KaJéza Hawkins keynote speaker at Wilberforce's Founder's Day Convocation
DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) — Wilberforce University's Founder's Day Convocation was Thursday and the event saw a familiar face as its keynote speaker.
2 NEWS' reporter and weekend anchor KaJéza Hawkins was among several alumni and student leaders who took the stage to give advice and help the university celebrate a new year.
Hawkins served as the keynote speaker for Wilberforce's annual Founder's Day Convocation. The university celebrated year 169, opening its doors back in 1856.
Local Black artist keeping Dayton's art scene alive
'What you're learning here at Wilberforce extends far beyond the textbooks, the SSB portal, and the student organizations you are in right now. It's about building meaningful, lasting connections, refining your soft skills, and believing in your potential,' Hawkins said to the crowd of students.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
43 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Dayton realtors support former foster youth with collection drive
Previous coverage on local services for homeless youth. DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) – Aging out of foster care can be a remarkably difficult and stressful situation to navigate. Dayton Realtors is doing something to help these young adults here in the Miami Valley. According to the National Foster Youth Institute, approximately 20,000 people between the ages of 18 and 21 age out of the foster care system annually. On Wednesday, June 11, Dayton Realtors held a 'Furnishing Futures' donation drive focusing on aiding young men who have aged out of foster care. Toiletries, new tools, cleaning supplies, household goods and more were collected to benefit Disciples of Destiny, which provides housing and support for men aged 18 through 26 who have been emancipated from foster care and are facing homelessness. Dayton Realtors said it hopes to make a difference in the lives of these young men. Save a life by donating blood this June These guys are often left with no support system once they age out; many face homelessness and food insecurity. Navigating young adulthood without any external support. 2 NEWS spoke with Nieberding about this critical work at the collection drive. He cited a desire to do more in retirement and his strong religious beliefs to help his community. He said the data on those aging out of foster care shocked him. 'I saw the statistic where '40% of youth who come out of foster care at age 18, are automatically homeless' and often are lured into the sex trades in order to get food and lodging — what we take for granted,' said Nieberding. 'Then, within a short two years, 60% of them end up in state prisons. I said, This is a tremendous amount of loss, and potential.' (The specific study he saw is unclear; however, he is likely referencing the 1995 National Alliance to End Homelessness survey. Now, in 2025, according to the Annie E. Casey Foundation, that number is approximately 25 percent. Which shows the critical work that has been done and continues to need to be done to lower it further.) Summer Arts Festival offers free events in June, July He shared they're collecting 'just about anything you would need for your life' for these young men. Things the average person might not even realize they use daily, like cooking and cleaning utensils. 'Also, gift cards or various things for the guys to buy stuff,' said Nieberding. 'We can use them as rewards for when guys do good behavior or turn in all their paperwork for their self-discovery work on helping them to get their lives back.' 'It's been huge for me:' Local man earns prestigious honor for art He spoke on the success of the program. On how overwhelmingly joyful it is to see a young life changed for the better because someone took the time to care. 'Disciples of Destiny is here to help. To anybody who needs that age, 18 to 26, we primarily care for guys, but we also care for women. We can help them, not with the living situation, but we can do a referral. We also often them [young women] groups to be a part of it,' said Nieberding. For state-wide resources for former foster youths, click here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
Families of those killed in collapse of Georgia ferry dock sue companies that built it
ATLANTA (AP) — Relatives of seven people who drowned in waters off a Georgia island after a ferry dock walkway collapsed announced Wednesday they filed a lawsuit against the companies that designed and built it. Dozens of people were standing on the metal walkway over the water between a ferry boat and a dock on Sapelo Island when it snapped in the middle. Many plunged into the water and got swept away by tidal currents, while others clung desperately to the hanging, fractured structure. The tragedy Oct. 19 struck as about 700 people visited Sapelo Island for a celebration of the tiny Hogg Hummock community founded by enslaved people who were emancipated after the Civil War. Reachable only by boat, it's one of the few Gullah-Geechee communities remaining in the South, where slaves worked on isolated island plantations retained much of their African heritage. 'It was supposed to be a celebration of Black pride, but it became a day of great, great, great Black loss of humanity and life,' civil rights attorney Ben Crump, one of several lawyers behind the lawsuit, told an Atlanta news conference. 'We're filing this lawsuit to speak to that tragedy.' Attorneys for the families of those killed and more than three dozen survivors say the 80-foot (24-meter) walkway was weak because of a lack of structural reinforcement, poor welding and failure by the Georgia firm that built it to follow design plans. The walkway was 'so poorly designed and constructed that any competent construction professional should have recognized the flimsy and unstable nature of the gangway,' the lawsuit says. Regina Brinson, one of the suing survivors, said she was on the crowded walkway when she heard a loud crack and saw family friend Carlotta McIntosh plunge into the water holding her walker. Brinson and her uncle, Isaiah Thomas, also fell. Brinson recalled prying her uncle's fingers from her shirt to avoid being dragged underwater. Both Thomas and McIntosh died. 'The pain doesn't get any easier whatsoever,' Brinson told the Atlanta news conference. Kimberly Wood said she tumbled from the collapsed walkway clutching her 2-year-old daughter. Her older girl, 8, clung to the dangling walkway's railing. Wood said she managed to tread water until she reached a life preserver tossed from the ferry boat. Her older daughter was rescued and treated for wounds to her hand, said Wood, who had an injured shoulder. 'I'm shaking now just taking about it,' said Wood, another plaintiff. The lawsuit targets four private contractors hired to design and rebuild the ferry dock and walkway for the Georgia Department of Natural Resources. The project was finished in 2021. The walkway was fabricated by McIntosh County business Crescent Equipment Co. Its attorney, Clinton Fletcher, declined to comment. The project's general contractor, Virginia-based Centennial Contractors Enterprises, said by email that it doesn't comment on pending litigation. So did SSOE Group, which purchased an Atlanta design firm named as a defendant several years ago. An engineering firm also named as a defendant did not immediately return a phone message Wednesday. The lawsuit doesn't target the Department of Natural Resources or any other Georgia state agency. It says the department relied on its private contractors to ensure the walkway was safely built, which was "beyond the scope of the DNR's internal expertise and qualifications.' The agency told The Associated Press last year that the walkway should have been able to support the weight of 320 people. About 40 people were standing on it when it snapped. 'There was supposed to be a certified professional engineer that signed off on that part of the project and that was neglected," said Chadrick Mance, a Savannah attorney representing nine of the injured. Filed in Gwinnett County State Court in metro Atlanta, the lawsuit seeks unspecified damages for negligence, wrongful deaths and personal injuries. The cause of the collapse remains under investigation by the state officials, said Haley Chafin, a spokesperson for the Department of Natural Resources. State Attorney General Chris Carr also tapped a private engineering firm to perform an independent investigation. ___ Bynum reported from Savannah, Georgia. ___ Kramon is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues. Follow Kramon on X: @charlottekramon.
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
Black-necked stilts sighting with chicks at Pea Island Refuge
PEA ISLAND, N.C. (WNCT) — A pair of Black-necked Stilts with just-fledged chicks were seen feeding at Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge. According to a press release from National Wildlife Refuges in Eastern North Carolina, 'Two of the photos below show a parent with 1-2 chicks in the marsh grass. The 3rd photo shows a solo chick foraging.' The wildlife refuge encourage guests to 'bring your binoculars or spotting scope when you come to the refuge ready to birdwatch.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
