Jarvis Christian College, the historically Black educational institution in Hawkins, Texas, has announced that the grand opening of the college’s African-American Museum will occur on February 8.
The new museum will feature the Rodney Lamar Atkins Collection. Atkins, who is the director of the Olin Library at the college, has been collecting memorabilia for 30 years. The exhibit will feature more than 200 pieces from his collection, including items from Negro League baseball, figurines, rare photos, farming equipment, and kitchen utensils relating to African American life in the early twentieth century.
According to the latest U.S. Department of Education figures, Jarvis Christian College enrolls more than 800 undergraduates students in associate’s and bachelor’s degree programs. African Americans make up 83 percent of the student body.
