Heritage Lives Here
Preserving Our Rich Legacy
At the NJ Black Heritage Foundation, we are dedicated to celebrating and preserving the rich cultural heritage of Black communities in New Jersey. Through education, outreach, and community events, we aim to honor our history and inspire future generations.
Milestones of the NJ Black Heritage Foundation
Founded in the heart of New Jersey, the NJ Black Heritage Foundation has been dedicated to preserving and promoting the rich history of black culture. From our beginnings, we’ve worked to showcase the achievements and contributions of black individuals and communities. Our journey includes countless events, educational programs, and collaborations that highlight our mission and enrich our community.
Our Commitment to Preserving Black History
At the NJ Black Heritage Foundation, we believe in the importance of honoring and preserving the rich tapestry of Black history. Our organization works tirelessly to celebrate the achievements and contributions of Black individuals and communities. We are dedicated to sharing these stories, educating the public, and inspiring future generations to continue this vital work.
Meet Our Founders
Derek Davis
With over 15 years of experience in community engagement, Derek Davis helps lead our organization with a vision rooted in service and empowerment. His dedication to cultural heritage helps shape our mission to educate, enrich and empower New Jersey’s cultural landscape .
“If we omit this history, it is as if we are looking at ourselves with just one eye. We as a people and nation have too long been selective in how we understand and talk about history,… This reservoir of information and its public acknowledgment will teach us who we once were and can contextualize who we are, pointing us towards a better-shared future.” – Derek Davis, board member of Camden County Historical Society and the NJ Black Heritage Foundation.
Dr. Kendra Boyd
Kendra brings a wealth of knowledge in non-profit management and has a strong background in youth mentorship. Her passion for teaching the untold histories of the individuals and communities that makeup New Jersey’s History.
Dr. Kendra Boyd is a scholar of African American history whose research focuses on Black business and economic history, urban history, and migration. She earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Wayne State University and a Ph.D. in History from Rutgers University–New Brunswick.
At Rutgers University–Camden, Dr. Boyd is an affiliated faculty member in the Africana Studies Program and an affiliated scholar at the Center for Urban Research and Education. Her scholarship examines the economic life, entrepreneurship, and community-building efforts of African Americans, with particular attention to Black women’s leadership and cooperative economic practices.
Dr. Boyd is the author of Freedom Enterprise: Black Entrepreneurship and Racial Capitalism in Detroit, published by the University of Pennsylvania Press in 2025. She has also written award-winning scholarship on the Detroit Housewives League and Black women entrepreneurs, and she co-edited Scarlet and Black, Volume 2: Constructing Race and Gender at Rutgers, 1865–1945.
In addition to her academic writing, Dr. Boyd is deeply involved in public history and community-centered research. She is currently recruiting participants for the Black Camden Oral History Project, which she began developing in 2022 as a Public Humanities Fellow at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Center for the Humanities. From 2025 to 2028, she will direct the South Jersey Hub’s research for the Truth and Repair project.
Dr. Boyd’s work has received numerous awards and grants, including recognition from the National Council for Black Studies, the Historical Society of Michigan, the Association of Black Women Historians, and Rutgers University. Through her books, articles, digital projects, and oral history work, Dr. Boyd continues to preserve and elevate the histories of Black entrepreneurship, Black women’s leadership, and African American communities.
Dr. Kate Marcopul
Dr. Kate Marcopul is a public historian, anthropologist, and historic preservation leader whose work focuses on protecting, documenting, and interpreting New Jersey’s historic and cultural resources. She serves as the New Jersey Deputy State Historic Preservation Officer and Administrator of the New Jersey Historic Preservation Office.
In her role with the New Jersey Historic Preservation Office, Dr. Marcopul helps oversee programs connected to historic preservation across the state. These include review and compliance under state and federal preservation laws, the New Jersey and National Register programs, historic rehabilitation tax credits, local government preservation support, and historic property survey and inventory efforts.
Dr. Marcopul’s academic background is rooted in anthropology. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology from Indiana University of Pennsylvania and both a Master of Arts and Ph.D. in Anthropology from Temple University. She is also a Certified Public Manager.
Through her leadership, Dr. Marcopul has played an important role in preserving New Jersey’s historic places and helping communities understand the value of cultural heritage. Her work connects government, scholarship, public history, and community preservation, ensuring that important buildings, landscapes, and historical sites are recognized and protected for future generations.
Michael Styles – Division of Travel and Tourism
Michael Styles is a tourism and marketing professional with the New Jersey Division of Travel & Tourism, where he serves as Director of Marketing. In this role, he helps promote New Jersey as a travel destination and supports efforts to highlight the state’s diverse attractions, including its shore communities, historic sites, cultural destinations, outdoor recreation, culinary experiences, and entertainment venues.
Through his work with the Division of Travel & Tourism, Styles contributes to statewide tourism marketing strategies that encourage visitors to explore New Jersey’s many regions. His role includes helping communicate the value of tourism to both travelers and industry partners while supporting the state’s broader goal of increasing awareness of New Jersey as a destination.
Styles has also been connected to group travel and domestic tourism outreach, serving as a contact for travel professionals interested in New Jersey itineraries and visitor experiences. His work supports collaboration among tourism partners, destination marketing organizations, local businesses, attractions, and communities across the state.
