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MEDIA CONTACT: Stacia Smith
561-297-2971, ssmith@fau.edu
FAU Professor Receives African-American
Achiever Award
BOCA RATON, FL (March 12, 2004) -
Kitty Oliver, a professor at Florida Atlantic
University, received JM Family Enterprises'
African-American Achiever Award at the 12th Annual
African-American Achievers' Award Ceremony held at
the Broward County Convention Center on March 11 in
Ft. Lauderdale. Oliver was one of five honored with
this award that recognizes community leaders for
their outstanding contributions toward enriching the
quality of life in South Florida.
"Kitty's exemplary work on
oral history enriches the lives of all it touches,"
said William A. Covino, dean of the Dorothy F.
Schmidt College of Arts and Letters at FAU.
Oliver, a veteran South
Florida journalist and author, has dedicated her life
to opening up avenues of dialogue to discuss race and
its effects on the American experience. She spent
many years gathering oral histories in
African-American neighborhoods in southeast Florida.
Her work resulted in the publication of Voices of
America: Race and Change in Hollywood, Florida, and
the recording of a TV documentary on the same
subject. Her books are currently used in Florida's
public schools to promote tolerance and understanding
across racial and cultural lines.
As professor and
writer-in-residence in FAU's Dorothy F. Schmidt
College of Arts and Letters, Oliver teaches young
people to recall and write about their roots. She
recently initiated the "Lift Every Voice" project at
the African-American Research Library and Cultural
Center in Fort Lauderdale, where she teaches
community members how to collect, write and preserve
their own oral histories. Oliver also presents a
variety of entertaining musical and educational
programs for student and adult audiences focusing on
race relations, ethnic diversity issues, oral history
and writing.
The driving forces behind
Oliver's success are chronicled in her recent
autobiography, Multicolored Memories of a Black
Southern Girl, where she describes her youth and her
experiences as a member of the University of
Florida's first freshman class to include
African-Americans. She then went on to become one of
the first black journalists with The Miami Herald. To
learn more about Oliver's work, go to
www.kittyoliveronline.com.
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