{"id":212343,"date":"2023-02-15T07:00:04","date_gmt":"2023-02-15T12:00:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/?p=212343"},"modified":"2023-02-14T10:53:40","modified_gmt":"2023-02-14T15:53:40","slug":"a-century-of-perspective-vashti-white-72-75-ma","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/2023\/02\/15\/a-century-of-perspective-vashti-white-72-75-ma\/","title":{"rendered":"A Century of Perspective – Vashti White \u201972, \u201975 MA"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the 1930s, women were not expected to have career aspirations. If they did enter the workforce, it was likely as a secretary, telephone operator, teacher, nurse or domestic worker. The Great Depression had made jobs scarce across the country, and for African American women, racial discrimination further challenged the availability of meaningful work. Such was the path that Vashti T. White \u201972, \u201975 MA navigated when she graduated from Montclair High School in 1937.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cAfter high school I attended the Newark YWCA Secretarial School, graduating in 1939,\u201d she recalls. \u201cI was employed by the National Board of the YWCA (Eastern Region), from 1941 to 1949.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

While there, White was promoted to office manager of the Business Education Section, becoming the first African American manager in that position. \u201cI enjoyed working at the National Board and wanted to continue learning as much as I could in the field of business education.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Her interests brought her to work at what was then Montclair State College, where she continued to gain secretarial experience as part of the College\u2019s Business Office staff, and she began to think about how she could expand her knowledge in other areas. \u201cI wanted to become a student of the college,\u201d says White, who went on to earn both a bachelor\u2019s and master\u2019s degree in business education from Montclair, in 1972 and 1975, respectively.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI have always been an avid and lifelong reader,\u201d White continues. \u201cWhen I was a young child, I would often sneak a book to bed and read it under the covers when I was supposed to be asleep! Therefore, it was natural for me to gravitate toward education and pursue my personal goal of learning as a priority.\u201d
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

White\u2019s business experience enhanced her teaching career at East Orange High School, which has since closed. \u201cI developed and taught the first Medical\/Dental Receptionist Course of Study,\u201d she says, noting that during her tenure there she served as chairperson of the Business Education Department. She also taught courses such as Business Law, Consumer Economics, and Record Keeping.<\/p>\n

White later joined the adjunct faculty at the College, teaching Secretarial and Business Studies courses. \u201cI was the Telecourse Learning Manager for It\u2019s Everybody\u2019s Business, the first television course offered by the College\u2019s Department of Business Education and Office Systems Administration,\u201d she says. \u201cI also served as an adjunct instructor in the Department of Secretarial Studies at Essex County College in Newark, New Jersey.\u201d<\/p>\n

White\u2019s leadership extended to the community, through generous \u2013 and often groundbreaking \u2013 volunteer activity. \u201cThe most inspiring volunteer work that I was a part of was in 1974, when I was initiated as a charter member of the Beta Phi Chapter of Delta Pi Epsilon, the national honorary professional graduate association in Business Education,\u201d she says. \u201cI was the first African American charter member, officer, and representative of Montclair\u2019s chapter.\u201d<\/p>\n

Over the course of several years, White served as the chapter\u2019s secretary, vice president, and president.<\/p>\n

In addition, White was an active member of the Historical Society of East Orange, New Jersey; a facilitator and instructor for the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) Tax Counseling for the Elderly program; and a volunteer for several committees of East Orange\u2019s Elmwood United Presbyterian Church. She was editor and publisher of the Church\u2019s first newsletter, assisted with the food pantry, and continues to stay connected to the congregation\u2019s Youth and Young Adult Ministry.<\/p>\n

Whenever possible, White spent time outdoors cultivating a thriving vegetable and herb garden, harvesting plenty to share with family, friends and neighbors. Having recently celebrated her 106th birthday, physical activities like gardening are no longer part of her day \u2013 but she is quick to note that she was still climbing trees at the age of 92!<\/p>\n

When asked about her favorite Montclair memories, White points to the thrill of advancing through her courses. \u201cWhat an exhilarating feeling to realize that all of my hard work and late nights finally paid off,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

Although it has been a while since White visited the campus, she tries to glance through Montclair magazine to see how the students are doing. \u201cThe pictures are very colorful, and the captions are engaging,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

The changes White has witnessed are vast, including the introduction and use of computers in all facets of education as well as the availability of STEM and STEAM programs. \u201cEven with all of this progress, there is a continued \u2013 and critical \u2013 need for students\u00a0at all levels to demonstrate effective skills in communication, literacy, grammar, reading comprehension, writing and mathematics,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

White is especially pleased to know that the University actively reaches out to high schools throughout the community to ensure that students of a variety of income levels have access to high-quality higher education.<\/p>\n

Of course, White is quick with a reminder of the responsibility students accept when they enroll in college. \u201cComplete your assignments in a timely fashion and avoid any short cuts, because it will only cost you dearly in the end,\u201d she advises. \u201cYour conduct and actions as a student will become part of your reputation. Don\u2019t let it jeopardize your goals.\u201d<\/p>\n

To White\u2019s mind, education can promote something even greater. \u201cIn addition to academics, time must be spent on demonstrating examples of empathy and how to show kindness to self and others,\u201d she says. \u201cThere is a strong need for these areas to be incorporated into the curriculum for all ages and into the workplace as well, to help make for a better world.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When Vashti T. White \u201972, \u201975 MA, graduated from Montclair High School in 1937, career paths for women were limited and advancement opportunities for African American women, in particular, were scarce. White\u2019s passion for learning was not to be contained. Defying societal norms, she led beyond those boundaries to an impactful career as an administrator and educator.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":326,"featured_media":212344,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-212343","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-76_alumni-news-and-events","category-77_alumni-spotlight"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/212343","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/326"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=212343"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/212343\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":212345,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/212343\/revisions\/212345"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/212344"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=212343"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=212343"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=212343"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}