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Lectured at Abilene Christian University’s Colloquium in Race & Media in Abilene, Texas; Will Graduate with a Second Master's Degree in December 2024 as a Historian-Journalist  I am pleased to announce that I was the guest lecturer Sept. 13-15, 2024, at the Abilene Christian University Department of Journalism and Mass Communication’s 23rd Colloquium in Race & Media. During this 3-day higher education conference, I led 33 students through a fast-paced history of Jim Crow segregation, laws, racial violence, and discrimination, as well as an understanding of the significance of the nation’s first African American barber college chain, Tyler Barber College. The colloquium features academics and media professionals of color as guest lecturers. In order to graduate, all ACU journalism and mass communication majors must take this course two times.Invited by Dr. Doug Mendenhall
I drew upon my research about Tyler Barber College Chain, founded in Tyler, Texas, during the Great Depression. The late Texas African American millionaire, barber, businessman, and social justice activist, H.M. Morgan, founded Tyler Barber College, which had locations in Texas, Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi, New York, and Illinois. I used a curated reading list of journalism, scholarly articles, and presented live and recorded interviews of African American subject matter experts from Abilene. They were Floyd Miller, publisher of the West Texas Tribune, his wife, Marilyn, and one of his daughters, Sienna Miller. Two Abilene entrepreneurs appeared via recorded Zoom video: Joyce Ayers, owner of NeeCee's Barber and Cosmetology College, and Gerald Wilkerson, business owner of Wilkerson's Barbershop.Second Master’s Degree 'in the Can'
Additionally, I am announcing my forthcoming M.A. in History degree! The Commencement is scheduled in December 2024. In August 2021, I began graduate history studies at the University of Texas at Arlington and transferred to UNT in August 2022. I pursued this new academic path at the behest of the late Dr. Charlie Marler, who was one of my mentors and my former media law professor at ACU, my first alma mater. I previously earned a Master of Arts in Journalism Administration from the University of Memphis under the leadership of Dr. Dan Lattimore and Dr. David Arant, professors emeriti, who chaired the Department of Journalism.Learn More:
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 Dan Guravich captured photographs of Sen. Robert Kennedy's 1967Mississippi Delta anti-poverty fact-finding tour. Guravich's image is from Delta State University's website, https://bit.ly/3gizVe0. |  Melinda Guravich and her husband David Guravich provided Ellen Meacham with digital versions of photographs taken by Dan Guravich, who was one of the photographers with Sen. Robert Kennedy in the Mississippi Delta in 1967. David Guravich is Dan's son. |
Remembering RFK's trip to the Mississippi Delta (Article and "When D.C. Came to the Delta" Video by Junior Walters)
Copyright © June 11, 2021, Regina L. Burns, Harvest Reapers Communications. All Rights Reserved.
Edward Welch Jr., Ph.D., attended Dr. Martin L. King Jr.'s funeral when he was 17 as a youthful representative of Ann Arbor, Michigan. Even though Welch was president of the NAACP Youth Council in Ann Arbor and was invited to attend Dr. King's funeral by then-Mayor Wendell Hulcher, his name was not included in newspaper coverage of the Michigan delegation's 1968 trip to Atlanta, Georgia. Photo courtesy of Edward Welch Jr., Ph.D.
