Urban Views RVA, Jun 3, 2021
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Virginia State University (VSU) is a historically Black university (a HBCU) that is located in Petersburg, Virginia
The kente cloth color combination and design that is worn by the man in the front of that procession is one of the kente cloth stoles that I refer to as the "pan-African" kente cloth stole because its colors are the colors of pan-African flags.
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Edited by Azizi Powell
This is Part III of a two part pancocojams series about the custom of non-academic university organizations in the United States conferring stoles and/or cords and/or other decorations such as medallions (medals) to its members to wear during those members' graduation ceremonies.
This pancocojams post showcases two examples of a multi-part YouTube 2021 video series of Virginia State University (VSU) graduates walking across an outdoor stage to receive their graduation diploma.
To serve as an example of the other two videos that are showcased in this pancocojams post (as well as all of the videos that are part of this VSU 2021 graduation YouTube series), this post includes my descriptions of the stoles and cords that are worn by the graduates who are shown in these two videos.
Additions and corrections are welcome.
Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2025/06/the-custom-of-non-academic-university.html for Part I of this pancocojams series. That post presents three online AI (Artificial Intelligence) results about that subject.
The content of this post is presented for historical and socio-cultural purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Congratulations to all these graduates and thanks to the producers and publisher of these videos.
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PANCOCOJAMS EDITOR'S NOTE
I'm interested in documenting the fact that most Black students who graduated from that HBCU (Historically Black College & University) not only wore stoles and/or cords, but wore a relatively wide selection of kente cloth stoles, and not just what I refer to as the pan-African kente cloth stole (because its green, gold, red, and black color combination is the colors of the pan-African flag.
Based on YouTube videos, since at least the early 2000s the custom of wearing a kente cloth stole and, particularly, the pan-African color combination and design of that stole, has been and is still very widely followed by many Black people graduating from United States universities (HBCUs and PMI (Predominately White Institutions). This is particularly the case-but not limited to-graduating members of historically Black fraternities and sororities, including members of those organizations who aren't Black,
Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2014/02/wearing-kente-cloth-stoles-during.html "Wearing Kente Cloth Stoles During American Graduation Ceremonies"
Also, click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2025/05/continuing-custom-beginning-around-2010.html "Continuing The African American Custom Of Wearing At Least One Kente Cloth Stole Over Their Graduation Gown During Their University Graduation Ceremony"
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Wearing kente cloth stoles during university graduations (or far less often during high school graduations) in the United States are examples of how stoles can be conferred to graduates for non-academic reasons.
These links demonstrate my present contention that the widespread custom in the United States of members of university based historically Black Greek letter organizations wearing one or more kente cloth stoles during their university graduations probably helped and continues to help other Greek letter organizations and other non-academic university organizations establish or strengthen their custom of giving stoles and cords to their members to wear during their universities' graduation ceremonies.
Thee are two different customs that are associated with wearing kente cloth stoles during university graduation ceremonies from a historically Black university (HBCU) of from a PWI (Predominately White university)
1. A wide selection of kente cloth color combinations/designs that can be worn by anyone who is of Black descent
2. Akente cloth stole in a specific color combination/design of kente cloth that can only be worn by members of a specific historically Black Greek letter fraternity or historically Black Greek letter sorority, including non-Black members of those organizations. These specially designed stoles include the three Greek letters of that organization and the graduation year.
Please add to the historical and cultural record by sharing information about this subject in this pancocojams post's comment section. Thanks!
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MY NOTE ABOUT VIRGINIA STATE UNIVERSITY'S MULTI-PART VIDEO SERIES OF THE 2021 GRADUATION CEREMONY.
There are at least 43 YouTube examples of Virginia Sate University 2021 graduation ceremony, although all of those videos may not have been published on YouTube. These videos may have been published online as a means of providing access to this graduation ceremony during Covid 19, Notice that most of the graduates are wearing protective face masks.
As of June 3, 2025 I have watched eight of these videos. Most of the graduates in these videos wore at least one stole and most of the stoles were either the color white or were the kente cloth color combination that I refer to as the "pan-African" kente cloth design. I gave that name to that kente cloth design because its colors are green, gold, red, and black -the pan African color combination.
