Dorothy Cowser Yancy
Dorothy Cowser Yancy | |
|---|---|
_National_Conference.jpg) Pictured, second to last on far right, attending the 2014 HBCU National Conference. | |
| 16th President of Shaw University | |
| In office September 2011 – December 2013 | |
| Preceded by | Irma McClaurin |
| Succeeded by | Gaddis Faulcon |
| 14th President of Shaw University | |
| In office June 2009 – September 2010 | |
| Preceded by | Clarence G. Newsome |
| Succeeded by | Irma McClaurin |
| 12th President of Johnson C. Smith University | |
| In office October 1994 – June 2008 | |
| Preceded by | Robert Albright |
| Succeeded by | Ronald L. Carter |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Dorothy Cowser April 18, 1944 Cherokee County, Alabama |
| Spouse(s) | Robert James Yancy (m. 1994; div. 1999) |
| Children | Yvonne Cowser Yancy |
| Mother | Linnie Bell Covington Cowser |
| Father | Howard Cowser |
| Education | Johnson C. Smith University (BA) University of Massachusetts (MA) Atlanta University (PhD) |
| Occupation | Professor, academic, and university administrator |
Dorothy Cowser Yancy is an American academic, professor, and administrator in higher education. Her contributions to academia established her legacy of scholarship among African American women. Yancy has earned several degrees, including a Ph.D. in political science and completing the Fulbright Program. During her time in college, she participated in civil rights organizations. She went on to teach at the School of Social Sciences at Georgia Institute of Technology, becoming the first African American to become a tenured full professor. She left Georgia Institute of Technology in 1994 to become the president of Johnson C. Smith University, in Charlotte, North Carolina. In 2009, Yancy became the 14th president of Shaw University and was elected to the position again in 2011 as the 16th president. Her work created technological innovations, increased student enrollment, and campus revitalizing at the universities. She has received awards and recognition for her years of work in education, contributions made to universities, and record-setting achievements.
Early life
Dorothy Cowser Yancy was born on April 18, 1944 and raised alongside her 3 siblings on their family-owned farm[1] in Cherokee County, Alabama to parents Howard Cowser and Linnie Bell Covington Cowser.[2] Her parents did not complete school, but they encouraged all of their children to get college degrees.[3] She graduated from Hatcher High School, a segregated school, in 1960.[2] In 1960, Yancy began college at Johnson C. Smith University (JCSU) in Charlotte, North Carolina after feeling inspired by her elementary school teacher who attended the same university.[2] While attending JCSU, she was an active member of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, and the Student Government Association.[4] Yancy also joined Alpha Kappa Alpha, the first historically African American Greek-lettered sorority.[5] In addition to these groups, Yancy was a participant in the civil rights movement in North Carolina, attending protests in the area.[4] Originally intending to become a research chemist, Yancy would later discover a passion for history[1] and go on to receive a Master of Arts in History from the University of Massachusetts in 1965, while studying to receive a management development certificate from Harvard University.[2] In 1978, she received her Ph.D. in political science from Atlanta University[6] on the same weekend as her daughter’s kindergarten graduation.[1]
Career
Yancy served as instructor of history at Albany State College in Albany, Georgia from 1965-1967.[3] She continued teaching history at Hampton Institute in Hampton, Virginia as an instructor from 1965-1967.[3] From 1971-1972, Yancy served as director of the Afro-American Studies program at Barat College in Lake Forest, Illinois. [2] In 1972, Yancy began her tenure-track career at Georgia Institute of Technology where she served as professor of History, Technology and Society and in the School of Management.[7] Yancy became Georgia Tech's first African American professor to be promoted to full professorship.[2] In 1988 and 1990, she assisted with labor delegations for the Soviet Union as well as Europe.[8]
In 1994, Yancy became interim president at Johnson C. Smith University,[9] making her the university's first female president. During Yancy's term at JCSU, she helped rebuild Biddle Hall and raised over $145 million for the university, which contributed to her recognition as a financial champion for Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).[4][10] Yancy also started the technology program at the university and later testified before Congress in 2000 about the importance of technology in higher education.[11] Through her work, applications to JCSU increased,[10] and the United Negro College Fund Technology Initiative was able to lease laptops, computer servers, and hardware for the university through the IBM ThinkPad program.[4] As of 2003, the only historically black institution in the IBM ThinkPad program was Johnson C. Smith University.[1]
Yancy became the first female member of the Central Intercollegiate Athletic board (CIAA) and later served as the first female president of the CIAA board.[1] She compared her work in the CIAA to being a member of a basketball team where she and the other members must work together as a team for the board to beneficially function.[1]
