AVBA Scholarship Fund
Learn more about the AVBA Scholarship Fund and how you can help future students.
Welcome to AVBA!
Current AVBA membership as of July 2025: 8,307
The Association of Vanderbilt Black Alumni (AVBA) was created by Vanderbilt University alumni to connect the Black Vanderbilt community, as well as all at Vanderbilt who are dedicated to creating a supportive and responsive environment for the Black Vanderbilt community (including Black students, faculty and staff), with each other and the university. AVBA promotes Vanderbilt University’s long-standing tradition of scholastic and professional excellence. Are you a member or supporter of the Black or African American community? Join AVBA today and be a part of our inclusive association!
Volunteering
Volunteers are vital to the success of AVBA. These opportunities allow for engagement with fellow alumni, current students and the broader Vanderbilt community. Thank you for your consideration!
- AVBA Mentor - The AVBA Mentoring program is a meaningful volunteer opportunity for Vanderbilt alumni to engage with current students. Mentors are asked to connect with their mentees monthly throughout the program. To learn more and sign up please visit our mentorship page.
- AVBA Regional Host - Do you enjoy engaging with Vanderbilt alumni in your area? AVBA is recruiting enthusiastic volunteers to be designated contacts for alumni in base cities to collaborate on regional programming and events. Please email avba@vanderbilt.edu if you are interested.
- AVBA Volunteer - AVBA Volunteers play an important role in connecting with the university, planning and encouraging attendance at events and driving support of Vanderbilt during key campaigns. It's a great way to stay involved and connected with other alumni. If you are interested in getting involved, please complete the Volunteer Interest Form.
- AVBA Office Hours - Would you like to share your story, expertise, and insights with students at Vanderbilt? Consider hosting an AVBA Office Hours session in partnership with the Black Cultural Center! Please fill out our interest form if you would like to host a session. The BCC will reach out to schedule your office hours slot based on the availability provided.
- AVBA Leadership - The AVBA Board is made up of a President and chairs of the standing committees. See the members of the AVBA Board listed below and reach out to us at avba@vanderbilt.edu if you have any questions.
Leadership
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Doug Murrell, BS’95
President
- Twin Cities, MN
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Jami Cox, BA'18
Scholarship and Philanthropy Co-Chair
- Chicago, IL
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Jillian Fuller, BA’20
Outreach and Communications Co-Chair
- Chicago, IL
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Jesse Giles, BA’03
Programming Co-Chair
- Teaneck, NJ
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Chris Gilmore, JD’11
Programming Co-Chair
- Atlanta, GA
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Donald Horace, BA’91
University Initiatives Chair
- Decatur, GA
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Nicholas Martin, BA’11
Programming Co-Chair
- Chicago, IL
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Angela Savage, BA’94, MBA’99
Outreach and Communications Co-Chair
- Fayetteville, GA
Black History at Vanderbilt
Peruse our curated selection of Vanderbilt archives and entities that document Black history at Vanderbilt and beyond.
Bishop Joseph A. Johnson Jr. became the first Black student to attend Vanderbilt University, and the nation was on the cusp of profound change. It was 1953, a year before the U.S. Supreme Court’s historic Brown v. Board of Education ruling that racial segregation in public schools, including public universities, was unconstitutional.
In the years after Johnson’s admission and graduation, Vanderbilt would periodically admit other Black students. Frederick T. Work and Edward Melvin Porter were the first African American students admitted to the law school in 1956; they graduated in 1959. While Vanderbilt’s graduate and professional schools had slowly opened their doors to integration, it was not until 1964 that the university admitted its first class of Black undergraduates. Those early Black undergrads—Robert J. Moore, Dorothy Wingfield Phillips, Diann White Bernstein, Maxie Collier, Earl LeDet, Norman Bonner and Randolph Bradford—helped pave the way for the Vanderbilt of today.
Black History in VU Archives
The strength of Vanderbilt Libraries’ distinctive collections sets Vanderbilt apart among research libraries. Collections related to Black history include:
- The History of Undergraduate Desegregation at Vanderbilt Collection features interviews focused on student experiences and perspectives on desegregation during the mid-1960s.
- The John Egerton Papers, 1950s–2003, focus on his contributions to civil rights, desegregation, race relations, Southern history and Southern food.
- A selection of materials are also available through VU’s online exhibition 20th Century Civil Rights.
The History of African American and Diaspora Studies at Vanderbilt University
In 1969, Vanderbilt introduced the Afro-American Studies Program in partnership with the University’s Peabody College, Fisk University, and the Scarritt College for Christian Workers. In 1990, the program changed its name to African American Studies, and in 2005 it became African American and Diaspora Studies (AADS). In 2011, AADS launched the Callie House Research Center and the Palimpsest academic journal. Finally, in 2018, AADS was granted departmental status and became the Department of African American and Diaspora Studies.
