Lane College Founder's Day Speaker Inspires Attendees to Persevere; Never Give Up

Hundreds of supporters packed to capacity the William H. Graves Auditorium and Chapel in the Chambers-McClure Academic Center (CMAC) on Sunday afternoon, March 5 to honor the memory of Lane College's founder, Bishop Isaac Lane.

This year marks Lane’s 124th annual Founder's Day Celebration. The event featured singing by the Lane College Concert Choir, directed by Professor Allen Franklin Todd II, and a musical selection by Dr. Jung-Won Shin, assistant professor of music at Lane.


This year's speaker for the Founder's Day Address was Dr. Daniel Lee Fitten, the dynamic pastor of St. Matthew Christian Methodist Episcopal (CME) Church in Milwaukee. Dr. Fitten's message, entitled "An Adversarial Robbery, a Shepard's Security," stated that Satan is continually robbing the world of its decency, morality, hope and most importantly, its desire to reach higher academically. "There are satanic forces at work in (our) lives," Fitten said. "Satan is robbing people of the desire for learning. He is stealing the desire for excellence. We live in a world were a kid is having ambitions of being a rapper rather than an attorney, a doctor or a college professor."
Dr. Fitten said that Satan's mission is to "steal, kill and destroy" people's lives and their faith in God. He said that Satan wants to make people insane, but that the Good Shepherd, Jesus, wants people to have peace and abundant lives. "I love the motto of Lane College, 'The Power of Potential,' " Fitten said. "Be all that you can be. ... As long as Jesus is with us, there is hope, no matter how bad things seem."

The celebration concluded the events of Founder's Week, including a chapel service on Wednesday honoring Bishop Lane, whose birthday was Friday, March 3rd. Mr. John Greene, who is a 1964 Lane graduate and President of the Lane College National Alumni Association, said it's important to remember Lane's contribution to the community and for alumni to support Lane College. "I find myself telling people everywhere I go, 'You need to go to Lane College,' " Greene said. "It takes ordinary people and helps them do extraordinary things."


During the celebration, over $100,000.00 was donated by fraternities, sororities, alumni, corporate friends, and supporters of Lane. Bishop William H. Graves, the presiding prelate of the 1st Episcopal District of the CME Church, made a special note of passing along to Lane President Wesley Cornelious McClure a check in the amount of $15,000.00 that was donated by the CME Women’s Missionary Council.


Ms. Darrah White, a sophomore and the newly crowned Miss Lane College, often talks to her family, friends and church members about the college's importance to society. "There are thousands of people whose lives have been changed by what Lane College has done for them," White said.


Lane College opened on Nov. 12, 1882, as the CME High School. Its purpose was to educate African-Americans, especially ministers, who were underprivileged and recently enslaved. Bishop Lane's daughter, Ms. Jennie E. Lane, was the school's first teacher and principal.

The high school later became Lane Institute on June 22, 1884, and then Lane College in 1896. The name change to Lane College was officially recognized on March 3, 1909.