Today In Black History
Dr. Eva Beatrice Dykes, 1st African American woman to receive a Ph.D. in English
Issue #549 Today In Black History, Friday, March 29, 2024
Today’s Black History WOW!
Dr. Eva Beatrice Dykes was born on August 13, 1893, and was a trailblazing educator, scholar, and minister who made significant contributions to both academia and the African-American community.
Dr. Dykes' academic achievements were impressive. After earning her Bachelor's degree from Howard University in 1914, she continued her studies at Radcliffe College, where she received her Master's degree in 1920. She then went on to earn her Ph.D. in English from Radcliffe in 1921, making her the first African-American woman to achieve this status. She was also the third of three African-American women to receive a Ph.D. in 1921.
A distinguished scholar of English literature, Dr. Dykes foregrounded white authors’ little-discussed views on race and slavery and elevated the prose, poetry, and songs of Black writers.
While at Howard University Dr. Dykes pledged the Delta Sigma Theta, Inc. Sorority.
In 1920 Dr. Dykes joined the Seventh-day Adventist Church, and in 1944 she joined the faculty of the small and unaccredited Seventh-day Adventist Oakwood College in Huntsville, Alabama, as the Chair of the English Department. She was the first staff member at Oakwood to hold a doctoral qualification and was instrumental in assisting the college to gain accreditation.
At Oakwood, where she taught from 1944 until 1968, Dr. Dykes served as chair of the English department and the Division of Humanities and played a key role in securing accreditation for the institution in 1958.
An accomplished musician, Dr. Dykes also founded the Aeolians of Oakwood University, now a world-renowned choir recognized as an authoritative chorus specializing in Negro spirituals and work songs.
In honor of her contributions, Dr. Dykes has been posthumously recognized for her achievements. In 1978, she was inducted into the Women's Hall of Fame at Bennett College, where she had previously served as a faculty member earlier.
In 1973 the Oakwood College library was named in her honor and in 1980 she was made a Professor Emerita. In 1975 the General Conference of the Seventh-day Adventist Church presented Dr. Dykes with a Citation of Excellence honoring her for an outstanding contribution to Seventh-day Adventist education.
Dr. Eva Beatrice Dykes died in Huntsville on October 29, 1986, at the age of 93.
Today In Black History
- In 1799, New York passed the gradual abolition of slavery saying the children of enslaved mothers were born free but still owed free service to masters until they were 25 for females and 28 for males.
- In 1898, Black inventor W.J. Ballot received a patent for a combined hat rack and table.
- In 1904, Black inventor Granville T. Woods, and his brother, Lyates, patented two improvements on railroad brakes.
- In 2022, President Joe Biden signed the Emmett Till Anti-Lynching Act into law, making lynching a federal hate crime.
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