Education is ‘new civil-rights agenda,‘ mayor tells VUU grads

A renewal of the sense of urgency from the civil-rights movement is needed to close the nation's educational achievement gap, Virginia Union University graduates were told yesterday.

"To be sure, education is the new civil-rights agenda," Richmond Mayor Dwight C. Jones told graduates of his alma mater.

Fifty-five years after the U.S. Supreme Court decision outlawing school segregation, much work still needs to be done to change the paradigm of educational opportunities, he said.

Black and poor students score lower than white and rich students, and that results in "lower earnings, poorer health and higher rates of incarceration," he said.

"Prosperity cannot be achieved as long as human potential is underdeveloped," he said.

Jones, who earned his bachelor's and master's degrees from Virginia Union, said he came to the university "crippled by the inadequate inner-city education" he had received in the Northeast.

But Virginia Union transformed him "like clay in the hand of the potter."

The university and previous generations have opened doors for many, he said, urging the Class of 2009 to "go through the door and make a difference in the place where you live."

"Somebody believed in you, and now you have a chance to pay a dividend on their investment."

At the commencement ceremony, held at the Greater Richmond Convention Center, Virginia Union awarded about 275 diplomas, including 120 to graduate students in the Samuel DeWitt Proctor School of Theology.

The graduates hailed from as close as Glen Allen and Petersburg and from as far away as Ghana and Kenya. The undergraduate valedictorian, Carolina Bautista Hyatt, who is expecting her third child soon, is from Palm Springs, Calif. Audrey Elizabeth Underwood, the School of Theology's valedictorian, lives on a farm in McKenney.

Jones acknowledged the "times of great challenge and change" these graduates face but also their opportunity to "stand up and be strong."

It was a message that resonated with Michael Moore of Pittsburgh, who earned his bachelor's in religious studies.

"I think it's a great time to graduate" despite the bleak economy, he said after the ceremony.

Moore, who plans to remain at VUU to obtain a master of divinity degree, said many graduates have already overcome great obstacles to get their degrees and are prepared for whatever challenges lie ahead.

"By graduating today," he said, "that just shows me there's hope."

Other universities also held commencements yesterday, including Longwood, Mary Washington and James Madison, as well as the University of Richmond School of Continuing Studies and School of Law.

UR's main commencement ceremony will be held today. Virginia Commonwealth University and Virginia State University will hold their graduations next Saturday.

Contact Karin Kapsidelis at (804) 649-6119 or .