Born in 1910, Dr. Jackson served as the associate dean of the English graduate school from 1973-1981 and was instrumental in bringing in African American literature into the department. After his retirement in 1981, Dr. Jackson remained in Chapel Hill until he passed away on May 1, 2000. Jackson Hall was named after Roberta and Blyden Jackson in 1992 amidst the campus struggle to build a black cultural center.
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George Moses Horton
George Moses Horton (c. 1797-c. 1883) published his first book of poetry, The Hope of Liberty, in 1829 while enslaved on a Chatham County, North Carolina, farm. He is the only person to publish a book while enslaved; he hoped that book sales would buy his freedom. Horton often went to Chapel Hill to sell produce and, while there, several UNC students paid him for poems to give to their girlfriends.
John Turner
Rebecca Clark
Rebecca Clark (1915-2009) was active in promoting social and economic justice for the University’s African American staff and Chapel Hill’s Northside community.
Kennon Cheek
Kennon Cheek (c.1890-1940) was a janitor in Venable Hall and helped found the Janitor’s Association in 1930.
Sonja Haynes Stone
Sonja Haynes Stone (1938-1991) came to UNC in 1974 to lead the Curriculum in Afro-American Studies. Stone was a favorite professor to many students; she received the Class of 1990s Favorite Faculty Award and was the first recipient of the General Alumni Associations Outstanding Black Faculty Award. Before UNC, she worked in the Northeastern Illinois University Department of Inner City Studies.
Roberta Jackson
Dr. Roberta Jackson (1920-1999) and her husband Dr. Blyden Jackson are the namesakes for Jackson Hall. She was a distinguished professor who became the first African-American woman to earn tenure at UNC, assisted with the diversification of university faculty, and is credited with making minority students feel more at home in the campus atmosphere. Jackson Hall was built in 1942 and is presently used by the admissions department. It was named amidst the campus struggle to build a black cultural center.