News & Updates

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            Roland Parrish’s journey to McDonald’s is similar to Michael Jordan’s road to the NBA.

            Parrish was entrenched at the Exxon Corporation when he applied to Mickey D’s management program.

            But like Jordan’s first attempt at his high school varsity, Parrish was told he didn’t measure up.

            Of course Jordan went on to become the greatest basketball player in history. And after finally being embraced by McDonald’s, Parrish sounds like a significant franchisee. He serves as President CEO and Owner of Parrish McDonald’s Restaurants. The Dallas-based company operates more than 20 restaurants and grosses more than $60 million annually. Parrish is a multi-millionaire and philanthropist.

            Parrish will share his narrative with the Jarvis Christian College campus during a Business Colloquium and Luncheon, set for Thursday February 28. The luncheon is set for noon while the colloquium is scheduled to start at 2 p.m. Both events are in the Mirror Room of the Earl W. Rand Center. Both are free and open to the public.

The dialogue is entitled “A Roland Parrish Colloquium: Straight Talk about Rejection, Perseverance, Success, and Responsibilities of a Black Businessman.”

His company has been among Black Enterprise magazine’s BE 100 as one of the country’s top 100 black-owned businesses for 12 consecutive years.

Parrish is committed to keeping dollars in the African American community and uses black attorneys, accountants, landscapers and other professionals.

A native of Hammond, Indiana, Parrish earned a track and field scholarship to Purdue University, where he was a two-time MVP and team captain his senior year.... More

A civil rights leader and one of Louisiana’s favorite sons is coming to East Texas.

The Honorable Marc Morial, president and CEO of the National Urban League, will keynote Jarvis Christian College’s Black History Celebration, set for 11 a.m. Tuesday February 26 in Smith-Howard Chapel on the Jarvis campus.

The event is free and open to the public.

Morial, a two-term mayor of New Orleans, descends from one of Louisiana’s most prominent political families. His father, the late Ernest N. “Dutch” Morial, was New Orleans’ first African America mayor and also served two terms. His mother, Sybil Haydel Morial, was a teacher and university administrator.

Ernest Morial was the first African American to graduate from the Louisiana State University Law School in Baton Rouge. The junior Morial served two years in the Louisiana State Senate and was named its Rookie of the Year in 1992.

Marc Morial was the impetus for the city’s resurrection in the 1990s and left office with a 70 percent approval rating. During his tenure, New Orleans experienced unprecedented growth. Violent crimes and murders dropped 60 percent, the unemployment rate was cut in half and the city’s poverty rate also fell. On his watch, New Orleans won the All-American City Award in 1996 for the first time in half a century.

Marc Morial earned an undergraduate degree in economics and African American studies from the University of Pennsylvania and his law degree from Georgetown University. He has honorary degrees from Xavier University, Wilberforce University and the... More

Click HERE to view the Spring 2019 Jarvis Christian College Distinguished Guest Speakers brochure.

The Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs Baccalaureate/Graduate Degree Board of Commissioners has awarded Jarvis Christian College accreditation of its business programs.

“Jarvis Christian College has shown a commitment to teaching excellence and to the process of quality improvement by participating in the accreditation process,” said ACBSP Chief Accreditation Officer Dr. Steve Parscale, who will present the Certificate of Accreditation at ACBSP Conference 2019 in Houston, Texas, on June 23. “This accreditation is evidence that JCC is committed to providing the highest quality business education for their students.”

Jarvis President Dr. Lester C. Newman said the designation reflects the excellence in the college’s business division.

“This is very significant for our students, the business faculty and the entire college,” Newman said. “This accrediting group has an international reputation. Receiving its seal of approval means we have a top-shelf business program.”

Jarvis offers a business administration degree with concentrations in accounting, management, computer information systems and cybersecurity.

“Program accreditation is one of our key goals,” said Dr. Glenell Lee-Pruitt, Jarvis’ provost and vice president of academic affairs. “It means an independent, prestigious body has said your program measures up. I am so grateful to our dean, Dr. Benson Kariuki, and his staff (the business faculty). This is an awesome achievement for us.”

Said Kariuki: “This designation sends a great message to our students and our faculty. To students, it says the education you are receiving at Jarvis will make you competitive with other business graduates in the workplace.... More

               The stars aligned for LaTerrian Wiley and Issac Bivins Jr. last Saturday in Hawkins.

                Wiley and Bivins were crowned Mr. and Miss Jarvis Christian College in a ceremony inside the Earl W. Rand Gymnasium themed “For One Night Only The Stars Align.”

                Wiley, 21, of Longview, is a senior chemistry major who is minoring in biology. She plans to attend the University of Texas at Tyler to pursue a doctorate in pharmacy. She is a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc., Jarvis’ Student Government Association and the National Institute of Health’s Welch Program.

                Wiley also served as Miss Sophomore Class and Miss Junior Class. She enjoys spending time with family and friends. She also said she had been influenced by her mother, her family, her church family and the example of former First Lady Michelle Obama.

                “This is a great honor, not just for me but for all of those who had a hand in helping mold who I am. I am so grateful,” Wiley said.

                Bivins, 22, is a senior social work major from Dallas. He plans to pursue a masters in social work at Jackson State University. He has been involved in a number of campus organizations, including the Jarvis band, the Student Government Association, the Social Work Association, the Pre-Alumni Association and Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc.

                “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said. People will forget what you did. But people will never forget how you... More

                Rudolph Brooks and other students moved into a new, enriching living experience this fall at Jarvis Christian College.