 Charles Whitman was the NAACP Youth Council’s Education Chair and a classmate of Dr. Welch's at Pioneer High School in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Whitman witnessed Welch's 1968 Atlanta trip and was an activist at Pioneer. A Note from Regina L. Burns In 2018, Edward Welch Jr., Ph.D., (above) first told me that he attended Dr. Martin L. King Jr.’s funeral when he was 17. At the time, we were having a telephone discussion about media coverage of the 50th anniversary of Dr. King’s assassination. I was shocked to learn I knew someone who had actually attended Dr. King’s April 9, 1968 funeral service at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, Georgia. I asked him if I could record an audio interview for my blog. He agreed. Welch, who is an Associate Professor at Grambling State University’s Department of Mass Communication, said he was present at Dr. King’s funeral as a youthful representative of Ann Arbor, Michigan. He said he was invited to attend the funeral because he was president of the NAACP Youth Council. He said then-Mayor Wendell Hulcher came to his house during his senior year at Pioneer High School. Hulcher asked Welch’s parents’ permission for Welch to travel with the mayor by airplane to Atlanta. His parents agreed he could attend the funeral service. Invited and Alone Welch said I was the first journalist to interview him about his historic role. I am thankful I asked him for the interview and that he agreed to share his story. My research revealed Welch’s name was not included in media coverage of the Ann Arbor mayor’s trip to Atlanta, despite his request for Welch to attend. In addition, Welch was not part of the Michigan delegation at thefuneral, he said, even though he was an official representative. He attended the funeral service by himself. Alone. A 17-year-old, who was asked to represent his city’s youth, was all byhimself at Dr. King’s funeral. Think about that. Memphis Roots I first met Welch when I was the news/public director at WGKX KIX-106 in Memphis, Tennessee. He sent his University of Memphis broadcast students to my internship program. That was in the late 1980s. 'Snowmageddon' Delayed Online Audio Documentary Project After I recorded the first interview in 2018, I didn’t have the research and production time available to work on this project until 2021. I began working on it in January 2021 and set a deadline to publish by late March 2021. However, February 2021’s ice storm accurately dubbed “snowmageddon” delivered water damage and other challenges, which delayed the project. Nevertheless, I knew I had to get this story out this year. It blossomed into an online audio documentary from the trove of research documents I found. Please read below my shout-out to the libraries that assisted me. Thank you I am thankful to Welch and his childhood friend, Charles Whitman (above left), who was chair of the education committee of the NAACP Youth Council at Pioneer High School, for making themselves available for interviews. Their friendship started in 1965 and their recall of Welch's 1968 trip to Atlanta is documentary "gold." Credits Thank you also to the amazing research librarians at The University of Michigan’s Bentley Historical Library in Ann Arbor, Michigan, the Willard Library in Battle Creek, Michigan, and the Dallas Public Library in Dallas, Texas. Copyright © May 19, 2021, Regina L. Burns, Harvest Reapers Communications. All Rights Reserved. Click on the player below to hear the online audio documentary. |
TRANSCRIPT
This is Regina L. Burns, reporting for Harvest Reapers Communications.
Imagine it’s April 9, 1968, and you’re in Atlanta, Georgia. You’re attending (video of Dr. King's funeral service) Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s funeral. You went to the funeral at Ebenezer Baptist Church to represent your city’s youth. And by the way, you’re a 17-year-old Black male.
(See video of Mrs. Coretta Scott King as she lies in honor at the Georgia state Capitol).
1--SOUNDBITE Edward Welch Jr., Ph.D., (Me): “I was a senior … Hulcher of Ann Arbor.”
That’s Edward Welch Jr., who holds a doctorate in Mass Communication from Ohio University. He’s an Associate Professor at Grambling State University’s Department of Mass Communication.
Welch stepped into history when he attended Dr. King’s funeral in 1968. This is the first time he has publicly shared his thoughts about this historic event. I interviewed him in 2018 and again in 2021.
2--SOUNDBITE Edward Welch Jr., Ph.D., (There): “I feel extremely fortunate … I was there.”
The Ann Arbor, Michigan City Council sent Mayor Wendell Hulcher and Welch to Atlanta. They were part of a prestigious delegation from Michigan headed by then-Gov. George Romney, according to an April 9, 1968, Associated Press news story in the Enquirer and News newspaper in Battle Creek, Michigan.
3--SOUNDBITE Edward Welch Jr., Ph.D., (Dropped Off): “Now, I know … way it went.”
Like so many cities, Ann Arbor roared with unrest after the April 4 assassination of Dr. King in Memphis, Tennessee. In fact, the AP story reported violence occurred in several Michigan cities in the hours before King’s funeral.
The AP story also reported Hulcher’s attendance at Dr. King’s funeral generated backlash from Albert Wheeler, Dr.PH., who at the time was president of the Michigan branch of the NAACP. Welch explains what Wheeler found troublesome:
4--SOUNDBITE Edward Welch Jr. Ph.D., (Wheeler): “Did not want … him speaking up.”
Hulcher died in 1999.
