UNCW & Wilmington College -- Black History On Campus

The Upperman African American Cultural Center on the University of North Carolina Wilmington campus fosters UNCW's commitment to diversity and inclusion, and its mission to offer "powerful academic experiences" through the successful execution of three primary goals: Support, Education, and Advocacy

Admissions pamphlet, 1981

Admissions pamphlet, 1983

Contains 38 digital copies of "The Fledgling," UNCW's student yearbook, from 1950-1989.

"The student paper of UNCW, established 1948."

The UNCW Code of Student Life began as the Wilmington College student handbook with rules and regulations for campus life.

Mr. Ralph Parker summarizes his career at UNCW, starting in 1971 as assistant director of admissions. At this time, he says UNCW had an enrollment of 1500-1600 students. After 2 years, he was offered the position of Dean of Students. After 6 years in that position, he was offered the position of Director of Admissions. Then, from 1983-1996, Mr. Parker was the founder and first director of the Office of Minority Affairs. He had long advocated for the creation of such an office on campus. Mr. Parker discusses projects and initiatives that he oversaw in the Office of Minority Affairs, including the establishment of the Upperman African American Cultural Center.

Dr. Delilah Blanks taught social work from 1972-1992. Her first class was an evening course in introductory social work. Dr. Blanks earned her Ph.D. in health education from UNC-Chapel Hill in 1982. Her earlier degrees are an M.S.W. from UNC and a bachelor's degree from Shaw University. While at UNCW she developed and expanded the Social Work curriculum. She also worked with Ralph Parker, director of the Office of Minority Affairs, to retain and recruit minority students from the region. Dr. Blanks reflects on her students, the classes she taught, and the role of the university in the region. Starting in1988, she has served on the Bladen County Board of Commissioners. She discusses the issues she addresses as a County commissioner. Dr. Blanks has held leadership positions in state and national professional organizations, such as having recently served as president of the NC Association of County Commissioners.

Dr. John Haley discusses his career in this visual oral history interview. He served in the United States Army for 20 years, retiring as a Lieutenant Colonel in 1974. His service included four overseas tours, two of which were in Vietnam. While in the Army, he taught Korean language, military history, and other topics. After the service, Dr. Haley continued teaching, first at a community college and then at UNCW beginning in January 1976. He completed his doctorate in history in 1981 from UNC-Chapel Hill. He discusses his work in the history department, which was located on the 2nd floor of Alderman Hall when he began at UNCW. Dr. Haley's specialty was race relations in the American South, especially North Carolina. He also taught military history, Asian history, the Civil War, and U.S. History. He was instrumental in preparing the community for the Centennial commemoration of the 1898 Wilmington racial violence. Since retirement from UNCW in 2001, he continues to serve the community. For example, he serves on the Cape Fear Museum Board of Directors, and also as the historian for the Wilmington Race Riot Commission, N.C. Department of Archives and History.

Doretha Stone was born in South Carolina and moved to Wilmington at age six. She graduated from Williston High School in 1959, going on to earn bachelor's and master's degrees in nursing at Winston-Salem State University and UNC Greensboro, respectively. Stone worked briefly as a nurse at Meharry Medical College in Tennessee before returning to Wilmington, where she taught pediatrics at Community Hospital. After a time at the National Institute of Health, Babies Hospital, and New Hanover Hospital, she began teaching in the associate degree program at UNCW. She retired in 2002, but continues managing a home health agency in the Cape Fear area. In this interview, Stone discusses the development of the bachelor's program in nursing and the clinicals she implemented for students. She also recalls her experiences outside academics.

Transcriptions of oral history interviews. The collection's categories are Voices of UNCW, Southeast North Carolina, Arts, and Military.

The Burnett-Eaton Museum Foundation is located in the heart of the Wilmington, NC Historic District. The museum welcomes an inclusive learning environment and is charged with the responsibility for preserving history. It is through exhibits, archives, publications, events, lectures, artifacts, and antiquities by which stories are told. The museum collaborates with its community and other organizations to promote understanding and appreciation of diverse heritage in New Hanover County and abroad.

Cape Fear Museum’s collection of more than 57,000 objects sheds light on the history, science, and cultures of the Lower Cape Fear. The bulk of the collection spans the 17th through 21st centuries, with a heavy concentration in the 20th century. It includes historical photographs and documents as well as three dimensional artifacts such as furniture, tools, clothing, and toys.

The Digital Public Library of America (DPLA) offers a single point of access to millions of items—photographs, manuscripts, books, sounds, moving images, and more—from libraries, archives, and museums around the United States.

This organization began with an attempt to undo an act of historical erasure. Professors at UNCW led a class to uncover and preserve lost or forgotten copies of the The Wilmington Daily Record, the African-American newspaper destroyed at the onset of the 1898 Wilmington Massacre.

The Office for Institutional Diversity and Inclusion (OIDI) oversaw the Upperman African American Cultural Center, Centro Hispano, the Asian Cultural Heritage Center, and the Mohin-Scholz LGBTQIA Resource Center until 2024. OIDI and the University of North Carolina Wilmington reflected the shared principle that diversity is an educational benefit that enhances the academic experience and fosters a free exchange of ideas from multiple perspectives.

Connect with alumni in this volunteer group, which operates as an official, chartered chapter of the alumni association and is governed by a set of bylaws. The chapter president serves as a voting member of the Alumni Association's Board of Directors.

The Black Faculty and Staff Association (BFSA) of the University of North Carolina Wilmington is dedicated to improving the quality of the Black experience at UNCW by fostering a campus climate that is inviting, unified, encouraging, and that promotes upward mobility.