The Professor Roberta Meek Africana Studies Award

The Office of Multicultural Life and the Africana Studies Program present this annual award named in honor of Professor Roberta Meek, who taught Africana Studies courses at Muhlenberg for over a decade and directed the Program for five years. This award is a direct reflection of the ways that Professor Meek’s classes, and the work she does with her community outside of the classroom, remind us all of the full humanity of Black people in a world that tries to dehumanize them. This scholarship is a means to honor Professor Meek’s lifelong commitment to Africana Studies. Awardees are chosen for their commitment to contributing to the world in empathetic, ethical ways, and they can demonstrate that commitment through a wide range of majors, minors, activities, and career and life plans. Taken in its totality, the work of an awardee reflects Africana Studies’ core tenet of intertwining scholarship and activism, as exemplified in Professor Meek’s work and life. Additionally, the awardees demonstrate their commitment to emulating Professor Meek’s lifelong dedication to the pursuit of social and racial justice in their plans for the future – both their own future and the just, collective future they are committed to creating.