Valdosta State University’s Black History Month Committee presents History Through Our Eyes: Celebrating Black Excellence Then and Now, a celebration of Black History Month. The series of events will kick off at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 4, in the University Center Magnolia Room.
 
The evening will feature presentations and performances by VSU students, student organizations, and members of the Valdosta community. Dr. Larry E. Rivers, professor in the Department of History, will give the keynote address. Light refreshments will be served.
 
All VSU students, faculty, and staff, as well as the general public, are invited to attend.
 
The schedule of Black History Month 2016 events includes the following:
 
Feb. 1-March 10, Biggest Loser Weight Loss Challenge
 
Participants in the Biggest Loser Weight Loss Challenge should meet in the Student Recreation Center at 7:30 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 8, for the second weigh-in. There is a $20 entry fee to join the competition. Physical trainers will provide participants with sample meal plans and grocery lists, as well as opportunities to exercise in a group setting on Sundays, Mondays, and Wednesdays. The top three participants who lose the most weight by the end of the competition will receive a prize. Contact Eric Roberson, VSU Model Mentors president, at [email protected] for more information.
 
Feb. 8, Land is Our Land
 
The VSU Theta Tau Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc. will host Land Is Our Land at 7:13 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 8, in the Student Union Ballroom C. The event will feature a question-and-answer political forum discussing the 2016 presidential candidates and their ideals, as well as what will be implemented if they are elected. Contact Maya Phillips, VSU Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc. president, at [email protected] for more information.
 
Feb. 9, The State of the Black Man in America
 
The VSU Mu Omicron Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc. and the Collegiate Men of VSU will host The State of the Black Man in America at 7:06 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 9, in the Student Union Theater. The event will feature influential men on the VSU campus, who will discuss topics relating to the state of black men as citizens in today’s society. Contact Jarius Leavy, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc. member, at [email protected] for more information.
 
Feb. 11, Black History Month Community Service Project
 
The VSU National Association for the Advancement of Colored People will host two community service projects from 4:45 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 11. Contact Jasmin Martin, VSU NAACP president, at [email protected] for project locations or to learn more.
 
Feb. 13, Gala at the Gardens
 
The Collegiate Men of VSU and Creative Media and Marketing will host an upscale, formal masquerade event at 9 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 13, at The Crescent at Valdosta Garden Center, 904 N. Patterson St. Formal dress is required. Contact Darian Harris, VSU Creative Media and Marketing founder, at [email protected] for more information.
 
Feb. 15, Quiz Bowl
 
The Black Student League (BSL) at VSU will host a Black History Month Quiz Bowl at 7 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 15, in the Hugh C. Bailey Science Center Room 1011. Student organizations will compete in a quiz bowl-style tournament. Contact Nick Bell, VSU BSL president, at [email protected] to register or learn more.
 
Feb. 16, New Slaves
 
The VSU NAACP will host New Slaves at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 16, in the University Center Magnolia Room. The event will feature a presentation on how individuals in today’s society have become enslaved through technology and materialistic items. Contact Jasmin Martin, VSU NAACP president, at [email protected] for more information.
 
Feb. 17, Night at The Apollo
 
The VSU Sigma Lambda Gamma National Sorority will present Night at The Apollo at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 17, in the University Center Theater. Contact Elizabeth Cavender, VSU Sigma Lambda Gamma National Sorority morals and ethics chairwoman and event coordinator, at [email protected] for more information.
 
Feb. 18-20, National Pan-Hellenic Council Mini Week
 
The VSU National Pan-Hellenic Council will host a series of events in commemoration of the 2016 Black History Month. The series begins on Thursday, Feb. 18 with Building Your Own Empire, a forum focusing on student entrepreneurs on campus, and will continue through Feb. 20 with a movie night hosted by the VSU NPHC and the 2016 Black History Committee on Feb. 19, and a community service project on Feb. 20. Contact Morgan Wilson, VSU NPHC president, [email protected] for event locations, times, or more information.
 
Feb. 22, Black Lives Matter versus All Lives Matter
 
The Collegiate Men of VSU will present Black Lives Matter versus All Lives Matter at 8 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 22, in the Student Union Theater. Contact Tremaine Genias, CMVSU event coordinator, at [email protected] for more information.
 
Feb. 23, Made in America Art Show
 
The VSU Sigma Lambda Gamma National Sorority will host the Made in America art show at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 23, in the University Center Magnolia and Cypress Rooms. Participants will express their perception of multiculturalism through drawings, paintings, photography, graphic designs, and more. Contact Mia Rawls, VSU NAACP Political Action Committee member and the National Council of Negro Women’s Dorothy I. Height Social Conflict Committee member, [email protected] for more information.
 
Feb. 24, B.L.A.C.K.
 
The VSU Sigma Lambda Gamma National Sorority will host B.L.A.C.K. at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 24, in the University Center Theater. Participants will learn that there is beauty before stereotypes and that individuals are more than the labels of their skin. Contact Elizabeth Cavender, VSU Sigma Lambda Gamma National Sorority morals and ethics chairwoman and event coordinator, at [email protected] for more information.
 
Feb. 25, #MyBlackisVersatile
 
The Black Student League at VSU will host #MyBlackisVersatile at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 25, in the University Center Magnolia Rooms. The event will showcase and celebrate the past and present of black culture through music, dance, fashion, and art. Contact Celena White, VSU BSL event planning chairwoman, at [email protected] for more information.
 
Feb. 26, National Center for Civil and Human Rights Day Trip
 
The Office of Social Equity at VSU will host a day trip to the National Center for Civil and Human Rights in Atlanta, departing at 8 a.m. on Friday, Feb. 26. Admission is $15 per student and includes a light breakfast and lunch. Seating is limited and available on a first come, first served basis. Contact Carmen Guess, graduate assistant in the Office of Social Equity, [email protected] to register or learn more.
 
Feb. 29, Black is She
 
The Collegiate Women of VSU will host Black is She at 6:30 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 29, in the Student Union Ballroom C. Participants will discuss the issues black women have faced in history and today, as well as their important role in the creation of black history. Contact Maya Chandler, CWVSU event coordinator and public relations chairwoman, [email protected] for more information.
 
The story of Black History Month began in 1915 when historian Carter G. Woodson and Jesse E. Moorland founded the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History, an organization dedicated to researching and promoting achievements by black Americans and other people of African descent. Known today as the Association for the Study of African American Life and History, the organization sponsored a national Negro History Week in 1926, choosing the second week of February to coincide with the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass. Negro History Week eventually evolved into Black History Month on college campuses.
 
In 1976, President Gerald R. Ford officially recognized Black History Month, calling upon the entire nation to “seize the opportunity to honor the too-often neglected accomplishments of black Americans in every area of endeavor throughout our history.”