BALTIMORE, Md. (Feb. 17, 2024)--The Morgan State athletics department held the first of two Black History/Honoring Our Past celebrations on Saturday, Feb. 17, when the Morgan State Bears returned to the court following a 12-day layoff to take on Maryland Eastern Shore at Hill Field House.
 
During Morgan State's final two home games in the month of February (Feb. 17 and Feb. 26), as part of Black History/Honoring Our Past, sponsored by Medtronic Plc, Morgan State will honor four people who have played a significant role in Morgan's history.
 
Each individual will be presented with a swag bag courtesy of Medtronic Plc.
 
This Saturday's honorees were: Theresa Gibson, Assistant Athletic Director for Intramurals and Wellness and Morgan State Cheerleading Coach; James A. Perkins, Esq., Senior Director/Compliance Officer for Medtronic; Wendy Rose, Co-founder of Up In Smoke Caterers and Earl W. Davis, former Assistant Football coach at Morgan State and Instructional Developer and Facilities Manager in Hurt Gymnasium.
 
A former Morgan State cheerleader, Gibson has been coaching the Cheer Bears since 1983.
 
In that same year, Gibson initially began her professional career in Morgan State's Public Relations Office as the feature specialist.  
 
In 1985 she joined the Athletics Department where she eventually settled into the Sports Information Office before completing her master's degree.
 
Gibson has served as chairperson of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) cheerleading coaches and claimed 14 MEAC cheerleading titles.
 
Gibson was recently named Assistant Athletic Director for Intramurals and Wellness after serving as a faculty member and advisor for the School of Education and Urban Studies for nearly three decades.  
 
She is an AACCA certified coach and is a member of NIRSA, USA Cheer Coaches Association, Maryland Cheer Judges, and Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.
 
Perkins, who was a member of the Bears' football team, from 1991-95, graduated from Morgan State with a degree in accounting.
 
He then earned a dual MBA & MS in Healthcare Management & Healthcare Financial Management from Temple University and a Juris Doctorate from Widener University.
 
Perkins has held leadership roles at three Fortune 10 companies, including the No. 1 company in the world; the No. 1 For-Profit Healthcare System; largest Health Insurance Company and now the largest Medical Device Company in the world.
 
He is an active life member of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity & Chairman of the Board of Trustees for Olive Branch Baptist Church.
 
Rose is the co-founder of the successful barbecue business, Up In Smoke Caterers. She proudly employed MSU student-athletes, provided meals for student-athletes, coaches, and alumni and served the greater Baltimore Community with great BBQ all year round for over 20 years.
 
She is a member of the Executive Leadership Board of the MSU Grizzlies Booster Club, the co-chair of the Bo Rose Fallen Grizzlies Annual Golf Tournament and currently serves as financial secretary of the MSU On-Campus Alumni Chapter.
 
A lifetime member of Morgan State University National Alumni Association, Rose established the Bo Rose Endowment Fund at Morgan State University, which recipients of the endowment are Morgan State student-athletes.
 
Rose is a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. and an active member of the Baltimore County Alumnae Chapter.
 
No stranger to Morgan State athletics, Davis played football for the Bears and served Morgan State for 46 1/2 years, before retiring in 2020.
 
During his tenure at Morgan, Davis coached in the MEAC for more than 30 years, served five presidents, seven athletics directors and eight head coaches.
 
From establishing the first television studio in Banneker Hall to serving as the photographer to produce black and white passport photos for the football team to attend the first Pioneer Bowl in 1976 in Tokyo, Japan between Morgan State and Grambling State, Davis did it all.
 
On the field as an assistant coach, Davis developed nine First-Team All-MEAC selections, including seven at the running backs position.
 
As an administrator, he served as the coordinator for the weight training programs for all sports from 1984-2000. He was on the administrative committee for both the 1995 renovation/extension of Hill Field House and for the 1997 renovation of Hughes Stadium.
 
Davis served as instructional developer and facilities manager in Hurt Gymnasium from 1991 until his retirement in 2020.
 
 
ABOUT MEDTRONIC PLC
Medtronic Plc (Medtronic), formerly Medtronic Inc, is an American medical device company that designs, develops, manufactures and markets medical devices and solutions. The company's operational and executive headquarters are in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and its legal headquarters are in Dublin, Ireland due to its acquisition of Irish-based Covidien in 2015. While it primarily operates in the United States, it operates in more than 150 countries and employs over 90,000 people. It develops and manufactures healthcare technologies and therapies.
 
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ABOUT MORGAN
Morgan State University, founded in 1867, is a Carnegie-classified high research (R2) institution offering nearly 140 academic programs leading to degrees from the baccalaureate to the doctorate. As Maryland's Preeminent Public Urban Research University, and the only university to have its entire campus designated as a National Treasure by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, Morgan serves a multiethnic and multiracial student body and seeks to ensure that the doors of higher education are opened as wide as possible to as many as possible. For more information about Morgan State University, visit www.morgan.edu