As Director of Marketing, Michael Styles plays an important role in shaping how New Jersey presents itself to visitors. His work helps strengthen the state’s tourism economy while showcasing the history, culture, recreation, and local character that make New Jersey a meaningful and memorable place to visit.
Community Members
Kristal Langford – Lost Souls Memorial Project
Kristal C. Langford is a public historian, educator, and historical researcher whose work focuses on African American history, public memory, education, and the recovery of overlooked Black histories in New Jersey. She is closely connected to the Lost Souls Public Memorial Project, where she serves as a leading researcher and historian.
Through the Lost Souls Public Memorial Project, Langford works to honor the lives of the Black women, men, and children who were unlawfully taken from New Jersey in 1818 and sold into slavery in the Deep South. Her work helps restore dignity, names, stories, and historical attention to people whose lives were damaged by the domestic slave trade and long ignored in public memory.
Langford’s scholarship and public history work are also connected to education. As a Ph.D. candidate in Education at Rutgers University, her research examines race, culture, schooling, curriculum, and teacher training. She is especially interested in how Black history is taught and how educators can create more honest, human-centered approaches to teaching difficult histories.
In addition to her research, Langford has helped develop educational materials for the Lost Souls Public Memorial Project and has been featured in public programs and documentaries connected to the project’s mission. Through her work as a historian, educator, and community scholar, Kristal C. Langford continues to preserve African American history, challenge historical silence, and help communities remember the lives and legacies of those known as the Lost Souls.
Dolly Marshall – City of Camden, Historic Preservation Specialist
Dolly L. Marshall is a historian, preservationist, and Historic Preservation Specialist for the City of Camden, New Jersey. In her work with the city, she helps preserve, research, and interpret Camden’s historic places, cultural landmarks, and community stories. Her work is especially important in bringing African American history and the African diaspora to the center of local and statewide historical preservation efforts.
As a native of Camden with deep family roots in South Jersey, Marshall brings both professional expertise and personal commitment to her preservation work. She uses research, storytelling, public education, and community partnerships to connect the past with the present and to make overlooked histories more visible to the public.
Marshall is also closely connected to Mount Peace Cemetery in Lawnside, New Jersey, where she serves as a historian and trustee. Through her advocacy, she has helped raise awareness of the cemetery’s importance as a historic African American burial ground and as a site connected to the Underground Railroad, veterans, civic leaders, and African American community history.
Her preservation work has earned recognition from organizations such as the National Trust for Historic Preservation, Preservation New Jersey, the New Jersey Historical Commission, Rutgers University, and other state and national institutions. Through her leadership, Dolly Marshall continues to protect historic sites, recover untold stories, and ensure that Camden’s history—especially its African American history—is preserved for future generations.
Former Advisory Committee Community Members
Dr. Jesse Bayker – Rutgers University-Camden
2024-2025
Dr. Jesse Bayker is a historian and Assistant Teaching Professor of History at Rutgers University–Camden. He also serves as Associate Director of the Digital Studies Center, where his work connects historical research with digital tools, archives, databases, and public-facing scholarship.
Dr. Bayker’s research and teaching focus on U.S. history, New Jersey history, digital history, LGBTQ history, and the history of gender and sexuality. His work also examines the history of slavery in New Jersey and the ways digital projects can make difficult and overlooked histories more accessible to students, researchers, and the public.
He earned his Ph.D. in History from Rutgers University–New Brunswick and his Bachelor of Arts in History and LGBTQ Studies from CUNY Brooklyn College. Before joining Rutgers–Camden, Dr. Bayker worked as a Digital Archivist at the Institute for the Study of Global Racial Justice at Rutgers University–New Brunswick and contributed to the Scarlet and Black research project.
Dr. Bayker is the developer of the New Jersey Slavery Records database and co-director of the Black Camden Oral History Project. Through his scholarship, teaching, and digital public history work, he helps preserve New Jersey’s complex histories while expanding access to records, stories, and community memory.
Dr. Hettie Williams – Monmouth University
2024-2025
Dr. Hettie V. Williams is a historian, author, and professor whose scholarship explores African American history, women’s history, and the intersections of race, culture, and social justice. She serves as Professor of History in the Department of History and Anthropology at Monmouth University, where she teaches courses on African American history, intellectual history, and race and ethnicity in a global context.
An accomplished scholar and public intellectual, Dr. Williams has authored and edited seven books in addition to numerous scholarly articles, book chapters, and essays. Her work has appeared in leading academic journals as well as popular publications, reflecting her commitment to making history accessible to both academic and public audiences. Her research emphasizes the experiences, ideas, and activism of African Americans, with particular attention to the contributions of Black women.
Before joining Monmouth University, Dr. Williams served as Director of the William Monroe Trotter Institute for the Study of Black Culture at the University of Massachusetts Boston. She also serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Women’s History and has been an active leader in advancing scholarship on African American history.
Dr. Williams is the author of The Georgia of the North: Black Women and the Civil Rights Movement in New Jersey, a groundbreaking study that highlights the leadership and activism of Black women in New Jersey’s Civil Rights Movement. Through her teaching, writing, public speaking, and media engagement, she continues to deepen public understanding of African American history and preserve the stories of individuals and communities whose contributions have shaped American society.
Celebrating Achievements in the Community
We are proud of the milestones we’ve reached together. From educational programs to community outreach, our efforts have made a meaningful difference in the lives of many. Join us as we continue to uplift and empower the community.