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UMKC's Restructures Black Studies Program

Dr. Clovis Semmes is a visiting faculty member in UMKC's Black Studies department.
www.umkc.edu
Dr. Clovis Semmes is a visiting faculty member in UMKC's Black Studies department.

http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/kcur/local-kcur-802239.mp3

Kansas City, MO – In 2006, UMKC's Black Studies program was de-stabilized after several faculty members left. Charges of institutional racism were leveled against the university. At the time, KCUR's Laura Ziegler spoke to the Black Studies director Don Matthews, who described what he saw as the problem.

Following Dr. Matthews' departure, the University formed a commission, which recently completed a report assessing the situation. Dr. Clovis Semmes is a visiting professor at UMKC's Black Studies program. He stopped by recently, and spoke to KC Currents' Susan B. Wilson about the findings of the report, as well as the relevance and future of the program.

This story was produced for KC Currents. To listen on your own schedule, subscribe to the KC Currents Podcast.

A native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Susan admits that her “first love” was radio, being an avid listener since childhood. However, she spent much of her career in mental health, healthcare administration, and sports psychology (Susan holds a PhD in clinical psychology from the University of Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania and an MBA from the Bloch School of Business at UMKC.) In the meantime, Wilson satisfied her journalistic cravings by doing public speaking, providing “expert” interviews for local television, and being a guest commentator/contributor to KPRS’s morning drive time show and the teen talk show “Generation Rap.”
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