w INDIANA UNIVERSITY DEPARTMENT OF AFRICAN AMERICAN ND AFRICAN DIASPORA STUDIES Collegeof Aria and Scienses Bloomlapten January 15, 2023 Department of Africana Studies SUNY Cortland To Members of the Esteemed Promotion Committee: lunderstand that Dr. Michael Tillotson is being considered for promotion from associate to full professor at SUNY Cortland. And | just wanted to offer an enthusiastic testimony in support of his work and nobility of causes. | met Dr. Tillotson in 2016, when he gave a keynote speech at Indiana University Bloomington on the occasion of the 45" anniversary of the Department of African American and African Diaspora Studies. | was riveted and learned a great deal from his talk and subsequent publications. Happily, in 2022, Michael gave another keynote address at Indiana University. And, once again, he dazzled his audience. His keen ability to link robust intellectual ideas to humanity and to black common causes is outstanding. His academic journey from Indiana University as an undergraduate student to Temple asa graduate student and then to Cortland, has been both moving and stellar. He is an impressive individual, and | have known him for over six years. So many compelling characterizers of this outstanding, giving person come to mind—a huge respecter of human dignity, a productive scholar, and a dynamic contributor to the field of Africana Studies and black culture. Dr. Tillotson has made his intellectual, scholarly mark in Africana Studies, but ‘one of his books, above all, stands out, because it is hugely consequential. | am 1820-2020 IU BICENTENNIAL Ballantine Hall 6&4 1020. Kirkwood Aw Bleoringten, IN 47405 (812) 855.3875 tax(812) 855.44322 referring to “Invisible Jim Crow: Contemporary Ideological Threats to the Internal Security of African Americans,” which the prestigious Diopian Institute for Scholarly Advancement (DISA), selected as the Best Scholarly Book in 2011. The award is a compelling argument for the weight and impact of Michael’s ideas. In “Invisible Jim Crow,” Dr. Tillotson provides an insightful way for African Americans to view collective human agency, a neglected area of scholarship. He is not only helping to advance the research that addresses the issues and ideas that impact the real, “existential” nature of what it means to be human being, but he is also the author of a generative article on the Black Panther Party, which was nominated for an award by the National Council of Black Studies—in the inal scholarship.” Another powerful testament to his intellectual Ihave also followed Dr. Tillotson on the PBS/WCNY Show, The Ivory Tower. How fitting that a man of his caliber should participate in the virtual world of ideas—as a beacon for all things beautiful and intellectual. His grasp of current and historical issues and events—social, political, and cultural—is both deep and wide! He articulates ideas with clarity and beauty. As well, Dr. Tillotson has been recognized for his excellent service, including being nominated and elected to the Board of Directors of the National Council of Black Studies. While it is against my nature to traffic in “hearsay,” “word” is that Michael served splendidly. People talk! | know that students and faculty at Indiana University also admire his excellent work. Such recognition speaks compellingly to the fact that Dr. Tillotson is touching the lives of many young scholars with elegance. He has given students at Indiana University a pathway for them to become more exquisite human beings. Martha Nussbaum, one of North America’s greatest scholars, in discussing the role of dignity in the lives of individuals, says, “Being human means trusting that people will be good to you.” Dr. Tillotson is good to students and his audiences. He has played a critical role in the realm of ideas— as a story maker. In sum, Dr. Tillotson is dedicating himself to helping Africana Studies reach new domains, all in keeping with Nelson Mandela’s model of citizenship. Said he, inRichard Stengel’s book, Mandela's Way: Fifteen Lessons on Life, Love and Courage, leadership service is “expressed as ubuntu, the idea that people are empowered by other people, that we become our best selves through unselfish interactions with others.” Dr. Tillotson honorably lives this credo. Sincereff yours, ae oo ‘ar qlyn)Calloway-Thomas, Ph.D. Profesor and Director of Graduate Studies Department of African American and African Diaspora Studies Past President, World Communication Association Newly appointed Intercultural Communication Competence (ICC) Expert World Council on intercultural and Global Competence 2022 Recipient, W. George Pinnell Award for Outstanding Service Board of Editors Elect, Review of Communication Indiana University Bloomington, Indiana