A virtual exhibit, Black Studies As (A) Movement: AADS-@50 was developed by Vanderbilt librarian Jason Schultz in 2023 to celebrate 50 years of history, growth and influence of African American and Diaspora Studies at Vanderbilt University. Central to the exhibit is the advocacy, community, and scholarship of African American students and faculty. Read more about the exhibit.
Vanderbilt University Campus Areas
Founded in 1984, and formerly referred to as “the Afro House,” the Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center (BCC) was named in honor of the first African American student admitted to Vanderbilt University in 1953, Bishop Joseph A. Johnson Jr. (BDiv’54, PhD’58). The BCC serves to enhance the student experience at Vanderbilt by providing programming and resources that educate about Black history, highlight Black accomplishments, and showcase Black culture while promoting belonging and creating community for all.
The Department of African American and Diaspora Studies offers an interdisciplinary, cross-cultural and comparative study of the lived experiences of Black people dispersed throughout the world from the continent of Africa. They examine the histories, politics, economies, social worlds, literatures, music and visual cultures of multicultural and diverse African descent people in the Americas (North and Latin America), the Caribbean, Europe and Africa itself.
The Callie House Research Center for the Study of Global Black Cultures and Politics supports the research, teaching and public/civic engagement activities of the Department of African American and Diaspora Studies (AADS). The intellectual thrust of the center includes projects relating to internationalism, gender, sexuality, race, academia, leadership, and mentoring. The Callie House Research Center is also a funding source for AADS faculty initiatives, as well as for initiatives proposed by faculty external to AADS Vanderbilt that dovetail with the intellectual focus of the center.
James Lawson Institute for the Research and Study of Nonviolent Movements: Building on Nashville’s rich civil rights history, the institute nurtures evidence-based research, strengthens community partnerships, and equips leaders with the tools to shape constructive change.
The Kelly Miller Smith Institute on Black Church Studies was established in honor of the late Kelly Miller Smith Sr., assistant dean of Vanderbilt Divinity School from 1968 until his death in 1984. The work of the Kelly Miller Smith Institute brings together the Black church community and African American educational institutions as partners with Vanderbilt Divinity School to study and research issues important to the practice of faith and public life in the Black church.
Event Highlights
NPHC Anniversaries
During Reunion/Homecoming Weekend, three National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC) organizations celebrated milestone anniversaries. The Vanderbilt NPHC is the governing council for the eight historically African American fraternities and sororities represented at Vanderbilt University.
Congratulations!
Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated,
celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Kappa Theta Chapter.
Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated,
celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Mu Rho Chapter.
Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Incorporated,
celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Omega Pi Chapter.
HAGOOD Art Exhibit at The Curb Center with AVBA
The Curb Center’s Fall 2025 exhibit, HAGOOD, found visual artist Lanecia Rouse collaborating with her sister and poet Ciona Rouse to explore their matrilineal line, reflecting the griefs, the artistry, the care and the resiliency that bind the artists' family line and defines their experience as Black women in the southern United States. AVBA held a closing reception of the exhibit on-campus on Thursday, Dec. 4, joined by the artists!
Fiscal Year 2023-2024 AVBA Board Received the 2024 Vanderbilt Way Award
This 2024 Vanderbilt Way Award honored the fiscal year 2023-2024 board members of the Association of Vanderbilt Black Alumni—Myria Carpenter, BS’97; Chiedza Chauruka, BE’18; Bethany Copperidge, BA’09; Danielle Lewis, MEd’18; Doug Murrell, BS’95; Chris Nickson, BS’08; and Rodney Williams, BS’01, MEd’02, for their outstanding recent volunteer service and embodiment of Vanderbilt’s motto, Crescere Aude, Latin for “dare to grow”.
As AVBA celebrated its 40th anniversary and history of pioneering programs and initiatives, the fiscal year 2023-2024 AVBA board members continued to grow AVBA programming with new avenues for intersectional conversations and student connection. The Vanderbilt Way award recognizes these members for “always growing together to fulfill our highest potential, in service to society and our vibrant global Vanderbilt community”.
Create a Page in the AVBA Digital Book
See what your fellow AVBA Commodores are up to in the AVBA virtual yearbook ! Create your page, upload a photo and browse the profiles of friends.
Connect on Social Media
Share VU memories on social media and get information on current events.
VUconnect
Add the Association of Vanderbilt Black Alumni to your VUconnect profile. You can select the AVBA group when you are updating your information.
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AVBA Member Spotlight
Each AVBA newsletter spotlights one or more members. View the member spotlights here. -
Alumni Announcements
Share information about what is going on in your life using the AVBA Annoucement Form.
Get in Touch!
Email: avba@vanderbilt.edu
Phone: 615-343-6437