Kalamazoo Valley President Receives NAACP Humanitarian Award

KALAMAZOO, Mich. - Kalamazoo Valley Community College President L. Marshall Washington, Ph.D., recently received the 2023 Humanitarian Award from the Metropolitan Kalamazoo Branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).

It is one of the highest honors that the organization gives. Since 1979, the award has annually paid tribute to "an individual from the community whose significant contributions have improved the lives of people of color in the areas of politics, education, religion, civil rights and/or community service."

"I am humbled to be honored by the community," Washington said. "I have always been committed to community collaboration and engagement. Our college's mission statement compels us to create and support innovative and equitable opportunities that empower all to learn, grow and thrive."

The letter nominating Washington commended him for building strong partnerships with community organizations that support those who live in Kalamazoo's Northside neighborhood, such as Merze Tate Explorers, Young Kings and Queens, Men of Purpose and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southwest Michigan.

He was also lauded for increasing the college's civic engagement in the greater Kalamazoo area, including participation in MLK Day commemoration and day of service activities, Kalamazoo Beyond the Backpack, Kalamazoo Black Business Expo and El Concilio's Latinx Festival and partnership work with Kalamazoo's Bureau of Services for Blind Persons Training Center.

"As a longtime educator, Washington is a true advocate for the power of education, engagement and awareness," the nomination letter said. "As Kalamazoo Valley Community College's third president, he has strengthened the college's focus on community engagement with increased attention on supporting the education and opportunities for underrepresented populations in our community."

President Washington received the Humanitarian Award at the 2023 Freedom Fund Banquet on Oct. 28. He joins the ranks of many distinguished past honorees, most recently Alisa L. Parker-LaGrone, a district court judge; Dr. Charlae M. Davis, executive director, Interfaith Strategy for Advocacy and Action in the Community (ISAAC); and Vernon Payne, associate vice president at Western Michigan University.

Washington became president of Kalamazoo Valley Community College on July 1, 2018. He was previously president of New River Community and Technical College in West Virginia, vice president and CEO of Lancaster Campus of Harrisburg Area College in Pennsylvania and vice president for student services at Kellogg Community College in Battle Creek.

He is active with Sigma Pi Phi Fraternity, Alpha Upsilon Boule; Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. (past treasurer and president of the Kappa Psi Lambda Chapter of Kalamazoo); and The Presidents' Round Table (convener), an exclusive professional development network for African American administrators of community colleges. Washington serves on the boards of the Michigan Community College Association, Kalamazoo Community Foundation, the Gilmore, Fontana Chamber Arts, Kalamazoo Institute of Arts and Bronson Healthcare, as well.