Whitaker to lead board of museum and cultural center

<p>Matthew C. Whitaker, associate professor of history in ASU’s School of Historical, Philosophical and Religious Studies in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, was elected president of the board of directors at the George Washington Carver Museum and Cultural Center in Phoenix. The museum and cultural center is the largest African-American museum and cultural center in Arizona.<br /><br />The museum and cultural center archives the rich cultural heritage and experiences of the early pioneers who made significant impact on the development of the African-American community. It also showcases the talent of emerging youth artists, local, regional and renowned visual and performing artists. It is housed in the former Carver High School site, 415 E. Grant St., Phoenix.<br /><br />Whitaker is author of “Race Work: The Rise of Civil Rights in the Urban West,” “African American Icons of Sports: Triumph, Courage, and Excellence” and “Hurricane Katrina: America’s Unnatural Disaster,” which he co-edited and documents the consequences of apathy, racism, sexism and classism. <br /><br />He is the winner of the 2006 Maricopa County Arizona NAACP Educational Leadership Award. Also in 2006, he was one of five City of Phoenix Martin Luther King Jr. Living the Dream Award winners, the Ronald McDonald House Charities Arizona chapter Excellence in Education Award winner, and one of ASU's Promotion and Tenure Exemplar Award winners.<br /><br />In 2005, he received the ASU Patricia Gurin Scholar-Activist Award, the Dan Shilling Public Scholar Award by the Arizona Humanities Council, and the Best Article of the Year Award by <i>Journal of the West</i>.</p>