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Bluefield College will celebrate Black History Month with a series of activities in February, including a guest lecture on Wednesday, February 6 from Dr. Felica Wooten Williams, a longtime minister and elder with the United Methodist Church.

Chris Shoemaker

January 31, 2013

Other activities scheduled to commemorate the history and culture of African Americans will include movies (Feb. 1, 8), music (Feb. 15, 28), dinners (Feb. 13), church visits (Feb. 10, 24), and additional lectures (Feb. 20, 27).

Dr. Williams will anchor the celebration schedule with a lecture at 10 a.m. in BC’s Harman Chapel on February 6. A frequent speaker for black history celebrations, minority causes, civic engagement, and graduation ceremonies, Dr. Williams is pastor of John Stewart United Methodist Church in Bluefield, West Virginia, and a commissioned elder in the West Virginia Conference of the United Methodist Church. She also previously served on the ministerial staff of Heart of GodMinistries in Beckley, West Virginia, and is currently campus minister at Bluefield State College.

At Bluefield State, Dr. Williams also serves as executive director of academicoutreach programs, including the school’s Emerging Leaders Institute, Regents Bachelor of Arts Program, and Title III Administration. In addition, she isco-founder and former president of the BSC Research and Development Corporation, as well as a onetime executive director of institutional advancement at BSC. Her higher education experience also includes a stint as interim president of New River Community and Technical College.

A non-profit management consultant who provides leadership training, strategic planning and organizational development services to tax-exempt organizations, Dr. Williams is president of BETA, a community and organizational development firm she created in 1993. Through BETA, she promotes economic development and self-sufficiency among low-income, disadvantaged citizens, particularly in central Appalachia.

A Presidential Scholar at United Theological Seminary, Dr. Williams holds a master of divinity degree with a concentration in church renewal from Union and a doctor of philosophy degree in educational leadership from Virginia Tech.

Additional lectures scheduled as part of BC’s Black History Month celebration will feature local attorney James Palmer, Wednesday, February 20 at 10 a.m., and pastor Milton Johnson, Wednesday, February 27 at 10 a.m., both in Harman Chapel.

In addition to lectures, the schedule will feature movies paying tribute to African Americans, including the Civil War drama “Glory” on Friday, February 1 at 8 p.m. and “Selma, Lord Selma,” a recreation of the civil rights activities in Selma, Alabama, in 1965, on Friday, February 8 at 8 p.m., both in the Student Activities Center (SAC) Annex.

BC students will also celebrate African Americans’ contributions to cuisine, music and literature with a “Soul Food Night,” Wednesday, February 13 from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. in Shott Hall; a 1990s throwback dance, Friday, February 15 from 9 p.m. to midnight in the SAC; and a jazz show and poetry reading, Thursday, February 28 from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. in the SAC.

The students will also visit local churches, joining congregations in worship, Sunday, February 10 at Mount Zion Baptist Church in Bluefield and Sunday, February 24 at the Faith Center Church in Bluefield.

Other BC Black History Month activities will include a TV sitcom night, Thursday, February 7 from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. in the SAC; a black history trivia contest during halftime of the men’s basketball game, Thursday, February 21 at 8 p.m. in the Dome Gymnasium; and a Family Feud game show contest, Friday, February 22 at 8 p.m. in the SAC.

All events, sponsored by the college’s Black Student Alliance, are open to the community. For more information, contact the BC Office of Public Relations by email at or by phone at 276-326-4212.

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