INSTITUTE, W.Va. – The 11th annual West Virginia State University (WVSU) Black & Gold Gala will take place, Friday, April 11, at the Charleston Coliseum and Convention Center.
The black tie event recognizes the generosity of donors while raising funds to further support educational programs and students at the university. The Gala also honors leaders who have made a lasting impact on the state of West Virginia and beyond with the presentation of a presidential award from WVSU President Ericke S. Cage.
This year’s presidential award honorees are: Dr. Roslyn Clark Artis, Verl Purdy and Paul Smith.
Dr. Roslyn Clark Artis
Artis was unanimously appointed by the Board of Trustees as the 14th and first woman President of Benedict College in Columbia, South Carolina, on June 30, 2017. Previously, Artis served as the 13th and first woman President of Florida Memorial University in Miami Gardens, Florida.
An alumna of WVSU, Artis’ leadership has been recognized locally and nationally. In 2018, she was named “Female HBCU President of the Year” by HBCU Digest. In 2019, Artis was named to Diverse Issues in Higher Education’s “Top 35 Leading Women in Higher Education.”That same year, Benedict College was awarded theAmerican Council on Education (ACE) Fidelity Investments Award for Institutional Transformationand recognized as the HBCU of the YearbyHBCU Digest.In 2020, Dr. Artis was named “President of the Year”by Higher Ed Dive for her leadership in navigating the unprecedented challenges of 2020. Most recently, in 2022, President Artis was named one of Columbia Business Monthly’s 50 Most Influential people in South Carolina.
She is the Chair of the Presidents’ Advisory Board for Title III Administrators, is a member of the Educational Testing Service Presidents’ Advisory Council and is a Member of the Board of Directors for the American Council on Education. She also serves as a Board Member of CIEE – Council on International Educational Exchange and previously served on the Board for the Forum on Education Abroad. She is the Vice-Chair for the “Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) HBCU/MSI Collaboration.”
Artis is a graduate of Vanderbilt University, where she earned a Doctorate in Higher Education Leadership and Policy. She also holds a Juris Doctorate from West Virginia University College of Law, and her bachelor’s degree in political science from WVSU.
Verl Purdy
Verl Purdy’s career as a business leader has spanned more than five decades. A native West Virginian, he enrolled at WVSU at the age of 16. After completing the first two years of study in chemical engineering, he transferred to West Virginia University (WVU), earning a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering in 1964 from WVU and an MBA from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.
He joined the BASF group in 1969 and played a key role in helping the company in their growth and acquisition strategies. In 1980 he joined Rio Tinto Zinc chemicals treatment company as their North American President and CEO. After the sale of this business, he started Agdata in 1985 and led this agricultural data marketing and analytics company to become the largest in its field. In 1997 he, along with Scott and Steven Purdy, started MedData which became the national leader in insurance eligibility verification services. These businesses were sold in 2009 and 2010.
In 2011, the Purdy family and Jim Yuhas started Cadrillion Capital. This entity has been focused on acquiring and growing companies in the tech enabled healthcare services sector.
Purdy’s commitment to excellence extends beyond his companies, especially in his support of education. He served as Chairman of the Board for the West Virginia University Foundation, Co-Chaired the National Campaign for the University that raised over $1.2 Billion dollars. Each year, a number of High School and College students receive a full college scholarship from the various Purdy Family programs. In 2018, the new Purdy Center for Science and Math opened at Charlotte Country Day School.
Paul Smith
From a childhood spent standing alongside his grandfather helping stir the sauce for large Sunday dinners, Smith’s passions for food and his Appalachian home have taken him on a culinary journey that he is proud to share with his community.
After graduating from Charleston Catholic High School, Smith immersed himself in learning the hospitality industry and the finer points of great cuisine. With his bachelor’s degree from West Virginia State University, he formally trained at New York’s prestigious Culinary Institute of America and CIA’s Greystone campus in Napa Valley, California, where he studied pastries and wine and graduated as Valedictorian.
Smith has worked around the country, from The Ritz Carlton Resort in Naples, Florida, to the world-renowned Biltmore Estates in Asheville, North Carolina, to The Windsor Club in Vero Beach, Florida. When the Mountain State pulled at his heartstrings, he returned to West Virginia where he served as the Executive Chef at the University of Charleston, and Corporate Chef for Buzz Food Service.
Today, he has multiple restaurants in Charleston: The Pitch Sports Bar & Grill, and 1010 Bridge Restaurant & Catering. He believes strongly that a rising tide will lift all boats, and has served as an advisor to multiple food and hospitality businesses in West Virginia.
Smith was named a Semifinalist for the James Beard Foundation’s Best Chef of The Southeast Award in 2023, the first West Virginia chef to receive that honor. He was also named West Virginian of the Year in 2023.
In 2024, he was honored again with a nomination for the James Beard Foundation’s Best Chef of The Southeast Award and on June 10, 2024, in a ceremony in Chicago he became West Virginia’s first James Beard Award winner.
The 11th annual Black & Gold Gala will begin at 6 p.m. with a reception and silent auction, followed by dinner and the program recognizing honorees at 7:30 p.m., and a dance immediately following the program. Attendees will be treated to music by The Bob Thompson Unit during dinner, and dance music by the Motown Sounds of Touch. Sponsorships for the Gala are available, and individual tickets are on sale for $150 and can be purchased online at https://connect.wvstateu.edu/gala.
For more information or to purchase tickets, call (304) 766-3020, email gala@wvstateu.edu, or visit https://connect.wvstateu.edu/gala.
The WVSU Foundation Inc. is a 501(c) (3) charitable organization and gifts are deductible to the extent provided by federal and state law.
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