WASHINGTON – Since arriving at Howard University in 2019, Bison Head Coach Kenneth Blakeney has made civic engagement a hallmark of his program. Every season, the men’s basketball team has chosen a social justice project, ranging from nationally-recognized black maternal health initiative to last year’s juvenile mentorship program, as an avenue to honor the university’s storied legacy of activism.
This season, the team broke its social justice project into two parts, focusing first on voter engagement. Leading up to the 2024 U.S. presidential election, the program launched a “Howard Bison Votes” apparel line to encourage voter registration and turnout.
Multiple players partnered with The Team, a nonpartisan organization that focuses on integrating civic engagement into college athletics, to create informational content surrounding the election. During a two-game road trip through the Midwest, the program took to the streets of Kansas City to discuss a few initiatives that were set to be on the ballot. The squad also donated the proceeds from its exhibition games versus William & Mary (Oct. 19) and American (Oct. 28) to The Team to help further their non-partisan advocacy.
For the second part of their social justice project, the Bison have decided to focus their efforts on the importance of mental health. The COVID-19 pandemic upended and altered many lives across the world. Five years after its onset, the effects are still reverberating through our society —especially among young people.
“Mental health has always been an important topic within our program and a major reason why we started working with world-renowned sports psychiatrist, Dr. Joe Carr, in 2021,” Blakeney said. “Over the years with Dr. Carr, countless players have bravely shared their unique battles with mental health and created positive plans to address them. As a program, we recognize that challenges with mental health are not exclusive to student athletes, which is why we wanted to launch a program that would allow us to address this topic with the rest of Howard’s student body.”
To kick off their work, the program invites members of the student body to “Yoga at Burr” on February 2, 2025. During the event, students will go through a group yoga session with players before breaking out in small groups to engage in discussions about mental health. This event is in partnership with the “Inner Journey App”, a leading mental fitness and wellness app. Download the app and use code HOWARD10 for a free 7-day trial.
To register for the event, use this link. Note: students must bring their own yoga mats and Howard student ID’s.
For more information regarding this social justice project:
Howard Men’s Basketball Contact: Daniel Marks / Daniel.marks@howard.edu / HUMENSBB Instagram & HUMENSBB Twitter
Inner Journey App Contact: Keith Davis / hello@innerjourneyapp.com / Inner Journey App Instagram & Inner Journey App Twitter
Courtesy of Howard Men’s Basketball
About Howard Athletics
The Howard University Department of Intercollegiate Athletics sponsors 21 NCAA Division I men and women varsity sports. The programs represent three conferences: the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC), Northeast Conference (NEC) and Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC).
For more information, visit the Bison Athletics website at www.HUBison.com.