Black History Month 2024: Kimberly Battle-Walters Denu
We are celebrating Black History Month with Kimberly Battle-Walters Denu, PhD.She is the Provost and dean of faculty at Westmont College, Montecito. Denu is an ordained minister, author, speaker, and teacher. Prior to Westmont she was the vice president for educational programs for the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities in Washington, D.C.
Denu is a two-time Fulbright alumna and has done field research projects in South Africa and Ethiopia. She holds a Doctor of Philosophy in sociology from the University of Florida, a Master of Social Work from Temple University, and a Bachelor of Arts in sociology from Vanguard University. Originally from Los Angeles, she lives in our town with her husband, Yohannes, and their three children.
Q. Black History Month 2024 is dedicated to “African Americans and the Arts.”
What and/or who are the top Black art, music, and cultural contributions you are celebrating?
A. I grew up listening to gospel music and jazz, so I have a great appreciation for jazz legends such as Duke Ellington, Nancy Wilson, and Al Jarreau, as well as gospel artists like BeBe Winans, the Clark Sisters, and Kirk Franklin. In addition to singers and musicians, I have enjoyed the work of African American poets such as Langston Hughes, Maya Angelou, and Amanda Gorman. Finally, as an avid movie connoisseur, I respect the work of Black directors like Spike Lee, Ava DuVernay, and Jordan Peele.
How available is Black culture, art, and music on the Westmont College campus for students, faculty, and staff?
Westmont has been well poised to invite some accomplished Black scholars from a variety of fields and backgrounds. Prominent scholars such as Dr. Clayborne Carson – recognized MLK scholar from Stanford; Dr. Barbara Peacock, author of Soul Care in African American Practice; Dr. Malcolm Foley, scholar on race and the Church; and Reverend Albert Tate, author of How We Love Matters have been recent speakers on campus.
In addition, Westmont has outstanding faculty who teach, do research, and publish on African American experiences, including myself (authored Sheila’s Shop: Working-Class African American Women talk about Life, Love, Race, and Hair, 2004); Dr. Kya Mangrum, who teaches literature and the contributions of writers of color; and Wendy E. Jackson (daughter of a Tuskegee Airman), writer, storyteller, and Black film director.
In addition, as a college, our faculty, administration, and board voted to approve curriculum that would unpack the complexities of race relations in the U.S., facilitate cultural understanding, and teach our students to value diverse perspectives.
What is/are your focus points as provost for 2024?
My focus as provost is to be a bridge-builder, to honor God and to honor people, and to instill hope. When we look at higher education, and society in general, we can find a plethora of things to disagree about, but I want to find ways to build a path forward towards mutual respect and understanding.
I see my purpose in life, and as provost, is to bring diverse communities together. To say we are all are created in God’s image, we all matter, all of our lives. How do we listen more, love better, and work together to make our world better place.
What is your biggest challenge at Westmont College and how do you navigate that?
My biggest challenge is being busy. As one might imagine, my calendar is pretty full, but as author John Mark Comer notes, “being busy robs us of joy, peace, and the ability to love well.” My challenge is to take care of the urgent but to not miss the important.
Resources you go to for inspiration and support?
Definitely the Black church has been and continues to be a major inspiration for me. Even living in Santa Barbara, I go regularly to Los Angeles to the Black church I grew up in, the United Church of the Living God in South Central L.A., where all people are welcome.
It had the nucleus of people that surrounded and nurtured me to be the woman I am today. My grandfather was a bishop there. It is a place that you can go for strength, hope, and joy, a hub you can go to for soul care.
And of course, my faith, I am a person of faith. I am a fourth-generation ordained minister. My great-grandfather was a minister, my grandfather was a pastor/evangelist minister, and my mom is an ordained minister, all through that same church.
I was working for a large nonprofit in Washington, D.C. During COVID I transitioned out of that to work with a local church with over 74 different nationalities. I loved the church and the community outreach.
Nevertheless, I wanted to return to my other first love which is the academy, higher education. It’s a testament to God’s faithfulness because I am a first-generation college graduate. I actually never planned to go to college; I did not have that as a model to think of or pursue.
Yet different people came alongside of me and allowed me to dream and envision a different life for myself. As a result, I pursued higher education, found out that I had reasonable intelligence that allowed me to flourish in higher ed. I received full scholarships for my master’s and PhD. I went to Temple University in Philadelphia and the University of Florida.
My two great loves are the Church and higher education.
Other sources of inspiration are my family, and good friends, and traveling – I love seeing new places, people, and cultures. I’m trying to visit my 50th country this year!
And your two Fulbright Scholarships…
Yes! I traveled to South Africa on a Fulbright Scholarship and met Bishop Desmond Tutu and his wife. [She motions to a photograph of Tutu, his wife, and Denu in her office.] I stayed in a guest house with him and his wife, as he was receiving an award. At the time, I was reading his book, No Future Without Forgiveness, and meeting him was surreal. My research examined the intersection of race, class, and gender, looking at the plight of women in post-apartheid South Africa. While there, I taught at an Afrikaans university, which was unbelievable because just 10 years prior it would have been illegal for me to do so as a Black woman. I also interacted with Nelson Mandela’s Foundation, but at the time he was away and so I did not get to meet him.
My second Fulbright to Ethiopia was also a dream come true, as my husband is from there. We lived in Gondar, a Coptic Christian community in northern Ethiopia. I taught graduate students at the University of Gondar.
Advice for Black students at this time in history?
I would tell Black students tolean into their rich heritage. We come from a lineage of people who not only survived but thrived in spite of slavery and horrific circumstances. Black people come from a long line of inventors, artists, activists, orators, and scholars – people who changed America and the world. Lean into that greatness.
What would you want people reading this to know about Black History Month, both locally and globally?
Black history is American history; it’s world history. When we celebrate Black History Month, we celebrate a great cadre of scientists, writers, actors, politicians, teachers, preachers, inventors, activists, scholars, and others who have made America the beautiful place that it is. So, when we celebrate BHM we celebrate us – all of us!
In closing…?
Students need to see the possibility of someone who looks like them in leadership roles to help them imagine themselves there. I had to see other Black women with doctorates before I could see myself with one.
In my position at Westmont College, I get to bring representation into Christian higher education and higher education in general.
Representation is something I’m thankful for and that I steward, to encourage other women and people of color to dream big and to do great things for God’s glory and for others.
411: www.westmont.edu/people/dr-kimberly-battle-walters-denu
