BARNESVILLE — Gordon State College students, faculty and administrators participated in the African-American Male Initiative virtual graduation on Friday, May 21, with the theme — Your VOICE Matters — and featured graduates from the spring and summer.
Professor Ryran Traylor, director of AAMI at GSC, welcomed keynote speaker, Dr. Kirk A. Nooks, president of GSC, who spoke about the importance of the AAMI program in producing graduates.
“As we continue to reach new heights with our retention rates, the University System of Georgia’s AAMI Commencement reinforces the ultimate goal of producing graduates,” Nooks said. “We are delighted to see the progress of these men and to witness this memorable celebration.”
Traylor was instrumental in creating the virtual graduation, which he proposed last year during the COVID-19 pandemic to Wanda Gross, director of AAMI for the USG.
“The goal was established for our GSC scholars to also see their AAMI counterparts from other schools across the state,” said Traylor. “The second reason for the event was to help with recruitment and retention by allowing the younger men to get a glimpse of what could be in their near future.
“Finally, this is an opportunity for all of the parents, grandparents and family members of our graduates to see the importance of the work the AAMI program and especially those that represent homes of first-generation graduates.”
Traylor created a committee of colleagues from across the state and took the small production hosted with eight schools last year and turned it into a wonderful celebration in 2021.
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