The 2025 edition of the University of Miami Black Alumni Society Reunion offers a mix of the educational, purposeful, and social in a program that spans four days on the Coral Gables campus, preceded by events in select ’Canes Communities.
The reunion week kicks off on February 22, as Chicago Canes explore the city’s historic Bronzeville neighborhood. The next day, Washington D.C. Canes will gather at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture. Black-owned businesses in Houston, Atlanta, and Broward County will host alumni mixers that promise fun, fellowship, and the opportunity to network with fellow Canes.
The Palm Beach County Canes plan an evening of celebration and dialogue as they delve into the current state of the student body at the U. Renee Dickens Callan, Ed.D. ’18, assistant vice president for student life, will deliver keynote remarks, and a panel of successful Black alumni will share their journeys and strategies for success.
The panelists include Craig Glover, M.B.A. ’07, co-founder of A Better Way Home Care; former Hurricane football player Sean Thompson, B.S.M.E. ’93, first vice president at UBS Financial Services; David Mullings B.S. ’00, M.B.A. ’03, chairman and CEO of Blue Mahoe Capital, Inc., and vice president of the Alumni Board of Directors; Joseph Roseme J.D. ’11, CEO and co-founder of Navet 1804 premium Haitian rum; and Otha Richardson, II, M.B.A. ’11, sales director, Raytheon Technologies and CEO, E7 Investment Group LLC.
The main events of the reunion week start on February 27 on the Coral Gables campus, with a reception honoring recipients of the Black Alumni Society Scholarship and Center for Global Black Studies Fellowship.
On February 28, a student and alumni panel will examine and discuss the “Black State of the U,” which audiences can attend either in person or virtually via Zoom. Panelists include Imani Smith, a senior majoring in exercise physiology; Zuri Greenlee, a senior majoring in exercise physiology and minoring in psychology; Guerdiama Thelomar, a Ph.D. candidate in community well-being; Landon Coles, B.A. ’22, a student at Harvard Law School and regional engagement chair for the University’s Young Alumni Leaders Council; and George Koonce, Jr., M.S.Ed., ’70, Ed.D. ’76, executive at large for the Black Alumni Society and a retired principal, district director, region superintendent, and assistant superintendent in Miami-Dade County Public Schools. A reception and mixer for students and alumni follows the panel discussion.
Students take center stage at the Shalala Student Center on March 1 in “The Story of We: Echoes of Yesterday, Voices of Today,” part of the Students of Culture Symposium, an annual initiative produced in partnership with the Office of Multicultural Student Affairs.
The reunion week wraps up on March 2 with the UTrailblazers Memory Lane interactive showcase and brunch at the Kislak Center. Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., B.S.C. ’89, president and CEO of the Society for Human Resource Management and former member of the University’s Board of Trustees, will deliver the keynote address at the brunch.
REGISTER FOR THE 2025 BLACK ALUMNI SOCIETY REUNION WEEK
