Garden City, N.Y. - The Adelphi University Department of Intercollegiate Athletics is excited to announce the date of its 24th annual Black History Month Celebration, which will take place on Wednesday, February 25, 2026 starting at 6:00 p.m. at the Olmsted Theatre inside the Performing Arts Center.
Headlining this year's event will be Datwon Thomas, son of track and field alum, William Dabney '77. He will be interviewed by Curtis Minnis '77, former Adelphi Board of Trustee and track and field alum.Â
Thomas was most recently the Executive Producer of Talent at Dick Clark Productions. He was an integral part of DCP's in-house talent team, collaborating on talent strategy, relations, bookings, and creative, leveraging his unrivaled experience from his 13-year stewardship of VIBE Magazine.Â
Thomas has currently embraced the role of Strategic Advisor/Editor-at-Large at VIBE and Rolling Stone, supporting big-picture strategy for the magazines as they are merging as publishing brands. Previously, Thomas served as VIBE's longtime Editor-In-Chief. During this time, he pioneered new initiatives for Hip-Hop and R&B media and created platforms to showcase and discover emerging and established artists. Â
Since 2019, Thomas has worked closely with the DCP team as a consulting producer for flagship programs, including the American Music Awards, Billboard Music Awards, Academy of Country Music Awards, and Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest. He is also a sought-after and recognized television commentator, moderator, and host for ABC News, MTV, BET and VH1.
Minnis, who returns to the Olmsted stage to serve as the moderator is a former member of the universities' Board of Trustees, and chaired the board's Advancement and External Relations committee during his tenure. He is a founding member of the Multi-Cultural chapter of Adelphi's Alumni Association. In recognizing his commitment to the university, he was recipient of the Frank Cassell Memorial Award at the Athletics Hall of Fame Ceremony in 2007, for his contributions to further educational and competitive excellence within Adelphi's student-athlete community.Â
He recently retired as Managing Director of Global Sales with The FedEx Corporation. For nearly two decades he led a team of strategic account managers tasked with designing and delivering optimal logistic services and supply chain solutions for large global corporations.Â
The event will be streamed live at the link above. For more information or to reserve a seat at the event, please contact
John Curto,
Coorindator of Athletics Engagement and Special Events at jcurto@adelphi.edu.