Yancy retired from JCSU in 2008 and began to work with Federal Mediation and Conciliation Services as an arbitrator.[8] She also worked as a consultant in higher education.[10] Yancy appeared before the Committee on Education and Labor on March 13, 2008 to discuss HBCUs, in particular Johnson C. Smith University, and the importance of university funding from the government.[12] In 2009, Yancy became the 14th president of Shaw University and was named to that position again in 2011, after a tornado damaged the campus.[7] During her final tenure at Shaw, she helped the school get five accreditation reviews.[5]
In 2017, she was appointed as senior adviser to the Morehouse College interim president, Harold Martin Jr. by the Morehouse Board of Trustees.[13] Yancy also worked at the Florida Public Employee Relations Commission as Special Master, being the first African American to serve in this position.[7] Throughout her career, she has written more than 40 articles for academic journals such as the Journal of Negro Education and the Labor Studies Journal.[14]
Honors
Yancy received Outstanding Teacher of the Year from the Georgia Institute of Technology in 1985.[8] In 1988, Newsweek on Campus named her one of the six best teachers in the United States.[3] Yancy was honored in 1980 and 1987 as Who's Who Among African American Women.[15]In 2001, the U.S. Department of State honored Dr. Yancy for being an African American Fulbright Scholar Alumna, after she completed the exchange program in Singapore.[16] One year later in 2002, she was inducted into the Delta of Georgia Chapter of Phi Beta Kappa.[17]
Yancy received the Honorary Alumni Award by the Georgia Tech Alumni Association in 2011.[17] In 2013, she received the Dr. Dorothy I. Height Leadership Award [17] and was also listed in the Hall of Fame in Education in "The Atlanta Tribune".[18] The following year she received the Co-Founders Links Award of the 39th Links Assembly.[18] In 2015, WSB-TV recognized her as "a pioneer in higher education".[19] That same year, an information technology building at JCSU was named after her.[20] During a CIAA tournament in 2018, Yancy was recognized by CIAA commissioner, Katrice A. Albert, for her contributions to education and the community.[21]
Throughout her career, she has received multiple awards and accomplished achievements such as:[5]
| Dates | Awards/Honors | Awarded By |
|---|---|---|
| 1974 | Outstanding Professional in Human Service | N/A |
| 1977 | -Service Award
-Outstanding Faculty Member Award |
- State Committee on the Life and History of Black Georgians |
| 1980 | Named by Who's Who in Black America | Who's Who |
| 1981 | Named by The Directory of Distinguished Americans
Distinguished Alumna |
- N/A
- Johnson C. Smith University |
| 1985 | Outstanding Teacher of the Year | Georgia Tech |
| 1986 | Certificate in management development program | Harvard University |
| 1987 | Named by Who's Who in Black America | Who' s Who |
| 1988 | Named one of six best teachers | Newsweek on Campus |
| 1991 | - Named by Who's Who Among Black Americans
- First black American lecturer at the Academy of Public Administration |
- Who's Who
- N/A |
| 1992-93 | Undergraduate Faculty Member of the Year | Georgia Tech SGA |
| 1996 | W.E.B. DuBois Award | The Association of Social and Behavioral Scientists, Inc. |
| 1997 | -Belle Ringer Image Award
- Inductee in Black College Alumni Hall of Fame |
-Bennett College
-National Black College Alumni Hall of Fame in the field of education - 4-H North Carolina Foundation |
| 1998 | Unsung Hero-Field of Education | Focus on Leadership |
| 2000 | Person of Prominence | The Charlotte Post |
| 2001 | Outstanding Educator of the Year | Charlotte-Mecklenburg Community Relations Committee |
| 2002 | Inductee by Phi Beta Kappa | Phi Beta Kappa |
| 2004 | Harold E. Delaney Exemplary Educational Leadership Award | American Association for Higher Education |
| 2005 | Old North State Award | State of North Carolina |
| 2007 | - William J. Stanley Award
- Horizon Award - Sister Delany Honor Society Achievement Award |
-Georgia Tech
- Leadership Charlotte - North Carolina Women of Distinction |
| 2008 | - Inductee
- Old North State Award |
- Women's History Hall of Fame
- State Of North Carolina |
| 2009 | First Female President | Shaw University |
| 2013 | Dr. Dorothy I. Height Leadership Award | N/A |
| N/A | - Maya Angelou Tribute to Achievement
- Torchbearer Award in Education - Inducted into National Black College Alumni Hall of fame in education - Named by Black Issues Twentieth Century Educator |
N/A |
Personal life
During her time in high school, Yancy was a member of the varsity basketball team.[1] In 1974, she married Robert James Yancy, who she divorced 25 years later.[22] She has one daughter named Yvonne, her namesake.[6] Yancy now owns the family farm she was raised on and leases it to her brother.[22] In her spare time, she loves to garden, cook, and travel.[5]
Citations
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 Gilbert 2003, p. 100.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 Yancy 2007.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Contemporary 2020.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Sturdivant 2014.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Yancy 2009.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Fields 2002, p. 24.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 National 2019, p. 193.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Hawkins 2009, p. 376.
