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In The News



Stay updated on all of the current news and accomplishments of the MRLA and its professionals.



May 2022



5.23.22



Obama Foundation Launches Scholarship For Aspiring Civic Leaders





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4.26.22



J.R. Smith named North Carolina A&T’s Academic Athlete of the Year





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4.1.22



3.13.22



14-year-old from Baton Rouge to graduate with physics, chemical engineering degree in May





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2.20.22



Pre-order available now! Scan the QR Code to purchase or click the link below:





Pre-Order Here Now!!!



2.11.22



Jackson State’s Shedeur Sanders is first college football player to sign NIL deal with Gatorade





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1.26.22



Dawn Staley’s Historic Contract: ‘Glimpse of Hope For Women’





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1.5.22



105 Publishing has signed Dr. Samose Mays and will be publishing his new book entitled "Leadership Skills From A Former Follower".





105 Publishing Website



12.29.21



Jennifer King Became First Black Female Position Coach in NFL History





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12.16.21



The nation’s No. 1 overall recruit and highest-rated CB ever is headed to Jackson State!





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12.11.21



Simone Biles Named as Time Magazine’s 2021 Athlete of the Year





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12.1.21



Hondo Handy’s Podcast shares the journey of Dr. Samose Mays, Director of Parks & Recreation

Residence Inn by Marriott presents the 82nd Episode of the Hondo Handy’s Podcast. The podcast shares the journey of Dr. Samose Mays, Director of Parks and Recreation at Byran County, in Richmond Hill, Georgia. A former two time college drop out and homeless student now has three degrees. He has been a Keynote Speaker throughout nation, as well as an Adjunct Professor at Georgia Southern University. He is also the MRLA Founder, the Minority Recreation Leadership Academy to help minorities to rise in their career in parks and recreation and learn how to be leaders and how to make a difference.





Listen Here



11.28.21



Leadership Bryan Class of 2022

Dr. Samose L. Mays

Founded in 2002, by the Richmond Hill Bryan County Chamber of Commerce, Leadership Bryan is designed to bring together a diverse group of potential leaders and provide a forum for a shared viewpoint on the needs of Bryan County. Our mission is to develop a new generation of leadership to enhance the future of Bryan County. Leadership Bryan is an every-other-year program.





Visit Here



11.9.21



Congratulations to Mona Ford Walker and Brian Gaston, students in the Doctor of Education Leadership Program, whose transformational leadership at their former schools was recognized by the U.S. Department of Education and National Blue Ribbon schools.





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10.27.21



NJ Devils Giving a Black Business the Chance to Market on Helmets





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10.15.21



Portland footwear designer proposes to reopen closed Detroit Black college





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10.6.21



Suffolk Law School Offering Full Rides to Graduates From 35 HBCUs





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9.28.21



Join @PlayCoreNews and @GameTimePlay for Good News: In Parks!, a monthly, interactive Zoom show where three leading park and recreation professionals will share best practices across relevant topics that inform their work and the resulting positive impacts on community well-being.





Watch It Here



9.17.21



Yum! Brands announced the appointment of #ELCMember Aaron Powell as CEO of Pizza Hut, effective September 20.





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9.1.21



Doctoral Mom Incorporated founded in 2019, Doctoral Mom Incorporated is a 501c3 organization that supports 5,000 mothers in doctorate programs. Doctoral Moms represent 100+ colleges and universities and are located in 100+ countries.





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8.24.21



13-year-old becomes youngest student on Georgia Tech’s campus





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8.12.21



FAMU Celebrates Graduating One of Its Largest Doctoral Classes at Summer 2021 Commencement





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8.5.21



Trevor Stewart first HBCU track star to medal in 2021 games





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8.1.21



Grambling State Considers Becoming The First HBCU To Offer Women’s Gymnastics





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7.27.21



We would like to congratulate MRLA steering committee member Amber Porter for successfully passing the Certified Park and Recreation Professional (CPRP) exam.

The Certified Park and Recreation Professional (CPRP) certification is the national standard for all parks and recreation professionals who want to be at the forefront of their profession.



7.27.21



MRLA steering committee member Ashley Tremble-Scott who serves as the Health, Physical Education & Athletics Program Coordinator for SCCPSS, educates area coaches during her Social Media & Communication presentation at the Savannah Chatham County Public School System Coaches Clinic.



7.23.21



First High School Mega-Deal: Basketball Phenom Signs Three Years Before He Can Join NBA





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7.19.21



MRLA Founder Dr. Samose Mays is among the top speakers at the 2021 URPA Annual Conference - August 30, 31 & September 1, 2021 - Provo, UT





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7.15.21



Special Thanks and Congratulations are in order to Mrs. Lakeidra Lee as she transitions into her new role at The Teal House as Forensic Interviewer and Family Advocate. In this role, Lakeidra will be working very close with the Law Enforcement and Department of Family and Children Services in the Ogeechee Judicial Circuit in addition to providing additional support to the victims of violent crimes.





