Scholarships for Black Students Way to Give Back to Community

CEDAR RAPIDS - Bill Hood has had a fondness for Cedar Rapids since 1970, when he came to town to become director of the Jane Boyd Community House. So he wants to give back. Which is why he and his wife, Gwendolyn, have established three college scholarships for black students in Cedar Rapids. Each scholarship is for $1,000.

"It's not for the A-plus student, but for the student who needs a bump up," says Bill, 78, who grew up poor in Davenport and knows what it's like to pull yourself up by the bootstraps.

The first scholarships are scheduled to be awarded April 28 at the annual African American Museum of Iowa banquet.

That means black students who graduate from the Cedar Rapids Community School District this spring need to submit their applications as soon as possible. They can contact Aaron Green, director of student equity at the school district by phone, (319) 558-2259, or email at agreen@cr.k12.ia.us

The scholarships are being issued in the name of Bill's late sister, Willella Fluellin, of Davenport who died two years ago at age 86. She was very active in her Davenport church and had its outreach center named after her.

"I wanted to do something in my own way, in my sister's name," Bill says. "She was the most loving, kindest person I ever knew."

For the first year, the scholarships will be funded out of Bill's and Gwendolyn's pocket. They hope to raise additional funds so the scholarships can be awarded in perpetuity.

The Hoods' affection for Cedar Rapids is evident in the fact they left in 1972 but returned five years later. They both retired in 2004, Gwendolyn after 27 years as a secretary at Mercy Medical Center and Bill after a career that emphasized social work.

They love Cedar Rapids, they say, because it's nice and quiet, yet has a solid community spirit. That's what brought them back in 1977 after he had worked with mental health clinics in Wisconsin and Indiana. In 1960, as a student at Iowa State Teachers College in Cedar Falls, he began his social work at the Mental Health Institute in Independence where he worked for a decade.

The return to Cedar Rapids came when Bill was hired as the first black teacher at Mount Mercy College. In 15 years there he went from assistant professor of social work to vice president of student affairs. In 1992 he returned to the Jane Boyd Community House where he established Harambee House (Harambee is Swahili for "let's work together.") as an outreach of community services to the Wellington Heights area including programs for African-American middle school youth.

Growing up in Davenport, Bill knew exactly what it was like to have solid adult mentors. He was encouraged to play the drums, participate in athletics (football and a three-time state shot put champion), join the Marine Corps and go the college. In other words, to follow his passions and his dreams.

Still very active in the community, from being director of Christian education at Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church to serving on Linn County's general assistance advisory committee, Bill hopes the scholarships can provide similar help to young people today.

"My thing," he says, "is to give back the blessings that I have received."