Photo courtesy of Taiisha Swinton-Buck/Susquehanna University
By Emily Costantino, Staff Writer
Taiisha Swinton-Buck, award-winning Baltimore principal, has been chosen to speak at Susquehanna’s Commencement Ceremony on May 28, 2022.
Swinton-Buck was nationally recognized for her efforts to improve the lives of her students at Digital Harbor High School in Baltimore, Md. In 2021, she was named Principal of the Year by the Maryland Association of Secondary School Principals, while also being featured on the Today Show, where Al Roker gave each of her students a free laptop and free internet access. She fondly recalls this event as something that provided her students with great pride.
When asked how she felt about being recognized on national TV, Swinton-Buck said, “Any good that comes to me will also come to my community.”
As a 2008 graduate, Swinton-Buck remembers her time at Susquehanna as a struggle but admits that she was able to eventually find her place.
“It was a culture shock, but I found my safe space,” she said. When reflecting on her experience as a black woman at a predominantly white institution, she recognizes the fighting spirit it instilled in her.
“SU taught me how to fight,” she said. “It gave me a broader perspective on the world and taught me how to advocate for myself and people who look like me.”
Swinton-Buck was heavily involved on campus as a Residence Assistant (RA) and Head RA of various residence halls, president of the Black Student Union (BSU) and one of the founding members of Susquehanna’s chapter of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority (SGRho). The creation of this chapter was monumental because it marked the beginning of Divine 9 Greek Life on campus, meaning that Susquehanna began to include historically black sororities and fraternities.
The current members of SGRho expressed their elation at not only one of their own, but one of their founders, being chosen to speak at commencement.
Jurnee Coker, the current SGRho president and Swinton-Buck’s biological sister, reiterated this excitement by describing the legacy Swinton-Buck has left on the members of SGRHo.
“When she [Swinton-Buck] got to this campus, there were a lot of injustices and exclusivity when it came to black students,” Coker said. “Now, she has opened the door for black women on this campus to thrive in an organization.”
Coker expressed that Swinton-Buck speaking at commencement was especially important because it is Sigma Gamma Rho’s centennial year and Susquehanna’s chapter, Rho Theta’s, fifteenth year in operation. Although this is a historic event for both Susquehanna and SGRho, Coker pointed out that there is still more work to be done.
“I want the SU community to know that Taiisha and all the Sorors of the Rho Theta chapter of SGRho have fought so many silent battles to make the chapter what it is today,” she said. “I want them to know that although we are a small chapter, there is no limit to our greatness.”
Aside from her influential work on Susquehanna’s campus, Swinton-Buck has made great strides through her work in schools.
When asked what drew her to a career in education, she said, “I really wanted to shift the narrative of educating black and brown kids.” Swinton-Buck began her career as a high school English teacher in Newark, New Jersey, where she was later promoted to assistant principal. In 2017, she was hired as principal of Digital Harbor High School in Baltimore, Maryland. Since starting there, Digital Harbor has seen record-setting improvements in attendance, grade point averages and graduation rates.
However, Swinton-Buck admits that these accomplishments were not easy.
“The biggest obstacle is working in underserved communities,” she said. “I want to change the narrative and show the world what is possible in these spaces that have been counted out.”
In preparation for her commencement speech, Swinton-Buck urges graduates to hold onto their core values and not give up. Describing her own core value as “meaningful work,” Swinton-Buck advises each 2022 graduate to find their own values and stay true to them.
Taiisha Swinton-Buck is scheduled to speak at the commencement ceremony on May 28, 2022, at 1 p.m. in the Field House of the James W. Garrett Sports Complex.
