Black Alumni Union

Black Alumni Union logo
Black Alumni Union
Louis Smith '69

Welcome

We welcome you to our page and want you to participate with us and share our purpose and vision.


Purpose: Support and nurture a successful black student experience while matriculating through UPS and beyond  

Strategic Vision: “Creating Generational Value While Empowering Dreams”

Check back often here to see what we’re doing, and learn about upcoming events and some of the activities that we have been involved in.

We meet the first Monday of each month from 7 - 8:15 p.m. PST.
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/83538948126?pwd=CrYnNT5or4q931ngqsJMNnsa5Vq3ua.1
 

Sincerely,
Louis Smith ’69
BAU President

If you have questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to: lsmith@pugetsound.edu

List of Officers

Past Presidents

Alumni Spotlight
Senator T’wina Nobles ‘06 MAT ‘07

Senator T’wina Nobles ’06 MAT ’07 

Until 2020, T’wina Nobles had no intention of running for the state Senate. She was doing work she loved as president and CEO of the Tacoma Urban League, and had just been re-elected to the University Place School Board. Community members and legislators had occasionally suggested she run for state office, and she would say, “Nope. It’s not my time.” 
When she finally decided it was her time, Nobles ’06, MAT’07 declared her candidacy for state Senate for the 28th District. That was mid-March of 2020—and a few days later, Washington Governor Jay Inslee declared a stay-at-home order for the state in response to the coronavirus. Soon the pandemic upended everything, including Nobles’ campaign plans. But she was undeterred.
Fulfilling the goal inspired by her mentors, she began her career by teaching at Stadium High School and Lincoln High School in Tacoma. Over the past two decades she also has served as a PTA leader, founder of the girls’ empowerment program Ladies First, school board director, leader of the Tacoma Urban League, and member of Puget Sound’s national alumni executive committee. 
Nobles’ decision to run for state Senate was, in part, aimed at making sure people of color are represented in government—and a way to encourage more Black people to run for office. Ironically, until she decided to run, she didn’t know that there weren’t any Black senators, and that the only other Black female senator before her (another Logger, Rosa Gourdine Franklin ’68), had retired 10 years earlier.
Serving in the Senate will let her advocate for issues and communities she cares about, and be available to the residents of the district she represents. But she sees her role as more than that. “This opportunity, in this moment—as it is oftentimes when Black people are in these positions—it’s way bigger than I am,” she says. “I hope to be completely responsible and to take care of this opportunity to lead, to open the doors for someone else.”
 

Black Alumni Union Activities

BSU Activities

BSU Activities

AFAM Thesis Presentations with Taj Phillips family

BSU Activities

AFAM Thesis Presentations.  Kevoni Neely, NJ Sarmiento, Kevonia Neely, Jaden Francis, Sophie Halloway, Sofia Cunningham, & Taj Phillips.

BSU Activities

Graduating Students of Color Keynote Speaker Tacoma City Council Member Tamika Scott.

Community Engagement

BAU Community
BAU Community
BAU Community
BAU Community

Tacoma panel came on campus to share their resources and commitment to the black students

BAU Community
BAU Community
Upcoming Events

Upcoming Events

BSU Events
  • Black Student Union/Black Alumni Union Welcome Gathering 2025
    Upper Marshall, Wheelock Student Center - North 15th Street, Tacoma, WA, USA
    Friday, August 22, from 6:30 to 7:30 PM.
     

    All incoming Black students and families, members of the Black Alumni Union and Black Student Union, and university staff and faculty are invited to attend this Welcome gathering. Join us for connection, conversation, and dessert as we kick off the new academic year together. This event is part of Passages Orientation at Puget Sound. Find your community and support, meet new friends, and glimpse everything campus has to offer you! Current students and families are welcome. Walk-ins are welcome. Questions? Contact the office of Alumni and Parent Relations at alumoffice@pugetsound.edu.

Register Here!
SRW BAU
Summer Reunion Weekend
HFW BSU
Homecoming and Family Weekend
Charter Members of the Black Student Union

Passing the Torch: Origins of Puget Sound’s Black Student Union

Archives

See our Former Alumni Spotlights and Past Activities

Keith Blocker

Read about 2025 Professional Achievement – Midcareer Alumni Award Winner Keith Blocker ’12

Bernadette Ray

Read about the impact of beloved high school principal Bernadette Ray ’99, MAT’01. See page 10.

Edward Horne, USAF Lt. Col (Ret.) '70

Read about the fascinating life of pilot Ed Horne, USAF Lt. Col (Ret.) ‘70