Founded in 2004, the GW Black Alumni Association fosters an unparalleled affinity toward GW and strengthened sense of community among all alumni invested in continually enriching the network of Black GW graduates.
GWBAA Executive Board 2016-2018
Chair - Christian A. Washington, CCAS BA '06, LAW JD '09
Membership Chair - Michael Dobson, CCAS BA '05, LAW JD '09
Events and Marketing Chair - La Vida Johnson, CCAS BA '07
Student Relations Chair - Dominic Hawkins, CCAS BA '12
NY/NJ Regional Chapter Chair - Christina Vickers, CCAS BA '06
Contact us
Learn about upcoming events:
GWBAA events:
Black Alumni Reunion/Regional Outreach
The Black Alumni Reunion was started in April 2008 in partnership with then Assistant Vice President Helen Cannaday Saulny, GSEHD MA '88, and alumnus Lamar Thorpe, CCAS BA '07. Since its inception, the Black Alumni Reunion has recognized the achievements of Black/African Americans and serves as a signature event to engage alumni of the African diaspora with GW. Over the past 10 years, the Black Alumni Reunion has featured many outstanding alumni for both their career achievements and their accomplishments as members of the GW alumni community, including:
Helen Cannaday-Saulny, GSEHD MA ’88
Garry Lyle, ATTD ’63-’67
The Honorable B. J. Penn, GWSB MS ’80
Roslyn M. Brock, SPHHS MS ‘89
Lt. Gen. Frank E. Petersen, GWSB BA ’67 & ESIA MS ‘73
Deborah Tillman, GSEHD MA '02
Anntoinette "Toni" White-Richardson, CCAS BA '80
Mark Chichester, GWSB BBA '90, LAW JD '93
Deborah Randolph Harrison, CCAS BA '77
After the 2015 Reunion, the Black Alumni Reunion moved to a biannual schedule. During the “off year,” the GWBAA will host a regional event to connect with Black alumni who are not in the metropolitan Washington, D.C. area. The first regional event was held in 2016 in Baltimore, Maryland at the Regional F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History and Culture.
GWBAA IMPACT Awards
The George Washington Black Alumni Association (GWBAA) IMPACT Award is the highest form of recognition bestowed on distinguished Black alumni by the GWBAA Executive Committee. Each year, the IMPACT Award celebrates three Black alumni who have cultivated a proven history of commitment to The George Washington University. Through professional endeavors and community engagement, IMPACT Award recipients have made indelible contributions to their alma mater, their local communities, and society at large.
The Emerging Impact Recognition honors students who embody the spirit of the GWBAA Impact Award. These young people have committed their student experience to providing service to campus, community and their peers. Recognition for emerging impact serves not only as an opportunity to acknowledge student achievement, but also provides an example of the extraordinary talent in the GW student population.
If you know of a student who meets the above criteria for the Emerging Impact Recognition, please contact the GWBAA Student Relations Chair, Dominic Hawkins, CCAS BA '12, at [email protected].Learn more about the IMPACT Award
