The Alfred Street Baptist Church Foundation with Facebook Partners for the 18th Annual HBCU Festival on Saturday, January 25 at the National Harbor!

Hello World,

I love sharing positive news so here’s something positive for parents and soon-to-be high school graduates!

Facebook and The Alfred Street Baptist Church (ASBC) and its Foundation are partners for the third consecutive year; supporting the 18th Annual Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) College Festival (Festival). The 2020 Festival will take place on Saturday, January 25, 2020, at the National Harbor in Oxon Hill, Maryland. Once again, this event will enable African- American youth to connect with over 70 representatives of the nation’s historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs), while providing information on college admission, financial aid, academic disciplines and other areas of college life. Most schools in attendance will offer instant admission, conduct on-site interviews and may even waive application fees.  New this year, there will be a $5.00 per person fee to attend. However, everyone must register online at alfredstreet.org to enter the event.

Alfred Street Baptist Church and its Foundation are committed to higher education for African American youths and, since 2003, have connected more than 40,000 students – many of whom are first generation college students – and their parents to academic institutions through the Festival. Since inception of the Festival, participating HBCUs have awarded more than $30 million collectively to Festival attendees in the form of academic scholarships and/or waived fees.  During the 2019 Festival, over 10,000 were in attendance; [e1] more than [CW2] $11.6 million in scholarships were awarded; and 1,886 offers of admission were made to high school seniors.

“We are more than pleased that for the third year in a row that Facebook, which has a commitment to education and diversity, has partnered with us to support this worthwhile event,” said Rev. Dr. Howard-John WesleyAlfred Street’s senior pastor.

“We are grateful that Facebook has signed on as our title partner for the third year in a row, as we host the HBCU College Festival,” said Pat Wallace, Alfred Street Baptist Church Foundation President. “Facebook as a partner allows us to expand our reach to impact the lives of our future African American leaders.”

“We are thrilled to partner with the ASBC Foundation again to invest in the education of African American students,” said Erica Woods, Community Engagement Lead, and Facebook DC. “Facebook has always invested in the physical infrastructure across the country, but we are also investing in the social infrastructure of our communities. We are proud to have facilities in so many states that are home to HBCUs, and hope that students look for opportunities with Facebook when the time comes to pursue their career paths.”

In addition to Facebook being the title sponsor, Alfred Street Baptist Church and its Foundation are delighted to announce that McDonald’s has joined as a first time partner as well as the U.S. Intelligence Community. ASBC and its Foundation are enthusiastic that the following companies and organizations as sponsors: Google/WAYMO, Ernst and Young, Amazon Web Services (AWS), Our Daily Bread, Deloitte, Converse, Footwear Distributers and Retailers of America (FDRA), Thompson Hospitality, Christopher Consultants, PNC Bank, Burke and Herbert Bank, PepsiCo, all for this rewarding and worthwhile event.

The Alfred Street Baptist Church and its Foundation are also thankful for Radio/Urban One; who continues to serve as our media sponsors.  Google/WAYMO, will be providing information about their CSSI-HBCU initiative at the Festival. Designed specifically for high school seniors; this program promotes equitable representation in tech by hosting high school seniors at a three-week summer residential program connecting them to incoming HBCU students with like-minded peers, Google engineers, CS professors, HBCU alum in CS, and Black technologists in the local tech ecosystem.

Visit alfredstreet.org for more information.

Any thoughts?

Will Pastor of Dr. King Jr.’s Church, Atlanta’s Ebenezer Baptist Church, Leave Pulpit for Senate Race?

Hello World,

The New Year is a time for new direction and from what I’ve heard, the Rev. Dr. Raphael Warnock, pastor of Atlanta’s Ebenezer Baptist Church, where the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was once the pastor, may be heading in a new direction.

According to the AJC, “the Atlanta pastor is expected to soon announce a challenge to Republican U.S. Sen. Kelly Loeffler, and his stemwinder of a sermon at this week’s Martin Luther King Jr. ceremony may as well have been a preview of his campaign message.

