The World Needs Visionaries
Claflin University Summer Arts Intensive Day Camp to Showcase Acting, Music, and Production Skills

The 10th annual Claflin University Summer Arts Intensive (CUSAI) Day Camp will conclude with a performance of Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears, a West African tale, on Friday June 29, at 5:30 p.m. in Ministers' Hall. Admission is free and open to the public. 
 
The camp, which is funded by the Claflin University Faculty Student Seed Grant, provides high-quality arts education, exposure to a college campus, and college student mentors to youth entering grades kindergarten through fifth grade.  
 
Last week during the CUSAI's Residential Camp, the professors taught the students and the college mentors assisted. This week the roles are reversed and the college mentors have assumed the teaching duties. Camp participants are now being taught by their college mentors in acting, dance, music, art, and video production while preparing for Friday's culminating presentation. 
 
"After spending a week observing our professors, we were given the opportunity to serve as instructors," said Kayla Richardson, college acting mentor. "We are responsible for instructing and guiding them to produce a show we can all be proud of."
 
The college mentors are Myles Coverson-Springs (dance), Esther Jones (music), Perrice Ledbetter (video production), Austin Reynolds (art), and Kayla Richardson (acting).

Claflin Joins the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association

Claflin University's membership in the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA), becomes official on July 1, 2018. Claflin President Henry N. Tisdale said the decision to move to the conference headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., was made after careful consideration of potential benefits.
 
"We believe this is a win-win situation for the University and our student-athletes," Tisdale said. "The CIAA aligns with our institutional profile and the proximity of its members to Orangeburg is very attractive for our alumni and supporters."
 
Claflin raised its athletic program profile when it became a NCAA Division II member in 2008 and concurrently joined the SIAC. Claflin sponsors men's basketball, women's basketball, baseball, softball, volleyball, men's and women's indoor track and field, men's and women's outdoor track and field, and men's and women's cross country. A tradition of excellence describes Claflin's athletic history.
 
A plethora of championship trophies and banners adorn the Jonas T. Kennedy Health and Physical Education Center, the University's indoor athletic facility. Claflin exits the SIAC after winning conference titles in women's volleyball, baseball, softball and men's basketball during its 10-year tenure. An impressive number of student-athletes have won top individual honors, including an Olympic qualifier.
 
Founded in 1912, the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) is the first African American athletic conference and one of the most recognized conferences in Division II. The CIAA conducts 14 championships attended by more than 150,000 fans from around the country.
 
Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, the CIAA is governed by the Presidents and Chancellors of its 12 member-institutions: Bowie State University, Chowan University, Elizabeth City State University, Fayetteville State University, Johnson C. Smith University, Lincoln University of Pennsylvania, Livingstone College, Saint Augustine's University, Shaw University, Virginia State University, Virginia Union University and Winston-Salem State University.
 
For more information on the CIAA, visit theciaa.com.


Note:  The CIAA has crafted a short survey that focuses specifically on future locations for the tournament and key deciding factors that would encourage people to attend. Click here to take the survey.

Alumni News

Members of the Class of 1978 recently met to discuss their upcoming 40th class reunion. Pictured are Brenda H. Esau, Dyanne W. Lyles and Sylvia G. Ellis.

Panther Pride
Tiaria Norman named HBCU Digest Female Athlete of the Year

Former Claflin University softball player Tiaria Norman has been named the 2018 HBCU Digest Female Athlete of the Year. The 2018 HBCU Awards program was held Friday, June 22, at the Renaissance Baltimore Harborplace Hotel in Baltimore, Md.
 
Norman, a May 2018 graduate of Claflin University with a degree in Education, was named the 2018 Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) Starting Pitcher of the Year. 
 
She finished her three-year career at Claflin with the most strikeouts in school history, 630. In 2018 she had 239 strikeouts and was ranked 6th in the nation in strikeouts and sacrifice flies.
 
The HBCU Awards is the first and only national awards ceremony honoring individual and institutional achievement at historically black colleges and universities throughout the country. Winners are selected by a panel of previous winners, journalist, HBCU executives, students and alumni for the merit of accomplishment and for generating positive coverage for HBCU campus communities.


Claflin Lady Panther Softball Player Kayla Cato Travels to South Africa


Claflin University rising senior softball player, Kayla Cato, is currently in Cape Town, South Africa, with the Beyond Softball Tour until June 30. Cato is a mass communications major from Decatur, Ga. 

During the 10-day tour, the athletes will 
team up with the South Africa Softball Federation to host a service-learning clinic coaching local youth . In addition, there will be three softball games against various levels of teams in South Africa, including a team from the women's professional league.
 
The tour will also allow for time for the athletes to take in various cultural activities and sites in Cape Town, including Robben Island where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned for 18 years before becoming the first democratically-elected president, as well as the small beach town of Wilderness.

June 27, 2018
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@Claflin is published by the Office of Communications & Marketing 
President: Dr. Henry N. Tisdale, '65
Vice President for Institutional Advancement: Rev. Whittaker V. Middleton, '73
Assistant Vice President for Communications & Marketing: George Johnson Jr.
Public Relations Director: J. Craig Cotton
Web Communications Manager: Colin Myers, '07
Sports Information Director: Romanda Noble-Watson
Photographers: Cecil Williams, '60, Geoff Henderson and Colin Myers, '07