| Dr. Leo
William Pickett, retired University Professor
and Chair of the Media/ Library Instructional Systems Department at
University of the District of Columbia, is a tenor soloist and ordained
Elder in The Church of God and an entrepreneur. A soloist since the age of
six, he is an accomplished singer and works through music with the homeless,
senior citizens, nursing homes, churches, civic events and dinner theaters.
His repertoire includes: Broadway, Opera, Sacred, Popular, Inspirational and
Contemporary Gospel. He has composed a number of songs, including a musical
for the bicentennial.
He is a native of St. Louis,
Missouri where he attended Vashon High School. While at Vashon, he was
managing editor of the school newspaper and solo member of the choir. He
received a Curators Scholarship to Lincoln University where he was Freshman
Class President, President of the Baptist Student Union, Vice-President of
Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia (National Music Fraternity) and “Who’s Who Among
Students in Colleges and Universities. Towards the end of his senior year he
was the first African American scholarship recipient of the Missouri Library
Commission to do graduate study. Leo enrolled in Drexel University,
Philadelphia, and eleven months later received his Master’s Degree in
Library Science. The scholarship stipulated that he work in a rural area of
Missouri for two years. However, at that time, the State of Missouri did
not hire African Americans to work in rural areas. So, in order to retain
his services, he was placed in the Missouri State Library (located on High
Street, Jefferson City) and service rural area clients, by mail, through the
State Library.
Following the State Library
assignment, he moved to Detroit, Michigan and worked in the Detroit Public
Library, Pontiac Public Schools, General Motors Legal Staff Library, New
Detroit, Wayne Community College and completed course work for his doctorate
at Wayne State University. He moved to the Washington, DC area and two yeas
later received his Ed.D degree in Education Administration from Wayne State
University.
Since graduating from
Lincoln, Leo has been active with the LU Alumni and served as President of
the Detroit chapter; Vice-President of the DC chapter including lead chair
of a testimonial banquet to honor The Fifth Dimension at the National Alumni
Convention here in Washington, DC.
Other activities include
Director of Cultural Arts (Detroit, Michigan); Adult Education Institute;
researcher and writer for the television documentaries “Comparative Slavery
of North America and South America” and “Illegal Aliens”, (Channel 7,
Washington, DC); Director of Community Development for The David Eaton Show,
Channel 4, Washington, DC, The Mayors Turning Points Program for Youth and
Adults, and Board member of two Charter Schools.
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