dean at (954) 262-8236