Charles Whitman was the NAACP Youth Council’s Education Chair at Pioneer High School in Ann Arbor, Michigan. He later worked for Ford Motor Company in Livonia, Michigan for 30 years until his retirement. During a May 2021 interview, Whitman recalled Welch’s 1968 trip to attend Dr. King’s funeral.
5--SOUNDBITE Charles Whitman (Supportive): “We were very … the Youth Council.”
6--SOUNDBITE Charles Whitman (Activist): “What are some things … of an activist nature.”
Whitman said President Lyndon Johnson ordered flags at half-staff. However, not everyone followed his command.
7--SOUNDBITE Charles Whitman (Half-staff): “What I recall is … and what not.”
I received this May 18, 2021-email from the Ann Arbor Public Schools in response to my request for comment, “Unfortunately, we do not have a good way to research this information to confirm it in such a short time period.”
Meanwhile, Welch picked up the story with his memories of an unforgettable funeral at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta.
8--SOUNDBITE Edward Welch Jr., Ph.D., (Wilt Chamberlain): “Do you recall … inside the church.”
(See Alabama Department of Archives & History's photo of Richard Nixon and Wilt Chamberlain in Martin Luther King, Jr.'s funeral procession).
After the funeral on the airplane trip back to Michigan, Welch and Hulcher shared a remarkable discussion.
9--SOUNDBITE Edward Welch Jr., Ph.D., (Politics): “You had mentioned … home from Atlanta.”
Welch graduated from high school in June 1968. He completed college and later earned masters’ degrees from the University of Michigan and Northwestern University. In 1979, he accepted his second general assignment reporter’s job. He moved his family from Buffalo, New York to work for WHBQ-TV in Memphis. Welch said he was later approached by the station’s news management about a promotion to executive producer. In 1982, Welch became the first Black manager in TV news in Memphis, he said. He achieved that milestone when he accepted the executive producer promotion.
I wanted to know if and how attending Dr. King’s funeral prepared him to become a reporter and an executive producer.
10--SOUNDBITE Edward Welch Jr., Ph.D., (Journalist): “I think all this… being a journalist.”
He later transitioned to a new career in academia, which he still finds satisfying. His numerous accomplishments in journalism education include shepherding students’ award-winning entries in the Hearst Journalism Awards Program.
11--SOUNDBITE Edward Welch Jr., Ph.D., (Hearst): “So, what are you … students to compete.”
Starting with the NAACP Youth Council presidency at his high school, Welch has embodied leadership and courage. He attended Dr. King’s funeral alone when he was a teenager.
That accomplishment is too important not to be recorded in the annals of history.
This has been Regina L. Burns reporting for Harvest Reapers Communications, in Dallas.
Copyright © May 19, 2021, Regina L. Burns, Harvest Reapers Communications. All Rights Reserved.
More Stories from Regina
This is Regina L. Burns, reporting for Harvest Reapers Communications.
Imagine it’s April 9, 1968, and you’re in Atlanta, Georgia. You’re attending (video of Dr. King's funeral service) Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s funeral. You went to the funeral at Ebenezer Baptist Church to represent your city’s youth. And by the way, you’re a 17-year-old Black male.
(See video of Mrs. Coretta Scott King as she lies in honor at the Georgia state Capitol).
1--SOUNDBITE Edward Welch Jr., Ph.D., (Me): “I was a senior … Hulcher of Ann Arbor.”
That’s Edward Welch Jr., who holds a doctorate in Mass Communication from Ohio University. He’s an Associate Professor at Grambling State University’s Department of Mass Communication.
Welch stepped into history when he attended Dr. King’s funeral in 1968. This is the first time he has publicly shared his thoughts about this historic event. I interviewed him in 2018 and again in 2021.
2--SOUNDBITE Edward Welch Jr., Ph.D., (There): “I feel extremely fortunate … I was there.”
The Ann Arbor, Michigan City Council sent Mayor Wendell Hulcher and Welch to Atlanta. They were part of a prestigious delegation from Michigan headed by then-Gov. George Romney, according to an April 9, 1968, Associated Press news story in the Enquirer and News newspaper in Battle Creek, Michigan.
3--SOUNDBITE Edward Welch Jr., Ph.D., (Dropped Off): “Now, I know … way it went.”
