113006_Clafintrue1334586686108acckfpUniversit Relations - Press ReleaseUniversity, Relations, press, release, Clafin, black, exchangeHofstra and Claflin Universities have agreed to exchange faculty for the coming spring semester as part of an ongoing program to establish closer ties between the two institutions, Hofstra Provost Herman Berliner announced today. /Hofstra_Main_Site/Home/News/PressReleases/Archive/113006_Clafinprpsdv1186608216064sdwork11207941013230Press Release Sub TitleFirst step in establishing ties with historically black institutionPress Release TitleHofstra and Claflin Universities Agree to Exchange Faculty This SpringPress Release Date2006/11/30Stu VincentUniversity RelationsHofstra hall516-463-6493516-463-5146stuart.vincent@hofstra.edu//Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY – Hofstra and Claflin Universities have agreed to exchange faculty for the coming spring semester as part of an ongoing program to establish closer ties between the two institutions, Hofstra Provost Herman Berliner announced today.

Hofstra President Stuart Rabinowitz signed the agreement earlier this year with Henry N. Tisdale, president of Claflin, a South Carolina university founded to educate freed slaves. Dr. Daniel Sciarra, the chair of Hofstra’s Department of Counseling, Research, Special Education and Rehabilitation in the School of Education and Allied Human Services, will teach at Claflin for the spring semester. Annette Grevious, an assistant professor of speech and drama at Claflin, will teach at Hofstra during the same period. 

"As part of our ongoing initiative to enhance campus diversity, we welcome the opportunity to establish closer ties with Claflin University, a noted historically black institution,” said Dr. Berliner, noting that the plan is for the faculty exchange to continue each spring semester. “By sending a highly accomplished Hofstra faculty member to Claflin for a semester and having a highly accomplished faculty member from Claflin come here, we are able to introduce new ideas and build on the strengths of both Universities"

Dr. Sciarra is a tenured associate professor as well as a licensed psychologist and a licensed mental health counselor. He has extensive multicultural experience and also an extensive record of teaching and scholarship. Prof. Grevious has an MFA from the University of Louisville and has extensive teaching experience at all levels. At Claflin, she teaches introduction to theatre, fundamentals of acting, voice and diction as well as modern drama and public speaking.  She also has extensive performance, directing and technical experience. 

Located in Orangeburg, South Carolina, 75 miles west of Charleston, Claflin University is an independent, liberal arts, co-educational university affiliated with the United Methodist Church.

Claflin was founded in 1869 by Methodist missionaries “to prepare freed slaves to take their rightful places as full American citizens,” according to the University, which takes its name from two Methodist churchmen, Massachusetts Governor William Claflin and his father, Boston philanthropist Lee Claflin, who provided a large part of the funds to purchase the campus.

Claflin has a total student enrollment of about 1,800, drawn from 45 South Carolina counties, 24 states and 18 countries. Like Hofstra, Claflin offers a 14:1 student-teacher ratio.

Hofstra University is a dynamic private institution where students find their edge to succeed in more than 140 undergraduate and 150 graduate programs in liberal arts and sciences, business, communication, education and allied human services, and honors studies, as well as a School of Law. Our professors teach small classes averaging 25 students that emphasize interaction, critical thinking and analysis. Hofstra offers a faculty whose highest priority is teaching excellence, cutting edge technology, extensive library resources, internships and special educational programs that appeal to their interests and abilities.  The Hofstra community is driven, dynamic and energetic, helping students find and focus their strengths to prepare them for a successful future.

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