A dinner and meet-and-greet was hosted by the University of Georgia’s Graduate and Professional Scholars Organization to honor Mary Frances Early, the first Black graduate student to earn her degree from UGA.
Jabari Lottie, President of the Graduate and Professional Scholars Organization, believed that this event gave an opportunity for attendees to learn from other people’s experiences.
“This event in particular, specifically for graduate students, allows for us to see who we are, what we look like, but also get to learn from those that have passed before us,” Lottie said.
Stella Williams Bailey, an attendee, wanted everyone to hear about Early’s experiences and to appreciate the barriers that she overcame when she attended UGA.
“I have her book, The Quiet Trailblazer, and I would tell everyone to read it because those were hard times especially in that era and to be the very first graduate that was of color it was really, really important and she broke the barriers,” Bailey said
As the event came to a close, Early felt honored that people came out and showed their appreciation for all her efforts.
“It makes me feel very proud now to have people come up and say thank you for helping to pave the way because that's what we all should do,” Early said, “We should be paving the way for somebody else and it means a lot to us but it also means a lot to them.”
