“I wanted to make a sidebar conversation a real conversation,” says Dr. Frederick Engram, Jr., CPS’19, with a passion only found in the DNA of changemakers. “I really wanted to have a coming together and tap on the shoulder, not just for Black people, but for my peers, my elders, and [those] on a journey toward anti-racism. How can I be a part of this? How can I make this work?”
Dr. Engram, hailing from Utica, New York by way of Silicon Valley, feels like he has “lived several lives.” After graduating from an HBCU with a bachelor’s in criminology and furthering his education with a master’s in administration of justice and security, Dr. Engram worked in a diverse range of fields before being “bit by the bug” of higher education and beginning his tenure at American University in Washington, D.C.
While at American University, Dr. Engram happened to be at the political center of our nation during an implicative and transformational time in our country—the 2016 transition from the Obama to Trump administration. Being in the eye of a historical zeitgeist as that moment had become, Dr. Engram wanted to make an impact on a sociopolitical level, and asked himself “How can I be a part of liberation and liberatory work?”
With this question in mind, in November of 2023, Dr. Engram published “Black Liberation through Action and Resistance: MOVE” under Rowman & Littlefield. The name of his book is far more than just a title—it’s a call to action, critical thought, and change. As Dr. Engram explains, the title “is a double entendre. It’s called ‘MOVE’ as in get up and do something…but it’s also ‘MOVE’ as in move to music. Each of the chapters in the book are named after a song of liberation.”
Even with the positive reviews of his book and his plethora of experiences, Dr. Engram still credits Northeastern with giving him the flexibility to pursue his passion for social change. His hybrid educational schedule, he says, was able to give him the “full-on” Northeastern experience when in Boston. “Being a grad student in Boston while at Northeastern, allowed me to live in both places ideologically, philosophically, and in D.C. working…engaging with both my colleagues and my peers to be both an administrator and student at the same time.”
Now an assistant professor at Fairleigh Dickinson University in Teaneck, New Jersey, Dr. Engram continues his fight for liberation through his research of critical race theory, disruptive DEI, and more. With this in mind, his pursuit to answer the social questions of liberation are proving to be a bright light for our nation’s future.
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“Black Liberation through Action and Resistance: MOVE” is available at your local bookstore
Capitalize on the opportunities that are present before you.”
Dr. Frederick Engram Jr., CPS’19