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7.13.21



Kemp first Black graduate to receive math Ph.D. from IU





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7.9.21



African American spelling bee champ Zaila Avant-garde makes history





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7.2.21



Master P's son, Hercy Miller, signs $2M endorsement deal after NCAA rule change





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6.22.21



Howard University Alum Nicholas Perkins, Acquires $18M Fuddruckers Franchise





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6.15.21



Dropout To Doctor: Steps to Becoming and Effective Leader

(Dr. Samose L. Mays)

June 17th (7pm edt)





Get Your Tickets Here



5.27.21



Calvin Nobles Selected as New Chair of Department of Information Technology and Management





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5.20.21



Howard University, Amazon Web Services to develop a master's degree program





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5.7.21



LSU names next president will be first Black president of university system





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5.3.21



BDN Call For Papers





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4.26.21



BCSG 360 and Black College Nines Team Up to Create Baseball’s First Black College World Series





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4.21.21



4.16.21



Doctoral Mom Incorporated is excited to announce that the Dorothy M. Thomas Scholarship is now open!

To qualify, the student must be a mother enrolled in an accredited college or university pursuing a doctorate degree. This scholarship is funded by Dissertation by Design and the recipient will be awarded $2,000 and coaching services.

Deadline: 04/28/21

Application Link: www.doctoralmom.com/scholarships

Doctoral Mom Incorporated is a nonprofit that supports mothers in doctorate programs.





Read More About The Scholarship Here



4.12.21



7 Questions with Dr. Samose Mays





Read the interview here



4.5.21



UNC to hire Hubert Davis as its next basketball coach





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4.2.21



4.1.21



Shaunte’ Hardy serves as the Summer Camp Assistant Director for Bryan County Recreation in Richmond Hill, Georgia. She has been with the organization since July 2018, where she started at an Athletic Coordinator. She is also the Director of the Special Needs Basketball Camp.

Shaunte’ is the Project Manager for the Minority Recreational Leadership Academy and the Editor for the “Minorities in Parks & Rec” Newsletter. In March 2020, COVID-19 affected everyone’s lives across the world.

There were massive shutdowns of organizations in the United States. For Shaunte’ this happened at the beginning phases of the summer camp registration. Shaunte’ immediately began working on new protocols and procedures that would be implemented into their Summer Camp program.

The process took her many months and a lot of research. Shaunte’ believed that other recreation departments were having the same obstacles and knew they may benefit from a condensed version of her research.

In 2021, Shaunte’ began presenting her ‘Summer Camping in a Pandemic’ to recreation departments across the country. The response for the information and the request for her protocols and research were overwhelming. She has presented the information in conferences as far away as California and in the coming months, she will be conducting educational sessions in Georgia, North Carolina and New York.

In addition to ‘Summer Camping in a Pandemic’, she also has sessions on ‘Child Abuse Detection and Prevention’ and ‘Empowering Seasonal Workers to be Leaders’.



4.1.21



Leadership Spotlight - Henry W. Smith, MD

Dr. Smith is a graduate of Morehouse College and the Harvard Medical School. Outstanding clinic training and faculty experiences at Emory University combined with greater than 25 years of practice experience result in an emphasis on patient-centered care and excellent clinical outcomes.

As a past Chairman of the Cone Health Board of Trustees, Dr. Smith is dedicated to the institutional goal of top tier health care delivery.

Areas of Interest

Areas of interest include invasive and interventional management of acute coronary syndrome.

Education

Medical School
Harvard Medical School

Professional Memberships

Member of the American Heart Association
Fellow, American College of Cardiology

Board Certifications

Cardiovascular Diseases
Interventional Cardiology



3.29.21



New Morehouse College Program Encourages Black Men To Complete Unfinished Degrees





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3.29.21



The Untold History Of The First African American Female Golfers





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3.24.21



A new episode of Open Space Radio is out now! On this episode, we're joined by Dr. Samose Mays, CPRP, CYSA, AFO, the director of Bryan County Parks and Recreation and Georgia Recreation and Park Association district two commissioner, to discuss his journey of going from experiencing homelessness to becoming the director of a park and recreation agency and a leader in his community, as well as how he is leading efforts to increase diverse representation within the park and recreation profession.



Tune in to the full episode here



3.19.21



Lansdowne student accepted into 18 colleges with $2 million in scholarships



Read The Story Here





The Minority Recreational Leadership Academy



Developing Leaders in Parks and Recreation