After five years off campus, BGSU’s NAACP chapter has been reinstated for the upcoming school year and has gotten a lot of attention from students.  

The NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) is a civil rights organization that was introduced in 1901 to fight racial injustice and inequality in the country.

Now, the NAACP fights racial inequality with a focus on seven issues, ranging from Next Generation Leadership to Race & Justice to Education Innovation. 

BGSU’s campus chapter disbanded in 2018, and has been in the works of coming back together since early last semester. 

“I think it’s just important to have the NAACP on campus because it really emphasizes all colored people. Obviously we have other student organizations on campus like the Black Student Union or the African Student Association, but this one will unite us all together and focus on everyone,” said President of the NAACP chapter Sunny Dicks.

Since posting the announcement of the chapter’s return to campus, they were immediately hit with tremendous support and a large social media following. 

Within 24 hours of the first post going up, the chapter had already hit 100 followers. Now within the second week, they are closer to hitting 200 followers. 

“I think everyone was anticipating for it to come back. So once it hit the ground running, people were interested to see what it was going to look like now, and who’s all involved,” said Dicks. 

Dicks says that the organization on campus will do more for the black community at BGSU and that they have plans to be completely involved in it in every way that they can. 

“Being able to provide a platform for voices to be heard (like Black orgs on campus), ideas, changes they want to see, events on campus that they want to see. Just being able to give a chance for that,” said Dicks.

Dicks and her secretary, Alexis Craig, held a high emphasis on the importance of having a community in a predominantly white institution (PWI) like BGSU. 

“You can never have too much inclusivity when it comes to minority groups on campus at a PWI. So the NAACP, one of our main goals will be collecting all of the different orgs, coming together and making our presence more known,” said Craig.  

According to enrollment data provided on BGSU’s website, out of over 15,000 students in 2022, only 16.2% were minorities. 

In a study conducted by the Ohio Capital Journal covering universities across Ohio showed that 67% of Black students that attended PWIs felt unsure or disagreed that their university valued black students. Only 51% of Black students at PWIs felt like they belonged. 

“It’s just that sense of belonging and having people that might have the same background as you that you can bond over,” Dicks said.
Craig agreed, adding that sports and other organizations provided the same feeling.

“To get involved with familiar people where you can bond and share similar experiences can be a lot for people of color,” said Craig. 

To ensure that students feel connected through their org, Craig mentioned the NAACP chapter has a lot planned throughout the year. 

“Our first informational meeting we’re going to introduce the board, talk about the NAACP’s mission, and then we’re going to go ahead and figure out what people around campus want to see. We (also) want to have guest speakers come in from a variety of different professions… just a lot of collaboration and events,” she said. 

So far they have shown their presence on campus by attending events on campus hosted by other Black organizations, such as Curly Connections, Queens of Color and NPHC. 

They plan to have their first meeting in September, but are unsure of when the meeting will be. 

For more information about BGSU’s NAACP chapter, you can reach them through Instagram at bgsu.naacp.

“We specialize in education and just the promotion and well being of everyone… Just fun activities where people can unwind and vent if they need to,” said Craig.