1. What is the purpose/mission of your organization?
The central purpose of the Black Student Alliance organization is to create a dedicated community where DU students are educated about the African diaspora and Black and African American students are celebrated and supported.
2. What goals/values does your student alliance have? Are there certain messages that you would like to promote on campus related to the alliance identity?
The main goal of the Black Student Alliance is to create a community/safe space where students who identify as black and allies can talk about current events, socialize, be educated on various topics. Members of are also expected to be allies to other marginalized identities and provide support whenever possible. As a community, provides support in times of need and becomes the voice of marginalized students on campus.
BSA cover photo
3. What is the best part of being a part of your student alliance?
Devanae: “The best part of being a part of BSA is the community and social aspect. A lot of people who go to BSA make a lot of friends because we share our experiences and connect on a different level.”
Akolda: “One of the best parts of being a member of BSA is how the various identities, personality and beliefs come together to create a beautifully brave space for all. This community shows love to one another, respect, and the same goal of growth through one another.”
4. When does your student alliance typically meet?
Black Student Alliance meets every Thursday at 6:30 PM – 7:30 PM beginning week 1 to week 9 every quarter.
5. What big events does your student alliance host throughout the school year?
Fall Quarter we have our annual Fall Dance, elections for our first-year liaisons and this year we had our first ever back-to-school BBQ that we plan to do on an annual basis.
Winter Quarter is our busiest time of the year because February is Black History Month. In January, we make posters for and attend the Martin Luther King Jr. Day Marade in Denver. In February, we have our N-word meeting where we discuss the impact that word has on our community and our personal experiences with it. We have a black love meeting around Valentine’s Day, and this year we are excited to collaborate with for this meeting. During the third week of February, we have the opportunity to take students with us to attend the Big XII Conference on Black Student Government, and this year the conference is being hosted at The University of Oklahoma. Our last event of Black History Month is our talent show where we have members the DU community and the Denver talent. In March we do a community dinner to conclude the quarter.
Spring Quarter we have our annual Spring Formal and elections for the new executive board for the 2020-2021 year. We are currently discussing topics to discuss throughout spring quarter that have never been talked about before.
Meeting
6. For those interested in joining your student alliance, what should they do?
Anyone who is interested in joining our alliance should attend one of our meetings/events or contact us for more information via email! Our organization is open to everyone and we love seeing new faces. If anyone would like to be added to our mailing list, they can send us an email using the email provided.
We can be contacted via email. Our email is universityofdenverbsa@gmail.com.
Our page is @du_bsa. We share a lot of information on our page, including information about our events, other organizations’ events, campus events and events in Denver.
Executive board for the 2019-2020 school year
President: Akolda Redgebol
Vice President: Devanae Allen
Treasurer: Josiah Aklilu
Secretary: Caris Fox
Historian: Mya Wrencher
Internal Publicist: Lidet Shiferaw
External Publicist: Aaliyah Shambe
Liaison: Matthew Solomon
First-Year Liaisons: Nevaeh Garrison and Zero Vasquez
Advisors: Rajhon White and Latisha Clerkley
E-board members. Photographed: Devanae Allen, Josiah Aklilu, Akolda Redgebol, Aaliyah Shambe, Lidet Shiferaw, Mya Wrencher and Caris Fox
*Bonus questions*
What food would your student alliance be?
Josiah: Raising Canes
Matthew: Any soul food
Event you are most proud of?
Akolda: “I would definitely say I loved our AfroLatinx meeting and my favorite event would be the back to school ! Watching everyone pick up where they left off without missing a beat was beautiful and how many folks came out!”
Devanae: “I am most proud of our AfroLatinx meeting and my favorite event is our Fresh Prince themed Fall Dance this year. It made me so happy to see everyone come together, let loose and have fun.”
Caris: “I would say the AfroLatinX meeting. I am most proud of that meeting because it offered representation and a voice to individuals who may often feel underrepresented or ignored.”
Describe your organization in 3 words!
Josiah: Excellence, empowerment and lit
Devanae: Excellence, community and power