Tell us a little bit about yourself.
I am very proud of the fact that I am a native son of Oberlin.  My great-grandfather John Russell moved to Oberlin right after the Civil War and became a respected carpenter in town.  One of his projects in town was working on the original observatory dome in Peters Hall.  My family moved from Oberlin to Hollis, Queens in New York City in 1957.  My neighborhood later became famous as the home of many of the early hip-hop artists.  

I returned to Oberlin in the fall of 1967 and my college years were during the height of the anti-war and black student revolution era.  We created the African-American Studies Program, Afro House [now Afrikan Heritage House] and out of our demands the College hired its first black administrator.  When we arrived at college there were two black faculty at Oberlin, period!  Those were heady times and the experience of students today is a walk in the park compared to what we went through.

After Oberlin, I went right to the Harvard Law School and from there I have practiced law as a corporate lawyer for over 30 years.  I’m married and have a wife and two children and currently work as a senior counsel for Meijer Stores, a large privately-held retailer headquartered in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

How did your experiences at Oberlin prepare you for life after college, especially your career?
I was deeply involved in the development of the African-American Studies and served during my senior year as administrative assistant to the program.  I had served on the presidential search committee that selected Bob Fuller to become president of Oberlin and on other college committee’s and more and more saw myself serving my peers as an advisor and representative.  I was doing the type of things that lawyers do for their clients.  Becoming a lawyer seemed like the logical next step for me after college.  

What were the major challenges for you and the other Africana students at Oberlin College in the late 1960s and early 1970s?
Our major challenges were to survive in an environment that was not really prepared for many of us.  By that I mean, Oberlin had for many years gone along with 4-10 black students per class so that the institution did not need to really change to accommodate those students.  Also, until the mid-1960’s the blacks who attended Oberlin all self-selected the school, they had decided to come to Oberlin.  During our era many black students had no idea what Oberlin was really like and they were recruited to come to the college.  Within a few years you had over 150 black students from a wide demographic at the college with insufficient resources in place to support them.  Out of that situation came our “demands” for more faculty, administrative support, a program house living environment, academic services, etc.  What we sought made Oberlin a better place.  Things like the MRC are a direct result of what we struggled for and I am very proud of what members of my generation did to create institutional change that has endured at Oberlin ever since we graduated.  They were very interesting times.

How has Oberlin changed since you graduated in 1971?
One very major change from when I was a student is the presence of the Jazz Studies Department that Professor Wendell Logan has created and nurtured.  In my humble opinion, Wendell Logan has done more to enhance Oberlin College than any other professor of his generation.  That Department puts an artistic form, primarily developed by black people in this country, into the heart of the artistic energy of the Oberlin environment.  You have young musicians, black, white, whatever, coming to Oberlin to study this uniquely American musical form.  That coupled with the presence of the African American Studies Department gives black people an intellectual and artistic presence and legitimacy in the Oberlin environment that we had to fight for.  In other ways, Oberlin has not changed, witness the mess with the protest in the fall over the condition of the House.  As they say, the more things change, the more they stay the same.  One thing is fundamental, Oberlin continues to attract exceptional students and I strongly feel that those of us who have preceded them have an obligation to support the college to make the institution the best that it can be for each new generation of students.

What advice would you give Africana students today?
I would say take advantage of the resources that Oberlin has to offer.  Attend concerts, plays, art exhibits, etc.  Definitely get some international experience.  I went overseas for the first time while I was a student at Oberlin.  I went to France on the summer French Program and it changed my life.  In addition to France, I saw some other parts of Europe and met some wonderful Africans in France.  Most importantly, going to Europe showed me how much an American I am!

I would also tell students to study hard and demand the academic support that you need from the school to succeed.  Work on self improvement and develop good habits for a healthy and balanced life.  In the classical model, develop your body, mind and spirit.  Learn to play an instrument and learn how to really appreciate art.

We know you are really involved with the Alumni Association, perhaps you could talk a bit about it?
I have been actively involved with the Alumni Association for over 10 years and in September 2005 became the first African-American president of the Association.  There are many reasons why it took until now to have a black person lead Oberlin’s alumni organization but nothing stands in our way today to achieve any position that we want to in the Association.  In fact, on the Association’s Executive Board three of our committees are currently chaired by black alumni and besides me and those committee chairs, there are three other black alumni currently serving on the Executive Board.  We are planning another Reunion of Black Alumni in October 2006 and we hope to encourage all of our black alumni to give back to Oberlin in some manner.  All Oberlin alumni share a common bond and I have always found a wonderful connection when I have run into other Oberlin alums.  We believe in the lifelong learning community and I have enjoyed many things at Oberlin since I have been an alumnus.  I encourage all students to stay connected to Oberlin after they graduate.  If you found something special at Oberlin, help to maintain that quality at the school for future generations of students.  Finally, have fun during your college years.  When you get older and think back on those years, you want to be able to have a smile come across your face!