Chartered on February 26, 2012, the Sampson County Chapter of the NC A&T State University Alumni Association believes in the slogan “Aggies Do.” To chapter members, this is much more than a slogan, it is part of a legacy of being committed to providing opportunities to help change a student’s life in a positive manner.

One of the chapter’s most important initiative is to provide scholarship assistance for deserving local students who wish to attend NC A&T. In addition to providing scholarships, the local chapter also sponsors an annual Black History Month poster contest for county high school students.

In gearing up for the 2018 Black History Month poster contest, information announcing the art contest has been sent to each high school in the county. The poster contest theme for 2018 is “African Americans in Times of War” which coincides with the 100th anniversary of the ending of World War I in 1918. The 2018 Black History Month theme will honor those brave men and women who served their country in the armed forces—both militarily and on the home front—defending the American ideals of freedom and democracy, with particular emphasis on those who made the ultimate sacrifice.

Hoping that their willingness to volunteer for military service would lead to better treatment, black Americans have answered the call to arms throughout the nation’s history. This, many black Americans believed, would help them win “a more even chance for American life,” as they wanted full equality as part of the American promise set aside for all under the Constitution.

Members of the Sampson County Chapter of the NC A&T State University Alumni Association want this poster contest to be an opportunity for all high school students to participate in a fun, celebratory and a unique learning experience, while creating visual artistic expressions to honor black Americans who answered to call to duty.

February 2018 will mark the 92nd year of the inception of what was then called Negro History Week, now known as Black History Month. After organizing the Association for the Study of African-American Life and History in 1915, Carter G. Woodson, the Father of Black History, originated the celebration of Black History month, starting in February 1926. This observance has continued, with every American president since Gerald Ford in 1976, proclaiming February as Black History Month.

For those high school students who would like to be a part of the 2018 Black History Month poster contest and learn more about America’s rich and diverse African American heritage, please contact your local school art teacher. The deadline for submitting any artwork will be February 12, 2018.

North Carolina A&T State University is one of the country’s 19 historically black land-grant universities established in 1891 under the auspices of the Second Morrill Act passed by Congress in 1890. And anyone who would like to join the Aggie family and become part of the Sampson County Chapter of the NC A&T Alumni Association is encouraged to attend the monthly meetings on each second Monday at First Baptist, 900 College St., Clinton, at 6 p.m.

By Larry Sutton

Contributing writer