African American Studies
Southern Literary Festival Celebrates 85 Years
Held in Oxford for first time in a decade, event coincides with Oxford Conference for the Book APRIL 3, 2024 For the first time since 2014, the University of Mississippi will host the Southern Literary Festival April 4-6. The event, which is celebrating its 85th anniversary, annually brings some 150 Southern writers together for community […]
Mississippi Historical Society Recognizes Slavery Research Group
Group recognized for cross-disciplinary approach to discovering history of enslaved people The Mississippi Historical Society has honored the University of Mississippi Slavery Research Group for its work in telling the stories of enslaved people across the South. The Mississippi Historical Society recognized the UM Slavery Research Group among 15 others that are working to preserve […]
A ‘Game Changer’ for Incarcerated Students
Funds Help UM Expand Its Prison-to-College Pipeline’s Services, Staff and Courses FEBRUARY 15, 2024 BY JONATHAN SCOTT/UM DEVELOPMENT A $150,000 grant to the University of Mississippi’s Prison-to-College Pipeline Program (PTCPP) is helping expand course offerings and services to those looking to transform their lives during and after incarceration. The Laughing Gull Foundation, a Durham, North […]
Criminal Justice Reform Activist Shares Inspirational Story
Burton featured at UM’s inaugural Dr. Jeanette Jennings Lecture Series on Oct. 26 OCTOBER 17, 2023 BY JONATHAN SCOTT Susan Burton, a visionary and inspirational leader of the criminal justice reform movement, will give the inaugural Dr. Jeanette Jennings Lecture Series at 6 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 26, in Bondurant Hall at the University of Mississippi. […]
Princeton Professor is Inaugural Speaker in Meredith Lecture Series
Ruha Benjamin to deliver keynote Oct. 2 at The Inn at Ole Miss ballroom SEPTEMBER 27, 2023 BY EDWIN B. SMITH Ruha Benjamin, a renowned Princeton University professor and author, is the inaugural speaker in the James H. Meredith Lecture Series on Monday (Oct. 2) at the University of Mississippi. The free event, hosted by […]
Historian Focuses on Lives of Black Americans During Reconstruction
Kidada Williams gives annual Gilder-Jordan Lecture SEPTEMBER 7, 2023 BY REBECCA LAUCK CLEARY Many Americans learn in school that Reconstruction failed, but few can accurately identify who failed to do what and why. In the annual Gilder-Jordan Lecture in Southern Cultural History, historian and author Kidada E. Williams answers those questions in “The Devil Was Turned Loose: […]
National Parks Services Names UM Instructor to Humanities Fellowship
Research to focus on African American Experience in Vicksburg after Civil War JUNE 14, 2023 BY CLARA TURNAGE For the next two years, University of Mississippi history instructor Beth Kruse will live and work in Vicksburg, delving into the untold story of Black Americans in the tumultuous Civil War South. The National Park Service Mellon […]
Award-Winning Authors Aim to Inspire Positive Values in Children
UM alumni release second book, offer to help other aspiring authors FEBRUARY 26, 2023 BY CIARA WALKER WILLIAMS University of Mississippi alumni and co-authors Samuel and Freda Narh are on a mission to create children’s books that introduce diverse cultures and spark meaningful conversations. The husband-and-wife team released their second book, “Milko,” about a young […]
Judy Meredith Highlights ‘Blasts from the Past’ at UM Keynote
Her documentary about husband James Meredith shown earlier in day FEBRUARY 19, 2023 BY EDWIN B. SMITH AND CLARA TURNAGE Recalling several African American firsts as if they happened only yesterday, Judy Meredith connected them to husband James Meredith’s journey to become the first African American student at the University of Mississippi. Before an almost […]
First Black UM Admissions Counselor Brings History to Light
Q&A with Dottie ‘Quaye’ Chapman Reed FEBRUARY 16, 2023 Dottie “Quaye” Chapman Reed (BA political science 74) was the first Black admissions counselor at the University of Mississippi, serving from from 1974 to 1977. Her extensive collection of papers will be on display at the UM Libraries’ Department of Archives and Special Collections through early […]