Fisk makes education family affair
By Marci Creps
Diversity Institute Fellow
03.12.04
When Eric Wordlow was a high school senior, he explored his options for college and found something different at Fisk University.
"When I got here, it seemed like the family-oriented environment that I received was very different from any of the other colleges I visited," said Wordlow, a junior psychology major from Little Rock, Ark. "It was just really overwhelming how welcoming everyone was."
Wordlow reached that conclusion after attending a Fisk pilot program called the Talented Tenth Enrichment Day, which began as a way to encourage more men to attend college. On Friday, he helped plan the same program for 11 prospective freshmen.
Nationally, statistics show that fewer men are attending college than women. At Fisk, men account for 30 percent of the 825 students enrolled this year.
"We took note of the national statistics and certainly statistics from our own student body that say there are more women in higher education than men," explained Keith Chandler, counselor in the office of admissions at Fisk.
The program's name is derived from Fisk graduate W.E.B. DuBois' reference to those African-Americans who have the potential for academic achievement and community leadership.
The program is part inspiration and part open house, according to Chandler. Prospective students tour the campus and attend various sessions designed to give an accurate portrait of collegiate life. Current Fisk students speak and moderate different sessions of the program.
Fisk junior Kerry Richardson, who attended the program while in high school, said he hopes that the young men attending Friday's sessions will want to maintain this program for future generations.
"I would like to see the program grow," said Richardson, an English major, who hopes to attend graduate school at Emory University.
Dennis Deveaux, a senior finance major from Nassau, Bahamas, hopes to pass Fisk's legacy on to prospective students.
"Fisk has a very, very rich tradition of producing leaders," said Deveaux, who has applied to several graduate schools and hopes to return to the Bahamas once he finishes his education. "I actually have an interest in being a politician."
The idea of quality education, tradition and family was emphasized during a panel discussion which featured three Fisk students. They answered questions from prospective students, ranging from the overwhelming presence of women to the pros and cons of Nashville.
"Here you represent yourself," Chandler Arrighi, a freshman biology major, stressed.
Fitzgerald Heslop, a junior political science major, said the importance of presenting a positive image begins the day students set foot on campus. That, he said, is especially important if a man wants to marry and have a woman take his last name.
"Have a last name that can stand strong," urged Heslop.