What the Democrat hasn’t said yet is whether he plans to remain on the pulpit of the historic church that serves as King’s spiritual home. But if the last time he pondered a Senate run is any guide, he’s likely to serve double-duty as both a candidate and a clergyman. “

While Pastor Warnock could theoretically do both, here’s the issue, according to the AJC:

“But Warnock would have to steer clear of overtly politicking on the pulpit and using church resources for his campaign. The church could not endorse Warnock or collect cash for him. Any political activity such as forums or get-out-the-vote efforts must be done in a nonpartisan way.

Violating those rules would risk penalties from the Internal Revenue Service, which classifies churches as tax-exempt 501(c)(3) organizations that don’t pay federal income tax but also can’t actively engage in political campaigns. “

Read the rest of the article HERE.

As we just celebrated the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King’s holiday on Monday, Pastor Warnock’s potential announcement and all that it entails is definitely news.

What do you think he should do if he runs?

Any thoughts?

 

 

‘The Clark Sisters: First Ladies of Gospel’ Executive Producers & Cast Attend Television Critics Association Panel (PHOTOS)

Estranged Sister Denise Clark-Bradford did have input in the movie...

 

Kierra Sheard, Shelea Fraizer, Angela Birchett, Queen Latifah, Raven Goodwin and Christina Bell attend TCA in
Pasadena, CA on behalf of Lifetime’s “The Clark Sisters: The First Ladies of Gospel.” All photos are from Getty Images for Lifetime.

Hello World,

I’m sooo looking forward to seeing The Clark Sisters: First Ladies of Gospel when it airs on Saturday, April 11th at 8 p.m. Eastern and Pacific, only on Lifetime!

Below is the movie synopsis:

From executive producers and Grammy Award winners Queen Latifah, Mary J. Blige and Missy Elliott, comes the authorized musical tale of the incomparable gospel singers, The Clark Sisters. The Clark Sisters: First Ladies of Gospel recounts the story of the highest selling female gospel group in history and of their trailblazing mother, Mattie Moss Clark (Aunjanue Ellis). Credited with bringing Gospel music to the mainstream, the five Clark sisters (Christina Bell as “Twinkie,” Kierra Sheard as “Karen,” Sheléa Frazier as “Dorinda,” Raven Goodwin as “Denise,” Angela Birchett as “Jacky”) overcame humble beginnings in Detroit, enduring abuse, loss, rejection, betrayal, and sibling rivalries to achieve international fame as icons of the Gospel music industry.

Recently, executive producers and the cast from the movie appeared at the TCA panel held in Pasadena, California. Below are a few photos from the panel.

The cast and executive producers on stage…

The cast performs. Look at Queen Latifah getting hype in the background…

Angela Birchett who portrays Jacky…

Christina Bell who portrays Twinky…

Kierra Sheard who portrays her actual mother Karen. Isn’t that wild?

Raven Goodwin who portrays Denise…

Sheléa Frazier who portrays Dorinda…

Queen Latifah, one of the executive producers, just “queening.” I love her…

According to Deadline.com, there was some tea spilled at the TCA panel, “… one question was gotten out of the way early:  Was estranged sister Denise Clark-Bradford consulted in the making of the movie? ‘Yes, she was absolutely given the opportunity to participate in her story,’ said Executive Producer Holly Carter, who was joined on the panel by Executive Producer Queen Latifah (Mary J. Blige and Missy Elliott are also EP’s) and cast members Christina Bell, Kierra Sheard, Sheléa Frazier, Raven Goodwin and Angela Birchett.” Read the rest of the article HERE.

If you haven’t seen the trailer for The Clark Sisters: First Ladies of Gospel, check it out below…

Will you be watching The Clark Sisters: First Ladies of Gospel come April?

#TheClarkSisters
@LifetimeTV

Any thoughts?