Join Us for Fall 2026 Opening Convocation
Thursday, Sept. 17, 10 a.m.
UDC Theater of the Arts
4200 Connecticut Ave. NW
Washington, DC
Thursday, Sept. 17, 10 a.m.
UDC Theater of the Arts
4200 Connecticut Ave. NW
Washington, DC
From Implementation to Impact — Focused on Success
Chief Academic Officer
Lyrics
O, say can you see?
By the dawn’s early light.
What so proudly, we hailed
By the twilight’s last gleaming.
Whose dark stripes and bright stars
Through the perilous flight
O’er the ramparts we watched
Were so gallantly streaming.
And the rockets’ red glare
The bombs bursting in air
Gave proof, through the night
That our flag was still there.
O, say does that star–spangled banner yet wave
O’er the land of the free,
And the home of the brave!
Welcome Letter from
Mayor of Washington, D.C.
Chair, Board of Trustees
President
"Lift Ev’ry Voice and Sing"
Lyrics
Lift ev’ry voice and sing ’Till earth and heaven ring,
Ring with the harmonies of liberty; Let our rejoicing rise,
High as the list’ning skies,
Let it resound, loud as the rolling sea.
Sing a song
Full of the faith, that the dark past has taught us; Sing a song
Full of the hope that the present has brought us; Facing the rising sun of our new day begun,
Let us march on, ‘till victory is won.
Verse 2
Stonh the road we trod, Bitter the chast’ning rod,
Felt in the days when hope unborn had died; Yet with a steady beat,
Have not our weary feet
Come to the place for which our fathers sighed?
We have come
Over a way that with tears has been water’d;
We have come
Treading our path through the blood of the slaughter’d;
Out of the gloomy past,
Till now we stand at last
Where the bright gleam of which our bright star is cast.
Verse 3
God of our weary years, God of our silent tears,
Thou, who has brought us thus far on the way;
Thou, who hast by Thy might
Led us into the light,
Keep us forever in the path, we pray.
Lest our feet
Stray from the places, our God, where we met Thee;
Lest our hearts
Drunk with the wine of the world, we forget Thee, Shadow’d beneath Thy hand
May we forever stand,
True to our God
True to our native land.
Amen.
"Our Glorious UDC: Alma Mater"
Words by Larry Mills; Music by Robert Felder
Lyrics
Verse 1
A path that’s paved in Red and Gold,
Leading to the dreams life holds
Inspiring every growing mind
To conquer mountains hard to climb.
Verse 2
You’ll always reign with equality
Strength and love and unity
Bringing life’s prosperity
To those who pledge their loyalty.
Verse 3
UDC, you’re praised and loved
Blessed with strength, from God above.
Leading us on through every road
To UDC, our strength, to hold.
Chorus
We praise our UDC
Your precepts, we believe
Always our hearts will sing to Thee:
Our glorious UDC!
Building 71, 4250 Connecticut Avenue, NW, 5th Floor
* Please stand
April Massey, Ph.D., Chief Academic Officer
Tricey Buchanan-Culmer, Offset Duplex Press Operator, Auxiliary Enterprises
Myesha Carter, Ph.D., Associate Chief Academic Officer for the Student Experience
Leah Claiborne, D.M.A., Interim Associate Chief Academic Officer of Academic Programs
Tricia Clarke, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Library, Community College
Tiffany Featherstone, Advancement Operations Administrator
Joseph Green, Ph.D., Associate Vice President of Student Success
Percy Henry III, Director, Student Life & Services
Priscilla Lalisse-Jespersen, Director of Communications
Beverly Lucas, Executive Director, Workforce Innovation
Kyle Nolan B.S., Computer Science and Political Science (Co-Chair)
Prince No Ra, Tech Director, Building Manager, Student Center
Nakia Pugh, University Registrar
Lee Brian Reba, Senior Advisor, Office of the President
Malva Reid, Ph.D., Director of Graduate Education (Co-Chair)
Kemmell Stewart, Senior Academic Administrator to the Chief Academic Officer
Wyl Strong, Program Manager, Office of the Chief Academic Officer (Committee Chair)
Valerie Lewis Taylor, Executive Director, Campus Services, Student Center (Co-Chair)
William Tuohy, Supervisory Information Technology Specialist
Susan Vanderpool, Financial Analyst, Office of the Chief Academic Officer
Dhymsy Vixamar-Owens, Interim Associate Chief Academic Officer for Faculty Affairs
Annie Whatley, Vice President, External Relations
Erica Wright, Esq., Assistant General Counsel
Jasmine Yarish, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Political Science (Co-Chair)
Allan Griffith, III, Chief of Police and Director of Public Safety, Office of Public Safety and Emergency Management
David A. Franklin, Chief Operating Officer, Office of Facilities and Real Estate Management