The college holds Black History Month Luncheon

February 22, 2026 Michael Lear-Olimpi

Speaker asks: ‘Black History Month—why bother?’ He engaged everyone while telling them why we bother.

Young man with short curly hair and a serious, pensive expression, wearing a black polo shirt., Noah Lopez.

Story and Photos

By Noah Lopez

Knightly News Reporter

[email protected]

Students, faculty, staff and guests gathered on Thursday in the Central Penn Conference Center recently for the college’s annual Black History Month Luncheon, an event centered on celebration, remembrance and community.

“Black History Month Luncheon is a luncheon to celebrate, commemorate and recognize the contributions and the history of Black Americans to our nation,” Abbee Breski, Central Penn’s student engagement coordinator and athletic success coach, said.

This year’s celebration placed emphasis on student voice. Black Student Union (BSU) President Ashaun Harris played a key role in shaping the event, Breski explained. Students also received annually bestowed leadership awards, presented at the banquet by Associate Vice President of Student Services Erika Wilkinson.

“We do try to keep it student-led,” Breski said.

One example of that leadership was inclusion of a church praise-team performance, an appeaerance that Harris coordinated.

The event also featured a keynote address from Joseph Robinson, who recently served as executive director of the South Central Pennsylvania Sickle Cell Council. Robinson has worked to raise awareness and resources for individuals affected by sickle cell disease and is president of the Martin Luther King Jr. Leadership Development Institute. He is also a member of the Central Penn College Board of Directors.

Opening remarks and musical performance

Harris opened the program by thanking attendees and by framing the luncheon as a shared celebration of Black history and its impact.

Central Penn College Associate Vice President of Student Services Erika Wilkinson and Central Penn student Danasia Morris standing together, smiling, and each holding a side of Danasia's certificate for The Rosa Parks Award for Academic Excellence. — Associate Vice President of Student Services Erika Wilkinson and Danasia Morris. See list of awards in the lower half of the story.

“We celebrate Black history to commemorate and recognize the contributions and histories of Black Americans to our nation and, moreover, the impact to the world,” Harris said.

Harris then invited Reginald Bass to offer a prayer before Harris introduced the Young Adult Praise Team of the Greater Zion Missionary Baptist Church, a congregation of which Harris noted he is a member, to perform for the gathering of about 140 people. Bass is on staff at Greater Zion.

Keynote address: ‘Black History Month—Why Bother?’

Man in a gray suit behind a podium gesturing, with arms halfway out from his sides. Joseph Robinson. — “The one holding the pen gets to write the story,” Robinson said,

Robinson, who earned a bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Virginia and received an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters for community service from Central Penn in 2016, opened his address by thanking the praise team and saying it had turned the conference center ballroom into “a chapel.” He also reflected on the meaning of “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” explaining the history of the song long recognized the Black national anthem, and why it still matters to many people.

Central Penn Associate Vice President of Student Services and Ashuan Harris each hold a side of Harris' Rev. Dr. Olin Harris Award for Character certficiate. — Wilkinson with
Ashuan Harris.

Donnell Loud and Erika Wilkinson, Central Penn College's assoicate vice president of student services each hold a side of Loud's The Rev. Dr. Olin Harris Award for Character certificate. — Donnell Loud with
Wilkinson.

Central Penn College Associate Vice President of Student Services Erika Wilkinson and Central Penn student Kyle Brent standing together and each holding a side of Brent's Dr. C. Delores Tucker Award for Community Service certificate. — Wilkinson and Kyle Brent.

Robinson titled his speech, “Black History Month, Why Bother?” and used personal stories and historical examples to explain his message. He compared the question to weighing himself each morning while expecting change without having done anything different to change the number and then connected that idea to why it matters to remember, protect and teach history.

“The one holding the pen gets to write the story,” Robinson said, later emphasizing how perspective can shape what people learn and what gets left out.

Robinson pointed to the origins of Negro History Week, started by African American historian Carter G. Woodson in 1926, and explained that Woodson’s goal was not to separate history but to make sure Black Americans were recognized as contributors within it. Robinson also highlighted a wide range of cultural and scientific contributions by Black Americans, tying those examples to his larger point that truth, remembrance and understanding matter.

Central Penn Associate Vice President of Student Services and Jalicia Johnson each hold a side of Johnson's Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Award for Leadership. certificate. — Wilkinson with Jalicia Johnson.

Awards and recipients

Five students received awards at the luncheon:

Danasia Morris – The Rosa Parks Award for Academic Excellence.
Kyle Brent – The Dr. C. Delores Tucker Award for Community Service.
Donnell Loud – The Rev. Dr. Olin Harris Award for Character.
Ashaun John Harris – The Bayard Rustin Award for Social Justice Advocacy.
Jalicia “JJ” Johnson – The Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Award for Leadership.

Group of people standing together, West Shore Connect Program students in the middle and a woman teacher on each side. — Students, and teachers, on each end, of the West Shore Connect Program.

Central Penn student Khalil Dukes and Black History Month Luncheon keynote speaker Joseph Robinson, with Dukes holding a copy of Robinson's book, “Seven Leadership Imperatives from a Wild Man,” which Robinson, who is a member of Central Penn's board of directors, gave the student leaders as a gift for his senior year. — Khalil Dukes with Robinson.

West Shore Connect, a program for students who graduated from high school and have intellectual disabilities or autism, or both, received the 2026 Central Penn College Institutional Diversity and Equity Committee Humanitarian Award for its continued dedication to fostering inclusion and community on campus. Students in the program attend classes and engage in activities at Central Penn.

Each award recipient received a $500 scholarship from the Central Penn College Education Foundation.

Robinson recognized student leader Khalil Dukes and presented him with a copy of his book, “Seven Leadership Imperatives from a Wild Man,” as a parting gift for Dukes’ senior year.

Lopez is president of The Knightly News Media Club @ Central Penn College.

Comments or story ideas?

Contact [email protected].

Edited by media-club co-adviser and blog editor Professor Michael Lear-Olimpi.