Mission Statement
Leverage our collective influence to inspire action in and around the SU community - and in our own communities - to consistently advocate for equitable treatment and opportunities for people of color.
Executive Team
Brian Tarrant
President/Co-founder
SU Class of 1996
Football
Senior Vice President of MC² (Global Marketing Agency)
“Black Oranges is important to me because society needs to comprehend that racism is more than hateful speech. I wanted to help bring awareness and solutions to confront systemic racism in all forms whether it be in the classroom, boardroom, housing practices or how BIPOC are treated by the judicial system. Racism and bigotry must universally be rejected and suffocated in order for our country to finally reach its full potential.”
Monica L. Belk
Executive Committee - Communications Chair
SU Class of 1996
Track and Field
ESPN - Director
“These last few months created an opportunity to discuss the real truth of what it is like to "wear the mask that grins and lies" every day. It became a passion for me to be a beacon of change. Black Oranges is the right collective of former student athletes and allies that will push to end racial injustices in our communities and at our Alma Mater.”
Etan Thomas
Executive Committee
SU Class of 2000
Basketball
Former NBA Player, Author, Philanthropist, Father
“Black Oranges is important to me because I feel the moment has arrived for us as Black Syracuse Alumni Athletes to use our collective power and influence to push for a better Syracuse University. What happened last year at our alma mater cannot happen again. That was a national embarrassment. I sat down with the NotAgainSU students for 2 hours with my son Malcolm and just listened to them and was proud of their strength, courage, and commitment to creating a safe environment for Black And Brown students on Syracuse Campus for generations to come. I still can’t believe 30+ different racist incidents actually happened on campus that included a Swastika being painted on a wall, the n word painted numerous times, and a white supremacist manifesto air dropped to students, and still to this day not one arrest has been made. That’s just unacceptable. I want to push to make Syracuse the University I know it can be so that I can confidently recommend my and my wife Nichole’s alma mater to our children.”
David Walker
Executive Committee
SU Class of 1993
Football
College & Professional Football Coach
Founder, 3rd and 3 LLC (Coaching Consulting Company)
“Black Oranges resonates so strongly within me because it takes the ideology of challenging the inherent thought processes of our society, the systematic practices in our communities and bringing attention to said flaws while working collectively to find solutions that benefit all people without prejudice. This is my way to join a movement that has been an ongoing generational quest for people of color and others that experience these injustices and continue to engage, educate an empower their communities striving for change that benefits all people.”
Shavonne L. Dargan
Executive Committee
SU Class of 1995
Track & Field
Senior Vice President, Live Nation Entertainment
“I had not previously been very active with SU since my track & field days, but I could no longer sit on the sidelines when I received the call to action for Black Oranges. It is a way that I can use my voice and influence toward meaningful change to positively impact life on campus for Black students, while also connecting with former teammates and allies. This partnership has been a long time coming and we are up for the challenge!”
Shelton J. Prescott
Executive Committee - Planning Committee Chair
Class of 1996
Football
Special Needs Teacher - Paterson Public Schools
“The formation of Black Oranges is essential to me because it has given a diverse group of alumni the autonomy to collectively share their skills and resources to improve the institution's brand, and the quality of campus life. Furthermore, Black Oranges have ignited our sense of purpose to extend a helping hand in the fight for racial justice, institutional reform, economic equality and true liberation for people of color.”
Keith T. Downing, M.D.
Executive Committee - Finance Committee Chair
SU class of ‘97 (BS), ‘98 (MPA)
Football
Division Chief, Female Pelvic Medicine and Reconstructive Surgery at Catholic Health Services of Long Island
“Collective action has been the means by which Black Americans have gained greater freedoms in our nation since its founding. To finally lift Black Americans from our lower caste status to one of equal footing with White Americans, we will need to raise our voices in the communities that are dear to us so that other members of those communities will better understand our unique American experience. For me, Syracuse University is one of those communities and Black Oranges is the ideal way to respectfully, but forcefully, challenge its status quo.”
Advisors
Roland Williams
Co-founder/Advisor
SU Class of 1997
Football
NFL Super Bowl Champion / President & Co-Founder of J2 Medical Supply, Inc.
