Lawrence Ross
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Lawrence Ross was born on February 20, 1966 in Los Angeles, California. He attended Loyola High School in Los Angeles, and then University of California, Berkeley and UCLA, where he earned a degree in History. Ross worked as a reporter for the Los Angeles Independent Newspaper and was appointed managing editor of Rap Sheet magazine, hip hop's first West Coast magazine.
In 1997, Ross began writing The Divine Nine: The History of African American Fraternities and Sororities. The Divine Nine was the first book written that covered the nine African American fraternities and sororities and appeared on the bestseller lists of the Los Angeles Times, Essence magazine, and Blackboard magazine. As a result of Ross' Divine Nine, he was also in tremendous demand on campus lecture circuit. In the past six years, Ross has lectured at over 300 colleges and universities on the topics of the NPHC, hazing, and how black fraternity and sorority members can fulfill their promise.
In 2001, Ross' second book, The Ways of Black Folks: A Year in the Life of a People, was published. In it, Ross chronicles the stories of black people from throughout the African Diaspora. It was selected as a Fall Must Read by the National Association of Black Journalists.
In 2005, Ross' third book and fiction debut, Friends With Benefits was published. Friends With Benefits was chosen as a main selection by Doubleday's Black Expressions Book Club.
Ross has appeared as a guest on many shows such as NPR, Good Morning Atlanta, and has been interviewed in Ebony magazine, Savoy magazine, Essence magazine, the Los Angeles Times, Africana.com, and The Times among others.
Ross is currently an MFA student at the UCLA School of Theater Film and Television studying screenwriting. He is also the founder of the first literary social networking website, TheYack
Ross is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha, the first intercollegiate Greek-letter fraternity established for African Americans.