- ↑ Pluviose 2008, p. 7.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 Perlmutt 2008.
- ↑ Hayes 2013, p. 8-13.
- ↑ Miller 2008.
- ↑ Dodd 2017.
- ↑ Bates 2007.
- ↑ Smith 2012.
- ↑ Stearns 2001.
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 17.2 National 2019, p. 194.
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 Keynote n.d.
- ↑ Huddleston 2015.
- ↑ JBHE 2015.
- ↑ Wright 2018.
- ↑ 22.0 22.1 Gilbert 2003.
Works Cited
- Bates, Gerri (Summer 2007). "These Hallowed Halls: African American Women College and University Presidents". Journal of Negro Education. 76 (3): 373–390. JSTOR 40034579.
- "Contemporary Black Biography". Encyclopedia.com. Retrieved 2020-11-19.
- Dodd, Aileen (June 26, 2017). "Morehouse Board of Trustees Appoints New Interim President". PR Newswire. Retrieved 2020-10-21. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - "Dr. Dorothy Cowser Yancy of Johnson C. Smith & Shaw University to be honored in 2018 CIAA Hall of Fame". The Tom Joyner Foundation. Retrieved 2020-11-10.
- Fields, Cheryl D. (August 29, 2002). "Secrets of the Presidential Turn Around Artist". Black Issues in Higher Education. 19 (14): 24.
- Gilbert, Marsha (February 2003). "The CIAA's President Of The Board". Ebony. Vol. 8 no. 54. Johnson Publishing Company. p. 100.
- Hawkins, Carol Hooks (2009). American Women Leaders. United States: McFarland Incorporated Publishers. p. 376. ISBN 9780786438471. Search this book on
- Hayes, Dianne (February 28, 2013). "The Shoulders on Which We Stand". Diverse: Issues in Higher Education. 30 (2): 8–13.
- Huddleston, Dave (June 15, 2015). "Local leaders honor a pioneer in higher education". WSB-TV. Retrieved 2020-10-24.
- JBHE (April 4, 2015). "Dorothy Cowser Yancy Honored by Johnson C. Smith University". The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education. Retrieved 2020-11-09. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - Miller, George (March 13, 2008). "America's Black Colleges and Universities: Models of Excellence and Challenges For the Future". U.S. House of Representatives. Retrieved 2020-10-24.
- "MLK Keynote Speaker 2020". Clemson University. Retrieved 2020-11-23. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - National Academies of Sciences (2019). Espinosa, Lorelle L.; Jackson, Leigh Miles; McGuire, Kent, eds. Minority Serving Institutions: America's Underutilized Resource for Strengthening the STEM Workforce. United States: National Academies Press. pp. 193–194. doi:10.17226/25257. ISBN 9780309484442. Search this book on
- Perlmutt, David (June 30, 2008). "Formidable leader bids JCSU farewell". The Charlotte Observer. Retrieved 2020-10-21. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - Pluviose, David (June 26, 2008). "Presidential Memoirs". Diverse: Issues in Higher Education. 25 (10): 7.
- Smith, Jessie Carnie (December 2012). Black Firsts: 4,000 Ground-Breaking and Pioneering Historical Events. United Kingdom: Visible Ink Press. pp. 147–148. ISBN 9781578594252. Search this book on
- Stearns, Catherine L. (February 28, 2001). "U.S. Department of State Recognizes Contributions of African-American Fulbright Program Alumni". U.S. Department of State. Retrieved 2020-10-21. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - Sturdivant, Christina (March 31, 2014). "Simply Put, Dorothy Yancy Has a History of Leading the Way". Diverse Education. Retrieved 2020-10-20. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - Wright, Mark W. (March 3, 2018). "CIAA shows love, respect to its 2018 Hall of Fame class". The Undefeated. Retrieved 2020-10-21. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - Yancy, Dorothy Cowser (June 20, 2007). "The History Makers Video Oral History Interview with Dorothy Cowser Yancy" (Interview). Interviewed by Cheryl Butler. Charlotte, North Carolina. Retrieved 2020-10-26.
- Yancy, Dorothy Cowser (May 19, 2009). "Dr. Dorothy Yancy". Georgia Tech Alumni Living History (Interview). Interviewed by Marilyn Somers. Georgia Tech Alumni Living History. Retrieved 2020-11-10.
Category:1944 births Category:Living people Category:20th-century American women Category:21st-century American women Category:Johnson C. Smith University alumni Category:Georgia Tech faculty Category:Clark Atlanta University alumni Category:University of Massachusetts Amherst alumni Category:Fulbright Scholars
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