Florida State University has launched a new Civil Rights Institute. The institute was created by an interdisciplinary endeavor from the Office of the Provost, FSU Libraries, the Center for the Advancement of Human Rights, the College of Social Sciences and Public Policy, the College of Communication and Information, and the College of Criminology and Criminal Justice. Plans for the new institute stemmed from two alumni and siblings, Doby and Fred Flowers. Doby was the first African American homecoming queen at the university and her brother Fred was the university’s first African-American athlete.
The mission of the new institute is to honor and study the United States civil rights movement and to promote civil rights and social change. It will host speakers and events, curate museum exhibits, develop an interactive website and publications, support education and research, and build library collections that focus on civil rights.
“President Thrasher and I are very pleased to have this important work happening at FSU,” said Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs Sally McRorie. “This joint effort will leverage Florida State’s unique history of civil rights with ongoing social justice work.”