Felisha Legette-Jack
Advisor
SU Class of 1989
Basketball
Head Coach Women's Basketball at University at Buffalo
Adolphus Belk, Jr.
Advisor
Class of 1997
Professor of Political Science and African American studies, Winthrop University
Vera Jones
Advisor
Class of 1988 (B.S.) 1991 (M.S.)
Basketball
President Vera's VoiceWorks, LLC -
Women’s Basketball Analyst, Big Ten Network
Raj Saha
Advisor
Class of 1997
Rowing
General Manager, Fiserv Forum at Milwaukee Bucks Inc.
Jason Poles
Advisor
Class of 1999
Football
Director Of Development at Syracuse University
Committee Members
Dr. Arthur D. Vaughn, CGFM
Planning Committee
Class of 1992
Track and Field
Principal - Arthur Vaughn & Associates, LLC
Dwayne Murray
Planning Committee
Class of 1997
Track & Field
Professor of Military Science & Department Chair - Alabama A&M University
Salote (Helu) van Deutekom
Communications Committee
Class of 1997
Swimming
Associate Consumer Affairs Specialist,
Duke Energy Florida
Denise Royal
Communications Committee
Class of 1993
Producer, WLRN & CNN
Aviana Goode
Communications Committee
Class of 2020
Track & Field
Graduate Student, University of Texas Rio Grande Valley
Ebony Dowtin Harris
Communications Committee
Class of 1995
General Manager of Doi Moi
Alison C. J. Murray
Communications Committee
Class of 2001
SU Spirit - Cheerleading
Lieutenant Colonel, Army Nurse Corps Chief Medical Information Officer Brooke Army Medical Center, Fort Sam Houston, TX
Thandi Masimini
Planning Committee
Basketball
Business Development Coordinator at 3One Candles
Jenice Gill-Richardson
Planning Committee
Class of 2001
Track and Field
Special Educator, White Plains City School District
Derrick Corely
Planning Committee
Class of 2000
Football
Educator/Entrepreneur
Malicia Braxton
Communications Committee
Class of 1996
Track & Field
Director of Student Services, Fairfax County Public Schools
Member Profiles
Our community and networks are our strength. We come from many backgrounds, but share a common goal.
Click a photo to connect with our members.
Amy Agulay Buchmann, MPA - Class of 2006 (G) 2008 (MPA), Communications and Change Management Lead at the City of Toronto
Qadry Ismail - Class of 1993, Football, Business Owner at Missile Training
Tess Lenk - Ally, Program Manager at Engin Creative
George Rooks - Class of 1992, Football, Corporate Sales Executive at Abbott
Jesse Weeg - Ally, Graphic Designer at Engin Creative
Beau Buchmann - Class of 2009 (MA), Private Investor at Buchmann Family Investments and Assets
Niesha Foster - Class of 1994, Vice President, Product Access at Pfizer
Garland Hawkins - Class of 1993, Football, Training Officer at MWAA Police Dept
William Watts - Class of 1994, Track & Field, Field Examiner for the VA, (Retired) Army Field Grade Officer
Andre Smith - Class of 1997, Football, District Parts & Service Manager at Kia Motors America
Sara Haase-Ristine - Class of 1995, Client Relationship Specialist at FromCityTo...
Jerry Sharp - Class of 1993, Football, BSN Nursing student Keiser University
Kelley Doering - Ally, Principal at Engin Creative
Davita N. Carpenter, M.B.A., SHRM-SCP - Class of 1992, Basketball, Vice President, Human Resources at Los Robles Hospital and Medical Center
Tim Washington - Class of 2006, Football, Diversity & Inclusion Manager at Facebook
Kisha B., Turpin, CCEP - Class of 1997, Senior Client Success Manager at SAI Global
Keri Lowder - Class of 1995 (BA) 1996 (MPA), Track & Field, Vice President at All Chicago Making Homelessness History
Ian Wetherell CRPC, CHSA, RCC™, AIF® - Class of 1999, Senior Director, Wealth Advisory at Principal Funds Distributor, Inc.