University of North Alabama Honors its First Black Graduate

The University of North Alabama is awarding an honorary doctorate to Wendell Wilkie Gunn. He is the first African American to earn a degree from what is now the University of North Alabama.

On June 11, 1963, Alabama Governor George Wallace made his infamous stand in the schoolhouse door defying the federal government’s order to integrate the University of Alabama at Tuscaloosa. Wallace was forced to step aside by federalized National Guard troops and allow Vivian Malone Jones and James Hood to register for classes.

Wendell Wilkie Gunn, an African American student at historically Black Tennessee State University, was emboldened by the successful racial integration at the University of Alabama at Tuscaloosa, and sought admission to the then all-White Florence State College. In a case that lasted only 10 minutes, Gunn, with the help of famed civil rights attorney Fred Gray, obtained a court order demanding that he be allowed to enroll. He did so on September 11, 1963. Gunn graduated in 1965 with bachelor’s degree in mathematics and chemistry. Gunn went on to earn an MBA at the University of Chicago.

Gunn later became a vice president at Chase Manhattan Bank, director of investor relations for Pepsico, and an assistant professor of finance at Texas Southern University in Houston. In 1982, he was appointed by President Reagan as assistant director for commerce and trade in the Office of Policy Development at the White House.

Today, the University of North Alabama enrolls just over 6,000 undergraduate students. African Americans are 14 percent of the student body, according to the latest U.S. Department of Education data.

Related Articles

Leave a Reply

Get the JBHE Weekly Bulletin

Receive our weekly email newsletter delivered to your inbox

Latest News

Higher Education Gifts or Grants of Interest to African Americans

Here is this week’s news of grants or gifts to historically Black colleges and universities or for programs of particular interest to African Americans in higher education.

In Memoriam: William Strickland, 1937-2024

Strickland spent his lifetime dedicated to advancing civil rights and Black political representation. For four decades, he served as a professor of political science at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where he taught courses on Black history and the civil rights movement.

UCLA and Charles Drew University of Medicine Receive Funding to Support Equity in Neuroscience

Through $9.8 million in funding, the Dana Foundation will establish the UCLA-CDU Dana Center for Neuroscience & Society, which aims to gain a better understanding of the neuroscience needs of historically underrepresented communities in Los Angeles.

American Academy of Physician Associates Launches Program to Increase Diversity in the Field

"Increasing the representation of healthcare providers from historically marginalized communities is of utmost importance for improving health outcomes in all patients,” said Jennifer M. Orozco, chief medical officer of the American Academy of Physician Associates.

Featured Jobs