BottomLine Magazine

Featured in Glamour Magazine as a Woman of the Year, Captain Whennah Andrews has been at the movement to end hair discrimination in the U.S. armed forces. Her quest for inclusion began in 2014, when an update to the army's grooming policy banned two-strand twists and locs. Concerned by the potential health issues caused by tight hair styles, Andrews reached out to a Coast Guard Officer who dealt with a similar issue, and was advised to create a compelling visual resource to present before the army's uniform board. In collaboration with natural hair educator GreenBeauty, Andrews helped to produce a video dispelling the misconceptions regarding the professionalism and cleanliness of natural hair. In response, the Army's uniform board decided to expand their regulations to allow locs and thicker braids. 

I've always believed that being in the U.S. Army we represent a diverse nation, and I wanted our military to converge to that reality.

A native of South Carolina, Chadwick Boseman graduated from Howard University and attended the British American Dramatic Academy at Oxford, after which he began his career as an actor, director and writer. Boseman starred as T'Challa/Black Panther in the worldwide phenomenon Marvel Studios' "Black Panther," which has shattered box-office records both domestically and internationally. Boseman made his debut as the African superhero Black Panther in Marvel Studios’ “Captain America: Civil War,” in May 2016. He reprised the role for Marvel’s “Avengers: Infinity War” in 2019.

Boseman's breakout performance came in 2013 when he received rave reviews for his portrayal of the legendary Jackie Robinson in Warner Bros’ “42.” He previously starred in the title role of Open Road Films’ “Marshall,” which tells the story of Thurgood Marshall, the first African American Supreme Court Justice, as he battles through one of his career-defining cases as the Chief Counsel to the NAACP. His other feature film credits include: the revenge thriller “Message from the King,” Summit Entertainment's “Draft Day,” the independent psychological post-war drama, “The Kill Hole” and Gary Fleders’ drama, “The Express.”

Boseman was diagnosed with stage III colon cancer in 2016. During his four-year battle with cancer, he continued his work, persevering through the production of several films between countless surgeries and chemotherapy. Boseman passed away in August of 2020, surrounded by his wife and family. 

Purpose is the essential element of you. It is the reason you are on the planet at this particular time in history. Your very existence is wrapped up in the things you are here to fulfill. Whatever you choose for a career path, remember the struggles along the way are only meant to shape you for your purpose.

Howard is a very culturally rich and diverse University and our students not only come from all over the country, but all over the world. However, even through that diversity, there is an undeniable culture that grounds us and connects us, showing us that while we may all be different, that is where our strength lies.

Bisa Butler is a textile artist who creates vivid quilted portraits of African-American life. Born in 1973, Butler initially went into the arts as a painter, earning her BFA at Howard University and her MA in arts education at Montclair State University, where she took a fiber arts class. At Howard, Butler mentored members of the African Commune of Bad Relevant Artists (AfriCOBRA), which sought to define an art aesthetic that represents African Americans in a positive light.  

Butler taught art at public high schools for 13 years, quilting in her free time, until she found representation with Claire Oliver Gallery in Harlem and became an artist full-time. In her work, which is deeply rooted in the tradition of African-American quilting, Butler uses Ghanian fabrics, Nigerian batiks, and South African fabrics to capture her subjects’ African ancestry and their place in American history. She has exhibited her work in group and solo shows around the United States and the world. 

All of my pieces are done in life scale to invite the viewer to engage in a dialogue—most figures look the viewers directly in their eyes. I am inviting a reimagining and a contemporary dialogue about age old issues, still problematic in our culture, through the comforting, embracing medium of the quilt. I am expressing what I believe is the equal value of all humans.

Ta-Nehisi Coates is an award-winning novelist, essayist and journalist. Coates was born and raised among six siblings in Baltimore, Maryland. His mother was a teacher, while his father is the founder of Black Classic Press, a publishing company specializing in books by Black writers. Coates studied journalism at Howard University for five years, then went on to work as a reporter. His writing gained national attention in 2008 with the publication of his first piece for The Atlantic; in that same year, Coates published his first book, The Beautiful Struggle. In 2015, Coates’ second book, the memoir Between the World and Me, launched his work to best-seller status. Since then, Coates has published myriad articles, memoirs, and essays, as well as a bestselling novel. He is currently a writer in residence at NYU’s Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute.

My only Mecca was, is, and shall always be Howard University.

Christopher N. Cross, Ph.D. is a biomedical engineer with expertise in policy and non-profit development. During his graduate studies at Howard University, Cross became the first openly gay male student trustee in the University’s history. He also founded the Lavender Fund, a scholarship award established to provide academic financial support for Howard University students who demonstrate outstanding involvement in LGBT+ community issues. Cross has since worked in publishing, biomedical engineering, and public policy. Currently, he is a postdoctoral research fellow at Yale University’s Cancer Biology Training Program.

I am endowed by the Universe to be who I am. This foundational understanding gives me continued solace and guidance along my journey of growth and evolution.”