Far fewer of the graduates in the videos of that VSU series that I watched wore usually one or two cords (with or without any stoles.) Also, click https://kentecloth.com/blog/kente-cloth-patterns-and-meanings/ for information and drawings of 17 types of traditional kente cloth. Those examples don't include what I refer to as the pan-African kente cloth combination and design. Nor does that article include examples of the nine historically Black Greek letter fraternities and sororities that are members of the National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC; colloquially known as "the Divine Nine".) since those color combinations (and the pan-African kente cloth stole color combination ?) aren't traditional to the Ghanaian and Ivory Coast cultures that originated kente cloth.
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MY DESCRIPTION OF THE STOLES AND CORDS THAT THE VSU GRADUATES ARE WEARING IN THE VIDEO THAT IS LABELED IN THIS PANCOCOJAMS POST AS SHOWCASE VIDEO #1 (at the top of this post)
Note- All of the people who are shown in this video are Black.
0.10 & 0.11 - two
men are wearing a black and orange colored kente cloth stole decorated with a music
note symbol, but not wearing any other stole or any cord
0.18 - a woman is wearing a single blue cord
0.27 - a woman is wearing two stoles-a
white stole on the top and a pan-African kente cloth stole on the bottom (pan-African kente cloth stole: a kente cloth stole with the green, gold, red, & black color combinations with a specific design and adinkra symbol)
0.50 - a woman is wearing a multicolored scarf under her graduation cap, she also is wearing a a white stole
0.50 - a woman is wearing a black and white patterned stole on top and a
yellow, blue, and a colored kente cloth stole on the bottom
0.57 - a woman is wearing a white sole without any other stole or cord
1:29 - a woman is wearing a
pan-African colored kente cloth stole on top and a white stole on the bottom
1:50 - a woman is wearing a narrow black and white stole with a white stole and a red
stole
1:36 - a woman is wearing a white, red and black kente colored stole,
1:38 -a man is wearing a blue and white kente cloth stole (representing Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc.
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SHOWCASE VIDEO #2 - Virginia State University (VSU) 2021 Graduation -
Presentation of Diplomas - Pt.43
Urban Views RVA, Jun 3, 2021
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MY DESCRIPTION OF THE STOLES AND CORDS THAT THE VSU GRADUATES ARE WEARING IN THE VIDEO THAT IS LABELED IN THIS PANCOCOJAMS POST AS SHOWCASE VIDEO #2
Note- All of the people who are shown in this video are Black..
0.01 - a man is wearing a graduation gown with one purple and lavender button with a
black symbol on either side of his gown; He doesn't wear any stoles or cords; Note: A number of graduates have these buttons on
their gowns. Do these buttons represent a university organization?
0.07- a woman is wearing a white sash, a white cord, and a pink and green kente cloth stole (representing the historically Black Greek letter sorority Alpha Kappa Alpha, Inc.
016- a woman is (.07); woman is wearing a white and blue cord, a white
stole, and on the top a pink and green stole representing Alpha Kappa Alpha Sororitycloth stole on the top (The woman does the AKA
signature call when she receives her diploma)
0.20 - a man wears a white stole and a
pan-African kente cloth stole on top
0.29- a woman wears a light blue stole, a pan-African kente cloth
stole, and
0.43 - a man wears a button on either side of his gown (as described in 0.01), his graduation cap has a lavender tassel, he wears a blue stole trimmed in yellow with his
name printed in yellow
0.49- a man wears a purple and gold sash (representing the historically Black Greek letter fraternity Omega Psi Phi, Inc.); his graduation cap with an orange tassel
0.52 - a man wears a pan-African kente cloth stole and a blue cord; he also wears the two buttons as described in 0.01
1.08 - a man wears a blue cord and a black, orange
white and red kente cloth sash
1:12 - a woman wears a salmon green and white
kente cloth stole and a white and blue cord
1:20 - a woman wears a white stole with a distinctive black line design on one end
1:35 - man with a pan-African kente cloth stole, three small triangles on his
graduation cap as well as the two buttons described in 0.01
1:38- a woman wears a multi-colored sash, a white sash, a white and black cord, and a pan-African kente cloth sash
1:43 - a woman wears a pan-African kente cloth stole; she also wears a personally decorated graduation hat
1:59 - a man with wears a medal with pink and purple ribbon, he also wears two blue cords, and a white, yellow,
and black kente cloth stole;
(2:07- a man wears two buttons as described in 0.01
2:13 - a man wears two buttons as described in 0.01 and also wears one blue cord, he also wears a small white symbol of a triangle on the right hand edge of his graduation cap.
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This concludes Part III of this pancocojams series.
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