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Students at Ujamaa participate in the residential program house's weekly Unity Hour discussion.

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Ujamaa Residential College

Ujamaa Residential College is celebrating its 40th anniversary on campus with events this year beginning with a banquet Sept. 22in the Willard Straight Hall Memorial Room.

The 7 p.m. banquet will honor the program house and feature speeches by past and present Ujamaa faculty fellows and residence hall directors, and music and spoken-word performances by current students.

Ujamaa was created by Cornell students in 1972 as a residential community and cultural center, to help black students and the broader Cornell community discuss and acquire in-depth knowledge of issues affecting the lives of people of the African diaspora living in the United States, Africa and the Caribbean.

Any Cornell student with an interest in African diaspora studies or African culture can apply to reside at Ujamaa; 144 students currently live there.

Ujamaa occupies a three-story, 33,000-square-foot building formerly known as Low Rise 10, at 68 Sisson Place on North Campus.

It was the first ethnically themed campus residence of its kind in the nation and the third of eight residential program houses at Cornell. Before Low Rise 10 opened in 1970, the Wari House and the Elmwood cooperative were residences for black women and men, respectively, at Cornell. The 1969 Willard Straight Hall takeover was precipitated by a cross burning in the front yard of Wari House.

"Cornell has changed and evolved in some very important ways, but this was a way of creating a support system and a community at a time when there was a lot of turbulence and chaos on campuses everywhere," said Renee Alexander '74, associate dean of students and director of intercultural programs, who lived in Low Rise 10 when she came to Cornell as a freshman in 1970.

"The experience back then gave us the opportunity to carry on strong bonds and relationships," Alexander said. "Within Low Rise 10, it was a very positive and supportive network. Like the Latino Living Center, it was more than a residence, it was a cultural living place."

Ujamaa's celebration continues with Frank Scruggs '73, one of the students who wrote the original proposal to establish Ujamaa, speaking Sept. 29 at 2 p.m. at the Africana Studies and Research Center.

"Mr. Scruggs will share information about his experience as a student during that time and discuss his source of inspiration for the concept of Ujamaa Residential College," said Ujamaa Residence Hall Director Theoria Cason.

"Ujamaa" is the Swahili word for the concept of cooperative economics, or working together as an extended family to build and maintain a cohesive community. Through social events and programs, Ujamaa helps its students excel and learn about cultural, historical, economic and social issues affecting African-Americans and people across the African diaspora. Sunday evening Unity Hour programs are held to facilitate discussion of these issues. The house's faculty fellows are James Turner, N'dri Assie Lumumba and Carol Boyce Davies.

During the academic year, Ujamaa hosts an annual welcome barbecue, organizes study groups, conducts public service programs in the Ithaca community, and sponsors a trip each year to the United Nations, among other activities.

Homecoming Weekend events

Other diversity events on campus during Homecoming Weekend include an Intercultural Center Open House, Sept. 21, 4-6 p.m. at 626 Thurston Ave., and four events Sept. 22: Mosaic Exchange Breakfast, 9 a.m. in 700 Clark Hall; Mosaic Homecoming Tailgate, 10 a.m.-1 p.m. in Crescent Lot; Student-Alumni Leadership Reception, 6-7 p.m. in the Willard Straight International Lounge; and an LGBTQ and Allies Dance Party, 10 p.m.-1 a.m. at the Big Red Barn (information available online).