Caldwell goes above and beyond in the field of education to teach and instruct young brothers. Furthermore, he defends diversity, equity, and inclusion despite criticism of initiatives that advance these ideas.
Through mentoring and empowering documentaries, college administrator and creative Herb Caldwell is making a lasting impact on communities and college campuses around the country.
He has only made two full-length motion pictures as a creator. But each has had a hugely significant impact, indicating that there will be more outstanding works in the future.
EDUCATOR
Caldwell spends a lot of time in the Bayou City and has strong links to Houston, while being based in the St. Louis, Missouri, area.
Nevertheless, Caldwell works as the Chief of Compliance & Engagement at Logan University in Chesterfield, Missouri, during the day. Additionally, he has worked in a variety of capacities at the University of Illinois, MacMurray College, and Saint Louis University. He has been out of the classroom for more than ten years because of these roles.
Despite this, Caldwell has left his mark as a teacher and mentor to pupils while promoting diversity.
ADD A SLIDESHOW
“I realized that I could discuss diversity and inclusion without ever using those terms,” Caldwell remarked. Because part of what I’m trying to say is that if all of the students, faculty, and professors at this school are interested in health, wellness, and enhancing the community, are you also in a position to play God and decide which class or group of people receive it?
According to Caldwell, he encourages diversity by framing it in terms of humanity.
Additionally, he navigates anti-DEI discourse while advocating for and achieving diversity by using the organization’s own facts and mission statement (values).
Caldwell doesn’t stop there, though.
At the age of 22, he started working in education (enrollment management) after observing that many of our Brown and Black brothers were struggling to understand the game. Even though he was only a year or two older than many of them, he took on the role of a father figure by inviting them to his family’s house for dinner and conversations. He taught them how to handle financial aid, how to work through a checkbook, and other things that many first-generation students didn’t understand.
CREATIVE
Caldwell’s creative spirit is nourished by the sense of pride he gets from seeing a generation of his teachers succeed in life. This is where the topic of assisting others keeps coming up.
Oval Miller Sr., a former heroin addict who established a culturally tailored drug and alcohol treatment program to assist Black people, is the subject of his debut documentary, A Road to Recovery. Miller said that AA was intended for white middle-class men.
“Dude, they had an incredible success rate of about 83%,” Caldwell said.
MAMA JOE PROJECT
The Mama Joe Project, Caldwell’s most recent artistic venture, speaks to his love and bond with Houston on a deeper level.
Caldwell is in charge of the Mama Joe Project, an effort to lessen health and caring inequalities, particularly for families coping with dementia and Alzheimer’s.
Caldwell, whose mother, JoeAnna Mama Joe Caldwell, is the main character in the movie and a lifelong Houstonian, stated, “My own family is personally impacted.”
A number of Community Engagement Forums, a documentary called My Mama Joe, Hope & Help, and a research project that starts in 2025 are all part of the project. Before the documentary airs on PBS in the first quarter of 2025, it will be screened in 23 states.
After being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, Mama Joe—a mothering force for multitudes, an advocate for education, and a general humanitarian—was given the diagnosis. Her personal narrative and the experience of her family in providing care are both told in the movie.
Dementia does not discriminate, yet there are differences in how it manifests in society. Women make about two-thirds of those affected. The Black population is affected twice as frequently, followed by our Latino brothers and sisters at a rate that is 1.5 times higher. In order to help other families start at a higher point than my own family did in dealing with this, I’m utilizing this to help educate, create awareness, and connect them to services, Caldwell said.
To take care of Mama Joe, Caldwell’s father and other siblings relocated to Houston. Houston has been his second home for many years, and a large portion of the documentary was filmed there.
Caldwell has siblings in Houston, including Reverend Joy Oliver. She like the movie her brother made and their mother, who plays a major role in it.
Oliver added, “My mother’s passion was helping others so they didn’t have to suffer as she did.” Everywhere she went—in South Africa, the North Carolina mountains, Illinois, and here in Houston—she stood up for people who were hungry, illiterate, and in pain.
Her legacy of love will grow through the Mama Joe Project, which will help families facing Alzheimer’s and other cognitive illnesses by raising awareness of prevention, healing, and hope.
On January 10 and 11, 2025, the Mama Joe Project will launch in Houston at the Deluxe Theater (3301 Lyons Ave, Houston, 77020). Visit www.mamajoeproject.com, give 618-977-6537 a call, or send an email to [email protected] for additional information.
