Pioneering Staff Member Walter C. Carrington honored at Harvard



Carrington was one of the original seven overseas directors of the Peace Corps in 1961, and he later served as U.S. ambassador to Nigeria.

Pioneering Staff Member Walter C. Carrington honored at Harvard

Pioneering Black Graduates Honored
Harvard Foundation pays tribute to all four African Americans of Class of ’52

Published On Monday, May 01, 2006 4:59 AM

By MARIE C. KODAMA
Crimson Staff Writer

While it would be shocking today if Harvard only accepted four African-American students to a single class, in 1948, four was an all-time record.

All four went on to have distinguished careers in fields ranging from diplomacy to mathematics. And all four were honored at a reception, sponsored by the Harvard Foundation for Intercultural and Race Relations and the Black Men’s Forum, in Lowell House Saturday night.

[Excerpt]

Carrington became the leader of the Liberal Union and a class marshal. He was one of the original seven overseas directors of the Peace Corps in 1961, and he later served as U.S. ambassador to Nigeria.

The honorees had the opportunity to share stories of their background and experiences at Harvard as well. Carrington provided insight into the housing situation in 1948, when the four were freshmen. Black students were invariably paired with each other for rooming. Carrington and Harkless were assigned to Hollis Hall, and Hughes and Simmons roomed in Stoughton Hall, while the four Chinese students in the class were fully integrated with white students, according to Carrington. He added that he had not faced “real discrimination” until he came to Harvard.

When this story was posted in May 2006, this was on the front page of PCOL:




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