by: Lindsay Cox
Parkland’s Queens Group is hosting a Black Queens Rock Event from 12-2 p.m. on Feb. 3. The purpose of the event is to empower black women attending Parkland College while kicking off a celebration for Black History Month.
The event is a luncheon accompanied with a dessert bar. The desserts will come from Parkland staff and faculty to give back to the students. There will also be a DJ providing music for the duration of the event. The Black Queens Rock event will include free items for the attendees as well as information about resources they may not know about.
Jessica Jackson, one of Parkland’s Academic Success Coaches, Developmental/Adult Ed Specialists, and an advisor of the Queens Group will lead discussions. Jackson mentioned that the keynote speaker for the event will be Genesis A. Hall, who was named Ms. Black America 2019. Hall is a life coach and a clinical licensed social worker. She even has her own private practice as a therapist.
“I wanted to make sure that the speaker wasn’t going to highlight their own achievements, but someone who was going to have a message that was encouraging for all the women attending. Ms. Hall has great energy and I think she will bring that to the event,” Jackson said about selecting the speaker for the event.
The inspiration for this event came from seeing black women around campus and wanting to have a space where they could all come together to connect and feel supported. Queens Group focuses on bringing women together as well as giving them a safe space to share their experiences in and out of the classroom.
Queens Group President, Mikyla Steed, has worked hard to make sure that the club is more than a club to its members, but a sisterhood. Steed said that though the event is for all Black women across campus, it is mandatory that you send an email to Whited or Jackson in order to RSVP.
The Black Queens Rock event is a great way to begin Black History Month and to celebrate the women at Parkland.
Black Queens Rock is an event intended to remind our African American women at Parkland that they are seen and valued. Melanie Whited, an Academic Success Coach, Student Engagement Specialist and an advisor of the Queens Group stated, “We all have different challenges sometimes and I wanted to build a community and a support system for our diverse students at Parkland. My goal is to also have a safe space where students feel comfortable to be their authentic selves.”
Whited also mentioned that, it’s sometimes difficult to find programming that reflects diverse values as a minority. This event was created with that challenge in mind and to celebrate diversity. Both Whited and Jackson find joy in diversity and serving the students of Parkland.
“It’s affirming to me, because we have a number of populations on campus that are underserved. Our black women are certainly underserved. While we have an incredible line up for Black History Month events, sometimes when we are learning about Black history, we’re talking a lot about slavery and things that are heavy,” Jackson told the Prospectus. “These things can be hard to digest as a black person.”
The Black Queens Rock event will be a chance for students engage with one another, while providing an empowering opportunity for black women on campus. Please contact Melanie Whited at MWhited@parkland.edu or Jessica Jackson at JJackson@parkland.edu with any questions or to RSVP.
