Jackson State University officials announced an annual symposium that will focus on relationship violence, as a standing-room-only crowd of more than 1,500 people packed the Rose Embly McCoy Auditorium to celebrate the life of Latasha Norman.
The university also is establishing an abuse prevention fund to support a newly created counseling center at Jackson State that will now bear Norman’s name.
“Latasha’s death was the consequence of a social ill in this country: relationship violence. We should not let her experience be in vain,” said President Ronald Mason Jr., who described the 20-year-old student as an intelligent woman with a promise-filled life.
“For our part, we have established the Latasha Norman Abuse Prevention Fund to support what will now be called the Latasha Norman Center for Social and Clinical Counseling at Jackson State University,” Mason added.
Norman, a junior accounting major from Greenville, Miss., disappeared on Nov. 13. Sixteen days later – after two prayer vigils and national media attention – her body was found in a wooded area of north Jackson. Her former boyfriend, Stanley Cole, 24, has been charged with her murder.
“Domestic violence is a very real problem among African-American women. Our young ladies must be taught to recognize the acts of violence as well as acts that lead to more violence,” College of Business Dean Glenda Glover said later. “The College of Business will address this issue from the economy and legal aspects, and this will be a collaborative effort with related disciplines on campus.”
In addition, the Latasha Norman Abuse Prevention Fund will support what will now be called the Latasha Norman Center for Social and Clinical Counseling at Jackson State. The counseling center, which was created in September, is located in the Office of the Dean of Student Life. Mason took a hard stance against relationship violence, urging men who feel a need to hit women to stop and get help now and insisting that women in abusive relationships get out.
