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Friday, January 27, 1984
BENNETT COLLEGE, GREENSBORO, N. C.
Vol. XLV, No. 5
Students reflect on Harris
In Memoriam: Dr. Lloyd Milton Harris
(1936-1983), professor of biology
at Bennett College for 17 years.
(photo courtesy of information office)
Biologist lauded
By leave-takers
Outside the chapel, the cold
blue day was as penetrating
as the mind of Dr. Lloyd Mil
ton Harris, who was being
remembered during the ser
vice inside.
Exactitude was the com
mon refrain in the Jan. 12
eulogies for the biology pro
fessor who, at 47, died in his
birthplace, Decatur, Ala. and
was buried there Dec. 16.
Speakers recalled the high
standards which Harris de
manded of himself and his
students during his 17 years
here.
“In all these areas of re
sponsibility (teaching, schol
arship, and character), we
must attribute excellence to
Dr. Harris,” said President
Isaac H. Miller, Jr. “Excel
lence characterized his life.”
Valedictorian of his ele
mentary and high schools,
Harris took degrees at Tus-
kegee Institute, the Univer
sity of Illnois and Howard
University.
The biologist had an “ex
tensive love for and dedica
tion to his profession . . re
called Monica Jones, pres
ident of the biology club. “He
placed within us the pearl of
knowledge.”
SGA President Kay Boyd
stressed that Harris “ex
pected nothing less than the
best.”
His enthusiasms beyond the
laboratory were also remem
bered. Boyd described the
care the professor lavished
on the plants in the halls of
the science building. Miller
noted the energy Harris de
voted to the master plan for
increasing flowers on campus.
The scientist was an excel
lent tennis player, who often
had games with guests of the
college. A foreshadowing of
Harris’ decline came last year
when he accepted a match
but could not play, according
to the Rev. P. E. Adotey
Addo.
Speakers emphasized the
piety of Harris, a lifelong
member of the First Mis
sionary Baptist Church in
Decatur.
“He was a scientist who be
lieved in God strongly,” said
Dr. Sekhara Rao, chairman
of the biology department.
Miller urged the crowd “to
use the time in this narrow
veil (between two eternities)
to amplify and glorify God
as we know our colleague
did.” , ,
“We here this morning feel
very confident that Dr. Har
ris lies down to pleasant
dreams,” Miller also said.
by Dee Evans
The eye-catching plants
along the stairway and the
laughter of students in the
biology classrooms form a
legacy from Dr. Lloyd
Harris.
These symbols are among
the many gifts left behind
by the professor, who died in
mid-December after a long
struggle with cancer.
As the new semester began,
Harris’ image lingered in the
minds of colleagues and
students.
Dr. Sekhara Rao, who at
tended Harris’ funeral in
Alabama, praises him for his
“excellent educational stan
dards for the betterment of
the students.”
Harris was a “perfection
ist” but added “a flair of
humor to his teaching meth
ods,” recalls Robin Rowe, a
senior nursing major from
Detroit.
Students were impressed
with his mannerisms which
are described by junior Renee
Roberson, a pre-med major
from Williamston, as “eccen
tric.” “I cannot get used to
being on the second floor of
the science building without
hearing the prominent sound
of Dr. Harris’ shoes as he
walked down the hallway.”
The one thing that senior
Zsa Zsa Martin, a health
science major from Madison,
best remembers about Harris
was his sense of humor. “He
was a flexible person—some
times he was serious, some
times joking. You knew when
not to bother him if he was
in a bad mood, but it was
seldom,” says Martin.
When Zsa Zsa sees the
plants which add light to
the science building, she won
ders how a person can be
so generous and put a lot of
such effort into something
which wasn’t his personal
possession.
“All the plants are from
Dr. Harris’ free-giving and
unselfish nature,” says
Martin.
Most importantly, Martin
will never forget the time that
Dr. Harris fixed the science
building up for Christmas.
“He put forth more than
what was expected of him,”
says Martin.
In addition, no student will
ever forget Dr. Harris com
ing in on Saturdays to work
and open the lab rooms for
students as well as the extra
research he did beyond the
requirements of his courses.
Roberson will never forget
his prompt arrival every
morning at seven. According
to Roberson, “Dr. Harris’
contributions often went un
noticed because he was a man
who did not relish for himself
outside approval or glory.”
Guard enjoys duties and students
by Melanie Hubbard
She can be seen all over
campus, wearing her navy-
blue uniform, walking from
building to building. Al
though she is not a student,
instructor or maintenance
person, she’s a very impor
tant part of the school.
Her name is Mrs. Rosa
Henryhand, and she’s a cam
pus security guard. Checking
the grounds for disturbances,
taking students who are sick
to the infirmary, and chat
ting with whomever she sees
are some of the daily duties
Henryhand attends to.
