Rroncos'Voice
September 1994
PROFESSOR SUES FAYETTEVILLE
STATE FOR $5 MILLION
Courtesy of Fayetteville Press Newspaper
Dr. John Stokes, a sociology
professor at Fayetteville State
University until last summer
when he lost his job, has filed
a civil suit in Cumberland
County Superior Court against
FSU for willful breach of
promise. In his complaint Dr.
Stokes alleges that FSU
promised him permanent
employment if he obtained the
doctorate degree, as required
for permanent tenure pursuant
to the Consent Decree of 1979.
At the time of the agreement,
he was teaching with a Master's
Degree in Sociology.
After borrowing huge sums of
his retirement money to attend
the Graduate School of
Political and Social Science
at the New School for Social
research in New York City, he
returned to FSU with the Ph.D.
in 19 90 only to be given
temporary work, contrary to the
agreement. Last year.
Chancellor Hackley finally
fired him without giving him
reasons. Because of heavy
graduate student debts borrowed
against his retirement funds.
Dr. Stokes filed for bankruptcy
after 14 years of service to
FSU.
Dr. Stokes is generally
considered a popular teacher
who does not miss classes.
Official FSU student
evaluations of his teaching
performance voted him
consistently above 4.0 on a
scale of 1.0 to 5.0, a very
good score. He was also
recently honored as one of the
nation's best teachers by Who's
Who Among America's Best
Teachers.
The former Chancellor of FSU,
Dr. Charles Lyons is expected
to testify on behalf of Dr.
Stokes, at the trial which will
probably be held in the fall .
The plaintiff is asking for $5
million in compensatory and
punitive damages.
Fayetteville's experienced
lawyer, Mitchell Gadsden, is
handling the case for Dr.
Stokes.
According to Dr. Stokes,
Chancellor Hackley's deliberate
humiliation of him is but one
instance of the general
treatment which has driven many
black faculty out of FSU since
Chancellor Hackley took office
six years ago. The following
is only a partial list of black
professionals who left jobs at
FSU in the past six years; Dr.
Herman Manning, Dr. Henry
Darling, Dr. Williams, Dr.
Barbara Haile, Dr. Hudson
Kwakanma, Professor Conley,
Professor Israel Rwejuna, CPA,
Dr. Betty Plummer, Librarian
Richard Friffin, Dr. Bertran
Coppock, Dr. Delores Hayes, Dr.
Willie Kimmons, Attorney Kaye
Webb, Dr. Geofferey Rugege, Dr.
Doreen Hilton, Dr. Alex
Nikireru, Dr. Harold Wade (an
experienced vice chancellor).
There are other blacks who
retired prematurely.
In six years Chancellor Hackley
has changed academic vice
chancellors five times, deans
in the College of Arts and
Sciences six times, and deans
in the School of Business three
t imes.
Dr. Stokes, a race relations
sociologist, believes that UNC
President C.D. Spangler will
do nothing about this costly
situation so long as Chancellor
Hackley talks like a
desegregationist but behaves in
a way that seems to
discriminate against blacks.
By Dr. John Stokes
(Fired FSU Professor)
FSU PEER EDUCATORS
CERTIFIED
By Winnie Best
Thirteen years ago an
epidemic, AIDS, was identified
in the U.S. and it has not gone
away. There is a growing need
for more education concerning
AIDS reducing the probability
of persons acquiring the virus
that causes it. HIV and AIDS
education must become the
centerpiece of reducing the
toll of this deadly virus.
Current statistics show
frightening increases in the
Afro-American population as
well as among young people ages
13-24 .
The National Association for
Equal Opportunity in Higher
Education (NAFEO) and the
American Red Cross have
provided a conduit for
educating another level of
society. On August 14-19, 1994
these organizations sponsored
intense training for the
certification of peer
educators from historically
Black colleges and
universities across the United
States. The training was very
thorough and had a well-
received Afrocentric emphasis
throughout. This conference
was held at Hampton University
%
where students had the
opportunity to see and learn
the rich legacy of another
Historically Black University.
Chosen amongst those peer
educators from these HBCUs were
Zacques Gray, a senior majoring
in social science who is also
the President of the Student
Government Association; a
national Association of
Personnel Association (NASPA)
Fellow and holds several other
offices. Jessica Pinzon, also
a senior majoring in biology
and is vice president of the
Science Club and Beta Kappa
Chi. She plans to attend
medical school upon
graduat ion.
Higher education students
represent an untapped resource
at a timely juncture where
learning and the
See Educators page JO