                “I like it. I love it. There should be more like this,” Brooks, a junior from Dallas, said as walked the campus with earphones and a visor resting on his cranium. “The Wi-Fi is stable. The building’s design is good. The rooms are larger. It’s been a real nice experience.”

                Brooks is describing life as a resident of one of Jarvis’ new dormitories, which became available to students earlier this semester.

 The college celebrated the dormitories Friday (Oct. 12) with a Consecration and Grand Opening of the 192-bed, $24 million project. It also included the renovation of an existing residence hall, which is timely since Jarvis’ first-year enrollment jumped 90 percent and overall enrollment is up about 5 percent.

The Rev. Chris Dorsey, a member of Jarvis’ Board of Trustees, led the audience in a consecration prayer while other trustees, campus and community leaders touted the project’s significance.

The new facilities have computer and lounge areas, classrooms and a faculty apartment in each building. Each facility will have its own theme.

“This has been a long time coming,” President Dr. Lester C. Newman told the crowd. “We have a true living and learning experience here at Jarvis.”

Dr. Glenell Lee-Pruitt, provost and vice president for academic affairs, echoed Newman’s sentiments.

“This is the consummation of an enriched relationship between academic affairs and student services where learning can take place... More

                Pilar Makee sees her school when she looks at herself.

                “We are small but mighty,” Makee, a feisty, petite international student from Equatorial Guinea, said of Jarvis Christian College. “There is a lot of talent here.”

                The United Nations Academic Impact (UNAI) and Millennium Campus Network (MCN) has endorsed Makee’s assessment. The partnering agencies named Jarvis a Millennium Fellows Campus for the fall semester, based on a wellness campaign being executed by Makee and 19 other Jarvis students who all are Millennium Fellows.

                Jarvis was among 30 colleges – and one of two HBCUs - worldwide selected as a Millennium campus, based on the Jarvis Diabetes Awareness Campaign. This effort targets youth aged 15-22 in Texas, which has the 10^th highest diabetes rate in the country. No other Texas school was selected.

                “This is a large forward leap for what we are trying to do with our diabetes campaign,” said Eric Clark, 19, a sophomore nursing major from Houston.

“It gives us that extra,” Clark, Millennium Campus co-director, said.

                Programs by MCN convene, challenge and celebrate student leadership for social impact. “Opportunities like this get us out of our silos and put us on a global stage,” Kathy Graham, lead Millennium Fellows co-advisor.

                Chestley Talley, co- Millennium Fellows advisor, said: “This is an excellent example of experiential learning like membership in our own pre-professional organizations.”

                The Millennium Fellows are members of the award-winning Jarvis Enactus and Clinton Global Initiative Teams. Jarvis... More

De’Janae, Tookes, a senior at Jarvis Christian College, has been named a 2018 HBCU Competitiveness Scholar, the White House Initiative’s highest student recognition.

Tookes, who serves as president of Jarvis’ Student Government Association, was among 63 students from 54 Historically Black Colleges and Universities recognized as Competitive Scholars.

“I am extremely humbled. I am honored that President (Lester) Newman nominated me. Sometimes small schools like Jarvis go unnoticed. This is not only an opportunity to represent Jarvis, but all small school,” said Tookes, a history major from Austell, GA.

Competitiveness scholars are recognized for successfully preparing to compete for top opportunities that improve long-term outcomes. Comprised of undergraduate, graduate and professional students, each was nominated and endorsed by their institution’s president. The selections were based on academic achievement, campus and civic involvement and entrepreneurial “go-getter” spirit.

“De’Janae epitomizes the spirit of the Competitiveness Scholar,” Newman said. “She is intelligent, open and honest. She is a great communicator and is committed to the many causes she supports, including initiatives and organizations at Jarvis Christian College and the student body she serves. De’Janae, a natural leader, currently serves as president of the Student Government Association. Nominating her to represent JCC in this capacity was an easy decision.”

Scholars will assemble September 16-18 during the 2018 National HBCU Week Conference, which is set for the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel in the nation’s capital. Scholars will participate in workshops designed to enhance leadership, promote personal and professional development and explore areas of innovation and... More

                Jarvis Christian College’s first year enrollment is up 90 percent from 2017, the college announced today.

                Jarvis has 359 first-year students, up from 189 students last year. Overall enrollment at Jarvis is up 4.6 percent with 952 students, compared to 909 last fall. Those numbers are expected to increase when an adult education cohort begins in October, said Eric Stringfellow, Jarvis’ director of communications. Stringfellow said the current freshman class is the largest ever for Jarvis.

                The 2018 numbers represent a 51 percent increase in enrollment since 2013, when Jarvis enrolled 633 students. Dr. Lester C. Newman was named Jarvis president in 2012.

                To what do we attribute our growth?

                “We do the traditional marketing – broadcast, digital and some print coupled with recruiting visits to schools throughout the region. We also think our programs sell themselves. Our Adult Education Program, which includes a site in Dallas, offers classes in business, criminal justice and religion,” Stringfellow said. “The program started with 13 students in 2014 and now has 121 enrolled. Our students are involved in cutting-edge research, including cancer research and diabetes awareness.

                “We believe our brand is strong among those who have been associated with Jarvis and promote us through word-of-mouth to family members and others. When Janie Lee Luftkin was moving her granddaughter, Stacia Foy, into her dormitory this summer, Luftkin pointed out that she had two sisters, a daughter and two nieces who graduated from Jarvis,” Stringfellow said.

                Jarvis... More