Born on December 18, 1917, in Cogdell, Georgia, Ossie Davis hitchhiked from Georgia to Washington, D.C., after high school, where he received the National Youth Administration scholarship and enrolled at Howard University in the fall of 1935. There, Davis found a nurturing environment to cultivate both his ideas and his talents. Impatient to try his luck on the actual stage, Davis left Howard for New York City, where in 1939, he became involved with the Rose McClendon Players. After his 1946 Broadway debut, Davis went on to perform in many Broadway productions, including “Anna Lucasta,” “The Wisteria Trees,” “Green Pastures,” “Jamaica, Ballad for Bimshire,” “A Raisin in the Sun,” “The Zulu and the Zayda,” and the stage version of “I'm Not Rappaport.” Davis was inducted into the Theater Hall of Fame in 1994.

Davis has written and directed numerous films, including “Countdown at Kusini,” the first American feature film shot entirely in Africa by Black professionals. Davis has received the Hall of Fame Award for Outstanding Artistic Achievement; the U.S. National Medal for the Arts; the New York Urban League Frederick Douglas Award; NAACP Image Award; and the Screen Actor's Guild Lifetime Achievement Award.

Any form of art is a form of power. It has impact. It can affect change. It can not only move us; it makes us move.

Classically trained on the piano, GRAMMY Award-winning musician Roberta Flack received a music scholarship at age 15 to attend Howard University. She was discovered by jazz musician Les McCann while singing at the Washington, D.C. nightclub, Mr. Henry's, and was promptly signed to Atlantic with a string of hits, including, “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face,” “Where Is the Love” (a duet with former Howard University classmate Donny Hathaway), “Killing Me Softly With His Song,” “Feel Like Makin' Love,” “The Closer I Get to You,” “Tonight I Celebrate My Love,” and “Set the Night to Music.” In 1999, she received a star on Hollywood's legendary Walk of Fame. Flack regularly performs for audiences around the world, and has had the pleasure of appearing with the National Symphony Orchestra in Washington, D.C. In February 2009, Flack performed with critically acclaimed orchestras in Australia, including the Melbourne, Queensland, and Sydney Symphonies. She is currently involved with a new venture — an interpretive album of Beatles' classics. As a humanitarian and mentor, Flack founded the Roberta Flack School of Music at the Hyde Leadership Charter School in the Bronx, providing an innovative and inspiring music education program to underprivileged students free of charge.

My hope is that out of all the anger and seeming hostility that we hear in some of today's music will come some sort of coalition that will become politically involved.

Devin C. Martin is an electrical engineering and computer science student at Howard University. Martin played an instrumental role in developing a prototype for ConnexionAI, a first-of-its-kind accessibility application that can convert video input of American Sign Language to spoken languages. This innovative software won first place at HackDuke and third place at HackHarvard. Martin also helped to develop an award-winning prototype for Handoff, a ride-sharing and carpool application that helps connect people in need of transportation with volunteer drivers. Martin used his time during the coronavirus quarantine to develop a program to stop the spread of misinformation on COVID-19 on social media for MIT’s COVID-19 Datathon Challenge. He has interned in NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, the National Security Agency Data Science Research Internship, and the Google Computer Science Summer Institute.

Michaella Moore is a graduating senior majoring in biology with a double minor in sociology and theater arts. She is active in student governance and is the vice president of the Petey Greene Program, for which she has served as a tutor in prisons and jails.  Moore was selected by the British government as one of 46 national recipients of the 2020 Marshall scholarship, making her the third Marshall Scholar in Howard University history. She is pursuing medicine with the goal of informing public health, policy and practices on a global stage to increase heath equity in underserved communities.

We all have a divine beat that fits into the rhythm of the world. The experiences I have had abroad completely shifted my entire view of life, health, culture, faith and humanity. Its part of my mission to not only continue this exploration of our world, but to inspire and aid other young black adults in doing the same.

Jae Murphy is an international DJ, music producer, songwriter, and actor. He graduated from Howard University with a broadcast journalism degree in 2012. Murphy has toured in six continents and performed on countless stages, including performances on Good Morning America, Jimmy Kimmel Live, and the 2017 NFL Thanksgiving Halftime Show. Murphy has worked with a wide range of artists, including Eric Bellinger, The Game, French Montana, Wale, Problem and Jason Derulo, for whom he is the official DJ. Murphy has consistently contributed to the Howard community, and refers to his musical journey as “Howard to Hollywood: The Beautiful Struggle.” He hopes to release his debut album this year.

Jessye Norman was a Grammy Award-winning operatic singer, humanitarian, and Howard alumna known for her powerful voice and stage presence. She was born in 1945 in Augusta, Georgia to a musical family that nurtured her budding talent. Growing up in the Jim Crow South, Norman helped to integrate local businesses, participating in sit-ins at segregated lunch counters. At the age of 16, Norman’s performance at a vocal competition earned her a full scholarship to Howard University. She graduated from Howard in 1967 with a degree in music, then went on to complete her graduate education at the Peabody Conservatory and later at the Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance. Over the course of her lifetime, she earned several honorary degrees from a number of other prestigious institutions.

