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Audio of the article was made possible by the CAST11 Prescott Podcast Network. Production of Talking Glass Media.
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of Yavapai College A volleyball coach and police chief will advance at the MLK Celebration for Student-Athletes and the African American Leadership Association will launch this year.
Martin Luther King Jr. Day was a big deal in Houma, Louisiana, where Chelsea Lucas grew up. “It was a big celebration, with choirs, sermons, food, children’s games. It was a full day of festivities,” she recalls.
At Yavapai College, where Chelsey is in his first year as Roughrider volleyball coach, there wasn’t much carnage planned. So, in partnership with YC Police Chief Tyran Payne and her YC athletics department, she hosted her MLK Day on campus.
Yavapai University police chief Tyran Payne and volleyball coach Chelsea Lucas teamed up to bring a Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration to YC for students of color helping organize and lead the new African American Leadership Association.
Chelsey and Ty brought YC student-athletes together to watch a video produced by Education and E-Learning Manager Thatcher Borhman. The video includes Dr. King’s historic “I Have A Dream” speech, clips of King leading a civil rights march, and photos of YC students. -athlete. Photographs of athletes reflected the diversity of the audience and the crowds of marchers at the dream speech.
“Honestly, when you look around campus, you can see that our track and field team has evolved like a melting pot of all different cultures and races,” Chelsey said, referring to the message implied in the video. If Dr. King accepts all, the students who changed their race and color in their quest for racial equality and justice can do the same in athletics and in life.
“To win on the field, we have to know and respect each other,” said Ty.
Chelsey and Ty were able to see in the faces of the student-athletes that the video and the march of solidarity that followed was meaningful. “It was very powerful and huge for the students. It was a day of hope, a day of realizing that we can all be one,” Tai said.
As Chesley puts it, “I don’t want anyone feeling uncomfortable in their own skin,” so more “unity” is on the horizon at YC. The university’s latest strategic plan heralds affiliation and equity, and sets out concrete actions to promote both values. One example is the launch this semester of the African American Leadership Association. Led by YC Vice President of Community Relations and Student Development Rodney Jenkins and other YC faculty and staff of color, AALA will empower students of color with opportunities for mentorship and leadership, growth and community service. aims to promote the academic and personal success of AALA Kickoff is a free dance party for all students on March 3rd at the Prescott campus.
“Under the leadership of YC Chairman Dr. Lisa Lyne, we are committed to ensuring that our college experience highlights, supports and celebrates our diversity,” said Jenkins. said. Referring to his MLK celebration organized by Chelsey and Ty, Jenkins said that celebrating diversity included “helping students of all races and ethnicities learn about the tragedies and triumphs of people of color. Including, after all, black history is part of American history and culture.”
Chelsey and Ty believe YC has made great strides in creating an environment where everyone feels welcome and valued. “We have one of the most diverse environments in the entire county. We need to ensure that we provide representation for all our students,” Ty said.
Helping students commemorate black history and succeed in college is part of advancing MLK’s legacy and reminding us all of how to keep Dr. King’s dream alive.
“They remind me that I have to keep moving forward. As an African-American woman, I’ve been discriminated against all the time…but like MLK, I’m fighting with my fists.” I’m moving forward with the understanding that I’m not fighting with violence, not with violence, I’m fighting with words, and understanding that is a big part of my life,” Chelsey said. rice field.
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