Richard L. Wright, Ph.D.Undergraduate
Faculty Trustee
Professor School of Communications Richard L. Wright, Ph.D., a member since 2009, was appointed to a professorship at Howard University in 1976, and has served the University continuously for over 35 years. In addition to his primary commitment to teaching, some of his other activities have included: Director of Graduate Study for his department; founding Director of the Annenberg Honors Program in the School of Communications; Director of the Teaching and Graduate Assistants Development Program for his department, Vice-Chair and, subsequently, Chair of the Faculty Senate; and member of three Provost Search Committees. As an undergraduate student at Howard from 1960-64, he majored in Spanish and minored in French. He was active in student affairs, and shared in campus student activism during the Civil Rights years. He was awarded a Fulbright Grant for travel, study, and lecturing in Guatemala, Central America, and upon his return to the United States in 1965, he accepted a full scholarship at the University of Texas in Austin, earning a M.A. degree in Latin American Studies and a Ph.D. in Sociolinguistics. He has traveled and lived internationally throughout Latin America, and is competent in both Spanish and Portuguese. He lectures extensively across campus on topics related to language and linguistics, teaching and learning dynamics, language in the Black Community, as well as other issues related to education and the necessity for effective preparation in meeting the complex challenges of contemporary life. |
 At this point in my 36 years of devoted service as a faculty member of my beloved institution, I consider it an honor and a privilege to serve as a member of the Board of Trustees of Howard University.
As a wide-eyed and eager undergraduate student during the Civil Rights years of 1960-64, as a well prepared alumnus who went forward to meet the challenges of a challenging world, as a faculty member who has served in various roles and gained much institutional knowledge in the process, and now as a member of the Board, I believe that I am positioned to bring both commitment and expertise to bear on the multiple challenges and opportunities that Howard faces at this pivotal moment in its distinguished history.
Having received the nomination from my colleagues in the Faculty Senate to serve as its representative on the Board, I have committed myself to the task of working to ensure a cooperative, collaborative and productive partnership among the Faculty Senate, Administration, and Board of Trustees. Meeting the daunting challenges of the present as well as forging a future of continued contribution and needed innovation will require that our best and collective intellectual capital be invested into the needs and opportunities that Howard faces at this moment.
I serve on the Board to work diligently and committedly to realize and energize this much needed and much desired linkage for the long-term health and benefit of Howard University. I can think of no place that I would rather be or work that I would rather do than serve the Academy at Howard University as a member of the Board of Trustees. |