She has a large, stocky
build and a strongly-defined
face, but her gentle manner
isms and soft voice make any
apprehensions a person may
have disappear.
Born in Bishopville, S. C.,
Henryhand was reared in
Greensboro. She was a
nurse’s aid in a local hos
pital for three years and
received a degree in law
enforcement and criminal
justice at Guilford Technical
Institute.
She came to Bennett “be
cause there were no women
security guards, and I felt a
student would feel more com
fortable talking to a woman
rather than a man.”
Working what she calls
“banking hours,” Henryhand
has a nine-to-five schedule
that involves “finding out the
happenings from the night
before, and going from
there.” She says when she
first started working at Ben
nett she was assigned to work
from 5 p.m. to 1 a.m. and was
scared.
“I was going to quit then
and I’ve been quitting ever
since,” she says, laughing.
Henryhand hasn’t encoun
tered any serious cases. She
says, “We try to prevent a
problem before it happens.”
She says unwanted visitors
are usually dealt with on
campus or turned in to the
police.
There are about 10 cam
pus security guards, three
being students. The students
have the same responsibilities
and duties as the other
guards, and are part of the
work-study program. Henry
hand is happy with this
transition because “students
are helping students with
problems.”
During her time here, she
has seen a change in student
behavior every year, but says,
“No matter what they do, I
enjoy it because if they
weren’t here I wouldn’t be
here.”
All in all, Henryhand likes
working at Bennett and can’t
really find any negative
things to say about the job.
Her favorite part of the job
is that there are a lot of
women to talk to.
Artist’s show to be headliner
by Leslie Barr
Visual arts, poetry and
chamber music are some of
the attrations for this semes-
teer’s Lyceum programs.
One of the main events will
be an art exhibition by Dr.
John Biggers, a nationally
known painter, sculptor,
graphic artist, educator and
muralist who will be on
campus Feb. 28-29.
This two-day event will in
clude classroom visitations,
slide presentations and a
small show of some of
Biggers’ printed works.
Biggers, a native of Gas
tonia and retired educator
from Texas Southern Univer
sity, makes much use of the
mediums of paint, charcoal
and pencil.
Dr. Alma Adams, chairper
son of the department of vis
ual arts and humane studies,
says, “Biggers is probably
one of the greatest artists to
live.” She also states that this
judgment has nothing to do
with the fact that he is an
Afro-American. She adds, “I
have studied European artists
for a long time and it makes
me feel good to know that
we (blacks) have the power
to produce good art.” The
Biggers program will be open
to the public.
Other tentative activities
for February include a drama
production, and a chamber
music program given by the
Chalumeau Quartet, which is
a clarinet quartet and in
cludes Dr. Chelsea Tipton,
dean of the college.
Other activities for this
semester will include movies,
and for National Library
Week a poet will be featured.
Dr. Ruth Lucier, coordina
tor of the Mellon Grant and
Lyceum Committee, states
that “we are still open for
suggestions for this semester
and next semester.” Lucier
points out that in an effort
to decrease overcrowded audi
ences a ticket admission may
be used for some programs.
A complete and updated
schedule of events will be
published soon.
Representatives try impeachment
WASHINGTON, D. C. — Rep.
Ted Weiss (D,L-NY) and seven
other members of Congress are
sponsoring a resolution in the
House to impeach President Ron
ald Reagan on the grounds he
violated the U. S. Constitution
when he ordered the invasion of
Grenada.
Joining Weiss in calling for the
President’s impeachment are Rep
resentatives John Conyers Jr.
(D-MI), Julian C. Dixon (D-CA),
Mervyn M. Dymally (D-CA),
Henry B. Gonzalez (D-TX),
George W. Crockett (D-MI), Gus
Savage (D-IL.), and Parren J.
Mitchell (D-MD).
“The President’s invasion of
Grenada is illegal and unconsti
tutional, and, I am convinced, is
an impeachable offense,” Weiss
said. “This resolution is being in
troduced only after serious re
search and deliberation, and after
Congress has exhausted other
remedies. It is now left to Con
gress to resort to the one option
provided for in the Constitution
which can truly rein in the ac
tions of a President operating,
outside of constitutional bounds:
Impeachment.”
The resolution, introduced on
Nov. 10, lists three constitutional
violations as cause for impeach
ment—the right of Congress to
declare war; the injunction
against the use of force against
a sovereign state; and the First
Amendment rights of the Ameri
can public and press.
“Nothing less than the consti
tutional framework of our nation
has been placed in jeopardy by
the invasion of Grenada. If the
Constitution can be violated with
impunity, the very survival of our
democracy comes under threat,”
Weiss said.
Weiss said he hopes the im
peachment resolution will prompt
broad debate on the constitutional
questions raised by the President’s
actions. He intends to encourage
educational institutions across the
country, including elementary and
secondary schools, universities
and law schools, to participate in
such a debate.