Black History Month Events
"The Black College Expo” — LA Convention Center
Sat, February 10 | 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. (Lunch will be provided.)
Free with Student I.D. (Parking requires credit or debit card)
LA Convention Center
SMC’s General Counseling & Transfer Services — along with the Black Collegians Umoja Community and Outreach and Recruitment — will be providing transportation for SMC students to attend this year’s Black College Expo at the LA Convention Center. Form for students to use for transportation.
Don’t miss this exciting event for students of all ages, complete with opportunities to win cash and prizes! Come meet with representatives from more than 50 colleges, get answers to your questions, and find out about a variety of educational resources. Plus, you can even get accepted to a college and apply for scholarships on the spot! If you are an SMC transfer student, bring along your transcripts from all colleges that you have attended. If you are a high school student in the 12th grade (or even the 11th), bring your transcripts and ACT or SAT test scores.
Jason Mott: “Exploring Identity, Love, and Being Black in America in Fiction Writing”
Tue, February 20 | 1 p.m.
Register for the Jason Mott lecture (required) | Online
New York Times bestselling author Jason Mott will talk about his recent novel Hell of a Book. Deeply honest, at times electrically funny, the fictional story of an author on a cross-country publicity tour goes to the heart of racism, police violence, and the hidden costs exacted upon Black Americans and America as a whole. The novel won the Sir Walter Raleigh Award for Fiction and the 2021 National Book Award for Fiction, and was a Carnegie Medals for Excellence Longlist nominee. Mott is the author of two poetry collections and four novels. His first novel, The Returned, was adapted for television and aired on ABC under the title “Resurrection.” Sponsored by the SMC Library and Library Speakers Consortium in collaboration with the SMC Associates. Part of the SMC Library’s Pearls & Insights series.
Workshop: “How to Transfer to a HBCU”
Tue, February 27 | 3:45 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. | Free
SSC 291
Don't miss this workshop to learn more about the HBCUs and how you, as an SMC student, can secure guaranteed admission to a variety of participating HBCUs. Certain requirements and deadlines must be met, so come ask questions. Co-sponsored by General Counseling & Transfer Services and the Black Collegians Umoja Community. Refreshments will be provided.
Lucas Rivera: “My AfroRican State of Soul”
Wed, February 28 | 11 a.m. | Free
Malibu 202 (23555 Civic Center Way, Malibu)
Join us for a book talk and interactive performance by Lucas Rivera, a multidisciplinary artist traveling the country doing spoken word and interactive discussions of his autobiographical My AfroRican State of Soul, a blend of narrative nonfiction and poetry that chronicles his journey. Presenting the perspective of an Afro-Latino, Rivera discusses his life, how art — from turntables to dance, spoken word, painting, and stained glass — was a means of survival, and the important influences of the intersections of the Taino, Spanish, and African cultures that make up the history of Puerto Rico. Sponsored by the SMC Associates, SMC Black Collegians, and SMC Adelante Club.
Brianna Harvey: “Lessons in Liberation: How Black Youth and Families Resist Oppression”
Thu, February 29 | 11:15 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
Register for the Brianna Harvey lecture (required) | Hybrid: Online and at SMC Student Equity Center (Cayton Center, Lower
Level, Room 010)
CSU Fullerton Assistant Professor of Sociology Brianna Harvey will discuss her research examining how carceral systems use policies, practices, and other mechanisms of control to perpetuate anti-blackness and impact the lives of Black youth and their families. With a focus on legacies of Black resistance and liberation, she will draw connections between the institution of slavery, the prison industrial complex, and the ways Black youth and their families continue to subvert carceral subjugation. Dr. Harvey is a former Student Service Specialist for the SMC Guardian Scholars Program. Her previous research explored the K-12 educational experiences of Black foster youth, with attention to the ways schools and the foster system colluded to shape their lives inside and outside of the school setting. Sponsored by the SMC Student Equity Center.