Norman’s opera career took off in Europe. She made her debut in 1969 in Germany, then continued to perform at famous opera houses around the world. Her worldwide success as a Black woman on the operatic stage was both rare and groundbreaking. Though billed as an operatic soprano, Norman had an impressive vocal range and a diverse range of musical interests, including popular music, gospel, blues, and more. As a humanitarian, Norman addressed hunger, homelessness, youth development, and arts education. In 2003, the Jessye Norman School of the Arts opened in her hometown of Augusta to provide free education in the arts to underprivileged children. After a long and successful career, she died of complications related to a spinal injury in 2019. Thanks in part to her trailblazing efforts, Norman left the opera world a more inclusive place than when she entered it.

One needs more than ambition and talent to make a success of anything, really. There must be love and a vocation.

Taylor Rainey is a Howard University alumna with a bachelor’s degree in political science with a minor in Spanish. In April 2021, she was named Howard University’s first Foreign Affairs IT (FAIT) Fellow by the United States Department of State. She currently works as an associate analyst for Hillard Heintze, a Jensen Hughes Company, and will be going on to pursue graduate studies in cybersecurity with the support of the FAIT Fellowship. While at Howard, Rainey participated in the Pre-Ph.D. Summer Enrichment Program (PPSEP), where she presented a paper on the preparation confidence of communities prone to hurricanes using a comparative analysis between Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Maria. Her international experience includes study abroad courses at the Université du Luxembourg Summer School and the IES Abroad Buenos Aires, as well as an internship at the Westminster Palace under Parliament member Helen Grant in London, England. Rainey also served as a Foreign Affairs Fellow in the United States House of Representatives for Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee.

I am grateful for Howard University’s support to join the Foreign Service, both as a student and post-graduation. I will continue to live ‘in truth and service’ as I continue my professional career.

Jeron Smith is a Howard alumnus whose career in sports marketing and advertising has proven to be nothing short of remarkable.  In 2015, Smith was featured on Forbes Magazine’s 30 Under 30 list for his work as a brand manager at Nike, which included the Jordan brand and the “Basketball Never Stops” campaign. He went on to serve as the deputy director of digital initiatives in the White House’s Office of Digital Strategy during the final year of the Obama administration. 

Smith is the CMO of SC30 Inc. and CEO of Unanimous Media, which he co-founded with basketball superstar Stephen Curry to “inspire, impact, and empower” through multimedia storytelling centered around family, faith, and sports themes. In 2019, Unanimous Media’s series, “5 Minutes from Home with Stephen Curry,” won a Webby Award for Best Web Personality/Host. Additionally, Smith was featured on Ad Age’s 40 Under 40 list. Smith credits his peers at the Howard University School of Business for creating a foundational environment for his future success. He mentors young students and is passionate about inspiring them to pursue their ambitions, despite the obstacles. 

My favorite phrase is “relentless ambition.” I believe that phrase perfectly captures what it takes to break into and thrive in this industry.

Alma Thomas was an artist and educator best known for her colorful abstract paintings. Born and raised in Columbus, GA., her family moved to Washington, D.C. when she was 15, seeking relief from the racial climate of the South. Thomas graduated from Howard University in 1924, becoming the first person to graduate from the newly-formed Department of Art. Though Thomas’s early artwork was realistic, her Howard professor James V. Herring and peer Lois Mailou Jones—both notable artists in their own right—encouraged her to experiment with abstract styles. 

Thomas taught art for 35 years and pursued painting in her free time. After retiring from teaching, Thomas developed her signature abstract style and debuted her first exhibition at Howard University at the age of 75. Her mosaic-like paintings translated art history, nature, and personal aesthetic in simple compositions influenced by the pointillism and abstract expressionism movements. Thomas was the first African American woman to have a solo exhibition at the Whitney Museum of American art. In 2015, 37 years after her death, Thomas's piece “Resurrection” (1966) became the first piece of artwork by a Black woman to hang in a public space in the White House and enter the permanent collection. 

My real belief is in my art, in beauty. I say everyone on earth should take note of the spring of the year coming back every year, blooming and gorgeous.

Wilmer Wilson IV was born in Richmond, VA in 1989. As an artist of multiple mediums, including performance, photography, sculpture, collage, painting, and installation, he is critically recognized for performative investigations of Black presence in public spaces. He received his Bachelor of Fine Arts at Howard University in 2012 and received his Master of Fine Arts at the University of Pennsylvania in 2015. Wilson is the recipient of The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage Fellowship and The American Academy in Rome Fellowship. His work has been presented at galleries and museums around the United States and the world.

Art came to me at a time when other modes of communication had failed me. It gave me permission to do gestures that might be able to hold the contradictions of embodied experience.

Simone Yhap is a Senior Pre-Med Biology Major, and a Political Science and Chemistry double minor from West Moreland, Jamaica by way of Brooklyn, New York. Since her senior year of high school, she has been active in the non-profit sector by volunteering with the Family on Three Foundation, a 501©3 non-profit organization focused on youth empowerment, enrichment and mentorship through basketball and motivational workshops.

Can’t does not exist in your vocabulary ... the only limitations are the ones you impose on yourself; if you go into something already believing that you cannot do it, then you will not do it.