Like so many cities, Ann Arbor roared with unrest after the April 4 assassination of Dr. King in Memphis, Tennessee. In fact, the AP story reported violence occurred in several Michigan cities in the hours before King’s funeral.
The AP story also reported Hulcher’s attendance at Dr. King’s funeral generated backlash from Albert Wheeler, Dr.PH., who at the time was president of the Michigan branch of the NAACP. Welch explains what Wheeler found troublesome:
4--SOUNDBITE Edward Welch Jr. Ph.D., (Wheeler): “Did not want … him speaking up.”
Hulcher died in 1999.
Charles Whitman was the NAACP Youth Council’s Education Chair at Pioneer High School in Ann Arbor, Michigan. He later worked for Ford Motor Company in Livonia, Michigan for 30 years until his retirement. During a May 2021 interview, Whitman recalled Welch’s 1968 trip to attend Dr. King’s funeral.
5--SOUNDBITE Charles Whitman (Supportive): “We were very … the Youth Council.”
6--SOUNDBITE Charles Whitman (Activist): “What are some things … of an activist nature.”
Whitman said President Lyndon Johnson ordered flags at half-staff. However, not everyone followed his command.
7--SOUNDBITE Charles Whitman (Half-staff): “What I recall is … and what not.”
I received this May 18, 2021-email from the Ann Arbor Public Schools in response to my request for comment, “Unfortunately, we do not have a good way to research this information to confirm it in such a short time period.”
Meanwhile, Welch picked up the story with his memories of an unforgettable funeral at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta.
8--SOUNDBITE Edward Welch Jr., Ph.D., (Wilt Chamberlain): “Do you recall … inside the church.”
(See Alabama Department of Archives & History's photo of Richard Nixon and Wilt Chamberlain in Martin Luther King, Jr.'s funeral procession).
After the funeral on the airplane trip back to Michigan, Welch and Hulcher shared a remarkable discussion.
9--SOUNDBITE Edward Welch Jr., Ph.D., (Politics): “You had mentioned … home from Atlanta.”
Welch graduated from high school in June 1968. He completed college and later earned masters’ degrees from the University of Michigan and Northwestern University. In 1979, he accepted his second general assignment reporter’s job. He moved his family from Buffalo, New York to work for WHBQ-TV in Memphis. Welch said he was later approached by the station’s news management about a promotion to executive producer. In 1982, Welch became the first Black manager in TV news in Memphis, he said. He achieved that milestone when he accepted the executive producer promotion.
I wanted to know if and how attending Dr. King’s funeral prepared him to become a reporter and an executive producer.
10--SOUNDBITE Edward Welch Jr., Ph.D., (Journalist): “I think all this… being a journalist.”
He later transitioned to a new career in academia, which he still finds satisfying. His numerous accomplishments in journalism education include shepherding students’ award-winning entries in the Hearst Journalism Awards Program.
11--SOUNDBITE Edward Welch Jr., Ph.D., (Hearst): “So, what are you … students to compete.”
Starting with the NAACP Youth Council presidency at his high school, Welch has embodied leadership and courage. He attended Dr. King’s funeral alone when he was a teenager.
That accomplishment is too important not to be recorded in the annals of history.
This has been Regina L. Burns reporting for Harvest Reapers Communications, in Dallas.
Copyright © May 19, 2021, Regina L. Burns, Harvest Reapers Communications. All Rights Reserved.
