Desi LaPoole
Editor in Chief
Thanks to the efforts of several students, The College of Wooster’s NAACP chapter has been re-established after years of absence from campus. With the re-establishment process finalized, the student organizers recently announced the College’s NAACP unit is now active and the organization will begin hosting regularly scheduled general assembly meetings starting at the end of February.
The NAACP, or National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, is a civil rights organization established in the early 20th century as a multi-racial effort to secure political, educational, social and economic rights for African Americans. Today, its mission extends to all people of color with the goal of ending racebased discrimination and ensuring the well-being of everyone.
The College’s NAACP chapter was first established in 1964, serving as a safe space and an advocacy group for Wooster’s students of color. However, it gradually became inactive over time. It wasn’t until the end of the 2018-19 fall semester that the re-establishment process began.
“The idea was brought up during the end of the 2018-19 school year, and a group of us took it upon ourselves to do the leg work and get it done,” said Austrella Balley ’21, president-elect of the NAACP’s college chapter. The team focused on bringing back the NAACP chapter was comprised of Black Student Association (BSA) board members and other figures of the College’s black community.
Courtney Lockhart ’20, president of BSA and outoing president of the College’s NAACP chapter, spoke with Hugh Howard, director of Communication for the College, about the importance of the NAACP for Wooster’s community. “It’s similar to other multi-cultural groups on campus, as it is an avenue to cultivate leadership, but the major difference is that it’s supported by an entire national organization. This is important because it gives access to other leaders nationwide from various ages and is a pipeline for the creation of other civil rights movements,” Lockhart said.
Lockhart was a key player in the NAACP’s college chapter’s re-establishment process. Treasurer Seven Townsel ’22 explained, “Courtney Lockhart really laid the foundations for the organization, and the rest of the team worked together to fill in the holes. By holes, I specifically mean creating the goals of the organization, recruiting enough members to enable the re-establishment and contributing to the chartering process.”
The Wooster/Orrville chapter of the NAACP was also instrumental in the re-establishment process of the NAACP college chapter of Wooster. President of the Wooster/Orrville Chapter John Clay explained, “I kind of served as the liaison between the College, state and national officials, and the students working on the College unit. Through this process, I learned that typically the adult chapter will pay for the membership of the students’ chapter, so we put forward $600 to pay for 60 student memberships, and $300 in the College chapter’s treasury to help them get started.”
By helping monetarily, the College chapter was able to open the doors of membership to the student body. According to Howard, those 60 free memberships have already been claimed by students, showcasing the student body’s desire to be part of the organization.
With such a great turnout even before their first meeting, Balley expressed her goals for the organization while she serves as president. “As president, I hope to make this organization a staple in the community with the help of my wonderful board. I hope to bring light to issues that seem to be glossed over. I hope to unite the College community and the general community of Wooster together through service projects and events. We have big things planned and I cannot wait to share them with the greater community,” she mentioned.
Lockhart expressed a similar desire to use the NAACP to take action on issues students of color face. “It’s my hope that this organization will assist in breaking down the barriers that impede the success of students of color across the nation. With this re-establishment, we have etched out footprints in the sands of time. We are using our voice to speak on behalf of the underserved and teach those that succeed us how to lead.”
The NAACP College Chapter of Wooster will host a “Meet the NAACP” event on Feb. 11 at 8:00 p.m. in the Pit. If you are interested in joining the organization, email Austrella Balley ’21 at ABalley21@ wooster.edu or Courtney Lockhart ’20 at CLockhart20@wooster.edu.