The University of Alabama Black Faculty and Staff Association elected five new officers for the 2018-2020 term, which starts in August.
The newly elected officers are Dr. André R. Denham, president; Dr. Latrise Johnson, vice president; Cynthia Moore, treasurer; Raven McKenzie, secretary; and Daiquiri Steele, parliamentarian.
Denham said the previous administration, led by outgoing president Dr. Pamela Payne-Foster, did a wonderful job in the areas BFSA chose to focus on, and the new administration will strive to continue to carry that torch.
“Our goal is to continue to fulfill the mission of the organization, which is to advocate and support black faculty, staff and students,” he said. “We’re still going to have all of our student programs and also offer a scholarship that we’ll fund through donations.”
Denham is an associate professor of instructional technology in the college of education. He previously served as vice president of BFSA, the BFSA liaison to the Black Student Leadership Council and represented the organization as a member of the Strategic Planning subcommittee for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.
Johnson is an associate professor of English language arts and literacy in the college of education. She also serves as a professor in residence at Tuscaloosa’s Central High School where she teaches classes, sponsors several student groups and works closely with faculty and staff.
Moore is assistant director of the Rural Scholars Program in the department of family, internal and rural medicine where she is responsible for coordinating and implementing activities for the program and the Rural Minority Health Scholars Program. She also serves as an adviser and mentor to students in the programs and is the adviser to UA’s Afro-American Gospel Choir.
McKenzie is an education abroad adviser at UA who formerly worked as an assistant English teacher in Japan and worked at Auburn Global. Her goal as the new BFSA secretary is to increase member engagement, mentoring and supporting black students, as well as increasing retention for black faculty, staff and students.
Steele is an assistant professor of law in residence at the UA School of Law and is also the director of diversity and inclusion at the law school. She formerly served as a civil rights attorney with the U.S. Department of Education where she provided legal counsel related to federal investigations of discrimination involving school districts, colleges, universities and state educational agencies.
