Soror Tonea Stewart at UDC

[Intense1920]

For Immediate Release
February 11, 2004
Ser 004-03

University of the District of Columbia Student Government Hosts First Winterfest/UDC Pride Week

Contact: Mike Andrews
(202) 274-5685

Washington, D.C.— The Undergraduate Student Government Association of the University of the District of Columbia is inviting the citizens of the District of Columbia to turn out for the first Winterfest and UDC Pride Week celebration during various events next week on the University’s Van Ness campus. These events, scheduled for February 17-20, are in conjunction with the University’s commemoration of Black History Month.

Guests to these festivities will be able to enjoy a free stage show starring movie and television performer Tonea Stewart on Tuesday, February 17, 2004 in the University’s auditorium at 5:30 p.m. Ms. Stewart’s credits include the 1997 motion picture “A Time to Kill” plus numerous other films and television programs. In addition to her considerable resume as a performer, Ms. Stewart is also “Doctor” Stewart, as she is the first African American female to receive a doctorate from the FSU School of Theatre and the first McKnight Doctoral Fellow in Theatre Arts. Dr. Stewart is a tenured Professor and Director of Theatre Arts at Alabama State University.

Undergraduate Student Government President Keith Oliver, one of the key organizers of these events, said that Winterfest and UDC Pride Week “are like a dream come true. In my time here, the University has gone through a lot of changes, and I see this as a way to build greater involvement and stronger morale.”

Plays and movies will be presented at various times throughout the Winterfest and UDC Pride Week, with all performances free and open to the public. Seminars such as “Blacks in the Media,” “Careers for Women of Color in the 21st Century,” and “The Historically Black College and University in Education and Law” will also be offered. UDC Board Chairman Charles Ogletree, author of All Deliberate Speed: Reflections on the first Half-Century of Brown v. Board of Education, will discuss his work, which will be followed by a panel discussion on “Brown vs. the Board of Education – Fifty Years Later.” A complete listing of all Winterfest and UDC Pride Week activities can be found at www.udc.edu.

The crowning event of these festivities will be Friday, February 20th, which has been proclaimed “UDC Pride Day.” Every member of the University of the District of Columbia family is being called upon to wear the crimson, gold and white school colors of the school. Members of campus Greek organizations will also be expected to wear their fraternity or sorority colors. A 2:00 p.m. pep rally in the University’s gymnasium will set the tone for that evenings men’s basketball game, which will pit the University of the District of Columbia’s Firebirds against Bowie State University at 7:00 p.m. Half-time festivities will include a three-point “shootout,” and the game will be followed by a free concert in the University’s auditorium.

All events associated with Winterfest and UDC Pride Week are free and open to the public, with the exception of Friday night’s UDC-Bowie State basketball game.

http://www.universityofdc.org/detail.php?sid=1&aid=293