Annual Conference
IBL 2025 Annual Conference – Black Joy
Date, Time and Location
Feb 6, 2025: 11:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
(Post Event Reception beginning at 5:00 p.m.)
Location:
University of South Florida - Tampa campus
Marshall Student Center
Third Floor - Room 3707 and 3705
Tampa, FL 33620
Registration
This event is free and open to the public. Registration is encouraged.
IMPORTANT: Registration is required if you plan to join us for lunch.
Director's Welcome
David Ponton, III
Director, Institute on Black Life
Chair of the Racial Justice Initiative
2025 Conference Abstract
The USF Institute on Black Life (IBL) is happy to announce its 2025 IBL Annual Conference
on the theme of “Black Joy”.
Black Joy is a powerful lens through which we can understand the full breadth of Black
life, identity, and resilience, offering a nuanced view that encompasses both individual
and communal experiences of joy. This conference seeks to explore and celebrate the
dynamic ways Black individuals and communities cultivate joy in the face of personal
and systemic challenges.
Join us as students, scholars, artists, activists, and practitioners engage in thoughtful
discussions on how joy functions as an act of resistance, a cultural practice, and
a source of personal and collective healing. We seek to highlight how expressions
of Black joy sustain and nourish our communities, breathing life into Black futures
and inspiring strength, creativity, and connection both within and beyond our communities.
AGENDA
| Time | Session |
|---|---|
| 10:30 AM - 11 AM | Check-in and Book Expo Lite bites and coffee will be available |
| 10:55 AM - 11 AM | Welcome Address: Dr. David Ponton, IBL Director |
| 11 AM - 11:30 AM | Dr. Denise Davis-Cotton: “The Color of Culture: Celebrating African American Excellence in the Arts!” |
| 11:30 AM - 11:35 AM | Address by Dean Elizabeth Spiller |
| 11:35 AM - 12:05 PM | Performance: Allyssa Jones, “Black Music, Black Joy” |
| 12:15 PM - 1:15 PM | Session 1: Black Joy in the Arts
|
| 1:15 PM - 2:20 PM |
Lunch *Registration is needed to attend lunch |
| 2:30 PM - 3:10 PM |
Session 2.1: Designing a Black Womanist Anthology (Room 1) with Santana Nyanje and Mohammed Sharif Umar Session 2.2 (Room 2): Connecting to Creativity as a Pathway to Black Joy with Helen Joseph |
| 3:20 PM - 4 PM |
Session 3.1 (Room 1): Health and Black Joy with Hanan Ibrahim and Kamara Mikel Session 3.2 (Room 2): Black Joy in Practice with Andrea Jackson and Alanah Cooper |
| 4:05 PM - 4:20 PM |
AFA/IBL HIV/AIDS Research Award Recipients Closing Remarks by Dr. Will Tyson, IBL Associate Director |
| 4:20 PM - 6 PM |
Reception Performance: Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe: Harlem Renaissance |
PARKING
Guest parking is available in Lots 3A, 3B, and 3C with additional parking in Crescent Hill Parking Garage (CHG). Please look for signs to indicate 2025 INSTITUTE ON BLACK LIFE CONFERENCE.
For more information about guest parking options, please visit Parking Services.
USF Campus Map (PDF)
Directions
From I-275
- Take exit 52, Fletcher Ave/CR-582A and head East for 2.5 miles.
- Turn right at USF Palm Dr.
- Turn left at USF Holly Dr.
- Follow N Palm Dr/USF Palm Dr around the corner to find Parking Lots 3A, 3B, and 3C.
- Additional parking: Crescent Hill Parking Garage (CHG) at 4119 USF Cedar Drive, Tampa, FL 33620
From I-75
- Take exit 266, Fletcher Ave and head West on Fletcher for 4.0 miles.
- Turn left at N Palm Dr/USF Palm Dr.
- Follow N Palm Dr/USF Palm Dr around the corner to find Parking Lots 3A, 3B, and 3C.
- Additional parking: Crescent Hill Parking Garage (CHG) at 4119 USF Cedar Drive, Tampa, FL 33620
For reasonable accommodations or other questions, please contact CAS RSVP.