More Stories from Regina
 Cheryl Smith, courtesy of her LinkedIn profile.  Cheryl Smith says her Don't Believe the Hype Celebrity Bowl-a-thon has raised more than $300,000. It has funded numerous nonprofit and journalism causes. What are some of the outcomes achieved from this event? We have helped finance travel and accommodations for journalism students attending conferences and conventions, career enhancement programs and workshops. When big funders fall through, we were able to use funds raised to help with feeding students, providing transportation or purchasing supplies for the Dallas-Fort Worth Association of Black Journalists Urban Journalism Workshop. Some of the funds have helped young journalists with training. Tell me about that work. We have paid registration fees to conventions. Additionally, the proceeds from the event have helped take students to conventions in Seattle, Phoenix, Orlando, D.C., Atlanta, Indianapolis, Houston, New Orleans, Las Vegas and Oklahoma. Jeffries Street Learning Center, the Black Academy of Arts and Letters, the Emmett Till Legacy Foundation and the African American Museum of Dallas are just a few of the beneficiaries over the years. Anything else to add? I love doing this event and I love bringing people together for a good time and a good cause. | Cheryl Smith knows how to organize a longstanding and successful fundraiser that supports her passion for journalism and fun gatherings. The veteran Dallas publisher, journalist and National Association of Black Journalists' board secretary founded the Don't Believe the Hype Celebrity Bowl-a-thon a little more than two decades ago. The 23rd annual event, slated in Dallas June 17, 2017, promises to supply ample laughter, loads of good-natured, competitive bowling and financial support for various causes. Smith, who has made her mark across all media platforms, also serves as longtime president of the Dallas-Fort Worth Association of Black Journalists. Additionally, she led the NABJ Region VII during two terms as director. A tireless advocate for journalism and journalists, she revealed during a Question-and-Answer interview conducted by email, how the Bowl-a-thon got its name, some of the event's beneficiaries and the highest score she's ever bowled. Where did the name of the event come from? "Don't Believe the Hype" is a hit song from the popular rap group, Public Enemy. I used the song as the opening for my award-winning talk show on KKDA-AM, "Reporters Roundtable with Cheryl Smith." When I decided to come up with a fundraiser, I bounced around names and a friend suggested I use the song. So, I called Chuck D and told him what I wanted to do and asked his permission. He said, 'Yes!' He actually came for the first event and also for the 10th anniversary. What was your original vision? Just to bring together people to have fun and raise money for scholarships. Have you achieved your original vision? Yes, people consider the event to be a quality program and while I have raised a significant amount of money over the past 22 years, I would like to raise so much more. How much money has the event raised since its inception? We have raised over $300,000. Why did you decide to use bowling to raise money? Growing up in New Jersey, we went to the movies, bowled and skated. I felt that bowling was something that people of all ages can do. After a while, I couldn't see myself 85 [and] skating. Maybe there are some, but not me. ... What's the best game (score) you've bowled? I was on a bowling team in 8th grade and used to go bowling with my Godmother and her friends. The best game I bowled was about three years ago, and it was like a 230. Everyone was amazed. I was and am still in shock.  |
To register your team for Saturday's Bowl-a-thon, click here. Team preregistration is highly encouraged to ensure participation.
(c) HarvestReapers.com, June 14, 2017. All Rights Reserved.
I have longed to learn more about the great orator Frederick Douglass and that wish recently came true.
On Feb. 20, 2011, I toured the national historic site in Washington, D.C. where Douglass (1818 - 2.20.1895), a former slave and abolitionist, once lived.
In 1877, Douglass brought his wife Anna Murray to an 1850s brick house dubbed Cedar Hill. My tour of the lovely edifice was under the direction of the National Park Service. A riveting 18-minute video, featuring excellent actors, launched the tour.
The national historic site includes a visitor's center, where I saw the video. Our guide, National Park Service Interpretive Ranger Kamal McClarin, led us through the house, which is inviting and charming.
Tips if you go:
Take a cab or either drive to the site, located at 1411 W. Street SE, Washington, D.C. 20020; 202.426.5961
Get there early to view the video and see it twice, if time permits
Bring good walking shoes
Take extra batteries for your camera
Links:
Frederick Douglass National Historic Site, http://www.nps.gov/frdo/index.htm
Friends of Frederick Douglass Blog: http://tinyurl.com/4exbjkw
Video from C-SPAN's "American History TV" show of National Park Service Interpretive Ranger McClarin's tour of Frederick Douglass's last home, http://tinyurl.com/4te8u4b
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About the Author:
Regina L. Burns, M.A., M.A., is a Dallas, Texas-based rising historian and award-winning multimedia journalist at Harvest Reapers Communications. She specializes in 20th century Texas African American Business History, specifically Tyler Barber College Chain, the nation’s first African American barber college chain founded by Texas African American millionaire, H. M. Morgan (Henry Miller Morgan).
Learn more
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