The Department of African American Studies (AFRO) hosted its annual Awards Ceremony on May 2nd, 2025, to recognize the accomplishments of faculty and 1 graduate student from the 2024-2025 academic year. Each year, the ceremony aims to fulfill AFRO's mission statement, "celebrating academic excellence, and social responsibility!"
It was an afternoon meant for campus faculty, staff, and students to take part in congratulating their peers for the commendable work that they bring to the University of Illinois. The main emcee was Professor John Meyers, with support from Professor Merle Bowen and Eddie O'Byrn as presenters of specific awards, with the department head and professor, Candice Jenkins delivering the opening remarks. 6 certificates were awarded for the following: outstanding service, community engagement, and outreach; outstanding research contribution; excellence in teaching; and the Professor Dianne Pinderhughes graduate research award.
Within the ceremony we were also able to appreciate and recognize 2 legacy tenured faculty, Professor Merle Bowen and Professor Ronald Bailey that are retiring (Late May and June 2025) from the university, but will each hold Emeriti status with the university.
Dr. Bowen has had a robust career working for the U of I for 30+ years, where she has served the institution as a faculty member and interim department head in African American Studies, as well as director for the Center for African Studies.
Dr. Bailey has had a commendable career with numerous academic institutions across the country and retired from Northeastern University in the early 2010s, before coming out of retirement to help galvanize and revamp the University of Illinois' Department of African American Studies program, where he served as department head for almost a decade!
Each will be greatly missed.
